Several of my recent posts have focused on the subject of America’s pending judgment at the hands of God if we refuse to repent and turn back to Him. Recently, I had an interesting question posed to me as to how Christians are to prepare for this impending judgment. I will strive to answer that question in this blog.

Before we begin trying to answer, however, I feel that it is necessary to give a Biblical foundation for those who would believe that judgment will never come to America. There are those who buy into the rhetoric of empty promises made by politicians who are vying for their vote. For example, in our present presidential campaign, we have one candidate who promises to make America great again by implementing sweeping change, while the other candidate promises to stay the course which has been set during the last eight years of our present president. Both, in essence, are promising better days ahead for our nation. And yet, just a simple glimpse at the present state of affairs reveals to us that we are not on a path to greatness, but rather we are on a collision course toward destruction. Our economy is teetering on the brink of collapse. Racial tensions are running high. The political spectrum is grim, as we see our nation divided like never before. Social issues run contrary to the clear teachings of Scripture. Morality  – well, morality has been replaced with an anything goes mentality. In many instances right has become wrong and wrong has become right.

The root cause of this (from this one individual’s perspective) is that we as a nation have turned our backs on God, and therefore have brought God’s judgment on ourselves. So, now back to the question under consideration: how are Christians to ready themselves for God’s hand of judgment. First, don’t let it catch us unaware. The Bible gives ample warning to those who have once lived a Biblically enlightened life, and then turn away from Biblical truth to embrace the ways of the world. There are many conditional promises of God in the Bible. These conditional clauses are in the form of, “If you….then I.” For example, God told the people of Israel, “If you will obey Me, then I will bless you; but if you disobey me, then I will withhold my blessings from you.” On occasion, those conditional promises took on a very sobering tone: “If you refuse to obey Me, then you will experience My wrath.” The present day spiritual climate of America is a far cry from obeying the principles of God’s Word, so based on these conditional promises of God we can see clearly that we are ripe for judgment. So, believers should never be caught off guard and unaware of impending judgment.

Second, we must understand that when God’s judgment falls on a nation, it falls on the entire nation. God does not miraculously build a wall around believers to protect them from national judgment. Rather, the entire nation suffers, righteous and unrighteous alike. There are certainly physical precautions that can be taken. Food can be stored away in the likelihood of food shortages caused by destruction of crops from weather catastrophes. Provisions can be kept for long periods of time if the food supplies have been properly prepared for long-term storage. There are those who would suggest making sure that you are properly protected by having an arsenal of weapons and ammunition in case of rioting in the streets. I realize that I am speaking of extreme conditions, but when one reads the Old Testament and notes how desperate the people of Israel were during times of God’s judgment, then the likelihood of this happening in America is not such a hard-to-believe eventuality.

Finally, and absolutely of most importance, is to make sure that we are prepared to meet God. In the Old Testament book of Amos, God is revealing to His people the reality of impending judgment. Amos reveals prophetically the horrific atrocities which are coming, and yet, the most sobering word of preparation is this: “Therefore, prepare to meet your God, O Israel.” My question for you today is this: Are you prepared to meet God? Whatever happens in this life, regardless of how awful it might be, is nothing in comparison with meeting God without having a relationship with Him through His Son, Jesus Christ.  We may meet Him through a time of national judgment, or we may live to a ripe old age and meet Him after a long, productive life. But know this: each and every one of us WILL meet Him. Jesus made it possible for us to be prepared for life and death through giving His life as a sacrifice for us. Have you trusted Him as your personal Lord and Savior? If not, you are not prepared to meet God. You will meet Him, you will just not be prepared. The Bible teaches clearly that “every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God.” You have the choice of doing that now, in preparation for eternity, or doing it later, just before hearing the words, “Depart from Me, I never knew you.” The choice is yours. Please, I beseech you in the name of our Lord Jesus, trust Him today so that you will be prepared for that coming day of judgment.