Sermon Notes, June
30, 2013
Pastor Jan Sinozich
Pastor
Jan’s sermon was titled “Happy Birthday, America.” Her scripture basis was Psalm 33. She quoted French philosopher Alexis de
Toucqueville after his visit to America early in our history: “America is great
because America is good. If America ever
ceases to be good, America will cease to be great.” Our motto is ‘In God We Trust.’ What is it that has made America great?
Reverence for God is a call to praise. Psalm 33:1-3 tells us how to show reverence
for God. When we praise Him, we respect
Him and reverence Him. If reverence for
God is to return to our nation, it will have to start with God’s righteous (good)
people. Praise begets reverence;
reverence begets righteousness.
Dependence on God is understanding His
worthiness. Verses 4-19 help us see
that we can depend on God because He is righteous, therefore worthy of our
praise. Everything He does is fair,
just, upright, and faithful. We can
depend on God’s commitment to equity and justice when He deals with us. To fear God (stand in awe of Him) is a
demonstration of our respect for His power and authority. His plans and decrees endure forever. God knows His children—those who know Him and
stand in awe of Him; He pours out His
blessings on us. He is reliable and
righteous. We need to anchor ourselves
to the God who has our destiny in His hands.
Hope in God is trust in His Worthiness. Verses 20-22 sees the faith of God’s
righteous nation in three progressive steps.
They wait for God to deliver their help and protection. They praise Him because they have confidence
in His holy character. They trust that
He will reward their confidence by being faithful to His commitment to love
them.
He has proven to
be trustworthy throughout generations, throughout history, and His works are
consistently righteous and just.
Therefore, we can continue to be a nation whose trust is in God. Hope is the oxygen of the soul: its object is
the Lord and His unfailing love. Happy
Birthday, America. Keep the candles on
your birthday cake of freedom burning brightly.
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