Council Grove Christian Church

12/18/25
Servants of God,
 
Our nation needs to be taught the truth (John 14:6) and every Christian must have a small part in doing the teaching. Every Christian should teach at Christmas time. We must teach why God sent His only begotten Son. We must make the point that God acted in radical and amazing love to rescue fallen humans like us. We must teach our neighbors and friends and family that the incarnation of God (celebrated at Christmas) is essential to the well being of our homes and communities. Now is not a time to be catechized by the pagan culture around us. It is a time to proclaim and to live in accord with truth.
American Christians need to wake up out of our “go along to get along” attitudes. Sin is an evil that requires a vicious extermination that only Jesus Christ could accomplish. The cross is no play thing. The drama of the atoning death of the Son of God has its opening scene in a manger.
When our nation was very young, John and Samuel Adams, two of the major players in the founding, exchanged letters in September and October of 1790. John wrote that he had concern for what the nation might become. He said he wondered whether they might be on the cusp of ushering in the Millenium. Samuel wrote back pointing out that history was full of cautions about uprisings and revolutions. He noted that the patriots of Rome put an end to the life of Caesar, but that Rome had soon “submitted to a race of tyrants in his stead.” He went on to declare that the only guarantee against the loss of the republic was the right kind of education.
He said that boys and girls must be taught “the exalted virtues of the Christian system.” His point was that children taught Christian virtues would be likely to “subdue the passions of men.” Only then was there any hope of a true golden age. These were men who understood that the most important government was the government of self. Passions (emotions) must be kept in check or humans can easily become monsters.
Unless children are taught that they are great sinners who are in need of a great savior, they can become immoral and dangerous. Recently, we have seen a couple of tragic examples of the death and suffering that immoral people can cause. The mass killing at Brown University and the bloody murder of Rob Reiner and his wife (apparently at the hand of their son) are awful reminders that humans without self-government can act worse than beasts.
Particularly since the 1960s, badly taught humans have openly been trying to destroy our nation. In the name of diversity and equity etc. wicked people have been trying to cast off the restraint of God. Of course, the perpetrators of this horrible revolution couch their deeds in the language of freedom. But we need to ask what is it they truly want to be free from?
Evangelism is important, but true evangelism leads to a grace-driven change of character. When the church stopped seeing that its mission included discipleship that shaped the human heart, we lost our way. Great institutions like Brown University have profoundly Christian roots. Brown has prided itself as an open and welcoming place of learning but it was founded by Baptists who wanted to educate to the glory of God. Harvard and Yale and many other great universities have similar histories.
The Adams cousins looked into the future with guarded optimism. They knew that a virtuous people, aware of the dangers of human nature, could work together to make a better country. Their generation valued not just their lives and fortunes but their sacred honor.
Our nation has become a people who too often pay lip service to God then do what pleases us—not God. How many mass murders and family tragedies will it take before fathers take seriously the responsibility to teach their children and train them to love and serve the Lord Jesus? When will the pulpits of the nation issue a true call for the confession of sin and genuine repentance of sin?
It is too easy to pretend that everything is ok. Early Christians faced a pagan culture that was vicious and violent. Life was cheap and false gods abounded. Into that culture came a people with a message of the love and hope of God. Those early disciples of Jesus turned the world upside down not with big events and promises of political power. They came teaching the truth about Jesus. Maybe we should seriously think about imitating them!
Blessings,
Pastor John
Coram Deo