Adapted from a sermon delivered by the Rev. Dr. Robert Pacienza
on June 30, 2024 at Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church
What makes a nation great? Is a nation’s greatness defined in its military, economic, or political power? The Bible tells us that the greatness of a nation is defined by her character. In Proverbs 14:34 we read, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people.” This was a seminal verse used by America’s founders to help them develop a political theology that would give birth to generations of flourishing here in America.
God’s Promise for Every Nation
In Proverbs 14:34, there is a very clear promise to the nations. Righteous nations will be exalted, meaning they will be lifted up and will experience divine blessing; but that promise is paralleled with a curse. Nations defined by sin will be a reproach, meaning they will be disgraced. There’s not a third option. There’s no middle ground. Nations will either be lifted up or taken down on the basis of their commitment to public righteousness. A nation will either be blessed or a nation will be disgraced.
Some believe that this promise only applies to Israel. How do we know that’s not true? If the author wanted us to understand that this verse only applies to Israel, he would have written, “Righteousness exalts Israel.” But I believe there is even a stronger argument. Let’s look at the original language. The word for nation is goy, and the word for people is goyim. These words are used to describe nations and people groups in general, not a particular nation. The author is declaring that this divine promise is not just for Israel, but for all nations regardless of time and geographical location, including America.
God is the supreme ruler and judge of the nations. He alone has the power to exalt nations and he alone has the power to bring nations down in disgrace. He did it to Israel, he did it to Assyria, he did it to Babylon, and he did it to Egypt. And do not think for one second that God is not more than capable of doing it right here in America. That’s why Abraham Lincoln said in his second inaugural address, “Yet, if God wills that it continue until all the wealth piled by the bondsman’s two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk and until every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be paid by another drawn with the sword as was said three thousand years ago so still it must be said ‘the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.’” He understood that righteousness in the public square results in exaltation and sin in the public square results in reproach. True greatness is not measured in a nation’s military, economic, or political power, but measured in her character—a nation that celebrates righteousness. Those who are students of history know that the American colonists had neither economic, military, nor political power and they went up against the greatest superpower the world had ever seen, the British Empire. There’s only one reason for their victory: the providential hand of Almighty God and men and women who loved righteousness more than they loved sin. It is the promise of God to the nations regardless of time and geographical location. He will either raise this nation up or he will tear it down on the basis of her character.
Nations will either be lifted up or taken down on the basis of their commitment to public righteousness.
The Standard of Righteousness
What is the standard of righteousness that exalts a nation? We’ve heard a lot of talk recently that the standard of righteousness or the soul of a nation is defined by humanity or defined by the government. No, the standard of righteousness is found in the Bible. God is righteous and that his righteous standards are revealed in his Word. Righteousness according to God isn’t relative. Whether it’s Israel or America, the standard of righteousness can’t be redefined. It was the standard of righteousness 2000 years ago and it is the standard of righteousness today in the 21st century. The American founders understood this. Our founding fathers understood that if rights and laws are not grounded in God’s standard of righteousness, that they are doomed to fail. Therefore, many of stood firmly on their theological convictions, allowing them to shape public policy.
It is not opinion, but it is fact that Christianity served as the predominant worldview to establish the United States of America. This is so because our founders understood that the righteous standards of Almighty God are absolute and timeless. Their beliefs translated into a public and political theology that shaped the public square in 1776. This gave birth to a nation that stood for God’s righteousness and resulted in unprecedented blessing—a nation that was truly exalted. Listen to some of our founders. President John Adams said, “Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” George Mason of Virginia said, “The scourge of slavery will bring the judgment of heaven on a country.” Rev. Thomas Baldwin said, “A virtuous people will always be free and happy.” Rev. Daniel Clark Sanders said, “That public prosperity pervades every part of an empire when its members are knowing, virtuous and pious.” The list goes on and on. Our nation’s founding fathers and founding ministers understood that if this nation were to be blessed, righteousness must be demonstrated in a public square that shapes public policy for the glory of God. A nation that flourishes is a nation that is rooted and grounded in righteousness.
But do you know what our problem is today? We’re no longer a nation defined by the righteous standards of God’s Word. No. In the 21st century, we are a nation that murders millions of babies in the name of choice and reproductive rights. We’re a nation that rejects that our rights are inalienable and God given. We’re a nation that mocks states that are attempting to put the Ten Commandments back into the classroom. We’re a nation that taught our children for decades that they are a cosmic, evolutionary accident. We’re a nation that says gender is just a social construct. We are a nation that has more days to celebrate homosexuality and transgenderism than days to celebrate the very birth and resurrection of Jesus Christ. That is the real state of our union.
Does all this of depress you a bit? It should. What does the proverb say? Sin is a reproach to any people. It means that we feel the shame and the disgrace as a nation. When public theology forms our public policy, the nation flourishes. But when sin shapes our public policy, we are a reproach. We will then experience shame and disgrace in the absence of the blessing of God. There is only one standard of righteousness that leads to the exaltation of a nation.
Agents of Righteousness
So who are the agents of God in advancing righteousness in the public square? God has exalted Jesus and seated him on the heavenly throne where he is currently reigning and ruling all things—but he is reigning and ruling through God’s people. This means that Christ’s followers, in the midst of an ungodly nation facing disgrace, are the ones who have been called to be agents of righteousness. In Matthew 5:13-14, Jesus gives his church a clear calling:
“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.”
God has exalted Jesus and seated him on the heavenly throne where he is currently reigning and ruling all things—but he is reigning and ruling through God’s people.
We are to be the salt of the earth, the light of the world, and a city on a hill. These are all phrases that do not describe the toxic escapism that we find in the church today: an escapism that tells us that our ultimate goal is to get saved and hope that God takes us up to heaven as quickly as possible. No! Once we’re saved, we’re now the very agents of God’s righteousness. We are salt, agents of life and preservation in a culture of death. We are light, agents bearing the light of the gospel of the Kingdom into the midst of darkness. We are a city on a hill, agents who build the city of God in the midst of the city of man.
As Jesus starts to attract followers, he never says, “Now, pay no attention to this world.” He teaches that his Kingdom is not of this world; therefore, go shape this world to look more like the Kingdom of God. He doesn’t call them to forget about the Roman Empire. He calls them go into the Roman Empire and transform every square inch as agents of righteousness. When we get to the Great Commission in Matthew 28, does Jesus say, I’m ascending to heaven, come with me? No; he says, Go into that world—that dark, dangerous, idolatrous, and ungodly world. Go into the Greco-Roman, pagan world and disciple the nations. Not simply disciple individuals, but disciple the nations so that the nations might understand the righteousness of God and experience shalom. This has been the hope of the world for 2000 years. In the midst of an unrighteous world, we serve as agents of righteousness—salt, light, and a city on a hill.