The Puritan commentators all spoke of the well founded hope that they had for heaven and the return of our God and King in glory at the end of the age. Of course, we know that they labored very diligently to establish a minimal godly kingdom here on earth. Certainly, we should well understand that during the Reformation, men honestly and sincerely turned their hearts toward God and sought Him and His eternal wisdom. And if there ever was a theme verse to the Reformation it would most certainly be: Matthew 6: 33: "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you."

Out of that Reformational search for spiritual godliness we have been given the societal blessings of Capitalism and Republican styled, limited Democracy. Let me be the first to emphasize the word given, or as the scripture translates "added to you." My emphasis is to explain the limitation in the following verse, which is not nearly so widely quoted: Matthew 6:34: "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."

One of the great fallacies of the human spirit is that we spend far too much energy and time trying to create a perfect political and economic utopia. The secular humanists and their socialist allies have been trying for a hundred and fifty years to remold American society into the perfection of their dream state. As one notorious educational proverb goes: if the state can limit the bad examples and worse teaching of parents, the perfection of society can and will be accomplished. I'm paraphrasing twenty-five years of hanging around such Utopians. And based on that experience, if I were ever to write a book on Utopia, I would entitle it: "Aipotu". Yes, that is utopia spelled backwards, because whenever we would reinvent Plato's Republic we in reality tend to set up a hellish rather than a heavenly city.

The Jesuits tried to establish a Utopian community along the Uruguayan and Paraguayan border at the time of the Reformation. That socialist experience led to such total control that, the natives could not choose what to wear, eat or do. In fact, as the birth rate plummeted amongst the prisoners, the authorities even began to ring a bell at 9:00 every night to summon the faithless socialist dreamers in a better tomorrow, to engage in family planning. In Aristophanes' play, The Birds, all the real necessary work is still done by slaves!

My whole point in this argument is simple. How we choose to govern and administer ourselves is one thing, trying to impose those same choices on future generations is quite another. If human history has anything to teach us, the generations must sometimes learn the hard way that their ancestors had a few things right and well done! We were to take St Hillary's suggestion seriously and begin to toy with the wisdom of the electoral college, I would hope that more and more states would imitate the method of the down east Mainers. Two electoral votes for who wins the state and one for whoever wins each congressional district. If you have seen a colored map of how the various counties went in the last election, such a design could well end forever the liberal socialist meddlings of both left coasts!

Well, that is not what the leftists intend in raising the debate at all! They want to change the republican limitations on the purity of their socialist democracy. Since, none of the small states are likely to vote for any constitutional amending of the electoral college, that tradition is safe for a while longer. Even King David was punished for taking a military census in a time when we may guess that military levy's were somewhat voluntary for foreign service, even as the English and American systems once were.

World magazine has an interesting policy that is well worth imitating. When that magazine reaches 100 years of age, the whole kit and caboodle must be sold off and the enterprise shut down. Any stock owners and employees who wish to continue, must begin from scratch. While I am glad that the founding fathers did not have such a policy, I do well understand the intent. Corporations in the business world are immortal beings. And as the various aspects of business in America became incorporated, the whole nature of the business world changed.

Whereas in the past, a family business changed hands as well as direction every forty years or so, this is not the case anymore. The only ongoing changes in the structure of the economy is who is buying out whom as the mega-corporations vie with each other to enlarge themselves. From 200,000 major businesses in 1890 to 20,000 in 1930, to 2,000 in 1960 to 200 sometime soon? What happens when we get to 20 and finally 2 or less? Try reading about what Joseph accomplished for Pharaoh. An accomplishment which destroyed and limited Egyptian power for enough hundred years to allow the rise of David and Solomon.

How Shall We Then Live?, Francis Schaeffer asked in his last contribution to Christian intellectualism. By the word, plain and simple, "Make every thought captive to the word of God", runs the motto of our congregation. How shall we then live in the third millennium after Christ, let us consider the wisdom of our Psalmist.

Let us divide up the second portion of this Psalm 94. Spurgeon explains verses twelve through fifteen in the light of providence. He tells us that "while God's people may temporarily be chastened, He will indeed bless them and deliver them". In verse sixteen there is another plea for help. Verses seventeen through nineteen affirms the psalmist's dependence upon God. A third time in verses twenty and twenty-one he urges his complaint and then concludes in confident assurance.

In the early thirties a group of Christians gathered in what came to be called the Kreslau circle to study their Bibles. The men in this small group were from the leadership class in the waning days of republican Germany. As the Nazi's came to power, Pastor Dietrich Bohnhoffer of the group was arrested and sent to a concentration camp, where he eventually was executed. The others continued to pray for the deliverance of their country and to plan for a way of ridding Germany of Adolf Hitler. Very many of the pre-war German high command were very serious and dedicated Christians who hesitated to use their military positions to overthrow and arrest the detested Nazi corporal. One by one they were removed from power till no one was left to openly oppose the gangster element. The younger members who had been drawn into the Kreslau Circle eventually decided to try and kill Hitler and actually made three attempts on his life. Unfortunately all but one were caught and they died horrible deaths. Finally the long night of the Nazi terror passed and Hitler sent himself to the infernal regions by putting a bullet into his own head.

This was well within the providential plan of God the Father Almighty. Well should we learn from verses eight to eleven our proper role in His story. As much as we might want to, we must learn that we are not to drive history in the direction we desire. American abolitionists erred in trying to militarily bring an early end to slavery, when they had ignored the agreement hammered out by John Quincy Adams, to which the southerners had agreed a generation earlier. Well might we apply this same lesson in our opposition to the humanistic crimes against the unborn. And just as certainly must our government respect the lives of Saddam Hussein and other brutal Lords of violence.

Who is the One to avenge? Who is the One to judge, unless we have the rightful judicial power to bring charges and proper punishment as the Nuremberg justices were willing to apply it at the end of World War Two. If we take the long view of God's providential story we may learn our lessons well in verses twelve through nineteen. Patience is well learned by the psalmist. And the psalmist here is speaking as a pupil and not as a teacher. Isn't this our essential relationship to God our Father? We should never think too seriously of ourselves or our ability to decide human destiny. That doesn't mean that we don't participate where and when we are able. We just have to realize that God is indeed sovereign and it is more important to please Him than to take control of society. God promises to grant us relief from days of trouble while He is planning a pit for His enemies. Listen to God's word, wait patiently for Him to bring righteousness and judgment to His people.

In verse sixteen we see that God does have uses for us, just as Moses was convinced of his purpose and given gifts to accomplish the will of God, so must we understand that our work must be done in humble reliance upon the Holy Spirit instead of in the pride of our hearts. Yes, Moses would have rather remained in Midia attending his flocks and family. Very many of God's people would just as simply remain content in their quiet lives. However, we see in verse nineteen how the Holy Spirit may console us in our anxiety.

As we look upon the world we must do so as the psalmist does in verses twenty and twenty-one. "Shall the throne of iniquity, which devises evil by law, have fellowship with You?" Even when worldly oppressors have power and the prestige of the law, we are not to be dismayed! Even when the unopposed mischief of the worldly reigns supreme we are to retain our confidence in the Lord God Almighty. "But the Lord has been my defense, and my God the rock of my refuge." He it is who speaks in the final verse of our psalm. And He it is who will act decisively in History. He will repay the wicked for their unrepentant sins. He will bring vengeance and righteous punishment. May God help us in the midst of our own humanistic and socialist generation and may He grant us the wisdom to follow the lead of His Holy Spirit in all aspects of our lives. Amen.