Thoughts from The Bible: – 09/16/20

Thoughts from the Bible

Tuesday, 15 September 2020 13:50

One Nation Under God
by Terry Broome

On July 4, 1776, our forefathers penned what has become the benchmark document of our nation’s history. The Declaration of Independence has stood for two plus centuries as a representation of every good and noble thought in the heart of those who were establishing a nation where all men could be treated equally; where men could express without fear of reprisal their faith in God; where “all men were endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights.”

Ours is a nation founded on principles that our fathers believed were guaranteed by God Himself!! It was not their desire to impose a forced “state” religion on any man, but that all men would be free to express their religion without fear of the state. Instead of a “separation of church and state” where the state is protected from the influence of an individual’s religion, individuals were guaranteed a protection of the church from the state. The phrase “separation of church and state” is more an interpretation than a quote from the Constitution. It is a faulty interpretation. Our founding fathers never intended to isolate the state from the influence of religious people and from God. They founded this nation on principles of thought that have become appropriate mottos for us: “In God We Trust” and “One Nation Under God.” We can know full well that a nation has weakened it’s foundation who bans God from its claim to a right of existence.
“Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance” (Psalms 33:12).

“Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain” (Psalms 127:1).
Not only does the dollar bill and the pledge of allegiance proclaim these mottos, but another besides. The little phrase “Annuit Coeptis” which appears over the eye in the triangle of the dollar bill has a rich meaning as well. Literally, the meaning is that “it” (the eye of Providence) is favorable to our undertakings. Providence, or God, has favored our undertakings.

Our concepts of independence and freedom came from and are best understood in the context of creation and a Creator. Our Declaration of Independence insists there are “unalienable rights,” rights that are undeniable and irrevocably ours. They recognized that these rights came from our Creator. If the state gives us rights, the state also has the power to take them away. The only force in the world that can give us rights that are irrevocable and cannot be taken away from us by a mere decree of a state is the Creator who alone has the power to give such rights. Our founding fathers knew this. May we pray that our courts and our legislators will learn this before it’s too late.

The author can be reached for comments at 256-574-2489.