========================================================
‑‑‑‑‑ THE PREACHER'S
NOTEBOOK ‑‑‑‑‑
Ecclesiastes 12:10
--------------------------------------------------------
A Free Email Newsletter Sent to ??? Subscribers
========================================================
NOTE: The following message is intended to be a
blessing to all nations,
not
just the
but
every nation can have favored nation status with God,
as
you will see as you read the message.
===================
Psalms 33:12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the
LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.
THE TITLE OF THIS MESSAGE IS … A
FAVORED NATION
The term “favored nation” has
recently fallen out of favor
in the
In the history of our country,
in our international dealings,
until just the last few years, the
term “favored nation”
was used to describe those nations
with which we had entered into a
specific trade agreement
of favored nation status …
in
essence, agreeing that we would give no other nation
a
sweeter deal or arrangement than we gave to them.
In other words, as I understand it,
any nation that was granted “favored
nation” status
was given
exactly the same trade arrangements
as we gave to
our most favored nations in the world.
WE
DON’T USE THE TERM ANYMORE.
THE
TERM THAT IS NOW USED IS “
IN THE 1990’S, THERE WAS A BIG
BROUHAHA
CONCERNING CHINA HAVING “FAVORED
NATION” STATUS
following
the events of
and
other charges of civil rights violations, etc..
THE FORMER
SOVIET STATES, INCLUDING
WERE GRANTED
FAVORED NATION STATUS IN 1992.
BUT THERE WAS AN ONGOING HUE AND CRY
CONCERNING
THE USE OF THE TERM “FAVORED NATION”
WHEN REFERRING TO THOSE COUNTRIES OF
THE WORLD
THAT WERE GUILTY
OF EGREGIOUS HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS.
IN REALITY, THE TERM HAD TO DO WITH TRADE AGREEMENTS
CONCERNING TARIFFS, ETC. & was designed to promote
free trade.
SO, TO DO AVOID THE USE OF THE
TERMINOLOGY,
THE TERM “NORMAL TRADE RELATIONS”
has
replaced in the U.S. vocabulary
the “Most
Favored Nation” status
EVEN SETTING IT IN THAT CONTEXT,
IT WOULD SEEM THAT THERE WERE THINGS
THAT A NATION MIGHT DO
THAT WOULD COST IT
ITS
FAVORED NATION STATUS.
& I think that
is true even today …
that we would bring
sanctions against certain countries
that fell out of
favor with us because of evil deeds.
NOW, MY MESSAGE TODAY
IS NOT POLITICAL,
AND DOES NOT HAVE TO DO WITH FAVORED
NATION
relationships between nations,
But with
FAVORED NATION STATUS WITH GOD.
I’m interesting in our Diplomacy with the
Divine.
&
even though I stand as a citizen of
the
I stand also as an Ambassador of
Heaven.
Now,
as an American,
I WANT
… to have God’s Blessings.
& I would
trust that any patriot
of any nation
would say the same.
LET ME SAY
CLEARLY
THAT FAVORED
NATION STATUS
IS NOT
SOMETHING THAT CAN ONLY BE GIVEN TO ONE NATION.
IT HAS NOT
BEEN TRUE AT THE HUMAN LEVEL
THAT ONLY ONE
NATION COULD HAVE FAVORED NATION STATUS
AND IT IS NOT TRUE AT A SPIRITUAL LEVEL.
GOD WILL ACCEPT ANY MAN
FROM ANY NATION.
Acts 10:35 But in every nation he that feareth him, and
worketh righteousness, is accepted with him.
Re 5:9 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou
art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast
slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and
tongue, and people, and nation;
GOD’S
EXTENSION OF FAVOR
IS NOT
LIMITED TO ONE NATION OR ONE PERSON.
What He said to Mary,
He can
say to Many.
Luke 1:28 And the angel came in unto her,
and said, Hail, thou that art highly
favoured,
the Lord is with thee:
blessed art thou among women.
The Lord is not limited in what He is
able to do.
He can grant His favor
as He Sovereignly sees fit.
IF WE WANT
DIVINE INTERVENTION,
WE NEED TO DO
INTERCESSION.
We need to pray for America,
and especially at this time.
Today’s
message is a call to care;
It is a call
to prayer.
ONLY GOD CAN MAKE A
NATION TRULY GREAT
God told Abraham
Gen 12:2 And I will make of thee a great nation,
and I will bless thee, and make thy
name great;
and thou shalt be a blessing:
God can take
only one man and make a great nation out of him
if He chooses
to do so.
God told
Moses this:
De 9:14 Let me alone, that I may destroy them,
and blot out their name from under heaven: and I will make of thee a nation
mightier and greater than they.
Isa 60:22 A little one shall become a thousand,
and a small one a strong nation:
I the LORD will hasten it in his
time.
A NATION’S GREATNESS
IS DIRECTLY CORRELATED TO ITS CLOSENESS TO GOD.
Moses knew and understood this.
De 4:7 For what nation is there so great,
who hath God so nigh unto them, as the
LORD our God is in all things that we call upon him for?
8
And what nation is there so great, that hath statutes and
judgments so righteous as all this law, which I set before you this day?
A GREAT NATION IS NOT ONLY A BLESSING TO ITSELF,
BUT IT IS A BLESSING TO OTHERS.
A truly great nation is not only
a “blessed” nation.
It is a nation that is a
“blessing.”
Consider again
Gen 12:2 And I will make of thee a great nation,
and I will bless thee, and make thy
name great;
and thou shalt be a blessing:
PEOPLE CAN DECIDE WHAT KIND OF PEOPLE
THEY WANT TO BE.
