The
Master Key for America Recovering Her Greatness
Look
to the rock from which you were hewn,
And from the hole of the pit from
which you were dug.
Look to Abraham your father and
Sarah who bore you.
(Isaiah
51:1-2)
Even
as we celebrate the 236th birthday of our homeland, America is being
reshaped into a politically correct, secularist, socialist nation with obvious
anti-Christian overtones. This is happening because we lost sight of our
national roots, i.e., of our radical
Christian heritage. Karl Marx once said, “A people without a heritage are
easily persuaded,” and that is certainly the case in America today. Because we lost sight of our profound Christian
past, an America president can tell a foreign, Muslim audience, “America is not
a Christian nation,” with hardly a peep of protest from back home. Because we
lost sight of our radical Christian heritage, deviant, immoral behavior is daily
piped into our lives and homes by the mass media; and such behavior is protected
by the state and promoted in colleges and public schools as the norm while
expressions of faith in God are suppressed. Because we as American Christians
did not preserve our nation’s heritage, a radical, secularist minority has
rewritten and reinterpreted America’s history and, thereby, convinced judges,
politicians, and the American people that the First Amendment was put in place
to keep religion out of government and the public arena. We are now facing a
crossroads in our history as a nation and there is a question whether the American
republic founded in 1776 will survive.
We
Must Recover our Past
I
am convinced that the key to America once again being a beacon of hope for the rest
of the world lies in us revisiting and recovering our past. At a critical moment
in Israel’s history, God instructed His people through the prophet Isaiah to
revisit their past. Look to the rock from
which you were hewn and to the hole of the pit from which you were dug. Look to
Abraham your father, and to Sarah who bore you (Isaiah 51-1-2). By
revisiting their past, they would receive the inspiration and information
needed for facing the challenges of the present and the future.
We
face a similar situation in America today and if we are to survive we must
revisit our past and see the hand of God in our beginnings as a nation. We must
recover the truth of our Christian heritage—a heritage that is being taken from
us by secularist historians who are creating an America in their own image. This
is crucial, for as the noted Danish Christian philosopher, Soren Kierkegaard,
said, “Life can only be lived by looking forward, but it can only be understood
by looking backward.” As we pause this July 4th and take a look
backward to the place from which we emerged as a nation—to the rock from which
we were hewn--we will be inspired to rise up in a new boldness of faith and lay
hold of our future.
America
Emerged Out of a Great Spiritual Awakening
The
truth is that America emerged out of a great Spiritual Awakening that
transformed the thirteen Colonies. As a result of this Great Awakening, entire
towns repented, denominational walls were broken down, regional conflicts were
healed, and for the first time the scattered Colonists began to see themselves
as “one nation under God.” One of America’s best known Founding Fathers,
Benjamin Franklin, told how his hometown of Philadelphia was transformed by
this Awakening. In his Autobiography,
he wrote,
From
being thoughtless or indifferent about religion, it seemed as if all the world
were growing religious so that one could not walk through the town in an
evening with hearing psalms sung in different families of every street.
Further
north in New England Jonathan Edwards said that the entire town of Northampton,
MA, “seemed to be full of the presence of God” and that “a loose, careless
person could scarcely be found.” In nearby Westfield a Rev. Bull told of the
sudden transformation of his town and said that more had been done in one week
than in seven years before. There were so many conversions associated with this
Awakening that a number of colleges were formed to train ministers for the new
churches that were springing up. One of these was King’s College (now Columbia University)
and at the time of its founding in 1754, an advertisement was posted in New
York papers stating;
The
chief thing in this college is to teach and engage children to know God in
Jesus Christ and to love Him and serve Him in all sobriety, godliness, and
richness of life with a perfect heart and willing mind.
There
is no question that most—if not all—of the Founding Fathers were profoundly
influenced by the Great Awakening. This meant that their Christianity, for the
most part, was not a dry, formal orthodoxy based on church membership, but was,
instead, a vital faith that was both known in the head and experienced in the
heart. This is why prayers and Bible readings, along with other expressions of
faith in God, the Bible, and Jesus Christ permeate their writings. In fact, a
recent, ten-year study project to discover where the Founders got their ideas
for America’s founding documents revealed that, by far, the single, most-cited
authority in their writings was the Bible.
This
vibrant Christian faith of the Founders was confirmed by Patrick Henry
(1736-1799) who declared, “It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often
that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not
on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ. This is why the late Harvard
professor, Perry Miller, said, “The Declaration of Independence of 1776 was a
direct result of the preaching of the evangelists of the Great Awakening.” The
following is a small sampling of the faith of just some of the Founding
Fathers.
The Faith of the Founders
George
Washington,
the first president, took the oath of office with his hand placed on a Bible,
signifying his recognition of the Bible as the source of guidance and
inspiration for his administration. This was no mere political formality, for
Washington believed that, “It is impossible to rightly govern the world without
God and the Bible.” After his inaugural address, which was filled with
references to God and the Bible, he and the Congress proceeded to St. Paul’s
Chapel to participate in a worship service. He once publicly prayed, “Bless O
Lord the whole race of mankind, and let the world be filled with the knowledge
of Thee and Thy Son, Jesus Christ.” Did Washington want to exclude Christian
influence from the political or public arena? Hardly!
John
Adams,
one of the Founding Fathers and the 2nd president of the United
States, gave a moving account of the First Continental Congress that was
convened in September of 1774. The Congress was opened with an extended time of
prayer and the reading of four chapters from the Bible. When Psalm 35:9, 23 was
read, many were moved to tears and spontaneous expressions of prayer. The
passage reads, My soul shall be joyful in
the Lord; it shall rejoice in His salvation. . . . Awake and rise to my
defense! Contend for me, my God and Lord! In a letter to his wife Abigail
about this event, Adams wrote,
Who
can realize the emotions with which they turned imploringly to heaven for
divine interposition and aid. It was enough to melt a heart of stone. It seems
as if heaven had ordained that Psalm to be read that day.
