SOS Monthly Newsletter - November 2001

What's Next?

If you fully obey the LORD... the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations... If you do not obey the LORD your God... The LORD will send on you curses... until you are destroyed... because of the evil you have done in forsaking him... The LORD will bring a nation against you from far away, from the ends of the earth, like an eagle swooping down... They will lay siege to all the cities... until the high fortified walls in which you trust fall down... (Dt 28: all).

While America rallies to respond to its enemies, the American people must be made to understand that we are under God's judgment; that things will only grow worse unless and until we wholeheartedly return to Him in REPENTANCE! Just as God used the barbaric Assyrians against His own chosen people (Is 5:25-30), so He is using the very enemies of God (Muslim terrorists) to chastise the Church and this once-Christian nation.

God will not be mocked! (Ps 7:11; Ho 8:7; Gal 6:7) The promised remedial judgments of the Sovereign God of the Bible are being poured out. If we do not heed these judgments and His Word, our nation will face God's wrath: His final judgment. America fully deserves all the progressive judgments God visited upon Israel (Dt 8:all; 28:all; Ps 9:17).

Singularly blessed of God, we have turned against Him with vengeance... Lord, GRANT the Church & America the needed REPENTANCE that Your favor may be restored to this nation. PROTECT and GO with our Armies. May our President and our Pastors now call America to NATIONAL REPENTANCE! (1 Kg 8:33-34; Ps 44:6-23; Acts 17:30-31)."

Submitted by Capitol Hill Prayer Alert Foundation

Will America Repent?

Throughout the Old Testament, God would raise up a godly leader for His people Israel. Israel would follow that leader and get right with God. God would prosper and protect their land. After this leader died, another leader would turn the people away from God. God would then remove His protection from the land. Israel would suffer a military defeat or some other calamity. In their distress, they would turn back to God, under the direction of a godly leader.

Israel persecuted and even killed many of the prophets who warned of God's judgments. The prophet Jeremiah was imprisoned for speaking God's word. He said that God would use "my servant" Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar to bring judgment to the Jewish people for their sins. He told them to submit to their enemies and not fight.

"If I bring a sword against that country...even if Noah, Daniel and Job were in it, they could save neither son nor daughter. They would save only themselves by their righteousness." (Ezek. 14:17-19). A nation can become so hardened against God that it will no longer repent when God judges it. I do not know if America has reached that place.

Many scriptures indicate that God will bless any nation that honors and obeys Him and will ultimately (if not immediately) judge any nation that rejects Him and His laws. (Prov. 14:34, Jer. 5:29, 18:7.) Our nation, to a large extent, has honored God. We have given religious freedom to those who worship Jesus and preach His word. Throughout our history, many of our leaders, as well as much of our nation, have trusted in Jesus and sought to obey Him. Our nation has experienced numerous revivals and evangelistic outreaches throughout our history, resulting in millions being saved or rededicating their lives to Christ. Our nation has sent out more missionaries to evangelize the world than any other nation.

God has blessed our nation with great economic prosperity. To a large extent, He has protected us from our enemies. We have suffered greatly in various wars, but won every war except Korea and Vietnam. Even after Vietnam, our nation was blessed with unprecedented economic and political strength, becoming the one remaining "Superpower."
However, for 150 years, our nation has been in spiritual decline. This decline began with Charles Darwin and others who taught that we could understand the universe without God. Soon, liberal theologians declared that God was "dead" or irrelevant. As our youth were taught in our schools that there is no God and that there is no absolute truth or morality, multitudes rejected Jesus Christ and Biblical morality.

This decline has accelerated since the 1960's. A number of Supreme Court decisions have in effect established atheism as our nation's official religion. Today, our nation is caught up in an epidemic of immorality--drugs, alcohol, homosexuality and other sexual perversions, child abuse and molestation, pornography, etc. During the 25 years I have been preaching the gospel in San Francisco, I have noticed a continual hardening of people's hearts against the gospel. The TV preacher scandals of the 1980's led to even greater mocking of the things of God.

