Abraham Lincoln
Thesis: The faith of Abraham Lincoln is best expressed in the phrase he coined, “One Nation Under God!”
Scripture Texts: On the phrase “One Nation Under God”
Genesis 18:18 – “Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all the nations on earth will be blessed through him.”
Psalm 96:3 – “Declare his glory among the nations; his marvelous deeds among all the peoples.”
Ezekiel 36:23 – “I will show the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, the name you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Sovereign Lord, when I show myself holy through you before their eyes.”
Revelation 21:23,24 –“The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the lamb is its lamp. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it.”
A verse quoted by Lincoln on the condition of the country during his terms:
Matthew 12:25 “Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, ‘Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.’”
Introduction:
Abraham Lincoln was a man who at first started out not having a thing to do with religion. He was the only president who never belonged to any church or denomination. Yet this man came to be inspired by the Bible and by God’s direction in his life and the country’s life. He was president during the bloodiest war to ever have happened on the soil of the United States. He watched many young men die and saw his country divided and in his day the church also was divided. He witnessed men speaking for God on both sides of the conflicts as if God was at their beckon call and justifying their own causes and their own victories in battles. As I have read up on Lincoln I am amazed at the insights he had on how God perceived the war and the victories-and the defeats. Abraham Lincoln had faith in God but little faith in the churches of the day. Listen to his comments on the religious meaning of war by him:
The will of God prevails. In great contests each party claims to act in accordance with the will of God. Both may be, and one must be, wrong. God can not be for and against the same thing at the same time. In the present civil war it is quite possible that God’s purpose is something different from the purpose of either party-and yet the human instrumentalities, working just as they do, are of the best adaptation to effect His Purpose. I am almost ready to say this is probably true-that God wills this contest, and wills that it shall not end yet. By his mere quiet power, on the minds of the now contestants, He could have either saved or destroyed the Union without a human contest. Yet the contest began. And having begun He could give the final victory to either side any day. Yet the contest proceeds” (Christian History, Issue 33- page 12).
He also stated in another instance these words about God ‘s will, “That the almighty does make use of human agencies and directly intervenes in human affairs is one of the plainest statements in the Bible. I have had so many evidences of his direction, so many instances when I have been controlled by some other power than my own will, that I cannot doubt that his power comes from above” (Sweeting, 216).
The truth was God was revealing to Lincoln and the nation both North and South that he was not at their beckon call but that they were to be at His beckon call. He was not here to serve their self centered causes but they were to serve Him and if they realized this the war would come to an end.
Some of Abraham’s famous quotes about God:
In 1861:Lincoln leaves Springfield after a stirring address at train depot, including these words: “Without the assistance of that Divine being…I cannot succeed. With that assistance, I cannot fail.” Civil war starts on April 12 a month after being sworn in as president.
In 1862: States privately, “God’s purposes” may be “something different from the purpose of either party.”
In 1863: On March 30 1863 he calls for a national fast for the nation that in his words has “forgotten God.” On Oct 24 tells a delegation of Presbyterians from Baltimore “…amid the great difficulties of my administration , when I could not see any other resort , I would place my whole reliance in God, knowing that all would go well, and that He would decide for the right” On Nov. 19 he gives the Gettysburg address.
Read the Gettysburg Address and highlight the phrase “this nation, under God!”
In 1864: Lincoln tells a group of African Americans who have given him a special presentation Bible. “In regard to this Great Book, I have but to say, it is the best gift God has given to man. All the good the Savior gave to the world was communicated through this book. But for it we could know right from wrong. All things most desirable for man’s welfare, here and hereafter, are to be found portrayed in it.”
Special Note:
“In God We Trust” first appears on US coin in 1864.
In 1865: On March 4 In the Second Inaugural Address Lincoln says that both North and South ”read the same Bible, and pray to the same God,” and also quoting Psalm 19:9 “that even if God should let the war continue until “every drop of blood drawn with the slavers lash, shall be paid by another drawn with the sword,…still it must be said ‘the judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether’” April 9 Lee surrenders. On April 14th he is shot by Booth and on April 15th he dies.
