Monthly Archives: June 2023

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Shake the Dust Off Your Feet

March 23, 1775.

Richmond, Virginia.

The House of Burgesses were meeting in Saint John’s Church to discuss the recent actions of the First Continental Congress. The “Intolerable Acts” were passed by Parliament in early 1774 in response to the “Boston Tea Party.” Among other changes, the “Intolerable Acts” included the closing of the Boston Port and rescinding the Massachusetts Charter. Congress had met in September of that same in year to craft a response which called for a boycott of all British imports, an end to the exportation of any and all goods to Britain as well as the raising of a militia.79

It was now several months later. Despite the consensus shared by most Americans that the crown was not going to address any of the grievances that had been repeatedly voiced by the colonies, many hesitated endorsing a war and were yet hoping for a diplomatic solution.

It was in this moment that Patrick Henry rose to speak to the delegates gathered at Saint John’s Church. What followed was a speech made without notes and no transcript was made of the address he was about to deliver which would include the famous phrase, “Give me liberty, or give me death!”1

His desire was to present an argument that could change the minds of those who were determined to believe that diplomacy could sway a tyrant who saw negotiations, not as a way to arrive at a just compromise, but as a scheme to perpetuate a sinister agenda.

Those that were there to hear the words of Patrick Henry had legitimate concerns. But there are times when you’re talking to someone who doesn’t have a concern as much as they have a resolve – a willful determination to ignore what’s True and instead subscribe to something totally irrational.

In those instances, it’s possible you’re dialoging with someone the Bible refers to as a “fool” – someone who will “despise the insight of your words (Prov 23:9),” regardless of what you say.

Jesus says in Matthew 10:13-14 that when you encounter someone who refuses to listen to what’s True, then you need to walk away.

13 If the home is deserving, let your peace rest on it; if it is not, let your peace return to you. 14 If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, leave that home or town and shake the dust off your feet. (Matt 10:13-14)

Not everyone’s going to agree with you and differences in opinion are inevitable (1 Cor 11:19). There’s a difference between matters where there’s room for interpretation and other issues that can be processed according to obvious Absolutes. Humility and wisdom go hand in hand (Jas 3:13). You never want to be so passionate about your preferences that you assign to them the same Authority belonging to Biblical Principles.

But when you can rightfully cite a chapter and a verse to reinforce the Substance of your argument, know that however articulate you may be, there are times where you won’t be able to change their mind until God first changes their heart.

And until then…

…move on and shake the dust off your feet.

 

 

1. “Patrick Henry”, https://www.history.com/topics/american-revolution/patrick-henry, accessed May 21, 2023

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Separation of Church and State | Part II

Consider for a moment the questions we’ve asked thus far:

  • What is the Common Book of Prayer?
  • What is a Puritan?
  • Why did the British refer to the Revolutionary War as a “Presbyterian Rebellion?”
  • How many times did Congress call for a National Day of Prayer, Fasting and Humiliation?

The first two questions outline the way in which the Anglican Church was replacing the “Lord’s Prayer” with the “Common Book of Prayer” along with several other directives that positioned the monarchy over the Trinity. This lead to the Puritans wanting to “purify” the doctrine espoused by the Church of England and return to a biblically based approach to one’s relationship with Christ.

By the 1700s, the “Act of Uniformity” had been expanded to include mandates pertaining to church government – something very beligerent in the mind of a Presbyterian who subscribed to a Scriptural approach to elders and deacons as they are described in the New Testament.

Moreover, part of the “Common Book of Prayer” included prayers that were to be made for the king, which implied a form of political support regardless of that monarch’s character or conduct.1

This is what was meant by the “separation of church and state.”

The delegates that formed the Constitutional Convention were not attempting to facilitate a potentially godless society with the First Amendment. Rather, they were honoring the Authority of God’s Word by placing a limitation on the way the government could dictate the manner of your worship.

Congress could not tell you how to pray or fine you for not attending church on Sundays. There would be no legislation that dictated how a church’s government was to be structured.

But while the individual is free to choose how they worship God according to the dicates of their own conscience, the individual is not at liberty to reconfigure the Foundation upon which that right was based.

In a 2019 ruling, the Supreme Court emphasized the importance of context in determining meaning in defamation cases. They said that context is “a factor of considerable importance” and that the “…words complained of should not be fixed by technical, linguistically-precise dictionary definitions divorced from the context in which the statement was made. Nor should individual words be removed from their context and defined in isolation, before reconnecting them to the rest of the statement.2

If that ruling is to apply to the debate surrounding the separation of church and state, then you’re obligated to conclude the the Founding Fathers were not looking to limit Christianity’s influence on government as much as they were resolved to limit government’s influence on Christianity.

John Adams signed the Treaty of Tripoli which was designed to ensure the militant Muslims that were preying on American ships that the US was not planning on invading Jerusalem. Part of that Treaty says:

Art. 11. As the Government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion; as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion, or tranquility, of Mussulmen (Muslims); and as the said States never entered into any war or act of hostility against any Mahometan (Mohammedan) nation, it is declared by the parties that no pretext arising from religious opinions shall ever produce an interruption of the harmony existing between the two countries (Treaty of Tripoli).

