Faithful Observations God’s People Remembering Their Past
As I write this column on Nov. 4 after the election it is challenging to bring a thoughtful Christian perspective.
John Adams wrote in 1765, 10 years before the revolution, “I always consider the settlement of America with Reverence and Wonder — as the Opening of a grand scene and Design in Providence, for the illumination of the Ignorant and the Emancipation of the slavish Part of Mankind all over the Earth.”
Wow, quite a statement! It is almost as if he had a vision and purpose of what this country would be in the future. We have had many people who sacrificed so much for this country and our freedom in times of distress. The Bible encourages us to “remember” what God has done and through his guidance has formed this nation.
We don’t teach very much history any more or share the stories of the heroes of the faith and our country. Because of that we are tearing down the statues and monuments of these men.
George Washington was that “indispensable” man who saved the Revolution. He faced the most powerful army in the world with only about one-third of the population behind him. Another third were loyal to the King. Ten percent gave to the cause and only 3% fought in the army. The odds against this leader were formidable and yet he was “the father of his country”!
Washington warned us, “I can foresee, however, that many will employ mistruths, often covertly and insidiously, to weaken our conviction to preserving national unity. ….It is of the utmost importance that we properly estimate the value of our national union, and develop the unwavering habit of preserving it; moreover, our collective efforts to do so should always be cordial.”
Abraham Lincoln faced challenges that we are all aware of. A civil war that split our country into two with deaths over 700,000.
Lincoln’s goal was to reunite the nation after the war and this quote by him says it all, “I am loath to close. We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies. Though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection. The mystic chords of memory, stretching from every battlefield and patriot grave to every living heart and hearthstone all over this broad land, will yet swell the chorus of the Union, when again touched, as surely they will be, by the better angels of our nature.”
Finally, Martin Luther King Jr., who came upon the scene in Montgomery, Ala., as a 23-year-old preacher and who had his first name changed as a child by his father from Michael to Martin as a symbol of his son's future.
Dr. King was a voice that rang out during a period of racial and political strife. He had amazing insight and maturity as a young man when he took on the leadership of a movement. His words still ring out today when he said, “Now there is a final reason I think that Jesus says, "Love your enemies." It is this: that love has within it a redemptive power. And there is a power there that eventually transforms individuals. Just keep being friendly to that person. Just keep loving them, and they can’t stand it too long. Oh, they react in many ways in the beginning. They react with guilt feelings, and sometimes they’ll hate you a little more at that transition period, but just keep loving them. And by the power of your love they will break down under the load. That’s love, you see. It is redemptive, and this is why Jesus says love. There’s something about love that builds up and is creative. There is something about hate that tears down and is destructive. So love your enemies. (from "Loving Your Enemies")”
Pastor Erwin Lutzer said in his book, "When A Nation Forgets God," “God is humbling us. The political solutions that we thought would rescue our nation from its moral and spiritual free fall have had scant effect. We are learning that the problem is deeper than we thought, thus the solution itself must be deeper also. In sum, we must realize that only God can save us from those trends that have already evoked His judgment.”
Let me close with a great quote from Joseph Backholm recently, “The future of our country and the quality of our lives is not determined primarily by who is in public office. Politicians are the fruit of the tree, they are not the tree. Our future will be determined by the strength of our families, and we all have control over that. Be great husbands, wives, parents, friends, and neighbors. Live for others, and live as if your kids, and God, are always watching. God is always watching, and our kids are watching more than we realize. Find things to be grateful for and resist the temptations to complain. Go out of your way to make someone else's life better and yours will be too, even if you don't like who is in the White House. If our joy is dependent upon a political outcome, we'll never be happy.”
In fact, Christians have the only other viable alternative to offer - unity in Christ. After all, Who occupies the throne in Heaven matters far more than who occupies 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
“A Psalm of David. Bless the Lord, O my soul, And all that is within me, bless His holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget none of His benefits;” Psalm 103:1,2