4 Signs that America is Ending (pt. 2)

Francis Schaeffer was indeed a modern day prophet. Of course I do not mean a prophet like Isaiah or Elijah. He was a prophet in the sense that he could see what was occurring in life and society around him and understand where he was in history. Every follower of Christ should aspire to be able to look about and understand his days. As I have argued previously, time is cyclical, that is the events and patterns of history repeat themselves. We can read history and the news paper, and see where we are going based on where we have come.

Schaeffer was a seer of seers in this department. That is why I have undergone to share the gist of his book in these two posts.

In the previous post I summarized Schaeffer’s description regarding the contrast between the Renaissance (13, 14, & 1500’s) in the south of Europe with the later Reformation (14 & 1500’s) which occurred in the north of Europe. The Renaissance focused on man as the source of truth while the Reformation looked to God’s revelation of himself in his word.

Reform: Resistance vs. Revolution

In Schaeffer’s opening to his chapter on The Enlightenment (ch.6) he compares various forms of resistance and revolution that took place in Europe against the existing governments and monarchs during the 16 & 1700’s. He notes that by-in-large the nations more so impacted by the Reformation tended to have bloodless reforms (i.e. The Bloodless Revolution of 1688 in England). In contrast the nations that were more so influenced by the Renaissance were quite lawless and bloody when reform was desired (i.e. The Reign of Terror in France).

Personal Note: Theology matters. We see from history that when culture is primarily inward focused it ends in a downward spiral into anarchy and lawlessness. Yet when a society has some semblance of an intent to look to the Creator for understanding of life and the business of this life, the results are noticeably more peaceful. This is not to say that the events like the Bloodless Revolution of 1688 were entirely wholesome and righteous, yet the nation had significantly more balance and stability as change was pursued.

We must be individual examples of looking to the Creator for truth amid a culture that desperately needs such light.

Renaissance unto Modern Humanism

Renaissance began to push God out and The Enlightenment pushed him out so far that he was no longer a part of the pursuit of truth and realities either seen or unseen. In the Renaissance God was not excluded in philosophy and science but was set to the side. He was another object or particle to be examined under the microscope of almighty man.

If God is the center circle, being the center of all creation and truth, and that set within a larger circle, the Renaissance began to decentralize him. Then The Enlightenment followed that trajectory continuing to push him aside until he was fully set outside of the larger circle. In The Enlightenment man decided that God has absolutely no place in the thought of man as they pursue knowledge and discovery in the world around them.

This action arose from a growing belief among national and educational leaders of Western Civilization: Materialism.

Materialism is the belief that all things that exist consist of what is material, that which is felt and experienced. As the man centeredness of the Renaissance developed there was no place for the idea of truths and realities that cannot be seen and heard, those things outside of the material world. This belief only accelerated the process of God merely being a religious idea with no place in the sciences or philosophy.

No God. No Reason. No Hope.

No God…then no God given law (moral or scientific). There is no foundation of absolute truth, law, or knowledge, only an ever-changing and unstable materialistic centered view of life. There was no God, no God given purpose (Gen. 1:27-28). Now it is left to man to determine and fulfill his purpose amid a materialistic view of reality.

Personal Note

We feel this acutely today as questions and declarations are made on social media and books. The questions go something like:

• What is my purpose?
• Can I know my purpose?
• How can I discover fulfillment and satisfaction?

The declarations sound like:

• I determine my worth and purpose.
• I am the only source of validation I need.
• I am fulfilled with me and will express it in every way.

When the Creator is abandoned along with his rule and guidance we walk through life aimlessly. The purpose given and later explained first appears in Genesis 1:

• So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.

Genesis 1:27-28

We need not unpack these verses here; the simple point is that God gave humanity worth and purpose from the beginning. God means for humanity to find and live by God given worth, not supposed self-found purpose.

Without holy and transcendent meaning from outside of humanity we of Western Civilization have begun to go insane. This is seen in, as high-lighted in the last post:

1. a mounting love of show and luxury
2. an obsession with sex
3. freakishness in the arts…pretending to be creativity
4. an increased desire to live off of the government

Godlessness leads to what is commonly called insanity yet is more pointedly described in Romans 1:18-32. The further a culture goes away from the ways and designs of God as seen in Western Civilization, the more dull and depraved God allows the mind to go.

Today boys are girls, two men are married, 6th graders identify as cats, college instructors speak up for pedophilia as a sexual preference, schools provide special bathroom facilities for those self-identifying as a cat or one of the seventy-two genders, and doctors cut and maim children who wish to be a different gender. Insanity on the level of king Nebuchadnezzar when God took his mind (Dan. 4:28-33).

Our culture is where Rome was at the end (see previous post). Barring an act of grand mercy by the Lord the West cannot stand much longer. We must understand that God’s laws are not only his desire for this world but also his design. Such godless living in the West will go on like a computer being used under water…it will breakdown from being used in a way it was NOT designed. Godless cultures like ours and Rome’s disintegrate because they are operating to far outside the bounds of the Creators design. God’s creation does not only have scientific laws like gravity that have consequences when broken, but also his moral laws, if neglected, end in catastrophe.

You say, “Sean, you exaggerate.” I say, “Read your history.” No where in history has a culture, country, or community endured that so grossly neglects the ways of the Creator.

Closing Thoughts

Renaissance began to push God out and The Enlightenment pushed him out so far that he was no longer a part of pursuing truth about realities seen and unseen.

Mankind of the West has been left to govern and define human life. The past several decades have demonstrated how far we have gone. History shows us where we are likely going.

We need to discern the days and time we live in so as to react appropriately. I know this post and the previous have been heavy, maybe depressing in a way. There were a few times, no several times that I closed Schaeffer’s book feeling bleak about tomorrow. Yet we can be people of God knowing who is in ultimate control amid the storm and be light, or we can stick our heads in the sand.

If you have found these posts interesting but a little heavy I encourage you to return next week. I will provide a last and optimistic close to this mini series. We will consider what we can learn from the believers of the past as we step into tomorrow, no matter what it holds.