Some will take the statement, “…America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion” to mean that the Declaration of Independence represents nothing more than a token acknowledgement of God and the sixteen Congressional proclamations calling for a National Day of Prayer and Fasting had no specific reference to Christ.

That’s just not the case.

Adams himself said:

The general Principles, on which the Fathers Atchieved Independence, were the only Principles in which, that beautiful Assembly of young Gentlemen could Unite, and these Principles only could be intended by them in their Address, or by me in my Answer. And what were these general Principles? I answer, the general Principles of Christianity, in which all those Sects were United: And the general Principles of English and American Liberty, in which all those young Men United, and which had United all Parties in America, in Majorities Sufficient to assert and maintain her Independence.3

In 1789, James Madison, the architect behind the Bill of Rights, wrote a “Memonstrance and Remonstrance Against Religious Assessments.” His goal was to discourage the use of tax dollars to financially support teachers of the Christian religion.

His point wasn’t to discredit Christianity or minimize its place in the public square. Again, it was a concerted resolve to avoid the sins of the Church of England in the way government was used to obligate people to process and revere God in a specific way, if they were to even worship God at all.

Whilst we assert for ourselves a freedom to embrace, to profess and to observe the Religion which we believe to be of divine origin, we cannot deny an equal freedom to those whose minds have not yet yielded to the evidence which has convinced us. If this freedom be abused, it is an offence against God, not against man: To God, therefore, not to man, must an account of it be rendered.4

Again, while the individual is free to choose how they worship God according to the dicates of their own conscience, the individual is not at liberty to reconfigure the Foundation upon which that right was based.

While Madison is brilliant in his defense of not using public funds to finance religious education, bear in mind he was part of the group of men that wrote the following Congressional Proclamation:

The United States in Congress assembled, therefore do earnestly recommend, that Thursday the thrid of May next, beay be observed as a day of humiliation, fasting and prayer, that we may, with united hearts, confess and bewail our manifold sins and transgressions, and by sincere repentance and amendment of life, appease his righteous sidpleasure, and through the merits of our blessed Savior, obtain pardon and forgiveness…5

The Separation of Church and State was never designed to be used as a way to normalize Homosexuality or justify Partial Birth Abortion. The government of the United States, while it will not dictate how or to whom you pray, it will not be redefined in a way that removes the Divine Absolute that is both its heritage and its Foundation.

 

1. “Variations in the 1662 Book of Common Prayer”, “The Book of Common Prayer of the Church of England (1662)”, http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/Variations.htm, accessed June 13, 2023

2. “Supreme Court emphasizes importance of context in determining meaning in defamation cases”, https://hsfnotes.com/litigation/2019/04/11/supreme-court-emphasises-importance-of-context-in-determining-meaning-in-defamation-cases/, Herbert Smith Freehills, April 11, 2019, accessed November 5, 2022

3. “John Adams to Thomas Jefferson, 28 June 1813”, “Founders Online”, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/03-06-02-0208, accessed November 5, 2022

4. “Memorial and Remonstrance against Religious Assessments, [ca. 20 June] 1785”, “National Archives, Founders Online”, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Madison/01-08-02-0163, accessed June 13, 2023

5. To see an image of the Proclamation as its preserved in the Library of Congress, click here.

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Separation of Church and State | Part I

Nine times out of ten, when you hear someone play the “Separation of Church and State” card, they’re doing so believing that they’ve insulated themselves from having to defend their platform simply by declaring your position an illegal and inappropratiate assertion of your belief system…

Abortion.

Homosexuality.

It can be anything that is addressed specifically in Scripture. However clarifying the Bible can be in defining the difference between right and wrong, it is an unwelcome Presence in the mind of somone who prefers to declare themselves as their own moral absolute.

“You can’t force your beliefs on me…”

“Not everyone feels that way…”

(sarcastically) “You ever hear of the ‘Separation of Church and State?'”

It’s a signature tactic of the person who has something to hide as opposed to having something to say. By posing as a victim, they can sidestep any direct line of questioning because you can’t be critical of someone who’s in pain without immediately being labeled cruel and intolerant.

It’s brilliant.

There are several things wrong with their argument, though.

First of all, from a historical standpoint, they’re taking that phrase completely out of context and applying it in a way that has absolutely nothing to do with same sex marriage or taking the life of your baby before it’s born.

Secondly, what they’re attempting to do is philosophically impossible. Every government that’s ever been conceived by human kind has been based on a “church” of some sort. It’s here where you can see the true purpose of those who are asserting the “separation…” argument in that they’re not trying to “separate” anything as much as they’re attempting to establish a new god, a new church and a new morality.

But how do you refute what they’re saying? How can you “argue” if they’ve secured themselves behind a wall reinforced by the kind of pity that is due to someone who’s been wounded? How do you make your point if they’re not willing to listen and instead are just waiting for you to stop talking so they can proceed in telling you how intolerant you are?

What we’re going to do is unpack all this by posing a couple of questions that you can ask the person who’s pointing their philosophical pistol at you and compel them to make your point for you with the responses they’re logically obligated to give.

Here we go…

What is the Common Book of Prayer?

It’s part of the legislative package passed by Parliament in 1558 as part of the “Act of Uniformity” which Queen Elizabeth initiated as part of relieving the tension between Catholics and Protestants. It positioned her as the head of the church and imposed a collection of state-sanctioned directives that dictated the way you were to pray, how you were to condut a church service and even imposed a fine should you decide to not attend church on any given Sunday.1

What is a Puritan?

