Dato' Dennis Ignatius
30-09-2018
Isaiah 58:6-12 New King James Version (NKJV)
6 “Is this not the fast that I have chosen:
To loose the bonds of wickedness,
To undo the [a]heavy burdens,
To let the oppressed go free,
And that you break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,
And that you bring to your house the poor who are [b]cast out;
When you see the naked, that you cover him,
And not hide yourself from your own flesh?
8 Then your light shall break forth like the morning,
Your healing shall spring forth speedily,
And your righteousness shall go before you;
The glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
You shall cry, and He will say, ‘Here I am.’
“If you take away the yoke from your midst,
The [c]pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,
10 If you extend your soul to the hungry
And satisfy the afflicted soul,
Then your light shall dawn in the darkness,
And your [d]darkness shall be as the noonday.
11 The Lord will guide you continually,
And satisfy your soul in drought,
And strengthen your bones;
You shall be like a watered garden,
And like a spring of water, whose waters do not fail.
12 Those from among you
Shall build the old waste places;
You shall raise up the foundations of many generations;
And you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach,
The Restorer of [e]Streets to Dwell In.
May 9 gave us a new sense of power to affect change as citizens of this nation.
How do we safeguard our democracy going forward?
It is up to us now. We must be the custodians of our own democracy.
1) Do Christians have a rule in nation-building?
2) What kind of nation should we aspire to build?
3) How do we serve God in the area of nation-building?
Should we as Christians take our place in the public square? Is it ministry or politics?
I believe politicians must not be given religious authority and religious figures must not be given political authority.
Christians and nation building:
The
Bible is God's political manifesto for nation building.
It talks about integrity, accountability, godliness, justice and laws, and our responsibilities as citizens.
Genesis talks about our mandate to rule the earth.
Joshua showed integrity and leadership.
The Bible reveals to us the good and bad of rulers and government.
Esther challenged oppressive laws.
Proverbs teaches us how to govern wisely.
Amos exposes hypocritical rulers.
Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are about sharing the good news of Jesus. We have been given authority to confront the works of evil.
Revelation reminds us not to put our faith in money and power.
They were men and women of God and also men and women of government to challenge injustice, corruption and immorality.
Elijah challenged King Ahab and Queen Jezebel.
We see them today as prophets. We tend to spiritualise their position and calling. They were kings, generals and cupbearers. They were advisers and Prime Ministers. They were actively engaged in the affairs of the Bible. They serve God by serving the nation. God used them to bring the nation back into alignment.
There was child sacrifice, immorality. God raised up godly men and women to challenge the situation and occupy political positions.
From David, Solomon, Daniel, Ezra, Cornelius, Mordecai to Lucius Paulus, the Ethiopian eunuch, Zacchaeus, they were not there by accident. They went from being a slave to a Prime Minister, a prisoner to a governor.
God is positioning people right now in this nation.
Nation building is in fact a Christian ministry. It is Christians ministering to their nation either through politics, NGOs or local government.
Take the things in God's heart and share them with your nation. Share the commandments of God. We are called to be the aroma of Christ and we take that into our nation.
Nation building should be part of our ministry.
As Christians, we have a higher calling to build a nation after God's own heart and to reflect God's priority--justice, truth, compassion for the poor and marginalised.
It is about infusing our nation with the values of the kingdom.
"... Life in eighteenth-century Britain was particularly brutal, decadent, violent, and vulgar. Slavery was only the worst of a host of societal evils that included epidemic alcoholism, child prostitution, child labor, frequent public executions for petty crimes, public dissections and burnings of executed criminals, and unspeakable public cruelty to animals."
-
William Wilberforce
They took a stand against all manners of injustice and corruption.
They changed their whole nation. Thousands were freed from slavery, alcoholism, and the works of the devil. The whole nation came to see Christianity and Christians in a whole new light. They experience the love of God.
We cannot afford not to be involved in nation-building.
Nature abhors a vacuum. If we are not in there, somebody else will.
We must get involved.
Can we think about building an
Isaiah 58 nation?
God reveals His heart to our nation.
He shows us how to bring down the blessing and the favour of God upon the nation.
Matthew 25:35-40 New King James Version (NKJV)
35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food; I was thirsty and you
gave Me drink; I was a stranger and you took Me in; 36 I was naked and you
clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’
37 “Then the righteous will answer Him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry and feed You, or thirsty and give You drink? 38 When did we see You a stranger and take You in, or naked and clothe You? 39 Or when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ 40 And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, inasmuch as you did it to one of the least of these My brethren, you did it to Me.’
How do we take the Word of Jesus and make it into a policy in our nation?
What can we do?
Isaiah 1:17 New King James Version (NKJV)
17 Learn to do good;
Seek justice,
Rebuke [a]the oppressor;
[b]Defend the fatherless,
Plead for the widow.
James 1:27 New King James Version (NKJV)
27 Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this:
to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted
from the world.
If the things that breaks God's heart doesn't break our hearts, then something is wrong.
Exodus 20:10 New King James Version (NKJV)
10 but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord your God. In it
you shall do no work: you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your male
servant, nor your female servant, nor your cattle, nor your stranger who is
within your gates.
It is easy to blame the government. But what about us? What about our neighbours and friends? It is up to us to show them what Christ love has done in us and share the love of God with them.
The Bible is a powerful spiritual force. God also intends for us to take them from the pages of the Bible into the nation.
The gospel is God's answer to all the problems in the world.
Ultimately you want to build a nation, share the gospel.
Find a way to share the gospel.
If you believe something, preach it, teach it and share it. If not, shut up.
We must never underestimate the power of prayer to pull down strongholds.
May 9 was an answer to prayer. We had an opposition that didn't expect to win and a government that that didn't expect to lose. May 9 was our Red Sea moment.
We need to continue to press on in prayer.
We are also called to give expression to the word of God.
Take the core values of the kingdom into the nation.
This is one thing we can do.
The nation is wide open. We can take the core values of the kingdom and build a New Malaysia.
Nation-building always comes down to us. It involves us.
The Bible demands of you as citizens to get involved in nation-building.
Get involved in an NGO. Join them, support them, take part, be a part of it to help build a better nation.
There's no excuse for you to not get involved. Prayer must not be an excuse for inaction. Pray and act. We can build this dream nation based the core values of the kingdom. Build the nation and please God at the same time.
Matthew 5:16 New King James Version (NKJV)
16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good
works and glorify your Father in heaven.
Today is the day of our reaping and harvesting. God has given us a new beginning.
Build this nation after God's own heart.
Rarely do nations get a second chance.
God has answered your prayers. What are you going to do about it?
We must rise to build nation after God's own heart.
That's what New Malaysia is about.
Related:
Nation Building
