What’s Wrong with America?

Well, I have always taken the principle of the warning to the watchman in the book of Ezekiel very seriously:

Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. If I say to the wicked, O wicked one, you shall surely die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked to turn from his way, that wicked person shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. But if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, that person shall die in his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul. (Ezekiel 33:7–9)

We, as individuals and the church, need to be proclaiming this Word and warning America—in fact, warning the world.

Now, we have the Word of God! And we, as individuals and the church, need to be proclaiming this Word and warning America—in fact, warning the world. So “what’s wrong with America?” Let’s divide this into two sections:

The Nation

Does God still judge the nations? Now it’s true the blessings and curses in Deuteronomy were applied to the two kingdoms of Israel. But God judged the Amorites, the Canaanites, and the people of Sodom and Gomorrah for their wickedness. In Amos and Jonah, we read about God judging nations. And regardless of what is intended by Babylon in Revelation, it’s clear God judges nations when the outcry of their wickedness reaches him. Proverbs 14:34 states:

Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people. (Proverbs 14:34)

And we read in Jeremiah 32:35 that no nation that sacrifices its children is blessed by God, but is committing an abomination before the Lord:

They built the high places . . . to offer up their sons and daughters to Molech, though I did not command them, nor did it enter into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin. (Jeremiah 32:35)

Abortion is nothing less than the sacrifice of children to the god of self. No doubt the stench of this horrendous sin—60 million children sacrificed since 1973—has reached the Lord. The only difference between abortion and the fires of Molech is the method. It’s the same sin. Our nation needs to be called to repent of this evil before it is too late. God doesn’t let cultures who sacrifice their children get away with it. Eventually, if they do not repent, he deals with them.

But America has, in a sense, thrown God out of the public schools and universities, and indoctrinated generations in evolutionary naturalism (atheism).

God warned the Israelites to “put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD” (Joshua 24:14). But America has, in a sense, thrown God out of the public schools and universities, and indoctrinated generations in evolutionary naturalism (atheism). Thus they “worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator” (Romans 1:25).

And a sign that God is judging a nation for wickedness is what we read in Romans 1—which includes the sexual, homosexual, and gender revolutions we’re seeing in this nation. This passage describes today’s news headlines:

For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them. (Romans 1:26–32)

And as we’ve observed a phenomenal exodus of young people from the church and the secularization of the younger generations now permeated with moral relativism, we could use the words of Matthew 24 to describe today’s culture:

And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. (Matthew 24:10–12)

The Church

With all that’s currently happening in our Western nations (and particularly the USA), where is the church? From a human perspective (knowing the gates of hell will not prevail against God’s true church), the church in the West has suffered an incredible failure. The younger generations have by and large left the church.

Where are all the church leaders boldly standing against sexual perversion (LGBTQ), abortion, racism, godless evolution teaching, and so on? Sadly, just as many in the culture are trying to erase history, the majority of the church has erased the history in Genesis 1–11. Without the history, there is no foundation for all doctrine, for the rest of the Bible, for the gospel, and for the Christian worldview. One cannot deal biblically with issues like gay “marriage,” abortion, gender, racism, or any other issue without the foundational history in Genesis 1–11.

The majority of church leaders and Christian institutions have compromised Genesis with evolutionary naturalism, today’s pagan religion that attempts to explain life without God.

The majority of church leaders and Christian institutions have compromised Genesis with evolutionary naturalism, today’s pagan religion that attempts to explain life without God. So many church leaders condone or ignore homosexual behavior, transgender, abortion, and racism.

Think about what is happening today. When God’s people (as recorded by the prophets in the Old Testament) compromised God’s Word with the pagan religion of their age, what did God do?

“He has withdrawn from them” (Hosea 5:6). We see the restraining influence of the Holy Spirit being lifted in the culture as a whole. We see the church struggling to know what to do.

“I also will forget your children” (Hosea 4:6). There is an exodus of children from the church.

“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6). There is so much shallow “fluff and stuff” teaching in the modern church. Most churches are not teaching apologetics and raising up generations to have a truly Christian worldview and stand boldly and uncompromisingly on the authority of God’s Word beginning in Genesis.

“I will send a famine on the land—not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the Lord” (Amos 8:11). One of the questions I am most asked is, “Do you know a church in our town that believes God Word and teaches it like AiG does? We can’t find a truly Bible-believing church.” Now there are thousands of churches that stand on God’s Word and use AiG resources, but they are a minority!

“To the melody of your harps I will not listen” (Amos 5:23). So much of the modern church has watered down the teaching of the Word and made music (often with very shallow or wrong theology) the centerpiece of the church. For all our praise teams and music, is God listening to us, or has God withdrawn because we are not honoring and teaching his Word as we should?

“I will not accept [your offerings]” (Amos 5:22). People give of their time and money to the church, but is God blessing these offerings? Or is he calling people to return to his Word and contend for the faith (Jude 3)?

“For a spirit of whoredom has led them astray, and they have left their God to play the whore” (Hosea 4:12). The compromise of so many Christian leaders to fit the beliefs of the world into God’s Word is no different than the whoredom of the Israelites when they compromised God’s Word with the pagan beliefs of the age.

Actually, I would say much of the modern church in the West is described clearly in God’s Word:

I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. (Revelation 3:14–16)

Yes, so much of the church is lukewarm, shallow, and compromising in various ways, looking more and more like the world and less like the Word. Instead of impacting the culture, the culture has invaded much of the church.

Yes, so much of the church is lukewarm, shallow, and compromising in various ways, looking more and more like the world and less like the Word. Instead of impacting the culture, the culture has invaded much of the church. I reiterate the words of the prophet Jeremiah and cry out to the church: “Learn not the way of the nations” (Jeremiah 10:2). As Christians we are to be impacting the culture from a spiritual perspective, not letting the culture impact us.

Yes, the church needs to repent of compromise! God’s people need to be watchmen and warn the nation and warn the church about what is happening. What more should we do?

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. (Matthew 28:18-20)

Our Role

God’s people (the church) are responsible for teaching the nations the difference between good and evil and between wickedness and righteousness. That is our role in our nations. This passage doesn’t say to just preach the gospel, but to teach “them to observe all that I have commanded you.” Why? Because God’s commands are holy, righteous, good, and will make a nation flourish. If they are ignored, a nation will degrade. It’s that simple. We teach the whole counsel of God.

At Answers in Genesis, we work hard to keep this ministry standing boldly on the Word of God without compromise.

At Answers in Genesis, we work hard to keep this ministry standing boldly on the Word of God without compromise. Regardless of what is happening in the culture, and regardless of what people say about us, we continue to actively engage in the business of the King until he comes (Luke 19:13). We work hard to use the resources (books, videos, websites, etc.) and facilities (such as the Ark Encounter and Creation Museum) God has entrusted to us to equip Christians and challenge non-Christians concerning the Word of God and the gospel—24 hours a day!

I encourage you to invest in this ministry with your prayers and financial support. Answers in Genesis is making a difference as we prepare God’s people to stand in the midst of the enormous spiritual battle that’s raging in our nation. Will you please send a gift of any size today to partner with us in continuing the vital work that the Lord has called us to?

Thank you for standing with us, for being one of our family, for praying for us, for supporting us financially, and for encouraging us. I truly believe God is blessing the ministry of AiG because we are diligent to honor our Creator and Savior and proclaim his Word boldly, faithfully, without compromise, with a heart to see people saved for eternity.