A Puritan is someone who wanted to “purify” the Anglican Church – the church created by Henry the VIII and then later legally mandated by his daughter Queen Elizabeth with the Act of Uniformity. They wanted to distance themselves from a doctrine that was dictated by the crown and instead based on the Authority of God’s Word. The Puritans were among the first settlers of the New World along with the Pilgrims who didn’t want to “purify” the Church of England as much as they wanted to remove themselves completely from having to answer to any government interference with one’s faith.

Why did the British refer to the Revolutionary War as a “Presbyterian Rebellion?”

In the aftermath of the Great Awakening, 75-80% of the colonies were actively involved in church.2 Preachers like George Whitfield and Jonathan Edwards had successfully re-introduced the Truth of how one’s relationship with Christ was not facilitated by a liturgy or a religious institution, but was instead based solely on a personal decision to follow Him.

With that awareness came a new perspective on how one’s rights were not a king’s to dispense as much as they were God’s to guarantee.

It wasn’t just “taxation without representation,” it was the way the motherland was attempting to control church government, the way in which you to pray (which included a mandate to swear allegiance to the king) and a directive to ordain ministers, not according to the New Testament, but according to a format approved by the Church of England.

Many Americans were quoted as saying, “We have no governor but Jesus Christ.”3

This is why many redcoats and Englishmen were prone to refer to the Revolution as a Presbyterian Rebellion.4

How many times to Congress call for a National Day of Prayer, Fasting and Humiliation during the Revolutionary War?

Sixteen. And these were not generic “moments of silence.” These were specific admonishments to appeal to Christ for the forgiveness of sins and wisdom in the way the United States was to prosecute its war with England.5

Bear in mind too that the verbiage of these Proclamations were written by many who would later serve in the Constitutional Convention.

Tomorrow…Part II

1. “The Act of Uniformity” was conceived in 1558 and passed by Parliament in 1559. Its purpose was to regularize prayer, worship and the administration of sacraments in the Church of England. In addition, all persons had to attend Anglican worship services once a week or be fined 12 pence which amounted to about three days wages. (“Act of Uniformity 1558”, “Wikipedia”, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Act_of_Uniformity_1558, accessed May 20, 2023)

In 1662, the scope of “The Act of Uniformity” was enhanced to include the mandate that all ministers be ordained according to an Episcopal format and anyone who held an office within the church was to swear allegiance to the monarchy. (“Act of Uniformity 1662” “Wikipedia”, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Act_of_Uniformity_1662, accessed May 20, 2023 | “Act of Uniformity”, “Encyclopedia.com”, https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/modern-europe/british-and-irish-history/act-uniformity, accessed May 20, 2023

2. “Religion and the Founding of the American Republic”, https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/rel02.html, accessed April 5, 2023

3. “Directory of National Biography, Vol XXV”, Harris – Henry I, Smith, Elder and Company, London, 1891, p68 (also read “The Black Robe Regiment” to learn more about the Presbyterian element that was perceived by the British)

4. “Public Statutes at large of the United States of America, from the Organization of the Government in 1789 to March 3, 1845, Volume VI”, “https://books.google.com/books?id=Opt0L-PDdPAC&pg=PA116&lpg=PA116&dq=%22that+the+duties+arising+and+due+to+the+United+States+upon+certain+stereotype+plates%22&source=bl&ots=p2xVUkIfub&sig=ACfU3U3N9AeyAcd_E0QqZfiXJlHQXbKGTA&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjq8oSY0__9AhV6mWoFHduzBy0Q6AF6BAgDEAM#v=onepage&q=%22that%20the%20duties%20arising%20and%20due%20to%20the%20United%20States%20upon%20certain%20stereotype%20plates%22&f=false”, accessed March 28, 2023

5. To read a list of all sixteen proclamations as they’re documented in the Library of Congress, head out to http://muscularchristianityonline.com/forum/the-finish-line/

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Look With Confidence

Even human wrath will praise You; You will clothe Yourself with their remaining wrath.. (Ps 76:10)

Doctor John Witherspoon.

American Devotional Series

If you’ve been enjoying the last several posts, then you’ll enjoy the “American Devotional Series | Part One: The Revolutionary War!”

“The American Devotional Series” is designed to reinforce the way our Founders revered God as the Author of our Rights and Freedoms and how our history is frequently punctuated with bold and definitive references to Christ and the Power of God’s Word.

Click here to order it on Amazon!

He was a preacher born in Scotland in 1723. Briefly imprisoned during the Highlander uprising in 1745-1746, his was a strong and articulate voice recruited by Benjamin Rush in 1766 to preside over the then struggling College of New Jersey which would later become known as Princeton University.

The good doctor would publish The Dominion of Providence Over the Passions of Men, a sermon he preached at Princeton just two months before he signed the “Declaration of Independence.”

