Analysis. Speculation abounds in the Church today about the condition of our nation. Are we under judgment? Or under mercy? You’ll hear the one thing preached from this pulpit, but over at that pulpit, you’ll hear the other thing preached.
This content is supported by your donations.
Give today.
Of course, there is room for discussion on both sides of the judgment fence.
The fact that judgment is inevitable is biblical. We will all stand before the judgment seat of God one day, and we will each give an account to Him. Even nations will eventually be judged as sheep nations or goat nations (which I believe has to do with how a given nation treats Israel, though others may believe differently).
But are we, as a nation, currently experiencing the judgment of God? Or are we still under His dispensation of mercy?
I personally believe that we are still under mercy. And in case it encourages you today, I want to share why I think so.
Here are three of the primary reasons I believe the United States of America, as a whole, is still under the mercy of God, rather than under His judgment:
- This nation was founded specifically for the purpose of seeking God, and God will not forget that.
When the Pilgrims first came to America, they risked life, limb, and fortune to establish a place where they could seek God without religious persecution. Their fortunes were risked and their blood was spilled in order to create a safe place for holiness. God never forgets a seed — and surely not the seeds of lives sowed for such a purpose.
- God has always spared the righteous when they cry out to Him.
Evil may be under judgment in America, and I hope it is. (And even though we don’t always see evidence that the wicked are being punished, we should keep praying for that evidence!)
However, even if the wicked are being judged, the biblical pattern has always been that God has spared His people who cry out to Him. Think of what Jesus said in Luke 18:
Then He spoke a parable to them, that men always ought to pray and not lose heart, saying:
“There was in a certain city a judge who did not fear God nor regard man. Now there was a widow in that city; and she came to him, saying, ‘Get justice for me from my adversary.’ And he would not for a while; but afterward he said within himself, ‘Though I do not fear God nor regard man, yet because this widow troubles me I will avenge her, lest by her continual coming she weary me.’ ”
Then the Lord said, “Hear what the unjust judge said. And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:1–8 NKJV).
We generally apply this passage to persistent prayer for our own needs, and we should. But beloved, the health, safety, security, and holiness of our own nation is one of our needs too. And look at what Jesus said: “Shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily.”
As an intercessor for America, you have been crying out to God day and night. And we have Jesus’ specific promise that God WILL answer and avenge us when we pray! Yes, it sure seems like He is “bearing long” with us. We wish He would bear “shorter” — and hurry up already to fix everything that is wrong with our nation.
However, friend, don’t miss the point: that God does hate injustice; He is a good God and a good Father; and He will avenge His elect! And yes, “His elect” includes YOU and me and all of us together!
- At least some of God’s people are meeting His conditions for healing the land.
God has laid out very specific conditions for what we must do to see Him heal our land:
“… if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14 NKJV).
It is true that perhaps not all Christians are humbling themselves, repenting, praying, seeking God’s face, and turning from their wicked ways. Hey, it’s also true that not all those who call themselves Christians are even saved.
But at least some people are, and God has always been willing to listen to even one intercessor.
Think about Abraham. When the Lord came down to see Abraham in person and tell him how He planned to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham interceded. And God listened to Abraham’s intercession, acceding to everything Abraham asked of Him!
Perhaps the problem was that Abraham stopped too soon. If he had kept going and asked God to save the city even for one righteous person, would God have done it? I personally believe He would have!
Think also about Jonah. Jonah was sent to a wicked city to proclaim their entire destruction. But these very undeserving idol worshippers listened to Jonah’s message and repented! God saved the city accordingly, even though self-righteous Jonah didn’t appreciate God’s mercy.
Beloved, when it comes to saving a nation, even one righteous intercessor will do the trick. If those interceding are more than one, mercy is a done deal.
After all, God Himself said:
“So I sought for a man among them who would make a wall, and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found no one” (Ezekiel 22:30 NKJV).
Did you catch how specific the Lord was in that scripture? He sought for “a man.” He found not “one.” If there had been ONE person willing to stand in the gap before the Lord for this land, the Lord would have been able to refrain from destroying it.
Friend, it is not God’s will that any should perish — but that all should come to repentance.
Even though I personally want God to judge wickedness and evil in our land, He bears long with us in order to give those wicked ones a chance to repent. The time will come, and may be here now, when their chance at grace ends.
Regardless of God’s timing, however, He is listening to even one intercessor who is praying for our nation. And we have lots more than one! Thousands of people are interceding daily for the U.S. through this IFA website alone, to say nothing of all the people praying in their churches and prayer closets from sea to shining sea and around the world.
Do we really believe God is unjust to forget our prayers? Do we really believe that His mercies have changed from the days of Sodom and Gomorrah? Do we think that only Jonah’s message saved a nation, when we carry a far superior message, since we now have the details of the cross of Jesus Christ?
I believe we are still under God’s mercy.
His mercies are new every day, and His judgment — when it happens — is swift and sure. Furthermore, when God judges a nation, there is never any doubt that judgment is happening. His judgment is rather obvious.
Think about the times when God had to judge His people Israel in Bible times, and shortly after the times portrayed in the Bible. When God allowed foreign kings to come in and destroy Judah and Israel in the days of Nebuchadnezzar and others, the destruction was obvious and devastating. God also allowed judgment to fall on Jerusalem in A.D. 70, when Titus besieged Jerusalem and destroyed it.
Friend, if we were under judgment rather than mercy, we’d know it.
I know times are hard. We are experiencing many consequences of allowing evil in our land. We are reaping the fruit of silence among Christians, for we have been too silent while we watched and allowed evil to rise up in our land over past decades.
But America still stands, and God’s promise to heal her still holds true. I cling to His word, for God is not a man, that He should lie. If even one person stands in the gap before Him, He will spare our land. If His people meet His conditions, He will not only spare but also HEAL our land as well.
There is hope for America, beloved. So much hope. Will you cast off despair and doubting today and continue to watch on the wall to see what He will say to you?
If you’ll keep praying for America, believing God to save her, leave a comment below.
Jamie Rohrbaugh is the founder and CEO of From His Presence. She is the author of Getting to Know the Sevenfold Holy Spirit, and she seeks to equip you to carry His manifest glory everywhere you go. Her resources have been published by YouVersion Bible Plans and in Charisma magazine, as well as on The Elijah List, Spirit Fuel, and various other ministry outlets. You can find free mentoring on her podcast, Take Your Territory with Jamie Rohrbaugh, which is available through your favorite podcast streaming app. Download her free prayer tool, Praying the Names of God: 555 Biblical Names of God and How to Use Them in Prayer and Worship, here. Photo Credit: Canva.