America, This Is Your Wake-Up Call: Taking Action on Society's Current Affairs

Today's episode of a new beginning is brought to you by harvest partners, helping people everywhere know God. Learn more@harvest.org and while you're there, browse our library of free e-books designed to help you grow in your faith. You might know why God America is your wake up call.

Like a fire alarm rows as we read more issues we need to respond to the alarms all around, all things are held in our culture. No virus found in our economy, social people that were seeing right now. All of these things are a wake up call to God is shown to me to be notional sleep anything storm waiting I ran alarm sometimes you have to give him a shake loose from their slumber today on a new beginning. Glory points out that it seems the church will sometimes we may be aware of the all God wants us to stand up and speak out with you countries face. Do we have any hope America.

Is there anything you can do followers of Jesus to help our nation turned in the right direction. I think the answer is a resounding yes and it spell the words of Jesus, right here in Matthew chapter 5 starting to verse 13 he says you are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its flavor. Also, would be season. It's good for nothing but to be thrown down and trampled underfoot by men. You are the light of the world. A city that is on a hill cannot be hidden, nor do you light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house so let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and give glory to your father which is in heaven. So we want to be salt. Salt effectively earns us the right to be like. Let me explain. You see salt back in its day was something of great value, and in fact, Roman soldiers would sometimes be paid in salt, hence the term.

He's not worth the salt salt was valuable. Salt was something that stop that the spread of rotting in me they would cut the meat up in strips and they would embed salt in it so to be preserved. This was before refrigeration in the same way. That's what we should be doing is followers of Jesus Christ. You know us Christians that stop the spread of evil in our culture today. It's Christians that are out there doing good works helping people who are in need of the believers we believe or not that's what it means to be salt out in our culture today and another thing that salt does is it stimulates first and if you're really living for Jesus as you want to and being the salt of the earth. You will stimulate in others a desire to know God. Knowledge contrasted to salt and light salt is hidden light is obvious. Have you ever been in theater and someone pulls out the phone and they checked her messages are looking at social media. I mean you can be really far from them, but it lights up so light really makes a difference in a dark place, so salt is hidden, the more subtle light is obvious salt works secretly light works openly salt works from within light from without salt more the indirect influence of the gospel while light is it's more direct communication. So what I'm saying is if I'm salting that I'm living as they ought to live as a follower of Jesus, and effectively earns the right for me to let my light shine before others on one thing that light does is it exposes the darkness everywhere lost something in the dark.

Maybe it was in your car at night you lost a burrito in the world.

When you you look the next morning, then you found it. There was a little light help to locate it. It actually had become a life form and crawl up in the one of your child seats above Calypso for but like Job to find something in the same way when the light shines in our life we see things we had not seen before in John 319 Jesus says this is the condemnation light is come to the world, and men loved darkness rather than light white because their deeds were evil. Everyone who was evil hates the light and does not come to light, lest their deeds be exposed, so have you ever wonder why it is that you'll see that someone wanted to come with me to church. I don't want to do that they wanted to come over to our house and watch Harvest at Home.

What's Harvest at Home. Well, it's a church served on not I don't I don't do. Let me read to our verse on the by put that thing away just one review over sky don't you want to hear why because you just shined a spotlight into a dark place and the reason people don't want to come to the light. The reason people don't want to have this conversation about Jesus as they don't want to change their lifestyle, so the light does expose the darkness, but at the same time, the light also shows the way out of the darkness. You know what I travel and I'm in a hotel room.

I will leave a light on, usually in the bathroom is a need to go there in the middle of the night because it unfamiliar territory that you're navigating and you don't want to trip and fall, so the light helps you find your way through the darkness. If you're in a dark hallway. The exit signs are always lit up even the movie theaters there lit up so you can find your way out.

And so the Lord will shed light so we can find our way out of the darkness and find our way to him. And so I ask you right now are you being salt and light in the world that God is called you into the title of my messages America. This is your wake-up call and I think all the things that are happening in our culture right now are a wake up call. I would include the coronavirus, I would include what is happened in our economy. I would include the social people that were seeing right now. All of these things are a wake up call and God is saying turned to me. Look to me America. This is your wake-up call.

I was in Alaska some years ago with a friend of mine and so I decided to play a little prank on him. I notice a little food trays in front of different rooms. You know from room service of food that had been eaten already.

