A Sermon by Pastor Tom Lacey . . .

what a day!

Joshua 10:12-15, Preached at Congregational Church of Boca Raton, July 4th, 2010

An old Indian chief reached his 105th birthday and was interviewed by a young history grad student. The student asked, “Chief Two Eagles, you have observed the white man for more that 95 years. You’ve seen his wars and his technological advances. You’ve seen his progress, and the damage he’s done.” The Chief nodded in agreement. The student continued, “Considering this long history and all these events, what is your opinion of the white man’s progress?” The Chief stared at the student for a long time and then calmly replied ….. “When white man found the land, Indians were running it. There were no taxes, no debt, plenty of buffalo, and plenty of beaver. Women did all the work, the medicine man was free. An Indian man spent all day hunting and fishing and all night having … fun.” Then the chief leaned back and smiled. “Only white man is dumb enough to think he could improve a system like that.”

The Fourth of July is a day of patriotic songs and warm sentiment celebrating the freedoms that we enjoy. Freedom however is a strange thing. When you don't have it, you desperately want it. When you do have it, you may take it for granted. Actually, historically, today is more accurately understood as a celebration of the quest for freedom. On July 4th, 1776, anything more than this was clearly in doubt. On July 4th, 1776, it was the hope for freedom that inspired the signers of the Declaration of Independence to their act of capital treason against the Crown. Five of them would pay exactly that cost. And so for this reason, and because today, Sunday falls on July 4th, I thought it would be right to read some of the Declaration of Independence. Some of this you will be able to follow along with from memory; others perhaps not as much.

“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 the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

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, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.”

These two paragraphs are by far the best known section of the Declaration. Now the Declaration of Independence did not start the American Revolutionary War. The War had been raging for more than a year before the Declaration was adopted. But, the Declaration gave purpose to the war. Thomas Jefferson and the founders listed off the "long train of abuses and usurpations" that showed "a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism." In other words, they listed everything wrong that King George III did against the American colonies; and the list is long, with 27 grievances in total. Because of these abuses, Jefferson argues that "it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security." And so on July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress, meeting in Philadelphia in the Pennsylvania State House (now Independence Hall), approved this particular Declaration of Independence. So you really understand the Declaration, you might recall that two days earlier, the Congress had voted in favor of Richard Henry Lee’s motion to declare the freedom and independence of the 13 American colonies from England. The Declaration therefore sets forth the principles and reasons upon which the Congress approved the motion for independence on July 2nd.

The Declaration itself was designed to influence public opinion and gain support both among the new states and abroad, especially in France, from which the new "United States" sought military assistance. Although Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Roger Sherman and Robert R. Livingston comprised the committee charged with drafting the Declaration, the task fell to Jefferson, regarded as the strongest and most eloquent writer. The document is mainly his work, although the committee and Congress as a whole made a total of 86 changes to Jefferson's draft.

The assembled Continental Congress deleted a few passages of the draft, and amended others, but outright rejected only two sections: a derogatory reference to the English people; and a passionate denunciation of the slave trade. The latter section was left out, as Jefferson reported, to accede to the wishes of South Carolina and Georgia, who wanted to continue the importation of slaves. The rest of the draft was accepted on July 4, and 56 members of Congress began their formal signing of the document on August 2, 1776.

 The 4th of July is a celebration of the birth of our nation, “conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men (and women) are created equal,” as Abraham Lincoln put it at Gettysburg, and that each has a right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. When we look back to that one incredible day, we ought to see at one and the same time the courage it took to declare oneself free from tyranny, the sacrifices so many made to give life to our country and its form of government, and the eternal truth of equality that must remain the guiding light of our shared principles and values as a nation.

Almost two hundred years later, President Lyndon B. Johnson said, “This, then, is the state of the union:  free and restless, growing and full of hope.  So it was in the beginning. So it shall always be, while God is willing, and we are strong enough to keep the faith.” In one sentence, President Johnson correlates our faith in our nation with its strength and vitality, and then subjects all three to the will of almighty God.  He equates national strength with personal faith in the nation, and his words remain a warning to remain strong in faith in our nation, for our nation’s sake, even if we aren’t always all we are cracked up to be, even when compared to other people and countries, which reminds me of the story about an Irishman, a Mexican and a Blonde American guy who were doing construction work on scaffolding on the 20th floor. They were eating lunch and the Irishman said, "Corned beef and cabbage! If I get corned beef and cabbage one more time for lunch, I'm going to jump off this building." The Mexican opened his lunch box and exclaimed "Burritos again! If I get burritos one more time I'm going to jump off, too." The blonde American opened his lunch and said, "Bologna again! If I get a bologna sandwich one more time, I'm jumping too." The next day, the Irishman opened his lunch box, saw corned beef and cabbage, and jumped to his death. The Mexican opened his lunch, saw a burrito, and jumped, too. The blonde guy opened his lunch, saw the bologna and jumped to his death as well. At the funeral, the Irishman's wife was weeping. She said, "If I'd known how really tired he was of corned beef and cabbage, I never would have given it to him again!" The Mexican's wife also wept and said, "If I'd known how really tired he was of burritos, I never would have given it to him again either!" Everyone turned and stared at the blonde's wife. The blonde's wife said, "Don't look at me. He makes his own lunch."

No one can ever take away our faith in our country. We can lose it; we can just give up when the challenges and differences seem too great; we can choose cynicism over hope. Keep your faith in our country, share your hope for our nation, and live out your love for the United States of America. What we believe, what we do or don’t do, in our country, for our country, in the midst of the entire world, matters. So get informed about important issues; learn the differences between policies; don’t just get swept up in personalities; participate in our nation’s political fabric, and not just put down the politics we find unfavorable.

Scripture tells us that civil authority is established by God. Jesus famously tells us to "render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to God the things that are God's." Jesus deeply loved his people, but he placed loyalty to God his Father above allegiance to family and nation. By placing himself above the Temple, Jesus showed that no matter how important something is for us, God still reigns greater in importance.

Early Christians paid their taxes and as commanded by the Lord, obeyed civil authority, though they did not speak highly of it. But they also had a statement that was considered by Roman authorities to be not only unpatriotic, but downright dangerous and subversive, and ultimately unacceptable. The early Christians said: "Jesus is Lord." This was intolerable to Roman authorities because if Jesus is Lord, then Caesar is not. It is our truest calling to be disciples of Christ, and answer that call above and beyond all other important and competing loyalties. That is true and right faith for Christians in the United States of America.

But please understand this: when people talk about the Judeo-Christian principles on which this great country is founded they are talking about Thomas Jefferson’s famous statement that “all Men (sic) are created equal and endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights.” It is the equality of all arising out of common relationship to God our Creator that makes our country based in Christian ethics. Too often the idea that we are a Judeo-Christian country is confused with the demand that America worship as Christians in order to be America; and those who don’t are less than those who do. But the truth is America doesn’t have to worship God in order to be America. What America must do is pointed to in that one sentence concerning equality and inalienable rights: America must be obedient to God’s principles in order to be America. It is the Judeo-Christian principle of equality before God and law that is the basis of our goodness, greatness, and future. As the Book of Isaiah says, “Hear the word of the Lord!...What to me is the multitude of your sacrifices (worship)? says the Lord; I have had enough of your burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed beasts; …Your new moons and appointed festivals my soul hates; they have become a burden to me….” Instead of this, Isaiah goes on to say, this is what is required: “Cease to do evil, learn to do good, seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow.” Isaiah 1:10ff

Now this is the Judeo-Christian principle a great and good nation like ours lives up to. May God continue to bless America, and may we continue to be a blessing to God.

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