Did
Adams envision Christian influence being banned from Congress and government
institutions? Obviously not!
Benjamin
Franklin
is often pointed to as one of the non-Christian founders of this nation. In his
early years Franklin did entertain Deistic views, but through the years his
views changed; a fact attributable to the Awakening and his friendship with
George Whitefield, the most prominent preacher of the Awakening. In his Autobiography Franklin tells of attending
Whitefield’s meetings and of Whitefield staying in his home. He also tells how Whitefield
often prayed for his conversion but says he never lived to see his prayers
answered.
But
on June 28, 1787, seventeen years after Whitefield’s death, the Constitutional
Convention was about to be suspended because of unresolved dissension. It was a
very critical moment. It was at this time that Franklin, now 81 years of age, rose
to his feet and addressed the Convention president, George Washington, with
these words.
How has it
happened, sir, that we have not hitherto once thought of humbly appealing to
the Father of lights to illuminate our understandings? In the beginning of the
contest with Great Britain, when we were sensible to danger, we had daily
prayers in this room for Divine protection. Our prayers, sir, were heard and
they were graciously answered. I have lived, sir, a long time and the longer I
live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth—that God governs in the
affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice,
is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid? We have been assured,
sir, in the sacred writings that except the Lord build the house, they labor
in vain that build it. I firmly believe this. I therefore beg leave to move
that, henceforth, prayers imploring the assistance of heaven and its blessing
on our deliberation be held in this assembly every morning before we proceed to
business.
According
to those present, “An atmosphere of reconciliation seemed to settle over the
convention hall.” Petty grievances and local interests were laid aside, and the
delegates went on to complete their task of formulating the American
Constitution and Bill of Rights. I think Whitefield must have smiled and all
heaven with him.
Thomas
Jefferson
is also often pointed to as one of the non-Christian Founders, the champion of
the separation of church and state, and an advocate for keeping religion out of
government. Nothing could be further from the truth!
It
is true that, later in life, Jefferson had questions about the trinitarian
nature of God and the deity of Christ (some think brought on by the tragic loss
of his wife, his mother, and a friend). Nonetheless, he never considered
himself a Deist, confessing instead, “I am a real Christian, that is to say a
disciple of the doctrines of Jesus.” As president, Jefferson closed all
presidential documents with the words, “In the year of our Lord Christ.” He was
a life-long member of the Anglican Church and attended church on a regular
basis. In fact, as president, he sat on the front row of services that were
convened each Sunday in the chambers of the House of Representatives. At one
point, dissatisfied with the music, he ordered the Marine Band to provide music
for these church services—a band that was paid out of the Federal treasury
Jefferson
was convinced that human rights are derived, not from the state, but from God,
and he expressed concern that Americans must never forget this fact. He once
said,
God
who gave us life, gave us liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought
secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of
the people that these liberties are a gift from God? That they are not to be
violated but with His wrath? Indeed, I tremble for my country when I reflect
that God is just and that His justice cannot sleep forever.
The Truth about the “Wall of Separation”
In
a letter dated January 1, 1802 to the Danbury Baptist Association of
Connecticut, Jefferson referred to a “wall of separation” between the church
and state. The letter was a response to Baptists who were concerned about their
status in the new nation and how they would be treated. They had reason for
concern, for throughout Europe, Baptists had been an outlawed, religious sect,
severely persecuted by the State and the State Churches, both Roman Catholic
and Protestant.
To
alleviate their concerns, Jefferson quoted the First Amendment, enacted
December 15, 1792, that, “Congress shall make no law respecting an
establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." He then
assured the Baptist Association that this meant that, in America, there would
be “a wall of separation” that would protect them and any other religious group
from the interference of the state. Jefferson’s “wall of separation” was
obviously unilateral—there to protect the church and people of faith from
government intrusion.
Modern
secularists and revisionists have turned Jefferson’s statement on its head by
reinterpreting it to mean a “wall of separation” to keep expressions of faith
out of government. Jefferson would turn over in his grave at how his statement
is being distorted and misapplied today.
Will America Survive?
In
1831 the French sociologist, Alexis d Tocqueville, visited America to study its
institutions and culture. He was profoundly impressed with the spiritual vitality
of our land and wrote, “The religious atmosphere of the country was the first
thing that struck me on arrival in the United States.” Somehow, I think he would
have an opposite impression if he visited America today and encountered the moral
decadence expressed in the media and on the streets of our major cities.
Another
statement that has been attributed to Tocqueville goes to the heart of the
problem today and reveals why America’s only hope is another Great Awakening—an
Awakening that will only occur as we revisit our past and learn our true
Christian heritage.
I
sought for the greatness and genius of America in her commodious harbors and
her ample rivers - and it was not there . . . in her fertile fields and
boundless forests and it was not there . . . in her rich mines and her vast
world commerce and it was not there . . . in her democratic Congress and her
matchless Constitution - and it was not there. Not until I went into the
churches of America and heard her pulpits flame with righteousness did I
understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because she is
good, and if America ever ceases to be good, she will cease to be great.
My people are destroyed for lack of
knowledge
(Hosea 4:6).
This article is derived
from Eddie Hyatt’s latest book, America’s
Revival Heritage, available from Amazon and from
www.eddiehyatt.com/bookstore.html.
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