2026.06.28 "He Hath Not Dealt With Any Nation

Devotional

Day 1: When Nations Bow, God’s People Kneel

The image of citizens kneeling in prayer contrasts with fireworks and parades. True dependence begins not with political declarations but with hearts humbled before the One who governs nations. Gratitude for national blessings must flow into confession, recognizing that every freedom and victory ultimately rests in God’s hand. Revival starts when God’s people prioritize prayer over pride, seeking His mercy rather than relying on human strength. [29:51]

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
(Proverbs 3:5–6, ESV)

Reflection: Where have you subtly leaned on human strength or wisdom this week instead of acknowledging God’s sovereignty? How might kneeling in prayer reshape your response to national or personal challenges?

Day 2: Palmetto Logs and Unlikely Victories

Fort Sullivan’s flimsy palmetto walls defied British cannons, a reminder that God often works through weakness. His providence transcends human logic, turning fragile defenses into testimonies of His power. Just as South Carolina’s flag still bears the palmetto, our lives display not our resilience but His faithfulness. True security lies not in what we build but in the God who sustains. [51:59]

“Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.”
(Psalm 20:7, ESV)

Reflection: What “palmetto log” in your life—a limitation or vulnerability—might God want to use to showcase His strength? Where have you misplaced trust in visible defenses rather than His unseen power?

Day 3: The God Who Numbers Stars and Mends Hearts

The same hands that name galaxies bind brokenness. Psalm 147 shifts from cosmic wonders to intimate healing, revealing a God who governs both history and heartache. National renewal begins when individuals let Him address their personal wounds and sins. His power is not just vast but near, rewriting stories of despair into declarations of praise. [48:49]

“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names.”
(Psalm 147:3–4, CSB)

Reflection: What brokenness in your life or community have you resigned to being beyond repair? How might trusting the Star-Namer’s intimate care change your posture toward healing?

Day 4: What Impresses Nations Doesn’t Move Heaven

Military parades awed ancient kings, but God’s gaze rests on those who tremble at His Word. Psalm 147 exposes the futility of trusting wealth, weapons, or human wisdom. A nation’s true measure isn’t its economy but its reverence for Christ. Spiritual decline begins when God’s people crave cultural influence more than His approval. [54:25]

“He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”
(Micah 6:8, ESV)

Reflection: When have you been tempted to equate God’s blessing with material success or societal approval? What would it look like today to prioritize fearing Him over impressing others?

Day 5: History’s Final Anthem: Hallelujah Over Everything

Nations rise and fall, but every knee will bow to the eternal King. The sermon closes with Revelation’s vision: earthly powers silenced, Christ’s reign unshakable. Our patriotic prayers are not about preserving a nation but participating in God’s global mission. Citizenship here is temporary; our ultimate hope echoes heaven’s anthem. [01:07:06]

“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.”
(Philippians 3:20–21, ESV)

Reflection: How does remembering your heavenly citizenship reshape your concerns about current events? What practical step can you take this week to live as an ambassador of Christ’s eternal kingdom?

Sermon Summary

Psalm 147 begins and ends with hallelujah because every blessing in the middle is meant to turn God’s people toward praise. The psalmist is not stirring up empty emotion. Biblical praise has a reason, and the reason here is the faithful providence of Almighty God.

The Lord rebuilds Jerusalem and gathers Israel’s exiled people. Israel had been crushed by Babylon, scattered among the nations, and left looking like every other conquered people swallowed up by history. The walls were down, the gates were burned, the temple was gone, and the people had no strength to bring themselves home. But God kept his promises. The God who counts the stars and calls them all by name also stoops down to bind up wounded hearts and rebuild broken cities.

Israel’s story is not finally a story about Israel. It is a story about God. America is not Israel, and Psalm 147 does not give the United States the covenant promises given to Jacob. But God’s providence can still be recognized with humility and gratitude. For 250 years this nation has known religious liberty, representative government, provision, safety, churches planted, missionaries sent, and the gospel preached freely. Such blessings do not call for pride. Patriotism without thanksgiving becomes pride, because every freedom and every opportunity comes from the gracious hand of God.

