We Must Reclaim the American Vision - Eddie Hyatt CHARISMA NEWS

Indeed, the original American vision was for a land of individual liberty and a place from which the gospel would be spread to the ends of the earth. (Public Domain)

We Must Reclaim the American Vision

7/3/2017 Eddie Hyatt CHARISMA NEWS

In a meeting with Delaware Indian chiefs in 1779, George Washington commended them for their request that their youth be trained in American schools. He assured the chiefs that America would look upon them "as their own children" and then said,

You do well to wish to learn our arts and our ways of life and above all, the religion of Jesus Christ. These will make you a greater and happier people than you are. Congress will do everything they can to assist you in this wise intention.

Washington's freedom in sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with this Indian tribe was normal for the founding generation, for such freedom was rooted in the original American vision. This original vision was brought here by the Jamestown settlers of Virginia, the Pilgrims and Puritans of New England, the Baptists of Rhode Island, the Quakers of Pennsylvania and other Christian reform groups who were drawn to this land with a proactive vision burning in their hearts.

The Original American Vision

Indeed, the original American vision was for a land of individual liberty and a place from which the gospel would be spread to the ends of the earth. America's Founding Fathers were not shy in expressing this vision for they believed, that in this world, real freedom could only be realized in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

This link between freedom and the gospel was expressed by America's second president, John Adams, just two weeks before the adoption of the Declaration of Independence. In a letter to his cousin, Zabdiel, a minister of the gospel, Adams wrote, "Statesmen, my dear sir, may plan and speculate for Liberty, but it is Religion [Christianity] and Morality alone, which can establish the Principles, upon which Freedom can securely stand."

Adams was not expressing anything new or novel for the idea of freedom rooted in the gospel of Christ was a common American belief brought here by the very first European immigrants to this land. Consider the following quotes.

"From these very shores the Gospel shall go forth, not only to this New World, but to all the world." —Rev. Robert Hunt, April 29, 1607, as he and the Jamestown settlers, who had just landed at Cape Henry, gathered in prayer around a large oak cross they had brought from England.

"Having undertaken for the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian faith ... a voyage to plant the first colony in northern Virginia." —From the Mayflower Compact, the governing document of the Pilgrims who formulated it upon their arrival in the New World in November of 1620.

"Whereas we all came into these parts of America with one and the same end and aim, namely to advance the kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ and enjoy the Liberties of the Gospel in purity and peace." —Opening statement of the Articles of Confederation for "The United Colonies of New England," dated May 29, 1643. This confederation of New England towns and colonies was formed for mutual security and to arbitrate land disputes among the growing population.

"Might it not greatly facilitate the introduction of pure religion among the heathen, if we could, by such a colony, show them a better sample of Christians than they commonly see." —Benjamin Franklin in a 1756 letter to George Whitefield, the most famous preacher of the Great Awakening, in which Franklin proposed that they partner together in founding a Christian colony on the Ohio frontier.

"Pray that the peaceful and glorious reign of our Divine Redeemer may be known throughout the whole family of mankind." —Samuel Adams, Founding Father and Governor of Massachusetts. This call to prayer was part of a proclamation for a Day of Prayer that he issued as governor of Massachusetts in 1795.

"Pray that all nations may bow to the scepter of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, and that the whole earth may be filled with his glory." —John Hancock, Founding Father, President of the Continental Congress and Governor of Massachusetts. This statement was part of a call for prayer he issued while Governor.

"The policy of the bill is adverse to the diffusion of the light of Christianity. The first wish of those who enjoy this precious gift ought to be that it may be imparted to the whole race of mankind." —James Madison, chief architect of the Constitution and America's fourth president, voicing his opposition in 1785 to a bill that he perceived would have the unintended consequence of hindering the spread of the Gospel.

"The philosophy of Jesus is the most sublime and benevolent code of morals ever offered man. A more beautiful or precious morsel of ethics I have never seen." —Thomas Jefferson, author of the Declaration of Independence and America's third president, who took money from the federal treasury to send missionaries to an American Indian tribe and to build them a chapel in which to worship.

 "Bless, O Lord, the whole race of mankind, and let the world be filled with the knowledge of Thee and Thy Son, Jesus Christ." —from a public prayer prayed by George Washington, America's first president.

