THE FOURTH OF JULY!

BY BOB MCCURRY

The Declaration of Independence was approved JULY 4, 1776.

John Hancock signed first, saying "the price on my head has just doubled."

Benjamin Franklin said "We must hang together or most assuredly we shall hang separately."

When Samuel Adams signed the Declaration, he said:

"We have this day restored the Sovereign to whom all men ought to be obedient. He reigns in heaven and from the rising to the setting of the sun, let His kingdom come."

John Adams said:

"I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary Festival. It ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty."

John Adams continued:

"I am well aware of the toil and blood and treasure that it will cost to maintain this Declaration and support and defend these states.

Yet through all the gloom I can see the rays of ravishing light and glory. I can see that the End is more than worth all the Means.

And that Posterity will triumph in that day's transaction, even though we should rue it, which I trust in God we shall not."

The Book of Abigail and John: Selected Letters of the Adams Family, 1762-1784, Harvard University Press, 1975, 142.

And now some history:

Have you ever wondered what happened to the 56 men who signed the Declaration of Independence?

Five signers were captured by the British as traitors,

and tortured before they died.

Twelve had their homes ransacked and burned.

Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army;

another had two sons captured.

Nine of the 56 fought and died from wounds or

hardships of the Revolutionary War.

They signed and they pledged their lives, their fortunes,

and their sacred honor.

What kind of men were they?

Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists.

Eleven were merchants,

nine were farmers and large plantation owners;

men of means, well educated,

but they signed the Declaration of Independence

knowing full well that the penalty would be death

If they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, a wealthy planter and

trader, saw his ships swept from the seas by the

British Navy. He sold his home and properties to

pay his debts, and died in rags.

Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British

that he was forced to move his family almost constantly.

He served in the Congress without pay, and his family

was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him,

and poverty was his reward.

Vandals or soldiers looted the properties of Dillery, Hall, Clymer,

Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge, and Middleton.

At the battle of Yorktown , Thomas Nelson, Jr., noted that

the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson

home for his headquarters. He quietly urged General

George Washington to open fire. The home was destroyed,

and Nelson died bankrupt.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed.

The enemy jailed his wife, and she died within a few months.

John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying.

Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill

were laid to waste. For more than a year he lived in forests

and caves, returning home to find his wife dead

and his children vanished.

So, take a few minutes while enjoying your 4th of July holiday and

thank these patriots. It's not much to ask for the price they paid.

Remember:

Freedom is never free!

I hope you will send this to as many people as you can, please.

It's time we get the word out that patriotism

is not a sin, and the Fourth of July has more to it than

picnics and baseball games.

Remember:

“Righteousness exalteth a nation:

but sin is a reproach to any people.”

Prov 14:34

Wake-up, Pastors! Wake-Up, Christians!

______________________________________________

The Wake-Up Herald is published by Robert McCurry. The publication is designed to exalt the true God of the Bible, the Lord Jesus Christ, and inform, inspire, and challenge its readers regarding biblical truth and real-life issues. The contents are the sole responsibility of Robert McCurry and do not represent or speak for or on behalf of any other person or group. There is no subscription charge. The publication is a ministry of faith and dependent on the contributions of its readers. Contributions are not tax-deductible. Send all correspondence to: Robert McCurry, 605 Moore Rd Newnan, GA 30263 or herbap@aol.com

Note from Charles Woodruff:

(Using the above contact addresses, Brother McCurry will be glad to hear from you and place you on his mailing list or email list to receive The Wake-Up Herald. He always has some interesting information to share such as in today’s publication).

I remember when Pastor McCurry first published most of this information around 35 years ago. It was a help and blessing then to me and my family, and still is now. I hope that it is a help to you to see what the founders of our country sacrificed to give us that we now see slipping away. Most of them were Christians, and where not so, gave honor and respect man’s right to worship God.

If you are going to tell me that it was God, not man, that gave us this free republic, I will certainly agree. He did, and as He has so often done in history (as in the case of William Tyndale, Martin Luther, John Calvin, George Whitefield and many others, He has used men and women in His purpose. He is still doing so, and as we see the demise and destruction of this republic before our very eyes, may we remember that God judges sin and rebellion! May it drive us to our knees to pray for a turnaround. May God help us!

(Published and forwarded July 4, 2009)