Greetings. This is Pastor David Bass at New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian Church with a moment of truth where we challenge you to think through an important issue of life and faith. And today, I would like you to consider this proverb from the Bible, Proverbs 1434, which says, righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people. With our celebrating the 250th anniversary of our independence, I think it's good for us to have this gut check. Are we indeed a nation that displays righteousness that consequently exalts us?

Or are we becoming a nation where sin characterizes us, and therefore we are a reproach unto God? Oh, and this is very important for us to consider as the church. As goes the church, so goes the nation. For example, a monk from Egypt back in AD 404 made a pilgrimage to Rome in order to intervene in the name of Christ to end the gladiatorial games. He climbed over the retaining wall that separated the spectator box from the arena, and he stepped between the two combatants, exclaiming, in the name of Christ, stop!

In the name of Christ, stop! And he was mercilessly cut down by the gladiators to the delight of the crowd. But later, in reflection, the people came to loathe the games, and Emperor Honorius put an end to them, noting Telemachus' intervention in particular. This monk's name was Telemachus, and he shines. He lives brightly in the history of the church because of that intervention.

Modern-day evangelicals today would say that Telemachus never should have involved himself in the politics and culture of the day. He should have stuck to preaching the gospel and let the culture go the way of the devil. Yeah, the rapture is coming soon anyway, right? And we're only pilgrims here. It's a waste of time to change culture and society.

Is that what you would say? Well, also, in A.D. 390, the Emperor Theodosius massacred some 3,000 citizens of Thessalonica after they had killed one of the emperor's favorite generals over a local charioteer that he had arrested. Well, Bishop Ambrose, who was San Agustin's mentor, boldly stepped forward and refused the emperor Theodosius admittance into the church the following Sunday. He began procedures for the excommunication of the emperor, of all the nerve. But instead of arresting Ambrose, the emperor, upon further reflection, repented of his sin, and he was readmitted to the fellowship of the church.

Now, modern-day evangelicals would say Ambrose never should have involved himself in the politics and culture of the day. No, he should have stuck to preaching the gospel and let the culture go the way of the devil. The rapture is coming soon anyway. We're only pilgrims here. It's a waste of time to try and change culture and society.

Oh, or on September 4, 1561, John Knox stood before Mary, Queen of Scots, in order to defend the Reformation that was going on in Scotland. And the queen asked a life-or-death question at the time, a life-or-death question of Knox. And she said, think ye that subjects having the power may resist their princes. When he answered, yes, they do, even as a child has a right to resist a brutal, abusing parent. Oh, Queen Mary stood up from her throne, livid with rage, but unable to speak or move for a full quarter hour.

When one of her lords asked her what had offended herself, she was unable to give a coherent answer. Now, modern-day evangelicals would say that Knox never should have involved himself in the politics and culture of the day. He should have stuck to preaching the gospel and let the culture go the way of the devil. The rapture's coming soon anyway, right? We're only pilgrims here.

It's a waste of time to try and change culture and society. Oh, behold the situation in America today on the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. The church stands poised to profoundly affect the course of our nation for generations to come, for good or for ill. To choose to do nothing is still a decision, and God, in our proverb for today, reminds us that there are consequences for our decisions. Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people, Proverbs 14, 34. Where do you stand in regard to these things?

On this, our 250th anniversary of our declaring ourselves independent of King George and the English Parliament, will we as the church exhort and admonish our fellow citizens to godly righteousness and thus experience God's exaltation of our nation? Or will we sit idly by, excusing ourselves that we need not get involved since we're just pilgrims here, passing through to the heavenly kingdom, and the rapture is coming anyway, so we don't need to bother? Oh, now, King Solomon did have something to say about this, right? In the power of the gospel. Righteousness exalts a nation, he said, but sin is a reproach to any people.

And there are two points I'd like to make with you from this proverb. Number one, exalted, that's what I'm asking, are we exalted? As redemptive history has borne out consistently when godly righteousness obtains in any given nation's character, God exalts them above others. Yes, so true. As redemptive history has borne out consistently, when godly righteousness obtains in any given nation's character, God exalts them above others.