I took two or three of these trays and put them in front of my friends during the knock on the door and he cannot solve the trays that was my prank so he does he takes an entire picture off the wall and puts it in front of my door. It was so big I couldn't even get out of my door. I said okay game on so I was leaving that night he was staying one more night. So I called down to the front desk and I said hi and I did say I was in his room. This is Mr. his name is Richie Ferree I said Mr. purée in room 204 and I need to wake up calls tomorrow morning. I need one that 4 o'clock and Amy wanted 5 o'clock and so I got my plane the next day forgot all about it. He calls me later on exist.

You know what happened. I said no. He said, first of all, my phone rang at four in the morning.

I knew it was you doing up Frank so I didn't answer the phone. Suddenly there's a pounding on my door and some guy exit comes in my room finished shaking the quick keep me up because he's afraid I'll miss my wake-up call. He said some things just go perfectly. Don't think listen, are we getting shaken right now by God, the Lord is saying this is your wake-up call. Pay attention to what I'm saying you well.

Many more calamities do we need more. We will just turn to the Lord and I might be talking to somebody who is having their personal wake-up call.

Maybe you've had a close brush with death recently.

Maybe you just met with your doctor and he gave you some bad news. Maybe your spouse came to you and said they're done with the marriage. Maybe one of your kids is rebelling other drugs that are having problems. Maybe there's some other conflict in your life you been terminated from your employment. Whatever it isn't something that just got your attention when the rug is pulled out from under you and you laying on your back lookup look up and call on God.

America needs to do that and listen you need to do that we all need to do that.

The Bible says: the Lord while he may be found in the Lord is here right now ready to come into your life and if you want to know more about that right now.

Let us encourage you to go to harvest.org and click the words know God yesterday will have the second half of his message just a moment. Sometimes, we can always make sure here's the good news church is coming to you is coming due on your TV screen or on your tablet or your computer or even your phone. We do it every weekend and it's called Harvest at Home. We worship we have a message of the word of God.

You want to find out more, just go to harvest.org enjoy this this weekend for harvest at all now. Pastor Greg continues his message called America. This is your wake-up call. I believe the Lord could turn our nation around.

There is a precedent for this in the Bible. It's a story of the spiritual awakening that took place in the city of Nineveh, Nineveh, was the capital of Assyria, which was the superpower of its day. It was so big it took three days to circle Metropolitan Nineveh had around a million people living there powerful gigantic city powerful military flourishing economy. But God was about to John somebody sent a man to warn them in the man's name was Jonah course Jonah didn't want to go and you know why Jonah didn't want to go because he was a racist. He hated the Ninevites see as a patriotic Israelite. He didn't want to go preach the gospel to the Ninevites because they were the enemies of Israel. So he reason. Well, if I don't preach to them. They will be spared by God and God will judge them and I will be one less enemy. We have, to deal with, but God wanted him to overcome his prejudice and overcome his racist thinking and go to these people and he actually got in the boat going the opposite direction. You know the story, the Lord sent a great storm and he was thrown overboard.

He was swallowed by a great fish and in the God of that sea creature he came to his senses and got right with God and was regurgitated on the shores of Nineveh and it wasn't a very hopeful message Jonah reluctantly he did he want to do it. Walk to the streets of Nineveh and simply said 40 days and Nineveh will be overthrown, but much to the shock of Jonah. The city repented.

Even the king repented and so the Lord spared them from the judgment that was coming upon them.

So what if you have to do. He had to do what God called him to do so.

Listen to this thought if God could bring a mighty revival in Nineveh with no better representative than Jonah. No more gospel than he preached.

Surely he could do the same for America. Is there any hope for our nation. I think there is. I think there's three practical steps we can take as followers of Jesus number one. We need to infiltrate, not isolate. We need to be both salt and light, because God has indeed dropped us behind enemy lines where not to eBay. This I said earlier, but in day the living the Christian life and looking for opportunities to share our faith. Number two. We need to pray, we need to pray for our nation quote of this verse too many times, but it's still relevant. Second Chronicles 714, the Lord gives his prescription for revival contextually was given to the nation Israel, but in principle applies to any nation that I know people are watching me from other nations around the world right now and I've talked a lot about America but what I'm saying now applies to Australia and it applies to New Zealand. And it applies to China and it applies to Germany and that applies to whatever nation you're living in a we've heard from people from all of those nations were God said if my people, which are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways in the Lord promises I will hear from heaven and forgive their sin and heal their land.

