¤[Theme music]¤
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>>John Bradshaw:
This is It Is Written.
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I'm John Bradshaw.
Thanks for joining me.
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1620: one of the
most significant dates
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in the history
of the United State,
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and it wouldn't
be a stretch to say,
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in the history of the world.
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¤[Music]¤
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Martin Luther had nailed the
Ninety-Five Theses to the door
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of the Castle Church in
Wittenberg 103 years earlier.
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By 1620, Luther had been
dead for more than 70 years,
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John Calvin for nearly 60;
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Ulrich Zwingli had
died almost 90 years before;
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Theodore Beza, the disciple
of Calvin whose likeness
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is on the
Reformation Wall in Geneva,
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John Knox who
stands to his left,
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the Englishmen William
Tyndale, Thomas Cranmer,
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Nicholas Ridley,
and Hugh Latimer--
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they'd all been
gone for decades.
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In fact, by the
time you get to 1620,
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the recognizable
names of the Reformation
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had all moved off the scene.
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It could be said
that the Reformation ended
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around that time,
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with many scholars
saying that it came to an end
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with the Peace of
Westphalia in 1648,
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a number of treaties that ended
the religious wars in Europe.
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So at about the time
the Reformation ended,
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one of the most significant
developments in the proclamation
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of God's Word
was getting underway.
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And you could see God's
fingerprints all over it.
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If you've never seen
it before, Plymouth Rock,
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45 minutes south of Boston,
in Plymouth, Massachusetts,
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comes as a bit of a surprise.
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The legend is that Plymouth
Rock is where the Pilgrims
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got off the Mayflower when they
arrived on these shores in 1620.
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The fact is this
is only a fragment
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of the original Plymouth Rock.
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The original
broke in half in 1774,
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and souvenir hunters chipped
away at the rock over the years,
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so there's much less of
it today than there once was.
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Now, I know you
don't always want the facts
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to get in the
way of a good story,
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but another fact is that no
one ever claimed the Pilgrims
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landed at
Plymouth Rock until 1741,
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121 years after the Mayflower
arrived in Plymouth Harbor.
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But all that's
incidental, really.
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The rock itself is
not what's important.
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Today it's a symbol, a
symbol of new beginnings
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and the pioneer spirit.
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It's an icon visited by more
than a million people a year.
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So what were the
Pilgrims doing, anyway,
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landing at Plymouth Rock,
or wherever it was they landed?
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Understand that
and you'll understand
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the birth of a great nation,
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and you'll see how the
guiding hand of God shepherded
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His people and fostered
the growth of the principles
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of the Protestant Reformation.
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So let's back up a few years.
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The Pilgrims on board
the Mayflower were Puritans,
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English Protestants who
were committed to purifying
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the Church of England
of Catholic practices.
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The seeds for the English
Reformation were sown by Patrick
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and Columba and
Aidan and others like them.
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Centuries later, John
Wycliffe was described as
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"the Morning Star
of the Reformation."
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And then there
was William Tyndale,
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who heroically stood
up against King Henry VIII
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and translated the
Bible into English at a time
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when such a translation
was desperately needed.
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With his dying breath,
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Tyndale prayed that God would
open the eyes of Henry VIII,
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which God did only two
years later when the king
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gave his permission for
four different translations
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of the Bible into
the English language.
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It was Tyndale's scholarship
that provided the lion's share
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of the King James
Version of the Bible.
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¤[Music]¤
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But even though
the church in England,
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or the Church of England,
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had separated from Rome, it
was in desperate need of reform.
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Now, while it's true
that England's King Henry VIII
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was strongly
motivated to separate
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from the Roman Catholic Church
because it would not annul
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his marriage to Catherine
of Aragon in the 1530s,
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England's antipathy towards
Rome ran much deeper than that.
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There were significant doctrinal
issues that separated the two,
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but the Puritans
wanted even more than that.
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Even though the
Church of England
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was structurally
independent from Rome,
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that wasn't
enough for the Puritans.
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They believed that when it came
to matters of Christian faith
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and Christian worship,
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that to depart
from what the Bible said
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was both unnecessary and unwise.