I think it will be very hard for America to repent. Too many people are convinced that no God could exist who would judge people for their sins. During the Civil War, the U.S. Senate asked Abraham Lincoln to issue a Proclamation calling the nation to fast, pray and repent of our sins. "May we not justly fear that the awful calamity of civil war which now desolates the land may be but a punishment inflicted upon us for our presumptuous sins, to the needful end of our national reformation as a whole people?"

After the September 11 attacks, Rev. Jerry Falwell suggested that the ACLU and other liberal groups might bear some responsibility for taking God out of our public life and legalizing abortion, thereby bringing God's judgment on our land. He was lambasted by the news media. Bill O'Reilly of Fox Network said he did not believe in a "vengeful God." Falwell apologized for his remarks on national TV.

It seems to me that Americans are relying much more on the FBI, CIA and military to save them from terrorism than they are relying on God. If so, I think we are in for hard times, possibly including more terrorist attacks. Of course, only the terrorists are responsible for the horrible events of September 11. Since the hijackers are dead, only God can punish them, and He surely will.

Is God lifting His hand of protection off our nation because of our sins? Without God's protection, terrorists may succeed in carrying out some of their evil plans. I hope that many Christians will respond by getting right with God and preaching the Gospel fervently. I believe that many Americans will turn to God in response to this crisis.

However, other Americans--perhaps the majority--will harden their hearts against God increasingly, as in Revelation 9:20-21: "The rest of mankind that were not killed by these plagues still did not repent...of their murders, their magic arts, their sexual immorality or their thefts." If this happens, Christians will face increasing persecution as we continue to preach the gospel in this nation.

On the Streets

On September 8, we had planned an outreach at U N Plaza with Last Days Harvest Church from Sacramento. That day also marked the 50th anniversary of the US/Japan peace agreement signed in San Francisco. Secretary of State Powell was scheduled to speak at the Civic Center, a few blocks away, that day. When we got to U N Plaza, there was a gigantic PA system set up. This system was as big as any system used for a massive outdoor rock concert.

Last Days Harvest Church had come all the way from Sacramento to minister that afternoon. We thought we would be forced to cancel the outreach. However, I spoke with a police sergeant, who told me the other event wouldn't begin until 5 PM. This event, it turned out, was a protest by Chinese seeking an apology from Japan for World War II atrocities. We set up our sound system at the corner of 7th St. and Market, and ministered to hundreds of people that afternoon.

After the recent terrorist attacks, we knew we needed to be sensitive in presenting the gospel to hurting, confused people. We have been praying for wisdom to explain the gospel to people at this time. Our goal is to persuade people to trust in Jesus Christ to save us individually and as a nation, especially in light of what is happening in the world today. We are in the process of printing 40,000 copies of a new tract called "September 11" to give out on the streets of San Francisco and Berkeley.

On September 15, we ministered at Powell and Market and at Washington Square. It seemed that people at Powell and Market were more receptive to the gospel than before. Many took tracts and stood around listening to the music and preaching. At Washington Square, we faced a lot of hostility. A few people got very angry when we put up our Christian signs and they forced us to take them down.

Coming Events

Note: All outreaches are subject to change. Call (510) 531-5325 or (510) 244-0277 (pager) to confirm outreaches or for more information.

Friday November 2, 9, 16 7:30-10 PM Witnessing in various S. F. neighborhoods. (Call for meeting location.)

Sat. November 3 San Francisco "Church on the Street" worship rallies. 12-1 PM. Powell and Market St. 1:30-5 PM. United Nations Plaza (7th St. and Market)

Sat. November 10 Berkeley Outreach. 12:30-4:30 PM. Telegraph & Haste St.

Sat. November 17 San Francisco worship rallies. 12-1 PM Powell and Market St. 2-5 PM. Washington Square (Columbus & Union St.)

Ministry Needs

Thank you for your prayers and financial support for this ministry. We offer a yearlong live-in evangelism training program for those who want practical experience in evangelism. Call or write us if you are interested. We also need Christians who can witness with us on Friday night and Saturday afternoon. We especially need musicians to sing and lead worship on the streets on Friday night.
God bless you all. Please continue to pray for us. I hope you will join one of our outreaches this next month.

Yours in His love,

Larry Rosenbaum