I. Abraham Lincoln placed his faith and trust in Almighty God.
a. Abraham Lincoln was the first president to use the phrase, “This nation under God.” It inspired President Eisenhower, in 1954, to add the words “one nation under God” to the Pledge of Allegiance.
b. Lincoln faced extreme circumstances as president. His whole term dealt with the Civil War. This war took four years to fight and cost 364,511 Union soldiers their lives and 260,000 Confederate soldiers their lives.
i. More Americans died in the Civil War than died in all other American Wars combined.
ii. He refused to become an individual who would use God to justify his position in the war. While many others would claim God was on their side Lincoln spoke of the Sovereignty of God.
c. Lincoln believed that God was at work in the war but not the way the North and South may have thought and preached.
i. Maybe Lincoln had insight into the revivals that broke out during Civil War?
1. Christian History Issue 33 on The Civil War notes that, ”Major revivals broke out in the Civil War armies. In the Union Army, between 100,000 and 200,000 soldiers were converted; among the Confederate forces, approximately 150,000 troops converted to Christ. Perhaps 10percent of all Civil War soldiers experienced conversions during the conflict” (1).
2. A “Great Revival’ occurred among Robert E. Lee’s forces in the fall of 1863 and winter of 1864. Some 7,000 soldiers were converted. This was 10% of Lee’s army!
a. In 1877, William Bennet believed the southern army camp had become a school of Jesus Christ. He stated, “…pious generals like Stonewall Jackson and Robert E. Lee led their men both in battles and in prayer meetings. The “moral miracles” that had taken place among the Confederate soldiers were the most magnificent of all time; they truly became the ‘silver lining’ to the dark and heavy cloud’ of the South’s defeat” (29).
b. William Jones noted that men were converted and then baptized in one instance…most of (them converted about 50) were baptized in a pond which was exposed to the enemy’s fire, and several men were wounded while the ordinance was being administered” (29)
3. Revivals also swept the Union Army at that time. Sometimes preaching and praying continued 24 hours a day, and chapels couldn’t hold the soldiers who wanted to get inside.
a. In the Army of the Potomac, a great religious excitement appeared during the winter of 1863-64. Numerous brigades erected churches and chapel tents for prayer meetings. General McAllister said he had never witnessed a better religious feeling among the men. And a reporter for a religious magazine thought the piety of the Union army would win the whole nation to Christ!” (29)
4. Before the Civil War it was rare to find chaplains in American Armies but this revival changed the whole course of the chaplains place in the US Army.
5. During the Civil War generals were converted including Braxton Bragg, Joseph E. Johnston, and John Bell Hood.
6. Other Generals fought the war and tried to honor the Sabbath.
7. Yes, you could say God had another plan on how to stop the bloodshed – Revival!
d. Lincoln’s commitment to the Word - as the war progressed on and on -became more and more devoted to it’s wisdom and comfort. He learned, he read, and he prayed.
e. David Herbert Donald author of Lincoln noted this about the change in Lincoln.
i. He found comfort and reassurance in the Bible. He was not a member of any Christian Church, for he was put off by their forms and dogmas, and consequently he remained, as Mary Lincoln later said, “not a technical Christian” But he drew from the Scriptures such solace the he was prepared to forget his earlier religious doubts. On evening during this dreadful summer of 1864, his old friend Joshua Speed found him intently reading the Bible. ‘I am glad to see you so profitably engaged,’ said Speed. ‘Yes’, replied the President, ‘I am profitably engaged,’ ‘Well” commented the visitor, ‘If you have recovered from your skepticism, I am sorry to say I have not.” Looking his old comrade in the face. Lincoln said, ‘You are wrong, Speed, take all of this book upon reason that you can, and the balance on faith, and you will live and die a happier and better man.” (514).
ii. He also noted, “Again and again he reverted to the idea that behind all the struggles and losses of the war a Divine purpose was at work… he wrote in September to Mrs. Eliza P. Gurney…’The purposes of the Almighty are perfect, and must prevail, though we mortals may fail to accurately perceive them in advance. We hoped for a happy termination of this terrible war long before this; but God knows best, and has ruled otherwise…we must work earnestly in the best light he gives us, trusting that so working still conduces to the great ends what He ordains” (514,515).
T.S.- President Lincoln looked to the Word for wisdom and insight in the leading of the nation and his leadership principles reflected Biblical teachings. Let’s discover just a few from Donald Phillips book Lincoln on Leadership.
