“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance. From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind; from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth—he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do.
No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength. A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save. But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.
We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. May your unfailing love be with us, Lord, even as we put our hope in you.” (Psalm 33:12-22 NIV)
“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance.” Doesn’t that sound like the perfect verse from God’s Word for today—the Fourth of July? In fact, if you Google this verse—Psalm 33:12—you’ll see all sorts of pictures of American flags and American landmarks with this verse written on them. “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.” We love the idea that our nation is blessed. Chosen. Special. Especially on the Fourth of July. “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance.”
I don’t like to be the bearer of bad news, but I have to tell you something. That verse isn’t actually talking about the United States. I know it sounds just plain wrong to say that on the Fourth of July, but that verse isn’t actually talking about our country. We have to be careful how we use God’s Word. It is so easy—and so tempting—to take Bible verses and misapply them. To ignore what they really mean and make them say what we want them to say. I’m guilty of that. You are too. This verse is a good example. “Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance.” That’s not talking about the United States.
Do you know whom it’s talking about? There was one nation that God actually chose as his special nation. Do you remember which one? Israel. It goes all the way back to one man—Abraham. Over 2,000 years before the birth of Jesus—so over 4,000 years ago—God came to Abraham with a special message out of the blue. God told Abraham that he was going to make him into a great nation, and “all peoples on earth will be blessed through you” (Genesis 15:3). The nation that God chose as his inheritance was Israel. Moses later said this to the Israelites: “You are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession” (Deuteronomy 7:6).
Why did God do that? He loves all people. Why did God chose one nation to be extra special? It goes back to his promise to Abraham: “All peoples on earth will be blessed through you” (Genesis 15:3). God’s goal was never to establish a powerful earthly kingdom. Israel was just a tiny little country way smaller than the state of Oklahoma. God’s goal was to bless the whole world through Abraham’s family. How? Because of Jesus. It was all about the Savior. Israel was God’s special nation, because by his grace he decided to have the Savior of the world—Jesus—come from that nation. And Jesus did. He was a descendant of Abraham. Because of Jesus, all peoples on earth have been blessed through Israel, including you and me. Make sense?
Notice, however, that I’ve been saying that Israel was God’s special nation. Israel was special, because the Savior of the world was going to come from their nation. That means that Israel’s purpose was fulfilled when Jesus was born. After Jesus died and rose to save us, his disciples didn’t stay in Israel. They went out into the whole world to preach to everyone about the Savior. There is no special connection between the Bible and the nation of Israel today. That’s good to remember as politics in Israel are always on the news, right? We pray for peace all over the world, but our faith today does not rest on anything that happens in the modern nation of Israel.
In fact, if we put our hope in the United States or in Israel today, we’re doing exactly the opposite of what God’s Word encourages. “No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength. A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save.” What’s the point? Don’t put your hope in men, no matter who they are. Don’t trust in human strength, no matter how big the country is or how powerful its weapons seem. “Despite all its great strength it cannot save.” Every day, we face two options: Hope in the Lord, or hope in humanity around us. It’s the most foolish thing in the world to put our hope in armies or warriors or horses or presidents or guns or… instead of in Jesus. Can you see that?
So why are we doing that? I’m concerned that Christianity in America is trusting in kings and horses instead of in the Lord. I saw that in the election last fall. I remember one particular email I got before the election. It said something like this: “This is the most important election in the history of this country because the future of Christianity is at stake. If you don’t vote for ______________, it will be the end of Christianity in America.” Did you get messages like that?
What a lie! When did Jesus get kicked off his throne? When did God’s church begin to depend on any one country—let alone on any president? How foolish! But isn’t how we Christians have started talking? “As goes America, so goes Christianity…” “If we don’t get the right people in office…” Know what Jesus said? “My kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36). So, if I think Jesus’ kingdom is in this world, I’m not part of Jesus’ kingdom. See how important this is?
