THE JESUS REVOLUTION THAT LED TO THE FOUNDING OF AMERICA

The young preacher, dressed in his Anglican clerical robe, stood on the steps of the Philadelphia courthouse and addressed the massive crowd of 10,000 or more gathered before him. It was 1739 and the preacher was 25-year-old George Whitefield who had come from England to America with the prayer in his heart that the people would no longer live as 13 divided colonies but as “one nation under God.”

Knowing there were people of many sects and denominations in the crowd, he decided to challenge their divisions and so mimicked a conversation with Father Abraham whom he pictured as looking over the banister of heaven at them all.

Looking up toward heaven, Whitefield cried out, “Father Abraham are their any Anglicans in heaven?” The answer came back, “No there are no Anglicans in heaven.” Whitefield continued, “Father Abraham, are there any Methodists in heaven?” The answer came back, “No, there are no Methodists here either?” Whitefield cried out again, “Father Abraham are there any Puritans in heaven?” The answer came back, “No, there are no Puritans here either.” “What about Baptists and Quakers,” cried Whitefield as he continued to gaze heavenward. The answer came back, “There are none of those here either.”

Finally, with a note of desperation in his voice, Whitefield cried out “Father Abraham, what kind of people are in heaven?” The answer came back, “There are only Christians in heaven; only those washed in the blood of the Lamb.” Whitefield then cried out, “Oh, is that the case? Then God help me, and God help us all, to forget about labels and become Christians in deed and in truth.”

There were many audible sighs, groans, and tears as Whitefield presented his case for Jesus being the center of our faith. Benjamin Franklin was one of those in the crowd and he described the profound influence of Whitefield’s preaching on them all, saying, “From being thoughtless or indifferent about religion, it seemed as if the whole world were growing religious” (Hyatt, 1726: The Year that Defined America, 79).

It Was a Jesus Revolution

It was the Christ-centered preaching of Whitefield, Jonathan Edwards, and others that ignited what historians call "The  Great Awakening." I am here calling it a "Jesus Revolution" because of the exaltation of Jesus in every aspect of the Awakening. Denominational and sectarian allegiances were dissolved and a young George Washington prayed, “Bless, O Lord, the whole race of mankind and let the world be filled with knowledge of Thee and Thy Son Jesus Christ” (Hyatt, 1726: The Year that Defined America, 132).

It was this Christ-centered preaching that led to a common cry during the conflict with Great Britain, “We recognize no Sovereign but God and no king but Jesus!” This cry originated just before the gunfire erupted at Lexington in April of 1775. The British officer, Major John Pitcairn, shouted to an assembled group of minutemen, "Disperse, ye villains, lay down your arms in the name of George the Sovereign King of England." Rev. Jonas Clarke, who was standing with the minutemen, shouted back, “We recognize no Sovereign but God and no king but Jesus” (Hyatt, Pilgrims and Patriots (Second Edition), 117)!

This cry caught the imagination of American patriots everywhere and soon rang throughout the colonies. It became so prominent that a British-appointed governor, Jonathan Trumbull, wrote back to England, “If you ask an American who is his master, he will tell you he has none, nor any governor but Jesus Christ” (Hyatt, Pilgrims and Patriots (Second Edition), 117)!

The First Congress Opens with Prayer in the Name of Jesus

Against this backdrop, it is not surprising that the First Continental Congress opened on September 5, 1774, with an extended time of Bible reading and prayer in the name of Jesus. Fifty-six Delegates were present from all 13 colonies except Georgia. They had gathered at Carpenter’s Hall in Philadelphia to discuss how they should respond to the British invasion of their land.

It was a very troubling time. King George of England had sent six regiments of British soldiers who had occupied the city of Boston, closed its port, and revoked the right of the people to self-government. British soldiers were being quartered in people's homes apart from their consent. This was George’s tyrannical response to protests that had erupted, especially in New England, over his burdensome taxes and regulations on the colonists without any input on their part.

Having been impacted by the Great Awakening and its Christ-centered message, the delegates, which included Anglicans, Puritans, Presbyterians, Quakers, and others, agreed to open with Bible reading and prayer. Samuel Adams, a Puritan from New England, suggested that they invite Rev. Jacob Duche, an Anglican minister of Philadelphia, who was known as a man of deep spirituality, to come and lead them in payer.

