In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the importance of righteousness and sin in the lives of Christians. He expresses concern that many Christians today resemble the world in their actions and behaviors, rather than standing out as a peculiar people. The preacher highlights three areas where America is in trouble: economically, morally, and spiritually. He urges believers to recognize the ways of God and His acts, and emphasizes the need for a revival where people are born again into the kingdom of God.

As we think about America's only hope, I like to think about the heritage that we have. I don't know about you, but back through the years as I've faced death a number of times and faced my responsibility as a father, faced my responsibility as a human being, faced my responsibility as a preacher of the gospel that deals in eternal affairs, you know, preaching the gospel that shall save people forever, preaching the gospel that shall change people forever, thinking about these areas, I have often thought about the heritage that I have, not only in Christ Jesus, but in America. When you look at the American history and you realize that as you look at the people of our day in the light of American history, we're only living at the peak of our human development in this country. And in fact, it could almost be safely said that the human race is living at the peak of its human development all over the world. That may not be exactly the case, but all over the world, but it certainly is true right here in America. And as we look at all of this development, the technology that we have today, and we're enjoying the results of this massive development of technology. And you look at the materialistic development related to this technology, and even the socialistic, and I'm not talking about socialism now, I'm talking about the social development of people. We've been so blessed. And the economic development, distribution, we've been so blessed. And it seems that no nation in the world has ever been blessed like we have been blessed. And here we are enjoying so much socially, economically, and it's just unreal what we're enjoying. And even the spiritual aspect, the Christian has never had it better. There's no question about it, he's never had it better. There may have been times when he's been a greater Christian, but the Christian has never had it easier. He can give his testimony without being harassed. That may not be good, but I mean he's never had it easier. And money, look at the billions and billions of dollars that's within the Christian community. I mean the Christian has really got it made. And it's really something, when you think about your responsibility in the light of all this, because you realize that what you are enjoying is the result of a price paid by preceding generations. Boy, when you think about that, it just blows your mind. It chills your heart to think about that you are enjoying the result of past generations. Not only your family development of past generations, but all the other people of the world and what they've been doing. You're enjoying that. And when you realize that you are enjoying the faithfulness of past generations, you realize something else. That you realize that these blessings can cease. And that every generation that comes along either releases more blessings or deteriorates the blessings. And it's an obvious thing that the generations that have passed have helped us reach the mountain peak. But now for our generation and maybe a generation preceding us, maybe, we have started down the backside of the mountain and now we are closing up things and causing the blessings to cease. And these blessings are ceasing. And we're going to pass on to the generation to follow, and the generation to follow that generation, and the generation to follow that generation, and the generation to follow that generation, and on and on. Either the doorway and the path into mightier, mightier, greater blessings are the door and the path into less and less blessings. Now I personally believe that the reason that we're at the peak, or we have been at the peak, of the mighty blessings of the world, from the hand of God, as a development of mankind, as a development of all of his resources that God has placed within this world, is because of the light of the gospel of Jesus Christ. I believe Christianity, the light of the gospel, has been the greatest contributing factor in bringing man into all these blessings. Blessings in the realm of technology, economics, social life, and so on, spiritual life for sure, and so on. But you see, if these aren't passed on, if this door into greater opportunities and blessings aren't passed on, it will be the opposite. And so what I'm saying to you is this. What in the world are we going to leave our children? You know, my children have had the beautiful joy of walking in my footsteps without much fear. Boy, they have had the privilege of enjoying America, just like I have. They have had the privilege, but I do not know they'll enjoy that privilege all of their life. But their grandchildren and their grandchildren, it's not going to be the same unless something takes place. Now this old world is in an awful shape, economically. Now, it sounds like I'm contradicting myself, but you know, in the last 20, 