The Powers of Government

Every government possesses three basic powers. We know these in our government as the 3 branches of government - legislative, executive and judicial. Basically, the legislative branch of government exercises the power of government to make laws. Our Congress is made up of elected officials who serve for a certain amount of time to represent the people in making laws for the better ordering of the people among themselves. These laws are to be made to protect the individual and his property especially against theft and fraud. This is to be the most powerful branch of government. We are a nation based on written law, not the word of a king or a small group of men. As such, it is very important that man's laws do not violated God's law. The second branch of government is the executive branch which has the power to carry out the laws. This branch is very important because it is the one who makes sure the laws which have been made are carried out. They are, in many ways, the actual ones in the trenches making sure our property is protected. This branch deals with the hands on work of making sure laws are obeyed and properly enforced. It is very important with this power of government that the one who is leading this branch is most concerned with serving those he leads and to be careful not to use his position for his own personal agenda and authority. Our final branch of government is the judicial branch which is given the responsibility or power of interpreting the laws that are made. This branch is concerned with the administration of justice and equity. Of all the branches of government, our forefathers felt this was to be the least powerful. It was to deal with making sure that the laws made by the legislative branch were consistent with the law of God and that those laws were carried out with judicious care. They were to be a watchdog for the other branches of government to help protect against the greed of man in the legislative branch and the desire for power in the executive branch. Each power or branch of government was to remain separate of the others because our forefathers understood the sinful natures of men and knew that too much power vested in one man or one group of men could result in an abusive use of power because of the corruptiong nature of power.

Today, in our society, we have lost sight of the proper balance of the powers or branches of government. Our judicial branch of government is wielding almost unchecked power. They have not protected life, liberty or property. Our executive branch has become a platform to promote a social agenda that is anti-Christian and ultra-liberal. Our legislative branch has become a group of pawns for the executive branch, with the controlling political party selfishly promoting its own interests and not creating laws which will protect man's God-given rights.

We have a choice, we have a responsibility. Our leaders are a reflection of we the people. If we exhibit selfishness, a personal agenda, and a disregard for the laws, why should we be surprised when those in governmental positions do the same? If we seek to manipulate the system to our own benefit, why does it bother us when those whom we elected blatantly disregard the law? Our offices are filled with corruption and deceit. There are those who do execute their function of government properly, but those seem to be few and far between. We the people must return to the Word of God. We must follow its law of love and light and not be controlled by our own greed and passion. We must learn to do what is right and deal in a just and equitable manner with one another. We must live with a moral excellence or virtue which compels us to be upright, honest, morally pure, and honorable. For it is when we, as a upright people, stand up for what is right and not tolerate the vices of those in leadership positions that gradual change will take place which will return us to the proper function fo the powers of governmentand the restoration of our liberties.

God's Laws - Man's Laws

The laws of man should never violate the Law of God. When it does, only evil can be the result because man, at that point, has exalted himself above God. Recently in Oklahoma we have decided to make ourselves out as a god. Our governor vetoed a bill which would have banned embryonic stem cell research in our state. Of course this is one hot topic today. Do we have the right to take a life to possibly save another? It begs the question once again of when life truly begins. As we look at the Word of God, the scripture clearly states that before we were even formed in the womb, God knew us and had a plan for our lives. The Bible states that we are fearfully and wonderfully made. By reason of God's design for pregnancy, He oversees the development of the child within its mother's womb. What a beautiful thing! But man has decided that he has the right to choose when life begins. Abortions and partial birth abortions are rampant in our society. And now even the smallest embryo, the fertilized egg is not safe from the deadly research that men perform in the name of humanitarianism. How could we be so blind and ignorant of the design of God for human life and the precious gift that it is? Our state House of Representatives recognized the gift of life from God and voted to override the veto of our liberal governor. But our State Senate supported the governor by 6 votes. The blood of these unborn children will be on the hands of those who legislate death in the name of humanitariansm. We cannot violate the law of God and still receive His blessing. May those state senators and our governor hear from us who oppose the decision they have made.

For documentation of what the Bible says regarding life in the womb, read Psalm 139:13-18.

The Spheres of Government

The realm of government is extremely vast, isn't it? We have looked at what government is, what its basic purpose and function is, and the different levels of government. There are also seperate spheres of government in which we live, and understanding these different spheres and how they work togetheris vital to our understanding of government.

