How to Live as a Christian in an Unchristian World

Today is the final sermon in our sermon series entitled True North. The title of the message today is “How to Live as a Christian in an Unchristian World.” How to live as a Christian in an unchristian world.

The year is 1939. You were a German citizen six years ago when Adolf Hitler came into power. You have watched with growing horror as he has systematically attempted to take over the whole world and exterminate all of the Jews in the process. You have seen your Jewish neighbors, many of them your good friends, being led to death camps, to never see the light of day much less live on this earth again.

In the midst of this turmoil, you hear about a plot of some friends of yours coming together to assassinate Hitler. And they want you to participate in this conspiracy. And you want to take part in that, but at the same time, you know the rules of Romans 13…in the book of Romans, Paul gives some perimeters for Christians of how we should live in an unchristian world and to submit to the government and subject ourselves to these leaders. But at the same time, you know that by assassinating Hitler, you will save the lives of millions and millions of people. What do you do?

That is similar to the mind-set of the first century believers in Rome, living under pagan rulers. They were trying to make sense of what to do. Now you have to agree to me, agree with me, living as a Christian in an unchristian world can be unnerving at times. How did they, in First Century Rome live as patriotic followers of Christ, although they were patriotic to the country of Rome?

I think the better question for us to ask is, how do we, as 21st Century believers live in a nationalistic American society. You see, America was very similar to Rome. Rome during that time possessed Herculean strength. They possessed endless wealth, military prowess. They controlled at that time, the whole known world. Everyone wanted to be a Roman citizen, much like in America today. People were coming into Rome. Patriotism ran deep in Rome. You were excited. You were honored to be a Roman citizen, much like the nationalism of our great country of America.

And so, how do we as Christian live in 21st Century America? Let me remind you as we begin that the country we live in today is not the country our forefathers lived in a hundred years ago. In fact, not too long ago, I know for some of you young people, this will be surprising, but not too long ago prayers were offered before every class, at every sporting event and before every political gathering. That was a day in which our forefathers lived. That is not today.

Not too long ago, the Ten Commandments, the ethical code by which we lived in this country, were proudly displayed in every classroom and courtroom in the land. Today we live in a day and age when many Americans cannot name five of the Ten Commandments, much less all ten in order.

Not too long ago, Americans were universally united and condemned adultery, divorce, gambling, drinking and homosexuality. Abortion was an inconceivable sin and pornography was unacceptable in this country. Today our county allows same sex couple to marry and we call it alternative lifestyles. We allow women to murder babies in our country and we call it reproductive freedom. We teach middle school children how to use and discard a condom today in schools and we call it safe sex. We allow pornography, sex videos and erotic novels to be sold freely and we call it freedom of expression. We exonerate murderers and criminals from heinous crimes and we call it judicial fairness because the victims are raised in an environment that caused them to kill. God help America! God help us!

The only difference between Rome and America is that America has been hijacked from the religious freedom upon which this country has been founded.

Now this is easy for you and I as Christians to have our religious blood pressure boil and cause us to attempt to take back our country with political fervor. And many of you have bought into this idea that if we just get the right legislation and the particular seats of office and if we just elect the right Senators and get the right Congressmen in the right places or we get the right President in the Oval Office, then all things will change.

Let me just say to you, while that may make negligible differences, and that is the key word there, negligible, that is not the road map that God gave us in His Bible to elicit a national reformation. In fact, the Apostle Paul tells us in the book of Romans in Chapter 13 the game plan for God changing the world, particularly through government and civil offices.

If you have your Bibles, and I hope you do, turn with me to Romans Chapter 13. We are going to answer the question, how do we, as Christians, live in an unchristian world. When you get to Romans 13 Verse 1, say “word.” The Word of the Lord.

“Everyone must submit to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except from God, and those that exist are instituted by God. So then, the one who resists the authority is opposing God’s command, and those who oppose it will bring judgment on themselves.”

Father, we pray that You will bless the reading and the preaching of Your Word today, that everything that is said will bring glory and honor to Christ and conform us to His image as His followers. We pray it in the only name we know how and that is the strong and powerful name of Jesus Christ. And everyone said, Amen.

We are going to make our way through Verse 7, but as we begin, let me tell you what Paul is saying right in those very few verses there. Paul is showing us, and this is going to set the tone for the entire message, Paul is showing us that the government is governed by God. Write that down. I encourage you to do so. The government is governed by God.

