Psalm 33:12 “Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.”
Psalm 20:7 “Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God.”
Romans 13:1 “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.”
As described in last week’s post, we have been endowed by our Creator with the rights that we enjoy. As stated in the Declaration of Independence: “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.”
There are two important ramifications of this powerful statement of God-given rights that me must never forget.
First, we must remember the superiority of God in everything in our lives and our society, including His preeminence in the blessed provision of our rights. The famous French Historian and political philosopher Alexis De Tocqueville wrote the following in the 1830s: “It is religion which has given birth to Anglo-American societies: one must never lose sight of that; in the United States, religion is thus intimately linked to all national habits and all the emotions which one’s native country arouses; that gives it a particular strength.” When we rely on a false foundation for our rights and our strength, trusting in anything other than the Lord, it produces a fragile freedom.
Second, we must never lose sight of the line in the Declaration of Independence that immediately follows the sentence listed above: “That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.” Government is not the source of our rights, it is only charged with securing the rights that we already have been given. Rabbi Sacks (mentioned last week) boldly stated this poignant truth: “when human beings arrogate supreme power to themselves, politics losses its soul securing the defense of freedom.”
Our rights hinge on these two critical truths!
PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICAN CHRISTIANS TO STRONGLY CONTEND FOR OUR GOD-GIVEN RIGHTS BY NEVER ALLOWING GOVERNMENT TO SUPERSEDE GOD’S PROPER PLACEMENT IN THE ESTABLISHMENT OF OUR LIBERTIES. May we never arrogate God’s rightful position in the establishment of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