II. Abraham Lincoln showed how to lead a nation in tough times.
a. Persuade rather than coerce. (Taken from Phillips page 48)
i. Lincoln believed that to win a man to your cause you first must be their friend.
ii. If you practice dictatorial leadership, you prepare yourself to be dictated to.
iii. A good leader avoids issuing orders, preferring to request, imply, or make suggestions.
iv. Lincoln opposed Dictator style leadership and sought to influence his nation through respect and friendly dialogue.
b. Honesty and integrity are the best policies.
i. In essence Lincoln said you must be honest because this brings credibility and a life of integrity. The result of these two virtues in your life creates a trust with the others around you.
ii. You must be fair and a person of integrity in business and in your private life. Both areas make a difference in how your followers will follow you.
iii. Your followers will take on the character trait of the leader.
iv. Phillips notes this about a Lincoln leadership principle: “If you once forfeit the confidence of your fellow citizens you can never regain their respect and esteem” (57)
c. Never act out of vengeance or spite.
i. Phillips observations from Lincoln’s leadership: He pardoned the mistakes of others as Jesus would have done and did. ‘Father forgive them they know not what they do!”
1. Never crush a man out, thereby making him and his friends permanent enemies of your organization.
2. No purpose is served by punishing merely for punishment’s sake.
3. Always keep in mind that once someone is destroyed he ceases to contribute to the organization.
4. People are more willing to talk with you if you have a good reputation and are a man of mercy.
5. Have malice toward none and charity for all.
6. In essence forgive and you shall be forgiven.
d. Have the courage to handle unjust criticism.
i. Lincoln learned early on in his leadership that no matter what he did there would be criticism.
1. He learned from reading how Jesus handled criticism.
ii. Remember truth is generally the best way to handle criticism he would model this principle often.
iii. Phillips notes, “Do the very best you know how-the very best you can-and keep doing so until the end” (75). This was how Lincoln dealt with the criticism he endured.
iv. Phillips notes, “If you yield to one false charge, you may open yourself up to other unjust attacks” (75). In other words don’t even debate those who create unjust criticisms just keep doing what you are doing.
e. Lead by leading
i. Phillips notes this about the Lincoln leadership principle of lead by leading “If you are a good leader, when your work is done, your aim fulfilled, your people will say, ‘We did this ourselves!” (107).
ii. Learn to admit when you are wrong and learn to take responsibility.
iii. Remember that your organization does not depend on the life of one person it’s about everyone doing the work.
1. Learn to delegate!
iv. Make sure you praise the troops for their hard work.
f. Influence people through conversation and storytelling.
i. Phillips –“Speak in simple and familiar strains with people, without any pretension of superiority. Leave people with the feeling that they’ve known you all their lives” (161).
1. Jesus role modeled the importance of storytelling and connecting personally with others.
ii. Phillips- “A good laugh is good for both the mental and physical digestion” (161).
1. Learn to have sense of humor and you will enjoy life more even in hard times.
iii. Phillips – “Loyalty is more often won through private conversation than in any other way” (161).
1. The one on one times with others is the most effective way to influence others.
g. Preach a vision and continually confirm it.
i. Phillips – ‘Provide a clear, concise statement of the direction of your organization, and justify the actions you take” (169)
ii. Phillips – “When effecting renewal, call on the past, relate it to the present, and then use them both to provide a link to the future” (161).
1. Just like the apostle Paul says, ”Press toward the goal!”
T.S. - Abraham Lincoln’s leadership principles and his life teach us how we should live our lives and lead Jesus’ church in a time when God’s influence is trying to be erased.
III. The principles of leadership modeled by Abraham Lincoln should be utilized by us to once again affirm that this is One Nation Under God.
a. This is constantly coming under assault by the anti-God-movement in the United States.
i. We see it with the recent ruling by the judge to take out the “One Nation Under God “ phrase in the Pledge of Allegiance:
Federal Appeals Court Says ’Under God’ in Pledge of Allegiance Is Unconstitutional
Schools can’t ask children to swear loyalty to monotheism, says Ninth Circuit panel.
By Ted Olsen | posted 06/27/2002
A federal appeals court yesterday ruled that the Pledge of Allegiance is unconstitutional and must not be recited in schools.
"In the context of the Pledge, the statement that the United States is a nation ’under God’ is an endorsement of religion," a panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said in a 2-1 decision. "To recite the Pledge is not to describe the United States; instead, it is to swear allegiance to the values for which the flag stands: unity, indivisibility, liberty, justice, and—since 1954—monotheism.…A profession that we are a nation ’under God’ is identical, for Establishment Clause purposes, to a profession that we are a nation ’under Jesus,’ a nation ’under Vishnu,’ a nation ’under Zeus,’ or a nation ’under no god,’ because none of these professions can be neutral with respect to religion."
