I have never been so afraid for my country as in that awful moment, on the afternoon of January 6, 2021.
Regardless of partisan or ideological affiliation, true American patriots watched in horror as a violent mob stormed the U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C, threatening torture and death to national leaders of both parties who differed with their agenda. It was like a scene from an Allen Drury novel, as rioting was harnessed as a tool of politics and the very citadel of American freedom was defiled by thugs and traitors.
As I watched the grotesque drama play out, I entreated the Lord for the safety of our Republic like never before in my life. I found myself asking, Can we be sure that the seditious rioters and the bloodshed they demanded wouldn’t result in lawmakers making a deal to save their lives? Would the rule of law surrender to the law of fear? Would schrecklichkeit (frightfulness), a term Hitler was fond of using, have the last word?
Order Restored
It took a few hours, of course, but in time—that very evening—the U.S. House and Senate reconvened to finish their Constitutional task. And two weeks later—January 20, 2021—under heavy guard, the peaceful transfer of presidential power took place. Despite threats of armed protests in the nation’s capital and in all fifty state capitols [1], none appear to have materialized as of this writing.
I can’t say I’m all that surprised. Terrorists are cowards, for the most part, and armed-to-the-teeth soldiers numbering in the thousands tend to serve as an effective deterrent against haphazard, largely unorganized violence. So long as government buildings stand unguarded, hoodlums may take their chances. But when confronted by trained troops, armed and ready, such foolhardiness isn’t likely.
Whether the threat of mob violence has fully dissipated may be arguable, of course. But a few signs have surfaced that the success of the inauguration, and the non-fulfillment of some of the crackpot conspiracy predictions, may have inflicted sufficient discouragement among the insurrectionists to cause them to slink away into the night. Acolytes of the absurd QAnon conspiracy theory—which claims the U.S. government is controlled by a cabal of Satan-worshiping pedophiles—were predicting that a horrific storm would rain down on the United States at noon on Inauguration Day, at which time forces amassed by Donald Trump would appear and arrest Joe Biden and other Democratic leaders on live TV, while Trump would be sworn in for a second term [2].
Obviously, none of this happened. As a result, one de facto leader of the QAnon cult urged the movement’s followers: “We gave it our all, now we need to keep our chins up and go back to our lives as best we are able. We have a new president sworn in and it is our responsibility to respect the Constitution” [3].
We can only pray that this resignation to reality will pervade the ranks of the January 6 seditionists and their fellow travelers throughout the country.
The Shield of Omnipotence
When the mob was turned back on January 6 and Congress proceeded to perform its Constitutional duty, I was reminded of Ellen White’s statement that “the United States is a land that has been under the special shield of the Omnipotent One” [4]. But this will not always be so. Our national legislators refused to be intimidated by the recent insurrection, for which we can praise the Lord. However, the time will come when, “to secure popularity and patronage, legislators will yield to the demand for Sunday laws” [5]. When that happens, the shield of omnipotence will be removed from our fair land, and “national apostasy will be followed by national ruin” [6].
But when this shield is at last withdrawn from the United States of America, we have the modern prophet’s assurance that it will be spread over God’s faithful people:
In the time of testing and trial, the shield of Omnipotence will be spread over those whom God has made the depositories of His law. When legislators shall abjure the principles of Protestantism, so as to give countenance and the right hand of fellowship to Romanism, then God will interpose in a special manner in behalf of His own honor and the salvation of His people [7].
The QAnon prophecy of a violent storm at the stroke of noon on Inauguration Day did not come to pass. But think of how the officials of our government might react of a prophecy of this nature did in fact come to pass, especially if its impact was devastating. The book of Revelation speaks of the lamblike beast—representing the United States of America [8]—doing great wonders, even making fire come down from heaven (Rev. 13:13). Think of what would happen, in the midst of public Sunday-law agitation, if the majestic being of dazzling brightness described by Ellen White in The Great Controversy appears, healing loathsome diseases and performing other wonders beyond the capacity of skeptics to dispute, declaring to the world that he has changed the Sabbath to Sunday [9], and urging the U.S. Congress to enforce the observance of the day he has blessed.
People may laugh at prophecies that don’t come true, but their laughter would be quickly stilled if such predictions started coming true. When signs and wonders of this sort start taking place, the only available defense against their purported imperatives will be the truths of God’s Word (Isa. 8:20; Acts 17:11), which the signs and wonders will deny.
Watching that violent mob two weeks ago, and the breathtaking disregard for truth that motivated their rage, the following inspired statement came to mind:
It may appear that Satan is triumphant, and that truth is overborne with falsehood and error; the people over whom God has spread His shield, and the country which has been an asylum for the conscience-oppressed servants of God and defenders of the truth, may be placed in jeopardy. But God would have us recall His dealings with His people in the past, to save them from their enemies. He has always chosen extremities, when there seemed no possible chance for deliverance from Satan’s workings, for the manifestation of His power. Man’s necessity is God’s opportunity [10].
Ellen White continues, on the same page:
It may be that a respite may yet be granted for God’s people to awake, and let their light shine. If the presence of ten righteous persons would have saved the wicked cities of the plain, is it not possible that God will yet, in answer to the prayers of His people, hold in check the workings of those who are making void His law? [11].
Conclusion
There is still time for God’s people to claim His power and perfect the character that will vanquish sin in their lives and vindicate heaven’s government. The shield of Omnipotence is still secure over the United States. The American Constitution still works. Despite the occasional breach, the wall separating church and state still stands. Americans—and the world that still looks to America as the light of liberty—still have the American Republic.
There is still time to articulate the principles of religious liberty, and to underscore their place at the heart of the controversy between good and evil. There is still time to exalt the just and compassionate character of the freedom-loving God of Scripture. And there is still time to let our light shine, and to declare the three angels’ messages to a dying world.
REFERENCES
1. Bill Chappell and Hannah Allam, “No Large Protests In D.C. As President Biden Is Inaugurated,” npr, Jan. 20, 2021 https://www.npr.org/sections/inauguration-day-live-updates/2021/01/20/958739876/no-large-protests-in-d-c-on-morning-of-bidens-inauguration; Aaron Katersky and Celia Darrough, “Armed protests being planned in all 50 state capitals, FBI bulletin says,” ABC News, Jan. 11, 2021 https://abcnews.go.com/US/armed-protests-planned-50-state-capitols-fbi-bulletin/story?id=75179771
2. Samson Amore, “QAnon in Meltdown After Biden Inauguration: ‘We Need to Go Back to Our Lives,’” The Wrap, Jan. 20, 2021 https://www.thewrap.com/qanon-in-meltdown-after-biden-inauguration-we-need-to-get-to-go-back-to-our-lives/
3. Ibid.
4. Ellen G. White, SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 7, p. 975.
5. ----Prophets and Kings, p. 606.
6. ----SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 7, p. 977.
7. ----Testimonies, vol. 5, p. 525.
8. ----The Great Controversy, pp. 439-445.
9. Ibid, p. 624.
10. ----Testimonies, vol. 5, p. 714.
11. Ibid.
Pastor Kevin Paulson holds a Bachelor’s degree in theology from Pacific Union College, a Master of Arts in systematic theology from Loma Linda University, and a Master of Divinity from the SDA Theological Seminary at Andrews University. He served the Greater New York Conference of Seventh-day Adventists for ten years as a Bible instructor, evangelist, and local pastor. He writes regularly for Liberty magazine and does script writing for various evangelistic ministries within the denomination. He continues to hold evangelistic and revival meetings throughout the North American Division and beyond, and is a sought-after seminar speaker relative to current issues in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. He presently resides in Berrien Springs, Michigan