1 00:00:04,690 --> 00:00:10,189 Greetings. This is Pastor David Bass at New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian Church with a 2 00:00:10,189 --> 00:00:14,810 moment of truth, where we challenge you to think through an important issue of life and faith. 3 00:00:15,289 --> 00:00:24,649 Today, why is America involved in war and conflict across the globe? There is, for example, 4 00:00:24,850 --> 00:00:31,230 our profoundly evil involvement in Ukraine. Now, I've documented extensively the utter, 5 00:00:31,230 --> 00:00:37,630 complete evil nature of the war in Ukraine. I've done it in previous broadcasts, and I urge you to 6 00:00:37,630 --> 00:00:47,789 check those out at our website, americastruths.org. We do have a website where we catalog our podcasts 7 00:00:47,789 --> 00:00:56,429 and radio broadcasts, and that's at americastruths. That's all one word, americastruths.org. 8 00:00:56,429 --> 00:01:02,909 You'll find an entire catalog of our podcasts that stretch back to 2016, really. But in there, 9 00:01:03,009 --> 00:01:08,189 you will also find several spots that deal specifically with the tragic, unnecessary, 10 00:01:08,689 --> 00:01:15,049 cynical war propagated by evil actors in the United States State Department, evil actors like 11 00:01:15,049 --> 00:01:23,829 Victoria Nuland or Anthony Blinken, and then over 500,000 Ukrainian men, an entire generation of 12 00:01:23,829 --> 00:01:30,969 potential husbands, fathers, and sons have been sacrificed on the altar of American greed. 13 00:01:31,629 --> 00:01:38,010 Over $113 billion has gone into that war, and most of it has been funneled into the pockets of 14 00:01:38,010 --> 00:01:46,510 politicians, not Ukrainian patriots and citizens. If you stand with Ukraine, you have fallen for a lie. 15 00:01:46,510 --> 00:01:53,810 Or there is our debacle in the Middle East. Our handling of the situation in the Middle East has 16 00:01:53,810 --> 00:02:00,590 been like the firefighter who mistakes gasoline for water and pours it on the fire, inflaming it even 17 00:02:00,590 --> 00:02:08,210 further. Diplomatically, excuse me, the United States is the bull in the china shop. We're careless, 18 00:02:08,629 --> 00:02:15,789 clumsy, and clueless, and we are operating from a position of weakness, not strength. Or there are 19 00:02:15,789 --> 00:02:22,909 other smaller conflicts, which rarely make the evening news. They fly under the radar, if you will, like 20 00:02:22,909 --> 00:02:30,569 the slow-burning conflict in Syria. We've been fighting ISIS in Syria since 2011, but it's come 21 00:02:30,569 --> 00:02:35,469 to a boiling point in 2014 and has been simmering ever since. But you don't hear much about it, do you? 22 00:02:35,990 --> 00:02:42,449 ISIS has been attacking American bases in Syria consistently since 2023, and American soldiers 23 00:02:42,449 --> 00:02:48,430 are still fighting there. And a case can be made that the Obama administration played a large part 24 00:02:48,430 --> 00:02:57,569 in creating ISIS in order to overthrow the Assad regime and mire Russia in a foreign war. But behold, 25 00:02:58,030 --> 00:03:06,050 look who gets mired down in this endless conflict. What else can you call, as well, what's happening at 26 00:03:06,050 --> 00:03:12,150 our southern border? But a war. And I've documented this, as well, recently in our series on the southern 27 00:03:12,150 --> 00:03:20,069 border called Bordering on Extinction, which you will also find on that website, americastruths.org. 28 00:03:20,129 --> 00:03:26,349 And I urge you to check that out. Well, there's an age-old truth in geopolitics that applies here, 29 00:03:26,449 --> 00:03:33,909 and that is weakness invites aggression. Weakness invites aggression. That's why we are being attacked, 30 00:03:33,909 --> 00:03:41,530 and we are in conflict around the globe. America is weak and has thus invited her enemies to aggress 31 00:03:41,530 --> 00:03:49,870 against her. Either this corrupt administration is naively unaware of this geopolitical truth, 32 00:03:50,229 --> 00:03:56,530 or else has cynically capitulated to it altogether. Which might it be, dear listener, you decide, 33 00:03:56,710 --> 00:04:03,330 but only after considering these facts. Number one, consider this. Weakness invites aggression. 