Is there hope for this country? (The 10 Commandments Part 3) Leverett Mass

Thank you for listening to this message from the ministry of Morse Corner Church in Leverett, Massachusetts.

Morse Corner is a non -denominational church that is committed to the preaching and teaching of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Our church was founded in 1896 by two students of the famous evangelist

D .L. Moody. We seek to encourage and edify the body of Christ through the proclamation of God's Word through the ministries of the local church.

If you'd like more information is on our website morsecornerchurch .com. We hope you enjoy the message.

Righteousness exalts a nation but sin is a reproach to any people.

I heard this statement years ago and I don't know if some of you have heard this you can let me know after if you have but somebody said they said if people won't receive

Jesus you preach Jesus but if people won't receive Jesus preach

Moses. I'd never heard I never heard of that it doesn't sound right

I saw some of your expressions you're like this I don't think that's what you're supposed to do. Well here's the thing some people are ready to receive the good news some people they know that they have fallen short they know that they need

God's grace some people are ready to receive Jesus they need you to preach about Jesus but the obstinate sinner who thinks that they're just fine or that worse yet that God actually affirms them and in their sin that person needs to be crushed under the weight of Moses under God's law so that they will then see their need for Christ and the gospel so I actually think that's a valid statement.

Preach Jesus people won't receive Jesus preach Moses but we do we want to focus on Christ in the gospel we want to focus on God's grace that's the most important thing that we have been given as the church to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ that God so loved the world so much that he gave his only begotten

Son that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Look at Exodus chapter 20 verse 8. Remember what?

Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Now this topic of the

Sabbath and how it relates to the New Testament Church we simply don't have time to get in to all the complexities of this so I'm I'm simply going to stick to the main point of agreement that for the past 2 ,000 years nearly all churches and nearly all nations that have recognized

Christ as as Lord it has been almost universally accepted that one day a week one day out of seven is to be set aside for the corporate worship of the

Lord that is Christians are to gather with the church weekly and I'm not talking about individuals here

I'm talking about as a nation how is the nation doing with this? Well a poll came out a month or so ago that for the first time in American history people who hold church membership and it's actually a membership of any house of worship so it's not just Christianity people in America who hold membership to some house of worship for the first time is dip below 50%.

It never happened before but it happened in 2021. I just want to speak to the folks who listen on radio and the internet who don't belong to a church or they don't attend church we certainly appreciate everyone who listens.

Okay keep listening on the radio and online and I think that's good but Christian fellowship is an essential part of the

Christian walk. You know we need each other. We need to be meeting together in person.

It's been one of the big things the past year and a half is that when you have a mask and you know how this is in public you go somewhere and you think that's that person you're not really sure because they're wearing a mask and it's a barrier right?

It's a barrier to fellowship. Should I say hi? What if it's somebody else? I call them by the wrong name but it's difficult but we do we need that friendship, the fellowship, the communication.

We need the encouragement. We need the accountability. We need to heed the words of Hebrews 10 25 which says not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together as the manner of some is but exhorting one another.

We need to encourage one another so much the more as we see the day approaching and we see the day is approaching.

So if someone just to finish that point if somebody's listening online and on the radio and they don't attend a church don't belong to a church we'd like to invite you to come here but you don't have to come here.

Go to a good church that believes the Bible and preaches verse by verse through the

Bible. It will encourage you. Exodus 20 verse 12.

Honor your father and your mother that your days may be long on the land which the

Lord your God is giving you. This is the first commandment. What do you need to this commandment?

It's the first commandment with what? With a promise attached to it. And what's the promise?

Well the promise is specific to again this is specific to the children of Israel. That their days to be long on the land that God was going to give them.

But one way a nation is preserved this is what we've been praying about.

Lord protect our freedom and our Liberty preserve our nation right? One way a nation is preserved is when the next generation respects the generation that came before them.

When you honor your father and mother and again to the younger people maybe if you're in your 20s or really any age respect your elders.

Children young people need to look up and respect their elders and of course honor your father and mother and people say there's gonna be those scenarios where someone says yeah you don't know my father you don't know my mother they weren't honorable people that might be true but they're still your mom and your dad.

It's sort of like when we have a hard time respecting a leader you still are to respect the office that they hold.

