The Christ in Prophecy Journal

The Inauguration of Eras

In a suburban Pennsylvanian elementary school, a group of third-graders were gathered to do something they never got to do at school before — watch television! The squirmy bunch was seated on the tiled floor, absorbing more the chilliness of the ground than what was going on at the TV set. The apparent letdown of the program not being cartoons weighed heavily on the room, just like the cold, wet blanket of January outside. What seemed like forever, the boring show finally ended and the group was marched off to do something more interesting, such as math.

What this class didn’t realize, and what I didn’t realize as one of those third-graders, is that we had just watched a wonderful, historic event. We had just witnessed the inauguration of a new President — Ronald Reagan. President Reagan went on to lead the United States into an unprecedented era of American success in world affairs, in staring down and defeating the communist Soviet Union, in reaching into outer space, in blooming economic growth, and in a national Christian resurgence. No matter the challenge, history will remember the 1980s Reagan years as a sort of “Golden Age” in being an American.

Twenty-eight years later, my eldest son is the third-grader, and he is the one watching the historic inauguration of Barack Obama at his elementary school. How will he look back years later and remember the era President Obama had led the United States in?

For starters, like every other modern third-grader, he’s probably wishing the television had a controller attached for the latest Wii game. Driving a Mario Kart is far more entertaining than all those old people hanging out in Washington D.C., he must be thinking.

Unlike me at 8 years old, my son does have a better sense of the historic nature of this inauguration. With Martin Luther King, Jr. Day occurring just yesterday, a holiday that didn’t even exist when I was a kid, he knows that the election of an African-American to the office of President is the fulfillment of a dream to see black Americans have and achieve every right as their white countrymen. Barack Obama’s election not only fulfills that dream, but gives every American hope that we can be better than we were by overcoming what divides us. Because of this achievement, President Obama is getting off to a wonderful start in defining his era of leadership.

Three decades since Ronald Reagan was sworn in, the United States is very much a different country, though. The problems President Obama will lead us through are as great and as grave as those that faced the nation upon the onset of the Civil War, the Great Depression and the wars of the 20th Century.

But, these problems hold a world of difference. For one, the nation is financially bankrupt; the “Material Girl” becoming an indentured servant to hostile nations for loans in the pointless attempt to stave off paying what is ultimately due. Secondly, we’re in an unwinnable war against the militaristic Muslim ideology held by 1.3 billion people, millions of which are American citizens. Thirdly, the level of patriotism Americans have is at such an all-time low and our ideology so deeply divided that our country may cede “the farm” at the best offer that comes by, giving up our Constitution and way of life to be a member of the world community. And fourthly, our nation is now post-Christian, not holding to “in God we trust,” but instead looking to the wisdom of man in seeking moral guidance and coming up instead with moral ambiguity.

President Obama has to lead the United States in finding solutions to these almost unconquerable problems. Will he be remembered as coming up with the right solutions, though? He has made known his answers to these problems. Will his resurrection of the “New Deal” to combat the economic catastrophe by creating 4.1 million new government jobs and burgeoning the national debt to $6 trillion dollars reinstitute trust and stability in the American economy and pay off the debt? Will he be able to stem the rising tide of subtle Islamic takeover by sitting down and talking Muslim leaders into submission? Will he reawaken American patriotism by ending capitalism, implementing socialism, and ushering us in as a member state of a larger world government? And, will he point our moral compass back to God’s laws and statutes by endorsing all that God calls evil? If President Obama institutes his suggested solutions, it is not too difficult to anticipate the results.

But, we as a nation are no longer looking to God for the answers, and without the One who knows how all things work properly, we cannot succeed. Lessons from the Bible teach us that our nation needs to learn stewardship, self-control, thrift, savings and the responsibility of paying off our debts. We need to win the Muslim to Christ by sharing the Good News with them all. We can return the self-respect and patriotism of our nation by having some self-respect of our own by doing what is morally right. And most importantly, we as a nation must repent of our sins, toss out every evil deed that we do, and call on God and His son Jesus Christ to guide us once more.