34 00:04:03,330 --> 00:04:09,870 That is abundantly borne out in Scripture. That weakness invites aggression is abundantly borne out 35 00:04:09,870 --> 00:04:16,069 in Scripture. Israel, for example, was strong when she trusted in God, weak when she trusted in her own 36 00:04:16,069 --> 00:04:23,449 powers. The people of God are constantly exhorted to trust in God rather than force of arms. For 37 00:04:23,449 --> 00:04:29,029 example, the book of Judges chronicles how Israel conquered and triumphed while Joshua was alive, 38 00:04:29,029 --> 00:04:35,110 and she served the Lord faithfully. But what happened when Joshua died? The text tells us the people of 39 00:04:35,110 --> 00:04:40,649 Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and served the Baals, and they provoked the Lord to 40 00:04:40,649 --> 00:04:46,949 anger. The anger of the Lord was kindled against Israel, and he gave them over to plunderers, and he 41 00:04:46,949 --> 00:04:52,329 sold them into the hand of their surrounding enemies so that they could no longer withstand their enemies. 42 00:04:52,329 --> 00:04:58,870 The hand of the Lord was against them for harm, as the Lord had warned, and they were in terrible 43 00:04:58,870 --> 00:05:08,610 distress. Unquote. From Judges chapter 2. Weakness invites aggression. Do you trust in alliances with 44 00:05:08,610 --> 00:05:16,389 other countries like NATO? That's in the headlines recently, right? With Ukraine attempting to join NATO. 45 00:05:16,389 --> 00:05:24,329 Do you trust in alliances with other countries for your strength? Ah, Psalm 146 says, put not your trust in 46 00:05:24,329 --> 00:05:31,709 princes, in the son of man, in whom there is no salvation. Unquote. Or how about trusting your 47 00:05:31,709 --> 00:05:38,629 overwhelming military strength, huh? Is that what you trust? Oh, the Bible tells us Isaiah warns Israel. 48 00:05:38,730 --> 00:05:45,089 He says, woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses who trust in chariots, 49 00:05:45,089 --> 00:05:51,589 because they are many, and in horsemen, because they are very strong. But do not look to the Holy 50 00:05:51,589 --> 00:06:00,470 One of Israel, or consult the Lord. Oh, Psalm 20 also says this, some trust in chariots and some in 51 00:06:00,470 --> 00:06:07,829 horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. Oh, there are many luminous examples of how God 52 00:06:07,829 --> 00:06:14,050 goes ahead of his people in battle when they are in a right relationship with him. And one of my favorites 53 00:06:14,050 --> 00:06:21,870 is when King Jehoshaphat set out to fight Israel's enemy, Moab and Ammon in the wilderness. Oh, 54 00:06:22,269 --> 00:06:30,649 instead of horses and chariots leading the army, Jehoshaphat put the temple choir in front to lead 55 00:06:30,649 --> 00:06:36,689 Israel into battle, the temple choir. Ah, 2 Chronicles chapter 20 puts it this way. 56 00:06:37,050 --> 00:06:43,009 When he, that is Jehoshaphat, had taken counsel with the people, he appointed those who were to sing to 57 00:06:43,009 --> 00:06:50,870 the Lord and praise him in holy attire as they went before the army and say, give thanks to the Lord 58 00:06:50,870 --> 00:06:57,949 for his steadfast love endures forever. And when they began to sing and praise, the Lord set an ambush 59 00:06:57,949 --> 00:07:05,490 against the men of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir, who had come against Judah so that they were routed, 60 00:07:05,490 --> 00:07:12,750 unquote. Oh, yes. And then of course, there's the favorite of David and Goliath. This is a trial by 61 00:07:12,750 --> 00:07:21,449 combat that indeed God has the victory, doesn't he? David says to Goliath, you come to me with a sword 62 00:07:21,449 --> 00:07:27,790 and with a spear and with a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the 63 00:07:27,790 --> 00:07:34,550 armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day, the Lord will deliver you into my hand and I will 64 00:07:34,550 --> 00:07:42,209 strike you down and cut off your head, unquote. Strapping youth, indeed battling Goliath. Well, 65 00:07:42,509 --> 00:07:49,509 it must be a first principle for all nations. It must be a first principle for all nations. 66 00:07:50,009 --> 00:07:57,389 The Lord is my strength and my shield. In him, my heart trusts and I am helped, unquote. That is from 67 00:07:57,389 --> 00:08:03,389 Psalm 28 by David himself. Indeed, that may have been uppermost in his mind as he fought Goliath. 