The first sphere of government that was established in the scriptures is that of the home. It is the foundational unit of society. It is there that we learn how to govern ourselves and how to relate well with others. When God created man He said, "It is not good that man should dwell alone, I will make a help-meet for him." Genesis 2:18 Then he made a woman for the man and declared blessing on that union. He did not declare blessing on the union of a man with a man or a woman with a woman. In fact, in Romans 1 He condemns those types of relationships as being corrupt, unnatural, and a result of man rejecting God. No wonder there is such an attack on the family unit today. If Satan can get us to believe that any union is natural, that the family unit is not important, that children are wards of the state and not the responisiblity of the family, that children do not need to respond properly to parental authority, then he has gone a long way to ruining the structure of government that God intended. The family - one man with one woman for a lifetime - raising children in the fear and admonition of the Lord is God's design. As we follow God's design we are most blessed. When we ignore or distort God's design we do not receive His blessing. Does that mean that single parent situations cannot be blessed by God? No, it just means that if we follow the biblical pattern we understand that a whole family unit is always best. We learn so much in the true family unit - love, acceptance, a proper work ethic, conflict resolution, forgiveness, respect for authority and one another and much more. That first sphere of God-ordained government, the family, is the training ground for our character.

The second sphere of government that was established in scripture was that of civil government. It was established in Genesis 4 when God held Cain responsible for the death of his brother, Abel, and then put a mark on him to protect him from those who would seek to harm him. Civil governments are formed for the protection of man's God-given rights, that is his life, liberty and property (or the pursuit of happiness). It is in the realm of civil government that we learn how to relate with those outside our family. We are to be able to work together to meet the needs of one another, protected by a civil government which protects us against fraud and theft. This form of civil government is not a lord over the people, rather it is the servant of the people. We have twisted this today where we think that the people are the servant of the government and thereby individuals exist only for the benefit of the governmnet as a whole. Civil government is good and an absolute necessity, but its design has always been to serve and protect, not to control.

The third sphere of government is the church as established almost 2000 years later in Acts 2. This body of believers is intended to be light bearers in society, proclaiming and upholding the truth of God's Word. It is a haven for believers, a refuge for the needy and is to work in conjunction with the home as that which trains the conscience of men according to the Word of God. It always is to hold up the standard of God's Word as the basis for all truth and government. The church is to be an influence on the government, not the government on the church. Looking at our own Constitution we see government limited "Congress shall make no law regarding the establishment of religion" not Christianity's influence on governemtn limited. Once again we have twisted the true meaning of how government is to function, excluding from our civil government the permeating influence of Christianity. As the influence of Christianity decreases in our society so will we lose the blessings of liberty that we enjoy. We have taken the Ten Commandments out of our schools and courtyards and have seen a steady rise in crime, injustice, corruption and violence. Why? Because we have not allowed the church to train our conscience's with God's Word. Also the church has lost its influence because it has gone to a feel-good message and not proclaimed the truth of who God is, who man is and how he can come into a proper relationship with Christ, His only hope for salvation.

The family, the civil government and the church are the three spheres of government. One does not work properly without the other two. It is important for us to once again honor the family for what God intended it to be and restore it to its rightful place as the basic unit of society. In civil government, we need to restore it to its original purpose of protecting and preserving man's God-given rights. And in the church, we need to once again become the truth proclaimers, holding forth the Word of God as the standard of absolute truth in every area and proclaim salvation in Christ alone.

Standing For Liberty

"Stand fast, therefore, in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage." Galatians 5:1

Cherish sweet liberty! Liberty, a gift from God, is not the freedom to do whatever I want, but is the freedom to do what is right according to the Word of God. On this day, April 19th, we have three very vivid illustrations of what it means to stand for liberty. Unfortunately, two of the examples are not good examples, while the other is.

The year was 1993. On April 19, the Massacre at Waco occcured. A group of extremeists, called Branch Davidians, in the name of religious and political libery fought against federal agents and there compound was burned to the ground killing the extremeists along with many women and children. Their claim was that the federal government had taken their liberties from them and they were going to reclaim them. This was not standing for liberty. The gospel of Christ is not a militant religion like the Islamic religion. Scripture says in Proverbs, that when a man's ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.

