This afternoon, Americans lost our 39th President of the United States, James Earl Carter, Jr., better known as Jimmy. Having entered hospice in the spring of 2023, President Carter finally succumbed to a myriad of medical issues that have plagued him for a number of years. His wife, Rosalyn, preceded him in death, having passed away a little more than a year ago… Regardless of your political persuasion, I hope that you will agree that the country lost a great statesman.
Jimmy Carter hailed from Plains, Georgia and died in the home that he and Rosalynn have shared for decades. Their love story transcended time and space. The former First Lady was married to the President for 77 years and Jimmy often said that marrying Rosalyn was the best thing he ever did, aside from accepting Christ as his Lord and Savior.
Jimmy Carter was president at a time that the country was in great turmoil. He was a former Governor of the great state of Georgia and also ran the family’s peanut farm business. His mother, Miss Lillian, and brother, Billy, were often in the news and there were many occasions when Billy was quite an embarrassment to the president.
The country was recovering from the Nixon White House, with President Nixon resigning from the presidency. There had been a scandal with Vice-President Spiro Agnew who was replaced by Gerald Ford, a congressman from Michigan. Upon Nixon’s resignation, Ford became president and eventually lost the next election to Jimmy Carter. The country was fed up with the politics of the Nixon administration and was ready for a change. The Vietnam war was in the recent past and people pinned their hopes on the quiet man from Georgia.
But President Carter had problems of his own. He elected to address the country in more casual attire, a cardigan sweater rather than a suit coat, and that ended up being a problem that he couldn’t seem to distance himself from. Interest rates were climbing dramatically, Iran seized hostages from our embassy and Carter spent the last 444 days of his administration negotiating for their release. They were finally set free as President Ronald Reagan was taking the oath of office when he replaced Jimmy Carter as president. It was a bitter disappointment for the Carter administration.
There were, however, successes during the Carter presidency. The Camp David accords were negotiated between Israel and Egypt and were signed in 1978. Both Israeli Prime Minister Begin and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat shared the Nobel Peace prize for that year. Carter won the prize himself in 2002.
By his own admission years later in 1994, President Carter finally addressed the general feeling that he wasn’t a very good president. In fact, he opined that he as a much better former president than when he spent his time at the White House. I don’t think that there is any doubt that Carter was a stellar ambassador for peace and for promoting human rights decades after the end of his presidency. Additionally, he and Rosalynn worked on more than 3300 houses for Habitat for Humanity and he could be found anywhere in the world where there was need for a peace broker or mediator to bring different factions into alignment together. The Carter Center in Atlanta was the culmination of his life’s work since the end of his presidency and his success is unmatched in our modern age.
Carter lived more years post presidency than any other president in our country’s history. Furthermore, he was our oldest president, having attained the age of 100 years old, in the entire history of the United States.
On the personal side, Carter taught Bible studies since he was a teenager and continued throughout most of his life, including during his presidency in Washington. His faith guided his steps since he was a young boy. He wrote numerous books, including books on poetry. And by his own admission, Carter thought his error as president was a political one. He found it impossible to convince the American people that he was a dynamic leader and attributes that failure to his eventual downfall.
There is no question that President Carter was a devout follower of Jesus Christ. I am convinced that he modeled his life after Jesus and I’m not so sure that his devotion to Jesus wasn’t at least partially responsible for his election loss to Ronald Reagan. Carter was a quiet man and did not express the bravado and self assuredness that many other presidents have exhibited. Carter answered to a higher authority… In some ways, Jesus faced some of the same problems – a lack of recognition as a great leader during His early ministry years. Of course, that eventually changed and Carter followed a similar path in the years after his presidency.
As President Carter continued to mature in his faith, he undoubtedly became more like Jesus. This process is called progressive sanctification – becoming more Christlike as we grow in our personal faith. His commitment to peace, dealing with people who were homeless, fighting disease and negotiating world changing deals around the globe are clear evidences of his desire to better mankind. We owe him a tremendous debt of gratitude for his efforts and accomplishments throughout the years. Now, he rests in the arms of Jesus beside his beloved wife, Rosalynn.
Jimmy Carter had many Bible verses that he used from time to time. Our verse for tonight is the one that President Carter had President Washington’s Bible open to during his inauguration. He also used the same verse in the White House on many occasions. The prophet Micah, near the end of the Old Testament, tells us, in Micah 6:8, “He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Certainly, President Carter patterned his life after his obedience to God as stated in Micah.
My encouragement this evening is that most of us have a favorite Bible verse that appeals to us in accordance with God’s will for our lives. My prayer is that we will each be as dedicated to following the Lord as Jimmy Carter, our brother in Christ, was. It doesn’t make any difference what side of the political aisle you are on. As brothers and sisters in Christ, we all worship the same God. Rest in Peace, Sir. You are a great model of Christian behavior… and I am sure that God has already presented you with a crown acknowledging your faith based life. Have a great day in the Lord, grace and peace…