30 years, we have gone to pot economically. I mean, this thing is at the point of disaster economically. I don't think I have to labor at the point that this nation's in trouble economically. This nation's not only in trouble economically, but it's in trouble morally. And there is no question about that. I don't think I have to labor at the point to prove to you as people of God that listen to this tape that this nation's in trouble economically. In fact, most of you do not have to go any further than your family to realize that there's a real economic or moral problem in your life or in the world. And then this country is in trouble spiritually. Really. When it comes to having an old-fashioned revival meeting, heaven sent, holy ghost, old-fashioned revival meeting, where people get birthed, born into the kingdom of God, we're in trouble. We have changed to emotional methods and intellectual methods altogether to getting people to identify themselves with Christianity. Now, the intellectual and emotional is necessary to getting people birthed into the kingdom of God. But beloved, when the intellectual does away with the Holy Spirit and just depends upon a teaching program that just informs man's minds and does not bring man into a crisis where a man repents and believes on the Lord Jesus Christ in a crisis and gets birthed into the kingdom of God, we're in trouble. And in this nation, we are living in a day, beloved, when the church basic program is to educate people into understanding. And they call that level of understanding Christian experience. But we're in trouble. We're in trouble because no longer can you distinguish the Christian from the non-Christian. Old Brother Vance Havner used to say, if I look out and I see something that looks like a duck, sounds like a duck, the only thing I can deduct that it is a duck. Beloved, we're living in the generation when you look out and you cannot tell a Christian because they look like the world, they talk like the world, they smell like the world, they act like the world. And I want you to know we're in trouble. We're in trouble when our Christianity does not distinguish us from the world and calls us to be a peculiar people where we look different, talk different, walk different. We are different because Jesus Christ is living in our hearts. What I'm saying to you, America is in trouble. She's in trouble in the areas that really, really, really count with you. These three areas we talk about. Economically, this is a big issue with you and me. Morally, morality is a big issue with all of us. Spiritual life is a big issue with all of us. Our only hope, our only hope, America's only hope, our only hope, beloved, is not getting our economic straight. That may sound like a contradiction to you also. Our hope is not getting our economic straight. No, sir. You could get all the economic straight and we would still be headed down the drain. Well, if we just got our morals straight, that would be our hope. Now, this may be really shocking, but we could get our morals changed and that would not be our hope. It wouldn't? No, sir. It would not be our hope. Here's our hope. Proverbs 14, 34. This is America's only hope, as far as I can tell. This is America's only hope. Are you listening to it? It says, Righteousness exalted a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people. I believe America's only hope is to become righteous. You might say, well, that's getting your morals straight. No, people can be self-righteous, and humanistic morals will not save America. You could get her humanistically right morally, and it would not save America. It's not morality that saves America. It's righteousness that would save America. Righteousness exalted a nation. America's only hope, beloved, is to become righteous, is to become righteous. Now, when she would get righteous, she would be right morally. Also, when she gets right, righteously, she would be right economically. Amen. By the way, that would also be true. When she got right about righteousness, she would be right spiritually. I wish we could catch hold of that principle. I really do, because if we could see that if we could get right about our righteousness, then the areas of difficulty on us and our nation then would just be the natural result. It would happen. I would like for us to look at what we're talking about here when we talk about righteousness exalted the nation. Just look and see what the Lord has to say to us about righteousness. As we turn through the Word of God, we, brother and sister, we find so much about righteousness. It's unbelievable. But I'd like for us to look at the different stages of righteousness, or you might call this a different level of righteousness, as we look through the Word of God. We find that we are first talking about God's righteousness. Now, the Word of God declares Jesus to be righteous. All through the Word of God, the Word of God declares Jesus to be righteous. For instance, in Psalms 11, Psalms 117, we find that the Lord talks about Him being righteous. For the righteous Lord loveth righteousness. His countenance doth behold the upright. So the Lord declares Himself, and the Word of God declares that the Lord is righteous. Now, the very nature of God is righteousness. Not only is God declared to be righteous by the Word of