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They wanted to follow
the example of the Lutherans,
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or the Reformed
Protestants elsewhere in Europe,
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and return to what they believed
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was a more biblical
form of Christianity.
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Yet, the Church of England
continued to embrace many
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of the forms of Catholicism.
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The Protestant
movement was separated largely
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into two wings:
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the Lutheran-Calvinistic wing,
often called Reformed theology,
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primarily after the teachings of
Martin Luther and John Calvin,
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and the Arminian wing, which was
patterned after the teachings
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of Jacob Arminius
and others who focused
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on the role of Christian free
will in the salvation process,
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along with practical teaching,
such as non-participation in war
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and separation
of church and state.
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The Puritans of England
clearly took their beliefs
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from the
Lutheran- Calvinistic wing.
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And this would be
demonstrated by their views
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on religious freedom,
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particularly when
they came to the New World.
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The Puritans
played a significant role
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in the political
history of England
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throughout the 17th century.
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For a time, the Puritans ruled
the country under the leadership
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of Lord
Protector Oliver Cromwell
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during the 1650s.
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Early in the 1600s,
King James I decided
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that he would not tolerate
the agitation of the Puritans
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any longer.
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They'd either come into line
with the policies and practices
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of the Church of
England, or they would leave.
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And many of them left.
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It was difficult for
those who lived in England.
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Many of them began describing
themselves as Separatists
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because they
came to the conclusion
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that the Church of England
was never going to change.
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Many of them fled
to the Dutch Republic,
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which at the time
was more favorable
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to Reformed Protestantism.
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Life was hard
for those immigrants.
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Many of them had been farmers,
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and they were not able to
farm in their new homeland.
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Instead, they
had to learn a trade.
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But they considered
these difficulties just part
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of God's way of forming
in them a godly character.
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"They knew they were pilgrims,
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and looked not
much on those things,
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but lifted up
their eyes to heaven,
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their dearest country,
and quieted their spirits."
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But many of those Pilgrims
chose to leave the Netherlands
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and return to
England before leaving again
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onboard a ship
called the Mayflower.
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They were headed
for the New World.
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Now some
Pilgrims didn't make it.
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I'll tell you
more in just a moment.
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¤[Music]¤
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>>John: I'm John
Bradshaw from It Is Written,
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inviting you to
join me for "500,"
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nine programs
produced by It Is Written,
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taking you deep
into the Reformation.
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This is the 500th anniversary of
the beginning of the Reformation
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when Martin Luther nailed his
Ninety-Five Theses to the door
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of the Castle Church
in Wittenberg, Germany.
00:08:28.50\00:08:30.91
We'll take you to Wittenberg,
00:08:30.94\00:08:32.34
and to Belgium, to
England, to Ireland,
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to Rome, to the Vatican City,
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and introduce you to the people
who created the Reformation,
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who pushed the
Reformation forward.
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We'll take you to
sites all throughout Europe
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where the reformers
lived and, in some cases, died.
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We'll bring you
back to the United States
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and take you to a
little farm in upstate New York
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and show you how God
spread the Reformation here.
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Don't miss "500."
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You can own the
"500" series on DVD.
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Call us on 888-664-5573
00:09:00.14\00:09:04.87
or visit us online
at itiswritten.shop.
00:09:04.91\00:09:08.98
>>John Bradshaw:
This is It Is Written.
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There were actually two
ships that left England,
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bound for what
would become known as
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the United States of America.
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There was the
Mayflower and the Speedwell.
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Together they left Southampton
on August the 5th, 1620,
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but the Speedwell leaked--
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not great for a ship intending
to cross the Atlantic Ocean.
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Both ships stopped in Dartmouth
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so the Speedwell
could be repaired.
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After leaving Dartmouth,
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they made it 350
miles beyond Land's End
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before it was
discovered that the Speedwell
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was taking on water again.
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So, once more, they
returned to Dartmouth.
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The Mayflower decided it would
push on without the Speedwell.
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Some of the
Speedwell's passengers crammed
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into the Mayflower,
and so the Mayflower,
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with 102 passengers
and between 25 and 30 crew,
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headed off on what
would be a miserable voyage,
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but they made it.