Just a couple of years later, on April 19, 1995, at the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Timothy McVeigh set off a bomb which destroyed the building, killing over 100 innocent men, women, and children in the blast. This he and his conspirators did, no doubt, in the name of freedom. They blamed the government for the problems of the day and their retaliation was to murder and injure all those innocent people who worked for the government. This was not standing for liberty. This was a rebellion by a group who did not want to live according to the law.

But on another April 19th, in 1775 to be exact, another group of Americans did stand properly for liberty. These men were mostly farmers, with some tradesmen. Some were just young boys, or young men just starting their families. Some were older. The had been living under a government, the British government, which did not give them the rights of Englishmen to be represented in Parliament. They had no representation and were being taxed unlawfully. British soldiers could come in a take the fruits of their labor, stay in their homes and commandeer their property without these people having any recourse with the government. They had heard that the British were coming to their town looking for two men, Samuel Adams and John Hancock. They had been warned by a man named Paul Revere. They were also looking for stores of weapons and ammunition because the British did not want the people to be able to defend themselves. So there they stood on Lexington Green, a beautiful area where their animals grazed, waiting in silence for the British to come into their town. There were less than 100 men and boys who would stand against the British troops of almost 1000 that early April morning. As the British approached, they had been instructed not to shoot, that this would be a peaceful demonstration of protest. Yet while speaking with the British Commander, the shot "heard round the world" was fired, most say by one of the British soldiers (that is if you live in America - no one knows who really shot first) and the Revolutionary War had begun. The farmers quickly dispersed with a few of them being killed in the fray. The British left Lexington and went to Concord where they would encounter a greater resistance.

Let us not forget the firm resolve and the stand for liberty that was taken that day at the Battle of Lexington. May God give us the courage to stand for what is right, to do it in the proper way. Not a way which will bring intentional harm on the innocent ones we say we are standing for, but that we will know, understand, and apply the principles of liberty in our daily lives. May God bless America, still the fullest expression of Christian liberty upon the earth.

What Happened After the Boston Tea Party

The Boston Tea Party was one of the most significant events that happened for our nation to gain independence from the tyranny of Great Britain. Our forefathers stood for principle and the God-given rights of man. They knew that it was wrong for the people to be taxed without proper representation. They had decided that they would not give their consent to a government who was not willing to protect them. So they took action! Do you know what happened next? I think something that proved to be even more significant than the party itself. In response to the Tea Party, the British government enacted the Boston Port Bill, closing the city of Boston to any trade and not allowing ships to enter or exit the harbor. They were going to put a choke hold on the "rebellious" city of Boston for its actions against the crown. But the true result was that the American colonies united together as never before for the cause of liberty, sending provisions to Boston so the people would be able to survive the oppression that was being placed upon the Bostonians. And survive they did - eventually Boston was that "beacon which was set on a hill and could not be hid." The great leaders of the Revolution came from that area, such men as Samuel Adams, the Father of American Revolution, John Hancock, Paul Revere and others. God took what the British government meant for evil and turned it out for something good.

In the days we are living we have started to stand up to the tyranny of government control and intervention. The people of America are once again voicing their concerns with boldness and clarity. They are once again uniting together for the cause of liberty in our land. But tough times are still coming. Will our Congress and our President listen to the American people and change their direction, or, will they continue to espouse the idea that more government control is the answer to our problems? I do not know the answer to those questions but I do know that God can take what seems to be evil and turn it to good for those who love God and are the called according to His purpose. Our hope is not in government, nor is it in man - our hope is in the Lord. As we humble ourselves, and pray, seek His face, and turn from our wicked ways, then the God of heaven will hear, and forgive our sin, and heal our land. (II Chronicles 7:14)

More Thoughts on Government

Why are civil governments formed? Why do people unite together and form a civil government? There was a time in America where states sought to secede from the Union and this led to Civil War. Even today, with all the uproar against the present administration and its lack of listening to the American people because of its desire to promote a new agenda, there are rumblings of secession from the United States. So we must answer the question, "Why are civil governments formed?"

