2 Chronicles 15:1-6

A Special Independence Day Message:

Today, Pastor Jack shares that as we look back in history, the Pilgrims with Bibles in hand called the United States of America a continent preserved for God’s great plan beyond the seas.

And so today, we’re going to be celebrating our nation’s freedom and liberty today, if you know it or not, I say this every year, I’m going to say it every year today in the United States as you celebrate this weekend.
And tomorrow, more specifically, another world’s book Guinness Record will be set that there’s no other nation in the history of man that has been led under the same governing document than the United States of America.
That is the constitution of the United States, no other country.
It’s remarkable.
I would say that to visit history is to visit the works of God.
We’re going to be hearing about that today that when in the course of human events, he appears, God appears and we cannot look at world history without being overwhelmed as Americans.
That world history has been much made up of by what God did through America.
When we talk about American exceptionalism, we’re not talking about Americans being better than anybody else.
You need to understand that American exceptionalism means that God did miraculous things with common people.
And to be an American is to be common people who have come together for the same cause there are people who have been immigrants to this nation who have become Americans.
There are Americans or I should say there are people who have been born here who are still not yet Americans to be an American is a choice.
Your passport doesn’t guarantee that you’re an American. Your passport guarantees that you’re a citizen of this nation.
But to be an American is something of the spirit.
It’s some decision that you make based upon what this nation stands for.
And you are sitting in the most grand experiment of human government in the history of man.
It’s absolutely awesome and remarkable when in the founding of our fathers and in the pilgrim era before that, it was understood that the new world across the sea, they would say would be a land of freedom.
Now, many attempts were made to colonize the east coast of the United States.
And if you focus on any particular group, you could come away with the selective part of history.
Many of you have ever heard you’ve heard of the 16 19 project. Have you not heard of that?
Your kids are being taught that trash in school? Why?
Because our modern day system has decided to dial down on one little segment of American history and of course, they pick the bad, none of the settlements worked well at all until it’s as though God was waiting until 16 20.
When the separatist pilgrims left Europe come in here to worship God aboard the Mayflower.
And if you have any doubt, you need to read the Mayflower Compact as I often challenge you as this church to read if you have any doubt.
But in 16 20 that settlement took hold, barely took hold.
But it made it while the others failed based on slavery based on possessions, based on wealth, based on manipulation based on the English crown, they failed one settle.
And that was the pilgrims of 16 20.
The book of Jeremiah says in chapter 16, verse 17, for his eyes are on all their ways.
And that was a verse mentioned by William Bradford regarding the journey of the pilgrim fathers, I want to draw to your attention throughout this message, moments of American history.
Why you ought to go out today and thank God that you were either born here or that you immigrated here.
I like saying that by the way, you know, if America is such a bad place, why is it that every year more people immigrate here legally than all of the other nations combined every year.
Think about that. I’m a little feisty this morning.
I’m sick and tired of the propaganda and the trash of the revisionist and of those who try to change our nation’s history.
So on Saturday, July 28 17 87 at the age of 81 years of age, Benjamin Franklin stood and addressed Congress and I quote in this situation of this assembly groping as it were in the dark to find political truth and scarce able to distinguish it when presented to us.
How has it happened sir? That we have not hitherto once thought of humbly applying to the Father of Lights to illuminate our understandings in the beginning of the contest with Great Britain when we were sensible of danger and we had daily prayer in this room for the divine protection.
Our prayers sir were heard and they were graciously answered.
All of us who were engaged in the struggle must have observed frequent instances of superintending providence in our favor.
I have lived sir a long time and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth that God governs in 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 said Ben Franklin?
And by the way, from that moment, from that challenge, they went to prayer and read American history.
Will you everything changed from that moment on after Franklin’s challenge, we wound up watching the fulfillment of the declaration of Independence.
We saw the drafting and the crafting of the constitution and a nation was off on its way to make its place known among the nations of the world.
Makes you wonder though that Franklin must have been wondering regarding that sparrow.
