The Christian Faith of Our Founding Fathers

Happy birthday, America! May we never let the truth be quenched by secular historical revisionists who try and claim that our Nation was not founded by Christian men with Christian principles. The following are truths that will no longer be taught in our Nation's public schools.

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."

These are the first and second clauses to Amendment 1 of the United States Constitution. Thank God we live in the United States of America! Thank God our Founding Fathers saw fit in their wisdom to allow for a nation to rise up based upon the proposition that all men are created equal in the eyes of God Almighty, and that they should be allowed to pursue their spiritual side and worship their Creator. Today as we are approaching the celebration of the 232nd birthday of the United States of America, what better time is there than now to let us be reminded once again how our forefathers viewed God, and what part they felt that Christianity should play in the governance of a nation.

"Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a disgrace to any people." (Proverbs 14:34)

Our Founding Fathers believed wholeheartedly in this principle. James Madison, the Father of the U.S. Constitution, and fourth President of the United States, said this: "We have staked the whole future of American civilization, notupon the power of government; far from it. We have staked the futureof all our political institutions upon the capacity of mankind forself-government; upon the capacity of each and all of us to governourselves, to control ourselves, to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God."

Our Founding Fathers sought the guidance of God and proclaimed their faith in Christ Jesus throughout their great struggles, and one can see their faith displayed in the documents they wrote, such as is found in the Declaration of Independence written by Thomas Jefferson and signed by the Founding Fathers in July 1776:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that theyare endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

This thought resounds from the Holy Scriptures when Peter said on the day the Holy Spirit first opened his eyes to reveal that the Gospel was also intended for the Gentiles: "…I most certainly understand now that God is not one to show partiality, but in every nation the man who fears Him and does what is right, is welcome to Him." (Acts 10:34-35)

In today's world of secular revisionist history there are many that would like you to believe that our Founding Fathers were atheists, deists, and agnostics. Unfortunately, many of these secular revisionist historians have made their way to the United States Supreme Court, making rulings in the recent years that prohibit the mere displaying of the Ten Commandments in Court Houses. These secular revisionist historians are desperate in their attempts to wish to convey this image of these great men, our Founding Fathers, as agnostics who rejected God so as to further their own anti-God, anti-Christian agenda which seeks to remove God and His blessed Son from all aspects of our society, and make their godless views, therefore, more respectable, and more palatable for public consumption. Whether it is the extraction of "under God" from the Pledge of Allegiance, or the deletion of the words "In God We Trust" from our money, or even changing the names of cities that incorporate the name of the Lord in them, such as Corpus Christi, TX, these people will stop at nothing to try and remove God from the hearts, minds and lives of the people. Paul spoke of those holding similar attitudes as today's revisionist and elitist historians do almost 2,000 years ago when he said this to the church in Rome: "For the wrath of God is revealed from Heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God, or give thanks; but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures." (Romans 1:18-23) You see, God has revealed Himself to mankind even through His glorious creation! Paul says we are all without excuse for not honoring our Creator. Our Founding Fathers understood this intrinsically. How do I know this? Because I have examinined their beliefs through their own words.

Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States and author of the Declaration of Independence, said this in 1781:

"God who gave us life gave us liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are a giftof God? That they are not to be violated but with His wrath? Indeed, I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that His justice cannot sleep forever."

Do you not hear these same thoughts conveyed in the following passages from God's word as expressed by Jefferson? "But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man shall be blessed in what he does." (James 1:25) "For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another." (Galatians 5:13) And found written on the cover of his personal Bible Jefferson had inscribed:

"I am a real Christian, that is to say, a disciple of the doctrines of Jesus. I have little doubt that our whole country will soon be rallied to the unity of our Creator and, I hope, to the pure doctrine of Jesus also."