John Locke a political philosopher, who was probably the most read and quoted philospher among our founding fathers said in his work, Of Civil Government, that "the great and chief end therefore, of men uniting into commonwealths, and putting themselves under government, is the preservation of their property." Our forefather knew and stated in the Declaration of Independence that their rights were God-given and that governments were instituted among men for the preservation of these rights. By the way, the life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness which our forefathers wrote in the Declaration was almost a direct quote from Locke who used the terminology of life, liberty and property. Our forefathers believed that the pursuit of happiness was not just doing whatever makes you happy, but enjoying the property rights that God had given man.

Our Constitution was written to further outline the form of government which would protect our God-given rights, our property. James Madison, the Architect of the Constitution, and the 4th President of our United States said this, "We have staked the whole future of American civilization,not upon the power of government, far from it. We have staked the future of all our political institutions upon the capacity of mankind for self-government; upon the capacity for each and all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, to sustain ourselves according to the 10 Commandments of God."

Madison was on the right track. He, as did our other framers of the Constitution, understood the importance of men governing themselves if their freedom was to be preserved. But we have chosen as a nation to allow the federal government to dictate to us what we should do. The Constitution was not a limit upon the individual, but rather a document which placed great limits upon the government. Government is not and was not designed to be the answer to our problems. Our Cosntitituion provided for free-market economics, where government was seen to protect the individual from theft and fraud. Our Constitution limited the powers of the Executive, so that he would not try to usurp authority and become a king. Our Constitution did not provide for healthcare, education, or disaster relief. That was the responsibility of the families and the church. Americans have been generous, loving people who have sought to aid and care for one another without the assistance of government. But we have bowed to the "nanny state" so much that now we feel like we are entitled to such things as national healthcare or education. Madison, Washington, Adams, and others would have thought it absurd for the federal government to be involved in education because they felt that education was the responsibility of the home as stated in the scripture and were "home-schooled" themselves.

As Americans, and especially those of us who call ourselves Ameican Christians, we need to analyze the purpose of government and then live in such a way that we take the responsibility of providing for our families and protecting our property. May God give us grace to do that in these days.

The Real Issue of the Tea Party

In America this day, April 15, 2009, the American people peacefully displayed their displeasure at the government's intervention into the affairs of the people and its handling of the economy. The people voiced their opinions loud and clear for our legislators and President to hear, that we are not pleased with the new agenda for America, that we are not pleased with the bailouts (or buyouts) that are taking place, that we are tired of the federal and state governmenta spending more than it has and plunging America into trillions of dollars of debt, from which we will probably never recover, and that we are infuriated that the government through its tax and spend policies are taking more and more of our earnings from us. But what is the real issue? These things are of great concern but there is something much more important at stake for us. Maybe if we look back in history, to the Boston Tea Party, and examine what was at stake there, we can discover what is the real issue.

On Thursday, December 16, 1773, the Boston Tea Party took place. The colonists had negotiated for more than 20 days that they did not want the tea from the East India Tea Company because of the tax that the British had levied upon it. They had encouraged the tea be returned but with no avail. They exhausted every avenue of not paying a tax on tea that had been put upon them without their consent. But to no avail. Finally, Samuel Adams, the Father of the American Revolution, announced from the pulpit of the Old South Meeting House, a Puritan church building, that "this meeting can do nothing more to save the country". At that time colonists dressed as Indians left the area of the Old South Meeting House and went to Griffins Wharf where they dumped the tea in Boston Harbor. Richard Frothingham in his, "Rise of the American Republic" (1890) records that those who participated in the dumping of the tea "proved quiet and systematic workers. No one interfered with them. No other property was injured; no person was harmed; no tea was allowed to be carried away; and the silence of the crowd on shore was such that the noise of the breaking the chests was distinctly heard among them." John Adams said, "This is the most magnificent movement of all. There is a dignity, a majesty, a sublimity, in this last effort of the patriots, that I greatly adore." Joseph Warren wrote: " We can never enough adore that Almighty Disposer, who has, as it were, by general inspiration awakened a whole continent to a sense of their danger."