No Real Liberty Without the Gospel

It is obvious from the above quotes that America's founders believed freedom and Christianity to be inextricably linked. They believed so strongly in the gospel as the basis of human freedom that they unashamedly prayed and publicly expressed their desire to see it spread throughout the earth.

Recent presidents have sought to export American-style democracy to other nations apart from the gospel of Christ. Indeed, the entire Western world is seeking to secularize liberty and remove it from any association with faith.

America's founders would say that such efforts are futile since true liberty cannot be had apart from the gospel of Christ. Washington made this plain in his farewell address, where he warned the fledgling nation that two things must be guarded if they were to be a happy people—Christianity and morality, which he called "indispensable supports" for political prosperity.

Recovering the Truth About the First Amendment

The day after approving the First Amendment, which states, "Congress shall make no law concerning the establishment of religion or hindering the free exercise thereof," those same Founding Fathers issued a proclamation for a National Day of Prayer.

The First Amendment was merely their way of saying that America would never have an official, national church like the nations of Europe at that time. Instead of banning faith from the public square, as many moderns suppose, they created a free and open marketplace for religious ideas.

They were not concerned about false religion getting the upper hand in such an open setting, for they believed in the power of the gospel and were convinced that on an open and even playing field, truth would always prevail. They agreed with the Puritan, John Milton, who wrote,

Let truth and falsehood grapple; who ever knew truth put to the worse in free and open encounter? She needs no policies, nor strategems, nor licensings to make her victorious ... Give her but room.

By instituting the First Amendment, the Founders were rejecting the model begun by Constantine in which civil government sets forth and defends a certain church, religious expression or point of view. In their thinking, only those who do not have confidence in the message they proclaim would insist on such an alignment with the civil government.

The founders believed in the inherent power of Christian truth, which is why Jefferson wrote,

Truth can stand by itself ... If there be but one right religion and Christianity that one, we should wish to see the nine hundred and ninety-nine wandering sects gathered into the fold of truth. But against such a majority we cannot effect this by force. Reason and persuasion are the only practicable instruments. To make way for these, free inquiry must be indulged; and how can we wish others to indulge it while we refuse it ourselves.

It is Time to Recover the Vision

It is time for this generation to rise up and reject the lie of the left that the First Amendment bans expressions of faith in the marketplace. It is time to realize with the founders that true freedom and happiness can only be found in Jesus Christ. It is time to learn from the founders that faith and freedom go together like hand and glove, and the loss of one inevitably leads to the loss of the other. It is time for this generation to recover the original American vision. 

This article is derived from Eddie Hyatt's book, Pilgrims and Patriots, available from Amazon and his website, www.eddiehyatt.com. At his website, you can also check out his vision for America and another Great Awakening.

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Churches Under a Curse - Charles Gardner ISRAEL TODAY

Churches Under a Curse

Monday, March 07, 2016 |  Charles Gardner  ISRAEL TODAY

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Churches are bleeding to death because of their refusal to love and support the Jewish people.

An internal report from the Presbyterian Church USA, noted for its anti-Israel stance, predicts that it stands to lose 400,000 members over the next five years1. Methodists in the UK, whose leaders passed a resolution boycotting Israel some years ago, have also seen a dramatic decline in numbers, and are now making things worse by advocating a boycott of Cadbury2 – an insult to the memory and considerable legacy of the chocolate family’s Christian ethos and significant contribution to Britain’s wealth.

Not only that, but one of their number, Richard Cadbury, was a man dedicated to the cause of Jewish mission. After being taken ill with diphtheria during a tour of Egypt in 1899, he was cared for at a Jerusalem hospital (now a school) run by the Church’s Mission among Jewish people where, sadly, he died. But out of gratitude for the kindness with which he was treated, he left them a tidy sum of money. This enabled them to extend the facility to include a new ward for the treatment of infectious diseases and employ an extra nurse, thereafter known as the Cadbury nurse.3

Best-selling author Bill Bryson, in his latest book The Road to Little Dribbling4, says he hadn’t realized how Quakers5 in 18th century Britain were a bullied and downtrodden minority excluded from politics and academia. But they made their mark in industry and commerce, particularly in banking (Barclays and Lloyds) and the manufacture of chocolate (Cadbury, Fry and Rowntree).

