PLUS

I Timothy 2:1-2 “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.”

On April 23^rd, 1789 George Washington arrived in New York City in preparation for his inauguration as our nation’s first President a week later. On that same day, the New York Daily Advertiser announced the following:

“On the morning of the day on which our illustrious President will be invested with his office, the bells will ring at nine o’clock, when the people may go up to the house of God and in a solemn manner commit the new government, with its important train of consequences, to the holy protection and blessing of the Most high.”

In 1789, America stood on the brink of history. As the Constitutional based government was forming, the world was watching. After a long fought battle against the world’s superpower, and a stumbling of government under the Articles of Confederation, could this new experiment work? Much was riding on the outcome, and the subsequent train of consequences demanded an inauguration day that was bathed in prayer. The people recognized the need to commit their new government and new nation to the holy protection and blessings of the Most high.

Though 1789 was a pivotal year, we should consider 2015 no less so. We stand on the brink of history and the world is watching to determine whether this 200-year experiment will survive. We continue to fight moral and physical battles, and have stumbled on both counts. Much rides on the outcome of our way forward, and the subsequent train of consequences demands that every day be bathed in prayer. We must recognize the need to commit our government and our nation to the holy protection and blessings of the Most high.

PLEASE BATHE OUR GOVERNMENT, ITS LEADERS, AND OUR NATION IN DAILY PRAYER. An important train of consequences follows each decision, and our solemn prayers stand as the only thing that can truly make a difference.

Ephesians 6:10 “Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might.”

Engravings on the Rotunda and the Northwest Portico of the Jefferson Memorial include:

“I have sworn upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form of tyranny over the mind of man.”

“Almighty God hath created the mind free. All attempts to influence it by temporal punishments or burthens…are a departure from the plan of the holy Author of our religion…No man shall be compelled to frequent or support religious worship or ministry or shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief, but all men shall be free to profess and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion.”

In Twenty-first Century America, there is a form of tyranny over the minds of men that would shock and appall the Founding Fathers. This newly established state religion denies freedom of thought. It influences the minds of men by burdens, punishments, and sufferings. It compels the population to worship at its altars without questioning its fundamental tenants.

The new religion uplifts self and denies moral restraint. This tyrannical force ostracizes those who would claim the preeminence of God-given truth. It swears allegiance to open-mindedness and moral relativism. This new religion insures that its precepts are ingrained into the common psyche through educational curriculum, public policy, and legal code. It reshapes history to remove the vestiges of the past. It is nothing less than tyranny over the mind of man, and those who oppose it must be strong in the Lord.

PLEASE PRAY THAT AMERICAN CHRISTIANS WOULD BE STRONG IN THE LORD AS THEY STAND AGAINST THE NEWLY-ESTABLISHED STATE RELIGION. Opposition to tyranny takes a force far stronger than self-reliance. It takes humble prayerfulness.

Psalms 9:7-8 “But the LORD shall endure for ever: he hath prepared his throne for judgment. And he shall judge the world in righteousness, he shall minister judgment to the people in uprightness.”

Colossians 3:25 “But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done: and there is no respect of persons.”

The engraving on the Northeast Portico of the Jefferson Memorial includes the following:

“Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, that His justice cannot sleep forever.”

While the context of the above is in relation to American slavery, it certainly applies more generally. With that in mind, Christians should tremble for our country. We should tremble for the future of a land that actively, even aggressively, invites God’s judgment. We should tremble with the thought that our children may grow up in a nation that has voluntarily removed itself from the protection of God.

God is just; His justice cannot sleep forever. PLEASE PRAY THAT GOD WOULD STAY HIS JUDGMENT WHILE TURNING OUR NATION BACK TO HIM. Indeed, we should tremble. That trembling should bring us to the one place we can make the most difference – to our knees.

Galatians 5:1 “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.”

Enshrined elsewhere in the Memorial, Jefferson wrote:

“God who gave us life gave us liberty. Can the liberties of a nation be secure when we have removed a conviction that these liberties are the gift of God?”

Indeed, can our rights remain secure as our nation forgets that our liberty, like our life itself, is a God-given gift? Thomas Jefferson, relying upon his Bible-based convictions, certainly didn’t think so. Instead, he saw that removing the conviction that liberties are gifts from God would cause them to slip away. Once we trust in another source for our rights and our liberties, then they would be fleeting.

The alternative to standing fast with Christ and His freely offered liberty and freedom is returning to entanglement with the yoke of bondage. This applies to the spiritual realm, and to the national realm as well. After all, the Lord is the source of all liberty and all freedom.

As a nation, we have a simple choice. We can stand fast in liberty and freedom by trusting in the Lord as their source, or we can risk the yoke of bondage by trusting in anything else.

PLEASE PRAY THAT AMERICA WOULD RECOGNIZE THE STARK ALTERNATIVE TO GOD-GIVEN LIBERTY. Once we remove our fundamental conviction about the source of liberty, we lose liberty itself.

NOTE: Please read this prior post for related thoughts: https://prayatlunch.us/never-entangled-again/

Genesis 1:27 “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.”

II Corinthians 3:17 “Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.”

On occasion I venture away from my normal routine and spend time with the Lord praying for our nation at special locations. Recently, I did so at the Jefferson Memorial. Before my time of prayer, I marveled at several of the Jeffersonian quotes engraved in marble that make the Memorial so poignant. The next few PLUS posts will focus on these quotes and their spiritual and national applications for us today.

The first engraving to consider was from the Declaration of Independence. Jefferson and the Founding Fathers wrote:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, that to secure these rights governments are instituted among men.”

This single sentence contains immeasurable Biblical truth and provides an unshakable reminder of the Christian faith of our founders. These truths include:

• God created man and created us equal
• Our rights are given by God and not by governments
• Our life, liberty and pursuit of happiness are gifts from God
• Governments are instituted to secure the rights given by God

Wow! This sentence, enshrined in our founding document, leaves us with much to consider. Our national forgetfulness about these truths leaves us with much for which to pray. PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICA TO RETURN TO THE SELF-EVIDENT BIBLICAL TRUTHS THAT PROMPTED THE FORMATION OF OUR NATION. The only way our rights can be inalienable is if we recognize the One who gives them to us.

NOTE: Please read this prior post for related thoughts: https://prayatlunch.us/self-evident/