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Slowly but surely,
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life was established
here in this new land.
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More and more people
would follow in the footsteps,
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or in the wake, of
the Pilgrims of England.
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¤[Music]¤
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They were driven by a desire
for liberty of conscience,
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but they really didn't
understand what that truly was.
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The idea that God has given the
right to control the conscience
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to the church and has given
the church the right to define
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and punish heresy
is a school of thought
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that came right out of Rome.
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So while these
people had rejected
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many of the doctrines of Rome,
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they retained the
spirit of Rome: intolerance.
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Any church they set up would
ultimately be a church-state.
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They dictated that
only church members
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could have a say in government.
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The secular power was
in the hands of the church,
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which can only lead in
one direction: persecution.
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¤[Music]¤
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In 1631, when Boston
was a brand-new settlement,
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a Puritan minister, not 30 years
old, arrived here from England.
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Roger Williams was a Separatist.
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He believed that for a person
to be truly faithful to God,
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that person should separate
from the Anglican Church.
00:11:49.87\00:11:53.61
He and his wife Mary
would have six children,
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all born in the New World:
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Mary, Freeborn,
Providence, Mercy,
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Daniel, and Joseph.
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It wasn't long and
people knew he was here.
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¤[Music]¤
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Roger Williams was the
first person in this land
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to stand up for something
that today we regard as a right.
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He believed that
liberty of conscience
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was the inalienable
right of all people,
00:12:20.74\00:12:24.17
whatever their religion.
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He went so far as
to establish government
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upon the principle
of religious freedom.
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He was the first person in
modern Christianity to do that.
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Williams believed that
the government had no place
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dictating to individuals when
it came to religious matters.
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That was an
entirely new way of thinking.
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It was revolutionary.
00:12:43.86\00:12:46.33
In the early
days of the colonies,
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church attendance
was required by law.
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You could be
fined or even imprisoned
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for not attending church.
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Williams was
scandalized by this,
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and he decided to
do something about it.
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>>Lincoln Steed: And it didn't
trouble the Puritans whatsoever,
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that while they'd
left a bad situation
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to come to the New World,
they just set the same model,
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where they would say
everyone had to go to church.
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You'd be fined.
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You had to, uh, abide
by what the minister said.
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No freelance religion.
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Uh, Roger Williams comes along,
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and he was the conscience
and really the, the, uh,
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the guiding light of the true
principles of religious liberty
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that we're keeping alive today.
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>>John: It seems strange
to be talking about a battle
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over religious
freedom in the United States,
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but keep in mind the
times and the mindset then.
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The church of Rome
had taught very thoroughly
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that there was no
religious freedom.
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It claimed to be the
voice of God in the world.
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The church spoke;
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church members did what
they were expected to do.
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So even though the
Church of England had separated
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from the Roman Catholic Church,
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it still retained a
lot of Rome's ideas.
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So when the Puritans
came to the free world,
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they were still hung up on the
concept of the church saying,
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"Jump!" and the
faithful saying, "How high?"
00:14:07.38\00:14:10.48
They had not embraced the
concept of religious liberty.
00:14:10.51\00:14:14.12
So in spite of the Reformation,
further reform was still needed.
00:14:14.15\00:14:18.62
So while the Pilgrims and
other Puritan settlers came
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to these shores for
the purpose of exercising
00:14:22.49\00:14:24.66
their own liberty of conscience,
00:14:24.69\00:14:27.13
many didn't believe in
extending the same right
00:14:27.13\00:14:29.20
to those who held
different beliefs.
00:14:29.23\00:14:31.93
Freedom was fine for themselves,
00:14:31.97\00:14:34.27
but not for people who
taught and practiced things
00:14:34.30\00:14:36.14
they disagreed with.
00:14:36.17\00:14:38.14
One historian described
this attitude with these words:
00:14:38.17\00:14:40.78
"New England divines
(pastors and theologians)
00:14:40.81\00:14:44.15
insisted repeatedly
that demand for uniformity
00:14:44.18\00:14:47.25
of religious practice in no way
violated liberty of conscience.
