American Christians Have 2 Declarations of Independence!
Word-Of-The-Day: “For no word from God will ever fail.” (Luke 1:37)
Tomorrow is our Independence Day, the 4th of July. For MBC, we started our celebration early last night in having a potluck dinner, followed by American History Trivia, sandwiched between the singing of the Star Spangled Banner and God Bless America.
The trivia was a bit of a humbling experience in demonstrating that I have forgotten some facts over the course of time, and found my hippocampus isn’t so indelible with the lineage of the Presidents. Back in my school days, I had memorized them from Washington to Ford (the president prior to me entering high school). However, between Jefferson and Hoover, there were many gaps in memory, likely from a misspent adolescence and early adulthood, and the career-minded knowledge that overwrote those synapses.
Fortunately, though, I remember the basic foundations of American Civics, why we needed the original Articles of Confederation replaced with our Constitution; that our Rights, and enumerated by the Bill of Rights (the first 10 Amendments of the Constitution) are not granted through the Constitution but by God. Why our Founding Fathers insisted on setting up a three-branch (Executive, bi-cameral Legislative, and Judicial) form of governance, by the People and for the People, in the form of a representative Constitutional Republic and not a ‘mob majority-rule’ democracy (as many erroneously claim the US is).
The cornerstone of our Grand Republic is, of course, God. The Founding Fathers had a strong belief (though admittedly varied in the details) of the Creator. The nation was based on Judeo-Christian values and morals. As our nation has wavered and wandered away from our Lord, it is no wonder why our nation has wavered and wandered away from our Constitutional foundation, and why our Rights, even though spelled out, are mistakenly seen as ‘government-granted’ and not ‘God-given inalienable’ Rights.
Whether one holds onto God as their ‘god’ or not; His Word, and the power behind it, never changes. If God says it, it is always True and will be done. Luke 1:37 (the verse used is NIV) also translates to “With God, nothing is impossible” in the NKJV and NLT translations; it is important to note both essentially say the same thing, but with some minor, different distinctions. Both distinctions are important; God’s Word will never fail, and as long as we have Faith in His Word, nothing is impossible to achieve or obtain.
As we celebrate our Declaration of Independence from the repression from the British crown into Freedom and Liberty, and as a side celebration our Constitution providing us a set of rules to govern and follow in Trust, we must also remember we as Christians also have a ‘Declaration of Independence’ from Sin, and a Constitution to follow and govern us.
We find our Christian ‘Declaration of Independence’ in Isaiah 42:6-7; (“I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness.”), and our Constitution is of course the Bible, especially the Gospel of Christ.
The US Constitution is often ignored or twisted, such as the Freedom of Speech where in the 1st Amendment you have the right to express your opinion, but today doing so may lead to getting fired from your job, ‘doxing’ (people finding your personal information and publishing it publicly, like your address), and having your opinions subjectively deemed ‘hate speech’.
You may or may not be in favor of these current trends on ‘speech’, until you find your Facebook ‘likes’ on items regarding Jesus and Right to Life or conservative issues are considered ‘hate’, and now are being slammed by a doxing campaign of spam e-mails, phone calls and people chanting ‘anti-<whatever you support>’ stuff in front of your house.
Those who subject you to this treatment are protected by law, for the most part, even though you have only supported what number of Americans consider proper with no malice, and the ‘hate’ you are being labeled with is subjective. The US Constitution, therefore, holds only the power given it by the citizenry of the US, thus its words fail us when it is no longer respected.
But above the US Constitution is God’s Law, written down by Moses and fulfilled by Jesus. His Word, even when disrespected, never change and can not be twisted. Many try but God’s promises always come through. God has kept, is keeping, will always keep His promises to us. He never fails to come through with what He says will happen.
When God is involved, His omnipotence reveals all things are possible. When God gave Abraham and Sarah a child when both were close to being centenarians (100 years old), when Jesus protected the ‘Pep Boys’ (Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego) in the furnace, when God wiped out the armies surrounding Jerusalem for Hezekiah; when Jesus resurrected Lazarus and later Himself after 3 days of death; these were impossible in the common sense of man, but they are possible when God is involved.
Today’s climate is a ‘win-win’ for God; no matter the outcome God will show He is control. Should God see America repent of its sins, God may repudiate the wave of anarchy and communism seen today and return the US to its proper path, even though it seems too late to do so. With all things, nothing is impossible when God is involved.
Should this time we live in be just the preamble or the Beginning of the End Times, and God allows things to continue as they are, God’s Word will show up and not fail. The Tribulation will play out as written and God’s people will be united with Him and Jesus. Either way, be strong and always involve our Lord Jesus in all things, and never falter in speaking the Truth.
