Restoring a Nation Through Godly Leadership and Revival

In this powerful message, Adrian Rogers turns to the Book of Judges to remind us that God would rather forgive than judge. He is a God of mercy, and we must never surrender to despair or believe revival is impossible. There can be renewal, restoration, and hope—but only if we turn back to Him.

Rogers begins with the parable of the trees seeking a king. The olive tree, the fig tree, and the vine each refused, too focused on their gifts and blessings to step into leadership. Finally, the bramble accepted—though it had no fruit, no shade, and nothing to give but thorns. It is a striking image of what happens when good men refuse responsibility: the worthless rise to power.

America, he warns, is in crisis—a crisis of leadership. The decline of a nation often follows three steps: the apostasy of ungrateful people, the arrogance of ungodly leaders, and the apathy of bystanders. Judges shows us that after Gideon’s great victory, Israel quickly forgot the Lord and turned to Baal, embracing immorality and abandoning the God who saved them. Without a fixed standard of truth, everyone did what was right in their own eyes—a dangerous picture of our own times.

Rogers traces how values have shifted: from authority to relativism, from truth to pragmatism, from revelation to feelings, and from convictions to mere opinions. Even the foundations of religious liberty are eroded as prayer and faith are pushed out of public life. Meanwhile, media and culture normalize sin, desensitize us to evil, and then legitimize what God calls wrong. In the end, even what is good and godly becomes mocked and stigmatized.

But the danger is not only with leaders or culture—it is also with those who remain silent. When the olive tree, fig tree, and vine refused to step up, the bramble ruled. As Edmund Burke said, “The only thing necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.”

Yet Rogers does not close in despair. The same Book of Judges that warns us also offers hope: God is merciful. He longs to forgive and restore. Revival is possible, but it must begin with us. He ends with a prayer: that God would raise up bold, faithful people who shine as lights in a dark world, and that a mighty revival would sweep our land—beginning in each heart willing to turn back to Him.