James Robison — In light of the riots in Baltimore and other recent outbursts of violence across the nation, we must recognize this is what happens when you forsake God. Whether it’s a rogue police officer who guns an unarmed man down in the back (by no means typical of that brave and honorable profession), or a tide of delinquents “protesting” injustice by burning down an Asian woman’s uninsured shop in Baltimore, the root cause of the chaotic violence is the same as it was in the time of Noah: Abandoning Him and his unshakable principles. Doing so enslaves one to uncontrolled appetites, sensual practices and destruction.

Romans 1:18-32 clearly reveals the progression of this rapid descent to depraved thinking and destruction. The first step is the rejection of God. It matters not how often you say, “I believe in God.” It matters what you say daily with your life. Your life must say with every vibrant act, “I adore Him. I worship Him. I love Him. I believe in Him. I honor Him and I glorify Him, for He is my God.” Even while Jesus Christ died on the cross forsaken by God, forsaken by His Father, He said, “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken me?” And with his actions he said, “Even if You forsake me, You are still my Father, and my God.” That must be the testimony of God’s divine creation. He is God. When we do not glorify Him as God, “We become vain in our imagination, professing ourselves to be wise, we become fools.”

So how should we respond? Even if they drag all Ten Commandments of Almighty God into the political arena and repudiate them, let us proclaim, “Thus saith the Lord God.” If the Supreme Court convenes and decides hell is cruel and unusual punishment, let us stand and teach what the Bible says about hell: there is a hell, and the Bible is the measure by which all societies and all men will be judged.

If you read the Old Testament, you will find the prophets were considered troublemakers. Most of them were never invited back for their second meeting. They were not popular. Real truth-tellers, prophets, have seldom been popular. With many, the Bible has not been popular. They stoned the Old Testament prophets. They killed the apostles. They beheaded John the Baptist. Tradition says they beheaded the apostle Paul. Jesus Christ, the greatest prophet of all time, was crucified.

It may not be popular, but it is true. The Bible reveals life as it should be. That’s what we need.

You may say, “James Robison, you’re a troublemaker.” Well, you’re right. I’m worse than a troublemaker; I’m a reactionary and I respond with action.

I respond to the burning of the American flag. I respond to belittling our Armed Service members and to the assassination attempt on the Constitution of the United States. I respond to the violations of the rights of the American people; to the invasion of my privacy and the privacy of any other American. I respond to wars supported for financial gain; to irresponsible voting in Congress; to the blatant compromise of truth and personal responsibility (secular progressive socialism); to prayer left out of personal lives and removed from schools. I respond to murder in the name of abortion; to abortion in the name of women’s rights; to the redefining of marriage. I respond because I care.

I respond when homosexuality is labeled a normal lifestyle. I respond to sex out of wedlock. I respond to the abuses of children, including the abuse of and bullying of kids who are struggling with same-sex attraction. I respond to those who glamorize crime and violence on television; to the new morality which is immorality. I respond to preachers who won’t preach; to churches who have no mission; to pornography in the name of art; to the excessive and unnecessary taxation of the American people. I respond to the loss of the freedom granted us by the Constitution.

You and I must respond. We must stand up for truth and freedom. We must take action!

America is great not because of her land or her people. America’s greatness is not in the military or materials of our country. It’s not in mechanical or mental greatness. America’s greatness is in God.

Our founding fathers never conceived a nation separated from God. We have a move on today to separate God from government, and God from our society. America is built on God. When America gets too intelligent for God, she has become unintelligent. When she gets too big for God, she shrinks. When she divorces herself from God, she will crumble into the dust. When America forsakes the guidance of God, she is dead.

We are clearly witnessing the judgment and wrath of God revealed against all ungodliness as we see people given over to ravenous and demonic appetites and practices. The greatest horror occurs when God’s standard is discarded and, as Romans 1 says, His truth is exchanged for a lie. So it is that the highest human authorities in this land have been making such awful decisions. There is great reason to mourn for a nation gone mad.

At the same time there is reason for hope, because there is one who can turn our mourning to something joyful, not by obscuring the hard truth but by leading us through the truth of recognition, confession and repentance. God is ready and able to heal our land if we will humble ourselves, pray and seek His face, and turn from our wicked ways.

We will see a new day in America, but only if there is a spiritual awakening and the children of light come out from under cover to become that “shining city set on a hill.”

“Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done.” Right here, right now, in our lives in this day.