The Fourth of July This fourth of July remember that God used people who looked towards Him

for direction and guidance to start this country. This was done both in prayer and by word. And unless we continue in this truth which has also granted us a liberty and prosperity far beyond any other country in history, we could possibly perish in utter darkness. "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 instruction and authority, no man can tell how sudden a catastrophe may overwhelm us and bury all our glory in profound obscurity." (Daniel Webster) We all must bring back the Bible into the classrooms because without such knowledge all our efforts are but in vain. "Education is useless without the Bible." (Noah Webster) Here below are some reminders of the liberties that our Founding Fathers envisioned and fought for. Their attitudes towards God, prayer and the Scriptures though not in vogue nowadays, it still shows forth what their intentions were for this nation. It was to be one nation under God, with liberty (without Christianity there will be none) and justice (measured by God's standards which never change, and are always fair) for all. George Washington More than 100 different prayers (or references to prayer) were found among George Washingtons private and public letters. George Washington ordered a custom-sized prayer book so he could carry it in his pocket, and to have it readily available at all times. "The first Continental Congress decided that its first official act would be to ask God for his aid. They met and prayed at Carpenters Hall. George Washington knelt with Henry, Randolph, Lee, Rutledge, Jay and others as Dr. Jacob Duche prayed fervently in Carpenters Hall, Philadelphia. It was enough to melt a heart of stone. I saw the tears gush into the eyes of the old, grave, Pacific Quakers of Philadelphia. (John Adams) Almighty God, we make our earnest prayer that Thou wilt keep the United States in Thy holy protection. (George Washington) One of the most inspiring portrayals of American history is that of George Washington on his knees in the snow at Valley Forge. That moving image personifies and testifies to our Founders dependence upon Divine Providence during the darkest hours of our Revolutionary struggle. (Ronald Reagan, President 1981-1989) I do not believe, that Providence has done so much for nothing." (George Washington, 1st President) "It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible. No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand which conducts the affairs of men more than the people of the United States. Every step by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency We ought to be no less persuaded that the propitious smiles of Heaven can never be expected on a nation that disregards the eternal rules of order and right, which Heaven itself has ordained." (George Washington) Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln was a U.S. President who prayed and looked to the word of God for guidance. He often used the terminology of the Scriptures (in his speech of reconciliation towards the southern states he said, "With malice or spite toward none, with charity or love towards all...") to express his ideas. That I am not a member of any Christian Church, is true; but I have never denied the truth of the Scriptures; and I have never spoken with intentional disrespect of religion in general, or any

denomination of Christians in particular." (1846) Intelligence, patriotism, Christianity, and a firm reliance on Him (God), who has never yet forsaken this favored land (America), are still competent to adjust, in the best way, all our present difficulty." (1861 Inaugural Address) "I have not forgotten--probably never shall forget--the very impressive occasion when yourself and friends visited me on a Sabbath forenoon two years ago. Nor has your kind letter, written nearly a year later, ever been forgotten. In all, it has been your purpose to strengthen my reliance on God. I am much indebted to the good Christian people of the country for their constant prayers and consolations; and to no one of them, more than to yourself. The purposes of the Almighty are perfect, and must prevail, though we erring mortals may fail to accurately perceive them in advance. We hoped for a happy termination of this terrible war long before this; but God knows best, and has ruled otherwise. We shall yet acknowledge His wisdom and our own error therein. Meanwhile we must work earnestly in the best light He gives us, trusting that so working still conduces to the great ends He ordains. Surely He intends some great good to follow this mighty convulsion, which no mortal could make, and no mortal could stay." (Lincoln to Eliza P. Gurney, 1864) The Bible is the best gift God has ever given to man . . . But for it we could not know right from wrong. (Abraham Lincoln) It is the duty of 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. (Abraham Lincoln) Alexander Hamilton Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757 - July 12, 1804) was a Founding Father, soldier, economist, political philosopher, one of America's first constitutional lawyers and the first United States Secretary of the Treasury. He has been described as one who "more than any other designed the Government of the United States." His words show that he believed Christianity was indispensable to the U.S. Constitution. In my opinion, the present Constitution is the standard to which we are to cling. Under its banner bona fide must we combat our political foes, reflecting all changes but through the channel itself provided for amendments. By these general views of the subject have my reflections been guided. I now offer you the outline of the plan they have suggested. Let an association be formed to be denominated 'The Christian Constitutional Society,' its object to be First: The support of the Christian religion. Second: The support of the United States." (Alexander Hamilton on the connection between Christianity and the Constitution) "For my own part, I sincerely esteem it a system which without the finger of God, never could have been suggested and agreed upon by such a diversity of interests." Alexander after signing the Constitution) I have a 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." (Alexander's last words) Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant was commanding general during the civil war. He also was a U.S. President. Perhaps he was not a Christian, but the fact remains that he respected the Bible and believed in God. "Hold fast to the Bible as the sheet anchor of your liberties; write its precepts in your hearts and