In his sermon, he elaborated on Psalm 76:10 by saying this:

The truth, then, asserted in this text, which I propose to illustrate and improve, is, That all the disorderly passions of men, whether exposing the innocent to private injury, or whether they are the arrows of divine judgment in public calamity, shall, in the end, be to the praise of God: Or, to apply it more particularly to the present state of the American colonies, and the plague of war, The ambition of mistaken princes, the cunning and cruelty of oppressive and corrupt ministers, and even the inhumanity of brutal soldiers, however dreadful, shall finally promote the glory of God, and in the meantime, while the storm continues, his mercy and kindness shall appear in prescribing bounds to their rage and fury.1

In other words, there is no Power or Plan that can succeed against the intended Purpose of God – even to the point where the most diabolical scheme, however unjust or forceful it might be – it will be Divinely routed in a way where the end result will ultimately translate to something good (Ps 78:34-35; Is 26:8-9).

This is what the Psalmist meant when he said that “Even human wrath will praise you.”

It’s because every nuance of the human experience is ultimately subordinate to His Will that you can engage every aspect of your life from a position of Strength. Witherspoon emphasized that point later in his sermon by saying, “If your cause is just—you may look with confidence to the Lord and intreat him to plead it as his own.”2

Whatever challenge you may be facing today, you can confront it with the confidence founded on the Power and Sovereignty of God.

“If your cause is just…”

…look with confidence to the Lord.

1. “1776: Witherspoon, Dominion of Providence over the Passions of Men (Sermon)”, “Online Library of Liberty”, https://oll.libertyfund.org/page/1776-witherspoon-dominion-of-providence-over-the-passions-of-men-sermon, accessed January 23, 2023

2. Ibid

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All Men Are Created Equal

So God created man in His own image; He created him in the image of God; He created them male and female. (Gen 1:27)

 In his Second Treatise of Government, John Locke dismantled the flawed philosophy supporting the idea that monarchs could justify their authority over their subjects by claiming to be Divinely superior to any human court or governing body.1

He said…

For Men being all the Workmanship of one Omnipotent, and infinitely wise Maker; All the Servants of one Sovereign Master, sent into the world by his order and about his business, they are his Property, whose Workmanship they are, made to last during His, not one another’s Pleasure.2

By saying that all men were the “…workmanship of one omnipotent and infinitely wise maker,” he was stripping away the manufactured rank and title that some had asserted as a way to elevate themselves over their peers. Rather, we were to perceive ourselves as equals having been created by God in His Image for His Purpose and not our own.

John Locke

John Locke (1632–1704) was one of the greatest philosophers in Europe at the end of the seventeenth century. Locke grew up and lived through one of the most extraordinary centuries of English political and intellectual history. It was a century in which conflicts between Crown and Parliament and the overlapping conflicts between Protestants, Anglicans and Catholics swirled into civil war in the 1640s.4

Locke’s Second Treatise of Government was published in 1690 and would heavily influence the political philosophies of those who would go on to craft the “Declaration of Independence.” Some would argue that the Founders, “….succeeded admirably in condensing Locke’s fundamental argument into a few hundred words.”5

Locke had a profound impact on those tasked with crafting the “Declaration of Independence.” You can see both his verbiage and his thinking represented in the opening lines penned by Thomas Jefferson when he said: 

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.3

While many throughout history would sort men according to distinguished sounding titles and family crests, the United States built its argument on the platform that says our rights are not a king’s to dispense, but they are God’s to guarantee.

The fact that you and I are created in the image of God is what was used to ensure our Declaration resonated as a legitimate cause and not just a mere complaint.  And it’s because we bear His Likeness that this isn’t just another day and you’re not just another face in the crowd. Your life is more than your situation and you are more than your mistakes.

That’s the Reality of God and the beauty of grace.

We are not just existing, we are seen…

…and you weren’t merely “sorted…”

You were created.

Now go make a difference!

1. “Divine Right of Kings”, Britannica, https://www.britannica.com/topic/divine-right-of-kings, accessed January 22, 2023

2. “The Project Gutenberg eBook of Second Treatise of Government, by John Locke”, Gutenberg.org, https://www.gutenberg.org/files/7370/7370-h/7370-h.htm, accessed January 22, 2023

3. (n.d.). Declaration of Independence: A Transcription. National Archives. Retrieved January 14, 2023, from https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration-transcript

4. “John Locke”, “Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy”, https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/locke/#SecoTreaGove, accessed January 22, 2023

5. “The American Constitution, Its Origins and Development”, Alfred Hinsey Kelly, Winfred Audif Harbison, W. W. Norton & Company, New York, NY, 1963, p90

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Avenge Our Innocent Blood: Rev Jonas Clark

Listen, my children, and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,1

Those words penned by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow helped to immortalize the efforts of Paul Revere when he rode to Lexington, Massachusetts from Boston to warn John Hancock and Samuel Adams that the British were on the move and enroute to arrest them as well as impound the cannon, gunpowder and ammunition stockpiled in Concord.2

Egypt will become desolate, and Edom a desert wasteland, because of the violence done to the people of Judah in whose land they shed innocent blood. 20 But Judah will be inhabited forever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation. 21 I will pardon their bloodguilt, which I have not pardoned, for the Lord dwells in Zion. (Joel 3:19-21)

Both Hancock and Adams were staying with the Reverend Jonas Clark.3 Clark’s home was familiar territory in that Hancock was the cousin of the young pastor’s wife.4 In addition, Clark was a passionate supporter of America’s quest for freedom. His sermons often referenced the tyranny represented by King George and how America’s pursuit of liberty was something that could be validated as a Biblically-based perspective.

