HOW FIRM A FOUNDATION

by CHARLES ROBEY
(MOODY AL USA)

PROLOGUE

Are you old enough to remember those good old “Sunday Go To Meeting” days?” Mom would make sure our best blue jeans were washed and starched, and our shoes were free of dirt. Dad would get up early, milk the cows and gather the eggs, in time to hitch the wagon for the Sunday service.

Being now older than dirt, and twice as gritty, as I often relate, I can’t help but reminisce while sitting on the back deck enjoying the summer weather, with a big glass of ice cold Southern sweet tea in hand. And of course I have some homemade chocolate chip cookies nearby.

Well, maybe you can’t remember such happenings. Simply ask your Papaw, he will be more than willing to look back on the past. His number one pastime is serving as the repository for family memories. Age does play tricks sometimes, however. I can now remember the good old Fifties, but have to check the calendar to see what day it is.

One such blissful occurrence that forever stands within my mind, which has dismissed today’s regressive, socialistic society, is the “Old Time Religion” spirit. Along with this religion comes the secondary cultural by-product of patriotism.

If only today’s churches were still as they were in the past. They were the focal point of the community, and the preacher’s personality seemed to rub off, not only on the church but also within the community.

Most preacher personalities were infused with an ever-constant American patriotism. The love of God held first place, followed by love of country. Now let us move on from the past into the present and the future. What about America? Where do we stand now?

According to Dr. David Jeremiah, “America has learned what our repressive and terrorist adversaries do nor understand: liberty without law is anarchy, liberty to defy law is rebellion, but liberty limited by law is the cornerstone of civilization.”

As our blog's “Old Time Religion” preacher so zealously points out, it must be God first for America, followed by old time patriotism. The Bible, followed by America’s flag, go hand in hand. If we, as a people, and as a country, hold to God's Word, we willl not be swept away by the winds of history.

So, I have labeled the efforts of this tried-and-true blog. “How Firm A Foundation.”

“Nevertheless, the firm foundation of God stands, having this seal, 'The Lord knows those who are His,' and 'Let everyone who names the Name of the Lord abstain from wickedness.' (II Timothy 2:19)

I can still envision our Old Time Religion community church pastor out in the back forty. He would be dressed in an old moth-eaten flannel shirt and faded overalls, with the plow handle in one hand and his worn King James New Testament in the other.

The community loved him so, especially on Sunday mornings. He was the first to arrive and the last to leave our little log cabin church. And when he would begin to preach, he would make the hair stand up on the head of the toughest boot-legger of the county.

I remember -- how can I not remember -- his profound declaration of invitation to his congregation. His illustrations could be rustic, but he always made his point with his people.

"THA HURD NEEDZ ALL U N TA JON THA HURD!" Interpretation, God’s divine purpose always needs dedicated spiritual workers to help spread the good news of the Gospel. In other words, the fields are white unto harvest, and the workers are few.

“Then He said to His disciples, 'The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest field.'” (Matthew 9:37-38)

So, I have just one question, my fellow Americans. As our profound country preacher would always ask, “Are you on the Lord’s side?" Obviously, to some this is a valid question. To others, it's not so clear.

With respect to this all-important question, my only remark is the tried and true statement that we must get Back to the Bible. We must go straight to God’s holy Word, the Scriptures, as the answer to all our questions. God is always in need of dedicated workers to help spread His Word among the masses.

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,” (II Timothy 3:16)

I know however, realistically speaking, our pastor’s opening statement evokes a barrel of thought in the context of today’s divided civilization in which America dwells. We are seeing a profound difference of opinion regarding religionon on both sides of the aisle.

There again, let us go straight to Scripture which never lies. But first we must consider an all-important Biblical truth, that our living Creator God is, has, and will always be in perfect control of all civilizations, regardless of today’s various mindsets. He is no respecter of persons, persuasions, or opinions.

“Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are His. He changes times and seasons; He deposes kings and raises up others. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning.” (Daniel 2:20-21)

Oh yes, I realize times do change. Cultures change. Education changes. Freedoms change. And above all, personalities, due to needs, desires, ambitions, greed, and wants have always changed down throughout history. But our living Creator God never changes. Throughout history, and in His spoken Word, He is the same, yesterday, today and forever. “I the Lord do not change.” (Malachi 3:6)

Now with that important Scriptural fact being a perfect reality, we must move forward again. If you are privileged, as myself, to have memories of the Fifties, the proof is in the pudding. For socialist, regressive mindset has always been a thorn in the flesh of America’s freedoms, religions, and reality.

So, what’s the answer? It’s very simple. We need to return to the Bible, and cling to it moving forward into today's socialist world.

We realize, of course, in today’s world, that our heritage of the Scripture is under fire. Once America fails to acknowledge God’s holy written word, our basis for our freedoms will quickly come crashing down.

President Calvin Coolidge put it this way, ”The foundations of our society and our government rest so much on the teachings of the Bible that it would be difficult to support them if faith in these teachings would cease to be practically universal in our country.”

In the writing of America’s founding documents, the Declaration of Independence and Constitution, America’s founders insisted on the principle of freedom, led by the dictates of Scripture.

“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people He has chosen as His own inheritance.” (Psalm 33:12)

The book of Proverbs adds, “Righteousness exalts a nation, but sin is a reproach to any people” (Proverbs 14:34)

In 1911, President Woodrow Wilson said, “The Bible… is the supreme source of revelation of the meaning of life, the nature of God and spiritual nature and needs of men. It is the only guide of life which really leads the spirit in the way of peace and salvation. America was born a Christian nation. America was born to exemplify that devotion to the elements of righteousness which are derived from the revelations of Holy Scripture.”

As Dr. Hoyt so aptly puts it. “What do we have to worry about? Our trust has never been in government, civilizations, or cultures. These institutions will be swept away by the winds of history. They are helpful while they are here, but they have never been worthy of our trust. We have put our trust in the One who stands above institutions, above history, and even above time itself—the One by whose power and permission the things exist, and who knows their times and the ends of their days. Only He is worthy of our ultimate allegiance.”

So, now I ask you, my fellow Christian patriot, where do you stand in today’s modern culture? Are you being swept away by the winds of history? Or are you holding firm to the true foundation of your living Creator, God?

EPILOGUE

I trust the concept of patriotic Christianity came through in this little, simple blog. Our Old Time Religion preacher was right. The Bible and America’s founding documents of the Declaration of Independence and US Constitution go hand in hand.

George Washington, America’s first president, was right when he said, “It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible." And our sixteenth President, Abraham Lincoln, backed this up by saying, “It is my constant anxiety and prayer that both myself and this nation should be on the Lord’s side.”

So I leave you with this challenge: Read the Bible first, then America’s founding documents. The Bible lays out the foundation for our faith, and the moral under-pinning's of the Constitution are in the Declaration of Independence and its principle of equal rights under the law.