Jesus said in Matthew chapter 10 verse 29. What is the price of two sparrows?
Is it not one copper coin? But a single sparrow can fall to the ground without your father knowing it?
That’s the heart of our God.
And so as I read to you right now, just the moment the opening throes of the Declaration of Independence, you would do well to study more at your leisure about what God was doing.
56 men brought together of an intellect, each of them that is still to this day, unknown, unparalleled in human history that in one room, 56 geniuses who sacrificed their money, their property, their freedoms, their liberty and gave all some more than others.
Many times, we forget that guys like George Washington who was considered one of the top five wealthiest men in the colonies and the wealthiest man, John Hancock, both of them when Congress couldn’t get their act together, both of them from their own bank accounts funded the American revolution war machine themselves.
John Adams being married to abigail for 14 years.
Out of those 14 years, he spent seven years in Europe trying to negotiate support for the American cause they sacrificed today.
America needs to get back and embrace sacrifice. We need to watch out for leisure.
We need to be careful about affluence.
We ride on the heels and we stand on the shoulders of these giants who gave everything so much.
So there are people who burn the flag based on the liberty that they bought us.
There are people who protest against this state and those who gave sacrifice gave you the first amendment right to say so, it’s amazing and still today as messed up as she is, we want to make sure that we understand that she’s been messed up by the hands of politicians who don’t know anything about what we’re talking about today in this service.
More on that later frankly wouldn’t know nothing about it.
But Jefferson the craftsman in the Declaration of Independence in Congress July 4th 17 76 the unanimous Declaration of the 13 United States.
When in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another.
And to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which laws of nature and nature’s God entitle them a decent, decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
And here it comes, we hold these truths to be self evident that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights.
And among these are the are the among these are the life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, church family.
Those words had never been uttered in the realm of political dialogue in the history of man. Ever.
Never were the people invited to take control of their own destiny.
It was always despots, kings and rulers.
And when Jefferson wrote that we hold these truths to be self evident.
He’s talking about what would be the first amendment that inside of you is this understanding and longing and knowing that you’ve got to be free and you’re gonna say what you think and you are going to do what you do because God has made you a person of individual actions.
And so that’s why that’s the first amendment and that you can outlaw worship, but people will worship anyway.
And that’s why it’s in the first amendment.
And today like never before we need to remember and we need to restate it over and over again.
The first amendment declares that you may worship as your conscience dictates and the government cannot hinder you or molest you in your worship.
That is the first amendment of the United States.
You want to talk about separation of church and state in the context of the founding fathers.
They understood it perfectly well. Think about it to this day.
Congress is opened up in prayer every day since Benjamin Franklin. Why is that the case?
Because they understood the separation of church and state?
Why is it today that we’ve got Bibles that are not only all about but we’ve got a capital in our nation that is full of Bible Bible references Bible moments inscribed in granite.
Why? Why? Because they understood the separation of church and state.
It meant this, that the state will not molest or hinder our worship. It’s not the other way around.
It’s not the CNN version, it’s not msnbc’s version of it.
We need to remember that there is no place in this nation where your faith is prohibited according to the constitution of the United States.
And our founders understood that and they laid down their lives for that. It’s remarkable.
Number one church when in the course of human events, there was the move of God gut moves in the course of human events.
One of the great things about today gathering together is that you and I are living in our moment.
When God moved, we have a tendency to memorialize God’s movements in history and we sterilize them.
The first thing I want you to see today that when in the course of human events, there’s the move of God.
And when I talk about that I speak regarding our past, you got to remember when we see those great paintings of our, of our founding fathers dressed in the apparel of the day.
We wonder what’s funny clothes. They didn’t think they were wearing funny clothes.
None of them walked around and said, look at us wearing our funny clothes.
And isn’t it amazing that we’re making history?
They lived in the moment you’re living in the moment right now for your generation, for your age, in many ways, there’s no difference.
They chose to go against impossible adversity.
We don’t have to talk about it, but in our constitution, it is against the law for the United States armed forces to quarter their troops among our citizenry.
