A Pastor's Ponderings: I Stand for Christ on My Knees
“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” (1 Timothy 2:1-2).
This
country seems to be changing at lightning speed, so it behoves us to consider
our humble beginnings. In just a few centuries, the United States evolved from
a band of rebellious colonies with an untamed frontier into the world’s leading
economic and military superpower. Many Americans believe that our unprecedented
wealth and world dominance resulted from our ingenuity and drive.
Historically,
American universities taught that our national prosperity was born from our
system of government (a republic form of government instead of the communist or
socialist systems). What did the United States possess to facilitate such
a rapid transformation? The answer appeared during our nation’s infancy, and
the 19th century Frenchman Alexis de Tocqueville validated it.
In
1831, the French government commissioned historian Alexis de Tocqueville (1805-1859)
to travel throughout America. His official assignment was to evaluate the
prison system, but Tocqueville’s travels throughout the states gave him a
desire to understand America's greatness. He was a critic of the political
instability of Europe and wanted to document what he saw in America. His
discoveries, as he reported to the French Senate, drew these conclusions:
“I
went at your bidding, and passed along their thoroughfares of trade. I ascended
their mountains and went down their valleys. I visited their manufactories,
their commercial markets, and emporiums of trade. I entered their judicial
courts and legislative halls. But I sought everywhere in vain for the secret of
their success, until I entered the church. It was there, as I listened to the
soul-equalizing and soul-elevating principles of the Gospel of Christ, as they
fell from Sabbath to Sabbath upon the masses of the people, that I learned why
America was great and free, and why France was a slave.”
Toucqueville
wrote that the churches made the difference. Even our three-branch Republic
form of government originated from God’s holy word and not man’s intellect. “For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver,
the LORD is our king; he will save
us” (Isaiah 33:22).
Notice the three branch blueprint used by our founding fathers as delineated in Isaiah. God’s system of government included the judicial (judge), legislative (lawgiver) and executive (king) branches of government. Though this is the best form and the biblical form of government, it is not the sole reason for America’s greatness. When the United States of America honored God and His word above all else, we experienced much less turmoil. Supreme Court rulings in the early 1960s squashed the prayers of millions of school children that once traveled up to the throne of grace every school day. So, could you do one thing?
I was recently invited to the Governor’s mansion and had the distinct pleasure to meet with the Governor and his wife. In the most non-partisan way I can, I ask you to pray for Florida’s First Lady, Casey DeSantis, as she undergoes cancer treatments. I told her we would be praying for her; won’t you join me?
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