You can hear that in the sermon he published the day after Revere completed his journey entitled, “The Fate of Bloodthirsty Oppressors, and God’s Tender Care of His Distressed People.”

On the 19th of April, 1775, many of the minutemen that had squared off against His Majesty’s soldiers were members of Clark’s congregation. When the smoke had cleared, eight were dead and another ten were wounded.5

Pastor Clark’s text was Joel 3:19-21. He began by saying:

Next to the acknowledgement of the existence of a Deity, there is no one principle of greater importance in religion, than a realizing belief of the divine government and providence, to realize that God is Governor among the nations, that his government is wise and just, and that all our times and changes are in his hands…6

In other words, God is in charge. And it’s because of His Supervision that we can trust that His Justice will ultimately prevail, even when circumstances would suggest otherwise.

By referencing God’s Sovereignty, Clark wasn’t merely offering some general, pastoral comfort. He was reminding his congregation that however evil might be able to function despite the laws and ethics that would otherwise prevent it from happening, oppressors are ultimately defeated by God’s Divine Power and Justice.

In his sermon, Clark referred to the British as having shed innocent blood and calls them “sons of oppression and violence.”7 He then went on to say that the word spoken by the prophet Joel could be applied to the United States.

How far the prophecy before us, may be applicable, upon this solemn occasion, and with what degree of truth, or probability, it may be predicted, in consequence of the present unjust and unnatural war, “that Great-Britain shall be a desolation, and England be a desolate wilderness, for the violence against the children of America, because they have shed INNOCENT BLOOD in their land: But America shall dwell forever, and this people from generation to generation. And the LORD himself will cleanse their blood, that he hath not already cleansed.” —How far (I say) this prophecy may be applicable, in the present interesting contest, and how far it may be accomplished in the issue thereof, God only knows, and time only can discover.—But of this we are certain, if we “humble ourselves under the mighty hand of God upon us, we shall be exalted, in his due time:” and if we rightly improve his dealings, “accept the punishment of our sins” and religiously trust in his name, we shall see his salvation. 8

There are times when a church sanctuary functions as an Emergency Room, where wounds are treated, and victims are placed on the road to recovery through the restorative Power of the Holy Spirit (Ps 6:2; 34:18; Jn 14:27; Jas 5:16).

But there are other instances where it’s a Locker Room, where strategies are being rehearsed, mistakes are being addressed and players are being encouraged so they’re sufficiently equipped to take the field and make a difference (2 Sam 5:24; Dt 31:6; Mk 11:23; Jn 14:12).

In his sermon, Clark would not merely utter spiritual sounding condolences nor would he advocate for a forgiving disposition to be extended to the British. Rather, he would reinforce the Scriptural Substance upon which America’s resolve to be free was based and it was that Foundation that would provide both the courage and the endurance necessary to win the Revolutionary War.

There is a time for all things (Ecc 3:1). There is a time to weep (Ecc 3:4), there is a time to wait (Ps 27:14) and there is a time to win (Ex 17:15; Josh 6:5; Lk 10:19; 1 Jn 4:4).

Do not miss the victory that is yours to claim because you’re focused more on the way you would define your circumstance according to what you can do rather than the way God defines it based on what He can do.

1. “Paul Revere’s Ride”, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, https://poets.org/poem/paul-reveres-ride, accessed February 20, 2023
2. “The Real Story of Paul Revere’s Ride”, paulreverehouse.org, https://www.paulreverehouse.org/the-real-story/, accessed February 20, 2023
3. “Paul Revere’s Letter to Jeremy Belknap, ca. 1798 (abridged)”, “The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History”, https://www.gilderlehrman.org/sites/default/files/inline-pdfs/Revere%20to%20Belknap%20abridged.pdf, accessed February 20, 2023
4. “Jonas Clarke – The Pastor Who Fired the Shot Heard Around the World”, “Christian Heritage Fellowship”, https://christianheritagefellowship.com/the-pastor-who-fired-the-shot-heard-around-the-world/, accessed February 20, 2023
5. “The Battles of Lexington and Concord”, Isaac Merrill, “Digital History”, https://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=3&psid=129, accessed February 20, 2023
6. “Sermon – Battle of Lexington – 1776”, Wallbuilders, https://wallbuilders.com/sermon-battle-of-lexington-1776/, accessed February 20, 2023
7. Ibid
8. Ibid

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You Will Have Trouble

On the west side of the obelisk that serves as the grave marker for the Reverend James Caldwell, it reads:

Hannah, wife of the Rev. James Caldwell, and daughter of Johnathan Ogden, of Newark, was killed at Connecticut Farms by a shot from a British soldier, June 25th, 1780, cruelly sacrificed by the enemies of her husband and of her country.1

The popularity of Caldwell and his courage on the battlefield reads in a way where you can easily imagine that in the aftermath of his heroics, he would survive the war and go on to live happily ever after.

But that was not the case.

Not only would he lose his life as a result of an unwarranted gunshot fired by a sentinel who would later be tried and hung for murder,2 but just two weeks prior to the Battle of Springfield where Caldwell would utter the now famous words, “Put Watts into ‘em boys,” Caldwell would learn that his wife had been shot and killed by the British.3

As believers, we’re not exempt from heartache, sickness, death and anxiety. It’s part of the world we live in and pretending to be either immune or indifferent is neither healthy nor helpful.

