Transcript

Stephen McDowell looks at John Adams and his Christian worldview

>> Stephen McDowell: Welcome to America's Providential History podcast, where we talk about the real story of America and explore the hand of God in our history. Now, here's your host, Steven McDowell. Hello. Glad you're joining us for this edition of America's Providential History. today we're going to be looking at Jon Adams and highlight his faith and biblical worldview. We have begun to take a look at the faith of the presidents and took a number of weeks to look at George Washington and was he a Christian? Examining his Christian faith. this week I want to pick up on Jon Adams, who was the second President of the United States. And he was the first president to live in what we now call the White House. That was called that, later on the chief executive mansion. Now, Adams was vice president under Washington for eight years and served in many other governmental positions over the years before that. And he and Thomas Jefferson were the only two signers of the Declaration of Independence that later served as president under the United States Constitution. Now, as a member of the Continental Congress, he nominated Washington to be commander in Chief in 1775. And it was just the year before he had been a member of the first Continental Congress. This was the first time representatives, were sent from all the colonies in 1774. They gathered in September. At least 12 of the colonies sent representatives. And it was there at that first gathering of the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia where the delegates invited Reverend Jacob DeShell to open their proceedings in prayer. The. There's a well known painting depicting the first prayer in Congress that you may well have seen. It's on the COVID of one of our books, Building Godly Nations. And Jon Adams presented a beautiful account of this first prayer in Congress in a letter he wrote to Abigail on September 16, 1774. Throughout their life, Jon and Abigail Adams wrote many letters back and forth. Because Adams was gone so much from home on service to his country in many different ways. I, encourage you to read the letters of Jon and Abigail Adams. They're marvelous to give us an understanding of that time of history, the relationship of these two very significant people. And so Adams was there in Philadelphia, and he wrote to his wife Abigail of these first events of this meeting of the Continental Congress. And regarding the opening prayer of Reverend Jacob DeShay. Adams wrote, When the Congress met, Mr. Cushing made a motion that it should be opened with prayer. It was opposed by Mr. Jay of NewSong York and Mr. Rutledge of South Carolina, because we were so divided in religious sentiments. Some Episcopalians, some Quakers, some Anabaptists some presbyterians and some congregationalists, that we could not join in the same act of worship. Mr. Samuel Adams arose and said that he was no bigot and could hear a prayer from any gentleman of piety and virtue who was at the same time a friend to his country. He was a stranger in Philadelphia, but had heard that Mr. Duchell deserved that character. And therefore he moved that Mr. Duche, an Episcopal clergyman, might be desired to read prayers to congress tomorrow morning. The motion was seconded and passed in the affirmative. Mr. Randolph, our president waited on Mr. Duchet and received for an answer that if his health would permit, he certainly would. Accordingly, next morning he appeared with his clerk and his pontificals and read the PSALTER for the seventh day of September, which was the 35th Psalm. You must remember. This was the next morning after we had heard the rumor of the horrible cannonade of Bost. I never saw a greater effect produced upon an audience. It seemed as if heaven had ordained that psalm to be read on that morning. After this, Mr. Duchet, unexpectedly to everybody, struck out into an extemporary prayer which filled the bosom of every man present. Now we have recording that Mr. Duchet was concluded his prayer with these words. This is the prayer that he prayed, extemporaneously. He concluded. Be thou present, O God of wisdom. And direct the councils of this honorable assembly. Enable them to settle all things on the best and surest foundation. That the scene of blood may be speedily closed, that order, harmony and peace may be effectually restored in truth and justice, religion and piety prevail and flourish among the people. Preserve the health of their bodies and the vigor of their minds. Shower down on them and the millions. They here represent such temporal blessings as thou seest expedient for them in this world and crown them with everlasting glory in the world to come. All this we ask in the name and through the merits of Jesus Christ, thy son, our savior. Amen. Now, you need to remember that in September 1774, this was before fighting had begun. It would be in April of 1775. The British fired upon the colonists, those patriots, at part of Jonas Clark's church in Lexington, Massachusetts. But there was growing tension, among the colonists in Britain that, that, the port of Boston had been closed that summer, 1774, in response to the Boston Tea Party of December 1773. And this is one of the events that precipitated the colonists sending delegates to Philadelphia to discuss. How can we respond to the king and the parliament acting contrary to, really Their. Their