The Salvation Of A Nation
by Pastor Jack Hyles (1926-2001)
(Chapter 14 from Dr. Hyle's excellent book, Salvation is More than Being Saved)
2nd Chronicles 7:14, "If My people, which are called by My name, shall humble
themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then
will I hear from Heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." Leviticus 2:13, "And every oblation of thy meat-offering shall thou season with
salt; neither shalt thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be
lacking from thy meat-offering: with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt." Numbers 18:19, "All the heave-offerings of the holy things, which the children
of Israel offer unto the Lord, have I given thee, and thy sons and thy daughters
with thee, by a statute for ever: it is a covenant of salt for ever before the
Lord unto thee and to thy seed with thee." 2nd Chronicles 13:5, "Ought ye not to
know that the Lord God of Israel gave the kingdom over Israel to David for ever,
even to him and to his sons by a covenant of salt?"
In this manuscript we treat the subject of the salvation of the soul. We also
treat the subject of the salvation of the life. We come now to discuss the
salvation of a nation. Just exactly how are nations saved? This does not deal
with all the people of a nation coming to Christ but rather how a nation can be
saved from destruction and from God's total disfavor so that our sins can be
forgiven and our land can be healed.
To understand this properly we turn to the phrase, "the covenant of salt."
2nd
Chronicles 13:5, "Ought ye not to know that the Lord
God of Israel gave the kingdom over Israel to David for ever, even to him and to
his sons by a covenant of salt?" A covenant of salt was a covenant made between
individuals pledging an unbreakable friendship. They vowed that strong
friendship to each other, and as a symbol of that covenant, they ate bread and
salt together. The bread symbolized the nourishment of the friendship and the
salt with its savoring capacity emphasized the durability of the friendship.
Salt had an important part to play in religious ceremony and sacrifices in the
Word of God. For example, salt had to be in every sacrifice. Leviticus 2:13,
"And every oblation of thy meat-offering shall thou season with salt; neither
shah thou suffer the salt of the covenant of thy God to be lacking from thy
meat-offering: with all thine offerings thou shalt offer salt." The Christian is
called the salt of the earth, Matthew 5:13, "Ye are the salt of the earth: but
if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? It is
thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot
of men." Christ is called “the Bread of Life.” John 6:35, "And Jesus said unto
them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to Me shall never hunger; and he
that believeth on Me shall never thirst."
The conclusion is, Christ will enter into a covenant with His people—a covenant
that will not be broken. However, God will not enter into a covenant with a
nation unless there is enough salt for the preservation of that nation. Since
Christians are called the salt of the earth, there are two requirements for this
covenant before God will enter into such an agreement: First, there must be
enough salt in that nation. Second, that salt must have not lost its savour. God
is looking for enough salt that is savoured in a nation so He can spare that
nation from destruction. Note what this salt is. Salt represents the
righteousness of Christ. Savoured salt represents personal righteousness. These
two forms of righteousness are mentioned in Romans 10:1-3, "Brethren, my heart's
desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved. For I bear
them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For
they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their
own
righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God."
Abraham came to God and begged for the salvation of Sodom. His nephew, Lot, was
there, and Abraham did not want Lot and his family destroyed. He asked God that
if he could find 50 righteous people, would God spare the city? God agreed to do
so. Abraham could not find 50, so he pleaded for the salvation of Sodom if he
could find 40. Again he failed. Then he asked if the quota could be lowered to
30. It was. He failed again and requested the quota be lowered to 20. Again he
failed to find 20 righteous people. Finally God agreed that He would save Sodom
for 10 righteous people!
Now it must be understood that these ten righteous people must have both imputed
righteousness and personal righteousness. They must be salt and they must be savoured salt. This was the only hope for the city.
Genesis 19:1, "And there
came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot
seeing them rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the
ground." Notice that Lot was at the gate of the city. Some have suggested that
he was an alderman. Others have with justification, supposed that he was the
mayor, for at the gate of the city sat the judges, magistrates and city leaders. The business of the city was done at the gate, much as it is done at city hall
today. At least we know one thing-Lot was a city official. Neither cities nor
nations are saved because the right officials are elected! The soul winner does
more for the salvation of his nation than does the precinct captain. The answer
for America is not excessive political involvement on the part of God's people,
but it is the excessive soul winning on the pail of God's people and the
excessive preaching of righteousness, separation and standards in our pulpits
and in our homes!