Yes, we would like to see our land healed would like to see America returned to her Christian roots are Judeo roots. We would like to see America turn to the Lord that can happen, but we need to pray.

But isn't it interesting that were told there in Scripture that we as his people need to pray and seek his face and turn from our wicked ways. Are there any wicked ways.

You need to be turning from right now, even as a follower of Jesus Christ.

So number one we need to go out into our culture and we need to be salt and light. Number two.

We need to pray and third and lastly we need to preach the gospel. America needs to hear the gospel, America needs to see the gospel interesting going back to what Jesus said there in Matthew five when he says you are the light of the world that you better be translated you any you alone are the light of the world. There's actually an emphasis on the fact that we are his representative. We are the one that others are looking to let me ask you a question.

What if every Christian lived as you live. What if you were the sole representative of Jesus Christ on this earth would there be enough gospel in your life for people to believe enough saltiness to simulate in them a Thurston of light for them to find their way out of the darkness and put their faith in Jesus Christ. I hope so because this is the message we need to give to others and this is the message I want to close with because I keep saying gospel gospel gospel in your thinking what is that even mean it means good news right so we live in a day of fake news everywhere you turn it speak. Some might think news.

I mean, it's news with the spin news with an agenda. It's rare to just hear some pure good news.

While I have some very good news in a bad world and here it is. God loves you. God loves you so much.

He sent his son to die on the cross for you.

He said, why do they have to do that because you're a sinner I'm a sinner.

As I said earlier everything goes down not up were sinful by nature.

The Bible says all of sin and fallen short of the glory of God and there is not one righteous, no not one. We could compare it to a game of archery because one of the definitions of sin is to miss the mark to God is set a mark for all of humanity and the mark is perfection. So you fire your 10 arrows and let's say that all 10 of your arrows come close to the bull's-eye, but one goes off okay so you missed the mark. Now let's say that I prior my 10 arrows on all of my arrows don't even hear the market all well maybe you hit it more than I hid it. But the point is we all miss. The Bible says if you offend in one point of the law, you're guilty of all of it.

We've all sinned. That's the bad news. The good news is gotta send a solution. While we were yet sinners, Christ died for our sin. The Bible says and then he rose again from the dead in a fall term from that sin I can be forgiven. That's the good news I have for you right now you can be forgiven of all of your sin and you know what God forgives sin. He also forgets I don't mean that the Lord has a lapse in memory what I'm saying is the Lord chooses to not hold your sin against you any longer.

The Bible says God speaking their sins and iniquities will I remember no more Corrie 10 boom one said God takes our sin throws it into the sea of forgetfulness and post a sign that says no fishing allowed. Your sin can be behind you. Your sin can be a part of your past, not a party or present. I'm not implying you won't sin but I'm saying the guilt and penalty of that sin can be removed and then you can know you'll go to heaven when you die, do you have that hope right now. What if you were to die today or tonight. What would you spend eternity was you might say, will no one can know the same job. I actually you can.

I know when I die I will go to heaven. How do I know that because God is made a promise, Jesus said for God so loved the world he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have ever lasting life. If I believe in Jesus and I do I can know that I have everlasting life. Not hope to have it. I know I have it in you can have it as well. It's a gift. And if you want to give to reach out and accept the gift God is offering you the gift of eternal life right now if you will believe in him. Would you like to receive it. Listen, this may be your wake-up call right here, right now the moment where you can pass from darkness to light the moment where you can change your eternal address from hell to heaven, hell you believe in that. Oh yes I do. Jesus spoke more about hell than all the other preachers in the Bible put together the last thing God in heaven wants is for any man or woman made in his image to spend eternity separated from him and help. Hell wasn't made for people. It was made for the devil and his angels, God wants you to go to heaven but he's not going to force you really think it is. I get up to heaven right now young man know if it's a gift you up to accept the gift and then you can receive the wonderful blessing that comes with it. So in a moment I'm in a pray and I'm going to extend an invitation for any of you right now where ever you are to put your faith in Jesus. Some of you are sitting in a house.