rights as British citizens, as Samuel Adams, would write. And so they gather together, discussing this very important time, this trying time, this. What are we going to do? Are we going to lose our liberties? Are we going to have to fight? They've been petitioning the king, and he had just made matters worse. And so, as we see, they gathered together. The first thing they did, they invited a pastor to pray. This shows you something of the Christian heart and character of the founding Fathers. And this is what Jon Adams is writing to Abigail to record. Okay. We invited a minister to pray. This was not unusual at all because the states had, chaplains. Pray. The states had governors, proclaimed days of prayer and fasting. The legislature had proclaimed days of prayer and fasting for generations, really, since, the very beginning of colonization. So he's given this. And then after responding to this prayer, Jon Adams, wrote. I, must confess I never heard a better prayer, one so well pronounced. Episcopalian as he is, Dr. Cooper himself never prayed with such fervor. Dr. Cooper was Jon Adams pastor, Pastor of the church that he attended. He was a Congregationalist. So that's why I said Episcopalian as he is, Dr. Cooper himself never prayed with such fervor, such ardor, such earnestness and pathos, and in language so elegant and sublime for America, for the Congress, for the province of Massachusetts Bay, and especially the town of Boston. It has had an excellent effect upon everybody here. And so Jon Adams records this moment in our history, which is one of so many things that reflect the Christian character of our Founding Fathers, that, these leading men from all the colonies gathering together, that they sought God in prayer. And as they prayed, it was recorded, some in their tradition of their Christian Protestant sect, some would be on their knees in prayer, some standing, all in reverent position. Now, Connecticut delegate, delegate Silas Dean wrote the Congress met and opened with a prayer made by the Reverend Mr. Duche, which it was worth riding 100 miles to hear. He read the lessons of the day and then prayed without book about 10 minutes, so pertinently with such fervency, purity and sublimity of style and sentiment, that even Quakers shed tears. So here it was. What a powerful prayer as witnessed by Jon Adams. As Silas, Dean, another delegate, it was so powerful, he said, it's worth riding 100 miles. And he's talking about riding on a horse a 100 miles, not in the car, to here. And it moved. It was so moving that even Quakers shed tears. Known for their, you know, lack of. Lack of emotion.

John Adams was one of five men on committee to draft Declaration of Independence

in their, in their lives. So as a member of the continental Congress in 1776, Adams was one of five men on the committee to draw up a Declaration of Independence. And, he urged the fellow committee members, that, and spoke to Jefferson, said he thought Jefferson should be the one who, drafted the initial version of the Declaration of Independence. and so Jefferson did that took a couple of weeks to draw up the draft the declaration. And the committee of five made some changes and adjustments. Then it was presented to all the delegates who made some other, changes, as well. And then it was approved on July 4, 1776. Now, during the war for Independence, Adams served as the United States minister to France. He, along with Jon Jay and Benjamin Franklin, negotiated the Treaty of Peace with Great Britain, ending the Revolutionary War. And this Treaty of peace, or sometimes called the Treaty of Paris because it was signed in Paris in 1783, but it begins with these words, in the name of the most holy and undivided Trinity. What an interesting way to begin a civil peace treaty. But it was Adams, along with Jay and Franklin, gladly affixed their signature to this, document. Adams also later served as the US Minister to Britain. Well, after the delegates of the Constitutional Convention approved the U.S. constitution in September 1787, Adams encouraged the states to ratify it, writing a, defense of the Constitution of the government of the United States. As I mentioned, his letters to Abigail have been published, and they give great insight into the history of his time. Now. So Adams was very much involved in the birth of the United States, signing the Declaration of Independence. He was, of course, the second president of the United States. And he served in many capacities as ambassador and vice president and other things. But, you know, Adams attended church all his life, and he embraced biblical doctrine. He had a biblical worldview now part of his life. later on he was associated with Unitarianism, which, as I'll mention later, it was nothing, like it is today. It was initially rooted in orthodox Christianity. Jon Adams faith and Christian worldview certainly can be seen in his life attending church throughout his whole life. In fact, he called himself kind of a church going animal that he, attended, so much, and his words and his actions as well reflect his veneration for the Christian faith. In his diary from February 22, 1756, he wrote, Suppose a nation in some distant region should take the Bible for their only law book, and every member should regulate his conduct by the precepts there exhibited. What a, utopia, what a paradise would this region be so Here in this quote, he's reflecting really the basic