Psalms 33:12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord!
America's greatest gift to the rest of the world is freedom of religion. It is this freedom and this freedom alone that all other freedoms find their purpose of existence. It is the freedom to seek and pursue the truth without infringement or impediment that has instilled in the American people a love of freedom itself.
While Americans are taught from their birth to love and cherish freedom of religion for all, American history reveals that this love of freedom and truth seeking comes from the Biblical Christian faith. Yes, it is the Christian that demands freedom of conscience to worship his God in spirit and truth. Therefore to secure it for himself, he must secure it for all other faiths. While most other religions are not tolerant of any other faith, we should remember our national heritage. The inscription on the liberty bell (PROCLAIM LIBERTY THROUGHOUT ALL THE LAND) is to be found in Leviticus 25:10. The simplest of men can readily discern that the majority of our laws and judicial concepts that have governed our nation for over two hundred years of prosperity are, for the most part, Biblical in origin. So then, while necessity dictates that we defend to the death all faiths, truth compels us to proclaim the Faith of our Fathers.
What is most confusing is that after two hundred years of freedom, prosperity, and success, (which cannot nor has not been matched by any other nation on the earth) America is turning her back on the Faith of her Fathers. This strange phenomena is not new to the world order. Ancient Israel enjoyed the same privileges we now possess in America. While being one of the smaller nations of antiquity, ancient Israel enjoyed the same privileges and wealth in her time as we now possess. But she too became decadent and forsook the God of her fathers.
The message of her prophets was simple and just as readily applies to us today. "But thou shalt say unto them, This is a nation that obeyeth not the voice of the Lord their God, nor receives correction: truth is perished, and is cut off from their mouth." Jeremiah 7:28
"Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein." Jeremiah 6:16
One of our most fundamental freedoms necessary to insure and secure our liberties is the right to bare arms. Our founding fathers in great wisdom understood that governments often abuse their power to govern when left unchecked. In order to restrain our government from becoming excessive, our forefathers took several steps to insure our future liberties. First, they divided governmental power into three branches so that the legislative, executive, and judicial branches could check and balance each other. Second, they secured for the citizens the right to bare arms or the right of self defense.
It is extremely shocking to listen to those who advocate gun control while watching some foreign governments brutalize its citizens for peaceably protesting honest and forthright grievances. Whatever argument others may muster to attempt to dislodge our God given right of self defense and our constitutionally guaranteed right to bare arms, reality dictates that while American citizens possess the right and ability to defend themselves, atrocities that have occurred in other nations, will not occur here.
In recent times, we as Americans have suffered several tragedies at the hands of mentally unstable individuals who, in bizarre, nightmarish acts of violence, have shocked us to the depths of our souls. Such acts are hideous and deplorable, and we should take all reasonable steps to prevent their reoccurrence. Do they not show us by their randomness and bizarre nature that the 327.2 million American citizens of our great nation possess their guns in a responsible manner?
As a minister in the Christian faith, I cannot comprehend the reasoning that would deprive so many of their inalienable rights because of the abuse of so few, no matter how repulsive their actions. The Word of God declares that each individual should give account for his actions and not be held accountable for others.
Ezekiel 18:20 "The soul that sinners, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him."
But alas, it is all fine and well to talk of noble principles, but without courage of conviction talk is just that! It is God's word that instills in just men that necessary trait - courage of conviction. Our founding fathers drew their courage in a time of great uncertainty from such charges as God gives to all his Christians; Joshua 1:9, "Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest." There is no doubt that the American heritage is one of courage in the face of adversity. How boldly did our founding fathers pledge their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor to the cause of freedom. True, our nation is not perfect and must bear its sins; we have not written in childish naivety. Yet, truth and history bear out the facts that God, Guns, and Guts made America great! Let's keep it that way!
"And thou shalt swear, The LORD liveth, in truth, in judgment, and in righteousness; and the nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory." Jeremiah 4:2