68 00:08:03,389 --> 00:08:08,370 The Lord is my strength and my shield. In him, my heart trusts and I am helped. 69 00:08:09,170 --> 00:08:15,170 Oh, when this is not a first principle, well, nations do go astray. They become weak no matter 70 00:08:15,170 --> 00:08:20,569 what they try to do in their own strength. For example, take the case of the Samaritan princes, 71 00:08:21,110 --> 00:08:27,250 Sanballat and Tobiah, who tried to prevent the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem during Nehemiah's 72 00:08:27,250 --> 00:08:33,809 days, trying to subvert his whole administration as it attempted to reestablish God's people in the land. 73 00:08:33,809 --> 00:08:39,950 Well, they tried. Sanballat and Tobiah tried all the political tactics that we see being used 74 00:08:39,950 --> 00:08:46,529 today in Washington, D.C. For example, they lied to the Persian king that Nehemiah was leading an 75 00:08:46,529 --> 00:08:52,830 insurrection against Persia. There were false insurrections even back in biblical times, right? 76 00:08:52,830 --> 00:08:57,970 And when that didn't work, they planned a military ambush against Nehemiah and those working on the 77 00:08:57,970 --> 00:09:04,330 wall. And Sanballat and Tobiah mocked and taunted the Jews of Jerusalem unceasingly. 78 00:09:04,529 --> 00:09:11,169 They tried to lure Nehemiah out of the city in order to assassinate him. Yes, political assassinations 79 00:09:11,169 --> 00:09:18,009 are not new, dear listener. They also hired a false prophet, a living, walking, mainstream media 80 00:09:18,009 --> 00:09:24,950 outlet, if you will, to prophesy against Jerusalem, trying to discourage the people. They also wrote 81 00:09:24,950 --> 00:09:31,610 letters full of lies back to Persia, trying to turn the heart of the king away from Nehemiah. But none of 82 00:09:31,610 --> 00:09:40,450 it worked because God was with Nehemiah. The Samaritans were weak. They practiced deceit and evil. They were 83 00:09:40,450 --> 00:09:47,590 opposed to God and his purposes. Well, pride as well is often at the root of weakness, isn't it? 84 00:09:47,590 --> 00:09:54,269 For example, when envoys from Babylon came to visit Hezekiah in Jerusalem, he gave them a show-off 85 00:09:54,269 --> 00:10:02,029 tour of his palace and the temple. As 2 Kings chapter 20 puts it, Hezekiah welcomed them and he showed 86 00:10:02,029 --> 00:10:07,070 them all his treasure house, the silver, the gold, the spices, the precious oil, his armory, all that 87 00:10:07,070 --> 00:10:11,950 was found in his storehouses. There was nothing in his house or in all his realm that Hezekiah did not 88 00:10:11,950 --> 00:10:18,830 show them. Hear the word of the Lord, was in response then to Hezekiah. The Lord says, 89 00:10:18,950 --> 00:10:25,250 Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house and that which your fathers had stored up until 90 00:10:25,250 --> 00:10:31,169 this day shall be carried to Babylon. Nothing shall be left, says the Lord, and some of your own sons 91 00:10:31,169 --> 00:10:38,450 shall be taken away, and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon. Indeed, the weakness 92 00:10:38,450 --> 00:10:44,970 of Hezekiah in boastfully displaying his wealth, most of that wealth too accumulated under Solomon, 93 00:10:45,090 --> 00:10:53,669 not him. Well, he invited the aggression of the Babylonians. Weakness invites aggression, dear 94 00:10:53,669 --> 00:11:00,470 listener. Weakness invites aggression. Well, in the end, we must affirm with David, the Lord is my 95 00:11:00,470 --> 00:11:06,730 strength and my shield. In him, my heart trusts and I am helped. We see these principles throughout 96 00:11:06,730 --> 00:11:13,149 the Bible, don't we? We must also secondly note, number two, that weakness invites aggression is 97 00:11:13,149 --> 00:11:19,889 abundantly borne out in history as well. That weakness invites aggression is abundantly borne out in 98 00:11:19,889 --> 00:11:26,669 history. Nations true to those founding principles that made them strong, oh, they will not fall. Nations 99 00:11:26,669 --> 00:11:34,850 who abandon their founding principles become weak and fall. Yes. Rome, for example, Rome, when she 100 00:11:34,850 --> 00:11:41,909 abandoned the founding principles which made