Punished Nation

Dear Victorious,

I heard one of those screaming black preachers the other day (you can tell I'm white) talking about how God is punishing America for its sinful ways. Such talk just makes me want to puke! How can such nut jobs call themselves Christians? Why doesn't the Christian community silence these whackos?

Anonymous - South Bend, IN

Dear Anonymous,

I'm curious why you would write anonymously. Almost no one ever does. At any rate, there is a real dilemma here for Christians. Yes, these people sound radical. Certainly what they're saying isn't pleasant to hear. At the same time, there is that chance that there is a shred of truth in what they're saying. Most of us aren't ready to agree with them. That's not because we disagree with them. Rather it's because we don't have enough information to know for sure. They are obviously more confident of their conclusions than we are.

According to the Old Testament (which spans an immense amount of the world's history), God's wrath and judgment often fell on entire nations because of the sins of the people within those nations. So it is clear to us today that this is the character and nature of God. There is precedent for the fact that He does punish entire nations for the sins of people within those nations.

So is God punishing America for its sinful ways? The truth is that nobody really knows for sure. But perhaps the reason the Christian community doesn't do more to silence these "whackos" - as you call them - is because we know that is who God is, and we know of America's sinful ways.

We have spent far too many years thinking that America is God's blessed promised land. I imagine most Americans picture Christ returning not to Jerusalem --- but rather they imagine Him returning to Los Angeles or New York! We sing God Bless America and wave our flags and confuse patriotic pride with national holiness.

America is certainly a blessed nation. At the same time, it is a sinful nation. And history tells us what God does with sinful nations --- even the ones He loves the most.