A Great Nation

5 See, I have taught you decrees and laws as the Lord my God commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land you are entering to take possession of it. 6 Observe them carefully, for this will show your wisdom and understanding to the nations, who will hear about all these decrees and say, “Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.” 7 What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the Lord our God is near us whenever we pray to him? 8 And what other nation is so great as to have such righteous decrees and laws as this body of laws I am setting before you today? – Deuteronomy 4:5-8

What makes a nation great? Military superiority? Banking industry or any financial institution? The market? Government system? Educational institutions? Religions?

Moses answered this question in Deuteronomy chapter 4 verses 5 to 8. Moses was talking about the instruction he gave to the people of Israel centered on God’s decrees and laws that He commanded him. Obeying them is a mark of a wise and understanding nation, and as a result the surrounding nations will recognize the greatness of such nation. And then Moses mentioned the qualities of a great nation.

A great nation is a nation where God is near in their prayer. A great nation is a nation that received righteous decrees and laws from God. And since the goal of the giving of this body of laws, is to transform people’s lives and the whole society, we could say that a great nation is a nation that carefully observe the laws of God. So these are the three qualities of a great nation.

Of course, the calling of Israel as a priest nation and as a light to the nations of the world is unique. No nation today could claim such a calling. However, the reason why God called Israel is for the nations of the world to worship and serve Him. And so any nation that learns this instruction is on its way to greatness.

I dream for my nation, the Philippines to be great. But on the basis of the commands that God gave to Moses, my nation has violated too many of God’s commands. I know that God can work wonders, and transform a nation. But I also know that nations are responsible before God.

South Korea has a great history. The history I like most, which I believe determined the present status of the nation was the 1907 Pyongyang revival. It was just unfortunate that Pyongyang became the capital of North Korea.

And now since you know the qualities or I should say, the biblical foundations of a great nation, and I believe that you want your nation to become great, as Christians, what are your duties?

I. FOR YOUR NATION TO BE GREAT, YOU HAVE TO PRAY.

As I mentioned earlier, our nation has violated too many commands of God. The second commandment prohibits the making of an idol in the form of anything. We are prohibited to bow or worship them. God threatens punishment to those who violate this commandment.
The eight commandment is God’s law against theft. Any kind of theft is a violation of God’s commands, and no man or any institution is above this law.

The PDAF scandal where prominent lawmakers are involved violated this command. They stole money from the people. Perhaps they think that nothing is wrong with what they’re doing for everything is legal. This makes theft more dangerous for the law that should serve justice and should protect people from theft became a tool for plunder. However, the people themselves cannot plead innocence for in one way or another, we participate in this system of plunder.

What I cannot understand is that Filipinos are by nature very religious. Filipinos do pray, and how come we don’t experience the nearness of God? How come the Lord is so far from our prayers?

The words of prophet Isaiah to Israel are also applicable to us: “Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. But your iniquities have separated you from God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear” (59:1-2). So this is the answer. As a nation, our lawmakers make use of the law to steal taxes, and still maintain their religiosity by attending masses and continuous prayer. Our people too do the same thing; we participate in a culture of plunder and yet we still remain very religious. And that is why our nation is still very far from such goal to greatness. Yes, we pray, but in our prayer, we don’t experience the nearness of God; we don’t receive the answer to our prayers for we still remain in our sins.

It is great that in South Korea, though Christianity at present is suffering decline, but still churches maintain the discipline of dawn prayer meetings. The country has so many prayer mountains, and prayer activities. The Christians there do not want the spirit of prayer to decline for this is one mark why the nation becomes prosperous.  As a result, churches in South Korea are sending missionaries in many parts of the world,

II. FOR YOUR NATION TO BE GREAT, YOU HAVE TO STUDY THE LAWS OF GOD.

The laws that God gave Israel are not only confined to them. God wanted that through Israel, surrounding nations would also come to worship and serve Him. To achieve this, instruction in God’s decrees and laws was basic. However, such instruction will only happen if there are people who devote their lives in studying the laws of God.

In the Bible, there is a specific profession expected to be a master of divine law, the scribe. Ezra was the prominent example of an ideal scribe in the Old Testament. Scribes were considered wise in the law of God. Their primary duties were to study the law of Moses, teach it to the people, and even to help settle disputes involving the questions of the law.

Unfortunately, in the New Testament, the scribes were among the strongest enemies of Jesus. Instead of teaching the law of God, they got caught in the intricate web of arguments over technical details. Compared to them, Jesus’ teaching was describe “as one having authority, and not as the scribes” (Matthew 7:29). In Matthew 23 where Jesus vehemently condemned the Jewish religious leaders, the scribes are specifically mentioned by name eight times.

Today, pastors and theological educators are expected to be knowledgeable in the law of God. In fact, the description of Psalm 1: 2 as someone who finds the law of God a delight and an object of regular meditation should be doubly true for pastors and teachers of the word for it is them that teach the people the will of God. But this does not negate the fact that all children of God show delight in the law of the Lord and meditates on it day and night.