All Americans should want the President to succeed. I want him to succeed. I want my children growing up in a nation where they have a good future ahead of them. I want my son to remember the Obama years as a great era of American national spiritual revival, when we got back on the right track. I pray our children and our Heavenly Father will not be disappointed.

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Dr. Nathan E. Jones

As the Internet Evangelist at Lamb & Lion Ministries, Nathan reaches out to the over 4.5 billion people accessible over the Internet with the Good News of Jesus Christ. He also co-hosts the ministry's television program Christ in Prophecy and podcast The Truth Will Set You Free.

18 CommentsLeave a Comment

  • Let’s hope Obama succeeds? NEVER! If he succeeds we will have a Supreme Court full of his appointments which guarantees no chance of overturning Roe vs. Wade. It means an ultra liberal agenda of big brother government and anti-Israel based foreign policy. I could go on but you get the point. NO! Let’s hope he FAILS in HIS agenda for his “success” would not be a better future for your children. Let’s hope Obama FAILS!

  • succeeds in getting us outta this financial mess and fighting terror, YES succeed in accomplishing his secular agenda, NEVER. Unfortunately i dont see him “fighting” anything but christian morals. As i said before liberty must be won and rewon many times

  • I agree that President Obama has a daunting task ahead of him that I sincerely doubt he will succeed. Based on some of his speakers (Mr. Robinson) he more than likely will bring God’s divine judgement upon America, (which can be simply God removing his Hand of protection from us and allow us to continue to follow our path to destruction). I sometimes wish people would sit down and seriously look at Reagan without the blinders. George Bush Sr lost the presidency because of Reagan’s economic policies and the fact that he had to raise taxes. Communist Russia fell, not because of Reagan, but because of the corruption within. Reagan’s supreme court appointee Sandra Day O’Connor was pro-abortion, and also wrote the court’s decision to take the ten commandents out of the alabama courthouse and also the striking down of the anti-sodomy law in Texas. Do we forgot the fortunetellers of Nancy, the bombing of our marines in Lebanon, and we are no longer in Lebanon, the invasion of Grenada, Iran-Contra, his staff that ended up or pardoned from prison. The only thing about Reagan is that he may have been conservative but there was a real shortage of true Christianity. Remember, God puts leaders in place for His purposes and sometimes it is for destruction.

  • Yeah, yeah, yeah…I could make a trash talk list of your Democratic failures Carter (high inflation, unemployment, hostages, etc) and Clinton (no response to several terrorist attacks, disgusting cigar antics in the Oval Office, etc) and not to mention that kook Gore (awfully C-C-C-C-COLD global warming we’re having).

  • we put the government their. By voting or not voting. (well most of us anyway i voted-republican) complainig bout clinton, reagan or carter will solve things. We gotta focus on the current mess. Fasting, praying then acting.

  • I just remember that God is laughing at our grand plans (since He is in charge) and I choose to laugh with Him. We can play the blame game of partisan politics, both Dem and Rep, but none of it matters. I get partisan just like everyone else but in the end I know that my true hope, true faith and true belief for my future is in God, not any “leader” on Earth. Having that hope, faith and trust in God is the only way I can keep my sanity in this crazy world we’ve made.

  • I just have one thing to say to anyone who expects Mr. Obama to solve all of the problems he claims he will solve: It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in man. It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in princes. – Psalm 118:8,9.

    As a president goes, so goes the nation. So, I hope he is successful in the good things he claims he wants to do: to unify and build. But those are only so many words. His actions are much different, and they speak loudly. His views on murdering the unborn and those children who have the bad form to survive abortion, his support of gay “marriage”, his opening the borders to terrorists, and eventually persecuting Christians with his Civilian Defense Force (study Hitler’s SS for comparison).