00:14:47.28\00:14:52.32
They contended that there
were two types of liberty:
00:14:52.35\00:14:56.32
natural (or corrupted) liberty
00:14:56.36\00:14:57.96
and the 'liberty wherewith
Christ hath made us free.'
00:14:57.99\00:15:02.10
Liberty to practice error
came under the former heading
00:15:02.13\00:15:05.57
and was not
really liberty at all,
00:15:05.60\00:15:08.04
but license, the 'liberty
for men to destroy themselves.'"
00:15:08.07\00:15:13.71
Roger Williams is truly
one of the towering figures
00:15:13.74\00:15:16.14
in the American story.
00:15:16.18\00:15:17.65
And he's one of the
towering figures in the advance
00:15:17.68\00:15:20.62
of the Word of God.
00:15:20.65\00:15:22.02
Not only did he advocate
religious freedom for all,
00:15:22.05\00:15:25.55
he was also one of the earliest
and most vocal opponents
00:15:25.59\00:15:28.39
of slavery on these shores.
00:15:28.42\00:15:31.13
He advocated fair treatment
for Native American tribes.
00:15:31.16\00:15:34.30
He also learned
many of the languages
00:15:34.36\00:15:36.43
of the tribes in the Northeast.
00:15:36.46\00:15:38.37
He'd run into trouble
with the Anglican Church
00:15:38.40\00:15:40.40
before he came to America.
00:15:40.44\00:15:42.24
When he got here and he
found the same principles
00:15:42.27\00:15:44.37
of intolerance in a
place that was supposed to be
00:15:44.41\00:15:46.64
a haven for
liberty, it disturbed him.
00:15:46.68\00:15:49.61
He did not agree with
the Puritans' attempts
00:15:49.64\00:15:51.85
to set up a theocracy.
00:15:51.88\00:15:52.98
He said, "Forced worship
stinks in the nostrils of God."
00:15:53.01\00:15:58.35
Williams
believed that Constantine
00:15:58.39\00:16:00.82
was worse for
the church than Nero
00:16:00.86\00:16:04.06
because Constantine
successfully united the power
00:16:04.09\00:16:07.23
of the civil government with
the authority of the church.
00:16:07.23\00:16:11.57
And before long,
00:16:11.60\00:16:12.93
things would get much
worse for Roger Williams.
00:16:12.97\00:16:16.97
I'll have more in a moment.
00:16:17.01\00:16:18.34
¤[Music]¤
00:16:18.37\00:16:23.18
¤[Music]¤
00:16:24.71\00:16:26.41
>>Announcer: In Matthew
4:4, the Word of God says,
00:16:26.45\00:16:29.02
"It is written, 'Man
shall not live by bread alone,
00:16:29.05\00:16:32.22
but by every word that proceeds
from the mouth of God.'"
00:16:32.25\00:16:35.82
"Every Word" is a one-minute
Bible-based daily devotional
00:16:35.86\00:16:39.16
presented by
Pastor John Bradshaw
00:16:39.19\00:16:41.33
and designed especially
for busy people like you.
00:16:41.36\00:16:44.23
Look for "Every
Word" on selected networks,
00:16:44.27\00:16:47.14
or watch it online
every day on our website:
00:16:47.17\00:16:49.57
itiswritten.com.
00:16:49.60\00:16:51.61
Receive a daily spiritual
boost. Watch "Every Word."
00:16:51.64\00:16:54.98
You'll be glad you did.
00:16:55.01\00:16:58.41
¤["Every Word" theme music]¤
00:16:59.85\00:17:05.05
>>John Bradshaw:
Five hundred years
00:17:05.09\00:17:06.15
after the
Protestant Reformation began
00:17:06.19\00:17:07.82
on October the 31st, 1517,
00:17:07.86\00:17:10.73
we might be tempted to
wonder what Luther and Knox
00:17:10.76\00:17:12.79
and Zwingli and
Calvin and Farel and Beza
00:17:12.83\00:17:14.56
and the Huguenots
and the Anabaptists
00:17:14.60\00:17:16.23
and so many others achieved.