“They and many others made Britain a more dynamic and wealthy place entirely as a consequence of being treated shabbily by it,” he writes with his usual penetrating wit. And in that respect they had much in common with Jewish communities of the era. At any rate, Richard Cadbury loved the Jews because of his devotion to Jesus.

Scripture is quite clear that those who bless the seed of Abraham will themselves be blessed, but those who curse them will be judged. (Genesis 12.3) It is perfectly evident that both Methodists and Presbyterians, tragically now more influenced by worldly wisdom than biblical values, are under a curse of their own making. The worldwide blessing brought about by Methodist founder John Wesley’s bold proclamation of the gospel (along with his support for Israel) has been lost.

In his notes on Romans, Wesley wrote: “So many prophecies refer to this grand event (of the restoration of Israel) that it is surprising any Christian can doubt of it. And these are greatly confirmed by the wonderful preservation of the Jews as a distinct people to this day. When it is accomplished, it will be so strong a demonstration, both of the Old and New Testament revelation, as will doubtless convince many thousand Deists in countries nominally Christian.”6

Remember that he was writing this in the latter part of the 18th century, almost a quarter of a millennium ago, without the benefit of witnessing these very things taking place before his eyes. Yet in our generation we have been immensely privileged to watch God’s chosen people, after nearly 2,000 years of dispersion, returning home to their ancient land from every corner of the world.

The biblical prophets foretold all this – in fact half of all Old Testament prophecies relate to Israel’s restoration. Followers of Jesus, the Jew, ought to rejoice that, in fulfillment of ancient prophecies, his brothers in the flesh are back in the land. For the Scripture also makes clear that once they have all returned (which is still to happen), Jesus will reveal himself to the entire nation as the Messiah for whom they have long been waiting. And then he will return to rule and reign with all believers – both Jew and Gentile – who have bowed the knee before him.

Israel is not perfect, nor should we expect her to be. For the most part, Israelis are not yet following their Messiah, but Christians who claim to be disciples of Jesus should know better. We must love those whom God loves, including our enemies (Matthew 5.44). You who would boycott Israeli goods (which adversely affects Palestinians too as many rely on Israel for their employment), do you pray for the peace of Jerusalem, as the Bible commands? (Psalm 122.6)

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1. Jerusalem Post February 9 2016↩

2. I realize Cadbury has been taken over by a foreign company, now known as Mondelez, who are accused of UK tax evasion, but it is still a name that has given much prestige to the nation.↩

3. A Prophetic Property by Kelvin Crombie p61 published by the Israel Trust of the Anglican Church↩

4. Published by Doubleday, p254↩

5. Quakers were a radical Christian movement that suffered much opposition for their fervent devotion sometimes characterized by trembling – hence their nickname – under the influence of the Holy Spirit.↩

6. A Nation Called by God published by Love Never Fails, an umbrella group for organizations supporting Israel.↩

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Charles Gardner is author of Peace in Jerusalem, available from olivepresspublisher.com

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Slavery: Not as Black and White as History Reports

By Dawn Goeb and Charlene Aaron

CBN News

Tuesday, February 24, 2015

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By most accounts, Dr. Bertice Berry has led a successful life. Born in poverty, she earned a doctorate, and became a nationally syndicated talk show host and best-selling author. Along the way, though, she made what she calls one of her "greatest errors."

CBN News visited Dr. Berry at her beautiful home outside of Savannah, Georgia.

In her dining room, an inviting place lined with overflowing bookcases, she read aloud from her novel Redemption Song.

"Old man Hunn wasn't so old then," she read. "He was out hunting my mama and me. He wasn't a real catcher. Others caught slaves for money. He caught 'em for keeps."

The villain of her book, an evil slaveholder, is named after a real man: John Hunn.

"John Hunn -- I knew the story, I heard the name, that he owned the plantation that our family lived on during slavery, " Berry explained.

Despite her mother's repeated objections, Berry believed Hunn owned her ancestors.

"Especially in the 60s and 70s you would say," she takes on a militant voice, 'Back when we were slaves, you know, that was my slave name,' and my mother would say, 'We were not slaves!' I'm like, 'All right. You have a slave fantasy.' Delaware was a slave state," she argued.