her strong, she became weak and fell. Now, Rome began 101 00:11:41,909 --> 00:11:48,169 as a republic. She had three branches, much as modern republics do. An executive branch made up of two 102 00:11:48,169 --> 00:11:55,250 consuls, a legislative branch made up of two houses, that is, the patricians and the plebes, and a 103 00:11:55,250 --> 00:12:02,429 judiciary. That was six judges elected every two years. A republic. And it took a good deal of time and 104 00:12:02,429 --> 00:12:09,830 strife and war to get there. But by about 500 BC, Rome had a functioning republic which made her 105 00:12:09,830 --> 00:12:18,610 strong. Our founding fathers modeled our republic in some senses along the same lines of the Roman 106 00:12:18,610 --> 00:12:24,590 republic. And then also, Roman society was also strong because it was structured on the family. 107 00:12:25,009 --> 00:12:31,549 Loyalty to one's family was considered the core foundation of Roman society. In the early years 108 00:12:31,549 --> 00:12:38,090 of Roman society, no man could advance in any field if he was not a devoted family man with a wife, 109 00:12:38,429 --> 00:12:45,210 many children, and a host of servants to tend to the needs of his family. And then, Roman society was 110 00:12:45,210 --> 00:12:52,629 also strong because it had a moral ethic by which every citizen was expected to live. For instance, 111 00:12:52,830 --> 00:13:00,309 they had nine virtues to which every Roman must aspire. For example, dignitas, that is dignity, 112 00:13:00,309 --> 00:13:08,490 a sense of self-worth. Gravitas, that is importance, weighty judgment. Pietas, that is piety or devotion, 113 00:13:08,649 --> 00:13:16,990 a sense of duty. And veritas, that is truthfulness and honesty. Or humanitas, that is refinement and 114 00:13:16,990 --> 00:13:24,190 learning, culture. We get our word humanities from that word. Then there is also nobilitas, 115 00:13:24,190 --> 00:13:32,269 a sense of nobility, of noble action. There is liberalitas, that is generosity, open-mindedness. 116 00:13:32,990 --> 00:13:38,470 Fermitas, that is tenacity, strength of mind, a kind of stick-to-itiveness. And then there was 117 00:13:38,470 --> 00:13:45,909 finally comitas, that is humor or ease of manner, a friendly attitude. Well, that's just a brief sketch 118 00:13:45,909 --> 00:13:51,789 of the core elements which made Rome great. Sure, she had powerful armies, great generals, 119 00:13:51,789 --> 00:13:57,809 many famous men and women, but there was something that made them this way. And it was the above 120 00:13:57,809 --> 00:14:02,929 founding principles that helped shape them into such people. And without them, Rome would have 121 00:14:02,929 --> 00:14:07,909 been just another footnote in the history books, appearing for a shining moment and then disappearing. 122 00:14:08,750 --> 00:14:14,669 As it was, we can trace her fall to the weakening of these principles and thus to an invitation to 123 00:14:14,669 --> 00:14:20,250 aggression. As Rome expanded her territory to encompass the whole Mediterranean basin, 124 00:14:20,250 --> 00:14:26,950 virtually the entire known world, the less efficient government of a republic, gradually gave way to 125 00:14:26,950 --> 00:14:33,889 that of an empire ruled by one man, an emperor. Julius Caesar was the first of a long line of 126 00:14:33,889 --> 00:14:41,529 emperors in Rome's later history, right up to her fall. Tyranny, corruption, and injustice characterized 127 00:14:41,529 --> 00:14:48,610 Roman rule under the emperors and made her weak. The barbarian tribes on the outer edges of the empire 128 00:14:48,610 --> 00:14:55,809 saw this weakness and launched their series of invasions as a consequence. The breakdown of the Roman 129 00:14:55,809 --> 00:15:02,049 family also made her weak. In the days of the empire especially, Roman leaders, emperors, senators, 130 00:15:02,269 --> 00:15:09,210 generals, leading citizens often had a family as a front for appearances, but in reality, they spent their 131 00:15:09,210 --> 00:15:15,309 days in the brothels of Rome or had gay lovers as their primary relationship, or they cycled through 132 00:15:15,309 --> 00:15:22,190 lover after lover, wife after wife, until a man had a hard time recognizing his own children. The family 133 00:15:22,190 --> 00:15:28,549 became weak, and much as we see in our own day, the