worldview of just about all of the founders of America. They understood that the Bible is not just a religious book that gives us pious platitudes of how to live our personal life. And certainly the Bible is full of instruction of how we should live our life and standards of personal conduct. But it's much more than that because if you take the Bible as your only law book, it's the source not only of personal moral living, but it's also the source for civil laws of liberty. And he's saying they're very knowledgeable of history. And Washington himself read 50 Constitutions of Light documents, historical documents and studied them to prepare going to the Constitutional Convention when they ended up discussing and approving a new U.S. constitution. But they understood, look, if you take the Bible as your only law book, and if every member should regulate his conduct by the precepts in the Bible, because the Bible gives us not only our personal moral living, actually impacts civil society. You shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall honor those in authority, shall preserve the biblical family and other things that these principles are taught in the Ten Commandment. And if you apply these principles and live out these principles, you actually bringing flourishing to civil society. So if every person would regulate his conduct according to biblical truth, what a utopia, what a paradise would this region be. So the way to bring about flourishing within a nation is to build families and individuals and civil action upon the laws of the Bible. In 1765 Jon Adams wrote, I always consider the settlement of America with reverence and wonder as the opening of a grand scene and design of providence for the illumination of the ignorant and the emancipation of the slavish part of mankind all over the earth. Now here we see that Adam's having a knowledge of history, providential history. That's the view of history that just about every founding father had. They understood that God is the author of history. God is fulfilling his plan and purpose for mankind through events in history using the godly and the ungodly. And when he looked at the settlement of America, he recognized there's something unique and different about this nation, that, that in the birth of this nation it's like it's the opening of a grand scene and design of providence. God himself has given birth to America to help bring a new understanding of a Christian government of Christians and government built upon Christian self government, that government of laws, not a government of men and a government of laws under God's higher Laws and that through the birth of this, it was a way to illuminate mankind to see, this is how you can live. And the fruit of living in accordance with my truth is going to bring liberty. It's going to emancipate the slavish part of mankind all over the earth. And to the degree that nations have embraced the principles of biblical Christianity in every sphere of life is the degree to which those nations have prospered, advanced and been free. Now, while President of the United States in 1798, Jon Adams wrote, we have no government armed with power, capable of contending with human passions unbridled by morality and religion. Avarice, ambition, revenge or gallantry would break the strongest chords of our constitution as a whale goes through a net. Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other. And so he pointed out a very important concept regarding civil, governments of liberty. In particular our unique form of government, our American Christian constitutional federal republic, our Constitution. It was made only for a moral and religious people, only Christian self governed people, one really that build their lives according to the precepts of the Bible. As he wrote earlier in his diary, it's only such a people, people who have Christian character and a biblical worldview that are moral. Moral people have Christian character, religious people, people that look to God as the source of right and wrong and what's lawful and unlawful. Our Constitution was made only for such a people. It's wholly inadequate for the government of any other because we have a nation that was built with a Christian power and form of government. And in previous podcasts, we've talked about having a Christian power and form of government. The that the form is the external framework of the type of government the founders gave us. And that framework is important. That framework is good. Those ideas really, are rooted in the Bible. But that's very important. What's more important is the Christian power of our government. That's the internal principles in the heart of the people, because those principles are primary and they flow out and impact every external form of governance in the civil realm and other spheres of life as well. And so it's only immoral and religious people, only a Christian people with biblical, morality that can support our unique form of government. Because if someone tries to copy the external form of our government, but the people do not have the internal power, it's not going to produce the same results. And history has shown that to be the case. On, March 4, 1797, Jon Adams in His inaugural address said, and may that being who is supreme over all, the patron of order, the fountain of justice, and the protector in all ages of the world of virtuous liberty, continue his blessing