The idea is not to ignore sin or its effects, but to remain focused on the One Who gives you the Power and Perspective needed to endure and overcome.

That’s what Jesus meant in John 16:33:

I have told you these things so that in Me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.” (Jn 16:33)

Neither your witness nor your success is defined according to the lack of difficulty you encounter, rather they’re determined by the extent to which you allow Him to shape your perspective (Rom 12:1-2), fortify your resolve (Phil 4:13) and empower your performance (Is 41:10).

However intimidating the sin of the world may be, remember you have working in and through you the One Who brought the sin of the world to its knees.

1. “The Pictorial Field-Book of the Revolution”, Benson J. Lossing, Harper & Brothers, Publishers, New York, NY, 1851, p326
2. “Proceedings of the Historical Society, Volume I 1845 – 1846, The Office of the Daily Advertiser, Newark, NJ, 1847, p83-84 (https://books.google.com/books?id=NWVIAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q=Morgan&f=false)
3. “A Short History of the American Revolution”, Everett Titsworth Tomlinson, Doubleday, Page and Company, New York, NY, 1901, p286-287 (https://books.google.com/books?id=BhwTAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q=watts&f=false)

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Don’t Just Be Right

“The Annual Register” is a publication that presents an annual overview of all the political and cultural highlights of that particular year.1

Created in 1758 and still in circulation today, it’s regarded as a primary source text for historical research.2

1781 was a landmark volume because of the significance of the events that occurred that year including Britain’s surrender to the United States. Part of what made Cornwallis’ defeat stand out was the way in which General Washington conducted both himself and his troops in the aftermath.

Two days after the capitulation took place, divine service was preformed in all the different brigades and divisions of the American army, in order to return thanks to the Almighty for the great event; and it was recommended by General Washington, to all the troops that were not upon duty, in his general orders, that they would assist at divine service “with a serious deportment, and with that sensibility of heart, which the recollection of the surprising and particular interposition of Providence in their favor claimed.”3

In his General Orders, Washington, in addition to recommending that all troops not on duty attend a worship service, he also ordered that all prisoners be pardoned and released:

In order to diffuse the general Joy through every Breast the General orders that those men belonging to the Army who may now be in confinement shall be pardoned released and join their respective corps.4

The British Army had burned and destroyed countless properties that were not military targets, including churches.5 In addition, clergy had been targeted and there were instances of brutality on the battlefield that were not due so much to the horrors of war as they were the cruelty of certain British officers.6

Washington would not have been faulted for being less accommodating when Lord Cornwallis surrendered. Even in the context of the way prisoners of war were treated, the British were indifferent to the wellbeing of the Continental soldiers they held in custody and, while estimates vary, between eight and eleven thousand American prisoners died in prison due to neglect.7

And yet…

Washington personified a biblical approach to one’s enemy.

However belligerent and opinionated your opponent may be, there is one dimension of your platform he can never criticize, let alone disagree with, without your participation:

Your manner.

In Matthew 5:43-48, Jesus says:

43 “You have heard that it was said, Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father in heaven. For He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward will you have? Don’t even the tax collectors do the same? 47 And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing out of the ordinary? Don’t even the Gentiles do the same? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matt 5:43-48)

Moral Perfection is not an attainable standard given the frailties that characterize the human condition. But the word, “perfect” in this verse is the Greek word, “teleios,” which is more accurately translated in this context as meaning “complete.”8

It’s one thing to be right, it’s another to be righteous. And you want to be righteous because in the end you don’t want to settle for merely being “good,” you want to be effective.

Perhaps that’s part of what Jesus was talking about.

Many of the criticisms that Washington and the platform he represented were never admitted into civil conversation is because of the way the purity of his conduct reinforced the integrity of his cause.

Passion can be a compelling compliment to the words you would say, but left unchecked, emotions can compromise your message in that now your listener is not paying attention to what you’re saying as much as they’re now focused on the way you’re saying it (Prov 25:11).

Don’t just be right, be righteous…

Don’t just be good, be effective.

1. “The Annual Register”, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Annual_Register, accessed June 4, 2023

2. “Annual Register”, Proquest, https://about.proquest.com/en/products-services/ann_reg/, accessed June 4, 2023

3. “The New Annual Register or General Repository of History, Politics, and Literature, for the Year 1781”, G. Robinson, London, England, 1782, p169 (https://books.google.com/books?id=txALAQAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q=deportment&f=false)

4. “George Washington Papers, Subseries 3G, Varick Transcripts, Letterbook 6 | General Orders”, https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/service/mss/mgw/mgw3g/006/006.pdf, accessed June 4, 2023

