One Nation Under God (2)
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Kevin Baugh has his own country—The Republic of Molossia—and if you don't mind, he'd prefer you call him "His Excellency Kevin Baugh." After all, he has an impressive khaki uniform with six big medals, a gold braid, epaulets at the shoulders, and a blue, white, and green sash. Oh—and a general's cap with a gold starburst over the bill.
Never heard of The Republic of Molossia? That's understandable, because it consists of Baugh's three-bedroom house and 1.3 acre yard outside of Dayton, Nevada. According to an article in the Chicago Tribune, "He has a space program (a model rocket), a currency (pegged to the value of chocolate-chip cookie dough), a railroad (model size), a national sport (broomball), and—in his landlocked desert region—a navy (an inflatable boat)."
The newspaper goes on to say: "Baugh is a micronationalist, one of a wacky band of do-it-yourself nation builders who raise flags over their front yards and declare their property to be, as Baugh puts it 'the kingdom of me.'"
For Baugh, it's a fun joke, but he's joking about what all humans want to do—build a "kingdom of me." It is the reason we are in trouble with God—the sovereign God, Ruler of all he has created. Sin is simply living by our own laws instead of God's, of regarding ourselves in our quiet ways as "His Excellency" or "Her Majesty."
Ever since the beginning it was known that there would be hostility between the twins. There was even a struggle that would be manifesting in the womb of Rebekah to which the Lord would declare in Genesis 25:23
And the Lord told her, “The sons in your womb will become two nations. From the very beginning, the two nations will be rivals. One nation will be stronger than the other; and your older son will serve your younger son.”
All all of this would begin at the time Esau would sell his birthright to his brother for a bowl of lentil stew which was called “red”. The Hebrew Ay Dom. And we see in the play on words which would serve as a reminder till this day…
Esau said to Jacob, “I’m starved! Give me some of that red stew!” (This is how Esau got his other name, Edom, which means “red.”)
But indeed there would still be a blessing however mixed it might seem.
Finally, his father, Isaac, said to him,
“You will live away from the richness of the earth,
and away from the dew of the heaven above.
You will live by your sword,
and you will serve your brother.
But when you decide to break free,
you will shake his yoke from your neck.”
And the Lord would be faithful to the blessing that was given and He would give the land to Esau’s descendants.
They were also as strong and numerous and tall as the Anakites. But the Lord destroyed them so the Ammonites could occupy their land. He had done the same for the descendants of Esau who lived in Seir, for he destroyed the Horites so they could settle there in their place. The descendants of Esau live there to this day.
And the Lord would be faithful to the blessing that was given and He would protect the land for Esau and his descendants.
“Then at last the Lord said to me, ‘You have been wandering around in this hill country long enough; turn to the north. Give these orders to the people: “You will pass through the country belonging to your relatives the Edomites, the descendants of Esau, who live in Seir. The Edomites will feel threatened, so be careful. Do not bother them, for I have given them all the hill country around Mount Seir as their property, and I will not give you even one square foot of their land. If you need food to eat or water to drink, pay them for it.
Yet the Edomites did not let them pass. The fraternal hatred would continue even since Esau wanted to kill Jacob. To Edom fulfilling the prophesy to break loose when Edom revolted against Judah in 2 Kings. And yet Edom and Israel would share a common heritage in covenant with the living God. Showing that all nations are under God and under His law and under His decrees and under His sovereign power and under His right hand. Both church and state under 1 headship under the Lordship of Christ who has all authority in heaven and on earth.
This is the vision that the Sovereign Lord revealed to Obadiah concerning the land of Edom.
We have heard a message from the Lord
that an ambassador was sent to the nations to say,
“Get ready, everyone!
Let’s assemble our armies and attack Edom!”
The Lord says to Edom,
“I will cut you down to size among the nations;
you will be greatly despised.
You have been deceived by your own pride
because you live in a rock fortress
and make your home high in the mountains.
‘Who can ever reach us way up here?’
you ask boastfully.
But even if you soar as high as eagles
and build your nest among the stars,
I will bring you crashing down,”
says the Lord.
The grass withers the flower fades but the word of our God stands forever.