Psalm 147 then asks what kind of people delight the Lord. God is not impressed by the strength of a horse or the power of a warrior. Military might, economic power, technology, and influence may impress nations, commanders, and crowds, but they do not impress Almighty God. The Lord values those who fear him, those who put their hope in his faithful love. That word searches a nation that has gained knowledge, wealth, and power while biblical literacy and reverence for God have quietly slipped away.

The greatest danger facing America is not economic, military, or political. It is spiritual. The call is not first to point toward Washington or across the aisle, but to examine the heart before God. Revival has never begun in the halls of government. It begins among the people of God, when the word of God is treasured, obeyed, and proclaimed.

Psalm 147 lifts the eyes higher still. God sends, spreads, scatters, throws, unleashes, and declares. Creation obeys his word immediately. History is not finally ruled by presidents, armies, elections, or economies, but by the command of God. The greatest privilege given to Israel was revelation, and the greater privilege now given is Jesus Christ, the living Word. History is headed not toward the triumph of one nation, but toward the reign of one King, when every flag and every nation stands before the throne of Christ and all creation sings, hallelujah.

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Key Takeaways

1. Gratitude guards patriotism from pride Psalm 147 teaches that blessing must move the heart upward before it moves the heart outward. A nation may rightly remember courage, sacrifice, and history, but the believer knows that every good gift has a deeper source than human strength. Thanksgiving keeps love of country from becoming confidence in country. [53:06]
2. God is not impressed by power The Lord who numbers the stars has never been awed by horses, warriors, weapons, or parades. Human strength can be a gift, but it becomes dangerous when it becomes the place where hope rests. God’s delight falls on those who fear him and hope in his faithful love. [54:25]
3. The deepest national danger is spiritual Psalm 147 exposes the tragedy of gaining knowledge while losing the fear of the Lord. A people can satisfy the appetites of the body and still neglect the deepest need of the soul. The most serious crisis is forgetting the God who has been so merciful. [58:39]
4. Revival begins among God’s people The sins of a nation are easy to lament from a distance, but the heart before God is harder to face. Spiritual awakening does not start with political power, but with repentance, prayer, and renewed fear of the Lord among his people. The most patriotic posture for a Christian may be a bowed knee. [60:01]
5. History moves toward Christ’s kingdom Psalm 147 shows creation answering the command of God, and Scripture shows history moving toward the throne of Christ. No earthly nation is permanent, no empire is final, and no flag will have the last word. The kingdom of this world will become the kingdom of the Lord and of his Christ.

## [66:28]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[29:15] - A Declaration of Dependence
[37:19] - Rutledge Chapel and Jonathan Maxey
[41:18] - Psalm 147 and Hallelujah Praise
[45:22] - Looking Back With Gratitude
[48:49] - The God Who Rebuilds and Restores
[50:35] - America, Providence, and Humility
[54:04] - What God Values in a Nation
[58:00] - The Spiritual Crossroads
[60:01] - Revival Begins With God’s People
[61:12] - God Governs Creation and History
[62:49] - The Greatest Blessing Is God’s Word
[65:17] - Hope in the Reign of Christ
[67:25] - A Prayer of Dependence

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Psalm 147
“Praise the Lord! For it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting. The Lord builds up Jerusalem; he gathers the outcasts of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names. Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure. The Lord lifts up the humble; he casts the wicked to the ground. Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; make melody to our God on the lyre! He covers the heavens with clouds; he prepares rain for the earth; he makes grass grow on the hills. He gives to the beasts their food, and to the young ravens that cry. His delight is not in the strength of the horse, nor his pleasure in the legs of a man, but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him, in those who hope in his steadfast love. Praise the Lord, O Jerusalem! Praise your God, O Zion! For he strengthens the bars of your gates; he blesses your children within you. He makes peace in your borders; he fills you with the finest of the wheat. He sends out his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly. He gives snow like wool; he scatters frost like ashes. He hurls down his crystals of ice like crumbs; who can stand before his cold? He sends out his word, and melts them; he makes his wind blow and the waters flow. He declares his word to Jacob, his statutes and rules to Israel. He has not dealt thus with any other nation; they do not know his rules. Praise the Lord!” [42:39] [44:25]

Revelation 11:15
“Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, ‘The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever.’” [01:06:55]

Proverbs 21:31
“The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but the victory belongs to the Lord.” [52:56]

