The True American Dream

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“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.” The American Declaration of Independence

“The First Great Awakening left an indelible mark on the development of America. With roots stretching back to the Christian Reformation of the 1500s, the Great Awakening swept the young colonies with the fires of evangelical fervor. The revival shook the very foundations of colonial society. Following in its wake was a rebirth of reformed philosophy and theology that planted the seeds of self government and political autonomy in the fertile soil of the Americas. By 1776 that seed had blossomed into a vibrant revolutionary movement that questioned the very fabric of Old World society.” Liberty University

A Day worth celebrating

Once again Americans all across the country celebrated the 4th of July, the day upon which the nation was formally founded and established upon a Declaration of Independence and Constitution that are quite remarkable and without precedent in the world. It is not prosperity, property ownership and unbridled wealth that constitutes the American Dream but in fact the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution which enables such blessings to become a reality. All of these things flow out of these two documents and two hundred and forty-five years prove it. There is indeed no country like America in the world, this is just a fact.

Sadly on 4th of July, very few Americans stop to thank God for this treasure and its implications being rather preoccupied with outdoor pleasures, shopping and other recreational pursuits. Indeed, I have discovered that many Americans know very little about their founding Fathers, the Declaration of Independence and the all important articles of their amazing Constitution, and so others, building on this neglect and ignorance, are seeking to tear them down because they hate freedom and everything that the Constitution stands for in order to secure it. They desire a government that totally rejects the notion that our freedoms come from God and are therefore inalienable. No, they, like Lucifer of old, desire total control so that in fact they can become like God and determine their own destiny and that of everyone else. The Dollar note that declares, “In God We Trust” is anathema to them and so they rage through the streets of America vowing to destroy and burn everything down. They wish to transform America by sweeping away its Declaration of Independence and Constitution and replacing these with a tired and worn out one, and proved to be so, that propagates Marxist Socialism. This is where the state is god and its subjects are denied the ability and freedom to excel by small government, hard work, discipline, commitment, perseverance and yes, trust in the God of the Bible.

The God of the Bible

Just before the founding of the nation a Christian revival swept through the 13 original states that was led by the Wesleyan George Whitfield and Jonathan Edwards. It has rightly been called, “The Great Awakening.” The impact on these states was huge and even men like Benjamin Franklin, John Adams and Samuel Adams were greatly impacted by it. It is no secret that many of the states that made up this remarkable original Union drafted constitutions that were literally lifted out of the five Books of Moses. We must not underestimate the impact that this Christian revival had on the drafting of the great Constitution that set the thirteen states aside as a remarkable Union. Even Liberty Bell has inscribed upon it a verse taken from the book of Leviticus that declares, “Let Liberty be proclaimed throughout the land” (Leviticus 25:10) and the very idea of three entities of government namely; the Houses of Congress, the Supreme Court and the Presidency, came from the book of Isaiah where in chapter 33:22 we read:

“For the Lord is our Judge (Supreme Court), the Lord is our Lawgiver (Houses of Congress), the Lord is our King (President).”

Moreover, this impact of the Bible upon the Founders is reflected on the great walls of the nation’s buildings as upon these are inscribed quotes from it, the Ten Commandments and even images of Moses and, if you doubt it, just enter the great room of Constitution Hall in Washington DC and you can see for yourself.

The framers of America’s founding documents

For sure the Founding Father’s were flawed men, and also have to be understood by recognizing the times in which they lived, but they drafted a Declaration of Independence which is supported by a Constitution that is in all respects above human ability and therefore we recognize the hand of God in these. It is this Declaration of Independence and Constitution that guaranteed the success of Dr. Martin Luther King’s Dream because he knew that these clearly stated that it is self evident that all men are equal. Racial segregation was outlawed by America’s founding documents and therefore Dr. King could not fail and the people that opposed him knew it. The real American Dream guaranteed his success.

The amazing thing is that, though the Founding Fathers, in many respects in their personal lives, contradicted the principles that they set forth in the Declaration of Independence and Constitution, they were nevertheless sufficiently impacted by the God of the Bible that they wrote something that is in every way quite remarkable. This is astonishing and should make us all think twice before we seek to tear these down. But it is this ignorance that is allowing the mob on the streets of America to tear down statues, assault the Constitution and call for the total transformation of the country into a so-called socialist utopia. The Christian underpinnings of America’s great Declaration of Independence and Constitution are undeniable but, because of ignorance, most Americans today are allowing these to be assaulted and even say nothing when a well known Senator stands up and arrogantly affirms that God has no place in the affairs of Congress. There was a day when the Rev. Dr Peter Marshall opened the affairs of Congress with prayer.

The wisdom of the founders

Though heavily impacted by the Bible and therefore asserting that freedom comes from God and not from men, the Founding Fathers also had the wisdom to know that the newly formed state could not rest on a religious foundation if it truly wanted to guarantee freedom for all men and thus it enshrined freedom of religion in the Constitution and not freedom from religion. That is, in their context they envisioned a state where the Christian Gospel and the message of the Bible could be freely proclaimed in the public square and not interfered with or necessarily endorsed by the state. They did this because the Pioneering Pilgrims of the nation, who were themselves fervent Bible believing Christians, had fled religious persecution perpetrated by various states in Europe including England.

My dear friends, as this 4th of July passes by us again, let us take a moment and thank God for a Declaration of Independence and Constitution that honors Him and are in every way remarkable gifts to the American people. We should not tear down the statues and memory of those who framed these but rather remember their frailties and learn from them and yet affirm with all zeal the tenets that they set forth for us. Our children and grand-children need to know these things. It is not some new political agenda that we need and we certainly do not need new creeds that have to do with race theory. These are bankrupt because, as most of them do, they are racist because they assume that because you were born a certain color then you are automatically a racist or not a racist. This is just nonsense designed to further alienate Americans and breed hate. What we need is to assert the American Dream, which is its Declaration of Independence and Constitution, and this means that every American should recognize the gift that God has given them. Therefore, the more we demand that the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution should be respected and allowed to govern our lives, so the more we will experience Liberty, Prosperity, Dignity, the common good, tolerance, peace and the pursuit of happiness.

The battle before us

The very nature of these remarkable documents means that they will be opposed by people and this will be done systematically and relentlessly. Of this you must have no doubt and recent events in the nation demonstrate just how determined some people are in their desire to overthrow them. Nothing demonstrates this more than the misguided people who publicly dishonor the flag and national anthem. A new revolution is certainly needed and its goal should be to entrench what happened on the 4th July in 1776.

May God bless America and may God bless us all,

Malcolm Hedding

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