Notice what he says there in Verse 1 of Chapter 13. “Everyone must submit to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except from God, and those that exist are instituted by God.” Everyone in the language of the New Testament is the English word “everyone.” It means everyone. Jew and Gentile, saved and unsaved, sanctified and lost. Everyone must submit to the governing authorities.

Now this was a hard pill to swallow in the First Century because you have to understand who Paul is writing to in Rome. He is writing to a group of Christians who are being persecuted by a pagan leader named Claudius. Now Claudius, because of an uprising of Christians and Jews at that time…someone said that they were a Christ, a messiah, and so Claudius had had enough and what he decided to do is, he kicked all the Jews and Christians out of Rome for a particular period. It is called the Edict of Claudius.

Since that time, he has allowed the Jews and Christians to come back, but politically it was unstable for anyone during this time. And so Paul was concerned that Jewish zealots were trying to overthrow the government and he is trying to stop them from doing that. Little did anyone know that in just a few years, the bi-polar, manic-depressive leader, Nero, is about to take office and you all know what happened to Nero.

Now Americans like to think that this country is as bad as the world has ever seen. Friends, let me remind you of what happened during Nero’s reign. Nero wanted to make a statement to the Christians of the world. He hated the Christians. And he decided to crucify them and line their crosses on the roads leading into Rome. And at night, just for kicks, he would light the crosses on fire to provide light. That was the statement he sent to the Christians.

When we say that America is bad, it doesn’t hold a candle to First Century Rome. Friend, Rome during this time is as bad as it has ever been. And so for Paul to say this, many people reading this letter would have disbelieved everything that Paul just said because they could wrap their minds around the fact that God would ordain a government, they couldn’t fathom how God could ordain the evil ruler of that government. Like, we understand that the government you are over, but how in the world would you allow Nero to be in office or Hitler to be in office or Stalin to be in office? We can’t wrap our minds around that.

But notice what the Scripture says. Notice what Paul says. Paul says the governing authorities, the rulers are instituted by God. This is what he is saying. He is saying, men and women go to the polls each election year to elect a candidate, but it is God who places that person in the position of power. You elect all you want, but it is God who governs the government. Amen?

I think about Nebuchadnezzar through the years. This is not a foreign concept to the Old Testament. Nebachnezzar was an evil ruler. In fact, he came from Babylon. He ransacked Jerusalem. He destroyed the Temple. He massacred hundreds and thousands of Jews. And for those Jews that were left, he took them in captivity over to Babylon. And so they are in Babylon now and Jeremiah is preaching to the Jewish people and he says this about Nebachnezzar. If you have your Bibles, hold your place, and we will go back to Jeremiah 27. I want you to see it for yourself. Notice what God says about this evil ruler, Nebuchadnezzar. Jeremiah 27:6. When you are there, say “word.”

“So now I have placed all these lands under the authority of My servant Nebuchadnezzar.” That that is pretty odd. God, why would you call an evil king Your servant? Well, He goes on. “King of Babylon. I have even given him the wild animals to serve him. All nations will serve him, his son, and his grandson until that time for his own land comes, and then many nations and great kings will enslave him.”

What God is saying is this, Nebuchadnezzar is my servant. I am the one who put him in power. I am the one who gave him the land. And just as fast as he rose to power, I will pull the rug from his feet when the time is right.

You remember that interchange between Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor and Jesus Christ right before Jesus dies? John Chapter 19 Verse 10 records the interaction. Pilate said to Jesus and Jesus is teaching him a hard lesson here. “Pilate says to Him, you will not speak to me? Do you not know that I have the authority to release You and the authority to crucify You?” Jesus says this, “You have no authority over Me at all unless it has been given to you from above. Therefore, he who delivered me over to you has the greater sin.”

Do you know what He is saying? He is saying God controls the government. It doesn’t matter who is in office, God has His hand on the wheel. It doesn’t matter if it is in the 1930’s with Stalin; it doesn’t matter if it is in the First Century with Nero; it doesn’t matter if it is in the 1940’s with Hitler or Churchill. It doesn’t matter if it is the 1980’s with Reagan and it doesn’t matter if it is in today’s time with President Obama. It doesn’t matter who is in control because God is directing the ship! God is charting the course, my friends. He governs the government.

