When you study the Holy Scriptures, how do you do it? First, you research. You compare scripture to scripture, consult a concordance, dictionary, and a Bible commentary. Then you reason from the biblical truths and identify spiritual principles. Finally, you relate these truths and spiritual principles to your own life. Many people record their Bible studies. To help you develop a biblical worldview you will use the research, reason, relate, and record teaching method, popularly called the Principle Approach. To learn more about the Principle Approach for teaching and learning, visit the Foundation for American Christian Education.
Select and print the lesson below. There are 10 lessons, each one containing scriptures and words to define using the online Noah Webster 1828 Dictionary. The study questions are designed to help you develop a biblical worldview and the principles of godly leadership. The training is based on the book, The Kingdom Leadership Institute Manual: Raising Up Leaders a Time Like This Demands, by Rev. Rusty Lee Thomas.
Lesson 4: There is Another King, One Jesus
A familiar prayer of ministers during the American Revolution was for America to become "the principal Seat of the glorious Kingdom which Christ shall erect upon Earth in the latter Days." During the Revolution a common cry was heard, “No King but King Jesus!” Historians attribute the inspiration for this famous saying to Thomas Jefferson and Benjamin Franklin’s proposed national motto in 1776, “Rebellion to Tyrants is Obedience to God,” from Acts chapters four and five, or to Matthew Henry’s commentary on John 19:15.
George Whitefield was a principle figure in America’s Great Awakening, the legendary revival that produced the spirit of the American Revolution. Whitefield’s own faith was inspired by the earlier religious writings of Matthew Henry, in particular Matthew Henry’s Whole Commentary on the Bible. He was also friends with Benjamin Franklin, sharing much correspondence.
In addition to Whitefield, Jonathan Mayhew provided principled and scriptural justification for rebellion against the Crown. A clergyman who served at West Church in Boston, he wrote the famous 1750 sermon titled, A Discourse Concerning the Unlimited Submission and Non-Resistance to the Higher Powers, which John Adams later credited for “having great influence in the commencement of the Revolution.” This sermon, in turn, influenced Jefferson and Franklin’s proposal for the national motto, “Rebellion to Tyrants is Obedience to God.”
Whitefield’s preaching and Mayhew’s discourse paved the way for the American Revolution, securing the spiritual and moral underpinnings of the fledgling nation. In addition to Whitefield and Mayhew, American pulpits were aflame with theological justification for independence. As John Adams explained, in a letter to H. Niles (dated February 13, 1818):
The Revolution was effected before the war commenced. The Revolution was in the minds and hearts of the people; a change in their religious sentiments, of their duties and obligations...This radical change in the principles, opinions, sentiments, and affections of the people was the real American Revolution.
Why are these seemingly inconsequential details important to us today? It helps to underscore the need for a proper worldview. Our thinking must be shaped by the Word of God and the principles contained therein. The prevailing worldview at the time of the American Revolution was that Jesus is King of Kings. Earthly governments derive there authority from Him, by whom government was created. Without a higher authority to appeal to, there would have been no American Revolution. Rebellion against tyranny (in other words, a government in rebellion to the true King) was in reality, obedience to God.
The Kingship of Christ and the Origin of Our Representative Form of Government
Look up the definition for the word “king” in the online Noah Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary. Write out definition number two below.
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Continue your word study. Look up the definition for "sovereign," the adjective. Record the four definitions below.
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Record the definition for "sovereignty."
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Compare what you have learned to the scriptures. Read Psalm 2, Psalm 72, and Daniel 7:14.
Next, read Isaiah33:22. Record America’s three branches of government below.
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Finally, read Exodus 18:13-23 and Deuteronomy 1:12-17. Reason from the scriptures and your word study. Where does our representative form of government come from? Where do they derive their just authority? Who alone possesses absolute authority? Absolute, in this case, is “existing independent of any other cause, as God is absolute.”
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Relate what you have learned to your own life and the world around you. Is the Sovereign Lord ruling and reigning through you? Are His decrees being advanced in our nation? What should be done to reclaim our country for Christ?
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Our Duty to Civil Government
When a people lose the revelation of God’s sovereignty, a nation can only adopt two illegitimate options; either civil government or the individual becomes sovereign. When the state is regarded as sovereign, people look to Washington, D.C. as the source of all power. We see this in the cult-like status of President Barack Hussein Obama. “A new hope,” “an advanced soul,” “savior,” “messiah,” and fixer of “broken souls” are all terms used to describe our current president of the United States.
I hate to burst your idolatrous bubble. The sovereign Lord of the universe was not born in Hawaii or in Washington, D.C. He was born in Bethlehem. Barack Obama did not die for you. The King of Kings did.
If earthly government is the highest authority, with no accountability to a sovereign God, it becomes emboldened to exploit and harm the very ones it claims to serve. This is the high price we pay when we lose the revelation of God’s sovereignty. When there is an acknowledgment of God’s sovereignty, a nation’s freedom in secured.
Read John 19:5. Copy it below.
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Read Acts 5: 25-29 and 17:6, 7.
Reason from the scriptures and your word study. What was the accusation against the early Christians? Were they disobeying the civil government of Caesar? Who was the King they were obeying instead?
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According to Acts 17:6,7, the battle comes down to two vital issues: who is LORD, and whose laws are to govern in the affairs of men? Will it be the Almighty God, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, or will it be Caesar? Will it be the flawed laws of men, which in many cases legalizes evil, or the holy righteous laws of God that protect the liberty Christ died to secure for the sons of men?
Notice that the accusation against those who “turned the world upside down” was not, “There is Savior who loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.” No, the early church suffered great persecution and martyrdom because of the revelation of “another king.” And this King had his own decrees. Christianity did not endanger Rome religiously. There was religious freedom under Roman occupation. You could worship the god of your choice.
Rome was threatened politically…
Read the online version of Jonathan Mayhew’s 1750 sermon, A Discourse Concerning Unlimited Submission and Non-resistance to the Higher Powers: with Some Reflections on the Resistance Made to King Charles I. As you do, compare his teaching to Romans chapter 13.
Reason from the scriptures and your word study. What is “the main end of civil government?” Is it ever lawful to resist “the higher powers?”
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Relate what you have learned to your own life and our nation. Civil government is due or taxes, prayers, tribute, and submission to lawful authority. It is not due or faith, conscience, or thoughts. It has no divine right to determine our beliefs, regulate our faith, or punish our thoughts. In light of these biblical truths, what should our response be to tyranny?(See Acts 5:29) Do we respond as the Jews in Jesus day when faced with persecution at the hands of civil government? Do we respond, “We have no king but Caesar”? Or do we respond as our Founding Fathers did, “No King but King Jesus!”
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For a fuller treatise of the subject, read The Kingdom Leadership Institute Manual: Raising Up Leaders a Time Like This Demands.
Proceed to lesson 5
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