James 4:6 “But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.”
Noah Webster is known as the ‘Father of American Scholarship and Education.’ He was an author, an abolitionist, a lexicographer, and an outspoken supporter of the Constitution. Later in his life, this Founding Father wrote two must-read books for children and adults alike:
- The Value of the Bible and Excellence of the Christian Religion for the Use of Families and Schools (1834)
- History of the United States (1833)
The next four PLUS posts will use thoughts from these great works.
Webster wrote the following:
“The great difference between the maxims of the world and the doctrines of the gospel, is, that human opinions spring from pride, and tend to foster it; whereas the doctrines of the gospel teach humility, and self-abasement. The maxims of the world serve to encourage self-dependence in men, inducing them to rely on their own strength and resources for success, in business or policy, without seeking aid from the Almighty source of power. The gospel inculcates the opposite doctrine; it teaches that ‘God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble.’ It serves to make men humble, and to rely wholly on God for success, not only in spiritual concerns, but in the ordinary occupations of this world. In the pagan world, bravery and human efforts are everything; and God is nothing. In the Christian system, human strength is nothing, and God is every thing. In a Christian community then, all government should be founded on Christian principles or should be directed to support them; and to such a system God will give success. All governments of a different kind will produce, as they have ever produced, innumerable evils while they last, and will ultimately sink into corruption and be ruined. All history is a tissue of facts confirming these observations.”
This Founding Father recognized the need to embrace humility and to shun pride. He recognized that this applies to the personal level and to the governmental level. He recognized that the former would bring grace and the latter would bring resistance.
This nation is great because it didn’t spring from the maxims of this world, but instead from the doctrines of the gospel. The Founders recognized that human strength is nothing and that God is everything. PLEASE PRAY THAT AMERCIA WOULD ONCE AGAIN TURN TO GOD AS OUR EVERYTHING. By doing so, may we avoid the innumerable evils and inevitable ruin that come from the world’s maxims.