    I pray those things, and many others, fail.

    But I wish him nothing but a fruitful, Godly, righteous administration.

  • How can a true born again Christian wish Obama to succeed? He is pro-abortion and has promised to sign a bill that would remove ALL restrictions on abortions! He is also for special homosexual rights, and socialist government! I hope he fails in these things. I wish Godly, conservative Christians and decent people will stop him! I wish Godly, conservative Christians and decent people run for and win seats in Congress in the next election and I wish a Godly, conservative Christian or a decent person beats him in 2012!

    Christians stop wishing evildoers well. We can pray for their repentance and salvation. The Bible says have nothing to do with the evil works of darkness, but reprove them. Wake up Christians!!!

    Ephesians 5:11 “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.”

  • What are you teaching your son by saying you wish Obama to succeed? That is double-minded & hypocritical.

    How can you wish a wicked politician to succeed in his governing when the very polices he is putting in effect are against God? i.e., abortion, special homosexual rights, over-taxing the hard-workers to give it to the lazy.

  • In defense of my prior comments, I am not a democrat and have never voted democrat. I just do not understand how the Reagan presidency is so often seem to be held up as some kind of Valhalla. We are to tell of the “Good News of the Savior” but we cannot impose this on anyone. God will judge, not me. We preach the cross, resurrection, and eternal life. The reagan presidency seemed to be a reason to impose “christian” values on America, by certain “christian” leaders, and I don’t even believe Reagan believed in these values. Yet, if you look at statistics, the evangelical church in America is stagnant or dying, or worse doesn’t even believe the bible is God given or that Jesus Christ is the only way to eternal life. America has rejected God and we have elected a president God chose for us.

  • I agree NO Christian should want Obama to succeed for this would mean his ultra liberal agenda will triumph and we may end up with him for another 4 years. Lets hope he fails miserably, like Carter, and we can dump him in 4 years and wake up America. As for the Reagan basher…GET OFF IT. You obviously hated Reagan or you would obssess with him 20 years after his presidency. DROP IT!!!!!!!!! (And don’t come back with “I don’t hate him”…your actions of multiple negative filled comments proves otherwise so STOP ALREADY…YOU HATED REAGAN…WE GET IT!

  • Oh by the way…I wonder if Nathan lived under Adolph Hitler he would say to his children “He is our leader, it doesn’t matter what he stands for or what his beliefs or goals are, he’s our leader now so let’s all support him.”

  • No, I’d probably say, “Remember, Son, that the Apostle Paul in Romans 13, Col. 1:16 and Titus 3:1 taught that God establishes all authorities, and so we should give submission and honor due and prayer for the leaders God has given us. It is God’s will for us Christians to pray for the souls of all people, according to His good purposes.” I’d also remind him that God has used and converted mightly men like Nebuchadnezzar for His own reasons to fulfill His will.

  • Hitler was evil. Doesn’t the Bible say we should hate evil? I must admit you have lost me completely. I get the prayer part because those prayer could be like coals on an evil person. I’m not sure on the submission. Does that mean if you were ordered to kill Jewish children you submit and do it? And the honor part? Honor? I just don’t understand what you are trying to say.

  • Nathan, maybe you should give me an example of how one should pray for a leader that will promote the murder of unborn babies and homosexual rights and secular agendas. I’m NOT try to be a wise guy here…I really want to know. If I know then perhaps I will understand what you are saying.

  • I was feeling very badly after my posts and it came to me how I should pray for Obama, which I have done. I asked God to bring him to salvation and to help him do what is right in the eyes of the Lord. And I asked Jesus to forgive me for not wanting to do this. It wasn’t so hard after all and now I feel much better. Sorry for my previous posts. I just had to let go of my anger. I remember I’m just as an unworthy sinner as Obama. The difference is I have foudn the grace of our Lord and he hasn’t. So that is why I should pray for him. I get it now.

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