The abridged sermons in this series were generally delivered between 1744 and 1795, a half-century period that is definitely pre-partisan. Thus, these should be received as free from the bias of modern partisanship. Continue reading →
Political Sermons From the Past
Political Sermons From The Past: A Sermon On The Anniversary Of The Independence Of America by Samuel Miller
On January 18, 2016 at Liberty University, a presidential candidate referred to a Bible passage1 in his talk, advising that Christianity was under siege. While such remarks may stir one’s passions, two centuries earlier, another speaker referred to that same passage with an entire sermon devoted to it. Continue reading →
Political Sermons From The Past: Unlimited Submission And Non-Resistance To The Higher Powers By Jonathan Mayhew
Introduction Colonial thinkers Samuel Adams and Rev. Jonathan Mayhew argued against the innate goodness of man with implicit reference to King George III: “Ambition and lust for power,” they claimed, “are predominant passions in the breasts of most men. . . . . . . Continue reading →
Political Sermons From The Past: The Essential Rights And Liberties Of Protestants by Elisha Williams
The great grandson of several New England families (John Cotton’s among them), Elisha Williams (1694–1755) graduated from Harvard in 1711. After a brief career of teaching and tutoring in 1722 he became the pastor of a congregational church in Wethersfield, Connecticut, prior to serving as the Yale rector from 1726–39. Continue reading →
Historical Sermons From The Past: Divine Judgments Upon Tyrants By Jacob Cushing
What is God’s view on certain political matters or events? That is a question often asked, and often mocked. Continue reading →
Political Sermons From The Past: The Church’s Flight Into The Wilderness By Samuel Sherwood
An American sermon . . . on a choice morsel from the book of Revelation . . . associating corruption with hierarchies . . . and warning the church to resist sycophantic governments in league with that . . . Continue reading →
Political Sermons From The Past: The Mediatorial Kingdom and Glories of Jesus Christ By Samuel Davies
Allusions to Reformation themes abounded in early American sermons. The Waldensians, the eradication of the French Huguenots, Luther, Calvin, and Zwingli were all referred to in Samuel Davies’ 1756 sermon, “The Mediatorial Kingdom and Glories of Jesus Christ.” Continue reading →