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Written by Sparky Pritchard Friday, 02 July 2010 12:09

On this day we celebrate the birth of our nation and offer our thanks for the privileges we enjoy as citizens of these United States.  There is no doubt that America boasts a “storied” history which is the direct result of God’s good hand upon us.  Exploring the roots of our country reveals the deep seated faith of so many of our founders.  Rising from the wilderness of a new world, we grew and flourished.  After declaring our independence and fighting for our freedom as a nation, our forefathers established a solid foundation upon which this republic has rested for 234 years!

One of the keystones of our rise to greatness could be summarized in a proverb from the Old Testament: “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people” (Proverbs 14:34).  That verse is rich in meaning.  Writing in the 1600s, here is what Matthew Henry had to say about those words.

“Justice, reigning in a nation, puts an honour upon it. A righteous administration of the government, impartial equity between man and man, public countenance given to religion, the general practice and profession of virtue, the protecting and preserving of virtuous men, charity and compassion to strangers …, these exalt a nation; they uphold the throne, elevate the people’s minds, and qualify a nation for the favour of God, which will make them high, as a holy nation, Deu. 26:19.  Vice, reigning in a nation, puts disgrace upon it: Sin is a reproach to any city or kingdom, and renders them despicable among their neighbours.  The people of Israel were often instances of both parts of this observation; they were great when they were good, but when they forsook God all about them insulted them and trampled on them.  It is therefore the interest and duty of princes to use their power for the suppression of vice and support of virtue.”  Another author comments that verse 34 “makes righteousness the key to a nation’s greatness, a recipe that has perhaps not yet been tried, though its converse (34b) has often been proven” (from the New Bible Commentary).

From the beginning, those early Americans believed that for a nation to survive and thrive, it must be founded on and guided by principles of truth and justice.  Righteousness is essential; goodness is its fruit.  When the French historian Alexis de Tocqueville ventured to our shores in mid 1800s, he made this now familiar observation, “America is great because she is good.  If America ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.”

As God’s people holding a dual citizenship (one in heaven, the other on earth), our privilege as Christian patriots is to live in obedience to God’s Word, to be salt and light in our communities, to stand for righteousness in the midst of corruption, to pray for God to grant us grace as we turn to Him.  Peter offers this challenge to God’s people: “Live as people who are free … as servants of God.  Honor everyone.  Love the brotherhood.  Fear God.  Honor the emperor” (1 Peter 2:16, 17).  This is God’s will for us as citizens of heaven.