25-0611wc Transcript

Teacher: Scott Reynolds

(0:04) This is an interesting lesson. If you have been told that the United States did not start as a (0:15) Christian nation, that it was just a secular nation like all the others, you’ve been lied to. (0:22) If you got your information from a professor named Howard Zinn, you’ve been lied to.

(0:30) And we’ll see the evidence in this lesson from the source material, from the very words of our (0:40) founding fathers of America, and to see whether they were just pagan and listen to their words (0:49) and you see if their words sounded like a pagan would speak or whether they were Christian, (0:57) and that they based their beliefs on the Bible or some pagan mythology. It’s easy to see. (1:09) So anyone who claims that is giving you a false truth claim.

And we’ll see that. (1:18) So from the lesson guide, we’re in lesson 10, the American experiment stepping stones. (1:26) And for this tour, we will remain in what they call the southwest sector of the compass, (1:32) long enough to examine a special subcategory of our last topic of discussion, the design of the (1:40) state.

We’re talking about the state. In particular, we want to take a brief look at the question, (1:47) what should God’s ministers on earth look like? And from Romans 13, 4, what is a proper form of (1:58) this agency that is divinely appointed and commissioned to administer justice, punish evil, (2:06) and encourage goodness among its citizens or subjects? We will approach this task by considering (2:14) the American experiment. The themes in this lesson from the beginning, Dr. Tackett lays down (2:22) three ground rules for the study.

First, we will not seek to deify America. And second, (2:31) we will not seek to deify the founding fathers. And the third ground rule will be dealt with at (2:37) the end of the lesson.

Having established these guidelines, he hastens to point out (2:43) that there are compelling reasons for giving special attention to the subject of this tour, (2:50) the American experiment. And the American experiment has the potential to prove (2:57) unusually conducive to a deeper understanding of God’s design for the state, precisely (3:05) because it is unique in history. Here on these shores and here alone, (3:12) people with a strong Christian worldview have been afforded an unparalleled opportunity (3:20) to create from scratch what they considered an ideal system of government, a system designed (3:30) in careful conformity with the principles outlined in lesson nine, the design of the state (3:37) from God’s worldview.

We begin by establishing the biblical character of that worldview. (3:45) The New England Primer, the second best-selling book after the Bible of the colonial era, (3:53) provides an intriguing window into the attitudes of early Americans. In particular, it reveals an (4:01) outlook and a way of life powerfully shaped by the teachings of scripture.

The pervasiveness (4:09) of this outlook is further demonstrated in statements made by America’s early political (4:15) leaders, legal and social architects, and educational pioneers, people like Benjamin Rush, (4:24) George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Samuel Adams, Charles Carroll, Noah Webster, (4:31) and the founders of Harvard, Princeton, and Columbia Universities. In spite of the fact that (4:39) not all of them were practicing Christians, these luminaries agreed with President John Adams (4:47) that the success of America’s republican form of government would prove directly dependent (4:53) upon the virtue and morality of her people, and that virtue and morality are necessary (5:03) founded upon religion, by which they all meant the Christian religion. All of these early thinkers (5:11) were convinced that the state must be held accountable to the authority of a higher ethical (5:17) and spiritual standard, the natural law, or the law of nature’s God.

If the human rights abuses (5:28) that they had observed in Europe and throughout history were to be hopefully avoided on this (5:35) continent. Tragically, however, America is quickly turning away from these principles. (5:42) It is hard to put a finger on the exact reasons, but one clear element came as Darwinian (5:49) evolutionary theory made its influence felt in the field of law.

In 1869, Harvard Law School (5:59) Dean Christopher Langdell advanced the view that the law is not based on the transcendent (6:07) standard of nature’s God, but is rather a fluid and constantly mutating body of doctrine, (6:16) a set of purely human ideas that inevitably change by slow degrees. In other words, (6:26) law and ethics, like biological species, are continually evolving. Supreme Court Justice (6:34) Oliver Wendell Holmes expanded on this theme by declaring that the law is simply an embodiment (6:42) of the ends and purposes of a society at a given point in its history, thus effectively granting (6:50) to the state the power to establish society’s ethical norms.

John Dewey implemented these (6:59) ideas in the realm of public education. There is no God, said Dewey, nicknamed the architect (7:07) of modern education, and there is no soul. Hence, there are no needs for the props of (7:15) traditional religion.

These statements, says Dr. Tackett, brings us to the present moment. (7:24) Today, America has largely forgotten God and denied the validity of her biblically-based (7:29) Christian roots. As a result, we see the power of the state expanding in our time.

(7:36) This, too, is the manifestation of the perennial cosmic battle, which is always fought most (7:43) fiercely in the social realm. Ultimately, we must face the fact that the American experiment is (7:51) likely to fail altogether if we do not take intentional and deliberate steps to salvage it. (7:57) This is a task which falls primarily on the shoulders of Christian people.

As believers, (8:05) we need to remember God’s call to prayer and repentance in 2 Chronicles 7, 13-14. (8:13) There is nothing to be gained, says Dr. Tackett, by casting blame on non-Christians. (8:19) This is the third ground rule for our study, so there’s the third rule.

(8:24) Nothing gained by placing blame on non-Christians. Points to watch for. (8:30) Last thing before we start the video.

This last point should be kept in mind throughout (8:36) the entire discussion. From beginning to end, Dr. Tackett seeks to communicate the thought (8:43) that the American experiment makes sense only when understood as the brainchild of Christians (8:51) who operated on the basis of a biblical worldview. Just as the experiment was instigated by believers, (9:00) so it must be carried on by believers.

Believers who care deeply and passionately about their (9:07) country if it is to survive and continue to succeed. So the American experiment (9:15) was a people who were afforded the opportunity to build a new government totally from scratch, (9:24) and it took a while. And this is what they came up with.

Our form of government, (9:30) the three branches of government, you’ll see is actually directly attributed to a passage in Isaiah, (9:39) believe it or not (Isaiah 33:22). This is the first I heard of that. So with that in mind, let’s get moving with (9:46) the video.

What do you think? Were you taught that in school? Any of us? Have you heard any of those (10:01) quotes from our founding fathers? You know, they tell us that when they talk about religion, (10:08) the founding fathers weren’t talking about Christianity. Is that true? They specifically (10:15) mentioned Christianity. Anybody who says that, any politician who says that, any educator who (10:23) says that, it is lying to you.

That’s a false statement. As we saw by looking at their actual (10:32) quotes, the accusation is that the founding fathers weren’t even Christian. They were (10:40) pagans.

That’s a blatant lie. So we’re going to stop there.