Now, the Hebrew Bible is very clear. The nations or a nation is almost always the Gentile nations, the goyim. Rarely is Israel or God's people referred to as a nation. Otherwise, unless clearly specified, the nations are the nations of the world, the goyim, from whom Israel is sharply distinguished. So, when Solomon says righteousness exalts a nation, he's not referring to Israel per se, but rather any given nation which may be under consideration as righteous or no.

And additionally, it is stated as a universal principle too, not a one-time notion that can now be tossed aside because we're under the new covenant. The idea that righteousness exalts a nation did not go away as a universal truth because Christ inaugurated the new covenant in his blood. In fact, we might even say that it is doubly true now because we have in Christ an indelible, crystal-clear picture of what righteousness looks like in a lived-out life. The commentators, Kyle and Dalich, put it this way in their commentary, a great book, by the way. They say, and I quote, The proverb means all nations without distinction.

History everywhere confirms the principle that not the numerical, nor the warlike, nor the political, nor yet the intellectual and so-called civilized greatness is the true greatness of a nation and determines the condition of its future as one of progress. But this is its true greatness that in its private, public, and international life, conduct directed by the will of God according to the norm of moral rectitude, rules and prevails, unquote. It's righteousness that exalts a nation, not your music and your movies and your culture and all of that, sports, whatever else it might be. No, righteousness exalts a nation.

Therefore, to say that it doesn't matter whether the United States of America is characterized by moral rectitude, that is righteousness, tzaddik in the Hebrew, that is exegetically in error, interpretively unsound, and a complete cop-out when it comes to applying the scriptures to our everyday lives. We may be only pilgrims here on a journey to the heavenly city, but even the patriarchs as pilgrims dug wells, fought wars, acquired vast wealth, and purchased tracts of land. They were vested in their current circumstances, fighting to make them reflect the values of the God they worshiped. Should we do anything less?

What matters to God should matter to us. Of course, Israel was to be the chief beacon of righteousness before the nations. In fact, that was her evangelistic mission, actually, her outreach to the nations. Deuteronomy 4 puts it this way, and I quote, keep them and do them, that is the laws. For that will be your wisdom and your understanding in the sight of the peoples who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people.

For what great nation is there that has a God so near to it as the Lord our God is to us whenever we call upon him? And what great nation is there that has statutes and rules so righteous as all this law that I set before you today? Unquote. Is this any less true today than it was then? Righteousness exalts a nation.

And if there is any doubt, hear what the Queen of Sheba said about Israel when Israel was at her zenith of power and glory and righteousness. 1 Kings 10 says about her, and I quote, and she, that is the Queen of Sheba, and she said to the king, the report was true that I heard in my own land of your words and of your wisdom, but I did not believe the reports until I came and my own eyes had seen it. And behold, the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity surpassed the report that I heard. Happy are your men.

Happy are your servants who continually stand before you and hear your wisdom. Blessed be the Lord your God, who has delighted in you and set you on the throne of Israel. Because the Lord loved Israel forever, he has made you king, that you may execute justice and righteousness. Unquote. From the Queen of Sheba, righteousness exalts a nation.

Now to exalt means to lift up high. Psalm 99 says, the Lord is great in Zion. He is exalted over all the peoples. Psalm 46 says, be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations.

I will be exalted in the earth. Unquote. Righteousness is the state or quality which accords with God's law and is often associated with his justice as it was with Solomon. He has made you king that you may execute justice and righteousness. Now, the scholar Mounts, Dr.

Mounts, observes that righteousness is, and I quote, first and foremost, a quality ascribed to God. His actions are right and just. He hates wickedness and loves righteousness. That's from Dr. Mounts' expository dictionary, a work I commend to you.

Anyway, consequently, God wants his people to live righteous lives, both religiously and morally. This is true especially of those who lead the people. For he says, give the king your justice in Psalm 72. Give the king your justice, O God, and your righteousness to the royal son. May he judge your people with righteousness and your poor with justice.

Or Proverbs 25 5 says, take away the wicked from the presence of the king and his throne will be established in righteousness. Yeah, take away the wicked advisors. And I would advise President Trump to do that. Take away the wicked from the presence of the king and his throne will be established in righteousness. Leaders lead, dear listener.