00:17:16.26\00:17:19.00
Today it would seem
that the protest is over,
00:17:19.03\00:17:21.94
even though the most
influential church in the world
00:17:21.97\00:17:23.84
offers
indulgences, hears confessions,
00:17:23.87\00:17:25.97
teaches justification
by faith and works,
00:17:26.01\00:17:28.68
considers Mary
the queen of heaven.
00:17:28.71\00:17:31.05
Where are the Protestants today?
00:17:31.08\00:17:32.85
Protestants are being welcomed
back into the church of Rome,
00:17:32.88\00:17:35.15
and many see this as positive.
00:17:35.18\00:17:37.19
It's been said it's more
important to be divided by truth
00:17:37.22\00:17:40.86
than it is to
be united by error.
00:17:40.89\00:17:43.02
Paul said in 2
Timothy 4, verse 2,
00:17:43.06\00:17:45.26
"Preach the word; be instant
in season, out of season;
00:17:45.29\00:17:48.80
reprove, rebuke, exhort with all
long suffering and doctrine."
00:17:48.83\00:17:52.37
The Word--anything
less will never do.
00:17:52.40\00:17:55.60
I'm John Bradshaw
for It Is Written.
00:17:55.64\00:17:57.14
Let's live today by every word.
00:17:57.17\00:17:59.57
[Insects rasping]
00:18:00.18\00:18:01.54
¤[Music]¤
00:18:01.58\00:18:13.82
>>John Bradshaw: A hundred years
after the Reformation ended,
00:18:13.86\00:18:16.12
there was still a lot of
reform left to be accomplished.
00:18:16.16\00:18:19.96
As long as there was
no liberty of conscience,
00:18:20.00\00:18:22.43
and as long as the state
was united with the church,
00:18:22.46\00:18:25.03
the church was a long way
short of where it should be,
00:18:25.07\00:18:28.17
from a biblical perspective.
00:18:28.20\00:18:30.47
The man who would
bring the needed change was
00:18:30.51\00:18:32.47
a Cambridge-educated Englishman
who moved to the colonies
00:18:32.51\00:18:35.78
six weeks after
his 27th birthday.
00:18:35.81\00:18:37.85
Williams was forced
to leave Massachusetts,
00:18:39.35\00:18:42.48
and he went into exile in 1636.
00:18:42.52\00:18:46.25
In the winter, he
journeyed through the forests,
00:18:46.29\00:18:49.52
not knowing where he was going.
00:18:49.56\00:18:51.39
Along the way he made
friends with many of the natives
00:18:51.43\00:18:53.80
and later said that
he would rather live
00:18:53.83\00:18:55.90
with "Christian savages"
than "savage Christians."
00:18:55.93\00:18:59.87
His journeys led him here,
00:18:59.90\00:19:01.74
to a place that he
would name "Providence,"
00:19:01.77\00:19:04.87
convinced that the providence
of God had guided him.
00:19:04.91\00:19:08.41
¤[Music]¤
00:19:08.44\00:19:16.65
It was Roger
Williams, not Thomas Jefferson,
00:19:16.69\00:19:19.45
who first coined the
phrase "wall of separation,"
00:19:19.49\00:19:22.39
so far as church
and state are concerned.
00:19:22.42\00:19:25.03
In 1644, Williams
described the need to build
00:19:25.06\00:19:27.86
a "wall of separation
between the garden of the church
00:19:27.93\00:19:32.37
and the
wilderness of the world."
00:19:32.40\00:19:34.77
Leonard Levy, a U.S.
constitutional scholar,
00:19:34.80\00:19:37.41
commented on these
words of Roger Williams
00:19:37.44\00:19:39.84
with the following statement:
00:19:39.87\00:19:41.11
"Thus, the wall of
separation had the allegiance
00:19:41.14\00:19:44.65
of a most
profound Christian impulse
00:19:44.68\00:19:47.35
as well as a secular one.
00:19:47.38\00:19:49.38
To Christian fundamentalists
of the Framers' time
00:19:49.42\00:19:51.99
the wall of separation derived
from the biblical injunction
00:19:52.02\00:19:55.72
that Christ's kingdom
is not of this world."