God, but God is righteous in His character. All the way through, God is righteous in His character. For instance, in Psalms 35, we find in 24, Judge me, O Lord my God, according to Thy righteousness, and let them not rejoice over me. And then in the same chapter, verse 28, And my tongue shall speak of Thy righteousness, and of Thy praise all the day long. The Lord is righteous in His character. Not only is He righteous in His character, but the Lord is righteous in His ways. Psalms 9a talks about the Lord being righteous in His ways. As we look at the difference between God's ways and God's acts in just a moment, we're going to see that God is righteous, and He shall judge the world in righteousness. He shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness. Isn't it wonderful to know that God is righteous, and that He's so righteous in His character, and that in all of His ways, He is righteous. And not only is He righteous in His ways, but according to Revelation 19, He is righteous in His acts. Now let's look at that verse, Revelation 19. And as we look at that, then we're going to just take a glimpse at the matter of the difference between acts and ways. Revelation 19, 11, And I saw heaven open, and behold a white horse, and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. Isn't that amazing? In righteousness, He does these things. Now, you remember the Bible teaches about the difference between the acts of God and the ways of God. The Word of God said that Moses knew his ways, but the children of Israel knew his acts. Well, see, the ways of God is the way that God works, the nature of God, how He works. And the acts of God are the actual works of God that He manifests in our lives. For instance, when God wants to enlarge us, the first thing He does is puts us in distress. Now that's according to Psalms 4.1. Now that's the ways of God. That's right. But then, the acts of God is when God comes and mightily pours His blessing upon us after He has enlarged us so we can be capable of handling His blessing. You see, another great illustration of this is when the children of Israel were in the land of Egypt. They began to cry unto God, and God raised up Moses and sent him a deliverer. And after he got there, then they started having distressful conditions, and they cried and cried unto God, and God was preparing them for deliverance. This is the ways of God. And then one day came the deliverance. That's the acts of God. Now, it's wonderful to know that God is righteous, that He is righteous in His character. And He's not only righteous in His character, but He's righteous in His ways. And He's not only righteous in His ways, but He's righteous in His acts. And then the Bible says that God is made unto us righteousness. Oh, that's going to be beautiful. Let's turn to 1 Corinthians, the first chapter, and look at that verse, the 30th verse. 1 Corinthians, the first chapter, the 30th verse. But of Him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption. So here's what we're seeing here, is that God is made unto us in Christ Jesus righteousness. So the Lord is our righteousness. Now, that's beautiful. The Lord is made unto us righteousness. Now, He is our righteousness. Man does not have any righteousness of his own. The Lord is his righteousness, and man is righteous because the Lord is his righteousness. And when man sees this, then he knows that there is no righteousness apart from the Lord Himself. So the Lord is our righteousness. So when we talk about righteousness exalted the nation, we're talking about the Lord. And now, that does not take away from the fact that the Lord is righteous in His ways, and acts, and His character. But He is unto us righteousness. Now, that's another thing about this righteousness, is God's righteousness is imputed. Now see, the Lord is our righteousness. Jesus being our righteousness. Now, here is a man that's not saved. Here's a man that's never been born of the Spirit. Now, how does this man get the righteousness in him? So we find that God's righteousness is not labored for, not worked for. His righteousness is imputed unto us. Let's turn to Romans, the third chapter. And as we look at Romans, the third chapter, beginning at the 21st verse, we find, but now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested, being witnessed by the law and the prophets. Even the righteousness of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all, and upon all them that believe, for there is no difference. Now, that's just enough right there. We don't have to even go any further. For even the righteousness of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ. In other words, the Lord is our righteousness, and this righteousness is of faith, and so it is given to us because we have believed. Let's go a little further. For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. And this verse tells us something of deep importance about our own selves being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ, whom God has set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are passed through the forbearance of God. To declare, I say at this time, his righteousness that he might be just and the justifier of him which believed or believeth in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? Of works? Nay, but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law. Is he the God of the Jews only? Is he not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also, seeing it is one God which shall justify the circumcision by faith and uncircumcision through faith. Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid. Yea, we establish the law. What shall we say then that Abraham our father as pertaining to the flesh hath found? For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath thereof to glory, but not before God. For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Amen. Now here's what I'm saying to you. You might just go right on down through the eighth verse reading this example about Abraham and works and faith. Righteousness is imputed. There's no way in this world to become righteous apart from being saved by the grace of God, being washed in the blood of the Lamb, and beloved we are saved by grace through faith, not of works. So God's righteousness is imputed. Now not only is God's righteousness imputed, but God's righteousness is imparted. You might say, well what's the difference between imputation and impartation? The imputation is God planting His Son, Jesus, in your life by grace through faith. Imparting righteousness is the Lord Jesus expressing Himself through your life by grace through faith. 1 Corinthians 1.30, the Bible says He's made unto us not only righteousness, but what's the next word? Not the next word, but the next statement, sanctification. Look at that. But of Him are ye in Christ Jesus who of God is made unto us wisdom, righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption. Now sanctification is the expression of the righteousness of Jesus Christ in you. You could actually say it's the fruit of the Spirit in you. That's right. So righteousness is imparted. Now what are we talking about? We're talking about righteousness exalted a nation. What are we talking about? What are we talking about? We are saying that righteousness that exalted a nation is a man being saved by the grace of God, being inhabited by the person of Jesus Christ. Then we're saying that that person of Christ that lives in the life of the man because he has believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, therefore man is inhabited by the person of Christ. That person being expressed in the life of the believer where that man is holy in his conduct. Now that kind of righteousness exalted a nation. That kind of righteousness magnifies God. Without holiness no man will see God. It's the holiness that's a result of the expression of the character of Jesus inhabited by a believer in Christ Jesus. That kind of righteousness exalted the nation. It's that kind of righteousness. Beloved it's not enough just to get people to go to church. It's not enough to get them to make commitments to God. Beloved they must be inhabited by the person of Jesus Christ having his righteousness. Not their own. They must be taught to be to the point to where they express his righteousness. To where they're holy. Where God will look upon them, have pleasure in them, delight in them, and bless them. This kind of a righteousness exalted a nation. This kind of righteousness is what will set us free. This kind of righteousness my dear friend is the righteousness that's in the life of the believer because a believer has repented of their sins and believed on the Lord Jesus Christ. This kind of righteousness is expressed in the believer because a believer knows how to walk in the spirit and not fulfill the lust of the flesh. He's learned to walk by faith having a heart continually cleansed because he's obedient to the light of God's word and he knows how to keep his sins confessed up to date. To where the righteousness of Christ is constantly able to express and be expressed in his life and produce the holiness of God in his life. And this will result by the way into an expression of a righteousness of God in our environment which will affect our spiritual atmosphere, our moral condition, and our economic condition. And if we approach it any other way than the approach in which we've taken it here in this tape, beloved, we find that we're in trouble because we are back in legalism rather than walking by grace. Now let's go a little further in this verse of scripture that we're discussing. Sin is a reproach to any people. What are we talking about? Obviously we're talking about sin and I won't be able to deal with the matter of the fact of the judgment and all but I think it's pretty well understood as we talk right here and look at this verse to the crowd that I'm talking to that we understand when people sin it's a reproach to any people and the judgment of God comes. And when we look at sin, what are we talking about? You know as I look through several books for a definition of sin and I have many here, Vines and others, that give the definition of sin both in the Old Testament and the New Testament, I come up with this matter of missing the mark. Missing the mark. And the Bible says very plainly that we've all sinned and come short of the glory of God. There in Romans 3 it says we have sinned and come short of the glory of God. For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. That's missing the mark. Now I'm sure that we could get in today to the fact that sin was