So if you want your nation to be great, devote yourself in studying the word of God, both law and grace. Victor Hugo once said, “England has two books, the Bible and Shakespeare. England made Shakespeare, but the Bible made England.” So the Bible is far greater book than Shakespeare’s books for Shakespeare is just a product of a country established on the truth of God’s word.

I believe this remains applicable for our time. The existing crises that we have right now that manifest in the schools, politics, economics, and society are actually symptoms of departure from the biblical foundation of Western civilization.

III. FOR YOUR NATION TO BE GREAT, YOU HAVE TO OBEY THE LAW OF GOD.

Historically, biblical law has three categories: civil, pedagogical, and normative. The civil use of the law goes beyond the jurisdiction of Christian churches into the society at large. The pedagogical use of the law exposes our sins for us to realize our need of Christ. The normative use of the law functions as a moral guide.

Many people, Christians included, think that the law of God has no place today both in the Christian life and in the society. The favorite slogan “we’re under grace not law” obscures the real situation that in fact the threat to society today is not the law of God, but the rule of humanistic laws. They accuse Christians of religious tyranny who advocate the use of God’s law in society. Christianity does not work in the society they say; it is only a matter of private life. They point to religious crusades and other abuses in the name of Christianity. No wonder, Christians feel guilty and insecure.

In fact, the accusation of humanists has no credibility for they are guilty of far more and bigger crimes. In the first 70 years of 20th century alone, they have killed as much as 150 million through wars and revolutions. They failed to mention the crimes of Stalin, who killed more than 30 million in the 1930’s. How about Mao Zedong’s crime who also killed around 30 million Chinese with his policies? The excesses of Christianity is so small compared to these crimes. The accusation therefore of humanists lacks credibility.

The fear of many who believe humanism that biblical law leads to tyranny is baseless. Tyranny actually happens when people refuse the law of God. Gary North said that biblical law does not lead to tyranny for its was God who gave and mandated it. During biblical times, Israel was not a tyranny. It was Egypt and Babylon who were tyrannical for they refused to follow the law of God. Tyranny happens when people turned away from the laws of God. And that is why as a result of today’s departure from biblical foundation, tyranny is once again on the rise.

God’s Grace Does Not Invalidate God’s Law

It is true that no one can completely meet the law’s demands for it is an expression of God’s perfect character. The law of God showed us that we are sinners and our need of a Savior. It shows the kind of life God requires from us, and that is perfect obedience. No man can fulfill such requirement except Jesus. Only Jesus is qualified to save us from the power of sin. And so our salvation is based purely on God’s act of grace and is received by faith.

However, the Bible also teaches that those who experience the grace of God would now have the the desire and the power to keep the law of God simply because the Holy Spirit is now dwelling in them. In Ephesians 2:10, after the apostle Paul mentioned that we are saved by grace through faith, he immediately added that as God’s, workmanship we are expected to walk in good works, and the only standard for good works is the law of God. In 1 John 5:3, the beloved apostle wrote that for the believer God’s law is not burdensome. Once again, the apostle Paul said to Titus that the grace of God has appeared unto all men, bringing salvation, instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age for Christ has redeemed us from every lawless deed (2:11-14).

Conclusion

A great nation is a nation where God is near in their prayer, a nation that received righteous decrees and laws from Him, and a nation that carefully observe the laws of God. And therefore as Christians, since we know the basic biblical foundation to national greatness, it is part of your duties to regularly pray, study the law of God, and personally obey it.

As I have been saying repeatedly, the existing crises that we have right now are actually symptoms of removing the biblical foundation of Western civilization. And nothing best summarized such foundation except the Apostles’ Creed.

Read the Apostles’ Creed, and reflect on its content. Many would still give verbal assent to it, but it is so rare today to find people who understand and embrace the truth and implications taught by the Creed. Take for instance the opening confession: I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; . . .

This confession teaches biblical Christianity. It is a declaration concerning human history. It affirms the doctrine of creation as a historical fact by the Almighty God. If you accept such affirmation, you cannot escape the other related teachings of the Bible such as God’s sovereignty and eternal decree. Other implications derived from the declaration that God is the Almighty Creator includes ethics, law, and society. Notice what John Rousas Rushdoony said when he compared the sovereignty of God from the sovereignty of the state:

“The Creed thus has vast implications concerning history because of its declaration that God is the creator of all things. This declaration immediately makes God the source of all ethics, of all morality, and of all law. In all non-Christian systems, the source of ethics and law is the state; it is the polis, the empire, or the kingdom. . . . Either God is the true source of morality and law, or the state is. If God is the true source, then the Word of God must be harkened to by the church, state, school, and every sphere of life as the one authoritative source of morality and law. ” (p.6).

So if you want your nation to be great, study the Bible. Begin with the law for in it God shows His perfect character and holiness, He exposes our sin, and He directs our hearts to His Son, who will save us from our sins. And then feast on the truths of God’s grace.

Remember, God gave the Bible as a gift not only to Israel, but also for the entire humanity for us to know what we are to believe concerning Him and the duty that He requires from us. A nation who knows and applies this is on its way to greatness.