And as Paul wrote to the church in Corinth, "Now I exhort you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all agree, and there be no divisions among you, but you be made complete in thes ame mind and in the same judgment." (1 Corinthians 1:10)

Benjamin Franklin, one of the original signers of the Declaration of Independence, made the following statement at the Constitutional Convention, on June 28, 1787:

"In the beginning of the contest with Britain, when we were sensible of danger, we had daily prayers in this room for Divine protection. Our prayers, Sir, were heard, and they were answered. All of us who were engaged in the struggle have observed frequent instances of superintending Providence in ourfavor.... And have we now forgotten this powerful Friend? Or, do we imagine we no longer need His assistance?

"I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing I see of this truth: that God governs in the affairs of man. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid?

"We have been assured, Sir, in the Sacred Writings that except theLord build the house, they labor in vain that build it. I firmly believe this. I also believe that, without His concurring aid, we shall succeed in this political building no better than the builders of Babel; we shall be divided by our little, partial local interests; our projects will be confounded; and we shall become a reproach and a byword to future ages. And what is worse, mankind may hereafter, from this unfortunate instance, despair of establishing government by human wisdom and leave it to chance, war, or conquest.

"I therefore beg to move that, henceforth, prayers imploring the assistance of Heaven and it's blessing on our deliberation be held in this assembly every morning before we proceed to business."

And from the word of God we find the following sentiments that had been expressed by Benjamin Franklin: "Are not two sparrows sold for a cent? And yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Therefore do not fear; you are of more value than many sparrows." (Matthew 10:29-31)

"Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it; unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman keeps awake in vain." (Psalm 127:1)

Alexander Hamilton, the first Secretary of the Treasury and one of the authors of The Federalist Papers, had the following words recorded as he lay in his bed dying on July 12, 1804:

"I have tender reliance on the mercy of the Almighty; through the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ. I am a sinner. I look to Him for mercy; pray for me."

And from the repentant thief on the cross we have the following: "Jesus, remember me when You come in Your kingdom!" (Luke 23:42)

Patrick Henry, a great American patriot and statesman, in his Last Will and Testament, dated November 20, 1798 said thusly:

"This is all the inheritance I give to my dear family. The religion of Christ will give them one which will make them rich indeed."

Paul wrote to his family in Christ in Ephesus, saying, "To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ." (Ephesians 3:8)

And 23 years earlier in 1775, Patrick Henry stated these words which echoed throughout the land:

"An appeal to arms and the God of hosts is all that is left us. But we shall not fight our battle alone. There is a just God that presides over the destinies of nations. Thebattle, sir, is not to the strong alone. Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it almighty God! I know not what course others may take, but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!"

This is very reminiscent of the statement made by Joshua in Joshua 24:15: "And if it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

And in 1796 Patrick Henry said:

"It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great Nation was founded not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religion, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ. For that reason alone, people of other faiths have been afforded freedom of worship here."

Paul said in his epistle to the churches in Galatia, "I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you, and want to distort the Gospel of Christ." (Galatians 1:6-7)

Abraham Lincoln, the 16th President of the United States, upon declaring a National Day of Prayer and Fasting following the Battle of Bull Run, said:

"It is fit and becoming in all people, at all times, to acknowledge and revere the Supreme Government of God; to bow in humble submission to His chastisement; to confess and deplore their sins and transgressions in the full conviction that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; and to pray, with all fervency and contrition, for the pardon of their past offenses, and for a blessing upon their present and prospective action."

Lincoln's thoughts can be found in the following verses: "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments; His praise endures forever." (Psalm 111:10)

"It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as withsons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?" (Hebrews 12:7)

"Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exaltyou." (James 4:10)

"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9)

George Washington, the first President of the United States, said the following on October 3, 1789, while proclaiming a National Day of Prayer and Thanksgiving:

"It is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the Providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and to humbly implore His protection and favor."

Washington also kept a prayer journal. This is one of several entries:

"Oh, eternal and everlasting God, direct my thoughts, words and work. Wash away my sins in the immaculate blood of the Lamb, and purge my heart by Thy Holy Spirit, from the dross of my natural corruption, that I may with more freedom of mind and liberty of will serve Thee, the everlasting God, in righteousness and holiness this day, and all the days of my life.