They lead the people by example and action. Therefore, leaders must lead their nation in righteousness and justice. One of my favorite examples is Emperor Justinian I, who lived and reigned from A.D. 529 to 565. He ruled in Constantinople, and he appointed a 10-man commission to go through all the known ordinances or constitutions in the realm issued by the emperors and to weed out the contradictory and obsolescent material and then adapt all provisions to the circumstances of the time. And the resultant 10-book Codex Constitutionum was promulgated in 529.

And all imperial ordinances not included in it were repealed. Oh, we could do that with Congress, couldn't we today? It's the most extensive legal undertaking in Western history, Justinian I. And it forms the basis for Western law and tradition even today. And part of the circumstances of that time was the growing, maturing Christian faith taking root in the empire.

And Justinian insisted that the Bible and the Christian faith shape this complete revision of Roman law code. And bishops, Christians, were closely consulted throughout the process to see if all was in accord with biblical justice and righteousness. This is what the Bible means by righteousness exalts a nation. Byzantium was exalted as a consequence. This period is the golden age of the Byzantine Empire.

The biblical faith flourished under Justinian. Justinian is generally considered to be a wise and just emperor. World history puts it this way, and I quote, his achievements in the field of art, architecture, legal reform, and conquest are remarkable by the standards of any leader in history. So, dear listener, this can be done. Biblical law and principles of justice and righteousness can be applied to the culture and policies of our time.

It's been done throughout redemptive history. Not perfectly, not completely yet, but we do have luminous examples before us to follow and improve upon. And William Blackstone's Commentaries on the Laws of the Laws of England is another, perhaps closer example of righteousness exalts a nation. And more people seem to know about this period of our history, too, especially since it profoundly affects America's legal codes. Now, William Blackstone was an ambitious professor and lecturer at Oxford, England in the mid-18th century.

And with Justinian in mind, too, Blackstone undertook the prodigious task of assembling, pouring over, editing, and compiling the then mass of incoherent laws that comprised the British system at the time. Centuries of traditions and bits of code written down and bits of laws on the books here and there had their bases in English legal tradition and biblical principle, but were by no means, excuse me, consistent and uniform, as they must be, indeed, if law will be just in any land. So, Blackstone changed all that. He codified what was largely oral legal tradition, and he applied it consistently across the board in written form.

Finally, England had a body of just and righteous law. Righteousness exalts a people. England, under Blackstone, had a body of just and righteous law for all the people. And for Blackstone, all righteous law had its basis in a single source. So, I quote Blackstone here.

He said, the doctrines thus delivered we call the revealed or divine law, and they are to be found only in the Holy Scriptures. Upon two foundations, the law of nature and the law of revelation, depend all human laws, unquote, from William Blackstone. So, dear listener, this can be done. Righteousness will exalt a nation. England went on to reach its zenith in the century to follow as the British Empire extended to every continent.

Perhaps the best and favorite example that righteousness exalts a nation is our own United States of America. Our Founding Fathers ransacked history for the best in law and justice and republics of the past. They were close students of history and the Bible.

As James McHenry, a signer and crafter of the Constitution, put it, he said, the doctrine the scriptures preach, the obligations they impose, the punishments they threaten, the rewards they promise, the stamp and image of divinity they bear, which produces a conviction of their truths, can alone secure to society order and peace, and to our courts of justice and constitutions of government purity, stability, and usefulness, unquote. Righteousness exalts a nation, dear listener, and founding our institutions on the scriptures goes a long way towards achieving this end.

As Noah Webster put it, that Noah Webster of Webster's Dictionary, he said, the brief exposition of the Constitution of the United States will unfold to young persons, the principles of republican government. Our citizens should early understand that the genuine source of correct republican principles is the Bible, and the religion which has introduced civil liberty is the religion of Christ and his apostles, unquote. When we have consistently lived according to these biblical principles, we have been exalted. Indeed, we have prospered and flourished like no other country in history.

In fact, Abraham Lincoln said, we have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven. We have preserved these many years in peace and prosperity. We have grown in numbers, wealth, and power as no other nation has ever gone. Well, what happens then when the people become immoral and unethical? That brings me to point two.

