Is our prosperity an indication of God’s blessing on our country? Yes, it is. At least, that’s what people believed and what I was told growing up in the 50s.
In those days, over 98% of the country said they believed in God, and 73% were committed church members. Every day in school, we said the pledge of allegiance. In addition, the national anthem played at every school event. When the anthem played, we stood up, hands over our hearts, and proudly sang along.
Life was good in the post-WWII/Korean War era: the economy soared, and we enjoyed prosperity, unlike any generation that came before us. So, not surprisingly, most folks believed our prosperity was an indication of God’s blessing on our lives and country.
We thought of ourselves as a Christian nation. Even our founding documents said we were.
But were we really? Was our prosperity a sign of God’s blessing on our nation, or were we kidding ourselves?
Fast forward 50 years. Our president in 2006 said we are not a Christian nation. Abortion is legal. Marriage is no longer defined as between a man and a woman. The number of people who say they believe in God has dropped to the low 80s. Church membership is declining; now below 50%, and there are closed churches all across the land.
Perhaps the prosperity we enjoy is not so much God’s blessing but God’s grace in sparing us from His judgment.
Our circumstance today is like when the prophet Amos confronted the Israelites.
Amos and God’s Warning
Amos was a simple shepherd in Judah when God called him as a prophet to the northern kingdom of Israel.
Life was good for the people of Israel under their king, Jeroboam II. They had peace, the economy was booming, and the people enjoyed the resulting prosperity. Interest in religion was high, but it had little effect on the day-to-day lives of the people.
After many years of trials, the people thought they were finally enjoying God’s blessing.
Then, along came Amos, telling the people of Israel their lives were out of step with God, and He was about to judge them—harshly!
Amos started by declaring God’s judgment on six of Israel’s neighbors (Amos 1-2). Calling out their leaders by name, Amos accused these gentile nations of various sins against their fellow man. They mercilessly attacked and killed neighbors, sold captives into slavery, and even killed pregnant women.
I imagine the Israelites were feeling pretty smug hearing Amos take all their gentile neighbors to task for their sinful behavior.
But then Amos turned to the Israelites and accused them of being even more sinful than their gentile neighbors!
- They rejected God’s law and substituted their own wisdom.
- They rejected God’s love.
- They made a show of religion, going to the temple and making sacrifices, but their hearts were far from God.
- The courts had been corrupted by bribery.
- They oppressed the poor and needy, causing many to sell themselves into slavery to pay their debts.
The Israelites thought their prosperity was because of God’s blessing. But really, it was God’s grace delaying judgment in the hope they would recognize their sin and return to Him.
Are We Any Different Today?
We look back at the Israelites and think how foolish they were to live a life opposed to God and believe He was blessing them! Instead, they should have seen the judgment coming, repented, and returned to faithful worship of God.
As I read Amos’s account, I can’t help but think we are no different from the Israelites. We think we are enjoying God’s blessing even though we live in opposition to God as a nation.
As leaders, we are called first to obey God in our own lives. But we also must stand up for God’s principles in the public square. We need to stand against all government officials, business leaders, and yes, even pastors who reject God’s law and substitute their own wisdom—essentially, those who make a show of religion but are far from God. We need to stand against those who reject righteousness. And most certainly, we need to stand against those who oppress the poor and needy.
It is time to turn our society back to God, repent, and commit ourselves to Him.
If not us, who? If not now, when?
More Articles
I have written several articles on this topic. You can find them by typing “power and influence” in the search bar. Meanwhile, here are five of my favorites.
- #404: Are Power and Influence Important to You?
- #402: Is Good Leadership More Than the Exercise of Power?
- #390: Are Certain Positional Leaders Destroying Our Society?
- #131: How Space Mountain is Like Following Jesus
- #130: The Higher You Climb, The Harder You Fall
Join the Conversation
As always, questions and comments are welcome. Do you consider our prosperity to be a sign of God’s blessing, or is it simply God’s grace before judgment?
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Category: Relationships | Power/Influence
The country definitely feels much different then when I was much younger. More divided, less patriotic, less faithful, pessimistic. Which is strange because by most markers (poverty, crime, etc) we are actually far better off than we were in the past. Steven Pinker has written about this. Technology and modernity has made out lives much easier, but we have become more cynical, superficial. Perhaps better leaders could help us believe in ourselves again? And more church leaders like Bishop Barron out there on social media, engaging minds, would help awaken our slumber.
Sadly, John, we have a contingent of leaders who prefer to divide us creating feelings of malaise, distrust, and dissatisfaction. To paraphrase scripture, “a country divided against itself cannot stand.”
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