"Increase my faith in the sweet promises of the Gospel. Give me repentance from dead works. Pardon my wanderings, and direct my thoughts unto Thyself, the God of my salvation. Teach me how to live in Thy fear, labor in Thy service, and ever to run in the ways of Thy commandments. Make me always watchful over my heart, that neither the terrors of conscience, the loathing of holy duties, the love of sin, nor an unwillingness to depart this life, may cast me into a spiritual slumber. But daily frame me more and more into thelikeness of Thy Son, Jesus Christ, that living in Thy fear, and dying in Thy favor, I may in Thy appointed time attain the resurrection of the just unto eternal life. Bless my family, friends and kindred, unite us all in praising and glorifying Thee in all our works begun, continued, and ended, when we shall come to make our last account before Thee blessed Saviour, Who hath taught us thus to pray, our Father. Bless, O Lord, the whole race of mankind and let the world be filled with the knowledge of Thee and Thy Son, Jesus Christ."

John wrote of Christians having their sins washed clean in the blood of the Lamb: "These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb." (Revelation 7:14)

Paul wrote of Christians being united in the likeness of God and Christ when he wrote the following: "For if we have become united with Him in the likeness of His death, certainly we shall be also in the likeness of His resurrection." (Romans 6:5)

" . . . and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth." (Ephesians 4:24)

These next words were spoken by George Washington as he resigned his commission as general of the Continental Army on December 23,1783:

"I consider it an indispensable duty to close this last solemn act of my official life by commending the interests of our dearest country to the protection of Almighty God and those who have the superintendence of them into His holy keeping."

In his farewell speech given on September 17, 1796, Washington said:

"Let it simply be asked, Where is the security for property, for reputation, for life, if the sense of religious obligation desert the oaths, which are the instruments of investigation in Courts ofJustice? And let us with caution indulge the supposition, that morality can be maintained without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both forbid us to expect, that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle."

Paul asked, rather redundantly to the church in Corinth, "Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?" (1 Corinthians 1:20)

Morality and justice will cease to be when we allow God to be removed from our lives. John Adams, the second President of the United States, and father of John Quincy Adams, the sixth President of the United States, said this in 1756:

"Suppose a nation in some distant region should take the Bible for their only Law Book, and every member should regulate his conduct by the precepts there exhibited. . . . What a paradise would this region be!"

His conclusions can be garnered from the Scriptures: "Thy word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path." (Psalm 119:105)

"Praise the Lord! How blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in His commandments. His descendants will be mighty on Earth; the generation of the upright will be blessed." (Psalm 112:1-2)

John Adams also said the following:

"We have no government armed with the power capable of contending with human passions, unbridled by morality and true religion. Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other."

John Adams was correct, for the consequences of an immoral society are made manifest: "Therefore God gave them over in the lusts oftheir hearts to impurity, that their bodies might be dishonored among them." (Romans 1:24)

Daniel Webster, statesman, lawyer, and orator, was his era's foremost advocate of American nationalism. Here are his thoughts on the Bibl eand country:

"If we abide by the principles taught in the Bible, our country will go on prospering and to prosper; but if we and our posterity neglect its instructions and authority, no man can tell how sudden a catastrophe may overwhelm us and bury all our glory in profound obscurity."

Webster's words seem to agree with those of Jesus. Jesus said: "It was the same as happened in the days of Lot: they were eating, they were drinking, they were buying, they were selling, they were planting, they were building; but on the day that Lot went out from Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from Heaven and destroyed them all. It will be just the same on the day that the Son of Man is revealed." (Luke 17:28-30)

The U.S. Supreme Court, in a decision reached in 1892, said thusly:

"Our Laws and our Institutions must necessarily be based upon the teachings of the Redeemer of Mankind. It is impossible that it should be otherwise; and in this sense and to this extent, our civilization and our institutions are emphatically Christian."