Proverbs 21:1 says it well, “The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord.” I love that verse. “The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord. He turns it wherever He wills.”

God is not only the One who sets up the government, whether it is good or evil, God is the One who tears it down. Nebuchadnezzar, once again, I hate to keep picking on Nebby, but he is an easy target for this. Go back to Daniel Chapter 2. Let me show you another incident of his life. The prophet, Daniel, in Babylon is speaking to Nebuchadnezzar. There was a prophesy about his fall. And Daniels says in Chapter 2 Verse 20 these words, when you are there, say “word.” “May the name of God be praised forever and ever, for wisdom and power belong to Him. He changes the times and seasons; He removed kings and He establishes kings.” Daniel 2:20.

Daniel summarized one page over. Go to Chapter 5 Verse 21. He says it again about Nebuchadnezzar’s lesson that he learned about God. “The Most High God is ruler over the kingdom of men,” verse 21, “and sets anyone He wants over it.”

Friends, don’t miss this, God governs the government. There are no surprises to God in this world.

Here is the second truth I want to teach you from Romans 13. A Christian is protected by the government. A Christian is protected by the government. It doesn’t matter what government it is, we are protected as Christians by the government. Look at what Paul says in Verse 3, “For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have its approval. For government is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, because it does not carry the sword for no reason. For government is God’s servant, an avenger that brings wrath on the one who does wrong. Therefore, you must submit, not only because of wrath, but also because of your conscience. And for this reason you pay taxes, since the authorities are God’s public servants, (there it is again), continually attending to these tasks. Pay your obligations to everyone: taxes to those you owe taxes, tolls to those you owe tolls, respect to those you owe respect, and honor to those you owe honor.”

In this series of verses, what Paul says is, here is the purpose of government and here is the protection of government for you as a believer. Here is what he is saying, if you do good, the government will protect you. If you do evil, the government will punish you. Why? Look at Verse 4, because the government is God’s servant. Not only is the ruling authority God’s servant, but the government is God’s servant.

I like the ESV translates it, “The ruler is God’s servant.” You would agree in our country we have laws against rape, wife beating, stealing, assault, murder, pedophilia and many other moral behaviors. Government frees the Christian from combating someone who has done something to them that is wrong. We don’t have to go and get an eye for an eye. We don’t have to repay evil for evil. That is the role of government. Government has been set up by God to avenge the wrong that has been done to us. Even a communist dictatorship, my friends, is better than no state at all. I know that will catch some of you off guard, but think about that. Even a communist dictatorship is better than no state at all. Why? Because when there is no law, immorality, chaos runs deep. It becomes a tumultuous time, especially if our country would get to a place where there are no laws. We want government in place.

Now, Robby, here is the question. Are we called to do everything that government calls us to do? Notice, Paul doesn’t say we obey all the laws of the government. He says, we submit to the ruling authorities of the government. Jesus said, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, pay your taxes, pay your tolls, respect the governing authorities.” But if the government causes us to do something that is contrary to the Word of God, we will have a problem.

Here are two instances as a born again believer, when you should stand up against the government. There are two reasons. There could be more but I found two. Write them down.

The first one is, we should resist the government when the government encourages us to engage in sin. We should always resist any governing authority when they encourage us or require us to engage in sin. If they ask us to lie for someone, to bear false witness, to forge documents or falsify records, it is always wrong. And if that is the case, we should abstain from that and resist government.

The second instance when we should stand up against government is when the authorities violate God’s Word or call us to do the same. When the authorities call us to violate God’s Word, we should resist them.

Let me give you an instance in the New Testament. Go to Acts Chapter 4. The apostles are preaching about Jesus and the ruling authorities at that time called them in. Look at Verse 17 of Acts 4. “But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name. So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John answered them, ‘Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than God, you just judge; for we cannot be speak of what we have seen and heard. And so they let them go again with this starch warning, with this stern warning, don’t preach about Jesus Christ.

Well, the next chapter, they get themselves in trouble again. Same scenario. Different time period. They pull them in. Chapter 5 Verse 28. “We strictly charge you not to teach in this name. What part of the first conversation did you guys not get? Yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you intend to bring this man’s blood upon us (that is Jesus’ blood.) “But Peter and the apostles answered, ‘We must obey God rather than men.”

