ABRAHAM LINCOLN'S INDICTMENT OF THE JOE BIDEN WHITE HOUSE

“Too proud to pray to the God that made us” was the scathing indictment of Abraham Lincoln on the American people in the midst of a devastating Civil War. This statement was part of his proclamation for a day of prayer and humiliation for April 30, 1863. They were his final words in the following stinging rebuke.

We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of Heaven. We have been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity. We have grown in numbers, wealth and power as no other nation has ever grown.

But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious Hand which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us; and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own.

Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us (Hyatt, 1726:The Year that Defined America, 185)!

Lincoln's words are also an indictment on the Administration of Joe Biden and the Democrat Party, for even with hundreds dead and missing in the terrible fires of Maui there has been no call or even mention of prayer. And why not? Such a statement from the White House would not be unusual. It would, in fact, be the American thing to do. 

Biden did issue a proclamation for a day of prayer for May 4, 2023. It should be noted, however, that he was required to do so by an Act of Congress in Public Law 100-307, which requires the sitting president to issue each year a proclamation designating the first Thursday in May as a “National Day of Prayer.” But no tragedy--neither the death of 12 Marines in the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan, the descent of American cities into chaos and crime, or the hundreds killed in Maui--have moved this president to call for a day of prayer. 

Lincoln’s call for a day of prayer was very personal for he was known as a man of deep piety and prayer. It was also a part of American tradition going back to the Pilgrims, who often set aside special days for prayer and fasting in times of tragedy and need. During the seven-year Revolutionary War, no less than 15 calls for days of prayer, repentance, and fasting were issued by the Continental Congress.

The noted historian, the late Michael Novak, said, “In all moments of imminent danger, as in the first Act of the First Continental Congress, the founding generation turned to prayer” (Hyatt, 1726:The Year that Defined America, 109).

Could it be that this White House is too smug and proud to pray? Could it be that President Lincoln’s assessment of America at the time of the Civil War describes this White House? Is Joe Biden to proud to pray?

Interestingly, the nation responded en masse to Lincoln’s call for prayer with people gathering in churches, homes, and public buildings to ask God to intervene on behalf of America. Almost immediately there was a change in the direction of the War and it soon came to an end.

The prayerlessness of this Administration is indicative of how far removed it is from Lincoln and the founding generation. But even if this Administration will not pray, there is a praying remnant that can alter the course of America.

Both the Bible and America’s founding documents make it clear that the future of America is not tied to who is in the White House. For example, II Chronicles 7:14, which promises a national healing, begins with the words, If My people. It was not dependent on the king or the priesthood. God made it clear that the nation’s future could be secured by His people rising up and taking responsibility.

In a similar way, the U.S. Constitution begins with the words, We the people. In other words, America’s Founders saw themselves, not as God-appointed rulers of the people, but as representatives and servants of the people. It is from this form of government that we get the designation of government officials as “public servants.” For America’s founders it was not about a president or a Supreme Court. It was about “we the people.”

So, despite what is happening in Washington, D.C., there is a way forward for America. If a remnant of God’s people will take seriously both our history and God’s promises, there is no question in my mind that American freedom can be secured for another generation. If we will humble ourselves and pray, we can see another "Jesus Revolution" roll across the land like a giant tsunami wave.

This article was derived from Dr. Eddie Hyatt's book, 1726: The Year that Defined America, available from Amazon and his website at http://eddiehyatt.com.

HOW THE FALSE JESUS OF POST-MODERNISM IS AFFECTING THE AMERICAN CHURCH

A headline in the Dallas Morning News seemed to jump off the page at me. It read, “New spirituality: one part Jesus, two parts Buddha....” The author then described the growing trend in modern America wherein people are concocting their own personal religion by borrowing what they like from various religious traditions. This combining of different belief systems is known as "syncretism."

In this subjective, self-centered approach to faith, people view the religions of the world, and the Bible itself, as a great smorgasbord of religious ideas from which they are free to choose what suits their feelings and desires. If something does not appeal to their tastes, they consider themselves free to discard it.

The Rise of Post-Modernism

This approach is based in post-modernism, which is the prevailing philosophy being taught throughout America’s educational system. Those who embrace this approach are called “post-modernists” because they deny the existence of objective truth. The “modernists,” who emerged out of the Enlightenment (1685-1815), rejected the Bible and religious dogma as sources of objective truth, but they insisted, that objective truth could still be discovered by human reason.

For the post-modernists, however, objective truth does not exist. Truth, therefore, is not something to be discovered, but something to be created. For the post-modernists, truth is very “I” or ego centered. It is all about me and what feels good and right to me. This was expressed by one couple who were interviewed in the above article. They said,

We discovered the God within. That’s why we need God. Because we are God. God gives me the ability to create my own godliness.

