The Constitution And The Cross

In The Words of Dr. Archie P. Jones:

Our early state constitutions were our first constitutions. They were the fundamental laws of their states, in most states replacing the colonial charters. (Connecticut retained its colonial charter as its constitution until 1818; Rhode Island, until 1842.) They grew out of more than 140 years of their separate histories which gave them distinctly different, deeply rooted cultural and governmental traditions. . . .

These early American constitutions, with their declarations or bills of rights, were Christian documents—some more manifestly, even beautifully, so than others. They honored God, recognizing His existence and stating (some more fully than others) certain truths about His nature: Almighty, Creator, Lord, Governor of the Universe, Savior, Inspirer of the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, and the like. These are Christian affirmations, not products of eighteenth-century Deism. Many of these declarations implied that the people of the given state are in a covenantal relationship with God: in their recognition of Him as the “Governor of the Universe,” the “Great Legislator of the Universe,” and their recognition of His divine providence. . . .

To one degree or another, these constitutions, bills of rights, and declarations of rights were based on a Christian view of the nature of man. They saw man as having been created by God (not “evolved”!); thus they saw man as being valuable (and far more important than animals). They saw man as being responsible, under God, for his actions: not as a naturally “neutral,” much less “naturally good,” product determined by his environment. They saw man as having certain inherent, God-given rights, liberties, and duties. Given the overwhelming predominance of Christianity in these states (contrary to the myth that America of the day was dominated by “Enlightenment” rationalism)—in religion, education, law, legal thought, legal education, and political thought—it is easy to see that such “rights” were based on biblical ethical thought. . . .

Consistent with the Bible’s teaching that all men are fallen in sin, these governmental documents were founded not upon a confidence in human nature but instead on a realistic distrust of the nature of man—of all men including the officials of civil government. Consistent with Romans 13’s teaching that civil government is a ministry of God to protect those who do good and punish and so restrain those who do evil, these constitutions and their bills or declarations of rights saw the purpose of civil government, under God, as to protect men’s God-given rights against both the private and the governmental actions of men. . . .

And, consistent with biblical teaching, they did not rely on the design of their constitutions alone, nor on that plus their bills of rights or declarations of rights. Rather, they taught that the preservation of liberty depends on the preservation of morality or virtue among the people, which in turn depends on the continuing influence of “religion,” or Christianity on the people. . . .

Read the entire article here. . . .

None But Christ Can Satisfy

O Christ, in Thee my soul hath found,

And found in Thee alone,

The peace, the joy I sought so long,

The bliss till now unknown.

 

I sighed for rest and happiness,

I yearned for them, not Thee;

But while I passed my Savior by,

His love laid hold on me.

 

Now none but Christ can satisfy,

None other name for me;

There’s love, and life, and lasting joy,

Lord Jesus, found in Thee.

(Author unknown.  Copied from the back of the title page of the 1893 ed. of James Gilmour of Mongolia, edited by Richard Lovett.)

National Health Care Patients Must Learn To Wait

Canadian patients must wait an average of 90 days for an MRI under the Canadian government-run health care system.

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Government Health Care Planners Are Absolutely Wrong

Quoting economist Lawrence Kudlow:

“Why do we need President Obama’s big-bang health-care reform at all? What’s the real agenda here? If it’s really to cover the truly uninsured, a much cheaper, targeted, small-ball approach would do the trick. But on the other hand, maybe the real goal is a larger, ultra-liberal plan aimed at a government takeover of the U.S. health system. … According to the U.S. Census Bureau, we don’t have 47 million folks who are truly uninsured. When you take out college kids plus those earning $75,000 or more who choose not to sign up for a health-care plan, roughly 20 million people are removed from the list of uninsured. After that, you can remove the 10 million who are not U.S. citizens and the 11 million who are eligible for SCHIP and Medicaid but for some reason have not signed up for those programs. So that leaves only 10 million to 15 million people among the long-term uninsured. Yes, they need help. And yes, they should get it. But not with mandatory universal coverage, or new government-backed insurance plans, or massive tax increases. And certainly not with the Canadian-European-style nationalization that has always been the true goal of the Obama administration and congressional Democrats. Instead, we can give the truly uninsured vouchers or debit cards that will allow for choice and coverage, and even health savings accounts for retirement wealth. … Knocking down profits and telling people what to do because government planners know best, right? Wrong. Absolutely wrong.”

