WHILE-EVERYONE-WAS-SLEEPING

WHILE EVERYONE WAS SLEEPING “Jesus told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away.” (Matt. 13:24,25).

The pilgrims came to America to escape religious persecution. The spiritual nature of their voyage is reflected in a document they composed and signed on board their ship on Nov. 11, 1620. It is known as the Mayflower Compact. It reads as follows:

“IN THE NAME OF GOD, AMEN. We, whose names are underwritten, the Loyal Subjects of our dread Sovereign Lord King James, by the Grace of God, of Great Britain, France, and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, &c. Having undertaken for the Glory of God, and Advancement of the Christian Faith, and the Honour of our King and Country, a Voyage to plant the first Colony in the northern Parts of Virginia; Do by these Presents, solemnly and mutually, in the Presence of God and one another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil Body Politick, for our better Ordering and Preservation, and Furtherance of the Ends aforesaid: And by Virtue hereof do enact, constitute, and frame, such just and equal Laws, Ordinances, Acts, Constitutions, and Officers, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general Good of the Colony; unto which we promise all due Submission and Obedience. IN WITNESS whereof we have hereunto subscribed our names at Cape-Cod the eleventh of November, in the Reign of our Sovereign Lord King James, of England, France, and Ireland, the eighteenth, and of Scotland the fifty-fourth, Anno Domini; 1620.”

The following information reflects their desire to see the Bible as an integral part of the education of their children. It has been adapted from “The Myth of Separation” by David Barton (pages 90 - 93). It was published by Wallbuilders, RO. Box 397, Aledo, Texas 76008. Phone (817) 441-6044.

@ One of the first laws regarding public education in the colonies was called “Old Deluder Satan Law”. It was enacted in 1642 in Massachusetts and reads as follows: “It being one chiefe project of that old deluder, Sathan to keepe men from the knowledge of the scriptures, as in former time ... It is ordered . . . (that) after the Lord hath increased the settlement to the number of fifty howshoulders, they shall then forthwith appointe one within theire towne, to teach all such children as shall resorte to him, to write and read . . . And it is further ordered, that where any towne shall increase to the number of one hundred families or howshoulders they shall sett up a grammar schoole . . . to instruct youths, so farr as they may bee fited for the university”.

m Note that the primary reason schools were founded in America was to teach children to read and write so they could understand the Scriptures and thus not be deluded by Satan.

m The first college in America was Harvard College in Massachusetts. The official motto of Harvard was “For Christ and the Church”. A pamphlet for prospective students informed that that the purpose of education was to “Know God and Jesus Christ which is eternal life” (Jn. 17:3). Each student was expected to read the Scriptures twice a day and be ready to give an account of his proficiency therein.

m The College of William and Mary was founded in Williamsburg, Virginia in 1692. It was chartered that “The youth may be piously enacted in good letters and manners, and that the Christian faith may be propagated . . . to the glory of God”

m Yale was founded in Connecticut in 1701 “To plant, under Divine blessing to propagate in this Wilderness, the blessed Reformed, Protestant religion”.

m Princeton was founded in 1746 with the official motto “Under God's Power She Flourishes” The first president of Princeton was the Rev. Jonathan Dickinson who said: “Cursed be all that learning that is contrary to the cross of Christ”.

m Rutgers University was founded in 1766 with the official motto: “Son of Righteousness Shine upon the West also”.

m In 1779 chiefs from the Delaware Indian Tribe brought three young boys to George Washington at his military encampment. They wanted these young men to be trained in American schools. On May 12, 1779 Washington assured them that they would be taught “above all, the religion of Jesus Christ”.

Ñ One hundred and six of the first one hundred and eight colleges in America were founded on the Christian faith!

m John Witherspoon was a signer of the Declaration of Independence and served on 100 different committees in Congress. He later became president of Princeton. Remember their motto was “Cursed be all knowledge that is contrary to the cross of Christ”. At Princeton Witherspoon helped train 1 President, 1 Vice-President, 3 Supreme Court Justices, 10 cabinet members, 12 Governors, 60 Congressmen, 21 Senators and 39 Representatives, plus many members of the Constitutional Convention and many state congressmen.

