Today we start our new series entitled, "Keeping Our America Great." Anything that is great and sustainable must be intentionally built upon a firm foundation. The United States has a significantly strong foundation in that she was built upon Christian thought. Regardless of how many modern historians or anti-God liberals want to interpret, reproduce, or plainly lie about our foundation, the simple truth cannot be denied that America has Christian roots. Anyone without exception who cannot acknowledge this fact either is completely deceiving oneself or they shamefully desire to deceive others.

Instead of me making my own case that the United States was built upon the foundation of Christian thought, why not simply hear from those who actually founded it along with a few other voices throughout the years.

 

Patrick Henry, Prominent figure in American Revolution; 1^st Governor of Virginia - "It cannot be emphasized too clearly and too often that this nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religion, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ.  For this very reason, peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here."

 

John Hancock, President of Continental Congress; First signer of Declaration of Independence - "We recognize no Sovereign but God, and no King but Jesus!"

Continental Congress - Issued a call in 1775 to all citizens to fast and pray and confess their sin that the Lord might bless the land. "And it is recommended to Christians of all denominations, to assemble for public worship, and to abstain from servile labor and recreation on said day."

James Madison, "Father of the Constitution;" 4^th President of U.S. - "We've staked our future on our ability to follow the Ten Commandments with all of our heart."

 

George Washington, 1^st President of U.S. - "What students would learn in American schools above all is the religion of Jesus Christ."

 

John Adams, 2^nd President of United States - "The general principles upon which the Fathers achieved independence were the general principles of Christianity"

 

John Adams - "The highest story of the American Revolution is this: it connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity."

 

Samuel Adams, Led effort to declare independence; One of the primary architects of American republicanism- "The rights of the colonists as Christians...may be best understood by reading and carefully studying the institutes of the Great Law Giver and Head of the Christian Church, which are to be found clearly written and promulgated in the New Testament."

 

Samuel Adams - "Let the children...be carefully instructed in the principles and obligations of the Christian religion. This is the most essential part of education.

 

George Mason, "The Father of the Bill of Rights" - "All men have an equal, natural and unalienable right to the free exercise of religion, according to the dictates of conscience; and that no particular sect or society of Christians ought to be favored or established by law in preference to others."

 

Noah Webster, "The Father of Public Education" in his textbook "History of America" written in 1832 - "The religion which has introduced civil liberty is the religion of Christ and his apostles, which enjoins humility, piety and benevolence; which acknowledges in every person a brother, or a sister, and a citizen with equal rights. This is genuine Christianity, and to this we owe our free Constitutions of Government."

 

John Jay,The first Chief Justice of the United States "Providence has given to our people the choice of their rulers, and it is the duty, as well as the privilege and the interest, of a Christian nation to select and prefer Christians for their rulers."

Delaware Constitution of 1776, "Everyone appointed to public office must say, 'I do profess faith in God the Father, and in the Lord Jesus Christ His only Son, and in the Holy Ghost. In God who is blessed forevermore I do acknowledge the Holy Scriptures and the Old and New Testaments which are given by divine inspiration.'"

State Constitutions - The Constitution of each of the fifty states acknowledges and calls upon the Providence of God for the blessings of freedom.

Public Elections - Eleven of the first thirteen states required faith in Jesus Christ and the Bible as qualification for holding public office.

Thomas Jefferson, 4^th President of United States - "The reason that Christianity is the best friend of Government is because Christianity is the only religion that changes the heart."

Alexis de Tocqueville, French author wrotein his history book entitled "Democracy in America" written in1841 - "In the United States of America the sovereign authority is religious ... there is no other country in the world in which the Christian religion retains a greater influence over the souls of men than in America."

Abraham Lincoln, 16^th President of the United States - "It is the duty of all nations, as well as of men, to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God and to recognize the sublime truth announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history, that those nations only are blessed whose God is the Lord."

Woodrow Wilson, 28^th President of the United States - "America was born a Christian nation. America was born to exemplify that devotion to the elements of righteousness which are derived from the revelations of Holy Scriptures."

Calvin Coolidge, 30^th President of the United States - "They were intent upon establishing a Christian commonwealth in accordance with the principle of self-government."

 

Harry S. Truman, 33^rd President of the United States - "The fundamental basis of this nation's law was given to Moses on the Mount. The fundamental basis of our Bill of Rights comes from the teaching we get from Exodus and St. Matthew, from Isaiah and St. Paul. I don't think we emphasize that enough these days. If we don't have the proper fundamental moral background, we will finally end up with a totalitarian government which does not believe in the right for anybody except the state."

 

Ronald Reagan, 40^th President of the United States - "America needs God more than God needs America.  If we ever forget that we are One Nation Under God, then we will be a Nation gone under."

This is simply a partial list. Tomorrow we will look at the Bible's role in the founding of our republic and we may even peruse through some court cases. Please be in prayer. We as a nation, need to return to the God of our Founders!