So if we want God to exalt this nation or bless this nation we need to honor our parents we need to honor and have respect for the generation that came before us.

So a nation that understands something about respect is a nation that God can work with.

A nation that God can bless as opposed to a nation of rebels and revolutionaries.

Verse 13 commandment number six you shall not murder and this is where more of the controversial issues come in.

The obvious plague upon our land today is how abortion is a billion -dollar industry.

Our Supreme Court claims that it is a constitutional right but it's funny

I can't seem to find anything in the Constitution about that can you? Our nation's original founding document the

Declaration of Independence gives us three examples of unalienable rights.

What are they? The right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. The right to life is the first one and listen abortion seems like a easy solution to some people but there is a cost attached to it.

It brings not only the potential physical problems that come as the result of the procedure obviously the worst of it is the death of the baby but it also brings a great deal of pain and guilt and I say this with a spirit of charity.

God can forgive this. God can forgive this but God cannot bless a nation that continues to promote this and remains unrepentant.

Verse 14 you shall not commit adultery. It's a well -known statistic that 50 % of all marriages end in divorce.

We've all heard that thousand times. Well as high as 40 % of those marriages end because of infidelity because of adultery and it's important to understand that with these commandments the

Ten Commandments are general in this sense that all sexual sin comes under the umbrella of this commandment.

So this speaks specifically of adultery but it refers to fornication which is sex outside of marriage.

It refers to pornography. It refers to homosexuality. Basically anything that is outside the bounds of what

Jesus himself said in Matthew 19 that sexual relations are to be limited between husband and wife.

And again why does the Lord give these commandments because he knows it's very common but he wants what's best for people amen and I know that it is very common for evangelicals and all those things we discussed.

It's very common for evangelicals to kind of narrow in on one sin in particular and to just focus on the sin of homosexuality.

Right and they'll say things like homosexuality is an attack on the institution of marriage or the gay marriage ruling was an attack on the institution of marriage.

You know it was that's true but in all fairness and you know someone might get upset that I say this.

Evangelicals cannot blame homosexuals for the decline or the destruction of marriage.

Straight people have done enough damage to marriage without blaming them. Adultery was tolerated in this country has been tolerated long before anyone has ever heard of the

LGBTQ community. It's our departure from the

Lord as a people. It's our departure from the Lord as a nation that has led to this and it's not even the gay marriage ruling of 2014 that has caused the the destruction.

It's things like no -fault divorce laws and while God again

God can forgive God can forgive any of these things amen but even if every person in America got right with God tomorrow you know what the effects and the consequences would still be there.

Scripture says there is not a just man upon the earth that does right and that does not sin.

So we've all fallen short this nation has fallen short but the good news of God's grace is that there's hope there is hope

I know some of you you turn on the television you turn on the news you look around you there is no hope for this country well

I've thought the same thing there is hope you know what God is on his throne there is hope and we preach this because you say well

I am NOT guilty of this I've never done that well this message in some ways is for the people who have not got mixed up in this don't do it not just because the

Bible says so now sometimes we preach this way well it's because the

Bible says well that's a good enough reason all right it is the Bible says so but again

God gives these commandments for our own good verse 15 you shall not steal that self -explanatory verse 16 it's a commandment against bearing false witness obviously if you do this in a court of law it's going to be a stiffer penalty but it covers all lying and all deception and then the final one is coveting this is where you're discontent you see that somebody else has something that you don't have and you're upset about it and you want what other people have you're not happy with what

God has given you and that's sort of a gateway sin coveting leads to adultery it leads to theft it leads to one sin leads to another thing so in trying to wrap this all up I think you get the point

I think you get the point and how we're doing as a nation well this is one of the problems we're not obeying

God's commandments righteousness exalts a nation but sin is a reproach to any people so I want to leave leave you on a positive note here okay again our nation isn't doing very well and you compare other nations they're doing even worse some of them okay we're not maybe not the worst but that's not the point here's the thing you as an individual you can still flourish you as an individual you can still be blessed by God if we would trust in Jesus Christ and strive with the

Holy Spirit's help strive to love the Lord and show that by obeying his commandments thanks for listening

I'm Pastor Michael Grant from Morris Cornick Church if you'd like to listen to the complete message or you'd like more information about the ministry visit our website morriscornickchurch .com