He said, what does that mean in this 13 colonies?
The British used to come in when they were hungry into your house and when they ate your food, they would sleep with your daughter or your wife.
And our founder said that’s wrong.
They would come in and they would take our guns and our powder, which in those days meant they’re basically destiny you to starvation.
And our founders said that’s wrong.
And when we had to ship our sermons back to Britain to be censored before they could be preached our black robe regimen of the pulpits of the colonial period said that’s wrong and it’s not gonna happen.
We’re gonna preach what God says if you like it or not, King George and they did it.
You’re listening to Real Life with Pastor Jack Hibbs, you know, to hear more episodes and maybe catch up in the series.
Just go to Jack Hibbs dot com. That’s Jack Hibbs dot com.
And for now, let’s get back to our teaching.
Once again, here’s pastor Jack, there was a move of God within, in the course of human events and it was with Bible in hand.
America can boast this. It’s not only a fact that you can read about and there’s libraries of books full of these events, but there’s paintings to capture it as well.
But I’d like to take you back.
I love the fact that Pastor Robert Hunt, listen to this chaplain of Jamestown, Virginia.
He first lifted his voice in public Thanksgiving and prayer.
Get the date on April 29th, 16 07 when the settlers planted a cross at Cape Henry.
From that time on the settlers of Jamestown attended regular prayer and bible study meeting led by Hunt before a chapel could be erected.
When Hunt held his first services, they were held under the old sail from off their ship.
He pitched a easy up as it were and had a sermon.
And I don’t know if you’ve been to Jamestown, but we’ve stood in the very spot and I took some pictures pretending I was preaching at the spot where that sail was erected.
It’s marked today, but it’s quite remarkable, quite awesome.
But it went on among the congregation was a Captain John Smith.
Anybody remember studying about him who described the worship services that took place in the open air as being attended to by God.
John Smith said of pastor Hunt’s labors.
He saw the hand of God at work in his life and he believed God had intervened to save the colonies.
Hunt concluded that it was God who had thwarted Spanish attempts to settle North America and he had reserved that region for the protestant English.
There’s a lot of facts to back that up with Bible in hand, moving forward, the great awakening would take place the first great awakening according to the encyclopedia Britannica.
And I quote the increase of disagreement from the established churches, English churches split during this period which led to a broader toleration of religious diversity and the return of the religious experience which listen, fed the fervor that resulted in the American revolution.
If you ever ask yourself or, or want to know the answer. How did the revolution ever begin?
Did Jefferson or Franklin wake up one day?
Was it Sam Adams that said we’re not going to do this anymore. We’re going to start a revolution. No.
Listen, it all started in the preaching of the pulpits that I mentioned a moment ago called the Black Robe Regimen.
That term was a derogatory term that was brought against them by the king of England.
England understood they were not only fighting a bunch of farmers turned soldiers, they had heard rumors about George Washington being a bumbling fool.
He was a colonel in the British army. If you remember that.
And at the battle of Brandy Wine, he was the only one to survive.
What, what is he going to do?
But then what happened was it was the spirit that was behind the effort.
Did you know that many of the soldiers that went on their way ranged from 12, 13 to 60 65 years of age But what did they encounter when they came to take on the world’s greatest military power on earth they took on with them to battle a spirit that was born in the pulpits says Sam Adams, the fight for liberty and freedom.
Absolutely awesome. Remarkable. I think we have a picture.
It’s not, it’s not a, it’s not a selfie or anything.
But while you’re looking at that, let me explain just to kind of rub it in some of you may know, just by the way that he wore his hair, he had a high forehead, he stood on, he preached in the open air.
You want to know why this is a big deal.
Some of you historians get it immediately, you know his name because what he was doing right there is 100% illegal.
You’re not allowed to do that England forbade that you couldn’t deliver a message unless it was indoors this young man.
And I mean, young man left England and he came here and he’s known as one of the founding fathers of the American revolution.
Unofficially, I think it should be more official. That’s George Whitfield.