Friends, our allegiance is first and foremost to God and second to government. Now the days are getting darker and the consequences are getting greater for Christians who are speaking up for Biblical principles of the Word of God. And there are going to be consequences for people like you and I who speak up for the truth in a dark world, amen? That is exactly what was happening in Germany when the pastors started to realize, evangelical pastors started to realize that it was clear that Hitler was propagating a system of corruption and greed.

Pastor Martin Neomarler started to preach from his pulpit the truth of God which was against the government at that time. He was arrested naturally and put in prison for his preaching. They didn’t give him a time of getting out. They gave him no trial, they just imprisoned him. And the prison chaplain was visiting the prisoners and came across Pastor Neomarler and asked him rather foolishly this question, What brings you here, Pastor? Why are you in prison? To which Neomarler angrily replied, “the question is, Brother, why are you not in prison?” The question is, why are you not in prison?

It is never easy, friends, to stand up for what is right, but Jesus said, you will always be rewarded for it. You will always rewarded for it.

So we see, first of all, that God governs the government. Secondly, we understand from the Word of God that a Christian is protected by the government. Thirdly, I want to divert from this text and pick up another text and that is Philippians 3:20. And I want to show you that a Christian’s citizenship is in heaven.

Your citizenship, as a Christian, is in heaven. Philippians 3. Paul just got finished a discourse about his own life, how he counted everything loss in view of the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus, his Lord. He counted all things as rubbish to gain Christ and be found in Him. And then he gets to Verse 20, “But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like His glorious body, by the power that enables Him even to subject all things to Himself.”

Paul carefully selected that word “citizenship.” It means to have allegiance to a group, a specific group. Citizenship for a Christian is not one of earthly implications, but we belong to a heavenly kingdom.

When I traveled to the Middle East a few weeks ago, our team was keenly aware of the fact that we weren’t from that area. In fact, when we presented our passports and our visas, we were reminded that we didn’t reside there. And they reminded us that we had a short stay there. We weren’t citizens of that country. When we got there, we realized that our citizenship was from another country. And when we got home, we appreciated the citizenship we have here in America.

One of the things we understand is, as Christians, is that we don’t belong here. When we were born again, God gave us a visa to come to this earth, to return back to that from which we came from. And so what He says is to us, we shouldn’t live as though we reside here or we are remaining here, knowing that we are going to go back to Him.

You have to understand, when Paul said to the church at Philippi, your citizenship is in heaven, that was a shot across the bow. These were red-blooded Roman citizens. They were fervent, they were patriotic to Rome. And so when Paul says, you guys don’t belong here; in fact, your citizenship is in heaven, it would have been much similar to saying to patriotic Americans today, yes, you are from America; yes, you are from Rome, but your citizenship is in heaven now. You are following another King. Your allegiance is to another Kingdom.

An unknown writer commented on Paul’s use of this term “citizenship” in Philippians Chapter 3 and he wrote in his epistle to Dionetus about a Christian’s character and conduct in a lost world. Here is what he says, he says, “Yes, Christians should not severe themselves from others. Neither indwelling nor language. They inhabit their own fatherland, but they do so as foreigners. They do whatever is their duty as citizens and yet they suffer all things as aliens. They live in the flesh, but not according to the flesh. They dwell on the earth, but they live in heaven. They obey the existing laws, but by their conduct, they exalt themselves above the laws. They are poor, yet many of them become rich. They dwell in the world and yet they are not of the world. They are seen as dwellers in the world, but their true life is unseen. They are hated of the world, although they are benefiting it by contending with its evil. Such is the noble office assigned by God to His people and they dare not decline it.”

Do you know what this writer of this epistle is saying to us? Simply this. This world is not your home. Let me say that again. It is easy to amen that, but do we believe that. This world is not your home! So it is time for us as Christians to stop living like it. This world is not our home.

And so, Robby, what does it mean to live in this world and not be of this world? Paul, in another letter, describes what I think he intended in Philippians 3 when he describes the ministry of a Christian in an unchristian world. Go to II Corinthians Chapter 5. Go the left a few books. II Corinthians Chapter 5 Verse 17 is a familiar passage to us. But I want to get to Verse 20.