The Post-Modern Jesus

This post-modern Jesus is very malleable and like a piece of clay that can be shaped into an endless variety of caricatures. This post-modernist way of thinking has given rise to so called “Progressive Christianity” wherein Jesus is presented as a big-government socialist, an environmentalist, and an advocate for open borders and the LGBTQ agenda.

This new post-modern philosophy is the old lie of the serpent to Adam and Eve, that if they would ignore what God had said and follow their own feelings and desires, they would be like God, knowing good and evil (Genesis 3:1-5). In other words, they did not need God to know good and evil. They could become like God and create their own moral and religious system.

Sad to say, this kind of thinking has become mainstream in American culture, a reality that is indicated by the many false caricatures of Jesus in both the world and the church. Jesus warned of this, saying, Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name saying, “I am the Christ,” and will deceive many (Matthew 24:4-5).

We Must Have Another Jesus Revolution

The Reformation was ignited when Martin Luther began preaching the Jesus of the Gospels. He once said, "The certain mark by which a Christian community can be recognized is the preaching of the Gospel in its purity," If we are to see another Jesus Revolution in America, Canada, and other nations, there must be a return to the Jesus of Scripture. This is serious for as Paul warned the churches of Galatia,

But there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what you received let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to than what you have received, let him be accursed (Galatians 1:7-9)

The modern church must heed Paul’s warning. There must be a return to the real Jesus of Scripture, who was known and preached by the earliest Christians. We must have another Jesus Revolution.

This article is derived from Dr. Eddie Hyatt's latest book, Discovering the Real Jesus, available from Amazon and his website at http://eddiehyatt.com.

HE FOLLOWED THE SCIENCE AND IT LED HIM TO JESUS

In my latest book, Discovering the Real Jesus, I include the amazing story of how Sir William Ramsay (1851-1939), a world-renowned archaeologist and professor at Oxford University, was transformed by his scientific investigations. Ramsay, an agnostic, thought he would scientifically discredit the New Testament by visiting and examining all the places mentioned by Luke in the Book of Acts.

Ramsay was a product of the liberal, German higher criticism of the 19th century, and he taught that the New Testament is an unreliable religious treatise written in the mid-second century by individuals far removed from the events described. According to these critics, who are still with us, the New Testament documents are filled with inaccuracies, myths, and legends.

However, after years of retracing Luke's account of Paul's travels in Acts and doing archaeological excavations along the way, Ramsay completely reversed his view of the Bible and first-century history. His research convinced him that Acts was written in the first century by Luke, the traditional author, and he acquired a very high regard for Luke as a historian. He wrote:

Luke is a historian of the first rank; not merely are his statements of fact trustworthy, he is possessed of the true historic sense; in short, this author should be placed along with the greatest of historians (Hyatt, Discovering the Real Jesus, 71).

In 1896, Ramsay began publishing his discoveries in a book entitled St. Paul the Traveler and the Roman Citizen. The book caused a furor of dismay among the skeptics of the world, for its affirmation of the biblical record was totally unexpected. The evidence that Ramsay presented was so overwhelming that many atheists gave up atheism and embraced Christianity.

Over the next 20 years, Ramsay published other volumes showing how he discovered Luke to be accurate in the tiniest details of his account. In his book, The Bearing of Recent Discovery on the Trustworthiness of the New Testament, he wrote, "You may press the words of Luke in a degree beyond any other historian's and they stand the keenest scrutiny and the hardest treatment” (Hyatt, Discovering the Real Jesus, 72).

Ramsay then had to consider that Luke had also written the third Gospel. The archaeological evidence was so overwhelming that he gave up his agnosticism and became a Christian, which shocked the intellectual world. He followed the science, and it led him to Jesus.

This article is derived from Dr. Eddie Hyatt’s latest book, Discovering the Real Jesus, available from Amazon and his website at http://eddiehyatt.com.  

THE ONE WHO HOLDS THE UNIVERSE TOGETHER WOULD LIKE TO PUT YOUR LIFE TOGETHER

In Paul’s portrayal of the majestic power of the risen Christ, he gives an answer to a dilemma that has arisen in modern science, particularly in astronomy. It is what astronomers and astrophysicists call “Dark Matter.” This is an unseen force that is holding the universe together. It cannot be seen, and astronomers don’t know what it is, but they say it is keeping the universe from flying apart.

Our solar system, for example, is being held together by the gravitational force of the sun. Since the gravitational force of an object depends on its size, this means that our sun is the perfect size to keep the planets in orbit. If the sun were smaller, the planets would wander off aimlessly into space.

Furthermore, our solar system, along with billions of stars and other celestial bodies, are all rotating around the center of our massive Milky Way galaxy. Beyond that, our Milky Way galaxy is part of a cluster of galaxies that are all rotating around another center.

