Was the United States of America founded on Judeo-Christian principles?
That question and related others are being asked more and more frequently these days as the United States shakes its fist at God and rebels against His Word. The 412 Church senior pastor and host of the Hope For Our Times video program, Tom Hughes, has written an insightful book titled America’s Coming Judgment: Where is Our Hope? in response to this crucial question. We were blessed on Christ in Prophecy to have Pastor Tom as our guest on our television program to discuss this vital topic.
A Most Unique Name
Nathan Jones: Pastor Tom, before we dive into the topic, could you please share where 412 Church is located in California and what led you to give your church that very interesting name?
Tom Hughes: San Jacinto is located northeast of San Diego, California and just west of Palm Springs. We lie between the two cities in a pretty desert-like community. Temperatures gets really hot in the summer, but it’s dry. I think it’s a beautiful place to live and a wonderful location to serve in ministry.
Since we are located in Southern California, please pray for us Christians living in such a morally liberal area of the country as California. I rather feel like a missionary out there sometimes. The more I’m into learning about and teaching Bible prophecy, the more troubling end times signs I see happening around me there. Wow! How much do we as a nation need the Lord.
Tom Hughes: Wow! How much do we as a nation need the Lord. Click To Tweet412 Church originally began as a Calvary Chapel. Well, it still is as we reside within the Calvary Chapel system. I wanted a name that conveyed our mission statement. Our mission statement is “to win, disciple, and send.” All of the other names were taken such as Cornerstone and Horizon. All these grand names had been already taken, and I wanted a name that would really stand out and convey our vision statement. So, we went with 412 because it is very biblical based on the passages of Acts 4:12; Hebrews 4:12; and Ephesians 4:12. Each teaches that we Christians are to win, disciple, and send.
So, yes, the name often causes people to frequently ask me where we came up with a name like 412. “That’s a number, not a church.” And I respond, “Well, yes, it is.” Our name provides a great opportunity to be able to share three Bible verses right off the bat, such as Acts 4:12 which reads, “Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” Our special name provides a real blessing to the inquisitive.
It’s funny that there are those who accuse our name of not being biblical, but you won’t find a more biblical name than the number of our church directly named after Bible verses.
Our Christian Foundation
Dr. Reagan: Tom, in your new book, America’s Coming Judgment: Where is Our Hope?, you made the following comment:
“The God-things now painted as offensive by our society were once the roots that nourished and anchored our republic.”
What a profound statement! Are you claiming the United States was founded as a Christian nation?
Tom Hughes: A few different points reside just in that statement alone. For instance, is America a Christian nation? I would respond with this, and I know this could be offensive to some people. I believe the United States was founded upon Christian principles and founded upon the Word of God. The Bible was the primarily document our Founding Fathers looked to for guidance as many were believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. All of them? I’ll get to that in a minute.
Tom Hughes: The United States was founded upon #Christian principles and founded upon the Word of God. Click To TweetThe United States was most certainly founded on Christian principles. Our nation was founded on the very Word of God, and specifically, the Ten Commandments.
Are we a Christian nation today? Well, I struggle to say we’re actually still a Christian nation. But, if you mean that our nation was originally founded upon biblical principles, then yes, most definitely. One can claim that Israel is a Jewish nation because it is ethnically Jewish, but to claim that America is a Christian nation founded upon biblical principles, then likewise, absolutely. The Bible established the charter and set the course of America. Our foundation was rooted in Judeo-Christian principles.
Dr. Reagan: Our whole Constitution stands upon Judeo-Christian principles. For example, look at the separation of powers and the balance of power the Founding Fathers instituted. These men did not trust mankind to be good. They held the biblical worldview that mankind is basically evil, and not basically good as humanism teaches today. They installed all sorts of checks and balances in our Constitution in order to make sure that mere men could control such power as government provides without abusing it too much. And, those values all stemmed from the Judeo-Christian viewpoint.
Tom Hughes: Absolutely! And then, look at our culture in today’s society. Just travel to Washington D.C. right now. Watch the news every day. All you’ll see are the problems derived from godless men’s decisions. Look at Romans 1:22 where Paul says, “Professing to be wise, they became fools.” That appears to be exactly what is happening in our nation today.
Our nation’s Founding Fathers were greatly concerned our nation would falter when we no longer held the Word of God as our plumb line. The Bible contains the truth of all things, and when we were stray from the Word of God and abandon the truth of things, then we won’t be able to stay on the right path. When men start making up their own rules, void of the Word of God, then we are going to start amassing all of the problems that we evidently now have today. The rip in our societal fabric is only going to increase in size.
Scary times. Anyone who REALLY wants to know whats going on should definitely check this out, its a pretty scary warning from a history and religion professor.