It’s Independence Day and in this new season of life for us, we are now moved into an apartment, unpacking and arranging. The Lord, my God, has met us at every twist and turn in this journey from Kansas to Texas, making the way straight for us. We are only a few minutes from church and enjoying the immersion and fellowship, God’s presence and His Love is so evident here, we are truly Blessed.
I served in the United States Army in younger days and I love this country as much today as I ever have. We are the greatest nation in the earth and the only nation whose founders were so connected to the Father that they spent countless hours in prayer, seeking the Lord for His wisdom in their endeavor to secure our Independence.
We, as a nation, have a grand history and one that can be celebrated from coast to coast.
I am thankful to God to be here, we had plans to be here three years ago, that’s the difference between our timing and God’s timing. In Proverbs 16, verse 9 says, “A man’s mind plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps and makes them sure.” Amplified Classic. If we had denied God and moved of our own accord we would have been out of position and would not have been capable of answering His call for us in that season, and great was His call.
Proverbs 16 is a great example of how we began as a nation and as we go through a few of the verses together today, it will become evident that our founding fathers lived out the very truths of this proverb.
(1)“The plans of the mind and orderly thinking belong to man, but from the Lord comes the [wise] answer of the tongue.
(2) All the ways of a man are pure in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the spirits (the thoughts and intents of the heart).
(3) Roll your works upon the Lord [commit and trust them wholly to Him; He will cause your thoughts to become agreeable to His will, and] so shall your plans be established and succeed.
(4) The Lord has made everything [to accommodate itself and contribute] to its own end and His own purpose—even the wicked [are fitted for their role] for the day of calamity and evil.
(5) Everyone proud and arrogant in heart is disgusting, hateful, and exceedingly offensive to the Lord; be assured [I pledge it] they will not go unpunished.
(6) By mercy and love, truth and fidelity [to God and man—not by sacrificial offerings], iniquity is purged out of the heart, and by the reverent, worshipful fear of the Lord men depart from and avoid evil.
(7) When a man’s ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.
(8) Better is a little with righteousness (uprightness in every area and relation and right standing with God) than great revenues with injustice.
(9) A man’s mind plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps and makes them sure.
(10) Divinely directed decisions are on the lips of the king; his mouth should not transgress in judgment.
(11) A just balance and scales are the Lord’s; all the weights of the bag are His work [established on His eternal principles].
(12) It is an abomination [to God and men] for kings to commit wickedness, for a throne is established and made secure by righteousness (moral and spiritual rectitude in every area and relation).
As we read through these scriptures, it is easily seen that the mind of man is busy making plans, wether for good or for evil, yet the Lord is aware of it and aware of the condition of a person’s heart, his or her spirit. God calls on people to live and function in righteousness, in His commands, because when we do, then He can guide us into His perfect plan for us, as individuals and as a nation. A godly king or leader is divinely directed and will not transgress or go against God’s judgement and his “balance and scales are the Lord’s; all the weights of the bag are His work,” meaning the king or leader weighs out judgement based upon God’s principles. When a king or a leader abuses his people by going against God’s principles, he or she operates in wickedness and becomes an abomination to God.
When we look into history at the founding of America we can see the classic battle of good verses evil, the godly verses the greedy, and the abuse of the authority of the position of king or leader. In short, we can see how the King of England at the time, misused his authority to try to rule over or subjugate the colonies. We also see that God overcame this by using godly men and women to alter and change the course of this nation and, in the end, used a smaller “militia” (common people who were willing to stand in the gap) to defeat and repel a much larger army (trained in the ways of war) and succeed in establishing the United States of America. The wisdom with which God guided the founding fathers in creating this Constitutional Republic and the necessary documents to reign in the abuse of power they had experienced, making this a nation of the people and for the people, is quite evident and to be celebrated. Most of us know too little about our constitution and the great accomplishments since its inception, evil does not want us to know about our greatness through God, how He has guided us to be exceptional. Evil spends its time promoting the evil deeds that it has done throughout our history as representative of our great nation. This is a lie from the pit of hell. God has made us a great and sovereign nation, it is our responsibility to know and understand our history and stand boldly in our God-given rights written so plainly in our constitution.
In Ephesians chapter 6 it says “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints—“
When you have done all to stand, STAND.
May God Bless you richly this day as you celebrate the anniversary of our independence and may He fill you to overflowing with His wisdom and knowledge.