upon this nation and its government, and give it all possible success and duration consistent with the ends of his providence. So we see throughout his life, from early on writing in his diary, through his time as president, he wrote and spoke, declaring the importance of the Christian faith and understanding the providence of God, and spoke about reliance upon God, as well. Now, In May of 1776, Jon Adams was in Philadelphia, the meeting of the continental Congress, the ones who gave us the declaration, in July of that year. But while there, he went and heard a sermon of Reverend Duffield. And during that sermon, Duffield likened the way that King George III treated the Americans to the way Pharaoh had treated the Israelites. In fact, if you think about it, you can think, you know, even members of parliament in England spoke about this. Why King George, are you treating the colonists this way? It makes no sense. These are British citizens. These are your own subjects, and you're treating them in a way that violates their rights as British, subjects. Why would you do such a thing? And so, Duffield is saying, well, the only way that you can really explain the action of King George III is that God hardened his heart because he wanted to accomplish something through all of these event events. So Duffield concluded that God intended for the Americans to be liberated, just as he intended the Israelites to be liberated. And so on May 17, Adams wrote to his wife. He said, is it not a saying of Moses, who am I that I should go in and out before this great people? When I consider the great events which are past and those greater, which are rapidly advancing, and that I may have been instrumental in touching some springs and turning some small wheels which have had and will have such effects, I feel an awe upon my mind which is not easily described.

The U.S. capitol was first used by Congress in 1800 after the Constitution

Great Britain has at last driven America to the last step, complete separation from her, a total, absolute independence. And so, of course, this was some six weeks before those delegates went on to officially declare independence. But they were discussing, son. Adams saw the events, and he recognized God in his providence was at work through all of this, that he had a bigger plan, end the actions of King George III and the events that had been going on for ten years, prior to this. And Adams was recognizing, somehow, I'm involved. God has me here and involved in some way with these events that will lead to our independence and lead to Giving birth to a unique new nation. A nation birthed in Liberty. The U.S. capitol was first used by Congress in 1800 after the U.S. constitution went into effect. We needed a national capital. So Maryland and Virginia gave some land, 10 mile square piece of land, kind of north, south, turned up on its, point. And the first buildings that began to be built were the US Capitol and, the home for the president. And so it was the capitals first used by Congress in 1800. Interestingly, there were meetings in the building before Congress met. There were church meetings, the first public meetings in the, Capitol building before the Congress met. There were churches met in the Capitol building. Well, Jon Adams delivered the first presidential speech ever given in the building in the Congress. When the new. When the Congress first met there in 1800, it was given in the original Senate chamber. It's now preserved as the old Supreme Court chamber. If you have ever visited the Capitol building and taken a tour, you might have gone down to the old Supreme Court chamber. That was the original Senate chamber. And it was there that he delivered his first presidential speech to the joint session of Congress. His short speech contains a prayer for the city. Here's that prayer. In his speech to Congress, he said, may this territory, speaking of Washington, the District of Columbia, it's called the District of Columbia to honor Christopher Columbus. Since the president Washington oversaw the design and layout and the initial building of the Capitol city. It was referred to informally as Washington, city even during Washington's time. This is where we get the name today. Washington D.C. so may this territory be the residence of virtue and happiness in this city. May that piety and virtue, that wisdom and magnanimity, that constancy and self government which adorn the great character whose name it bears, be forever held in veneration here and throughout our country. May simple manners, pure morals and true religion flourish forever. And so Adams, in this first joint speech to Congress in the new Capitol building, had a prayer, prayed that God would, would, bless this undertaking of a new nation. Well, the first building constructed with the Capitol in the. Along with the Capitol was the White House, later called the White House. It wasn't called that then. It wasn't even white at the time. the cornerstone was laid in 1792 during George Washington's presidency and was completed during the term of the second president, Jon Adams. Jon and Abigail were its first occupants. That was just toward the end of Jon Adams, term as president. And Jon Adams actually had gone to and seen the White House before Abigail came there. And he was, he wrote A letter to Abigail. Abigail, kind of giving her a description. Hey, this is going to be your home for, for a short