As the elderly, grey-haired Dusche stood before the Congress, he began by reading the entire 35th Psalm, which powerfully impacted everyone present. It is a prayer of David for deliverance and begins with the words, Plead my cause O LORD with those who strive against me; fight against those who fight against me. The Psalm ends with praise for God’s deliverance.

America’s Founding Prayer

After reading the Psalm, Dusche began praying for the delegates, for America, and especially for the city of Boston and its inhabitants who were under siege. As he began praying, the Anglicans, such as George Washington and Richard Henry Lee, knelt in prayer, according to their custom. The Puritans, such as Samuel Adams and John Adams, sat with bowed heads and prayed. Others prayed according to their own, unique customs.

But although their outward manners differed, there was a singleness of heart and purpose as they all united in prayer, in the name of Jesus, for God’s assistance and intervention for America. Dusche lifted his voice in prayer, saying,

O Lord, our high and mighty Father, heavenly king of kings, and Lord of Lords, who dost from Thy throne behold all the dwellers of the earth, and reignest with power supreme over all kingdoms, empires, and governments. Look down in mercy we beseech thee on these our American states who have fled to Thee from the rod of the oppressor and thrown themselves on Thy gracious protection, desiring to be henceforth dependent only on Thee. To Thee they have appealed for the righteousness of their cause; to Thee do they now look up for that countenance and support which Thou alone can give . . . Shower down upon them and the millions they represent, such temporal blessings as Thou seest expedient for them in this world and crown them with everlasting joy in the world to come. All this we ask in the name and through the merits of Jesus Christ Thy Son and our Savior. Amen.

John Adams wrote to his wife, Abigail, of the impact of the Bible reading and prayer on the delegates, saying, “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. I never saw a greater effect upon an audience” (Hyatt, 1726: The Year that Defined America, 108).

America for Jesus

In early America, there was no hesitancy about mentioning the name of Jesus as the object of faith and expressing the desire that such faith be spread throughout the earth. For example, in a meeting with chiefs of the Delaware tribe, who had brought some of their youth to be trained in American schools, George Washington said to them, “You do well to wish to learn our arts and ways of life, and above all the religion of Jesus Christ.” (Hyatt, 1726: The Year that Defined America, 172).

John Hancock served as president of the Continental Congress and his signature is the largest and most prominent on the Declaration of Independence. While serving as governor of Massachusetts in 1793, he proclaimed a Day of Prayer and Humiliation and asked the people to pray for, “The spreading of the true religion of our LORD JESUS CHRIST, in all its purity and power, among all the people of the earth” (Hyatt, 1726: The Year that Defined America, 173).

Although Thomas Jefferson was known to have questioned the deity of Jesus, he was convinced that the moral teachings of Jesus were the key to a stable and prosperous society. Take, for example, the so-called “Jefferson Bible,” which is a misleading misnomer by modern historians. Jefferson titled it The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth, and in it, he meticulously brought together the teachings of Jesus into a single volume for his own study but also for evangelizing and instructing Native American tribes. He even took money from the federal treasury to pay for a missionary to the Kaskaskia tribe. Jefferson was a Jesus Revolutionary, and he once said,

The philosophy of Jesus is the most sublime and benevolent code of morals ever offered to man. A more beautiful or precious morsel of ethics I have never seen.

The Fruit of this Early American Jesus Revolution

Americans Became a Tolerant People. This should not be surprising for it was Jesus who said, Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you (Matthew 5:44). They, of course, never lived up to this standard but it was acknowledged by all and served as a positive force pulling them in the right direction. This tolerance showed itself in an early July 4th parade in Philadelphia. Dr. Benjamin Rush (1745–1813), a devout Christian and signer of the Declaration of Independence, wrote, “The rabbi of the Jews locked in the arms of two ministers of the Gospel was a most delightful sight” (Hyatt, America’s Revival Heritage (Second Edition), 97.

