Independence Day

Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance.

— Psalm 33:12 NIV

 “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight; I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations. He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In his teaching the islands will put their hope.”

— Isaiah 42:1-4

 In his [Jesus] name the nations will put their hope.

— Matthew 12:21

I am sure that you have heard so much about the separation of church and state that you have actually started to believe it.

In case you don’t know, that phrase never appears in the Constitution. However it is found in Karl Marx’s Communist Manifesto.

It was coined in the U.S. from a letter the principle framer of the Constitution and Third President Thomas Jefferson wrote to the Danbury Baptist Association assuring them that he would keep the Government out of the Church, not the Church out of the Government. He was saying, never again will there be a government sponsored church like you had back in England, where everyone is forced to attend and support.

Check it out for yourself, the first amendment actually says:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…

If there IS such a thing as separation of church and state, it is intended as a one-way street. Some say, no, they wanted to keep both separate. Well, let’s think about that.

• Our first president, George Washington, took the oath of office and put his hand on what? (the Bible)
• What was his first official act as President? (kissed the Bible, then held a 2 hr. praise/worship session in Congress)
• How did they determine to open sessions of Congress? (prayer)
• Who would lead in those prayers? (chaplains)
• How would they be paid? (tax dollars)

Does all of that sound like they wanted to keep God out of government?

Who decided to put “In God We Trust” on our coins? It was adopted by Congress in 1956.

• In 1776, 11 of the 13 colonies required that one had to be a Christian to be eligible to run for political office.
• In 1777, the Continental Congress voted to spend $300,000 to purchase Bibles for distribution in the nation.
• The GETTYSBURG ADDRESS states “…this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom…”
• 94% OF THE WRITINGS OF THE FOUNDING FATHERS OF THE U.S. CONTAINED QUOTATIONS FROM THE HOLY SCRIPTURES.
• THE STATE CONSTITUTIONS OF ALL 50 STATES MENTION GOD.
• On that First “Thanksgiving”, who do you think the people were giving thanks to? To God.
• The famous “Liberty Bell” has part of Leviticus 25:10 inscribed on it: “Proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof.”
• Part of the Scripture Proverbs 14:34 is inscribed above the L.A. city hall door: “RIGHTEOUSNESS EXALTETH A NATION: BUT SIN IS A REPROACH TO ANY PEOPLE.”
• An image of Moses carrying the tablets of God’s Law faces the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
• The entering President takes his courtroom OATH OF OFFICE with his right hand on the Holy Bible, and concludes his vow “So help me God.”
• The Supreme Court itself begins each of its sessions with the phrase ‘God save the United States and this honorable court,’
• First Vice President and Second President, John Adams wrote in 1798:
• “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”
• President Thomas Jefferson:
• “I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that His justice cannot sleep forever.” – 1781
• Our sixth President, John Quincy Adams said:
• “No book in the world deserves to be so unceasingly studied, and so profoundly meditated upon as the Bible.” –
• At the Constitutional Convention in 1787, Benjamin Franklin said,
• “God governs in the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid?”

The Christian writings and pronouncements of our 16th President Abraham Lincoln would fill an entire book. He said this when he assumed leadership over a nation on the brink of civil war:

“We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven… 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. It behooves us then, to humble ourselves before the offended power, to confess our national sins, and to pray for clemency and forgiveness.” – 1863

• Theodore Roosevelt, America’s 26th President, wrote: “In this actual world, a churchless community, a community where men have abandoned and scoffed at, or ignored their religious needs, is a community on the rapid down-grade.” – 1917
• Woodrow Wilson, our 28th President and Governor of New Jersey, said this: “America was born a Christian nation. America was born to exemplify that devotion to the elements of righteousness which are derived from the revelations of the Holy Scripture.” – 1911
• Calvin Coolidge, our 30th President, said this about our founding fathers: “They were intent upon establishing a Christian commonwealth in accordance with the principle of self- government. They were an inspired body of men. It has been said that God sifted the nations that He might send choice grain into the wilderness… Who can fail to see it in the hand of destiny? Who can doubt that it has been guided by a Divine Providence.” – 1923
• Franklin Roosevelt prayed this prayer on a national radio hookup on D-Day, June 6, 1944, as our troops stormed the beaches of Normandy, France: “Almighty God… with Thy blessing we shall prevail over the unholy forces of our enemy. Help us to conquer the apostles of greed and racial arrogance. Lead us to the saving of our country. Thy will be done, Almighty God. Amen.”
• Harry Truman, our 33rd President, not known to be a committed believer, understood the spiritual heritage of this nation: “If men and nations would but live by the precepts of the ancient prophets and the teachings of the Sermon on the Mount, problems which now seem so difficult would soon disappear”
• Gerald Ford, our 38th President, quoted a 1955 speech by Dwight D. Eisenhower on December 5, 1974: “Without God there could be no American form of government, nor an American way of life. Recognition of the Supreme Being is the first – the most basic – expression of Americanism. Thus the founding fathers of America saw it, and thus with God’s help, it will continue to be.”
• President Ronald Reagan: “If we ever forget that we are ‘One nation, under God’, then we will be one nation gone under.”

