Pastor Jack Hibbs is urging us to recognize what he believes is a pivotal moment in American history, warning that the freedoms many have long taken for granted are being steadily eroded while too many of us have become disengaged from the communities God has called us to influence.
In a recent message on The Jack Hibbs Podcast, Hibbs argued that Scripture not only commands us to pray for those in authority but also to be informed, involved and willing to stand for biblical truth before cultural and political changes become irreversible.
“America, California, all 50 states in a matter of a couple of months are stepping into the valley of decision,” Hibbs said. “Do you really believe what the Bible says?”
The future of our communities is being decided today
Hibbs said many Americans become consumed with national politics while overlooking the local leaders whose decisions shape everyday life.
“They’re making decisions about what’s going to be allowed in your community, on your street, your neighborhood,” he said. “They’re going to make laws… that will affect you and your future life and your children and your grandchildren.”
Those decisions deserve our attention because they directly affect our families, our churches and the future our children will inherit.
Turning to Jeremiah 29:7, he reminded us that God instructed His people to seek the peace of the cities where they lived and to pray for them.
“Wherever I have you living, I need you to seek the peace and the welfare of that city,” Hibbs said. “That it does godly good.”
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We are called to engage, not withdraw
Hibbs said our responsibility extends beyond prayer alone. He encouraged us to know who serves on our city councils, attend public meetings, understand what is being taught in local schools, examine the materials available in public libraries and become familiar with the issues shaping our communities.
“Every Christian citizen of a community needs to find out what’s going on in their town and who’s making the decisions,” Hibbs said. “You’re supposed to pray for them.”
He also challenged what he believes has become an unhealthy tendency within the Church to avoid difficult conversations.
“We’ve become… what I would call demonically polite,” Hibbs said, arguing that many of us have become so concerned about avoiding offense that we have stopped standing for what is right.
A warning about America’s direction
Much of Hibbs’ message centered on what he believes is the steady advance of socialist ideology in America and the gradual erosion of constitutional freedoms.
Using the Communist Manifesto’s strategy of advancing “two steps forward, one step back” as an illustration, Hibbs warned that major cultural and political change often happens incrementally while much of the public remains distracted.
“Right now, as I sit here, socialism is advancing rapidly in the United States of America,” he said. “Don’t take it lightly.”
He also pointed to New York City as an example of where he believes those ideas ultimately lead, citing policy changes, increasing crime and accommodations for Islamic public prayer as developments that should cause Americans to pay attention before similar changes spread to other cities.
Our greatest danger is our own apathy
While Hibbs spent much of the message discussing politics and culture, he ultimately said our greatest threat is not a political party or ideology.
“I’m not terrified of the socialists,” he said. “I’m terrified of the apathetic Christian.”
He lamented that many of us have chosen not to vote or become informed about the issues affecting our communities, despite having both the opportunity and the responsibility to influence our nation according to a biblical worldview.
Surrendering our voice is not an act of humility. It is abandoning the stewardship God has entrusted to us while others shape the future in our place.
Steward today’s freedoms for tomorrow’s generation
Hibbs concluded by encouraging parents and grandparents to prepare the next generation for the days ahead by teaching children the value of hard work, responsibility and obedience to God’s Word. He urged us to raise young people who understand both the blessings of liberty and the responsibility that comes with preserving it.
“We need to get back to basics,” Hibbs said. “Back to the basics is the Word of God, obeying the Bible, and living a godly, beautiful life so that we might enjoy freedoms and the goodness and the blessings of God.”
Hibbs closed with the warning that framed his entire message—a reminder that history offers few examples of nations willingly surrendering liberty and later reclaiming it.
“Once they’re gone, freedoms are gone forever. You will not be gaining them back once they are gone,” Hibbs said, urging us to faithfully steward the freedoms God has given us until Christ returns.
James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact [email protected].