God does. God sees it all. How it must hurt! “From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind; from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth—he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do.” God sees everything that goes on everywhere. He knows exactly where our hope is placed. When it’s not in him, when our hope is placed in this country or in that person, it must hurt! Can you imagine God thinking, “After all that I’ve done? After I sent my Son? After I gave them my Word? They still think it’s up to them?” When I foolishly put my hope in this nation—or any nation—I deserve all the panic and fear that fills my heart.
So who is it then? If the nation of God isn’t the United States or Israel, who is it? Here’s the best part: It’s you! Once Jesus came, God’s purpose for Israel was fulfilled, but that doesn’t mean God stopped having a special nation. It’s you! Here’s how God had Peter describe Christians: “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Peter 2:9). Peter wasn’t writing to people of any particular nationality or race or country. He was writing to Christians. Who are God’s special people? God’s nation? All believers in Jesus. You!
Listen to how God talks about you: You are a chosen people, not because you’re earned it, but because God in his grace put faith in Jesus in your heart by the Holy Spirit. So you’re chosen. You are a royal priesthood, not because of where you were born, but because you have been born again as God’s child through baptism. If you are God’s child, you’re a royal! You are a holy nation, not because you’re perfect, but because Jesus has forgiven all your sins through his blood on the cross. So you’re holy. You are God’s special possession, because he loved you so much that he sent his one and only Son to live and die and rise to give you eternal life in heaven. A chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession. By grace, that’s you!
The Old Testament has a beautiful phrase to talk about God’s grace to us. “But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.” Did you catch it? His unfailing love. Isn’t that beautiful? His unfailing love. Know what fails? Presidents. Armies. Governments. Know what never fails? God’s love for you in Jesus. It’s good to celebrate the blessing of the United States, but God wants us to remember that our real kingdom is God’s kingdom, and that not even the gates of hell can overcome it, because our real King and Savior and Lord is Jesus!
So, “we wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. May your unfailing love be with us, Lord, even as we put our hope in you.” We don’t put our trust in politicians. We wait in hope for the Lord. We don’t rest in peace because of our military. He is our help and our shield. We don’t rejoice when our favorite team wins. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. We don’t put our hope in changing the laws. May your unfailing love be with us, Lord, even as we put our hope in you. Can you see the difference? Blessed are the people of God, whose hope is in his unfailing love.
That’s what America needs: More Christians. More people who don’t trust in America, but who trust in God’s unfailing love. It might sound counter-intuitive, but the more you trust in Jesus, the better citizen you’re able to be of the United States. It works the same in other areas of life. In your marriage, if you put your hope in your spouse, you’re going to hurt your marriage. He or she is not made to be the foundation of your life. If you put your hope in your children, if you make them the foundation of your life, you’re going to crush them. But if you put your hope in Jesus, you’re freed to serve and love your spouse and children willingly and sacrificially, because your life doesn’t depend on them. It depends on Jesus. Make sense?
It’s the same with our country. When you and I act as though our future depends on the United States, the result is anger and panic and disappointment—like we see all around us. But when you put your hope in Jesus, you’re free to serve others cheerfully. To obey the authorities willingly. To sacrifice your wants and desires, because you’re filled up with Jesus. Remember how Peter put it? “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” How much good could we Christians do for the United States if we focused our lives on “declaring the praises of him who called us out of darkness into his wonderful light”?
Because here’s what nation is really blessed: Blessed is the nation whose people hope in God’s unfailing love. Blessed is the nation whose people trust in Jesus as their King and Savior. Blessed is the nation where believers in Jesus focus on changing people’s hearts with the Gospel instead of trying to force people to change outward behavior with laws. Blessed is the nation that’s filled with Christians declaring the praises of Jesus who called us out of darkness into his wonderful light. Blessed is the nation whose citizens pray: “May your unfailing love be with us, Lord, even as we put our hope in you.” May God bless our nation as we put our hope in him.
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