00:19:55.76\00:19:59.39
The fundamental principle
of Roger Williams' colony
00:19:59.43\00:20:02.26
was that every man should
have liberty to worship God
00:20:02.30\00:20:05.60
according to the
light of his own conscience.
00:20:05.63\00:20:08.80
Rhode Island's
founding principles,
00:20:08.84\00:20:11.04
civil and religious liberty,
00:20:11.07\00:20:13.38
became the cornerstones
of the American republic.
00:20:13.41\00:20:16.85
This was extremely significant.
00:20:16.88\00:20:19.51
And so today, the Declaration
of Independence states:
00:20:19.55\00:20:23.22
"We hold these
truths to be self-evident,
00:20:23.25\00:20:26.22
that all men are created equal;
00:20:26.25\00:20:29.12
that they are
endowed by their Creator
00:20:29.16\00:20:30.76
with certain unalienable rights;
00:20:30.79\00:20:33.53
that among these
are life, liberty,
00:20:33.56\00:20:36.73
and the pursuit of happiness."
00:20:36.77\00:20:39.13
And the Constitution
guarantees freedom of conscience
00:20:39.17\00:20:42.14
in religious matters.
00:20:42.17\00:20:43.94
"No religious test shall ever
be required as a qualification
00:20:43.97\00:20:48.58
to any office of public
trust under the United States."
00:20:48.61\00:20:52.45
"Congress shall
make no law respecting
00:20:52.48\00:20:54.82
an establishment of religion,
00:20:54.85\00:20:56.82
or prohibiting the
free exercise thereof."
00:20:56.85\00:21:00.52
It was this environment
that allowed the preaching
00:21:00.56\00:21:02.89
and the teaching of
the Bible to flourish.
00:21:02.92\00:21:05.13
Of course, there have
been those who have abused
00:21:05.16\00:21:08.13
their religious freedom,
00:21:08.16\00:21:09.56
but just think
of the alternative:
00:21:09.60\00:21:11.33
a world in which you're not free
to believe what you believe.
00:21:11.37\00:21:15.10
That's the world Martin
Luther faced when he nailed
00:21:15.14\00:21:17.94
the Ninety-Five Theses to
that famous door back in 1517.
00:21:17.97\00:21:23.01
Word began to
spread back in Europe
00:21:23.04\00:21:24.41
about a place where a
person could worship God
00:21:24.45\00:21:26.78
according to the dictates
of his or her own conscience.
00:21:26.82\00:21:30.49
As one historian
wrote, "Massachusetts,
00:21:30.52\00:21:33.29
by special law,
offered free welcome and aid,
00:21:33.32\00:21:36.36
at the public cost, to
Christians of any nationality
00:21:36.39\00:21:39.76
who might fly
beyond the Atlantic
00:21:39.79\00:21:41.53
'to escape from wars or famine,
00:21:41.56\00:21:43.40
or the oppression
of their persecutors.'
00:21:43.43\00:21:45.03
[And so] the fugitive
and the downtrodden were,
00:21:45.07\00:21:48.04
by statute, made the
guests of the commonwealth."
00:21:48.07\00:21:52.37
The colonies grew, and
the world saw the prosperity
00:21:52.41\00:21:56.11
and the increasing strength
of a church without a pope
00:21:56.14\00:22:00.28
and a state without a king.
00:22:00.32\00:22:02.98
In this patch of earth,
Roger Williams raised up
00:22:03.02\00:22:05.35
a memorial to religious freedom.
00:22:05.39\00:22:08.22
The establishment of
the Rhode Island colony was
00:22:08.26\00:22:10.49
a landmark event in the history
of the Protestant Reformation,
00:22:10.53\00:22:15.03
a new haven in a new land where
people would finally be free,
00:22:15.06\00:22:20.77
to follow the dictates
of their own conscience
00:22:20.80\00:22:22.80
when it came to
matters of faith.
00:22:22.84\00:22:24.27
Even the Puritans
of Roger Williams' day
00:22:24.31\00:22:26.71
couldn't accept his thinking.