Slavery Became Anathema throughout America. In my book, 1726, I have documented how a powerful abolition movement was ignited by this Jesus Awakening that turned every Founding Father against slavery at a time it was accepted and practiced in most of the world. Impacted by the Awakening, abolitionists used the teachings of Jesus to oppose slavery saying that if people lived by His teachings, such as “love your neighbor as yourself” and “do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” it would quickly put an end to slavery (Hyatt, 1726: The Year that Defined America, 98-99)

Denominational Divisions Were Healed. The animosity between Anglicans, Puritans, Baptists, Quakers, and others ran deep. In the Old World, the Anglican Church, the state church of England, had harassed and persecuted all these groups, which is why they fled to the New World. But in the New World, the Anglicans of Virginia, the Puritans of New England, the Baptists of Rhode Island, and the Quakers of Pennsylvania all persecuted each other. But in the Christ-centered preaching of the Awakening, these divisions melted as the people saw Jesus Himself to be the essence and object of their faith. Commenting on Whitefield’s final visit to America in 1770, the historian, Benjamin Hart, wrote,

The true Spirit of Christ had dissolved sectarian differences. America considered itself to be a nation of Christians, pure and simple, as Whitefield noted with satisfaction. “Pulpits, hearts and affections,” he said, were opened to him and any preacher of whatever denomination who had a true Christian message to share (Hyatt, 1726:The Year that Defined America, 87-88).

With religious, racial, and cultural barriers being breached, the people began, for the first time, to see themselves as a single people—"one nation under God” as Whitefield had prayed. This is why the late Harvard professor, Perry Miller, declared, “The Declaration of Independence of 1776 was a result of the evangelical preaching of the evangelists of the Great Awakening” (Hyatt, 2000 Years of CharismaticChristianity, 112).

America Must Have Another Jesus Revolution

The hymn, “O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing,” was written in 1739 by Charles Wesley, a very close friend and mentor to George Whitefield at Oxford University. This Jesus-honoring hymn must have been sung by Whitefield and the massive crowds to which he preached in colonial America. One stanza says,

Jesus! the name that charms our fears,
that bids our sorrows cease,
'tis music in the sinner's ears,
'tis life and health and peace.

So, let us pray for another Jesus Revolution across America that will impact people of every religious and theological persuasion. It is the Biblical thing to do. It is also the American thing to do.

This article is derived from books by Dr. Eddie Hyatt including, 1726: The Year that Defined America and America's Revival Heritage (Second Edition) and Pilgrims and Patriots (Second Edition). These books, and more, are available from Amazon and his website at www.eddiehyatt.com.

BUILDING ON THE ROCK: THE KEY TO CHRISTIAN UNITY AND A GREAT HARVEST OF SOULS

And I say to you that you are Peter and on this Rock I will build My church
and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. - Matt. 16:18

It is obvious to any honest observer that Christendom is seriously fractured and divided into thousands of entities, churches, and denominations. The prayer of Jesus, recorded in John 17:21, is obviously not yet answered. He prayed, That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in you; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You have sent Me.

If there is going to be unity between Catholics and Protestants and the Eastern Orthodox, there must be a clear understanding of the identity of the Rock on which Jesus said He would build His church. Our Catholic brothers and sisters say that the Rock is Peter and that the pope, being his successor, is therefore the key to unity for today’s church.

However, this claim of supremacy by the Roman bishop has actually been the source of the great divisions in Christian history. The Eastern Orthodox churches, for example, never did accept the claims of supremacy by the bishop of Rome and this led to the major division between East and West in 1054.

And the division that took place at the time of the Reformation was not ultimately over doctrine. Luther never wanted to leave the Catholic Church but was excommunicated when he refused to yield to the demands of the pope. Commenting on this rupture at the Reformation, the renowned Catholic theologian, the late Dr. Hans Kung, said, “From a historical perspective there can be no doubt that it is not Luther but Rome which bears the chief responsibility” (Hyatt, Infallible Pope: Key to Unity or Source of Division?, 54).

If there is going to unity in the church today there must be a return to Jesus. He is the Rock. He is the Living Bread that came down from Heaven (Jn. 6:51). He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (Jn. 14:6). He is the Savior, the Healer, and the Baptizer in the Holy Spirit. He is Lord!

His Lordship is the Issue

Jesus Must be Lord!

One of the most common designations for Jesus in the New Testament is that of “Lord.” This speaks of His supremacy and authority, and we are told that if we want to be saved we must confess Him as “Lord” (Rom. 10:9). This is not some abstract doctrinal confession but an acceptance of His lordship in our lives where we hand Him the wheel and say “take me where You want me to go.”