Villian or Hero?

But one day she came upon the PBS documentary "Whispers of Angels," about the Underground Railroad.

CBN News played a clip from the film for her, where the narrator states, "Burris eventually guided them to the home of the young Quaker, John Hunn, in Middletown."

Hunn was born in Camden, Delaware, and grew up a member of the Religious Society Friends, or Quakers.

Mike Richards, with the Camden Friends Meeting, has become an expert on Hunn.

"He became known as the chief engineer of the Underground Railroad in Delaware," he said. "So he was very well known. And people that were helping the slaves escape would say, 'Go see John Hunn.'"

Hunn helped as many as 200 fugitive slaves make their way to freedom.

Robin Krawitz is program director of Delaware State University's Graduate Program in Historic Preservation and has studied Hunn for the past 20 years.

She learned that his father, Ezekiel Hunn, also helped runaway slaves escape.

"John Hunn's father and uncle were the owners of this property; they inherited it in 1794," Krawitz explained as she showed CBN News around Wildcat Manor on a cold winter day.

Pointing to the frozen river, she explained that Ezekial Hunn had funded "an African American boatman to ferry people from here and from the St. John's River over to New Jersey, which was the closest point of freedom."

His son, however, had other plans as a young man.

In a private home owned by a descendant of John Hunn, we had the rare opportunity to see a beautiful oil painting of him at age 22. At about the time of the portrait, he finished his training to be a silk merchant.

When he went to visit his older sister, Patience, a devout Quaker, she took one look at his fancy clothes and said, "Throw off thy Babylonish garment!"

"She basically read him the riot act," Krawitz chuckled telling the story. "She believes Patience was saying, in essence, 'Come back to the faith; be who you are.'"

Underground Railroad

And he did. Hunn was 27 years old when he became involved with the Underground Railroad.

On a cold, snow-covered day, he was washing his hands at a pump outside his home, when he saw an unfamiliar covered wagon approach.

Krawitz picks up the story from here.

"There was a group of people who were escaping enslavement from Queen Anne's County in Maryland… traveling all night in a wagon and on foot," she said. "He brought the women and children into the house, and then the men went out into the barn. And they were all housed and warmed up and fed to get them ready to continue on their journey."

But a neighbor turned them in to the local magistrate. While the fugitives eventually made their way to freedom, Hunn was prosecuted in federal court.

Under the Fugitive Slave Law, it was a federal crime to assist runaway slaves, and slave owners could sue anyone who did so.

The New Castle Courthouse looks the same today. Looking around, one can imagine the scene when Hunn was brought before Judge Roger Taney.

Taney would later write the infamous Dred Scott decision, ruling that African Americans did not have civil rights protected by the U.S. Constitution.

Hunn didn't contest the charges, and Judge Taney imposed a heavy fine. Hunn's world fell apart. He lost everything. His family had to move in with relatives, and his 6-year-old son died after a long illness.

Still, he steadfastly continued his work.

"I think his calling was so strong, and he felt this issue was such an important issue, that he didn't feel he could stop, that he had to do this," Richards told CBN News.

Hunn died at age 76. He was buried in the small graveyard behind the Camden Friends Meeting House. On his deathbed, he ordered his son to burn all records of his activity in the Underground Railroad.

"I ask no other reward for any efforts made by me in the cause than to feel that I have been of use to my fellow men. No other course would have brought me peace of mind," he wrote.

"It was a shock," Berry said. "I've used this man's name, who was the southernmost conductor on the Underground Railroad, who remained hidden, the same way we do with everything -- we think everything is black and white, good and evil, sin and righteous."

"You know, no! No. You know, there's so much more to every story if you just look a little further," she said.

Setting the Record Straight

And that she did. Determined to set the record straight, Berry wrote The Ties That Bind: A Memoir of Race, Memory, and Redemption.

She imagines what she would say to him, given the opportunity.

"Dude, you are so cool; thank you, and while the laws are against you now, years from now everyone will know that you're right," she said.

Hunn's son, Jonathan, grew up to be governor of Delaware, where he ratified the 13th Amendment of the Constitution, abolishing slavery.