Paul says, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away; behold the new has come. And this is from God, who through Christ, reconciled us to Himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation. That is in Christ, God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.” Here is it, “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making His appeal through us.” That word, “ambassadors” is the key word in the text.

I want to spend a little time and explain it. It describes someone who is sent with a message. And so when God called you out of darkness into His glorious light as a born-again believer, He called you out of something to commission you back into something with a message. And the message is, be reconciled to God. So He calls you out of the hostility of this world and He sends you back into the world with the message of peace.

Warren Wiersbe, the great commentator and pastor, said this of this word. He said, “In ancient Rome, there were two kinds of provinces. There was the senatorial province and the imperial province.” Now follow this. The senatorial province had surrendered to Rome and were peaceful toward Rome. They had surrendered everything and submitted all things. But the imperial province, on the other hand, were in rebellion against Rome. These provinces were against the Roman Empire. So it was necessary that Rome send ambassadors to make sure that the rebellion would not break out. Since Christians in this world are ambassadors of Christ, this means that this world is in rebellion to God. This world is an imperial province, if you will, as far as God is concerned. And so he has sent us as ambassadors in the world to declare peace to the world with a message, be reconciled to God.

Friends, we are not in the world…I mean, we are not of the world, but we are in the world. Our allegiance is not to a country or a ruler, our allegiance is to a King from another world and our citizenship is in Heaven.

So here is the question, have you made this world your home? By your actions and your attitudes, have you made this world your home? Or, have you been living for another world?

Robby, how do we apply this text to our lives? This is a very challenging subject for some of us. What does this look like in our lives?

Let me give you three walking points as we close. Three application points of how to put this message into practice. Here is the first one, write it down if you are taking notes.

Your patriotism should not supersede your passion for Christ. Your patriotism should not supersede your passion for Christ. Do I love this country we live in? Absolutely, as much as the next guy. But my allegiance is first to Jesus Christ.

Friends, you have to remember that individual reform must take place before we ever see national reform, right? Revival has to take place in the individual before we an expect it to take place in our nation. Let us stop thinking that if we get the right person in the right seats and the right house or the right congressman in Congress or the right political party in the White House that things will change spiritually. No. Friends, will change seriously in this country when we get our hearts right before a Holy God! We don’t need in this country a Political solution, we need a prayer solution. We need people to get right before God.

I want you to notice, Paul never told the early believers to go reform the government. Paul told the early believers to go hard after God. He said, you want to change the nation, you follow Jesus, you be holy as
God is holy. Jesus never told the Jewish people, go save Israel. He said, go make disciples. That is what He said.

I was reading one author, an historian who wrote about a Christian perspective on their political involvement today. His name is John Seal. He talked about the problem in America. He said, “To politicalize faith not only blurs our priorities, but it weakens our loyalties. Our primary citizenship is not on earth, it is in heaven. Though few evangelicals would deny this truth in theory, the language of our spiritual citizenship frequently gets wrapped in red, white and blue. Rather than acting as resident aliens of a heavenly kingdom, too often we sound and act like resident apologists for a Christian America. And unless we reject the false reliance on the allusion of a Christian American, evangelicalism will continue to distort the gospel and thwart a genuine Biblical identity in the believer. American evangelicalism is now covered by layer and layers of historically shaped attitude that have obscured the original Biblical message.”

I want to say this to you with great humility today. God does not want us to save America. God wants us to make disciples of all nations. That is what God has called us as believers to do. So let me remind you, our political fervor should never supersede our passion for Christ.

Secondly, how do we apply this text, Pastor? We as New Testament, born-again believers should stand up for Biblical principles, not political parties. We need to stand up for Biblical principles, not political parties. Jesus, let me remind you, is not a blond-haired, blue-eyed Republican. He is not a Southern Democrat either. Christians must get to the place where we are voting based on Biblical principles and not political parties.

Here is the news flash, folks, the Democratic party was hijacked 50 or 60 years ago. It is not what it used to be. You can’t go to the polls and just click a political party because that is what you have always been. And let me remind you also that just because a Republican mentions the name of Jesus Christ, it doesn’t mean he is a Christian. Let me say that again, just because he uses the name Jesus, doesn’t mean he is a Christian.