The ban (which covers Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington) elicited immediate responses from politicians and advocacy organizations.
"The President’s reaction was that this ruling is ridiculous," White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said. "The view of the White House is that this was a wrong decision, and the Department of Justice is now evaluating how to seek redress."
The Associated Press quotes President Bush this morning saying that the decision is "out of step" with the country’s history. "America is a nation ... that values our relationship with the Almighty," Bush said. "We need commonsense judges who understand that our rights were derived from God."
Atheist Michael A. Newdow first filed the suit in 1998 on behalf of his then-four-year-old daughter, when the two lived in Broward County, Florida. Courts dismissed the trial there because his daughter wasn’t yet in school, so he moved to California and tried again.
His complaint wasn’t that his daughter would be forced to recite the Pledge—courts have upheld the right not to say it since even before "under God" was added in 1954—but that his daughter was injured simply by being forced to watch and listen.
ii. But I loved the House’s response. They got up and cited the Pledge Of Allegiance!
iii. Here’s the rest of the Story as Paul Harvey would say:
Weblog: Girl in Pledge Case Is Christian Who Attends Calvary Chapel
Compiled by Ted Olsen | posted 07/05/2002
Michael Newdow’s daughter "loves the Lord," says pastor Chuck Smith
Conservative online media are abuzz this week with word that the second-grade daughter of atheist Michael Newdow, who sued a California school district over the Pledge of Allegiance on her behalf, wasn’t troubled by the words "Under God" in the Pledge at all. "The little girl, over whom the suit was filed, happens to attend Calvary Chapel, in Elk Grove," Pastor Chuck Smith told his congregation at Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa, California. "She is Christian, her mother is a Christian….This whole suit was filed on a totally false premise."
Daughter, Mother: Leave God in the Pledge
By Peter Forman
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said on Wednesday, June 26 that reciting the Pledge of Allegiance is unconstitutional. The court ruled that the words "under God" is a particular endorsement of religion that violates the Constitution’s Establishment Clause requiring a separation between church and state.
The next day, however, the court ruling was put on hold due to the vast amount of opposition across the United States. It has been a popular subject for newspaper editorials and political speeches across the nation.
An atheist, Michael A. Newdow of California, whose daughter attended a local elementary school, filed the lawsuit. The suit claims that the Pledge of Allegiance being recited by a teacher harms her rights.
However, Dr. Michael Newdow, who is an emergency room doctor with a law degree, said that the pledge harmed his daughter’s First Amendment rights because she had to "watch and listen as her state-employed teacher in her state-run school leads her classmates in a ritual proclaiming that there is a God, and that ours is `one nation under God.’"
Breaking revelations surrounding the case have led people to question the legitimacy of the suit. Based on information obtained by CPI News, a startling new fact has been unearthed regarding the personal opinions of Michael Newdow’s daughter and her mother.
According to information, the man who filed the legal suit in June did so against the wishes of his daughter and her mother, both of which identify themselves as Christians and attend a Calvary Chapel.
By identifying themselves as Christians, the daughter presumably didn’t become uncomfortable when reciting or objected to the Pledge of Allegiance - an action that directly contradicts the essence of the lawsuit.
A Sunday evening announcement by Pastor Chuck Smith, asking for prayers from his congregation regarding the Pledge of Allegiance case, has revealed more new developments. The pastor of Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa told his church that, "The little girl, over whom the suit was filed, happens to attend Calvary Chapel, in Elk Grove. She is Christian, her mother is a Christian."
This new development suggests the possibility that the court’s decision was based on fraudulent facts. Michael A. Newdow claimed that reciting the Pledge violated his daughter’s constitutional rights, and made her uncomfortable.
But regarding the suit’s claims that Newdow’s daughter was offended by the Pledge of Allegiance, Pastor Chuck Smith said that it is "Totally false, she loves the Lord." If Michael A. Newdow’s daughter were indeed a Christian, it could mean (as Pastor Smith observed), "That this whole suit was filed on a totally false premise."
Pastor Chuck Smith is currently out of town, and was not available for contact on Monday. His secretary said they are waiting for "any further developments".
