On June 16, 1858, Abraham Lincoln delivered his famous House Divided speech at the Illinois State Capitol: A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure, permanently, half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved I do not expect the house to fall but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing or all the other. 1
Mt 12:2525 Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand. 2
10/16/2016 3
Pro-individual gun ownership Pro-life Anti-individual individual gun ownership Pro-abortion/murder Biblical marriage Strong state governments Same sex marriage Strong national government So, what do we do? We do not disengage! 4
Mt 22:2121 And He said to them, Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar s, and to God the things that are God s. 5
10/16/2016 William Penn, Apr. 25, 1682 Governments, like clocks, go Governments, from the motion men give them them;; and as governments are made and moved by men, so by them they are ruined too too.. Wherefore governments rather depend upon men than men upon governments.. Let men be good governments and the government cannot be bad..... bad But if men be bad, let the government be never so good, they will endeavor to warp and spoil it to their turn turn [T] [T]hough hough good laws do well, good men do better better;; for good laws may want good men and be abolished or invaded by ill men men;; but good men will never want [for] good laws nor suffer ill ones.. ones 6
Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity, Religion and morality are indispensable supports And let us with caution indulge the supposition, that morality can be maintained without religion reasonreason and experience both forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of religious principle Tis substantially true, that virtue or morality is a necessary spring of popular government. George Washington, Sept. 19, 1796 Providence has given to our people the choice of their rulers, and it is the duty, as well as the privilege and interest of our Christian nation, to select and prefer Christians for their rulers. John Jay, 1 st Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court 7
Look well to the characters and qualifications of those you elect and raise to office and places of trust. Matthias Burnet, D.D., Pastor of the First Church in Norwalk, CT 8
If the liberties of America are ever completely ruined itit will in all probability be the consequence of a mistaken notion of prudence which leads men to acquiesce in measures of the most destructive tendency for the sake of present ease. Samuel Adams, The Writings of Samuel Adams, Harry Alonzo Cushing, editor (New York: G. P. Putnam s Sons, 1906), Vol. II, p. 287, Article Signed Candidus, originally printed in the Boston Gazette, December 9, 1771. John Philpot Curran 18 th century Irish orator and politician 9
It is the common fate of the indolent to see their rights become a prey to the active. The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt. The Speeches Of The Right Honourable John Philpot Curran, (Dublin: Printed by Jay Stockdale And Sons, 1808), Speech Of John Philpot Curran, Esq.; On The Right Of Election Of Lord Mayor Of The City Of Dublin, Delivered Before The Lord Lieutenant And Privy Council Of Ireland, 1790, p. 5 James Garfield 20 th U.S. President July 1877: Now more than ever the people are responsible for the character of their Congress. If that body be ignorant, reckless, and corrupt, it is because the people tolerate ignorance, recklessness, and corruption. If it be intelligent, brave, and pure, it is because the people demand these high qualities to represent them in the national legislature.... 10
[I]f the next centennial does not find us a great nation... it will be because those who represent the enterprise, the culture, and the morality of the nation do not aid in controlling the political forces. James A. Garfield, The Works of James Abram Garfield, Burke Hinsdale, editor (Boston: James R. Osgood and Company, 1883), Vol. II, pp. 486, 489, "A Century of Congress, July 1877. Simeon Howard, Pastor West Church, Boston Massachusetts election sermon, May 31, 1780: There can be no doubt but God often brings distress and ruin upon a sinful people through the ill management of their rulers, given up to error and blindness. therefore, if a people desire to have rulers of wise and understanding hearts, counseled and directed by Heaven, they should take care that they be men who fear God. Thornton, John Wingate, The Pulpit of the American Revolution (Boston: Gould & Lincoln, 1860), Introduction, p. XXXVIII., p. 373. 11
Rev. Elizur Goodrich, Connecticut election sermon, May 10, 1787: Not only may a people be delivered into the hands of tyrants, as the rod and scourge of heaven for their impiety and madness; but through their own folly, children may be their princes, and babes rule over them. Such a people shall be oppressed every one by another, and every one by his neighbor. Ellis Sandoz, Political Sermons of the American Founding Era: 1730-1805, 2 vols, Foreword by Ellis Sandoz (2nd ed. Indianapolis: Liberty Fund, 1998). Vol. 1. Chapter: 31: Elizur Goodrich, The Principles Of Civil Union And Happiness Considered And Recommended. Impress upon children the truth that the exercise of the elective franchise is a social duty of as solemn a nature as man can be called to perform; that a man may not innocently trifle with his vote; that every elector is a trustee as well for others as himself and that every measure he supports has an important bearing on the interests of others as well as on his own. Daniel Webster, U.S. Congressman, U.S. Senator, Secretary of State for 3 U.S. Presidents 12
Apr. 16, 1781 Let each citizen remember at the moment he is offering his vote that he is not making a present or a compliment to please an individual or at least that he ought not so to do; but that he is executing one of the most solemn trusts in human society for which he is accountable to God and his country. 13
Dist 60 Dist 43 Senate Dist 23 Lonnie Paxton 14
State Questions 776 all methods of execution constitutionally allowed (Yes) 777 right to farm (Yes) shall be 779 increase the state sales tax by one percent to generate revenue for education (No) 780 reclassifies certain property offenses and simple drug possession misdemeanor crimes (Yes) 781 uses money saved by State Question 780 to fund rehabilitative programs (Yes) 790 repeals Section 5, Article 2 of the Oklahoma Constitution, which prohibits public money from being spent for religious purposes (Yes) 792 allows grocery/convenience stores to sell full-strength beer and wine (No) 15
James R. Winchester Douglas L. Combs If ever a time should come, when vain and aspiring men shall possess the highest seats in Government, our country will stand in need of its experienced patriots to prevent its ruin. Letter to James Warren, October 24, 1780, Delegates to Congress. Letters of delegates to Congress, 1774-1789, Volume 16, September 1 1780-February 28 1781. 16