The Making of a Great America Where the Church and the Founding Fathers Fell Short

Make America Great Again?

 “Make America Great Again,” has quickly become one of the most divisive phrases in our nation. It most certainly begs the questions, when was America great, what things made it great, and what things need to be done to restore its greatness?The answers to the questions above have driven me back to study the Founding Fathers’ vision of America and what they set out to achieve. As a born-again Christian, I share the belief that America’s greatness is inextricably connected to its foundational aim, as expressed in the pledge of allegiance, to be “one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”

I know that for non-Christians, these words may have a myriad of interpretations. This book is not written for them— this book is written for those who profess the Lordship of Jesus Christ and acknowledge the inerrant doctrinal authority of the Bible:

2 Tim 3:16 (NKJV) “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness…”

2 Pet 1:16, 20-21 (NKJV) “For we did not follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were eyewitnesses of His majesty…knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.”

I believe that the Scriptural principles reflected in the Pledge of Allegiance were valid long before it was created and are still relevant today. As I study the Founding Father’s application of these principles; however, I believe that they did not go far enough in their pursuit of the tenets of liberty and justice for all. Though these Founding Fathers were great visionaries, likely the greatest visionaries our country has ever known, their revelation of God’s plan for our nation was incomplete.

The Founding Fathers had difficulty extending the application of these principles outside themselves (British settlers). They had difficulty extending these principles to Native Americans, enslaved Africans and even to other European immigrants (Irish, German, etc.) Why would I go to the trouble of pointing this out? Only to show that many of the issues that we are dealing with today (division along racial lines, racism, and distrust of immigrants) are not new issues. Ecclesiastes 1:9 (NKJV) says,“That which has been is what will be, that which is done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun.”

Though our Founding Fathers were men of great vision and had great faith in what America could be, they fell short in achieving the true measure of America’s greatness, as was intended by God. Specifically, they fell short in extending to “all” the application of the stated principles of the Declaration of Independence:

“We hold these Truthsto 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….”

The great values espoused in our Declaration of Independence did not originate with our Founding Fathers. As students of, and believers of the Bible, we know that the Founding Fathers based these words on Scriptural principles— we know that Scripture was foundational to their vision of making America one nation under the God of the Bible:

Acts 17:26 (NKJV) “And He has made from one blood every nation of men to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined their preappointed times and the boundaries of their dwellings…”

Luk 6:32-33 (NKJV) “But if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those, who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same.”

Jam 2:8-9 (NKJV) “If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you do well; but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors.”

Most recently, the notion of “Making America Great” has moved away from the Scriptural tenets described above. Further, “Make America Great Again,” or MAGA has been unhinged from the ideals espoused by the Founding Fathers and devolved into unveiled and unapologetic racist undertones.  Undertones is a woefully inadequate word to describe the views on the inequality of the races that have been attached to MAGA by President Trump. The president’s mass characterization of certain immigrant groups and even nations, under the backdrop of MAGA, has absolutely nothing to do with the things that are needed to Make America Great. Most of the current MAGA sentiments point to the issues that have kept America from achieving her greatest potential since the time of the Founding Fathers.

I don’t have a problem with the President saying the things he says or believing the things he believes. Mat 12:34-35 says: “Brood of vipers! How can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.” I believe the President is a man who does not have the revelation of the Scriptures as pertains to matters of race and equality before God, and I pray for him accordingly.

I do, however, have a problem with born-again Christian leaders, men, and women of national prominence, embracing the president wholeheartedly without denouncing views that are unbiblical and don’t match the vision of America expressed in its most sacred foundational documents.

As a Christian, I believe that America has a place in God’s redemptive plan for the world. I believe that America’s wealth, military might, and many of its cultural underpinnings put us in a unique position to accomplish greatness in the Earth. I also believe that the devil has a plan to prevent America from achieving the greatness that God had planned for it from the foundation of the world.

One of Satan’s most successful weapons is division. There is no question that he is at work in America, fueling division along racial and ethnic lines. Division along racial and ethnic lines has existed in America since its birth as a nation and continues to hinder its greatness.