July 22 , 2004

Important Biblical Principles from Our Nation's Origin

When we say that our nation was founded upon Biblical principles, we are referring to specific Biblical principles that our Founding Fathers wrote and spoke about as they shaped our nation and its government. A few of these principles are:

1. God is sovereign over nations -- God establishes nations for a purpose and accordingly nations are accountable to God.

2. God created mankind and mankind's basic rights (life, liberty, etc) come from God alone -- not from government nor any other human institution...therefore, not only are nations accountable to a sovereign God but so are individuals.

3. The morality of the Bible (teachings of Jesus, Paul, the Ten Commandments, etc...) is the best source of law for organizing a society and for ensuring a prosperous culture for future generations.

4. Biblical principles and their definitions of right and wrong are absolute, God's Word never changes.

5.  All of mankind is born sinful because of Adam's original sin, and when left to his own devices man will tend towards evil. 

Some say that you can't legislate morality. This akin to saying that we won't force any specific set of rules in our football games this fall, that we will instead allow each person to play from his heart and decide for himself what constitutes a touchdown, a penalty, or what is "out of bounds." Without rules there would be no enjoyment of playing or watching a football game, it would be utter chaos. The rules, and the officials who enforce them, bring order so that the game will function and be successful.

The only purpose for law in our land is to legislate morality. We have laws that prevent murder, theft, cheating on our income taxes, and so on. These laws demand that we maintain a certain morale climate that is in the best interest of our nation's health and well being. If we live within these laws we will prosper. Without such laws our society would be in chaos. The law won't change men's hearts, but it does send a signal to all of society what our country deems as acceptable and unacceptable behavior, and puts in place a system of rewards and punishments accordingly.

Whenever our nation is grappling with a public-policy issues such as marriage, abortion, or prayer in schools, we should always ask, "Upon what moral authority will our public-policy be based -- by whose rules will we play?" Do we choose the morality of the Bible as our Founding Fathers did, or do we choose the morality of those who deny our Creator God, who deny a need for accountability to an authority that is higher than any human institution, and who deny the concept of absolute truth?

Our Founding Fathers were learned men, they studied history, they analyzed past cultures and governments and their successes or lack thereof, plus they had their own experience of living under the monarchy of Great Britain. They determined that the morality of the Bible was the very best system of values upon which to build our new nation. That is exactly what their "Great Experiment" was all about.

In his 1796 farewell address, after serving two terms as our President, George Washington said that, "Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, Religion and morality are indispensable supports...and let us with caution indulge the supposition, that morality can be maintained without religion...reason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle."

John Adams, Washington's Vice President for eight years and our nation's second President said, "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other."

Thomas Jefferson wrote, "Of all the systems of morality, ancient or modern, which have come under my observation, none appear to me so pure as that of Jesus."

During the Revolutionary War, Commander-in-Chief George Washington addressed a group of Delaware Indian Chiefs, "You do well to wish to learn our arts and ways of life, and above all, the religion of Jesus Christ. These will make you a greater and happier people than you are. Congress will do everything they can to assist you in this wise intention."

In the concluding sentence of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson penned these words, "...and with a firm reliance on divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our Sacred Honor."

The Bible is clear we are to be salt and light...we are to make a difference in our world. In Ephesians 6, Paul tells us to "stand our ground." 1 Peter chapter 3 tells us to "always be prepared to defend our beliefs." Those who oppose the truth about our nation's Christian heritage, and our efforts to restore our Christian foundation, do so because they do not want to be accountable to God. They are like Adam and Eve who desire to call their own shots, to decide for themselves what is right and wrong rather than be accountable to our Creator and living by His rules.

We are truly at a crossroads in this country. Will we continue in the direction that rejects God as the supreme authority over our nation, or will we (as our Founding Fathers did) pledge our lives, fortunes, and sacred honor to move our nation down the path that acknowledges our "firm reliance" on our Creator, the Christian God, and that we are accountable as individuals and as a nation to Him?