The Messengers
The Judgement
The Salvation
The first thing we will look at today is the sending of the messengers to the nations and to Edom with a message from the living God over all nations. The second thing we will see is the pronouncement of judgement upon the nation under God. And finally, we will look at the salvation provided for us though the message of the living Christ called the gospel.
Thesis: Though sin and the pattern of this world cause us to see a life of independence from God as tenable and desirable, however it is the power of God and the truth of His word that will cause us to see the deception of sin and the truly wonderful life under the Son.
I. The Messengers
-The messengers sent out to the nations.
A. A striking feature we see here is the method of using envoys to bring a message to Edom from the living Lord. The irony of this would be clear that another time in the life of Esau was the use of envoys to deliver a message from Jacob to Esau.
Then Jacob sent messengers ahead to his brother, Esau, who was living in the region of Seir in the land of Edom. He told them, “Give this message to my master Esau: ‘Humble greetings from your servant Jacob. Until now I have been living with Uncle Laban, and now I own cattle, donkeys, flocks of sheep and goats, and many servants, both men and women. I have sent these messengers to inform my lord of my coming, hoping that you will be friendly to me.’ ”
After delivering the message, the messengers returned to Jacob and reported, “We met your brother, Esau, and he is already on his way to meet you—with an army of 400 men!” Jacob was terrified at the news. He divided his household, along with the flocks and herds and camels, into two groups. He thought, “If Esau meets one group and attacks it, perhaps the other group can escape.”
B. And in the same way the descendants of Esau was given a message along with all other surrounding nations. The difference… The living God is not afraid. The tenor and the vibe is very very different. And it includes nations that may or may not recognize Jehovah as God. He will arouse the nations all to rise up against Edom in order to attack and destroy. Unlike Jacob the author of the message is coming to you without fear, unlike Jacob.
II. The Judgement
- I will bring you down.
A. God will and has the power to cut down nations and make them despised in the world. He can and He did. God did indeed cut down the numeric value of Edom and will reduce their influence politically ultimately making Edom completely insignificant to the surrounding nations. We see the reality of this in Malachi 1:3-5
but I rejected his brother, Esau, and devastated his hill country. I turned Esau’s inheritance into a desert for jackals.”
Esau’s descendants in Edom may say, “We have been shattered, but we will rebuild the ruins.”
But the Lord of Heaven’s Armies replies, “They may try to rebuild, but I will demolish them again. Their country will be known as ‘The Land of Wickedness,’ and their people will be called ‘The People with Whom the Lord Is Forever Angry.’ When you see the destruction for yourselves, you will say, ‘Truly, the Lord’s greatness reaches far beyond Israel’s borders!’ ”
B. By 312 BC Edom was done. But we see that Edom was nevertheless captive to their delusions. God makes a mockery of all that they stand on. They may say… nuh uh we are superior and nothing can bring us down. There land was a difficult mountainous terrain with a capital that is pretty inaccessible. They were in a way perched on top of a fortress that they believed would be impossible to bring down. This was a popular viewpoint of many at the time for Assyrian kings would mention that many of the peoples trust in their own strength or in their strongholds in a steep mountain. Edom has the same boast.
C. As mighty as they are. As high and unbeatable they are. The message that they receive is that they are deceived. They are delusional. They have a false hope. Just like when Eve declared that the serpent had deceived her, this is the delusion of Edom who has a false hope believing a lie and trusting in people or things that fail to deliver what is promised. The delusion: Look at us. Look at where we are. Look at who we are. No one and I mean no one will ever bring us down.
Matthew Henry writes, “Note, Carnal security is a sin that most easily besets men in the day of their pomp, power, and prosperity, and does, as much as any thing, both ripen men for ruin and aggravate it when it comes.”
D. The delusion of the world. The thought and belief that you will be able to have life without God and that there will be no consequences for our actions after we die. The real delusion is the similar belief of Edom with our culture and nation today. I am always surprised as to how committed to the delusion we can be. I am surprised as to how confident we are in what is clearly not able to bring the confidence we want. I am surprised as to the lengths we will go to keep going with our delusions. We are self confident. We are hopeful in the progress and ability of our culture and the shapers of the culture.