GOD bless America!

Happy Independence Day!

2013: Press The Restart Button

Many of us have made many mistakes in our lives. We have experienced many setbacks and failures throughout our lives. Sometimes we allow these mistakes, these setbacks and failures to enslave us to the point that we never enjoy the full Christian life that God has given us to enjoy.

We all have an enemy called Satan that seeks to destroy our lives. The Devil will remind us of our past in order to keep us from enjoying the life that God gave us to live. The Devil does not want you to have a fresh start in life.

“Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past.  See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” – Isaiah 43:18-19

Do you hear what God is saying in this verse? Forget about what’s happened before. He says don’t think about the past. It’s over.

We need to understand that God is far more interested in our future than He is in our past. Some people think that God is stuck on their past. That all He wants to do is remind them of the things that they have done wrong. God is more interested in your future than He is with your past. That’s where you’re going to spend the rest of your life. He says, “Forget about your past. Forget about the former things. Don’t think about it. Look at the new thing I’m going to do.”

There’s a special type of excitement about the beginning of a new year. There is new hope, a clean slate, fresh possibilities Do you ever wish life could be just as fresh and new? Well, you can! Shed the old things in your life and become a new creation.

Press the Restart Button. Start over.

For To Us A Child Is Born

6 For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the

government will be on his shoulders. And he will be

called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting

Father, Prince of Peace. 7 Of the increase of his

government and peace there will be no end. He will reign

on Davidʼs throne and over his kingdom, establishing and

upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time

on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will

accomplish this.

–Isaiah 9:6-7

 

This passage in Isaiah is probably pretty familiar, right? Itʼs one of those

passages we hear a lot at Christmas. And because of this, we can easily

pass over its importance.

 

Take a second, slow down, and let this awesome truth sink

in.

 

Isaiah 9:6-7 was written by, you guessed it, Isaiah. Now, Isaiah was one of

Godʼs chosen messengers. We call these guys prophets. Isaiah was passing

along Godʼs words at a time when Godʼs chosen people, the Israelites, had

completely turned their backs on God. Godʼs people had stopped counting on

God and His promises. God had given them tons of warning, but they hadnʼt

listened. So, Isaiahʼs message was one of coming judgment.

 

However, because God is who He is, even His message of judgment carried

hope. Isaiah 9:6-7 is all about hope. Itʼs about a hopeful future, one in

which God once and for all provides a way out from under the weight of our

sins.

 

26 In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to

Nazareth, a town in Galilee, 27 to a virgin pledged to be

married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David.

The virginʼs name was Mary. 28 The angel went to her

and said, “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The

Lord is with you.” 29 Mary was greatly troubled at his

words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.

30 But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you

have found favor with God. 31 You will be with child and

give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name

Jesus. 32 He will be great and will be called the Son of

the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of

his father David, 33 and he will reign over the house of

Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”

–Luke 1:26-33

 

Fast forward something like 700-800 years and you see this message of

hope coming to life in Luke 1:26-33. The little baby God was forming in

Mary? He was the same promised savior Isaiah was writing about

in Isaiah 9:6-7.

 

Long before God sent Jesus to this earth, He knew the plan. In fact, God

sending His own Son to live and breathe and walk this earth was always the

plan. God has always known that Jesus would be the answer to a perfect

relationship between God and His children. Which is great news for you and

me. But to see this plan come to life, Jesus had to come to earth.

Merry Christmas to one and all!