I believe that God has a quota set for America—a quota of righteous people who
are possessed with the imputed righteousness of Christ in response to their
faith and with the personal righteousness of a holy life! I do not know what
that quota is. In Sodom it was ten, but I believe with all my heart that God has
placed a number of people as a quota for the salvation of this land, and that
God will enter into a covenant of
salt with us if we can find sufficient salt that has not lost its savour! The
answer for America is not in a generation of preachers who leave their pulpits
and leave their soul winning to enter into politics. Of course, we should vote. Of course, we should pray for our elected officials. Of course, as citizens we
should have some participation influencing others to vote properly, but this
should be minute in comparison with the gathering of salt. This nation and every
other nation will be spared only by direct intervention from God Almighty! I am
talking about the walls of Jericho crumbling. I am talking about the drying of
the Red Sea. I am talking about the sun standing still for Joshua. The only hope
for America is for soul winners to get busy winning souls and for leaders to get
busy preaching personal holiness so that God will enter with us into a covenant
of salt and will spare our land!
Now notice Genesis 19:26, "But his wife looked back from behind him, and she
became a pillar of salt." Why was Lot's wife turned to a pillar of salt? There
was not enough salt in the city to cause a covenant of salt. When a city was
taken in battle, its destruction was finalized when the conqueror would sow it
with savourless salt. What a symbol this is! Savourless salt will not spare a
nation; it causes its destruction!
What then brings the salvation of a nation?
2nd Chronicles 7:14, "If My people,
which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My
face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from Heaven, and will
forgive their sin, and will heal their land." A nation is not saved because the
homosexuals straighten up or because the drunkards sober up. A nation is saved
when there are enough Christians to form enough salt with savour so God will
make with that nation His covenant of salt! Those Christians must needs be
separated and holy in their living. For many years this has been my goal in my
ministry. I have gone day and night for years. The thrust of my
ministry has been twofold-soul winning and separation, for I believe with
all of my heart that if we can get enough people saved and possess the
imputed righteousness of Christ and then get those people holy so they will
possess personal righteousness, God will look down from Heaven and forgive our sins and heal our land. Notice again the words in
2nd Chronicles 7:14, as follows:
1. "If My people, which are called by My name." You have the salt.
2. "Shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways." There you have the salt with savour.
3. "Then will I hear from Heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." Here you have the salvation of the nation. The answer, therefore, is in building soul-winning churches over the length and breadth of this nation and in preaching of separation and personal holiness in those churches. The answer is not in the White House; it is in the church house. It is not house-to-house registering of voters; it is house-to-house preaching Christ.
I have four children and nine grandchildren. I have lived a lot of years. At
this writing I am 58 years of age. I have preached over 41,500 sermons. I have flown nearly five million miles on airplanes. I have
watched this nation deteriorate. Every patriotic American longs to see our
nation spared. Some feel that the sparing of that nation is in social programs.
Some feel that its sparing is in political reform. Some feel that the nation can
be spared if conservatives stay in the White House and the Senate. I believe
that America can be spared only by Divine intervention! It will take a miracle
akin to that of the crossing of the Red Sea or of the crumbling of the walls of
Jericho. I believe that God must intervene. He will not intervene until we have
won enough people to Christ and made enough of them holy so that God, Who is the
Bread of life, can meet with His holy people, who are the salt of the earth, and
that salt and bread can be mingled into a covenant of salt so that God says to
the nation, "I will enter into an agreement with you for an unbreakable
friendship for your generation."
I long to see my children and grandchildren live their lives in the kind of
America that I have known. I long to see the judging hand of God stayed. I have
given most of my life to this end. When I lay my Bible down, walk out of the
pulpit for the last time after having
preached my last sermon, I want to look at those who follow me and say, I did my
best to get enough salt and to get enough salt savoured so that you will have
the nation I have had, the chance that I have had, and the freedom that I have
known." I may be wrong. I don't think I am.
May God give us preachers and churches aflame with the message of salvation and
stricken with compassion to preach holiness so that we may have enough people
with imputed righteousness and enough of those with personal righteousness so
that God will look from Heaven and say, "America has met My quota. There is
enough salt and enough savoured salt for Me to enter with them into a covenant
of salt so that their generation may be spared." To this end I work! For this I
pray! In this I hope! God, save America!