That is exalted. As redemptive history has borne out consistently. When ungodly sin obtains in any given nation's character, God visits them with reproach. Reproach. Righteousness exalts a nation.

Sin is a reproach to any people. Reproach is a strong negative. It means disgrace, insult, contempt. For example, Psalm 79 says, we have become a reproach to our neighbors, mocked and derided by those around us. And unfortunately, this word is used most often with Israel because of its sin and idolatry.

Ezekiel 22 forces, you shall be a reproach and a taunt, a warning and a horror to the nations all around you. When I execute judgments on you in anger and fury and with furious rebukes, I am the Lord, I have spoken. Ezekiel 22, 4. Reproach. Not only is Israel exhibit A of righteousness, exalting a nation, she becomes exhibit A of reproach for sin as well.

So as redemptive history unfolds, we see this principle obtained in the lives of nations. The fall of Rome, for example, through decadence and weakness and sin. Rome is notorious for its decline in its morals and Roman virtue. The historian Ariel Durant put it this way, a great civilization is not conquered from without until it has destroyed itself from within, unquote. And that's precisely what Rome did.

And that's precisely the track that we as the United States of America is on. And then also the German nation through decadence and tyranny and militarism. Germany's moral and ethical decline in the 20s and 30s preceded its tyrannical hold by the Nazis and its consequent descent into war and destruction in World War II. Or the collapse of the Soviet Union, too. Another example.

Branded the evil empire by Ronald Reagan to the consternation of liberals. But indeed, the Soviet Union was the evil empire. Her attempt to impose Marxism on the world failed miserably. Sin is a reproach to any nation. Each of these, and many more, too, we could cite from history, became a reproach to God and man.

And they paid the price for it, too. George Mason puts the consequences of history this way. He says, by an inevitable chain of causes and effects, providence punishes national sins by national calamities. Isn't that the truth? Memorize this one from George Mason, one of the founding fathers.

By an inevitable chain of causes and effects, providence punishes national sins by national calamities. George Mason had his own country, the United States of America, in mind. So we stand at a crossroads, dear listener. There are those who seek to impose a vicious tyranny upon us. And there's a deep moral corruption eating away at our moral fabric, saying the Bible doesn't matter anymore, national righteousness doesn't matter anymore.

And those trying to impose that vicious tyranny upon us are coming in the cloak of socialism, right? The wolf in sheep's clothing. And there's also a general coldness towards spiritual things and the gospel. These things need to change. They need to be reversed, and they need to be reversed in the church, first and foremost.

As goes the church, so goes the nation. So if we are going to reverse this sin that is a reproach to any people, fast becoming a reproach to God, we need to turn this around. Patrick Henry puts it this way, that great founding father, Patrick Henry. I love him. He put it this way, whether independence will prove a blessing or a curse will depend upon the use our people make of the blessings which a gracious God has bestowed on us.

If they are wise, they will be great and happy. If they are of a contrary character, they will be miserable. Righteousness alone can exalt a nation, Patrick Henry said. Righteousness alone can exalt a nation. Reader, he goes on to say, whoever you are, remember this, and in your sphere, practice virtue yourself and encourage it in others.

Unquote from Patrick Henry. Only God knows the point at which his patience is exhausted, and he will judge fully and finally any given people. So, dear listener, let's not tempt that patience any longer as a people. No. America, you must return to God.

There must be a revival of spiritual Christianity in America, which then turns and consequently reforms culture and society, including our laws and politics. Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people. As a nation, we must repent of our sins, both personal and national and return to our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, because then we will be exalted again as a nation and not fast sink into reproach. Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people. Let us embrace and strive for the former and reject and destroy the latter.

This has been Pastor David Bass at New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian Church. We meet for holy worship on Sunday at 10 a.m. at 101 4th Street on the corner of 4th and Boulevard, and you can call us for more information. We just hope that you would stop by and visit us and check us out, and we indeed try to be a righteous people, a righteous congregation, and we meet for holy worship on Sunday at 10 a.m. at 101 4th Street on the corner 4th and Boulevard, and you can call us for more information or feedback at 208-523-0196. 208-523-0196.