“The danger to all well-established free governments arises from the unwillingness of the people to believe in…the influence of designing men…This is the old trick of those who would usurp the government of their country. In the name of democracy they speak, warning the people against the influence of wealth and the danger of aristocracy… It is in periods like this that it behooves the people to be most watchful of those to whom they have intrusted power.”
President William Henry Harrison, Inaugural Address, March 4, 1841.
In 1787-88, Anti-Federalists were the first to warn of several features in the proposed Constitution which might be subverted to allow an unwarranted expansion of government power. Some of these concerns were addressed in the Bill of Rights, others remained unaddressed as the new government under the Constitution went into operation. Later, in the 19th and early 20th Centuries, new voices added warnings that again went were ignored. Today’s warning voices continue these warnings and point to new ones. Does the Republic hang in the balance if they are not heeded?
Teach the Children
- God warns us to pay attention to the voice of the watchman.
- In the Bible, the watchman warned of threats to the safety of the Children of Israel. (“For thus the Lord said to me: ‘Go, set a watchman; let him announce what he sees.’” Isaiah 21:6-8)
- Today, watchmen warn of subtle and not so subtle changes to our political system that threaten our liberty and our ability to enjoy the life God has given us.
“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.”
Philippians 3:20