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Cap And Trade Bill Will Increase Consumer Debt

CLEAN ENERGY ACT

In the Words of columnist David Limbaugh:

“The Heritage Foundation’s senior policy analyst for energy and environment, Ben Lieberman, has produced a stellar paper on [the cap and trade bill]… Based on available evidence and analysis, Lieberman concludes ‘that both the seriousness and imminence of anthropogenic global warming has been overstated.’ But even if we assume the problem is as bad as the hysterics claim, the proposed bill ‘would have a trivial impact on future concentrations of greenhouse gases. …[It] would reduce the earth’s future temperature by 0.1 to 0.2 degree C by 2100, an amount too small to even notice.’ The bill would bind only the U.S., not other nations, many of which, like China, are ‘polluting’ at a record pace. Also note that many European nations that have already imposed similar emissions restrictions have seen their emissions rise. But what would the costs be for this quixotic legislative paean to earth goddess Gaia? Contrary to the flawed analyses being advanced by the bill’s proponents, Heritage estimates that the direct costs would be an average of $829 per year for a household of four, totaling $20,000 between 2012 and 2035. But when considering the total cost as reflected in the cost of allocations and offsets, the average cost to that family unit would be $2,979 annually from 2012 to 2035. Adding insult and hypocrisy to injury, the bill would hurt the poor the worst because they would bear a disproportionate burden of the higher energy costs the bill would trigger. Now here’s the kicker. The bill is also projected to harm the manufacturing sector and cause estimated ‘net’ job losses, averaging about 1.15 million between 2012 and 2030. The overall gross domestic product losses would average $393 billion per year from 2012 to 2035, and the cumulative loss in gross domestic product would be $9.4 trillion by 2035. The national debt for a family of four would increase by $115,000 by 2035. Enough already. Throw the bums out.”

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The Great Energy Sting

Written By John Griffing:

Masquerading as an instrument of environmental salvation, the Waxman-Markey cap-and-trade bill will result in one of the largest seizures of wealth in human history. The legislation will wreak havoc on American manufacturing and industry, and coerce the conformity of an already economically squeezed populace. The bill is a transparent power grab, based on a fictional crisis-the left’s ever-dependable threat of global warming.

But global warming is finally coming under the scrutiny it deserves. Not only are NASA satellites showing a cooling trend, but 700 scientists-to the UN’s 50-have come out in opposition to the patently false claims of the global warming lobby.

Most damning, Harvard meteorologists have been unable to replicate the findings of the UN’s International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) without the use of a technique called “data-padding.” The IPCC actually admitted to engaging in this deceptive practice. Without this padding, the infamous warming trend falls by several degrees. In essence, the IPCC and its primary source manipulated data (dare we say “lied”?) to produce a desired result.

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Man On National Health Care Plan Pulls His Own Teeth

British veteran Ian Boynton pulled out 13 of his own teeth with pliers “because he couldn’t find an NHS (National Health Service) dentist… [he] could not afford to go private for treatment so instead took the drastic action to remove 13 of his teeth that were giving him severe pain.”

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True Saving Faith

From: The Pen of Jonathan Edwards

When a most wicked sinner is caused to see Christ’s divine loveliness, he no longer speculates why God should be interested in him, to save him. Before, he could not understand how the blood of Christ could pay the penalty for sins. But now he can see the preciousness of Christ’s blood, and how it is worthy to be accepted as the ransom for the worst of sins. Now the soul can recognize that he is accepted by God, not because of who he is, but because of the value God puts on the blood, obedience, and intercession of Christ. Seeing this value and worth gives the poor guilty soul rest which cannot be found in any sermon or booklet.

When a person comes to see the proper foundation of faith and trust with his own eyes, this is saving faith. “For my Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life.” (John 6:40) “I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word. Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you. For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me.” (John 17:6-8)

It is this sight of the divine beauty of Christ that captivates the wills and draws the hearts of men. A sight of the outward greatness of God in His glory may overwhelm men, and be more than they can endure. This will be seen on the day of judgment, when the wicked will be brought before God. They will be overwhelmed, yes, but the hostility of the heart will remain in full strength and the opposition of the will continue. But on the other hand, a single ray of the moral and spiritual glory of God and of the supreme loveliness of Christ shone into the heart overcomes all hostility. The soul is inclined to love God as if by an omnipotent power, so that now not only the understanding, but the whole being receives and embraces the loving Saviour.

This sense of the beauty of Christ is the beginning of true saving faith in the life of a true convert. This is quite different from any vague feeling that Christ loves him or died for him. These sort of fuzzy feelings can cause a sort of love and joy, because the person feels a gratitude for escaping the punishment of their sin. In actual fact, these feelings are based on self-love, and not on a love for Christ at all. It is a sad thing that so many people are deluded by this false faith. On the other hand, a glimpse of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ causes in the heart a supreme genuine love for God. This is because the divine light shows the excellent loveliness of God’s nature. A love based on this is far, far above anything coming from self-love, which demons can have as well as men. The true love of God which comes from this sight of His beauty causes a spiritual and holy joy in the soul; a joy in God, and exulting in Him. There is no rejoicing in ourselves, but rather in God alone. (Sermon: “How To Know If You Are A Real Christian”)