5. Referring to the Presbyterian clergy that assisted the Continental Army both spiritually and tactically, “It is not strange that their course was regarded as specially obnoxious by the British troops. Their houses were plundered, their churches often burned and their books and manuscripts committed to the flames…The church edifices were often taken possession of by an insolent soldiery and turned into hospitals or prisons, or perverted to still baser uses as stables or riding schools. The church at Newton had its steeple sawed off, and was used as a prison or guard-horse till it was torn down and its siding used for the soldiers’ huts. The church at Crumpond was burned to save its being occupied by the enemy…More than fifty places of worship through the land were utterly destroyed by the enemy during the period of the war. The larger number of these were burned, others were leveled to the ground, while others still were so defaced or injured as to be utterly unfit for use. This was the case in several of the principal cities – at Philadelphia and Charleston as well as New York. ” (“Presbyterians and the Revolution” Rev W.P. Breed, D.D., Presbyterian Board of Publication, Philadelphia, PA, 1876, p103-106 [https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/public/gdcmassbookdig/presbyteriansrev01bree/presbyteriansrev01bree.pdf])

British forces raided the town of Elizabeth on January 25, 1780 and burned the church, the home of Reverend James Caldwell, the courthouse and the Presbyterian School. (“Revolutionary War New Jersey”, https://www.revolutionarywarnewjersey.com/new_jersey_revolutionary_war_sites/towns/caldwell_nj_revolutionary_war_sites.htm, accessed June 4, 2023)

Saint Philip’s Church in Brunswick County, North Carolina was burned to the ground when the British invaded in 1776. Construction lasted 14 years, but it took only one day for it to be destroyed. Before it’s demise, it was considered to be one of the finest religious structures in North Carolina. (St. Philip’s Church, Brunswick Town”, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Philip%27s_Church,_Brunswick_Town, accessed June 4, 2023)

Biggins Church in Charleston, South Carolina was confiscated by the British Army and used as a depot. As they retreated, they burned the church. (“Biggin Church Ruins”, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biggin_Church_Ruins, accessed June 4, 2023)

6. “Banastre Tarelton”, National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/people/banastre-tarleton.htm, accessed June 4, 2023

7. “Prisoners of War”, “George Washington’s Mount Vernon”, https://www.mountvernon.org/library/digitalhistory/digital-encyclopedia/article/prisoners-of-war/, accessed June 4, 2023

8. “Telious”, Bible Study Tools, https://www.biblestudytools.com/lexicons/greek/nas/teleios.html, accessed June 5, 2023

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Run, Don’t Walk

Originally from Pennsylvania where he helped his father fill the pulpits of several Lutheran churches scattered throughout the area that didn’t have a full-time pastor, Peter Muhlenberg accepted a pastorate in Virginia in 1772.

By 1774, the relationship between the colonies and Great Britain was at a breaking point. The people of Dunmore County saw in their new pastor, not only a capable parson, but an exceptional leader and they nominated him to represent them in the House of Burgesses. Among this group of delegates was Colonel George Washington, representing Fairfax County and Patrick Henry, who in 1775 would deliver the iconic speech that concluded with the words, “Give me liberty or give me death.”

The sessions continued through January of 1776 and it was then that the appointment of officers in the newly formed Continental Army were announced.

At 29 years of age, with very little military experience, Peter Muhlenberg was nevertheless appointed a Colonel and given a command.

While he had served briefly in the British army, his appointment was due more to his capacity to lead than it was his knowledge of military tactics.

It proved to be a good decision, however, in that by the end of war, Peter Muhlenberg was a Major General.

What makes this significant is that Muhlenberg didn’t just pray for the soldiers in the Continental Army, he became one. And he didn’t just encourage them in battle, he led them in combat.

He and his men would see action throughout the war. They would be with Washington at Valley Forge, and it would be Muhlenberg who would assist in keeping Cornwallis contained at Yorktown which would ultimately lead to the surrender of the British army.

Faith in the absence of action is considered to be “dead” according to James 2:17.

There is a time for all things, even a time for war (Ecc 3:8). Joshua had to defeat Jericho, David had to fight Goliath and God made certain that those in Israel who had not participated in the Conquest of the Promised Land would still have to contend with sinister nations in order that they may learn how to function in a combat situation (Jud 3:1-2).

Muhlenberg saw the holy task represented by standing in the gap between tyranny and the populace it would subjugate. He didn’t regulate Christ’s reference to a sword in the New Testament as a metaphor but as a reinforcement of the way in which God sometimes both condones and empowers violence in order to defeat evil.

Obedience is not always convenient and sometimes it requires a significant amount of courage (Josh 1:9).

There is a time for war and when that time comes, you want to take your cue from Muhlenberg and those like him in that you don’t keep your distance from the battle and call it piety…

Rather, you run to the battle line and call on Him.

“The Fighting Parson of the American Revolution: A Biography of General Peter Muhlenberg” Edward Hocker, Lawrence Knorr, Sunbury Press, Inc. Mechanicsburg, PA, 1936, 2019

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Daily Broadside | How To Participate In the Resistance Without Jeopardizing Your Financial Well Being

I’m happy to announce that my co-blogger-in-arms, Bruce Gust, will be filling in for me over the next two weeks while I’m traveling. He’s done this for me the past couple of years, and I appreciate the different but like-minded voice contributing to this blog. We’ve talked and he’s got a treat in store for you! I’ll be reading with great interest from afar as I tear myself away for a little R&R.

In response to yesterday’s post, long time reader Dick Campbell asked a great question: “Would it be possible to do a piece identifying strategies to avoid the Vanguards, Blackrocks etc. when it comes to where your 401K’s, IRA, etc. are invested? I’m all for the ban/boycotts but get more nervous if it involves what I live on.”