practice them in your lives. To the influence of this book we are indebted for all the progress made in true civilization and to this we must look as our guide in the future." (Ulysses S. Grant) Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin was an inventor, Founding Father and a prayer warrior. When congress was at a decisive point, he was the one who suggested by prayer a solution was to be found. He also published "Poor Richard's Almanac." "A nation of well informed men who have been taught to know the price of the rights which God has given them, cannot be enslaved." (Benjamin Franklin) "They who would give up an essential liberty for temporary security, deserve neither liberty or security." (Benjamin Franklin) "I have lived, Sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth-that God Governs the affairs of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid?" (Benjamin Franklin "Democracy is two wolves and a lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed lamb contesting the vote!" (Benjamin Franklin) "How many observe Christ's birthday! How few his precepts! O! 'tis easier to keep holidays than commandments." (Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard's Almanack, 1757) "Freedom is not a gift bestowed upon us by other men, but a right that belongs to us by the laws of God and nature." (Benjamin Franklin) "Man will ultimately be governed by God or by tyrants." (Benjamin Franklin) Here's some interesting quotes from State Constitutions and the U.S. Supreme Court (before ungodly men took over it). I Everyone serving in public office must affirm this statement: I do profess faith in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ His only Son, and in the Holy Ghost, one God, blessed forever more, and I do acknowledge the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be given by divine inspiration. (Delaware Constitution) And each member [of the legislature], before he takes his seat, shall make and subscribe the following declaration, viz: I do believe in one God, the Creator and Governor of the universe, the rewarder of the good and the punisher of the wicked, and I do acknowledge the Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be given by Divine Inspiration. (Pennsylvania Constitution) All persons elected to office must make the following declaration: I do declare that I believe the Christian religion, and have firm persuasion of its truth. (Massachusetts Constitution) "No person who denies the being of God, or a future state of rewards and punishments, shall hold any office in the civil department of this State." (Tennessee Constitution, 1796) (Historical note: The original state constitutions were adopted before or about the time of the U.S. Constitution. Fiercely independent, the states would never have approved a national constitution that violated their own. Obviously, their concept of the proper relationship between the Christian faith and government was profoundly different than ours today. Honesty and history demand we see the Constitution and its amendments as they did, not as the ACLU does.) "Providence has given to our people the choice of their rulers, and it is the duty of as well as the

privilege and interest of a Christian nation to select and prefer Christians for its rulers." (John Jay, first Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court) Historical note to above: Chief Justice Jay was also one of three main contributors to the U.S. Constitution. "By our form of government the Christian Religion is the established Religion, and all sects and denominations of Christians are set on the same equal footing." (U.S. Supreme Court, 1796) "Whatever strikes at the root of Christianity tends manifestly to the dissolution of civil government." (U.S. Supreme Court, 1811) Historical note: in the preceding case the Court upheld a $500 fine and three month jail sentence against a man who had continuously blasphemed against Christ. The offense against Christ was regarded as an offense against the nation. "The purest principles of morality are to be taught. Where are they found? Whoever searches for them must go to the source from which a Christian man derives his faith from the Bible." (U.S. Supreme Court, 1844) Historical note: The above was the Courts response to a Philadelphia schools desire to teach morality without appealing to the Scriptures. The Courts decision required schools to continue using the Bible in the classroom to uphold Christian morality. Our law and our institutions must necessarily be based upon and embody 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." (U.S. Supreme Court, 1892) Historical note: The court cited 87 legal precedents showing the Christian faith was at the heart of the United States, and the country did not and could not exist independently of it. "At the time of the adoption of the Constitution and the amendments the universal sentiment was that Christianity should be encouraged, not any one sect. There can be no substitute for Christianity that was the religion of the founders of the republic, and they expected it to remain the religion of their descendants. The great, vital and conservative element in our system is the belief of our people in the pure doctrines and divine truths of the gospel of Jesus Christ." (The U.S. House Judiciary Committee Report, 1853) "Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." (2 Corinthians 3:17)