imputed upon us because by one man sin entered into the world. Therefore all men are sinners. And I'm sure that we are condemned under sin. And I'm sure beloved that we could get into the fact that all of us have sinned and come short of the glory of God. And I would like to put it on this basis. The Bible says in Romans whatsoever is not of faith is sin. I believe that the real issue is independence and not dependence. You see, when a lost man who is a sinner by nature, it was imputed upon all of us and we're all sinners by nature. A lost man that is a sinner by action, we've all sinned and come short of the glory of God. When that lost sinner comes to the place that he is no longer independent, but he is totally dependent upon the Lord. He comes to the Lord for mercy, repentance, and faith. That man is saved by the grace of God. But whatsoever is not of faith is sin. But the long moment he came, he would come to the place of faith. Then he is no longer counted as a sinner, a lost sinner that is. He's counted as a saved sinner. So I believe that the issue is independence not dependence. Once a man gets saved because he's come to the end of himself and come to Jesus by repentance and faith and he's saved. You see, you can turn around and get independent again and not dependent. And when you do, you are sinning against God as a child of God. But as long as you are not independent, but dependent, you're walking by faith. Whatsoever is not of faith is sin. And here we're right back to this matter of missing the mark. And I believe that this kind of independence and not dependence upon the Lord is the sin that really is bringing this awful judgment on us. But anyway, the Word of God says that sin is a reproach to any people. You see, sin God cannot look upon. He has to turn his back to. He can no longer favor, look upon with pleasure, delight in and therefore bless. So sin brings a curse. Sin brings judgment. Sin brings condemnation. Satan doesn't have to destroy the world. All he has to do is get people so sinful. That God does something. Now, we've dealt with two principles here. One is righteousness exalted the nation and sin brings a curse. But the only hope for America is righteousness. Now, I don't know about you, but as I look at this, I realize, beloved, that I can do something about this. Now, if God doesn't choose to bless America, I haven't lost a thing because I can do something about this. I can bring people to Jesus Christ and I can teach them how to be righteous. Therefore, when they're righteous, they're holy people. And then if God does not choose to bless America, he will always choose to bless his people and meet their needs under all circumstances. Now, they may not be met on the level that you and I are used to, materialism and so on, but God will meet us to the place that we fully are satisfied with him. Well, this has given me something whereby I can get to and I can bring people to Jesus and show them how to trust Jesus and become righteous people. And I can teach the saints of God how to be righteous. And I can be righteous. I can be holy because of that. I don't know how much concern you have for America, but I do know this is America's only hope. I know a lot of people got the idea that if we can straighten Congress out, we could have a great nation. If we could straighten world affairs out, we could have a great nation. If we could get this man elected, we'd have a great nation. If we could get that one elected, we'd have a great nation. But I'll tell you something, friend. Righteousness exalted the nation, not politicians. Oh, that's right. Righteousness. Do you know what I believe? I believe the only reason America has been kept together as much as she is right today is not because of the political, economic strength of this nation. It's rotten. But because of some men and women of God across this nation who've been saved by the grace of God and they are living as holy as they know how to live. And because of that, God is using that as a catalyst by which to work. And I believe that's the reason. And I believe if you and I do not wake up and realize that personally we need to become as righteous as we can become by grace through faith, so we'll be a holy people and then move out and bring people to Jesus and get them born of the Spirit, inhabited by the righteousness of God, and teach them how to be filled with the Spirit to express that righteousness, we're in more trouble than ever. And if a person doesn't see this, they will be doing a lot of things that are totally unrelated to the needs not only of America, but of the world. I've enjoyed sharing this message with you. I did not get quite through, but I'm unable to go on into it any further. But I trust that God will stir your heart. It's been a real joy for me to get into studying this matter of righteousness and this matter of sin. And I trust that God has really dealt with you through hearing this tape. I trust that God will stir your heart to stand by us and many others that God will be using throughout the years to come to preach the gospel unto the lost and to the saved, to bring them to Jesus and let them be saved by His grace, washed in His blood, inhabited by the Son of God, to the point that they're expressing the living Christ. May God richly bless you is our prayer. Amen.