Isn’t that the rub? How do you resist the entanglements that the world has created around us, much less try to be a counter-revolutionary? He raises a particularly tough point: if you’re retirement account is part of the investment portfolio of one of these multi-trillion dollar companies, and you want to reduce your profile with them or exit altogether, but they’re managing the money you’re using to support yourself — what do you do?

I gave Dick the video link below in response to his comment and thought all of us would be served by listening to it. It’s short, but host Jesse Kelly speaks with James Lindsay, who offers some additional insight into why corporations are willing to destroy themselves on LBGTQWACK promos and how the scheme works. Click the image, watch the video, and I’ll follow with a couple of thoughts.

The key exchange starts at 2:52 with Kelly’s question: How do we stop it? What do we do about that?

James Lindsay: It’s a racketeering hustle, so we bust it the same way you break any other racketeering scam. Some of this might actually be in violation of RICO [Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, 1970], of racketeering law. So, what you need to do is take people like the executives at Anheuser-Busch, who are now on notice, and take people — and they’ve had this just happen to them — or […] the executives at Target who are flailing around having emergency meetings or, you name the corporation. Any of these big corporations that’s getting put on this boycott notice or even other ones — you haul them in front of a House oversight committee, you hound the House Oversight Committee to start bringing these people in, you hound your senators, you hound your state attorneys general to start pushing, to expose, why is this happening.

Because what you have to do if you want to get a cartel to break or if you want to break a racketeering operation, is that you’ve got to get people in the middle to realize that their best deal is to make a bargain with you and to tell all they know, tell what’s going on and get themselves off the hook for participating in it.

And then what you just do is start chasing it up the chain and eventually you get to the place where you can start doing some prosecutions, lawsuits, etcetera. If I were a stock owner in Disney, I would be very interested, for example, in pushing for fiduciary responsibility violation lawsuits.

The “Normie Norm,” what he does, is he’s got to keep the pressure on, he’s got to keep Bud Light in between a rock and a hard place so that it keeps being shown that there’s a reason that we need to investigate deeply and get the law involved. And then, slowly but surely, we get a couple of corporations to flip, then you’re going to get ten to flip, then you’re going to start breaking up the whole scam.

What I’m taking away from that short conversation is that the average citizen’s contribution is twofold: 1) keep the pressure on these organizations. Keep the boycotts going; refuse to shop at these retailers. As their stock price crashes, they make news. Making news calls attention to the situation. The situation seems like a crisis, and crises demand intervention. 2) Demand that your state Senators in D.C. do something. Demand that the House investigate. Put the pressure on your representatives to act. Call them. Write them. Be persistent. Ask others to join you.

Note that earlier in the conversation Lindsay said, “These mechanisms [ESG scores, loans, etc.] are being run through these gigantic financial institutions, which don’t use their own money, they manage other people’s money, trillions of dollars of people’s retirement funds, and they’re betting them on what’s called ‘impact investing’ — environmental impact, social justice impact, and the ‘G’ stands for governance, how you run your corporation.” If you don’t run your company according to the standards they demand you meet, you can be denied loans.

They’re using YOUR money and MY money to coerce these corporations into compliance. That’s Dick’s question: how do you avoid being part of it?

As far as your investments go, I am definitely not a financial advisor, nor do I play one on TV or on this blog. My suggestion is that, if you have a financial advisor, you talk with them about what companies your money is invested in and how you can reduce the number of “woke” corporations you’re supporting with your funds. Maybe there’s a way to do it, maybe there isn’t.

Trying to take on Vanguard, Blackrock or State Street isn’t something that the average citizen can do; that’s why Lindsay suggests that Congress step in. Which leads me to my final thought. Knowing what we do about Congress, do we really think they’re going to “step in”?

LOL.

Not without a lot of pressure from We the People. But even if we got them to investigate, there’s no guarantee that anything would come of it. Have you seen the Durham Report?

At the end of the day, as I’ve written before, when almost every institution, corporation and public service is infested with Marxist ideology, there’s only so much you can divest yourself from. For sure you can kick some of the larger retailers to the curb and buy from small, local businesses. You can stop watching Faux News when it’s clear they’re just better at hiding their progressive cred than CNN or MSNBC. You can abandon products like Bud Light or Gillette razors. You can make noise on Capitol Hill.

However, there are limits. For instance, living in a mobile, technologically advanced society does require that we use the digital networks available to us, the choices are few (Verizon, T-Mobile, AT&T, Xfinity, etc.) and they are all probably woke. In that case, we don’t really have much of a practical choice.

It reminds me of the situation Naaman the Aramean found himself in after he was healed during his encounter with Elisha. He pledges to only sacrifice to the Lord from then on, but there is one thing he can’t avoid.

“But may the Lord forgive your servant for this one thing: When my master enters the temple of Rimmon to bow down and he is leaning on my arm and I have to bow there also—when I bow down in the temple of Rimmon, may the Lord forgive your servant for this.”

“Go in peace,” Elisha said.

2 Kings 5:18-19

The Lord knows the heart and knows our circumstances. There may be situations where you can’t avoid “bowing down” and supporting a woke company with your purchases. So be it; let God work out the details. Go in peace.

Have a good weekend.