00:22:26.74\00:22:28.38
You see, it was the prevailing
belief 400 or so years ago
00:22:28.41\00:22:31.81
that the civil
government had every right
00:22:31.85\00:22:34.32
to dictate to
people's conscience.
00:22:34.35\00:22:36.72
That did not sit
well with Roger Williams,
00:22:36.75\00:22:38.45
and it led him
into deep conflict.
00:22:38.49\00:22:41.16
But the conflict that
he experienced brought,
00:22:41.19\00:22:43.73
to everyone that
followed, freedom.
00:22:43.76\00:22:47.86
¤[Music]¤
00:22:47.86\00:22:52.63
Now, of course that meant
that if you wanted to opt out,
00:22:52.67\00:22:55.20
to practice no religion,
to disagree with the church,
00:22:55.24\00:22:58.91
then it was your right to do so.
00:22:58.94\00:23:01.81
And it's this
spirit of religious liberty
00:23:01.84\00:23:03.65
that's described
in the New Testament,
00:23:03.68\00:23:05.65
just a few verses
from the end of the Bible,
00:23:05.68\00:23:08.02
where the bride of
Christ blends her appeal
00:23:08.05\00:23:11.15
with that of the Holy
Spirit in urging humanity
00:23:11.19\00:23:14.79
to accept God's
gift of salvation.
00:23:14.82\00:23:17.73
"And the Spirit and
the bride say, 'Come!'
00:23:17.76\00:23:20.50
And let him who
hears say, 'Come!'
00:23:20.53\00:23:24.00
And let him who thirsts come.
00:23:24.03\00:23:27.07
[And] whoever desires, let him
take the water of life freely."
00:23:27.10\00:23:33.01
Freedom of conscience would
take hold in America in a way
00:23:33.04\00:23:36.75
not seen in any other civil
experiment in human history.
00:23:36.78\00:23:41.08
The inalienable right to
worship and follow conscience,
00:23:41.12\00:23:44.89
as a person
chooses, would become
00:23:44.92\00:23:47.36
one of the main cornerstones
of the American experience
00:23:47.39\00:23:50.53
and of the final stages of
the Protestant Reformation.
00:23:50.56\00:23:54.03
¤[Music]¤
00:23:54.10\00:24:00.50
Roger Williams
demonstrated how important it is
00:24:00.54\00:24:03.41
for believers to press forward.
00:24:03.44\00:24:05.97
While the Reformation
accomplished an enormous amount,
00:24:06.01\00:24:08.71
in terms of opening up the
Bible and bringing the light
00:24:08.74\00:24:11.88
of God's Word to the human mind,
00:24:11.91\00:24:14.38
there was still a
lot left to accomplish,
00:24:14.42\00:24:16.28
much more to learn,
00:24:16.32\00:24:18.12
more for the church
and more for believers
00:24:18.15\00:24:20.89
as they grew
towards God's ideal.
00:24:20.92\00:24:24.23
John Robinson was a
pastor of Pilgrims in Holland,
00:24:24.26\00:24:27.96
and he said this to many
who were preparing to leave
00:24:28.00\00:24:30.27
for the New World:
00:24:30.30\00:24:32.13
"Brethren, we are now
erelong to part asunder,
00:24:32.17\00:24:36.30
and the Lord knoweth
whether I shall live ever
00:24:36.34\00:24:39.54
to see your faces more.
00:24:39.57\00:24:42.04
But whether the Lord
hath appointed it or not,
00:24:42.08\00:24:44.85
I charge you before
God and His blessed angels
00:24:44.88\00:24:47.88
to follow me no farther
than I have followed Christ.
00:24:47.92\00:24:53.42
If God should
reveal anything to you
00:24:53.46\00:24:55.32
by any other instrument of His,
00:24:55.36\00:24:57.93
be as ready to receive it
as ever you were to receive
00:24:57.96\00:25:01.53
any truth of my ministry;
00:25:01.56\00:25:04.67
for I am very confident the
Lord hath more truth and light
00:25:04.70\00:25:09.47
yet to break forth
out of His holy word."
