Salvian (Presbyter of Marseilles and Master of Bishops) in the 5th century A.D. wrote to remind the people that: this is God's world. God has established His government; God expects us to live under the leadership of His government; and how we live will influence our lives here on earth as well as determine our eternal state. This treatise, of Salvain, is entitled: De gubernatione Dei, or On The Government of God, and consists of eight books. If you have not had the opportunity to read this excellent treatise, do yourself a favor, go on line and down load it and read it.
In Book VII Salvian warns the people that our life style dictates our relationship with God and thus it is our own actions that can alienate us from God's blessings. Early in Book VII, Salvian makes the statement: "You would think the whole Roman people had been steeped in Sardonic herbs, they are dying, yet they laugh." When someone is poisoned by Sardonic herbs the facial muscles contract producing a form of smile. That is why when we say a person has a sardonic smile we are inferring a sinister motive behind the smile. In any advent, Salvian was right; the Romans were dieing yet they continued to party as if nothing were wrong. At the end of the seventh Book, Salvian writes: "If my human frailty permitted, I should wish to shout beyond my strength, to make my voice ring through the whole world: Be ashamed, ye Roman people everywhere, be ashamed of the lives you lead! . . . It is neither the strength of their bodies that makes the barbarians conquer, nor the weakness of our nature that makes us subject to defeat. Let no one think or persuade himself otherwise—it is our vicious lives alone that have conquered us." Salvian longed to wake up the Roman people to the fact that their ignoring God's will was destroying their nation.
The book of Judges is an excellent testimony for the importance of following the desires of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. When the people walked with God the nation prospered but when they turned to their own ways the nation suffered. Perhaps the period of Judges was a long time ago but the principles for living a God-centered life have not changed. The word of God does not change with time or circumstances; that is why our turning our backs on God today is sin: just as much as it was sin during the time of Judges. Americans need to ask ourselves the same questions Salvian asked the Romans: why are we smiling as we die; why do we not learn from Gods punishment?
There are those who would like to believe that America is as blessed today as it was in the 1950's but that is only an illusion. Some of us still remember when America was a Christian nation, which offered more to its people than any other nation on earth. That is no longer true! It is impossible to cover all the details associated with the decline of America but a quick look at some of the indicators should be sufficient to reveal that we are in both a cultural and economic down spiral.
1. The decline in manufacturing jobs as a percentage of all jobs (from 26.5% in 1969 to only 9.25% in 2009).
2. The decline in family values.
3. The percent of time spent watching TV or being on the computer continues to increase.
4. Americans sacrificed quality for equity in education.
5. Drug and Public Order crime has more than doubled between 1980 and 2006.
6. The unbelievable rate of increase in national debt.
7. Our enormous personal debt.
8. The percentage of Americans on welfare grew to 11.3% in 2009.
9. The enormous American trade imbalance.
10. The percentage of Americans incarcerated.
11. The decline in American influence on world economics.
12. The growing negative attitude other countries have toward America.
13. The continued endangerment of the American dollar.
The decline in America is not something that is unavoidable. American decline is the direct result of our countries moral, social and political yielding to the influences of principalities, powers and rulers of the darkness of this world. We Americans, just like the Romans, refuse to believe that our spiritual wantonness and bold rejection of the one true God has anything to do current events. Salvain, in his work On the Government of God pointed out that God was using the barbarians in attempt to cure the evil actions of the Romans, but that the treatment was failing. Salvain wrote: "Much harder and more grievous than punishment is the fact that no amendment follows. The Lord wishes to cure us by his chastisement, but improvement does not result. How can we explain this evil? Cattle and flocks are cured by surgery; when the diseased organs of mules, asses and swine have been cauterized they acknowledge the healing effect of the fire, and at once when the corruption of the infected parts has been burned away or cut out, living flesh grows in place of the dead tissue. But we are burned and cut, yet are not healed by the surgeon's tools or the burning of the cautery. What is more serious, such care makes us even worse. It is not mere chance that we undergo the same treatment as flocks and cattle afflicted by incurable diseases. For in all parts of the world, since the healing care that is given us has no effect, our lives are being brought to an end by death and destruction.
Indeed, not to repeat what I said some time ago, how can we define these disorders except by saying that we are at the same time living in misery and in luxury? Grant that luxury is the vice of the fortunate (though no one can be both infamous and happy at the same time, since there is no true happiness without honor), grant that these are the vices of a long peace and plentiful security, why then are they found where there is no longer peace or security? Almost throughout the Roman world peace and security have ceased. Why do only the vices they engender survive? Who can tolerate licentiousness in a needy man? Wantonness in poverty earns the more reproach, and a worthless fellow is more heavily censured if his condition is wretched." Salvain belabors the fact that Rome is in a state of decline because the people have rejected the wisdom of God; but they can neither see the decline nor the hand of God because the joys of sin have dimmed their vision. Americans cannot relate our decline to our rejection of God because our sins have blinded us to the reality that there is only one true God.
It may be an old and worn out analogy to compare the United States with Rome but the parallel between the two nations cannot be easily dismissed. Our nation has sunk so far into the abyss of liberal – universal – Pagan Christianity that the air in Washington is too foul for a fundamentalist Christian to survive there. Today, our nation finds itself hated by much of the world, deep in debt, burdened by wars, a land where the rich become richer and the poor become poorer and we are wrestling with an economic crisis surpassed only by the Great Depression. How can we look at all of this, combine it with our social and political rejection of the one true God, and still say that there are no lessons to be learned from Salvain's writings. Perhaps comparing the United States with Rome is a worn out analogy but not long after Salvian wrote this work the barbarians did sack Rome.
It should not be difficult for a Christian to see that America has turned its back on God and as a result we are without the blessings of God. Who's fault is this? It is not the fault of the heathen; they do not know any better. The fault rests with only one group of people: the Christians. A Christian knows that America cannot turn away from God and expect Him to continue to pour out His blessings upon us. In the bible, God tells us that His blessings are there for those who obey His word. In John 15:7 Jesus said: "But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted!" When American Christians turn to personal wealth and economy as their source of security; we have turned away from God. When American Christians find more pleasure in the things of the world than they do in serving Christ; we have lost our Christian vision. When American Christians look to the government to instruct us in morality; we have forsaken the word of God. When American Christians turn to the media for instructions on how we should believe; we are listening to the lies of demons. When American Christians are silent and allow heathens to occupy the White House; we should not expect God to bless our country.
It is time for all Christians to wake up, learn how to vote and get rid of all the heathens we have put in Washington.
Perhaps it is time for a third party … a fundamentalist Christian party!