Danger from what you might ask. The danger is this: that government would govern and make decisions without the consent of the governed. Our internal property of consent is being violated just as it was back before the days of the Revolutionary War. The purpose of government is to protect and preserve our God-given rights, not dictate to us what they want to do. It is not the purpose of government to provide for us. Government has no right to take from us to fulfill its agenda, but if it takes away our property of consent it can take anything it wants. We do not want a government to make decisions for us concerning who we will or will not buy a car from, or how we will pay for our home, or how much we make. We want a government that will protect our freedom to choose, to make decisions, to voluntarily exchange with those whom we desire, to let us keep, enjoy and use our property as we want, without infringing upon the rights of others. Our consent is a precious property, and, if we allow government to make decisions which affect us without our consent, we will lose the blessings of liberty which we now enjoy.

So express your opinion America - boldly, respectfully, and unashamedly. Let your governing officials know how you feel about the matters at hand in our country and state today. Remind them that they are elected officials and if they fail to responsibly represent you, then you will vote for someone else next election. Why? Because we will not consent to being governed by those who have their own personal agendas and well-being above the people whom they serve. And our consent is a property that is not to be violated!

Thoughts on the Nature of Government

Government is a very interesting topic these days. There is always talk of the federal government and what it is doing or not doing that is good or bad. We read of corruption, greed and ignorance on the part of those involved with our government on both federal and state levels, even down to our local governments. Scandals and shady dealings seem to be the norm of the day when speaking about government. But could it be that we are looking at government the wrong way as a nation? Could it be that we as individuals have never been taught what true government is, what its purpose is and what is the most powerful form of government? I know that I was taught in my school that there is no greater form of government than our federal government. But through the years I have discovered that teaching is simply not true. To refute that idea we must first understand what government is. According to Noah Webster's 1828 Dictionary government is "control, direction, regulation and restraint." That seems pretty simple. But listen to a statement made by the Dutch jurist, statesman and theologian, Hugo Grotius as he describes the breadth of government. He said "He knows not how to rule a kingdom, that cannot manage a Province; nor can he wield a Province, that cannot order a city; nor he order a city, that knows not how to regulate a Village; nor he a Village, that cannot guide a Family; nor can that man govern well a Family that knows not how to govern himself; neither can he govern himself unless reason be Lord, will and appetite her vassals; nor can reason rule unless herself be ruled by God, and (wholly) be obedient to Him." What wisdom! It seems that we may have things backwards. According to Grotius, the most powerful form of government is Christian self-government, where our reason is ruled by God and is obedient to Him. We live in a world today where people's passions run almost totally unrestrained. We are in bondage to our own lusts and desires and do not know how to deny ourselves even though we know what we are involved in is bad for us. We need to rediscover the truth that the greatest form of govenrment that exists is when men, under the control of God's Spirit and in obedience to His Word, begin to act like men of reason and not men of impulse and passion. We need to learn to rule ourselves, so that we can rule our families properly, so that we can then rule in our towns with justice and equity. You see, control, direction, regulation and restraint must first take place internally before it can be properly expressed externally. We must learn to do right regardless of the consequences, to uphold the Word of God as the standard of truth and justice in our personal lives, in our families, in our schools, and churches before it can be effective in our cities, counties, states, and nation. That is called taking personal responsibility. Nothing will change until we take responsibility for governing ourselves. That, I believe, is God's plan. May He give us the grace to govern ourselves and do what is right according to His Word.

The Gift of Life

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness - that to secure these rights, governmnets are instituted among men . . ." The Declaration of Independence, 1776