E Samuel Adam is known as the Father of the American Revolution. His work on “The Rights of the Colonists” in 1772 declared: “These may be best understood by reading and carefully studying the institutes of the great Law Giver and Head of the Christian Church, which are to be found clearly written and promulgated in the New Testament”.

This concludes the references from David Barton. Wallbuilders has a treasure trove of historical information about America. Please take advantage of the wealth of historical information about America that is available through them.

EDUCATION TODAY Education today is not at all like it was intended to be by our founding fathers! The American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) alleges that Christian students are being

rejected, failed, and expelled from State colleges and universities because of their faith. Here are a few examples:

Two students, Brandon Jenkins and Dustin Buxton, were brazenly denied admission to the

Radiation Therapy Program at the Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC) because of their professed belief in God.

Audrey Jarvis, a student at Sonoma State University in California, was asked by a university administrator to remove her cross necklace during orientation because it could potentially offend others.

In Florida, at Polk State College, a professor gave a student zeros on several assignments because the student refused to agree with the professor’s anti-Christian bias. The course syllabus even stated, “The point of this is not to ‘bash’ any religion, we should NEVER favor one over another, they all come from the same source, HUMAN IMAGINATION....”

At Florida Atlantic University, a student was reportedly ordered to write the name of “Jesus” on a piece of paper and stomp on it.

A student at Eastern Michigan University was expelled for expressing her faith in a counseling program.

Likewise, a student at the University of Wisconsin was informed by her professor that “Religious contemplations and the bible [sic] belong to a different realm and not academic sources. So your argumentation along Christian lines . . . are [sic] inappropriate for this presentation. I will not allow you to present unless you change this. You will also fail your presentation if your [sic] discuss religion in connection with it.”

ACLJ also reports that Christian organizations are being removed from public university campuses. California State universities have effectively evicted Christian organizations from university campuses by refusing to recognize Christian organizations in college directories and university websites, increasing their room rental fees, and forbidding them from representing themselves at campus-wide open houses, until the Christian organizations accept California State University’s “all-comers” policy.

ACLJ is not the only voice being heard on this subject. SenatorTed Cruz issued a scathing letter to Yale Law School Dean Heather Gerken on April 4 announcing an investigation into alleged school discrimination against Christian law students. He cited Yale's recently adopted policy that prohibits "stipends and student loan repayments for students serving in organizations professing traditional Christian views or adhering to traditional sexual ethics" as "transparently discriminatory." At issue is the Yale chapter of the student conservative group the Federalist Society that invited a speaker from the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) to deliver a speech on campus. The guest speaker was to discuss the First Amendment ramifications for Christian business owners in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in Masterpiece Cake Shop v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission.

m A Christian student group at the University of Iowa has filed suit against the school after losing

its official status as an official on-campus organization because it requires leaders to hold Biblical beliefs about sexuality.

m The Office of Student Life has placed religious group Harvard College Faith and Action on “administrative probation” for a year after the organization pressured a female member of its student leadership to resign in September following her decision to date a woman.

m These outrageous stories could easily be multiplied, but surely you get the point. WHILE EVERYONE WAS SLEEPING

In the parable we are considering Jesus said that the kingdom of heaven was like a man who sowed good seed in his field (Matt. 13:1). Those familiar with farming recognize how much work and expense is involved in planting a crop. Often trees, bushes and rocks must be removed to prepare a field for plowing. Even with the help of oxen plowing was not easy. God spoke through Jeremiah: “This is what the Lord says to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem: ‘Break up your unplowed ground and do not sow among thorns’” (Jer. 4:3). The man in our parable worked hard, plowed his field, planted good seed, and then went to sleep. That’s when his enemy came and sabotaged his efforts.

As we have pointed out, the pilgrims founded schools and colleges for the specific purpose of honoring God and making students familiar with the Bible. Today this is not at all the purpose of public education. Neither are we excelling in subjects others than religion. Even though America spends more on education than many other nations, it still lags behind in international competition.