Hey, I remember a couple of years ago when we were electing a President in our country and I got into a friendly debate with a man who tried to convince me that Mormons were followers of Jesus and that the candidate we were electing has to be a Christian because he used the name Jesus. And I said, hey, I hate to disagree with you, but his Jesus is different than our Jesus. Just because a person uses the name Jesus, it is not the same Jesus. He said, oh, really? And I want to give you some of the things I told him.

Based on the Mormon doctrine themselves the Book of Mormon Doctrine, page 321, Mormon’s believe that Jesus is the half brother of Satan. Based on Mormon Doctrine, page 192, they also believe that God and his goddess wife used to be people of another world who came together to conceive both Lucifer and Jesus. Based on the Mormon Doctrine and Covenant’s Book, page 130, Mormons also believe that God has a body of flesh and bones and together with the Goddess of Heaven, produced spiritual offspring who now inhabit the earth, called human beings.

Now here is what is alarming about all that. That many born-again, church-going individuals know none of that. For some of you, that is the first time you heard any of this. And maybe it is because we have spent too much time watching CNN or MSNBC or FOX news and not enough time studying the things of God. Amen? And maybe if we spent more time studying the B-I-B-L-E and not the SEC, we might know about these things, Amen?

Friends, if we want to see revival in this country, it has to start with us. Now, Robby, are you saying that we should cower down to liberalism and paganism of the world? No way. In fact, I am saying we should take a stand. The Bible is replete with instances of men who worked through civil offices in order to elicit reform in the country. I am thinking of men like Daniel. I think of men like Nehemiah. I think of Joseph in the Old Testament who God used him through government to elicit a change. I think of men in the New Testament after meeting Jesus, like the Centurion Servant or Zacheus or even Cornelius, the public official centurion who remained in public office after they were saved to bring about change.

Every one of us can take part in political reform by joining one simply thing and that is going to vote. Friends, you know it is your right. It is your duty to go vote. Remember people telling me about what they didn’t like about this country a couple of years ago and my first response was, well, did you vote? No, I didn’t vote. Well, friends, you don’t have any room to tell me about what you think about something you didn’t participate in or have a say so in. Amen?

But when you vote, don’t go there and just pull a handle. Hey, who is running? Republican, Democrat, Independent. No, you need to do research and you need to vote based on Biblical principles and not political parties. You need to stand up for what is right and what is Biblical in this country. We need to vote by Biblical convictions.

Here is the final walking point, probably the most important. God has called Christians to pray for their leaders. God has commanded Christians to pray for their leaders. Go to I Timothy Chapter 2 as we close. I Timothy Chapter 2. Paul tells Timothy who is pasturing a church in Ephesus these words. “First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way. That is good, and it is pleasing in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of truth.”

Do you want to know, church, what will change America? If the Democrats and the Republicans, if Congressmen, Representatives, if Governors and the President of our country get saved! That is the solution to spiritual reform in this country. What is going to reform our county is not a national election but a spiritual awakening. And the thing about Americans is, we need to stop waiting and watching for the next election and we need to have that same fervency waiting and watching for the return of Christ! What if you waited for the return of Christ like you waited for the next election?

Paul says we need to pray for our leaders. Why? Because they have a lot on their plate. And I just want to commend you, church. I know that many of you do pray for our leaders, but let us stop being a people who criticize our President and this office that he is leading and the representatives of our country, and lets start praying for God to direct them and lead them. If we spent less time criticizing and more time crying out to God, we would have more compassion in our hearts toward other people. If we truly believe that God is the One who governs the government and controls the government, doesn’t it make sense for us to ask Him to change the world. Let us spend less time talking to men about God and let us spend more time talking to God about men. Let me say that again. Let us spend less time talking to men about God and let us spend more time talking to God about men.

If we want to see change in this country, I believe it is going to come through a revival of prayer.

So how does a Christian live in an unchristian world? We live as an ambassador from another world. We live as a person who just got issued a visa. We live as a green card holder of earth. We live as a citizen of heaven, a soldier in Christ’s army who is jus passing through this world, knowing our allegiance is to another King and our citizenship is to another kingdom.

Friends, let me remind you as we close, this world is not your home! This world is not your home! And so let us stop living like it. We should be able to sing the lyrics of Jim Reeves’ song proudly, this world is not my home. I am just passing through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue. The angels beckon me from heaven’s open door, and I can’t feel at home in this world anymore.

Our feet may be planted here, but our face should be pointed to heaven. Amen?