According to sources, Newdow’s wife may appear on the CBS Early Show this Fourth of July. Newdow was described as having a "chip on his shoulder".
iv. How one governor responded in Missouri:
Thu Jul 4, 3:58 AM ET
By PAUL SLOCA, Associated Press Writer
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) – Calling it a “symbolic gesture” that shows Missouri believes in the Pledge of Allegiance, Gov. Bob Holden signed a bill that requires the pledge to be recited at least once a week in public schools.
v. How the President of the United States responded:
For President, a Spiritual Fourth
Under Tight Security, Bush Invokes Faith Before Thousands in W.Va.
By Dana Milbank
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, July 5, 2002; Page A07
RIPLEY, W.Va., July 4 -- President Bush celebrated a highly spiritual Independence Day in this Appalachian county seat, recalling how "the wisdom and the blessing of Divine Providence" have guided the nation for 226 years.
There were terrorism jitters among the several thousand gathered in front of the courthouse here under exceptionally tight security for the presidential visit, but Bush’s commemoration of the first Independence Day since the Sept. 11 attacks proceeded without incident.
The most striking characteristic of the ceremony, an expanded version of tiny Ripley’s annual Fourth of July celebrations that began in the mid-19th century, was the steady profession of faith. The event began before Bush’s arrival with a fiery invocation by the Rev. Jack Miller of West Ripley Baptist Church.
"We have ridiculed the absolute truth of your word in the name of multiculturalism," Miller prayed. "We have been forced to honor sexual deviance in the name of freedom of expression. We have exploited the system of education in the name of the lottery. We have toyed with the idea of helping human life in the name of medical research. We have killed our unborn children in the name of choice."
After Bush entered, the crowd recited the Pledge of Allegiance, shouting out the words "under God" in defiance of the unpopular ruling by an appellate court panel last week that such words in the pledge are unconstitutional.
Bush alluded to the decision, which was suspended pending a full court ruling. "No authority of government can ever prevent an American from pledging allegiance to this one nation under God," the president said beneath the clock tower of the 86-year-old Jackson County courthouse, prompting a sustained standing ovation from the crowd.
Bush, who removed his tie, unbuttoned his collar and rolled up his sleeves before giving his 20-minute speech beneath a perfect sky, also drew cheers when he spoke of the freedoms "granted to each one of us by Almighty God," and he expressed confidence that the founders "would join us all in giving thanks for all that we have."
"Today, as much as ever before, America bears the hope of the world, yet from the day of our founding, America’s own great hope has never been in ourselves alone," Bush said. "The founders humbly sought the wisdom and the blessing of Divine Providence. May we always live by that same trust, and may God continue to watch over the United States of America."
…But such concerns did little to diminish the spirit of the thousands who converged on the town green, many waving flags and wearing patriotic colors. "Very patriotic, these people here," said Jim Rubin, a local Abraham Lincoln impersonator who came to hear the speech in costume. "There’s no thought about any kind of problems in the mountains of West Virginia."
The 3,200 residents of Ripley seemed far more amused than worried about Bush’s visit, though. Various businesses displayed signs with messages such as "I-77 Ford Welcomes You, Mr. President," while a sign in a vacant shop in town announced: "Ripley says: Believe it or not, Bush is Hot." Bush arrived with much fanfare in Marine One, which landed on the front lawn of Mabel Chapman, 81….
© 2002 The Washington Post Company
Conclusion:
We need to respond like Abraham Lincoln if we desire to keep this as One Nation Under God . We need to follow his leadership principles derived from his study of the Bible:
1. Study and read the Bible it will make you happier and more content in life. It’s the Greatest gift given to man from the Lord God Almighty.
2. Persuade others rather than coerce them into the Kingdom of God. Help them see the necessity of God in their lives. Take time to be their friend and you will influence them.
3. Let your character be full of honesty and integrity because this will create a trust worthiness in your life. When others see your character lived out in public and private they will trust you and listen to you.
4. Never act out of the flesh by being vengeful or spiteful walk in love and forgive and then you will truly live.
5. Have the courage and patience to handle unjust criticism like Jesus did. Realize that when you lead especially in the realm of Christianity there will be critics.
6. Make sure you lead by leading. Teach your people to praise others and embrace victories together and lead the way in this. Understand people will become like their leader.
7. Influence people through telling the story like we did last week. Make sure you talk to people about Jesus don’t preach at them dialogue with them. Share the Good News – share your story- it will make a difference.
8. Preach the vision of Heaven to those who will follow and never quit confirming our destiny in Christ.
a. Back to Revelation 21:23-27: 23The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp. 24The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it. 25On no day will its gates ever be shut, for there will be no night there. 26The glory and honor of the nations will be brought into it. 27Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.