weakened family led to plummeting birth rates, 134 00:15:28,710 --> 00:15:35,769 increased crime, poverty in the major population centers of the empire. As the Roman commentator 135 00:15:35,769 --> 00:15:43,850 Juvenal wrote of Roman family life, he says, Rome's fathers were whoremongers, her wives were adulteresses, 136 00:15:43,850 --> 00:15:50,309 and her children bastards, unquote. And during the latter days of the empire, the old Roman virtues, 137 00:15:50,590 --> 00:15:57,289 the old Roman virtues were seen as quaint and old-fashioned. New progressive ideas became 138 00:15:57,289 --> 00:16:02,090 fashionable. Does that sound familiar? As one can imagine, the breakdown of Roman character 139 00:16:02,090 --> 00:16:08,190 led to moral and spiritual weakness, which found its way into every facet of Roman life. 140 00:16:08,929 --> 00:16:15,250 Immorality, cowardice, dishonesty, vice, and ignorance do not serve as pillars of a successful 141 00:16:15,250 --> 00:16:22,110 culture and society. But this was Rome, in the third and fourth centuries especially. And the barbarians 142 00:16:22,110 --> 00:16:28,570 saw it, and they took note, and they acted. In fact, once again, Juvenal also notes, and I quote him, 143 00:16:28,570 --> 00:16:35,450 we make light of the barbarian and look down on him as uncultured. But in light of the beasts in the 144 00:16:35,450 --> 00:16:44,950 palaces of Rome, we must ask sincerely, who are the barbarians, really? Weakness invites aggression, 145 00:16:45,129 --> 00:16:51,950 dear listener. Weakness invites aggression. Rome was weak, and the barbarians in Germany and Gaul 146 00:16:51,950 --> 00:16:59,169 saw it, and invaded their former invaders. Rome fell, not for a failure of military strength, 147 00:16:59,409 --> 00:17:06,630 but for a failure of moral and spiritual strength. Weakness invites aggression. Well, lastly, we must 148 00:17:06,630 --> 00:17:16,089 also note that in America's own case, weakness invites aggression. Weakness invites aggression, 149 00:17:16,089 --> 00:17:21,849 and that is borne out in America's recent history. America's recent history bears out that 150 00:17:21,950 --> 00:17:28,230 weakness invites aggression. When America cleaves to founding principles as embodied in her founding 151 00:17:28,230 --> 00:17:34,069 documents, the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, while she is strong and victorious, 152 00:17:34,289 --> 00:17:40,650 when she deviates from them, she is weak and defeated. What we can say about the United States 153 00:17:40,650 --> 00:17:47,650 is that she is weak and at war. The Biden policies have seriously weakened us all over the world. We have 154 00:17:47,650 --> 00:17:56,130 the leftover leading from behind strategy of Barack Obama. Yes, the leading from behind strategy of Barack 155 00:17:56,130 --> 00:18:01,549 Obama. Many have rightly identified the current Biden administration as the third term of Barack 156 00:18:01,549 --> 00:18:08,450 Obama. The policies of Biden are indistinguishable from Obama's, and Biden's administration is stocked 157 00:18:08,450 --> 00:18:16,029 with the same losers and incompetence as in the Obama White House. The leading from behind doctrine is 158 00:18:16,029 --> 00:18:22,470 fundamentally one of doing nothing. That is, of following the trend of events as they happen and try to 159 00:18:22,470 --> 00:18:28,230 influence them after they have happened. That was true of America's policy in Libya, the so-called Russian 160 00:18:28,230 --> 00:18:35,869 reset. Remember Hillary Clinton with her big red button? Or the failure to broker a peace deal in the 161 00:18:35,869 --> 00:18:43,970 Middle East and China's cynical ignoring of when Biden speaks of the independence of Taiwan, for example. 