We keep hearing talk about a great revival coming to America and then sweeping the world like wildfire. Although I truly believe that we would all love for this report to be true, frankly, we don’t see it happening in real life.
Instead, all too often, we see our churches filled with apathy and complacency, and individual Christians living powerless lives filled with sin and compromise.
Why is this true? I believe that the lion’s share of the blame can be laid at the feet of the nation’s political correct pastors, who have largely failed in their responsibilities toward God and man. Like the Pharisees, they want to be acknowledged and respected as “men of God,” but they don’t want the unpleasantness of offending anyone.
Remember, Jesus told Peter: “Feed my lambs.” That directive from the Lord has generally been understood to apply to the responsibility of those in spiritual authority to minister the unvarnished truth of God both to the watching world and to the disciples of Christ who look to them for guidance and direction.
But sadly, many professional pastors today fail miserably to shepherd the flocks of God committed to their care. That pastoral neglect and failure brings a curse upon both the pastors and the church . . . and ultimately upon the nation.
Jeremiah the prophet boldly declared: “Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the Lord.” (Jeremiah 23:1) Who are these false prophets leading astray the people of God? They are the self-serving ministers of a modern, seeker-friendly version of pseudo-Christianity--what the Apostle Paul derided as “another Gospel.”
These are hireling pastors who have forgotten the meaning of the word “Repent” and have allowed every form of abominable sin to creep into the congregations of God.
These are men-pleasers who don’t WANT to identify and confront even blatant sin in the body of Christ, lest someone should become offended--perhaps, heaven forbid, even some of their major donors!
There was a time, however, when this was not true. That was a time when the great inner strength of America lay in her dedicated Patriot Pastors, who continually exhorted their congregations to both righteousness and liberty in the fear of the Lord.
Alexis de Tocqueville, the astute French observer who chronicled American life in the early days of our Constitutional Republic, showed keen insight into the source of America’s greatness and strength.
“Not until I went into the churches of America and heard Her pulpits flame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power,” de Tocqueville reported. “America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.”
De Tocqueville’s trenchant analysis could well prove to be prophetic. Modern men-pleasing pastors, who exalt the virtues of “unity” and “tolerance” over the holiness of Almighty God, may well lead our beloved America into apostasy and judgment.
“Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear,” Paul counseled his young pastoral apprentice, Timothy (I Timothy 5:20). Paul also directed that the Corinthians should break fellowship with an errant and unrepentant church member who had fallen into gross sexual sin. But when was the last time most of us living today heard any faithful pastoral teaching on New Testament church discipline?
My prayer is NOT for a warm-fuzzy, feel-good, so-called “revival” in America.
My prayer, instead, is that our Mighty God will rekindle the fires of repentance and holiness in the hearts of His true shepherd pastors, so that once again our nation’s pulpits may be aflame with righteousness, and the whole counsel of God may thunder across the land --with neither compromise nor apology.
Copyright 2004 by Nathan Tabor
Nathan Tabor is a conservative political activist based in Kernersville, North Carolina, where he owns a successful small business and was recently a candidate for Congress, He has his master’s degree in public policy from Regent University. Tabor is widely regarded as a rising star in Republican politics. Contact him at Nathan@nathantabor.com.
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