Have you ever heard of orphanages? He started orphanages in Georgia in the colonies.
George Whitfield, Benjamin Franklin funded George Whitfield’s missionary outreaches to the colonies.
Ben Franklin recorded that in one time delivering a message on Boston Common.
George Whitfield was reaching with his voice without magnification, amplification.
He was reaching 30,000 people that those who heard him preach said that the atmosphere was divinely energized that people could supernaturally hear Him preach.
A quarter of a mile away. America was taking place. Why?
Because there was a people in the pursuit of freedom, mark that down.
If you would, the pursuit of freedom with Bible in hand.
If you open up your Bible, you’re gonna find something that God has put within your heart.
The love of freedom, the love of freedom is not bound up in red, white and blue.
It’s not bound up in our constitution. It’s not bound up in our declaration of Independence.
The love of freedom is bound up in the human heart. And it’s addressed in the Bible.
Jesus said, I’ve come to set you free, not enslave you.
The Bible says you’re free in Christ Jesus.
So no longer become entangled in the affairs of this life, free, the pursuit of freedom.
When the scripture says that we are free, it echoes our nation’s birthing documents when it says we hold these truths to be self evident that all men are created equal.
What a statement that’s treasonous to most countries at the time and they were endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights.
Jefferson is announcing that everyone including the king and the king of any realm is subject to a greater king that God has made all men equal.
Listen, we don’t get this in America because we’re spoiled rotten. We understand that we’re all equal.
We don’t check anyone’s pedigree or what, what bloodline are you?
Oh, you’re the descendant of who we don’t care because they understood that God had created man from the Popper in London to the king on his throne.
Our nation’s document said they’re the same people in the eyes of God and the crown didn’t like it.
And he gave us this love in this pursuit that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
Listen to what Samuel Adams wrote.
And I let’s see how it comes up on the screen because I’ll point it out if it’s not, I’ll draw to your attention.
Anyway, Sam Adams said this, we have this day restored the sovereign. There it is.
You see the those two words, the sovereign, Sam Adams wrote it just like that he’s stressed in it.
Sam Adams we have this day restored the sovereign to whom alone men ought to be obedient.
He reigns in heaven and from the rising to the setting sun.
May his kingdom come, Samuel Adams, not the beer guy. That’s his dad.
We’re talking about his son here, Sam Adams, the patriot, the sovereign.
Do you hear what they were saying? That the king is not God. God is God.
What a radical thought pastor and Bible teacher Jack Hibbs here on real life radio with his special Fourth of July message called when in the course of human events.
Thanks for listening and Happy Fourth of July from all of us here at Real Life Radio.
Our prayer is that as you celebrate with family and friends, you’ll say a prayer for our great country.
And remember that where the spirit of the Lord is there is liberty.
And we’ll continue on the next edition of Real Life Radio Miracles.
The word itself might bring up controversy in your own mind.
But did you know that America’s history is full of miracles? Are you aware of past crises?
When America’s fate hung in the balance? Our country is rich in miraculous tales of answered prayer.
So you’re going to love our current featured resource. It’s called Miracles in American History.
32 amazing stories of answered prayer. It’s by Susie Federer inside its pages.
You’ll discover real life struggles that the history books never really told you about divine protection in the middle of desperate circumstances.
From America’s past men and women rising up with faith and how situations were miraculously turned around 32 captivating but little known stories from the French and Indian War, the American revolution, the war of 18 12, the Civil War World War One and two and history.
Up through Apollo 13, learn the rest of the story of how people prayed, challenged and inspired the nation and how disaster was supernaturally averted.
You are sure to get inspired as you uncover miracles in American history.
32 amazing stories of answered prayer by Susie Federer.
It’s available for a gift of any amount at our website Jack Hibbs dot com. That’s Jack Hibbs dot com.
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Until next time, Pastor Jack Hibbs and all of us here at Real Life Radio.
Wish for you solid and steady growth in Christ and in his word, we’ll see you next time here on Real Life Radio.