162 00:18:43,970 --> 00:18:50,130 On we could go. The leaders of the world have nothing but contempt for this weak, spineless doctrine 163 00:18:50,130 --> 00:18:57,049 towards world power leading from behind, and rightly so. The leading from behind strategy is really 164 00:18:57,049 --> 00:19:03,890 nothing more than getting kicked in the behind by the rest of the world. Dear listener, weakness invites 165 00:19:03,890 --> 00:19:11,670 aggression. Oh, and then we see also the complete debacle of the Afghanistan withdrawal. The complete debacle 166 00:19:11,670 --> 00:19:19,210 of the Afghanistan withdrawal. Our enemies know that we are weak when we abandon a so-called ally as we did in 167 00:19:19,210 --> 00:19:27,470 Afghanistan in 2021. Instead of taking the sound advice of his generals and advisors and make a strategic 168 00:19:27,470 --> 00:19:35,569 withdrawal over time, Biden precipitously withdrew from Afghanistan in haste. In doing so, he left behind 169 00:19:35,569 --> 00:19:41,990 many thousands of Americans from whom we still have not heard. Additionally, tens of thousands of allies 170 00:19:41,990 --> 00:19:47,710 who we promised we would not leave behind to be punished by the Taliban for cooperating with us while 171 00:19:47,710 --> 00:19:53,849 these were all left to their own devices. And since then, what was threatened has been carried out. 172 00:19:54,490 --> 00:20:01,410 Vengeance against those who cooperated with the Americans. And there's the Islamic scourge of oppression 173 00:20:01,410 --> 00:20:07,369 of women and girls and the rise of jihadists who spread their violence across the region. 174 00:20:07,970 --> 00:20:13,109 And perhaps you remember the 13 servicemen who lost their lives to a suicide bomber during the 175 00:20:13,109 --> 00:20:18,730 withdrawal. Perhaps you also remember Biden disrespectfully checking his watch as the ceremony 176 00:20:18,730 --> 00:20:26,089 in Dover where the bodies were received by waiting family members, right? A gradual, a gradual strategic 177 00:20:26,089 --> 00:20:31,230 withdrawal. And our armed forces, they know how to do these things, right? A gradual, 178 00:20:31,230 --> 00:20:36,430 a strategic withdrawal would also have retrieved the billions of dollars of weapons and equipment 179 00:20:36,430 --> 00:20:42,269 which had accumulated there. But instead, it was left to be used by our enemies and against our own 180 00:20:42,269 --> 00:20:49,470 troops in the future. Biden has proven himself, excuse me, not just weak. Biden is not just weak. 181 00:20:49,750 --> 00:20:56,309 He is actively, dangerously, maliciously incompetent at best. What could he have done? Ask yourself this. 182 00:20:56,309 --> 00:21:02,170 What could he have done differently if he had planned to hand our enemies a victory? And he had actively 183 00:21:02,170 --> 00:21:07,710 sought to bring defeat to our troops? What could he have done differently? Oh, weakness invites 184 00:21:07,710 --> 00:21:15,450 aggression, dear listener. And we are bringing on ourselves a hellish day of vengeance by our weakness. 185 00:21:15,450 --> 00:21:24,410 Then there was also the capitulation to Iran. The capitulation to Iran. Trump had the savvy to pull out of the 186 00:21:24,410 --> 00:21:30,529 disastrous treaty with Iran that would supposedly limit Iran's nuclear development. Well, that treaty was 187 00:21:30,529 --> 00:21:38,650 originally negotiated by Obama, but roundly criticized by experts as merely a fig leaf to let Iran do whatever she 188 00:21:38,650 --> 00:21:45,609 wanted, whenever she wanted. That is, in enriching uranium and developing intercontinental missile 189 00:21:45,609 --> 00:21:53,390 programs. Well, Biden has returned to that treaty now. And in addition, Biden sent some six billion 190 00:21:53,390 --> 00:22:00,690 dollars to Iran in exchange for five prisoners, money that was used in part by Iran to help finance the 191 00:22:00,690 --> 00:22:08,269 October 7 attack on Israel. Iran has rightly perceived that America is weak and incompetent 192 00:22:08,269 --> 00:22:14,730 in her handling of affairs in the Middle East. And that does not bode well for the United States and her 193 00:22:14,730 --> 00:22:22,829 allies. Weakness invites aggression, dear listener. And we are bringing on ourselves a hellish day of 194 00:22:22,829 --> 00:22:30,069 vengeance by our weakness. And then there is also the craven, obsequious behavior towards China and 195 00:22:30,069 --> 00:22:38,430 Chairman Xi. The Oriental juggernaut that is China correctly perceives America is weak. We have ceded our 196 00:22:38,430 --> 00:22:44,789 once formidable industrial base to Mexico and China and have let the Chinese plunder our intellectual 197 00:22:44,789 --> 00:22:50,910 property as a condition for corporations to do business in China. And over the last few decades, 198 00:22:50,910 --> 00:22:56,829 China has quietly, patiently bought all of the significant politicians and businessmen 199 00:22:56,829 --> 00:23:02,549 who have anything to say about policy. And I have documented this phenomenon as well in previous 200 00:23:02,549 --> 00:23:08,470 broadcasts. And I also recommend the books of Peter Schweitzer. They have powerfully exposed the 201 00:23:08,470 --> 00:23:13,869 corruption in Washington, D.C. Just three of his books I recommend to you. First of all, 202 00:23:14,009 --> 00:23:20,069 Blood Money with the subtitle, Why the Powerful Turn a Blind Eye While China Kills Americans. 