THE POLITICAL VALLEY OF DECISION

JOEL 3:2,12-14

Life is about the choices we make.  These choices affect not only us but those around us, our family, our community, our churches and our country.  Most of the time we see the results immediately but there are times that years may go by before we see the end results of a choice we made.

When God created man he made him in his own image giving Adam the power to make decisions.  The decision Adam was confronted with was one that has been asked down through the course of human history—Choose ye this day whom you will serve. Deut. 30:19.  The impact of our choice to sever God or Satan is recorded in heaven.  “I call on heaven and earth to record this day against you.”  This decision has grave consequences.  “. . .I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing, therefore choose life, that both you and your seed may live.”

When we choose life, God honors us as we honor him.  We honor God by keeping his commandments.  Jesus said,”If you love me you will keep my commandments”-John 14:15.

Israel was chosen by God for a specific purpose --to serve him and give the message of Truth to the heathen nations so they too could serve God.  God warned them that they were not to intermarry with the heathen nations or to be deceived into worshiping idols.

As we know over time Israel became disobedient to God and allowed the heathen nations to convert them to do the very thing God warned them not to do.  It was easy to conform to the lesser of two evils than it was to stand firm on the commandments of God.  

The end result was God brought punishment upon Israel.  What is sad about the history of Israel is God called many times for them to repent.  God said,  “. . .I have stretched out my hand and no man regarded.”   Punishment came at a tremendous price, judgment was poured out in a manner that left Israel broken, destroyed and seemingly without hope.

America is being given a wakeup call.  We are in the Valley of Decision.  The time has come for true Christians everywhere to declare his and her allegiance to Jesus Christ.  The American house is not in order we have “intermarried” with the heathen we have chosen the “idols” of the world and have forgotten our choice of life over death.   

It is time to side with Joshua who said, “As for me and my house we will serve the Lord.”

America stands in the Valley of Decision.  The Day of the Lord is nearer today than ever before and we will be judged by the choices we make.  How many times must God bring judgment upon our Nation before we open our eyes and repent?

Our Nation right now must decide who the next President will be.  The choice we make will have a lasting impact not only on our lives but the lives of the entire world.  But how can we choose the right leader when the lies cover the real truth.  Hearing the voice of God is what is important.  The problem is that as American Christians we have turned a deaf ear to the voice of God for so long that we can no longer distinguish his voice from the noise of Satan.  We have enjoyed our comfort zone of ease and pleasure for so long that we have lost our dependence upon God to supply our needs.  We have become complacent, self-absorbed and blinded with false-teaching to the place we have grieved the very heart of GOD.

We started down this slippery slope when we felt we must be tolerant of everyone’s views. Our tolerance led to acceptance of the very thing God warned us against.  The tolerance deadened our hearing to the voice of the Spirit.  Our acceptance of allowing everyone to do what was right in their own eyes turned us from the absolute Truth to the gray areas of sin.  The end result is that we are no longer just tolerating and accepting evil we are condoning it.  We have been walking on corrupt ground for so long we have forgotten what it is to really serve God.  God says, “This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.”  We must never forget the not everyone who says, “Lord, Lord will enter into the Kingdom of God.”

This brings me to where we are today and the choices that are to be made for our country.  I am so tired of hearing those running for political office declaring their allegiance to Jesus Christ by claiming to be a Christian and then acting as an enemy in the choices they make.  Many of our political leaders feel it is important to say what conservative Christians want to hear even though in their heart and by their actions do not believe what THEY are telling Christians they truly believe.  I only want men and women to be honest they do not need to say what they think I need to hear—speak the truth.

I find that more often than not their “misspeak” is closer to the truth than their prepared speeches.  Truth is not the watch word of our political culture.  During this presidential campaign we have been fed a steady diet of lies and half-truths.  What is amazing is that Christians who should be able to discern the spirit of Truth have accepted the lies and half-truths as truth.  We have become a nation of “itching ears” hearing only what suits our own passions. 

It is difficult to understand how evangelical Christians can choose to align themselves with those who believe that they can become a “god” in the next life and serve a different Jesus Christ.  It is just as difficult to understand when two Catholics are on the ticket one will make the decision to drop out in preference to the one which is the better supporter of Mother Church and vote accordingly-- that is the choice one must make to be true to the oath they have taken.  Could this be why one candidate is always asking the other Catholic candidate to drop out because he feels he has a stronger allegiance to the Mother Church?  Both men have taken oaths to support their church disregarding the oath they take to support the Constitution. 

I believe it is time that the candidates stop feigning honesty, loyalty and patriotic devotion to the Constitution, and be honest with the American public they are going to be loyal to their church.  Is that wrong?  No.  It is however wrong to mislead people into thinking they will not be influenced by their church—for they will.  Three of the four candidates believe that there is no salvation outside of their church and all others are destined to be damned.  It is also their sworn duty to bring all other faiths to their way of believing. 

So here we are in the Valley of Decision.

We have the choice of a man who has difficulty with vows he has made to God in regards to his marital fidelity.  If his present wife gets sick what will he do?  Leave her for yet a younger woman?  His record speaks words of caution.  I think its ironic so many Christians want an adulterer to run the country but would not allow them to be a leader in their church.

Then we are given the choice of one who calls himself a Christian but by many evangelicals he belongs to a cult that has the end goal of making him a “god”.

Of course, there's also another Catholic that by his life has been more loyal to his oath to support the Mother Church than the Constitution of the United States. His dedication to his churches values cannot be questioned but where will his true allegiance lie with his oath to protect first his church or his country?

The fourth candidate has more evangelical Christian values than the other three.  However, there are those who fail to understand the value he has placed on personal freedom and choices.  He has placed the freedom of personal choice upon the individual and not with the government or an oath taken to a church.  But his ability to replace the present president is daily called into question.   You must convince yourself that he can win against the present president before you risk your vote and you are not sure you are willing to take the chance of losing the election. 

What I know for certain is this, the Lord “. . . changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding: he revealeth the deep and secret things: he knoweth what is in the darkness, and the light dwelleth with him.”  Paul the Apostle says, “For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.”   

Whoever is the next President, will be there because in the greater picture of God’s will he is still in control.  However, you must make the decision as to who you understand will carry out the plan of God.  He has placed before us life and death, blessing and cursing, the choice is ours.  Let’s make the right choice.