period of time during the end of my presidency. And he's letting her know about it. And in this letter he, there's an, inscription that was a prayer. And that prayer of Jon Adams that he wrote to Abigail Adams is today cut into the marble facing of the State Dining Room fireplace. If you have a tour of the Capitol and you went in the State Dining Room, you can look over the mantle and see this engraved prayer from Jon Adams. And it reads, I pray heaven to bestow the best of blessings on this house and on all that shall hereafter inhabit it. May none but honest and wise men ever rule under this roof. What a marvelous prayer to be praying for those chief executives who've lived in this house. And it's been everyone from Adams all the way to our current president. And, that prayer for the most part, has been answered. Most of our presidents have been honest and wise men, but unfortunately some have, have been neither honest nor wise. And, and I'm going to be examining the faith of just some of the presidents. now I'm not going to look at them all. Maybe in future podcasts we may explore, many, many more of the presidents. But, so this was, you know, up through his presidency, Jon Adams was associated with Congregational Church. But later on after that fact, it began to become more associated with Unitarianism. This was a new kind of movement that started up, in NewSong England. but there were some founders who were associated with Unitarians, like Jon Adams and Daniel Webster, Jon Marshall, Jon Quincy Adams, Joseph Story, James Kent were some of those. But it's very important for us to realize that Unitarianism, which appeared as early as around 1785 and expanded in the early 1800s, this was nothing like the Unitarianism of today. the Theological Dictionary of 1823 described unitarians in the these in common with other Christians, they confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, and in one word they believe all that the writers of the NewSong Testament, particularly the four evangelists, have stated concerning him. We see that Unitarianism, when it began it was rooted in Christian orthodoxy and who Christ was and the atoning work of Christ. An early Unitarian pamphlet explaining why one should attend a Unitarian church stated, unitarians strictly adhere to the great Protestant principle, the Bible. The Bible only admitting no standard of Christian truth nor any rule of Christian practice but the words of the Lord Jesus and his apostles. I hear Jesus of, Nazareth who was crucified, preached as the Christ, the Son of the living God. Unitarians teach the doctrine of the true grace of Christ, his unmerited, unpurchased favor to mankind, that salvation and eternal life are his free gifts through Jesus Christ, which is clearly the doctrine of Scripture. So you can see early on Unitarianism was really looked at like just another one of the different sects of orthodox Christianity rooted in the Bible and the atoning work of Christ, the errancy of God's word and the divinity of Christ. But unfortunately in around 1838 Unitarianism took a radical turn when Ralph Waldo Emerson began slowly reshaping William Ellery Channing's Christian teachings into a transcendentalist version of the ethical theism of Plato, as one historian wrote, and began to couple with evolutionary science and Eastern mysticism. Now it took many, many, many years for the change to take hold. But today it's continued its downward spiral. And the Unitarianism today certainly doesn't believe in atoning work of Christ, inerrancy of God's word and the other things that early Unitarianism did. And so and that took place way after Jon Adams had gone on to the future life. And because Adams throughout his life certainly held to Christian orthodoxy in so many ways, we can see that from things that he said and written in his actions as well. Certainly Jon Adams had a biblical view of man and in particular of man's sinful nature. Seeing man as sinful will affect how we live and conduct our societal affairs. And one consequence is that we won't entrust man with too much power because sinful man will tend to abuse power. Jon Adams wr recognize the sinful nature of man. This is what the Bible teaches. The Bible teaches the Christian idea of man is man has great value being created in the image of God. But man is also sinful intends to abuse authority. This is kind of the opposite of secular man. Secular man today teaches that oh man, a man really doesn't have much value. He's just a grown up worm, a chance happening over millions of years. Really no different than bug. that's what modern man will teach. But then he goes on to teach but man's basically good. Well that's opposite of what the Christian view of man teaches. Man has great value, but he is a sinner and can't be trusted with too much power. Jon Adams wrote regarding this nature of man to expect self denial from men when m they have a majority in their favor and consequently power to gratify themselves is to disbelieve all history and universal experience. It is to disbelieve revelation and the word of God, which informs us the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. There he's quoting the book of Jeremiah. the founders knew the Bible and they referenced the Bible many, many times in their writings. Now they don't put, like we might today put in parentheses, here's the scripture that I'm reasoning from because everybody knew it this. And so the.