Here is the dilemma, according to astrophysicists and astronomers. There is not nearly enough matter, mass, or “stuff” in the universe to produce enough gravity to keep all these heavenly bodies in orbit. There is some mysterious force that they cannot see or explain that is holding everything together. So, they call it “Dark Matter.”

He Holds Everything Together

Once again, the Bible has the answer. In his letter to the Colossians, Paul presents Jesus Christ in all His majestic, eternal power and glory. In Colossians 1:15 he refers to Jesus as the image of the invisible God and in verse 16 he presents Jesus as the Cause, the Agent, and the Reason for all creation.

For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him (NIV).

Paul not only says that Jesus is the Cause, the Agent, and the Reason for Creation, in verse 17 he says, He is before all things and in Him all things hold together. The writer of Hebrews concurs, saying that Christ is upholding all things by the word of His power (Hebrews 1:3).

So, here is the answer for why the universe is not flying apart. It is not some mysterious Dark Matter that is holding it all together. It is the risen Christ. It is the One who came out of the tomb on Resurrection morning and declared, All authority is given to Me in heaven and in earth (Matthew 28:19). He is the One who is holding it all together.

He Wants to Hold Your Life Together

We must distinguish between how He governs the physical universe and how He governs humanity. He holds the physical universe together by the direct action of His power on the heavenly bodies. Human beings, however, being made in His image and likeness with free will, must voluntarily give Him that place of lordship in their lives.

He does not move human beings with the direct action of His power, for He will not violate our free will. He woos and draws by the work of His Holy Spirit on our minds and hearts. He seeks to convince by the teaching and preaching of God’s word. In the end, however, it is up to each of us to make the decision to make Jesus our Lord and give Him that place of centrality in our lives. Only then will our lives be held together by His love and power.

This article was derived from Dr. Eddie Hyatt's latest book, Discovering the Real Jesus, available from Amazon and his website at http://eddiehyatt.com.

WHY THE TRUMP INDICTMENTS HAVE CHANGED MY MIND ABOUT 2024

At the beginning of this year I had planned to support Ron DeSantis in his run for president in 2024. But with the multiple indictments leveled against Donald Trump, that has all changed. I am now all in for Trump and here is why. 

It is obvious that the Left-wing Democrat Party has its big guns all trained on Trump with the intention of destroying him. They don’t seem that concerned about the other Republican candidates. It is Trump with whom they are obsessed. The question is, “Why?”

The answer is that they see Trump as the one big obstacle that is blocking their path to “fundamentally transform” America into a godless, socialist, and globalist state. If they can eliminate Trump, they believe the rest will be easy pickings.

If they are successful, it will be a sad day for America. Freedom of conscience will be lost. Individual and religious liberties will be subordinated by the state to the woke agendas of the Left. American freedom will be a thing of the past.

Despite his personal flaws, Donald Trump has defended individual and religious liberty. He has defended life in the womb. He has not been ashamed to allow people to openly pray in the Oval Office. In fact, he has also been the most vocal witness for Christ I have ever seen in the White House. The secularist, Left-wing Democrat party finds all of this shocking and disgusting.

If the Democrat Party is successful in erasing Trump, they will feel emboldened to steamroll their Leftist agenda through every city, town, and hamlet. If they have their way, our God-given rights of “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness” will be a thing of the past. The America of Washington, Madison, Lincoln, and King will be replaced by the America of the Left-wing Marxists of the Democrat Party. 

An anonymous writer once said, “Where the battle rages there the loyalty of the soldier is proved; and to be steady on all battle fronts besides this one, is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point.” The battle for America's future is raging around Donald J. Trump and this is why I, and millions of Americans, are changing our minds and throwing our support behind him in 2024. 

Dr. Eddie Hyatt is the author of numerous books on America's Christian origins, including 1726: The Year that Defined America and America's Revival Heritage. His latest book is entitled Discovering the Real Jesus and is available from Amazon and his website at http://www.eddiehytt.com.

HERE'S WHY SEAN FEUCHT WAS RIGHT TO CONFRONT MATTHEW BLAKE

I just read the report in Charisma News of Sean Feucht confronting Matthew Blake because of Blake's sexualizing of young children. Blake is a former worship leader who now performs as a Drag Queen but still claims to be a Christian. Blake responded by accusing Feucht of being a "hater." In other words, Feucht was not "nice" to him. But is it possible that Feucht's words were spoken in love?

In my just released book, Discovering the Real Jesus, I confront several modern distortions of Jesus including the New Age Jesus of Oprah Winfrey and the Nice Jesus of Popular Culture. Concerning the latter, I recall listening to a discussion on Fox News about LGBTQ issues. The person being interviewed brought Jesus into the conversation and insisted that He would never judge or condemn anyone. Her mantra that she repeated over and over was, “He was all about love.”