The gift of life, given to us by God, is one of the most precious and fundamental rights that all human beings have, not just Americans. We have been created by our all-wise Creator, in the very image of God, to bear His likeness and reveal His glory. We are not the product of an evolutionary process and thereby relegated to animal status. Rather, we have been "fearfully and wonderfully made" according to Psalm 139. As a created being, we have purpose and meaning in our life. If we were just a higher form of animal (which we are not), then our life would only be lived for the here and now, without purpose or meaning. To take the life of another would be an action relative to our own personal wants and desires. If a baby is unwanted, abort it. If an elderly person outlives their usefulness to society, assist them in ending their life. By abortion and euthenasia we have proclaimed ourselves as god in determining who should live and who should not. Even more, let us cheapen the value of life by indulging ourselves in pornography or the promotion of unnatural lifestyles such as homosexuality, lesbianism, beastiality and other such perverse practices. After all, life is about me, what I want, what I like, and how I can be happy. There is no such thing as absolute truth. We can just live any way we please and who is to say that we are wrong? All these ideas are a result of our misunderstanding of the true meaning of life. The reason we have abandoned the idea of absolute truth is that we do not want to face the truth, so we ignore it or suppress it. We have rejected the Word of God as truth by removing it from our schools and making it, and the principles it espouses, the object of our ridicule and crude humor. We do not acknowledge God as the giver of life because then we would have to admit that we are responsible to Him for the way that we live. If there is a Creator, then I must have been created for a purpose and I might not like what that purpose is. If I was created in the image of God, then I would have to admit that life does not center around me, my wants, my desires, my indulgences, but around Him. But truth does not change. God is the sovereign Creator and Sustainer of this universe. All things were made by Him and for Him (Colossians 1:15-17). God's Word is forever settled in heaven (Psalm 119:89). Man, though made in the image of God, sinned against God and is in need of a Savior or he will ulimately stand before God in judgement, (Romans 3:23; Hebrews 9:27) But that which gives us hope, inestimable value and purpose in life is that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, left the glories of heaven to come to this earth and take upon Himself the form of a servant. He then died a substitutionary death on the cross for you and me to pay the penalty and bear the judgement for our sin. Then, by the power of God, was raised from the dead on the 3rd day, rising triumphant over sin, death, and the grave so that we might have life and have it more abundantly. Those who turn from their sin and trust Christ alone for their salvation recieve the gift of etrnal life. (Romans 6:23) You see, God's design for man is not death, but life. He has showed us the value He places on life by what He has done for us. Our forefathers recognized this. It would do us well to recognize it to by living our lives to the glory of the Lord of Life, Jesus Christ. Happy Easter! He is risen indeed!!!

Blessed Is The Nation

Psalm 33:12 declares "Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people whom He has chosen for His own inheritance." When a nation recognizes God as the LORD, Jehovah, Almighty God, they will be blessed. In our day of multi-culturalism and the recognition of many different gods, such as Allah or Buddha or some other so called deity, God's Word states that there is only one God and that He blesses the nation who recognizes Him as the only God. When we as a nation recognize other so-called deities and try to include them with the one true God, we are in fact rejecting the God of the Bible. Jesus did not say that He was a way to God, He stated that He was the way to God and no one could come to the Father but by Him (John 14:6) But who is this God and how can we know Him? God has revealed Himself to us through His Creation (Psalm 19:1,2), through His Word (John 5:39) and through His Son, Jesus Christ (Hebrews 1:1-3) As we study the scripture we discover that the one true God is holy and just in all His ways, omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, the sovereign God who works all things after the counsel of His own will(Ephesians 1:11). According to Exodus 34:6 the Lord God is compassionated and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth, who keeps lovingkindness for thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin; yet He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished. He has revealed Himself to us through His Son, Jesus Christ, who came to this earth, lived a perfect sinless life, died on the cross for our sin, was buried but rose again the 3rd day, showing himself to many after His resurrection and finally ascending into heaven where He now intercedes for His people. One day He will return to this earth to set up His kingdom where He will reigh as King of Kings and Lord of Lords forever and ever! Those who know Him will spend eternity with Him in heaven. Those who reject Him will spend an eternity in the lake of fire. And that is just beginning. There is so much for us to know about this Creator God that it will take eternity for us to know Him and to understand His ways. So why is it important for a nation to honor Him as the LORD and be blessed by Him. It is because our theology (what we believe about God) directly affects our philosophy of living. It affects how we interpret history (the study of who is in control) which affects our philosophy of government (how man should be governed) and our philosophy of economics (how we believe man's needs should be met). It all begins with a proper, biblical understanding of who God is. If we miss that, then we as a nation will not be blessed. We as a nation today are suffering from an ignorance of who the one true God really is because we have rejected His Word and denied its truth. May we as Americans, and especially if we call ourselves American Christians, return to the truth of God's Word and rediscover who our awesome, powerful, personal, infinite God is as we seek His face with all of our heart.

