Watching God move in such spectacular ways in the past days has only reinforced the benefits of God’s people ruling and reigning through prayer, fasting, decrees, declarations and exercising the authority of the Lord. This is a normal part of our existence as committed believers. You understand, of course, that commitment demands that we respond proactively to every Word of the Lord given to us.
As we continue to move into this new year, and approach the swearing-in ceremony for President Trump’s second term, opposition against him and the plans of the Lord have continued unabated. That means that we have an increased responsibility to be lifting him before the Lord, along with his family, and his staff and cabinet. This is a practical dimension for us to exercise ruling and reigning!
Before we took our break for Christmas, we were talking about the significance of righteous judgment. I want to pick up on that again as we begin the new year. 2021 is going to be a year for the record books! I know that some of the first four years of the Trump administration have been real barn-burners but get ready for some amazing events this coming year!
There is a lot of ground to cover today, so let’s get right to it. Humanism plays upon people's fears. It gets its governance in society by creating a multitude of "what if?" scenarios. People react to those scenarios in fear, and Humanism has accomplished its ends. Socialism steps into that reactive place and says, "I have the answer for you. Let me create a government program to solve it."
We wrapped up last week quoting from the apostle Paul where he instructs prayers and intercession on behalf of our leaders and representatives in government. Let’s pick up where we left off. We are taking a short break in our narrative on the founding documents for the colonies. Paul laid out very clearly what kind of government God purposes for a praying people. The verse I just quoted is a small portion of what Paul had to say on the topic.
It becomes pretty clear when you read some of the early founders’ documents that they had a VERY strong purpose in establishing this nation – as well as the early colonies – as a place where Jesus Christ is Lord! The way they expressed themselves back then would go over about like a lead balloon today, but when you realize that they were fed up with a state-sponsored religion, as was England, it isn’t hard to understand their vehemence. Last week, we quoted the first part of Maryland's Act Concerning Religion. There’s a lot more to go, so let’s take a look at it. An Act Concerning Religion (continued)
As you will see (and continue to see) in the following documents, the term, “religion” did not mean, Buddhist, Muslim, Confucianism, or any of a host of other non-Jesus Christ honoring beliefs. For our early settlers and founding fathers, “religion” simply meant differing denominations or sects, but all believing in the same fundamental tenets of Christianity. They could differ on doctrines, but NOT on the supremacy of the Lord Jesus Christ.
After our Christmas and New Year’s holiday break, let’s continue looking at the specific wording that our early settlers used in describing the covenants they made with each other in the establishing of this country. Two weeks ago, I said that we would take a look at the charter that John Winthrop wrote (actually, he wrote it jointly with roughly a dozen other men) for the Massachusetts Bay Colony. It would take up all of today's Coffee Break, and then some, if we were to quote the entire charter; but there is a paragraph in the charter germane to our ongoing discussion, and that's where I'd like to begin today.
During the past seventy-plus years, I’ve heard everything from good old country gospel music to classical music referred to as “Worship.” Huhh Uhh! Nope! It doesn’t work like that! That doesn’t mean that one can’t worship with country-style music, nor does it mean that one can’t worship with certain classical music. We’ve experienced real worship in the midst of what I would call jazz.
Most of you have heard me share my first experience of being in Heaven and being exposed to the sound of the worship and praise that fills Heaven. I’ve shared with you how every cell of my being vibrated with that worship. It affected my DNA — so much so, that even to this day, some 67 years later, the sound of praise and worship flow through me non-stop.