00:25:09.50\00:25:13.84
I'm confident the Lord has more.
00:25:14.18\00:25:16.78
God has more
for you in His Word.
00:25:16.81\00:25:20.72
That was true in the
time of the Pilgrims,
00:25:20.75\00:25:22.98
and that
commitment to the Bible,
00:25:23.02\00:25:24.45
to the progress of God's light
would lead others to advance
00:25:24.49\00:25:28.49
the cause of the
Reformation and guide multitudes
00:25:28.52\00:25:32.09
into a deeper understanding
of God and His Word.
00:25:32.13\00:25:36.20
¤[Music]¤
00:25:36.23\00:25:41.44
>>John: How can you enjoy a
successful Christian experience?
00:25:43.34\00:25:47.64
How can you know
victory instead of defeat?
00:25:47.68\00:25:50.68
How can you live with
honor and integrity before God?
00:25:50.71\00:25:54.98
Well, you can, and our
free offer today tells you how.
00:25:55.02\00:25:57.92
To receive "The War Is Over,"
00:25:57.95\00:25:59.52
call us on 800-253-3000
00:25:59.55\00:26:02.72
or visit us online
at itiswritten.com,
00:26:02.76\00:26:06.29
or you can write to
the address on your screen.
00:26:06.33\00:26:08.80
I'd like you to
receive our free offer,
00:26:08.83\00:26:10.87
"The War Is Over."
00:26:10.90\00:26:13.23
Thank you for remembering
that It Is Written exists
00:26:13.27\00:26:16.20
due to the gracious
support of people like you.
00:26:16.24\00:26:19.67
It's your kindness that makes
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00:26:19.71\00:26:22.48
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00:26:22.51\00:26:25.21
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00:26:25.25\00:26:26.51
You can send your
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or you can support It Is Written
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00:26:31.45\00:26:35.29
Thanks for your
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Our number is 800-253-3000
00:26:36.69\00:26:39.89
and our web
address is itiswritten.com.
00:26:39.93\00:26:42.90
>>John Bradshaw:
Let's pray together now.
00:26:44.03\00:26:45.93
Our Father in heaven,
00:26:45.97\00:26:47.30
we're thankful today
that we have Your Word
00:26:47.34\00:26:49.27
and that we have
freedom to worship You.
00:26:49.30\00:26:52.04
And to believe
what we wish to believe,
00:26:52.07\00:26:53.71
according to the
dictates of our conscience.
00:26:53.74\00:26:55.88
We thank You for
the wall of separation
00:26:55.91\00:26:58.81
that You have erected
to protect our freedom,
00:26:58.85\00:27:02.52
to prevent others from dictating
to us what we should believe.
00:27:02.55\00:27:06.25
So, Lord, with that religious
freedom, I pray for wisdom,
00:27:06.29\00:27:10.06
for grace, that we
might exercise that freedom
00:27:10.09\00:27:13.66
in a way that
grows us into Your image,
00:27:13.70\00:27:17.57
that leads us in the
direction of Your Holy Spirit.
00:27:17.60\00:27:23.07
Now, Father,
there's somebody thinking
00:27:23.10\00:27:25.54
that they must
give You their heart.
00:27:25.57\00:27:26.91
I pray, draw
that man, that woman,
00:27:26.94\00:27:28.31
that young person right now,
00:27:28.34\00:27:30.48
that decisions
will be made even now,
00:27:30.51\00:27:32.01
that we will value
this freedom we have,
00:27:32.05\00:27:34.75
given to us at great cost.
00:27:34.78\00:27:37.32
And use it in a way that
will lead us into Your kingdom.
00:27:37.35\00:27:40.62
We look for that day,
that day of Jesus' return.
00:27:40.66\00:27:42.56
May it be soon, we pray.
00:27:42.59\00:27:44.46
Take our hearts
and make them Yours.
00:27:44.49\00:27:46.66
We ask You in Jesus' name.
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Amen.
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Thanks for joining me.
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I'm looking forward to
seeing you again next time.
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Until then, remember:
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"It is written, 'Man
shall not live by bread alone,
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but by every word that proceeds
from the mouth of God.'"
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