Some of you are sitting in a park on the beach, some of your driving in a car wherever you are. I want you to know this. Jesus Christ is right there with you ready to come into your life and forgive you of all of your sent. All you have to do is open that door and ask him to come in and be your savior in your Lord Jesus says behold I stand at the door not if you hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in and him and ask you if you want Jesus to come into your life if you want him to forgive you of your sin if you want to go to heaven when you die, and ask you to pray this prayer after me you can even print out loud if you want a simple prayer. So again, as I pray, if you want Jesus in your life now pray this prayer with me. Pray these words. If you would, Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner but I know that you are the Savior who died on the cross for my sin and rose again from the dead. Now, Jesus I choose to follow you from this moment forward you my Savior and my Lord, my God, and friend in Jesus name I pray today on a new beginning pastor Greg Laurie was an important prayer with those making a change in the relationship with God. And if you just prayed a prayer pastor. Greg would like to follow up with you by sending something called our new believers growth packet is free of charge if you prayed with pastor Greg for the first time today. Get it by writing a new beginning. Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514 or call 1-800-821-3300 and we can take your call anytime around the clock again, dial 1-800-821-3300 or go online to harvest.org. The title of today's message is America. This is your wake-up call and you can hear what you missed online@harvest.org yesterday were making available to resources from the renowned children's author Sally Lloyd Jones a book called near and also something called babies carry along Bible, yes, let me ask you something is the grandfather of five grandchildren who has spent a lot of time with grandkids sitting on his lap reading books to them speak to the person who wants to spend more quality time with his or her grandkids.

Give them some tips on how they can make the most of that time reading something that teaches them about God a lot of things coming to my mind, I would start with this put away the electronic devices and sit down and open about, there's nothing like a book I read some things in the digital format like Kindle or Apple books, but I still prefer a book I love to turn pages.

I lived here Mark pages I love to underline key things and there's something very special about a book that you open up, especially a book similar to the one that were offering and I'll tell you about it in a moment. But here's what I would say to a parent or grandparent on teaching the word of God, your children number one will be boring. I think I think too often, you know, we feel equipped to give them a lecture and it's almost like you're talking down to them, don't talk down to them talk to them and engage them in involve them in the conversation unnumbered to don't go too long. You know I think sometimes those they were going to do devotions with the children so everybody gather around the table and the way it's presented is almost negative. A baby do it outside baby do it in a park, maybe do it at an unexpected time and just introduce it and it's great if you can have a great way to introduce it and I have a resource for you, especially if your children are very young up to around age 4 or 51 is a book written by my friend Sally Lloyd Jones. That is simply titled near and is based on Psalm 139 and it is telling the child about how they're never alone.

God is with them wherever they go. It's written in a way a child can understand.

All you have to do is read it to them or if they're old enough let them read it for themselves. And we also have another book that were including and it's called babies carry along Bible it's beautifully illustrated high-quality hardcover book that will, I think, survive even a toddler, and they can carry it around and read it and open and close it is much as they want. And even if they don't understand all the words they see the pictures of Daniel in the lion's den and Jesus calming the storm and David and Goliath. Another great stories of the Bible and it's a great way to get them started with their own personal Bible, so we encourage you to order a copy of near and also babies carry along Bible by our good friend Sally Lloyd Jones who I would describe as an expert in writing to children. She understands how a child thinks she knows how to speak in a language the child can understand her writing is fun but it's also deep and she has a great biblical knowledge and conveys scriptural truth in a very effective way to people of all ages, especially children, so you can order your copy of near and babies carry along Bible and will send them to you immediately for your gift of any size. Yeah that's right are such great resources. They capture a child's imagination with the wonderful pictures and text and then while they're engaged in points them back to their heavenly father. What better way to spend quality time with your kids or grandkids letter sent you near and babies carry along Bible will mail them your way to say thank you for your investment in these daily studies it's only through listener investments that we can bring pastor Greg's insight your way each day to write us today had a new beginning. Box 4000, Riverside, CA 92514 or call 1-800-821-3300.

That's 1-800-821-3300 or go online to harvest.org what are the essential truths. Every believer should know pastor Greg has a good answer to that effect.

He is a new series called essential begins next time certitude in new beginning. Everybody thinks or listening to an beginning this is a podcast made possible by harvest partners.

So for more content that can help you know God and equip you to make him known to others or to learn more about how you can become a harvest partner. Just go to harvest.org