John Adams acknowledged Christian foundation of America, writing in 1813

So when Adams wrote the word of God which informs us the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked, he's directly quoting the Bible. They would have understood that modern, you know, educators and historians basically don't know it because they're ignorant of Scripture. Then he goes on to say, there is no man so blind is not to see that to talk of founding a government upon a supposition that nations and great bodies of men, left to themselves will practice a course of self denial is either to babble like a newborn infant or to deceive like an. And, principled imposter. So Adams had a biblical view of man and a biblical view of God, a biblical view of the atonement work of Christ. And he acknowledged the Christian foundation of America, writing in 1813 that the General principles on which the fathers achieved independence were the general principles of Christianity. In 1816, he wrote to Jefferson, the Ten Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount contain my religion. And so Jon Adams, when you look at his faith, he professed the Christian faith, attended church all his life. He, certainly had orthodox beliefs and he believed in the atoning work of Christ. Now he did express some things in some of his writings when he, he was, kind of, questioning things as many people have when they're growing in their faith. But when you take all of what he said, all of what he communicated, when we look at the fruit that came out of his life, look at those that testified about him, we would have to conclude that here is a man who had orthodox, beliefs and a biblical worldview, Biblical view of man, biblical view of government, and so many other areas of life that the Ten Commandments, these are the fundamental principles that God has given to mankind of how they should live on the Sermon on the Mount, Kind of the central core heart of teachings of Jesus. They contain his religion. he said so very. Another very interesting story that I'll save for a future, podcast is the whole relationship of Jon Adams and Thomas Jefferson that they were friends and worked together many, many times, but then kind of had a split, became political, enemies, you might say, because of difference in some of their political philosophy. And for over 10 years they stopped communicating with one another, during the first 10 years of the 1800s. But then providentially, it was God, according to Benjamin Rush, that he brought these two men back together to re, where they began to communicate in their last 15 years of their life through a series of letters and became best, best of friends, later on. And of course it was exactly 50 years after the signing of the Declaration of independence on July 4, 1826, the proving of that document that both Jon Adams and Thomas Jefferson, passed away on that same day. But, I'll leave to a future podcast, how God gave a dream to Dr. Benjamin Rush. And in this dream he directed him in bringing reconciliation between Jon Adams and Thomas Jefferson. Makes for marvelous story, but you can look for that in a future podcast. So in the next podcast, hope you can join us. The next few weeks we're going to be taking a look at the faith of some of the other presidents, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison, James, Jon Quincy Adams, and others. So I hope you can join us. And if you want to find out more about the Providence foundation, Visit our website, providencefoundation.com We've got lots of materials and articles. Also encourage you to watch our new film Educated for Liberty. You can see that for [email protected] you can also access that link from our home, our website, providencefoundation uh.com so take advantage of, so many different, articles and videos that we have that you can watch and order some of our books if you like as well. So thanks for joining us today. Hope you'll be back with us next week. God bless.