HOW DARE THEY!
Bob Dees
Director, LU Institute for Military Resilience
©2014 RFD LLC
“God is a righteous judge, and a God who has indignation every day.”
(Psalm 7:11, NASB, Underline added)
I am sure you, like me, sometimes proclaim: “That is just not right!” or perhaps: “How
dare they?” Prayerfully, such proclamation is “righteous indignation” when we see occurrences
in our nation and our world that are clearly inconsistent with the mind of Christ and the word of
God. Righteous indignation is not about “not getting your way” or insisting upon your own
selfish interests. Rather, you might be righteously indignant about the continuing practice of
abortion in our nation… or human trafficking… or the threats to the traditional family as God’s
primary building block of society… or the sweep of radical Islam which threatens (and is
currently executing) Christians who do not recant their faith… or the ceaseless efforts by secular
humanists in the USA to strip God from every public square, every school, every home, every
business. You may have other “causes” which God has placed on your heart, about which you
are truly and righteously indignant.
The scriptures in Psalm 7:11 say that God is indignant every day: “God is a righteous
judge, And a God who has indignation every day” (underline added). That’s it –
INDIGNATION. This indignation is not about me, and not about you, but about what God
thinks and feels about America, and our world, in the Year 2014 and beyond. God created this
world and founded this nation. The scripture says He is “indignant,” meaning “feeling or
expressing strong displeasure at something considered unjust, offensive, insulting, or base” (from
Dictionary.com). As a righteous God, He is truly indignant regarding the unjust, offensive,
insulting and base idolatry and immorality which we condone and even pursue in America today.
As we align with God’s righteousness, I know we as followers of Jesus feel the same way.
INDIGNANT!
God was rightly indignant and driven to action when His chosen people Israel turned to
idolatry, building a golden idol at the very time He was providing for their every need. Christ
was rightly indignant and driven to action when he turned over the tables of the moneychangers
in the Temple. William Wilberforce was rightly indignant and driven to action by the slave
trade and lack of civility in British culture. Dietrich Bonhoffer became increasingly indignant
and driven to action as he observed the German church fail to speak out and even to support
Adolf Hitler. Martin Luther King was rightly indignant and moved to action as he confronted
the racial prejudices of America in the 20th Century. The young warrior David was rightly
indignant and driven to action as he marched out to confront the Philistine giant Goliath: “For
who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should taunt the armies of the living God?” (I
Samuel 17:26b).
I am hopeful that you feel this same way, indicating that you and I are truly sensing the
“heart of God” as we respond indignantly to the oppression of innocents, the gross violation of
God’s moral laws, or evil powers and principalities which constantly seek to devour. May we
also be driven to action by this indignation. Such action may be the simple act of voting, or
alignment with like-minded spiritual warriors around a particular cause, or fighting every day for
the future of your family, your community, your nation. In essence, this looks like being a
“Champion for Christ” in every way possible to bring positive, Godly influence into our
respective marketplaces of life.
To paraphrase David regarding the future of America, ‘Who are these forces, these
special interest groups, these human philosophies, these theories of government that seek to
separate us from the very God, the very spiritual strengths, which made the United States a
nation after God’s own heart and the envy of the entire world? How dare they continue to tear
down the very Constitutional foundations on which this great nation resides? How dare they
taunt the living God?’
(Adapted from: Dees, Robert F. Resilient Nations. San Diego: Creative Team Publishers, 2014.)
Respectfully in Christ,
Bob
Bob Dees
LU Institute for Military Resilience
www.LUOnline.com/IMR
What else does the Bible say about this?
What are you INDIGNANT about???
What is GOD calling YOU to stand up for???
If not YOU, then who? If not NOW, then when?
None of us can do everything.
ALL OF US CAN DO SOMETHING.
Let us know on the LU Military Affairs Facebook page