America’s founders were cautiously
optimistic about the nation they brought into existence 240 years ago this July 4. Their greatest concern was not a foreign army. Their greatest
concern was not an economic collapse. Their greatest concern was that the
American populace would turn from the Christian morals and values on which they
had built, and which they considered indispensable
for political stability and success. As the well-known Catholic historian,
William Novak, says, “The founders did not think that the constitutional
government they were erecting could survive without Hebrew-Christian faith.”
The Greatest Concern of the Founders
The ink was hardly dry on the new
American Constitution when Benjamin Franklin expressed this very concern. At the banquet celebrating the
completion of the Constitutional Convention, a Philadelphia matron rushed toward
Franklin, and gushed, “O Mister Franklin, what have you gentlemen wrought?” The
81-year-old Franklin is said to have paused, adjusted his glasses and solemnly replied,
“A republic madam. If you can keep it.”
Franklin was solemn because
in a “republic,” freedoms are guaranteed to the people by a Constitution and
Bill of Rights. Franklin knew that those same freedoms they had just enshrined
could be turned into anarchy by a self-serving populace that did not have the
capacity to govern itself according to internal moral principles.
Franklin and all the
Founders knew that the success of the nation they had formed hinged on the
moral character of its citizens and their ability to govern themselves
according to Christian principles. This is why John Adams, our second president, in a 1798 address to the officers of the
Massachusetts Militia, declared,
“We have no
government armed with power capable of contending with human passions unbridled
by morality and religion . . . Our
Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly
inadequate to the government of any other (Hyatt, Pilgrims and Patriots, 172-73).
Indeed, the Founders
believed Biblical morality to be the only secure basis for the kind of
republican government they had created. In 1807, John Adams wrote to Benjamin
Rush, who was a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and said, “The Bible
contains the most profound philosophy, the most perfect morality, and the most
refined policy, that ever was conceived upon earth. It is the most republican
book in the world.”
No Freedom Without Faith
Yes, the Founders
greatest concern was that the nation would stray from its faith in God and the
result would be the loss of the morality necessary to maintain a republic. Two
weeks before the adoption of the Declaration of Independence, John Adams wrote
to his cousin, Zabdiel, a minister of the gospel, and exhorted him in this
regard. He wrote,
“Statesmen, my dear sir,
may plan and speculate for Liberty, but it is Religion and Morality alone,
which can establish the Principles, upon which Freedom can securely stand ((Hyatt, Pilgrims and Patriots, 173).
When they Founders speak
of “religion,” they are speaking of Christianity. In his Farewell Address,
after serving two terms as president, George Washington exhorted the fledgling
nation that the indispensable
supports of political prosperity are “religion and morality.” For Washington,
Christianity was not something to be merely “tolerated” in the new nation, but
something indispensable for the
nation’s survival and success. Thomas Jefferson was so impressed with
Washington’s Farewell Address that he made it required reading for all students
at the University of Virginia.
The Founders were thus
unanimous in their belief that only a virtuous and moral people could maintain
the liberties enshrined in the founding documents. They were also unanimous in
the belief that such morality and virtue could only be derived from a reformed
and vibrant Christianity. As Novak says,
“Far from having a
hostility toward religion, the founders counted on religion [Christianity] for
the underlying philosophy of the republic, its supporting ethic, and its reliable
source of rejuvenation” (Hyatt, Pilgrims and Patriots, 174).
God’s People Hold the Key to
America’s Future
Are we seeing the worst fears of the
Founders coming to pass? I believe we are! There is no question of a rising
hostility towards Christian morality. We are seeing Christians sued, fined and even jailed for refusing to compromise their sincerely held religious convictions. We have a president who at the beginning
of his first term, declared, “America is not a Christian nation,” which was a
rejection of the Christian world-view and values on which this nation was built.
The Supreme Court’s recent legalization of same-sex marriage was merely another
expression of the cultural change taking place as a result of the widespread cultural rejection of any transcendent moral authority, especially Christian.
But there is hope! Throughout the
history of this nation there have been periods of “backsliding” and spiritual
indifference, followed by times of Spiritual revitalization and awakening. Such
awakenings, however, always begin with the people of God. This means that the
answer for America’s ills will not begin at the White House, but at God’s house.
I Peter 4:17 says, For the time has come
for judgment to begin at the house of God. The promise of a national
healing in II Chronicles 7:14 is preceded by the condition, If My people . . .. Significant
historical change always begins and ends with the people of God.
We as Christians and Christian
leaders must, therefore, lead the way in evaluating our lives in light of the
teachings of Jesus and the New Testament, and offering repentance and
confession where necessary. As the church acknowledges its backsliding and
compromise with the world, God will answer with times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord, as promised in
Acts 3:19.
This was the experience of a
particular church during the Second Great Awakening. The leaders of this church
came to realize that in seeking acceptance and approval from contemporary society,
they had compromised their commitment to Christ. They, therefore, formulated a
public statement concerning their “backsliding and want of a Christian spirit.”
It was submitted to the congregation for their approval and then read before
the congregation.
As the confession was being read
publicly, the entire congregation stood to its feet with many of its members
weeping. Charles Finney, who related this incident, said that from that moment
the revival went forward in power and the opposition, which had been bitter,
was silenced. The Second Great Awakening (1800-1840) continued to grow and
swell like a great tsunami wave until, as the circuit-riding Methodist preacher,
Peter Cartwright, said, “Our nation seemed all coming to God.”
America Can Be Great Again
This critical role of an awakened
Christianity in the life of America is affirmed in a quote from an unknown
visitor to this country, probably in the first half of the nineteenth century. If,
as some think, the visitor was Alexis de Tocqueville, then the year was 1831
during the time of the Second Great Awakening. This Awakening revitalized
America after a spiritual and moral downturn after the Revolutionary War.
This visitor, who was obviously
searching for the secret to America’s rapid rise to affluence and power,
recounts how he sought for America’s greatness in her form of government, her
educational system, her vast commerce, etc. This visitor then said something
astounding. He said,
“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 America is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America
will cease to be great” (Hyatt, Pilgrims and Patriots, 177-78).
America can be great
again, not by seeking greatness, but by seeking God. America can be great
again, not by running from her past, but by reconnecting with her past and
learning from her Founders, who like the above visitor, tied America’s future
greatness to her ability to maintain her goodness.
As we reconnect with our
radical Christian roots of faith and freedom, America’s current course will be
altered. As we pray for Spiritual awakening, a national healing will occur, not
instigated by a new program from Washington, D.C., but sent down from Heaven as
promised in II Chronicles 7:14. When that happens, all Americans will be able
to sing with thankfulness of heart that patriotic hymn that says,
“America! America!
God shed His grace on Thee.
And crown Thy good,
With brotherhood,
From sea to shining sea.”
This article is derived from Eddie Hyatt's latest book, Pilgrims and Patriots, available from Amazon and from his website at www.eddiehyatt.com. Pat Robertson has called this book "a must-read."
"A Must-Read." - Pat Robertson
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