Patriots in the Pulpit

On July 4, 1776, the Declaration of Independence lay on the table at Independence Hall in Philadelphia. A goose quill pen was placed next to the parchment awaiting the movement of the first man who would affix his name to this amazing document. 

Richard Henry Lee’s resolution for independence from Great Britain had been adopted two days earlier and now the time was at hand. Each delegate would be called upon to sign, thus committing his life, his fortune, and his sacred honor to a future darkened with uncertainty and the storm of war. If their endeavor for liberty from tyranny failed they would all feel the hangman’s noose.

How did these men, who were settled in reputation and character, get to this point? Why were these men, many of the gentry class, who could have led lives of leisure willing to sacrifice it all for a chance of liberty?  

It was the unsung heroes of the War for Independence that instilled in them that sacred fire through and by the preaching of the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus Christ.

It was because of the preachers, the PASTORS of the day, those patriots in the pulpits, the men of God, who preached the Word of God, through the Spirit of God, about the Son of God to the people of God.  

Preachers who, under threat of death, stood boldly and preached against the tyranny of King George the third!

This is what brought these 56 men, the founders of this great republic which gives us the freedom of the pulpit and the open permission to accomplish the Great Commission in these United States.  

John Witherspoon, the only pastor who signed the Declaration of Independence sensed the pensive moment when the delegates were about to sign the document that would be considered by many, treason. True to his calling stood and exhorted with the following statement:

"There is a tide in the affairs of men, a nick of time. We perceive it now before us. To hesitate is to consent to our own slavery. That noble instrument upon your table, which insures immortality to its author, should be subscribed this very morning by every pen in this house. He that will not respond to its accents and strain every nerve to carry into effect its provisions is unworthy the name of freeman. For my own part, of property, I have some, of reputation more. That reputation is staked, that property is pledged, on the issue of this contest; and although these gray hairs must soon descend into the sepulcher, I would infinitely rather that they descend thither by the hand of the executioner than desert at this crisis the sacred cause of my country."

God’s timeless truths gave birth to a great revival in the hearts and minds of our forefathers and brought them here with an exhaustible, unstoppable, strategy that had been fueled and fired through the Word of God.

The painting of the embarkation of the separatists, which hangs in our nation’s Capitol, depicts this definitive moment on July 22, 1620, when that small congregation prayed, surrounding the Bible upon their ship before weighing anchor. 

It was the gospel which caused our forefathers to risk all for the opportunity to worship God and found this nation for the propagation of the gospel of our precious Savior.

The United States of America was not born out of Revolution, America was born out of Revival! This is how our nation was birthed as multiplied thousands of people were getting saved. 

This mighty movement of God’s Holy Spirit impacted the society with a miraculous manifestation of love and power of the gospel with completely transformed a large percentage of our colonial population.

This massive revival affected every area of life to include the governance of our nation.

Christians, being living epistles of God’s eternal truth was the very thing that formulated our triform republic taken from Isaiah 33:22 and Exodus 18:21. Even with a Christian oriented government we must understand government cannot make people righteous. Our job is never to try to change society through government, but to see people changed and by the gospel of Jesus Christ so that We The People can influence our government in the way of liberty and not bondage.

The Pastors of yesteryear many times were the commanders that led their men into battle. They fought with muskets, swords, and cannons. If we are to occupy until Jesus comes and keep the pulpit free for the gospel’s sake we must not turn aside from the battle. The weapon of our warfare today is the truth of God’s Word.  

Must we go back to those men of yesteryear? Are we not those who will understand and respond to our biblical, historical, and constitutional responsibility to our government and say “God use me to maintain the civil liberty, entrusted to us so the spiritual liberty in Jesus Christ can continue to be freely proclaimed to a lost and dying world.”