Breaking News

The Latest Word from John Ed Mathison

What if CNN, MSNBC, FOX, ABC, NBC, CBS interrupted their programming to carry the following 4 news alert stories? 

1. BREAKING NEWS – The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court has just issued this public statement: “Divine Providence has given to our people the choice of their rulers and it is the duty…of our Christian nation to select and prefer Christians for their rulers.”

This quote was by John Jay, the first Chief Justice and often called the “Father of the Supreme Court,” and one of the contributing writers to the Constitution. He wrote “it is the duty…of our Christian nation to select and prefer Christians for their rulers.

2. BREAKING NEWS – “Inquiries by our reporters reveal that almost every state legislature has now passed a law requiring all elected officials to take this oath, ‘I do profess faith in God the Father and in the Lord Jesus Christ His only Son…and I do acknowledge the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be given by Divine Inspiration.”

This quote was from the State of Delaware which required office holders to take an oath affirming the Christian faith before they could take office. Their reasoning – why should we trust anyone in such a high calling if not affirming a faith in Christ?

3. BREAKING NEWS – Legislation was passed today in Congress to affirm that “the Congress of the United States approves of and recommends…the Holy Bible for use in the schools.”

In 1782 not only did Congress approve the use of Bibles in our schools, they even paid for them with tax dollars. When someone sued in 1844 to remove the Bible from schools, the Supreme Court ruled, “Why should not the Bible and especially the New Testament be read and taught as a divine revelation in the schools? Where can the purest principles of morality be learned so clearly or so perfectly as from the Holy Testament?”

4. BREAKING NEWS – Every citizen must read aloud our Declaration of Independence which states “all men are created equal and they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights.” It then states that “representatives of the United States of America and General Congress assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world…” Their concept of God was not just as God of America, but the God of the world. They concluded the Declaration with “and for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.”

Jim Vickrey reminds us that the Declaration of Independence was crafted in the form of an argument – with assumptions, effects, causes, and conclusions all flowing logically. It was written to be read aloud in town squares. Jefferson marked the text with diacritical markings to instruct the town criers’ how to read it. When is the last time you heard it read aloud?

Charles Barton’s research shows that 29 of the 56 signers of the Declaration held either Seminary or Bible school degrees. Several others were strong Christians. Even Thomas Paine acknowledged his personal accountability to God and publicly supported teaching creationism in school classrooms.

After signing the Declaration of Independence Samuel Adams, often called the “Father of the Revolution” said, “We have this day restored the Sovereign to Whom all men ought to be obedient. He reigns in Heaven, and from the rising to the setting of the sun, let His Kingdom come.”

I am grateful to Steven Gregg who shared some of these Breaking News ideas.

What Breaking News do you hear?

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