John Quincy Adams, the sixth President of the United States, said:

"The highest glory of the American Revolution was this: it connected in one indissoluble bond the principles of civil government with the principles of Christianity."

Calvin Coolidge, the 30th U. S. President, and known as "Silent Cal", said:

"The foundations of our society and our government rest so much on the teachings of the Bible that it would be difficult to support them if faith in these teachings would cease to be practically universal in our country."

The United States Congress, in 1782, declared:

"The Congress of the United States recommends and approves the Holy Bible for use in all schools."

God would seem to be in favor of that: "Train up a child in the wayhe should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it." (Proverbs 22:6)

Dr. Benjamin Rush, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, was considered by his peers to be one of the most prominent of the Founding Fathers, alongside Ben Franklin, George Washington, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson. He wrote textbooks, formed curriculum plans, crafted educational policies, and helped establish five universities and colleges. As the founder of public education in America, listen to his definition of what he said public education should contain:

"The only foundation for a useful education in a republic is to be laid in religion. Without this there can be no virtue, and without virtue there can be no liberty."

On March 28, 1787 when Dr. Benjamin Rush proposed his plan for public education in America he wrote:

"Let the children who are sent to those schools be taught to read and write . . . and above all, let both sexes be carefully instructed in the principles and obligations of the Christian religion. This is the most essential part of education."

In another educational proposal he wrote:

"It will be necessary to connect all these (academic) branches of education with regular instruction in the Christian religion."

In 1791 Dr. Rush wrote a lengthy pamphlet entitled A Defense of the Use of the Bible as a Schoolbook. Here is how that writing began:

"It is now several months since I promised to give you my reasons for preferring the Bible as a schoolbook to all other compositions. Before I state my arguments, I shall assume the five following propositions: 1. That Christianity is the only true and perfect religion; and that in proportion as mankind adopts its principles and obeys its precepts they will be wise and happy. 2. That a better knowledge of this religion is to be acquired by reading the Bible than in any other way. 3. That the Bible contains more knowledge necessary to man in his present state than any other book in the world.4. That knowledge is most durable, and religious instruction most useful, when imparted in early life. 5. That the Bible, when not read in schools, is seldom read in any subsequent period of life. My arguments in favor of the use of the Bible as a schoolbook are well-founded."

Benjamin Rush was another of the Founding Fathers who would be enraged at being called an atheist, agnostic, or deist! His stand as a Christian was undeniable.

Roger Sherman was the only man to sign all four of America's founding documents. He signed the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution of the United States, the Articles of Association, and the Articles of Confederation. He was one of the five men selected as a committee to write and present the Declaration of Independence. His Christianity was made evident in statements made by him such as the following:

"I believe that there is only one living and true God . . . that the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are a revelation from God and a complete rule to direct us how we may glorify and enjoy Him."

Roger Sherman seconded the motion by Benjamin Franklin to start each session of Congress with prayer. Roger Sherman was one of the most visible figures at that convention, speaking 138 times. Roger Sherman openly challenged his countrymen in a sermon that was published:

"Let us live no more to ourselves, but to Him Who loved us, and gave Himself to die for us."

Roger Sherman is yet another contradiction to the accusation that our Founding Fathers were not guided by the teachings of Christianity! This man who helped write the Declaration of Independence; this solitary signer of America's four founding documents; this stalwart patriot, Roger Sherman, was a believer in the Bible and his Lord, Jesus Christ! Do not, my friends, let any try and persuade you that our Founding Fathers intended the first two clauses of the First Amendment to the Constitution to mean that God and Jesus Christ were not to be allowed ever in the halls of our government! We have provided historical proof from all three branches of the federal government that disputes once and for all this claim.

Finally, we shall let John Jay, one of the authors of The Federalist Papers, have the last word. In a letter to his friend Jedidiah Morse dated February 28, 1797 Jay wrote:

"Providence has given to our people the choice of their rulers, and it is the duty, as well as the privilege and interest of our Christian nation to select and prefer Christians for their rulers."