I immediately realized that she had not encountered the Jesus of the four Gospels, for the Jesus of Scripture can be very confrontational and offensive. The renowned NT scholar, the late Dr. F. F. Bruce said, "The Jesus we meet in the Gospels, far from being an inoffensive person, gave offence right and left. Even his loyal followers found him, at times, thoroughly disconcerting" (Hyatt, Discovering the Real Jesus, 36). 

Unlike the real Jesus of Scripture, the “nice” Jesus of popular culture is a milquetoast sort of person who affirms everyone and offends no one. This "nice" Jesus of popular culture is not the real Jesus. Just ask the temple money changers and merchants whom Jesus expelled from the temple. 

Jesus walked into their midst with a whip in his hand, a somber and fierce look on His face, and began turning over their tables and scattering their wares. He shouted that they had turned His Father’s house into a “den of thieves,” as He drove them from the temple area (Matthew 21:12-13).

Neither would the religious leaders in Israel describe Jesus as “nice,” for He was continually rebuking them for their pride and misuse of Scripture and people. His language sounded particularly harsh when he called them “hypocrites” and compared them to whitewashed tombs that appear beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead people’s bones. He rebuked them, calling them “snakes,” and saying, Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the damnation of hell? (Matthew 23:33).

Jesus showed great compassion toward the humble, the poor, and the distressed. We must not, however, confuse compassion with “niceness.” A "nice" person may speak sweet and kind words but never warn you of the attitudes and behaviors that are destroying you. The real Jesus loves us too much to leave us as we are. His compassion will, therefore, be accompanied by rebukes and directions for change.

For example, He had compassion on a crippled man at the pool of Bethesda and healed him of his long-standing infirmity. Afterwards, Jesus warned him, See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you (John 5:14). It was a similar situation with the woman whom He rescued from the Pharisees who wanted to stone her.

Jesus showed great compassion toward this woman whom the Pharisees claimed had been caught in the act of adultery (I wonder where the man was?). Jesus, with Divine wisdom, delivered her from their hands. He did not condemn her, but neither did He condone her sin. His final words were, Go, and sin no more. (John 8:11). What He did was give her a new beginning free from the guilt and pain of her past.

Jesus is full of mercy and He loves everyone in the sense that His intentions toward everyone are for good. He does not, however, fawn over everyone with sugary, sweet accolades and affirmations. Because He desires the best for us, He is willing to point out the attitudes and sins that would destroy us. This is clear in his message to the members of the lukewarm Church in Laodicea, to whom He said, As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent (Revelation 3:19).

Yes, Sean Feucht was right to confront Matthew Blake. And if we ask, WWJD, we must conclude that Sean was following His example. I, therefore, pray that God will raise up more Christian leaders with the boldness to speak the truth in love at this very critical moment in which we live (Acts 4:29; Ephesians 4:15).

This article was derived from Dr. Eddie Hyatt's latest book, Discovering the Real Jesus, available from Amazon and from his website at http:www.eddiehyatt.com.

"DISCOVERING THE REAL JESUS"

An Important and Timely New Book by Dr. Eddie L. Hyatt

In Matthew 24:4-5, Jesus warned, For many will come in My name, saying, I am the Christ, and will deceive many. In his latest book, Discovering the Real Jesus, Dr. Eddie Hyatt confronts the false Christs from the past and also those of today. In Chapter 3, which is entitled “5 Modern Deceptions About Jesus,” he addresses:

1.    The New Age Jesus of Oprah Winfrey
2.    The Fictitious Jesus of the DaVinci Code
3.    The Malleable Jesus of Liberal Theology
4.    The Nice Jesus of Popular Culture
5.    The Distorted Jesus of Religious Cults

In a subsequent chapter, Eddie demonstrates how modern archaeology has destroyed the claims of the liberal, higher critics and made obsolete the Jesus Seminar and their false dichotomy  between "the Jesus of History" and "the Christ of Faith."

In a chapter on the resurrection of Jesus, he shows compelling evidence for the resurrection and discusses the writings of a famous Harvard law professor who said that the resurrection of Jesus is the best documented event of ancient history. 

Drawing on Scripture, history, and modern archaeology, he shows why believing in Jesus as the promised Messiah and Son of God is not a blind leap of faith. It is, rather, a step of faith into the light of reason and historical evidence.

If you are a believer, Discovering the Real Jesus will both affirm your faith and equip you to defend the faith. If you are an unbeliever, you will be challenged by the compelling picture of the Real Jesus you will encounter in this book.

Discovering the Real Jesus can be purchased from Amazon and from the Hyatt online bookstore at http:www.eddiehyatt.com. For special pricing on bulk orders, send an email to dreddiehyatt@gmail.com.