The Author of Liberty

On the steps of the Park Street Church on July 4, 1831 a group of children from the church gathered to sing a new song in celebration of the Independence of America. That song, "My Country Tis of Thee", was sung with joy as people celebrated their liberty as Americans. The man who wrote the words to the German melody was Samuel Francis Smith, a student at Andover Theological Seminary, and he wrote those words in fulfillment of a request by his friend, Lowell Mason. This songs praises the blessings of liberty and the God of liberty. Listen to the last verse: "Our father's God to Thee, Author of Liberty, to Thee we sing. Long may our land be bright, with freedom's holy light, protect us by Thy might, great God our King." There was no mistake in the ears and hearts of those who heard this song where their liberty originated. It wasn't with the government, it wasn't founded within themselves, or Mohammed, or Buddha, or any other false god. The Author of liberty was the one true God as revealoed in the Holy Bible. Early colonists had declared during the Revolutionary War that they had no king, but Jesus. And herein is something that is a very simple, yet extremely profound concept to understanding liberty. Liberty is a gift from God. This was plainly stated in the opening statement of our own Declaration of Independence. Whether it be internal spiritual liberty, liberty of conscience (which our government and planned parenthood are demanding our doctors of conscience to violate by mandating abortions or the possibility of losing your doctoral license), or religious liberty (the freedom to worship God according to the scriptures), or political or economic liberty, these liberties are all a gift from our Creator God. And because government is not the author of liberty, then government, nor any other institution, has the right to remove our liberties from us. And let us not be naive, every other religion that man has invented produces not liberty, but bondage. The Islamic religion is not a religion of freedom but a religion of bondage and despotism. To put it on the same plane as Christianity would be uttter deception indeed. Jesus said in John 8:32 - "And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free." He also said in John 14:6 - "I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man cometh unto the Father but by me." True freedom comes as one enters into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. As a person does that, he expresses true internal liberty which eventually results in the expression of external liberty. May we, who have internal liberty in Christ, live in such a way, that others may see and come to know the glorious liberty that there is in Christ. May we be used of God to preserve the liberty that He has given us in this land. May God bless this "sweet land of liberty" from the onslaughts that would seek to take our liberty and the blessings of liberty from us!

Wake Up America!

Wake up America! No longer can we be silent as our liberties are dwindling in our country. Dr. Jedidiah Morse in an election sermon delivered on April 23, 1799 said, "Our dangers are of two kinds, those which affect our religion, and those which affect our government. They are, however, so closely allied that they cannot, without propriety, be seperated. The foundations which support the interests of Christianity, are also necessary to support a free and equal government like our own. In all those countries where there is little or no religion, or a very grosss and corrupt one, as in Mahometan and Pagan countries, there you will find, with scarcely a single exception, arbitrary and tyrannical governments, gross ignorance and wickedness, and deplorable wretchedness among the people. To the kindly influence of Christianity we owe that degree of civil freedom, and political and social happiness which mankind now enjoy. In proportion as the genuine effects of Christianity are diminished in any nation, either through unbelief, or the corruption of its doctrines, or the neglect of its institutions; in the same proportion will the people of that nation recede from the blessings of genuine freedom, and approximatethe miseries of complete despotism. I hold this to be a truth confirmed by experience. If so, it follows, that all efforts made to destroy the foundations of our holy religion, ultimately tend to the subversion also of our political freedom and happiness. Whenever the pillars of Christianity shalll be overthrown, our present republican forms of government, and all the blessings which flow from them, must fall with them." ( The Chritian History of the Constitution of the United States of America,pIV) Dr. Morse was right. He recognized Jehovah God as the author of our liberty and the influence of Christianity as the preserving foundation for our liberties. As I read of the "Buyout", I mean, bailout of the American economy, the increased intervention, confiscation and control of our property by the government, the promotion of abortion, "alternative" lifestyles, embryonic stem cell research, proposed nationalization of health care and industry, I am amazed at what is happening. But I understand that these things are happening because we, as a nation, have turned away from the absolute truth of God's Word and embraced all religions. It simply won't work. Learn us return to the truth of the Holy Scriptures. Let us return with humble hearts to the Lord. Let us relearn our American Christian history and principles of government that our forefathers held based upon the Word of God. Let us wake up and reclaim that which has been given to us by God and not the government. This blog is dedicated to educating in the principles of history and government taught from God's Word. Why? I guess it's time for me to wake up.