E. A very important person in our culture once told me something that kinda sums up a lot of post modern thinking. He is one of the worse chain smokers I have ever seen in my life. He smoked the heavy duty kind. I said my dear brother you have kids. You are an important person. Your gonna die young from lung cancer or emphysema. Its all ok. We will have a cure for lung cancer and emphysema before I die. You sure about that? Trust in the ability and progress of mankind… but constantly underestimate the depravity of man.
F. The delusion continues and many people are confident that we know, the experts know, the internet knows, so many are confident that we can live life they way we want to, do whatever we want to, and we don’t gotta worry about nothing. So many soooo confident that there is no such thing as God. Without knowing that you need to first believe in God to prove that there no God. Confident that even if there is a God there is no way that God is gonna punish us in hell for eternity. Confident that even if God does punish people in hell for eternity I am sure that He will not punish me. Confident that the Bible does not really mean what you think it means Shane. Confident that men is truly the measure of all things. Sure and confident. I don’t have to worry. Nothing will bring me down. Sound like the Edomites?
G. And God said… You may soar like eagles and you nest up in the stars … higher and higher than everyone else. Even if you are the GOAT nation. If you are the greatest of all time nation. No one better. No one higher. No one stronger. You transcend all nations. Even if you belong in the stars of all stars. Who will bring me down.
H. God declares… From what ever heights you ascend to…It does not matter… I WILL BRING YOU DOWN. And He did just that. By 312 Edom was done.
I. And Jesus then makes a similar pronouncement to Capernaum.
And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? You will be brought down to Hades. For if the mighty works done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.
J. Their destruction will actually be worse than even Sodom and Gomorrah. You think you are OK. Untouchable and lofty? Delusional? Jesus made it clear that they will be brought down.
But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.
III. The Salvation
- Jesus brought life and life more abundant.
A. God does what He says He is gonna do. And Biblical history proves it. World History proves it. The Word of God declares. He will bring humility. He will bring us down. If God did not spare Capernaum due to their lack of faith, He will not spare those today who have heard the message, seen the evidence, and rejected His Son. This is sure.
For God did not spare even the angels who sinned. He threw them into hell, in gloomy pits of darkness, where they are being held until the day of judgment. And God did not spare the ancient world—except for Noah and the seven others in his family. Noah warned the world of God’s righteous judgment. So God protected Noah when he destroyed the world of ungodly people with a vast flood. Later, God condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and turned them into heaps of ashes. He made them an example of what will happen to ungodly people. But God also rescued Lot out of Sodom because he was a righteous man who was sick of the shameful immorality of the wicked people around him. Yes, Lot was a righteous man who was tormented in his soul by the wickedness he saw and heard day after day. So you see, the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their trials, even while keeping the wicked under punishment until the day of final judgment. He is especially hard on those who follow their own twisted sexual desire, and who despise authority.
These people are proud and arrogant, daring even to scoff at supernatural beings without so much as trembling.
B. But Shane I’m not a sinner. Sure? All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. There is no one on earth who always does and never sins. We are all by nature children of wrath. The word said… Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. This is an evil in all that is done under the sun, that the same event happens to all. Also, the hearts of the children of man are full of evil, and madness is in their hearts while they live, and after that they go to the dead. But with this state, God is promising a coming judgement. It will be real and it will be terrible.
C. The Bible says it is a terrible thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Hell is real. It is the place of weeping and gnashing of teeth. It is outer darkness. It is the eternal fire. It is the place reserved for the devil and his angels. It is the wrath of the living God. Shane can we be saved from this? You bet we can.
D. Jesus died for our sins according to the scriptures and he was buried and he was raised on the third day according to the scriptures. The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance that Christ Jesus came into this world to save sinners. He came to seek and to save that which was lost. He became sin who knew no sin that we might become the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.
E. And what is more. All who call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in Your heart that God raised Him from the dead you will be saved. Believe that Jesus is the Christ the Son of the living God and you will have life in His name. Confess your sins and he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
F. The reality of God’s judgement is really real. It is real, it will be terrible, and it is coming. The culture can do all it can to diminish the stark reality of the Justice of God and even eliminate the idea of God in turn believing that man is the measure of all things. It cannot sustain and survive the critique. The bottom line… The Bible is our only real source of truth. It promises judgement yes, but it also promises life and life more abundant in Christ and in Christ alone.