This is what it means to be built on the Rock and this was highlighted in the life of my new father-in-law, a 70-year-old retired detective who had never been saved and who was described to me by his daughter (my wife) as a “tough cop.”

Through God’s providential working, George and I took a long trip together and had lots of time alone to talk. As the conversation turned to God, I saw that he had an ideal of what a Christian should be and thought that if he could ever attain to that ideal he could call himself a Christian.

I said to him, “George, becoming a Christian is merely changing masters.” I went on to explain that in the natural we are our own masters and that becoming a Christian is vacating the throne of our lives and inviting him to sit on the throne and be our master.

That resonated with him, and he replied, “Yes, I have always been my own master.” By the time we returned from the trip He had changed masters and made Jesus His Master and Lord. He had not been baptized and had not joined a church (those things are all good), but he had done that one essential thing. He had placed his life on the Rock by making Jesus his Lord.

He Immediately Understood Unity

Immediately, he had no problem fellowshipping with any “Christian” who loved Jesus. He knew very little about the various doctrines of the different churches, but he knew that Jesus was the one essential thing that mattered. It reminds me of the words of Hans Kung who wrote,

The road to unity is not the return of one Church to another, or the exodus of one Church to join another, but a common crossroads, the conversion of all Churches to Christ and thus to one another (Hyatt, Infallible Pope: Key to Unity or Source of Division, 58).

The Early Church Was Built on the Rock

The centrality of Jesus in the early Church is obvious everywhere in the New Testament, even in how the word “Christian” came into use. Neither Jesus or Paul ever used the term “Christian,” and it is found only three times in the entire New Testament. The earliest followers of Jesus were known as “disciples.”

A "disciple" is a committed follower and learner. The rabbis of Jesus’ day all had their disciples. John the Baptist had his disciples. Paul had been a disciple of Gamaliel, one of the most respected rabbis and teachers of the day (Acts 22:3). When Jesus began His ministry, He gathered a group of disciples that He would teach and train. Even after His resurrection, His followers were known as His disciples.

It was outsiders who gave the disciples of Jesus the name of “Christian,” because their lives and message were so centered in Christ. Luke writes, And the disciples were first called Christians in Antioch (Acts 11:26b).

In the same way that we would designate someone from Italy as an “Italian” or someone from “Nigeria” as a Nigerian, the disciples of Jesus were designated as “Christians” because Christ was so central to everything they said and did. They were built on the Rock.

A Final Thought

As a final thought, Jesus said that He would build His church on this Rock—on the revelation Peter had of who He is. Wherever Jesus is proclaimed as the Lord, Messiah, Savior, Redeemer, Son of the Living God, we can be confident that He will be at work through His Holy Spirit building His church.

It was this sort of Christ-centered witness and preaching that ignited the Great Awakening, which transformed colonial America. During the Awakening a British official wrote to his superiors in England and said, “If you ask an American who is his master, he will tell you he has none, nor any governor but Jesus Christ” (Hyatt, 1726: The Year that Defined America, 81).

As we zero in on knowing and preaching Christ in the coming days, I believe we could see unparalleled unity and the greatest harvest of souls the church has ever seen. After all, Jesus did say in John 12:32, And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself (NLT). It's all about Jesus!

Dr. Eddie Hyatt is an author, historian, Bible teacher. This article was derived primarily from his latest book, Infallible Pope: Key to Unity of Source of Division, available from Amazon and his website at www.eddiehyatt.com.

WHEN GOD SUPERNATURALLY INTERVENES IN AN ELECTION

God does supernaturally intervene in elections. I saw it happen with my own eyes in a way that could not be denied.

In 1958 my dad was voted in as pastor of the First Assembly of God in Tipton, Oklahoma with 100% of the vote. This happened even though one week prior to the vote, the Chairman of the Board of Deacons had urged my dad to withdraw his name, saying that he had talked to all the members of the church, and, “We are all in agreement that you are not qualified to be our pastor.”

It was an incredible example of God intervening in an election and demonstrating that He can work through a democracy and raise up the leaders of His choice. There must, however, be absolute trust and obedience on the part of God’s people, which was the key for my dad’s election victory. Here is the rest of the story.