203 00:23:20,910 --> 00:23:27,710 Book number two, Red Handed, How American Elites Get Rich Helping China Win. And finally, 204 00:23:27,829 --> 00:23:33,730 book number three, Profiles in Corruption, Abuse of Power by America's Progressive Elite. 205 00:23:34,049 --> 00:23:39,109 All three of these books I recommend to you. And those titles, they alone tell the tale of corruption and 206 00:23:39,109 --> 00:23:45,390 weakness, don't they? Weakness invites aggression, dear listener. And we are bringing on ourselves a 207 00:23:45,390 --> 00:23:51,769 hellish day of vengeance by our weakness. And then there is also, of course, as we previously mentioned, 208 00:23:51,769 --> 00:23:59,869 the foolish provocation of Russia in Ukraine. Yes, the foolish provocation of Russia in Ukraine. 209 00:24:00,470 --> 00:24:07,490 America is weak, dear listener. America is weak, essentially, because she has abandoned 210 00:24:07,490 --> 00:24:13,750 founding principles. That is, those principles ensconced in the Declaration of Independence 211 00:24:13,750 --> 00:24:19,329 and the United States Constitution. And that goes to the heart of the issue. That is character. 212 00:24:19,670 --> 00:24:25,789 A constitution is only as good as the people who live it. A constitution, a declaration of 213 00:24:25,789 --> 00:24:32,569 independence, is only a series of words on paper until it is taken up into the words and deeds, 214 00:24:32,869 --> 00:24:39,349 into the heads and hearts of the people who abide by it, and the people who make it real in the world. 215 00:24:39,349 --> 00:24:46,170 Oh, John Adams puts it this way. He says, this constitution was made only for a moral and 216 00:24:46,170 --> 00:24:53,190 religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other, unquote. Profoundly said, 217 00:24:53,269 --> 00:25:00,130 Mr. Adams. That takes us back to where we began. Our founding fathers took as a basic presupposition 218 00:25:00,130 --> 00:25:07,269 that the morality and religion of the American people was the Christian religion. Our strength was 219 00:25:07,269 --> 00:25:14,329 in the God of the Bible and its principles. And it must, therefore, be a first principle for all 220 00:25:14,329 --> 00:25:22,470 nations. As David said, the Lord is my strength and my shield. In him, my heart trusts, and I am helped. 221 00:25:22,630 --> 00:25:29,849 Excuse me. So, dear listener, when God is our strength, we will be strong. When our trust is in men 222 00:25:29,849 --> 00:25:38,289 or other gods, we will be weak. And weakness invites aggression, as we see played out for us on the 223 00:25:38,289 --> 00:25:46,430 world stage, even today. Let us return, rather, to this first principle for all nations, and that is, 224 00:25:46,750 --> 00:25:52,970 the Lord is my strength and my shield. In him, my heart trusts, and I am helped. 225 00:25:52,970 --> 00:25:59,450 This has been Pastor David Bass at New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian Church. We meet for Holy 226 00:25:59,450 --> 00:26:06,549 Worship on Sunday at 10 a.m. at 101 4th Street on the corner of 4th and Boulevard. And I invite you 227 00:26:06,549 --> 00:26:14,109 once again to check out our website where we have posted a catalog, going back all the way to 2016, 228 00:26:14,109 --> 00:26:22,769 a catalog of our podcasts and radio broadcasts. And you can graze amongst them and see what strikes 229 00:26:22,769 --> 00:26:28,950 your fancy and see if you can perhaps be a little better informed. And we also then invite you to 230 00:26:28,950 --> 00:26:34,829 call us for more feedback, if you'd like, or some more information on our church. And you can call us 231 00:26:34,829 --> 00:26:45,289 at area code 208-523-0196. We meet for worship on Sunday at 10 a.m. 101 4th Street, and you can call us 232 00:26:45,289 --> 00:26:49,609 at 208-523-0196.