My God is Bigger than the US Government

In a recent email of encouragement, Lynne Green reminded me that “God is bigger than the government.” Intellectually, it’s easy for me to dismissively agree, “but of course.” Then I started to think about how big the US government really is and my faith started to grow.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the US govt is the country’s largest employer at about 2.0 million employees, not including the postal service. There are 652,000 people alone listed under the department of Defense. However, this total apparently does NOT include the US armed forces since wikipedia topic “United States armed forces” lists 1.45 million troops on active duty and 848,000 troops in reserve. These troops are considered the most powerful military force in the world and retain access to over 10,000 nuclear warheads. Adding up these numbers (2.0+1.45) gives almost 3.5 million people serving their country.

That is the people total. In terms of dollars, the government spent $3.52 trillion in 2009 (with an income of $2.1 trillion). In terms of gross domestic product, the $3.52 trillion number is the 4th largest in the world behind the US, Japan, and China. As the top executive of the US government with such a wealth of people, money, and military resources, the US president is generally considered the most powerful man in the world (for good reason).

How does God view the government? I found the following scriptures helpful for me as I consider our situation with Miracle and the powerful access I have to God through prayer.

Isaiah 40:15-18
Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are regarded as dust on the scales; he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust.... Before him all the nations are as nothing; they are regarded by him as worthless and less than nothing. To whom, then, will you compare God?

God plays a much bigger game than the US government. He straight up created the universe and keeps it running! For one thing, the ball of fire he placed in our sky generates a phenomenal amount of energy. According to wikipedia "solar energy", in 2002, the earth received more energy from the sun in one hour than the world used in one year (with fossil fuels, etc). Our sun is only one of a billion billion (10^18) stars in the universe.

God certainly has the resources to take care of little old me!

Isaiah 40:22-26
He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy, and spreads them out like a tent to live in. He brings princes to naught and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing. No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner do they take root in the ground, than he blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff. "To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?" says the Holy One. Lift your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one, and calls them each by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.

Job 12:23. He makes nations great, and destroys them; he enlarges nations, and disperses them.

Job 36:31. This is the way he governs the nations and provides food in abundance.

Psalm 2:1. Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain?

Psalm 22:27. All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the LORD, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him, for dominion belongs to the LORD and he rules over the nations.

Psalm 33:10. The LORD foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples.

Psalm 46:10. "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."

Psalm 47:8-9. God reigns over the nations; God is seated on his holy throne. The nobles of the nations assemble as the people of the God of Abraham, for the kings of the earth belong to God; he is greatly exalted.

Psalm 59:8. But you, O LORD, laugh at them; you scoff at all those nations.

Psalm 67:4. May the nations be glad and sing for joy, for you rule the peoples justly and guide the nations of the earth.

Psalm 72:11. All kings will bow down to him and all nations will serve him.

Psalm 86:9. All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, O Lord; they will bring glory to your name.

Psalm 94:10. Does he who disciplines nations not punish? Does he who teaches man lack knowledge?

Isaiah 63:6. I trampled the nations in my anger; in my wrath I made them drunk and poured their blood on the ground."

Ezekiel 38:23. And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, and I will make myself known in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.'

Ezekiel 39:21. "I will display my glory among the nations, and all the nations will see the punishment I inflict and the hand I lay upon them.

Revelation 15:4. Who will not fear you, O Lord, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed."

A Real Government
The wonderful thing is that I get to be part of the kingdom that Jesus established that will never go away.

Daniel 7:14
He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.

Rev 5:6-10
Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing in the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits[a] of God sent out into all the earth. He came and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song: "You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth."

Rev 19:11-16
I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. "He will rule them with an iron scepter."[a] He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: "KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS."

Rev 21:22-27
I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. 23The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. 24The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. 25On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. 26The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. 27Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb's book of life.

The 3 strands

According to this web site, nearly 40% of children in the USA are born into unmarried family situations. This statistic is tremendously sad on a multitude of levels. The most obvious conclusion is that marriage is not valued by our society.

For some reason, Mother’s Day weekend was very challenging for me as a father. At several points, I became weary of chasing children and constantly regulating their behavior. The real issue was that I was not tapping into God’s power and trying to do it on my own. I got grumpy and effectively kept a record of wrongs by not giving my kids a fresh, happy start from Dad when they apologized and repented for what seemed like the 489th time :-) (see Matt 18:21-22, which I even read in my QT that morning!).

Luckily for me, I have a spiritual wife who jumped in on multiple occasions when I was losing it. She was joyful and happy with the girls to motivate them to continue with their repentance. She called me on my grumpiness and tried to joke me out of it. And luckily for me I had brothers and sisters at the Portland International Church of Christ to encourage me with the Word of God and their experiences of struggle and victory.

Thankfully my attitude got better on Sunday afternoon as I trusted in God to make things ok, even as we were really late for church on Sunday despite my best efforts. Later on Sunday as we drove from Portland back to Seattle in separate cars (we brought my in-laws’ truck back for them), my wife was the one who needed help as she started to fall asleep on the road. God answered our prayers, getting us back at 10pm after a multitude of stops for various needs.

Looking back at these experiences, I am reminded of several scriptures:

1 Cor. 12:21. The eye cannot say to the hand, “I don't need you!” And the head cannot say to the feet, “I don't need you!”

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12.
Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their work: If one falls down, his friend can help him up. But pity the man who falls and has no one to help him up! Also, if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.

In particular, the last scripture is abundantly clear for me as I watched my sister & brother-in-law team up to care for their six-month-old son. Casey & I went through the same see-saw action with Jade and even more so now with three kids. Without a husband or wife to help you, how on earth can someone imagine they can meet even just the physical needs of a child, much less their mental, emotional, and spiritual needs?

I am so grateful for the Kingdom of God providing a village to raise my children. And I am so grateful to God for being that “third strand” of the rope that cannot be broken. It is very evident to me that I cannot make it without my God. I have an incredible wife, a great job with a supportive boss, and very loving physical and spiritual families. But without God, I am nothing. I might as well give up now and live a hedonistic lifestyle. Life is simply too difficult and not even worth it without God.

Psalms 73:25 states it precisely, “Whom have I in heaven but you? And earth has nothing I desire besides you.”

Praise God for all three strands in the cord of Eccl. 4. I could not do what I do without the other two strands. In fact, sometimes I think the other two strands can even heal a broken one… but that’s a whole ‘nuther discussion.