Hard Soil, Holy Call: Reclaiming America’s God Given Purpose
- Jul 10
- 5 min read
The word jubilee defines a special anniversary celebration of fifty years of a reign or activity. But it is not just a time of celebration; it is a time of remembrance. When God called for a jubilee celebration, it was to rest the land and release debt. The farmland was to rest for one year, and the people would live off the previous year's supply.
Slaves were freed, and debt was released. If a person sold their land because they could not afford to keep it, the land was returned free of charge. This was to make sure each tribe kept its inheritance.
America’s Fifth Jubilee Year
America is in its fifth jubilee year — 250 years of being a sovereign nation.
A world power.
A nation formed on the Word of God and Christianity.
A nation of generosity, faith, and endurance.
America is not a perfect nation; there is no such thing. But it is, like Israel, a nation founded on godly principles and morals.
I Believe America Was Called
Called to take the gospel to poorer nations
Called to take the gospel to unknown tribes
Called to build missionaries and schools both here and abroad
Called to love God
Called to honor God
Called to be servants of God and friends of Jesus Christ
America is worth celebrating. However, we are slowly slipping into a state of slumber. If judgment begins with the house of God, we are due for judgment.
We can turn it around. We can embrace holiness and take the message of grace, love, and truth out once again. America is now hard soil. It is not easy to plow in this nation because hard hearts have blocked the message of Christ.
What If This Is the Year That Freedom Reigns Again?
250 years ago, this nation was founded. It has had five jubilee years. Five is a number for grace. Six is the number of man. America is entering its sixth year of jubilee.
Sixty-six years ago marked the beginning of America's decline.
Genesis chapter one tells us how God created the earth and everything in it in six days, and on the seventh, He rested. He called the seventh day the Shmita, Sabbath. He rested from His work and commanded everything to rest as well. Yet, we have broken His Sabbath command and have done things our way for years.
When God created man:
Then God blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth." — Gen 1:28 NKJV
The first command was to multiply. Did you know that? In Genesis chapter one, God said make babies.
The 1960’s: The Beginning of America’s Decline
In 1960 man said stop making babies, and the FDA approved the pill. Man began to stop allowing the body to produce as God commanded. The government began its control.
The 60’s marks the move of the Antichrist.
In 1960, most stores were closed on Sundays; by 1970, most of them were open.
In 1962, the Supreme Court ruled that prayer in public schools was unconstitutional.
In 1963, the Court banned mandatory Bible readings and the recitation of the Lord’s Prayer in public schools.
The sexual revolution was alive and well in the 60’s.
In 1966, Time magazine’s cover was “God Is Dead.”
In 1964, the Beatles came to America and did their first live concert in Washington, D.C. With the Beatles came Hinduism in the form of meditation and Yoga.
As a result of removing God from schools, the children began to suffer.
Academic achievement plummeted, including SAT scores.
Increased rate of out-of-wedlock births.
Increase in illegal drug use.
Increase in juvenile crime.
Deterioration of school behavior.
The Legalization Wave
1967: Colorado legalized abortion for incest and rape.
1970: Hawaii legalized abortion at the patient’s request.
1973: Roe vs. Wade legalized abortion nationwide.
After the reversal, abortion pills rose in popularity.
1996: California legalized medical marijuana.
2012: Colorado and Washington legalized recreational marijuana.
Today: 41 states have legalized recreational marijuana; 24 states and D.C. for medical use.
Assisted suicide followed:
Oregon (1994), Washington (2008), Montana (2009), Vermont (2013), California (2015), Colorado (2016), D.C. (2016), Hawaii (2018), N.J. (2019), Maine (2020), N.M. (2021), Illinois (2025).
Same-sex marriage:
As of 2024, 1.4 million same-sex couples in the U.S., with 836,000 married.
Nearly 300,000 children under 18 are being raised in same-sex couple households.
Okay, I am sure you see the pattern of depravity in America.
Even though there has been a steep decline in morality in America, this nation still belongs to God, and He will redeem it one day. He will take what is His, after He separates them from what is not.
“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever…” — Heb 1:8–12 NKJV
God is still alive and active in America.
The Jesus Movement: A Moment of Inspiration
In response to the decline in morality, the Church had a moment of inspiration, and the Jesus Movement began. The hippies were integrated into the Church. They were saved and had a fire of God in them that moved them out of the drug and societal unrest into a personal and experiential faith.
Contemporary Christian music was born. Faith became culturally relevant and far less religious.
New denominations evolved, such as Calvary Chapel and the Vineyard movement. It was a start to counterculture, but it did not last.
I don’t think it lasted because, as they introduced charismatic gifts and freestyle worship, they forgot to incorporate the fear of the Lord and holiness, without which none will see the Lord.
Some people in the 70’s that sought truth through LSD, marijuana, and Eastern mysticism turned to the Bible for purpose and clarity. These likely remained in the Lord even to this day.
Even though the Jesus Movement reshaped politics and church leadership, it only reshaped it. It needed reformation.
Reformation vs. Revival
Reformation is the action of reforming a practice or institution. Institutions were reformed, but the hearts were not. The religious methods of the Church were changed, no doubt, but the people still embraced sinful and unholy practices.
The culture lost in drugs, sex, and rock and roll had an awakening and a form of revival, but the reformation to change the nation wasn’t solid.
There has not been another movement like this one except for a brief sixteen days of prayer and praise at Asbury University. Many criticized it.
The Promise Keepers (1990’s) and the Seven Mountains Mandate (2010’s–2020’s) emerged, but none produced a reformation revival.
A Call to Return
We are a cyclical people and seem to venture away from God when things are going well. God is aware of this, and if we don’t get back to Him soon, we may see a dramatic shift in His grace and mercy, in which He adds judgment to them to get our attention.
Let’s ask ourselves:
Why are we here?
How are we doing?
Are the lost being found?
Are people becoming more like Jesus?
Are we impacting our community?
Are we getting a hearing for our message?
Are we growing together as God’s people?
These are not questions for Church leadership but for all of us. We are called to do two things: “Go” and “occupy.” Where are you going, and what are you occupying?
Repentance is the way home. We need a move of repentance. A true and unapologetic move of God where Jesus Freaks return home without agenda.
Let's pray,
Heavenly Father, we need a move of Your Spirit. We are desperately in need of an awakening to the condition of our souls in America. Will You come? Can we be redeemed? I repent on behalf of this wonderful nation for the sins that we have continuously committed against You. We have turned our backs on You and have forgotten Your covenant. Bring us back to Your grace. In Jesus' name, Amen
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