God Speaks

Our family had been living in Tipton, Oklahoma for almost two years and my dad worked as a farmhand making .50 cents per hour. My parents, my three brothers and myself faithfully attended the local Assembly of God. We were obviously on the lower end of the social-economic scale, but we never missed a service.  

One day, Dad quit his job as a farmhand and began making plans to move to Dallas where there was the promise of a better-paying job. However, as soon as he quit his job he heard the Holy Spirit say, “What about pastoring this church?”

He replied, “Lord, if this is You, let the pastor resign before the first of the month.” He was shocked and devastated when in the very next service the pastor announced his resignation. 

He was devastated because he knew the people did not see him as a pastor. They saw him as an uneducated farmhand. He had never been to Bible school and had only a 4th grade education. Nonetheless, 12 years prior to this he had experienced a supernatural call from God but had not been able to find his niche.

It was obvious to him that God had spoken, so he went to the secretary of the church and said, “I would like to submit my name to be the pastor of this church.” The secretary replied, “Well, you are the first one and will be at the top of the list.”

Opposition Arises

About three days later “Brother Cook,” who was the Chairman of the Board of Deacons, and in charge of finding their next pastor, came to my dad and said,

I have talked to all the members of the church and we are all in agreement that you are not qualified to be our pastor. We would like for you to withdraw your name and not go through with an election. We believe it will save some hurt feelings for if you go through with it, no one will vote for you.

Brother Cook departed and I can only imagine the thoughts and feelings my dad must have experienced. God had spoken and confirmed that He wanted him to pastor this church, but the people are all in agreement that they do not want him.

Prayer and Perseverance Bring Incredible Victory

Not being a politician, the only thing he knew to do was pray. He, therefore, spent an entire night in prayer, but heard nothing. He spent a second night in prayer, but still no voice or sense of direction from heaven. He spent a third night in prayer and still no angelic voice, nor even an impression.

However, something incredible happened as the sun arose on the horizon after the third night of prayer. He looked out a window, and as the first rays of the morning sun shone in his face, he said, “I felt that I was turned into another man.”

Suddenly, he had no concern about what anyone thought of him. Peoples’ opinions no longer mattered. The only thing that mattered was obeying God. He went out and found the secretary and Chairman of the Board and said, “Brethren, whatever you do is between you and God, but I have to go through with this.”

God Intervenes in the Election

They reluctantly assigned him a time to preach on a Sunday night. I still remember the title of his message taken from the Old Testament book of Habakkuk, “Consider Your Ways.” There seemed to be an unusual anointing on him, and I still remember his words when he finished. He said, “I have obeyed God and the Hyatt family is going home. It is now between you and God.”

We went home and about 35 minutes later someone came to our home and informed my dad that he had been voted in as pastor with 100% of the vote. Others then came sharing details of what had happened. They said that after we left, Brother Cook opened the business meeting in which they would now vote. However, before the voting began, he began to weep, and through tears said, “Folks, I have been wrong about this man. He is supposed to be our pastor.”

The Spirit of God fell on the congregation, and many more were moved to tears. Although every member had come that night intending to vote against my dad, hearts and minds were suddenly changed, and he received every vote. God intervened in that election.

That was a defining moment, and my dad continued to pastor in the Assemblies of God for the next 35 years until his retirement at age 77. The last church he pastored was the Eastside Assembly of God in Chicota, TX, which he pastored for 27 years. One young man, Tony Boykin, that grew up under his ministry, wrote the following after his passing.

He had a profound impact on my life that changed me forever. My children and I can always say that our Christian life was helped to be framed by one of America's greatest pastors. I will forever believe that he will stand beside Moses, King David, Elijah, and Father Abraham. If any man has ever lived by Gods highest standards, it was the legendary C.H. Hyatt. I miss one of the best friends I have ever had.

Yes, God can change elections, not by creating or duplicating ballots, but by changing hearts. For me, the choice for November 5 is very clear, but for many it is not so clear. Therefore, let us not only vote, but be diligent to pray, “Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” God can change hearts and change an election.

Dr. Eddie L. Hyatt is an author, revivalist, and Bible teacher. His books on America's Christian birth out of the Great Awakening are available from Amazon and his website at www.eddiehyatt.com.