Observation questions

In Psalm 147, what reasons are given for praising the Lord, and how do those reasons move from personal healing to creation to God’s care for his people? [48:28]
According to Psalm 147:10–11, what does God not delight in, and what does he delight in instead? [54:25]
What repeated actions of God appear in the closing verses of Psalm 147, and what do those actions show about his rule over creation? [01:01:10]
What blessings were named as reasons for gratitude in the life of this nation, and how were those blessings described? [50:46]

Interpretation questions

Psalm 147 says the Lord rebuilds Jerusalem, gathers exiles, heals the brokenhearted, and counts the stars. What does that combination reveal about the kind of God he is? [48:42]
If God is not impressed by horses, warriors, or visible strength, what does that say about the way a nation or a church may wrongly measure success? [57:16]
Psalm 147 says God declared his word to Jacob in a way he had not done for every nation. Why is God’s word presented as a greater gift than security, prosperity, or national strength? [01:02:49]
Revelation 11:15 points to the final reign of Christ over every kingdom. How should that shape the way believers think about patriotism, fear, and hope in the present? [01:05:17]

Application questions

Gratitude guards patriotism from pride. When thoughts about this country rise in the heart, what usually comes first—thanksgiving, frustration, fear, pride, or something else? What would it look like to turn those thoughts into praise to God? [53:06]
God takes pleasure in those who fear him and hope in his steadfast love. Where is the heart most tempted to place confidence right now—in politics, money, national strength, personal control, or something else? What helps re-center that hope on the Lord? [54:25]
The deepest danger is spiritual, not merely political or economic. Where has reverence for God quietly grown weak in personal life, in the home, or even in church habits? What would repentance look like in a practical way this week? [58:39]
It is easier to point toward Washington or across the aisle than to examine the heart. What sins are easiest to condemn in the culture but hardest to confess personally? [01:00:01]
Revival begins among the people of God. What simple step could help make prayer, Scripture, and obedience more central in daily life again? [01:00:20]
God’s word still changes hearts one life at a time. How has access to Scripture become so familiar that it is sometimes taken for granted? What would listening more seriously to God’s word look like this week? [01:04:43]
History is moving toward the reign of Christ, not the triumph of any earthly nation. How does that truth steady the heart when the news is discouraging or when the future feels uncertain? [01:06:55]

Sermon Clips

52s

“``Now church, before we lament the sins of our nation, think we have to confess our own. I know how easy it is to point towards Washington, to point across the aisle. It is much harder to examine your own heart. It's a whole lot easier to see what's going on in their lives. Right? Revival has never begun in the halls of government. It has always begun among the people of God. So if our nation is going to experience spiritual awakening, it's gonna begin when God's people once again fear the Lord. When God's people once again hope in his steadfast love. When we treasure his word. When we seek to do his will. So perhaps the greatest patriotic thing that a Christian could do is not wave a flag but it's really to take your knee. Take a knee and pray.”

38s

“See, the greatest danger facing America, it's not economic, it's not military, it's not political, it's spiritual. We are in danger of forgetting the God who has so graciously blessed us. And you know history has seen this story before. Think of Egypt. Think of Assyria and Persia and Babylon. Think of Greece and think of Rome. Think of the great British Empire. Every great Empire eventually discovered the same truth. Power alone will not sustain a nation. It will not preserve a civilization.”

34s

“We've become a people who know more than anybody, any people have ever known before. But often we seem to know God even less. We've learned how to satisfy every nearly every appetite of the body. But we've neglected the deepest need of our soul. Psalm one forty seven reminds us that God's not looking for a nation that merely grows in knowledge, wealth, or strength. He's looking for a people who fear him. A people who put their hope in his faithful love.”

39s

“And that's really the response of Psalm one forty seven. He's been so good we ought to praise him. Right? Gratitude really is the only proper response to God's blessing. If there is patriotism but it is without thanksgiving, that's pride. It's wrong. Christians of all people should be the most grateful citizens because we know the true source of every blessing we've experienced in this country. Every freedom that we have. Every opportunity that's here. Every evidence of God's kindness should lead us to say hallelujah, praise the Lord. Because it came from him.”

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First Baptist Church of Columbia This sermon · AI assistant

Why should Christians thank God for national blessings

What kind of nation does God truly value

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