Today, as you all well know, we remember and celebrate the independence of our nation—we remember the events that led to the founding of the United States, and we celebrate the freedoms that we enjoy in this country. For Christians, this is always a very appropriate time to praise God for the blessings and the prosperity that He has given to our country.
But this year, in 2010, we celebrate this holiday at a very interesting time in our nation’s history. It is not hard to see that the United States today is divided by deeply held opinions on many different things. Politically, we are re-living some of the same debates that took place after 1776, dealing with questions like: What is the role of the federal government? What is it supposed to provide for the citizens? What does the Constitution mean? What sort of activities does it allow or not allow?
We are living in interesting times in this country, and I get the sense that as most American Christians look at the nation, our most common response is that of worry. By and large, we are somewhat worried about our country; we see that it has problems, and we want them to be fixed, but we’re not quite sure of how to do that. We want our nation to remain a “city on a hill,” a strong and prosperous place that is a force for good in the world. But what can be done to make that happen? What is the key to national greatness?
I want to direct your attention to a short proverb that offers us the key to national greatness. It is Proverbs 14:34, and it says, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people.” Here we find the key to national greatness stated very simply—it is righteousness, or godly character. In other words, our strength, our stability, our progress as a nation lies in our moral character. Moral character forms the true foundation of a nation because nations consist of people and the interactions between those people. Thus, no matter what kind of appearance a nation may put on, its moral character determines whether or not it is on a firm foundation—whether it will be “exalted” and built up, or brought to shame.
Think with me for a moment about all of the other things that we might be tempted to insert into that verse in place of the word “righteousness”—all of those things that we might think form the foundation of a nation and give it strength. Some might say, “a strong economy exalts a nation,” but this thought is really putting the cart before the horse. A strong economy is built upon honest transactions between people, and once we start to talk about honesty, we’re back to the idea of righteousness, aren’t we? So I think we can argue that righteousness is necessary for a strong economy.
Or some might say, “military might exalts a nation.” Well, that may appear to be true for a short period of time, but a country that is founded upon military might has often sown the seeds of its own destruction. Once the military gets into the hands of unprincipled people, that nation often experiences extreme turmoil. But wait—I mentioned principles, didn’t I? That means we’re back to the idea of righteousness once again!
Or some might say, “godly leaders exalt a nation.” Now godly leadership is very important, but there’s still a problem—the people may not follow their leaders! The leaders of a nation can be very godly people, but if that godliness does not extend throughout the rest of the population, then those leaders often have a very limited impact.
No, my friends, it is righteousness that exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people. This proverb was written by King Solomon, a man who knew a thing or two about leading and building a nation. But what most people in our country today don’t realize is that our own leaders in America have long spoken about the importance of national righteousness for the strength of our nation. I’m going to run the risk of trying your patience for the next few minutes, because I want to read for you a series of quotes from our presidents down through the years that highlight the fact that godly moral character is the only sure foundation for our nation.
Let’s start with George Washington. George Washington, of course, was the first president of the United States and was known to be a devout Christian. In his first Inaugural Address in 1789, he said, “the smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right which Heaven itself has ordained.”1 Later, in 1795, President Washington issued a proclamation calling for a national day of Thanksgiving. In that proclamation he wrote that we must “humbly and fervently [ask] the kind Author of [our] blessings graciously to prolong them to us; to imprint on our hearts a deep and solemn sense of our obligation to Him for them; to teach us rightly to estimate their immense value; to preserve us from the arrogance of prosperity, and from [risking] the advantages we enjoy by delusive pursuits, to dispose us to merit the continuance of His favors by not abusing them, by our gratitude for them, and by a corresponding conduct as citizens and as men.”2
How about John Adams, the second president of the United States? In 1776, just a few days before the Declaration of Independence was signed, he wrote, “Statesmen, my dear Sir, may plan and speculate for liberty, but it is Religion and Morality alone, which can establish the Principles upon which Freedom can securely stand. The only foundation of a free Constitution is pure Virtue, and if this cannot be inspired into our People in a greater Measure, than they have it now, they may change their Rulers and the forms of Government, but they will not obtain a lasting liberty.”3 Later, after he was elected as president, John Adams addressed the military on October 11, 1798 and said, “We have no government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion. Avarice, ambition, revenge…would break the strongest cords of our Constitution as a whale goes through a net. Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”4 Then later, in a personal letter dated August 28, 1811, Adams wrote, “Religion and virtue are the only foundations, not only of republicanism and of all free government, but of social [integrity] under all governments and in all the combinations of human society.”5
