Every month as I’m reading
these verses in Psalm 106 that are before us today, I can’t help but think of
our beloved America. I believe that these are some of the saddest verses in the
Bible and give us the picture of any nation that forgets God, neglects His
Word, disobeys His laws, turns their backs on Him and begins to worship the
gods of the pagan cultures around them.
This is exactly what has happened
in my lifetime in our country. Psalm 9:17 says: “The wicked shall be turned
into hell, And all the nations that forget God.” We have forgotten God in almost every
imaginable way in our country. Even in most of our churches we are preaching a
“social gospel”. We hear “make me feel good” messages. Our worship music is all
about me and my comfort. God is looked upon as “a friend” and is no longer
considered as a holy God Who will hold us accountable for our sins.
We have sown our wild oats and
have forgotten the warning in Galatians 6:7-8: “Do not be deceived, God is
not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap. For he who sows to
his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will
of the Spirit reap everlasting life.” Corruption fills every corner of our
society. We see violence in our homes, in our schools, in the workplace, and in
our cities and on the streets of our nation. “Every imagination of thoughts
of our hearts is evil continually”, like in the days of Noah (Genesis 6:5).
Psalm 12:8 has become true: “The wicked prowl on every side, When vileness
is exalted among the sons of men.” We promote and reward evil and punish
good and it is no wonder we have become a nation of zombies and addicts. We are
“shedding innocence blood” by aborting our babies, and sacrificing our
children, to pursue our idols of money and pleasure. We are now experiencing “hell
on earth” with hatred, violence, corruption, and war all around us!
Psalm 106:34-46 describes how
this happened to Israel as they repeatedly rebelled against God. God in His
grace took His people into Canaan and gave them victory over the nations living
there. The twelve tribes claimed their inheritance and settled down to enjoy
the land and serve the Lord. They were faithful all during the leadership of
Joshua and the elders that he selected and trained, but when the third
generation came along, they compromised and began to serve the false gods of
their defeated enemies (Judg. 2:7-23). The people knew the terms of the
covenant that Moses had given them (Lev. 26; Deut. 28-30), but they disobeyed
it. Instead of destroying the godless society of the nations in Canaan as God
commanded (Num. 33:50-56; Deut. 7:12-26; 20:16-18), the Israelites gradually
compromised with them and then imitated them, including the inhumane practices
that defiled the land God gave them (Lev. 18:24-28; Num. 35:30-34; Deut.
21:22-23; Jer. 3:1-10). They had been "married" to Jehovah at Sinai,
but now they prostituted themselves to idols and grieved the Lord, inviting His
chastening. The Lord brought six nations against Israel and for over one
hundred years punished His people right in their own land. When they cried out
to Him for mercy, He heard them and raised up judges to deliver them from their
enemies; but then the nation lapsed into idolatry again, and the cycle was
repeated. In His mercy, the Lord heard their cries and forgave them (Judg. 3:9,
15; 4:3; 6:6-7; 10:10; Lev. 26:40-42), but this could not go on forever.
Today, may the Lord grant us
the spirit of repentance so that we might experience His mercy and forgiveness!
God bless!