Our scholastic failures can be illustrated by the story of Jaime Escalante. This immigrant from Bolivia began teaching math in Garfield High School in Southern California. His phenomenal success in teaching calculus in this inner city school was made into the movie “Stand and Deliver”. School administrators, however, were not happy with such excellence. They criticized him for coming too early, staying too late, and working too hard. It made the other teachers look bad. The Teacher’s Union complained that his classes were too large. Escalante insisted that the formula for success was simple: "The key to my success with youngsters is a very simple and time-honored tradition: hard work for teacher and student alike." At the height of his success, Garfield graduates were entering the University of Southern California in such great numbers that they outnumbered all the other high schools in the working-class East Los Angeles region combined.

Instead of being honored by his fellow teachers, however, Escalante received threats and hate mail. By 1990 he had lost the chairmanship of the math department. In 1991 the faculty politics and petty jealousies caused him to leave Garfield and take a job with the Hiram W. Johnson High School in Sacramento. In a few short years calculus students who passed their exams at Garfield had dropped 80%. THE POINT IS THAT EVEN THOUGH THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM AT GARFIELD WAS IN DECAY, NO ONE SEEMED TO CARE! LIKE THE PARABLE TOLD BY JESUS, EVERYBODY SEEMED TO BE SLEEPING!

What happened to Garfield High School is happening all over America. Not only have American schools suffered academically, but also spiritually. World Net Daily charged in an editorial dated 11/18/09: “SACRAMENTO — A 12-year-old girl is prohibited from bringing aspirin to California public schools without a note from her mother or father — but in many California districts she may sign herself out of classes, leave her junior-high campus without parental permission, secretly have an abortion and return to school before the end of the day — and her own family may be none the wiser.”

Colorado lawmakers recently introduced HB19-1032. This bill titled "The Youth Wellness Act," specifies that the "relational or sexual experiences" of LGBT-identified individuals must be included in sexuality education. Educators must also "promote youth understanding of sexual activity, sexuality, and sexual orientation as a normal part of human development."

An Elementary school in Massachusetts is teaching cross-dressing and transgenderism in the 3rd grade!!

In 2007 a Massachusetts federal judge ruled that the gay agenda must be taught in public school, “ordering that it is reasonable, indeed there is an obligation, for public schools to teach young children to accept and endorse homosexuality” (Bob Unruh, “Judge Orders ‘Gay’ Agenda Taught to Christian Children,” WND.com, Feb. 24, 2007).

SACRAMENTO, July 6, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A bill requiring public schools to teach the “historical contributions” of homosexual Americans was approved by the California legislature on Tuesday, July 5. The bill also prohibits any school material or instruction that reflects adversely on homosexuality, bisexuality or transgenderism, and prohibits parents from removing children from classes over offensive material.

Etc. Etc. Etc. These examples of ungodliness in the public school system , of course, can also be easily multiplied! These few examples, however, should be sufficient to make the point!

IT’S TIME TO WAKE UP

“And do this, understanding the present time. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber .. .” (Rom. 13:11).

At 11:40 P.M. April 14, 1912 the ship Titanic steamed into an iceberg doing almost 30 miles per hour. It sank 2 hours and 40 minutes later drowning over 1,500 people in the icy waters of the North Atlantic. The passengers were lulled into a fatal slumber by the false assumption that the ship was “unsinkable”. They hit the iceberg in the middle of the night and many passengers thought the warnings were a joke. Inside the sinking ship it was warm and comfortable, and outside it was cold and miserable. Many passengers therefore stayed in their state rooms and refused to face reality. There were only 20 life boats on board. Sadly, even if all the life boats were filled to capacity only half of the passengers could have been saved. No one expected that any life boats would be needed at all, and so

the company saved $16,000 by not purchased the additional 32 lifeboats that were needed. Sadder still is that even the meager number of life boats available were not filled to capacity. Lifeboat number 7, for example, rowed away with 28 people on board when it could have held 65. While the tragedy was unfolding, many people were sleeping. When they finally woke up it was too late!

There is a lesson in this story regarding public education in America. We can either wake up and do things that are difficult and uncomfortable, or we can stay in bed and go down with the ship.

THE CHOICE IS YOURS!

This article was written by Boyce Mouton. No rights are reserved! You are free to use this article in whole or in part for the glorification of Christ and the advancement of His Kingdom.