Let’s fast forward now a few years to the 1830’s. This next quote comes not from a president, but from someone who observed America as an outsider. In the 1830’s, a Frenchman named Alexis de Tocqueville came to America to study what made America a great nation. Here is what he wrote: “I sought for the key to the greatness and genius of America in her harbors…; in her fertile fields and boundless forests; in her rich mines and vast world commerce; in her public school system and institutions of learning. I sought for it in her democratic Congress and in her matchless Constitution. 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. America is great because America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.”6
Let’s now move forward a little later into history, to President Teddy Roosevelt. In 1910, President Roosevelt gave a speech in which he said this: “Just in proportion as the average man and woman are honest, capable of sound judgement and high ideals, active in public affairs—but, first of all, sound in their home life, and the father and mother of healthy children whom they bring up well—just so far, and no further, we may count our civilization a success. We must have—I believe we have already—a genuine and permanent moral awakening, without which no wisdom of legislation or administration really means anything.”7 He then said: “Every thinking man, when he thinks, realizes that the teachings of the Bible are so interwoven and entwined with our whole civic and social life that it would be literally impossible for us to figure ourselves what that life would be if these standards were removed.”8
And now a little later into history, to President Gerald Ford. Just a few months after taking office, President Ford said this: “Without God there could be no American form of government, nor an American way of life. Recognition of the Supreme Being is the first—the most basic—expression of Americanism. Thus the founding fathers of America saw it, and thus with God’s help, it will continue to be.”9
Now closer toward our own day, to President Ronald Reagan. In a speech at a prayer breakfast in 1984, he said, “Without God there is no virtue because there is no prompting of the conscience…without God there is a coarsening of the society; without God democracy will not and cannot long endure…If we ever forget that we are One Nation Under God, then we will be a Nation gone under.”10 President Reagan was not alone in recognizing the need for national righteousness during his administration. In 1983, Congress passed a resolution declaring that year to be the “Year of the Bible.” A portion of that resolution said this: “Whereas the history of our Nation clearly illustrates the value of voluntarily applying the teachings of the Scriptures in the lives of individuals, families, and socities; whereas that renewing our knowledge of and faith in God through Holy Scripture can strengthen us as a nation and a people: now, therefore, be it resolved…that the President is authorized and requested to designate 1983 as a national “Year of the Bible” in recognition of…our national need to study and apply the teachings of the Holy Scriptures.”11
As you can see, there is a continuing testimony from our leaders down through the years that bears out the truth of Proverbs 14:34—“Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people.” If our nation will no longer listen to the Bible, we should at least listen to our own leaders who have taught us the same lesson time and time again! And more than anyone, we as Christians need to take their testimony to heart. I fear that we often think that if we can simply elect the right leaders or pass the right laws that our nation will turn around. But our hope does not rest in leaders or in legislation—our only hope is in the Lord, in embracing the Lord Jesus Christ and living out his teachings as a nation. Our hope is not in the halls of Congress but in the homes of Christians across this land, that we would act in a righteous way and would teach others to do the same by spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ once again throughout this nation.
This means that our hope for national greatness lies at the feet of Christians in this country. We must see to it first of all that we are living in a godly, righteous way in our lives and then we must beg God to bring about a revival in our nation. A firm foundation for our future can only be built upon righteousness, which means that if we do not work first and foremost to promote righteousness among the people, all of our political efforts will be useless. As John Adams said, “if [virtue] cannot be inspired into our People in a greater Measure, than they have it now, they may change their Rulers and the forms of Government, but they will not obtain a lasting liberty.” And so on this national holiday, my challenge to you is to remember that it is righteousness that has made us great, and righteousness is the only path upon which we can turn our country around.
All quotations taken from William J. Federer, America’s God and Country: Encyclopedia of Quotations (St. Louis: Amerisearch, Inc., 2000).
1. p. 652 2. p. 656 3. p. 8 4. p. 10 5. p. 12 6. p. 206
7. pp. 540–41 8. p. 541 9. p. 237 10. p. 530
11. pp. 709–10
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