A NATION CAN BE A FAVORED NATION
OR IT CAN BE A FOOLISH NATION
Deut. 32:28 For they are a nation void of counsel,
neither is there any understanding in
them.
NOT ONLY CAN A NATION BE FOOLISH;
A NATION CAN BE REBELLIOUS
Eze. 2:3 And he said unto me, Son of man,
I send thee to the children of
Israel,
to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled
against me: they and their fathers have transgressed against me, even unto this
very day.
A NATION CAN BE AN UNGODLY NATION
…
made up of ungodly people … Godless people.
Psalms 43:1 Judge me, O God, and plead my cause
against an ungodly nation: O deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man.
A NATION CAN GO BACKWARD INSTEAD OF FORWARD
Isa 1:4 Ah sinful nation, a people laden
with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have
forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they
are gone away backward.
Hag 2:14 Then answered Haggai, and said, So is this
people, and so is this nation before me, saith the LORD; and so is every
work of their hands; and that which they offer there is unclean.
Mal 3:9 Ye
are cursed with a curse:
for ye have
robbed me, even this whole nation.
It remains universally and
eternally true that
Proverbs
14:34 Righteousness exalteth a
nation:
but sin is a reproach to any people.
In the natural, even increase is not
always improvement.
Isa 9:3 Thou hast multiplied the nation,
and not
increased the joy:
A NATION DARE NOT BECOME PROUD
Isa 18:2 speaks of
“… a nation
scattered and peeled,
a nation
meted out and trodden down, …”
A NATION WILL BE BLESSED
IN RELATION TO ITS RESPONSE TO TRUTH.
Isa 26:2 speaks of a
“righteous
nation which keepeth the truth … . “
Such a nation is blessed
and will be blessed.
Isa 26:15 “Thou
hast increased the nation,
O LORD, thou hast increased the
nation:
thou art
glorified:…”
SO, IN ONE SENSE,
A NATION GETS TO DECIDE
WHETHER IT HAS FAVORED NATION STATUS.
True in the
world today.
& It is
true spiritually.
WHAT KIND OF A NATION WILL WE BE IN THE FUTURE?
IS THERE ONE WHO DOUBTS
THAT WE HAVE HAD FAVORED NATION
STATUS WITH GOD ?
But
the question is,
Will
we lose that status
as a nation?
AGAIN, WE GET TO DECIDE.
Isa 58:2 “… they seek me daily,
and delight
to know my ways,
as a nation that did righteousness,
and forsook not the ordinance of
their God:
they ask of me the ordinances of
justice;
they take delight in approaching to
God.
DO WE AS A NATION TAKE DELIGHT
IN APPROACHING GOD?
Think about it individually.
Do you take delight in going to
worship … and in worshipping …
or do you miss at every opportunity,
and for any reason.
Matt. 6:33 seek ye first the kingdom of God,
and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.
TUESDAY, WE
WILL VOTE ON WHO WILL BE PRESIDENT.
There is a sense in which we vote
weekly
on whether or nation has FAVORED
NATION STATUS with heaven.
ONE ILLUSTRATION FROM ONE
ARENA:
If each time
you went to church
because you
wanted to worship and honor God
counted as
ONE VOTE FOR
FAVORED NATION STATUS
with heaven.
and if each
time you missed without valid reason before God
counted as
ONE VOTE AGAINST
FAVORED NATION STATUS
with heaven.
I WONDER HOW
AMERICA IS VOTING THIS YEAR.
How are you voting?
& I’M NOT TALKING ABOUT TUESDAY’S
ELECTION.
I wonder if we are
in danger of losing
our Favored Nation
Status with heaven.
YOU KNOW,
IN THIS PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION,
I ONLY GET ONE VOTE.
I have already voted,
and it is not allowed that I could vote
again.
If
it were legal, and others could do it (had the same right)
then
I would surely vote every time I could.
WELL, I GET TO CAST MY VOTE OVER AND OVER AND OVER
FOR FAVORED NATION STATUS WITH HEAVEN.
Isa 58:2 “… they seek me daily,
and delight
to know my ways,
as a nation that did righteousness,
and forsook not the ordinance of
their God:
they ask of me the ordinances of
justice;
they take delight in approaching to
God.
I WANT TO CAST MY VOTE
EVEN IF NOBODY ELSE DOES.
I’ve been talking this hour
about national survival,
may I switch gears in closing
t o talk about personal salvation.
Did you know that
Everybody in your entire nation (or
family ) could be lost
and you could still be saved.
Phillipians
2:15 That ye may be blameless and
harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and
perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;
THERE IS A SENSE IN WHICH AT
JESUS CAST HIS VOTE FOR MY SALVATION.
I’m glad that I have cast my vote for
Him
as my Savior.
I have asked Him
into my heart.
I
HAVE GIVEN HIM “FAVORED STATUS”
&
HE HAS DONE THE SAME FOR ME.
IT IS TRUE AT THE NATIONAL LEVEL.
Nations do not grant Favored Nation
Status
to a nation that does not grant them
the same status.
IT IS TRUE AT THE PERSONAL LEVEL.
He has already shown you His favor,
His Grace … His unmerited favor
by what He did at
1 John
IF YOU WISH TO EMBRACE HIS FAVOR, HIS
LOVE TODAY,
YOU CAN.
&
GIVE HIM YOUR FAVOR, YOUR LOVE TODAY.
--------------------------------------------------------
The preceding is a sermon written by Ben Shepherd.
Copyright 2004 Ben Shepherd
Permission is freely granted to those who
minister
to use in public proclamation without stating
attribution.
All other rights reserved.
--------------------------------------------------------