During his speech at the 2021 Annual Family Leadership Summit in Des Moines, Dr. Michael Youssef said that the United States is now in a state of deep crisis.
In his message delivered on July 16, Dr. Youssef explained what the crisis is, the danger it poses, and what can be done about it.
This present crisis, according to the founder of Leading the Way, is the absence of objective truth and the breakdown of Christian influence in the western world. He mentioned the emptying of Bible-believing churches, self-worship, rise of woke-ism and other trends sweeping throughout America and Europe as symptoms.
"And if we cease to believe in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, something else will fill that God shaped void," he went on. "For many people today, the substitute religion is radical Marxism and political activism."
"But even radical political division is not the most urgent crisis today," he said. "Political strife is just a symptom of a deeper crisis. Our most urgent crisis is the spiraling decline of the Christian biblical truth and morality. Our most urgent crisis is the moral and spiritual hollowing out of society from within. All other social ills that are facing us, they stem from the decline of Biblical Christianity in America."
What's at stake?
Moving to the danger of the present crisis, Youssef briefly stated that most Americans assume that democracy would endure in the nation. The Egyptian-born preacher reminded them that empires and nations have often fallen throughout history. He said that Western civilization is on the verge of collapsing, comparing it to the warning signs that foreshadowed the fall of the Roman Empire.
"The parallels between the ancient Rome, and the 21st century America are deeply, deeply troubling. And this immigrant," he said of himself, "this immigrant who loves this country saw deeply. This 73-year-old immigrant will not be silent."
He went on to add that many Muslim intellectuals believe that if America and Europe collapse, Islam would surge in to fill the vacuum.
"What is a stake in this present crisis is nothing less than the future of America. The future of our children, and my beloved 11 grandchildren," he said.
But, since Youssef is dedicated to speaking the truth, he also said something that many people would not want to hear or believe.
"I believe that Christians in America need to prepare themselves for persecution, "he said. "They should expect to be persecuted by the government."
Persecution, he remarked, comes second to attempts to silence Christian voices.
Is there no hope?
Noting that "decline is not inevitable" but "decline is a choice," Youssef said that there's still hope as long as citizens make wise and godly choices.
He gave a brief testimony as a side note. A mega-church pastor advised him when he was 35 years old to soften his sermon if he wanted to grow his congregation. God chastised him in one of his prayers. God told him He didn't rescue him twice and sent him to America to entertain the crowd.
That same message, Youssef claims, is what will save America today. He said that the purpose of upholding the First Amendment is so Christians can freely and openly proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ.
"But we must not hate. Hate is not in our DNA. They stick it to us, and they falsely accuse us, but that's not in our lexicon... But we must boldly proclaim, 'We love you with the love of Christ, and because we love you, we will always tell the truth'," he said.
"We will not pander to you. We will not lie to you. We will not play political games with you. We will tell you the truth and invite you to accept objective truth. God bless you," he concluded.
