7. The Declaration of Independence accused the King Of England of, among other things, being a tyrant. Who was the King?

8. How many specific charges were leveled against the King?

9. Who signed the Declaration of Independence even though he was not a delegate to the Continental Congress?

A. John Dunlap B. Charles Thomson ** C. William Williams D. Caesar Rodney

10. Match Second Continental Congress delegate to home state: Roger Sherman -- d a. New Hampshire Benjamin Franklin -- f b. Georgia William Ellery -- e c. Virginia Josiah Bartlett -- a d. Connecticut Benjamin Harrison -- c e. Rhode Island Button Gwinnett -- b f. Pennsylvania The purpose of Independence day is to celebrate the move of our leaders to break the ties with England and establish an independent, united states. It’s a day to think about our founding fathers, a day to celebrate the graciousness of our God in giving this country continued freedom and protection, and of guiding us in ways we don’t deserve. It’s a day of prayer, requesting God to continue his Grace. It’s a day of humility, as we are again made aware of the blessings we don’t deserve that come and continue to come because of the sacrifices of many people we don’t know.

I want to focus our attention today on a verse that Terry read earlier, II Chron 7:14 – "if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land. This verse is directed to the nation of Israel (My people) and is a promise given to King Solomon that God would act on Israel’s behalf if she would only wake up and repent. I want you to notice one national characteristic He promises to respond to: "If my people will humble themselves."

"HUMBLE themselves." What does it mean to humble ourselves? The command is to humble yourself. We are not to humble others, or pray that God would humble everyone else, or even pray that God would humble us. The statement places the responsibility on God’s people. What does it mean to humble ourselves? It may not be as much the job of "putting ourselves down," as it is the job of realizing everything that is "up." I don’t think it is depreciation of self as much as it is APPRECIATION of JESUS CHRIST.

Let me make three suggestions here that I think describe the stream from which humility flows.

I. Humility is a recognition of things GREATER than me. I am humbled when I realize that I am not the king, that the universe does not revolve around me, and that the purpose of the world is not my entertainment and pleasure. Humility comes from realizing the Glory of God’s creation, the Glory of God’s purpose, and how small and insignificant a part I am. It’s looking at myself from the moon’s perspective, or the sun’s perspective.

II. Humility is a recognition of the STANDARD. Humility is an awareness of God’s standard. "All have sinned and come short of the Glory of God." What is the standard in that verse? What is the "Glory of God?" Why are we sinners? Because we have missed the standard of the Glory of God. You may be 50 feet ahead of me and someone else may be 100 feet ahead of us. But the standard is like the Sun, 93 million miles away.

Anyone can be good if the standard is low enough. Humility recognizes itself in light of God’s word. Most people live in a fog. They are blind to their real condition. God says, "all have sinned," and they respond with, "yes, I know those guys are bad, really bad." He says that our mouths are like open tombs, that constantly exhale putrid smells, and we say, "yes, I have met people like that; every other word out of their mouths is a curse word." And somehow we can hear all of this input about what we are really like, AND MISS IT! We deflect God’s arrows of conviction by pointing to all the people who are worse than we are and then emphasizing the good things we have done, thus assuring ourselves that we aren’t that bad.

Humility is recognizing God’s standard. The Publican came humbly to God and said, "God be merciful to me the sinner." Do you see the standard in that prayer? The publican realizes that he is the sinner. And he realizes that he has missed it not just by an inch, but that he is the sinner, the one that people look toward when they think of sinners, like the town drunk.

Humility is recognizing the standard, and viewing one’s self accurately.

III. Humility is a recognition of one’s PRIVILEGE. Michael Drury said, "my mother lives on a mountain, where in summer the stars are as big as chrysanthemums and, to my city-trained eye, almost frighteningly close. One night some years ago as we stood under them, simply looking, I was moved by what I supposed was humility to say, "Doesn’t it make you feel insignificant?"

"No," my mother answered, "only grateful to be included in such a universe." There was amusement in her tone, and I saw that she was laughing gently at my fuzzy notion of humility, what it is and what it does for one. I realized that it is not the job of humility to make us feel small, as much as to expand our capacity for appreciation, awe, delight; to stand silent before all that we do not know ("What is Humility – and What Good is it?" in RD, 9/61, 111).

Humility exclaims, "what is man, that you are mindful of him? And the son of man that you visit him? For you have made him a little lower than the angels, and have crowned him with glory and honor. You’ve put all things under his feet . . . O Lord our Lord, how excellent is your name in all the earth!

Do you see the focus? The privilege is granted by God, not by me putting myself in pain. People think that humility is to deny themselves certain things (I won’t get married; I won’t wear jewelry, I won’t own anything). Others wear special outfits and itchy clothes in order to be humble. The ancient ascetics tortured their bodies, lived in seclusion, starved themselves, slept on boards, and prided themselves in their self-sacrifice. A French religionist wore an iron girdle with sharp prongs to teach him humility, but he was mistaken (from Daily Bread, 1/2/61).

Humility is a recognition of the privilege of being included in God’s plan of salvation, in God’s work in the universe. "Jesus Christ died for me; Jesus Christ has included me in His plan; what a privilege."

Thus when God says, "if My people, called by My name will humble themselves" He is not describing a depreciation of self as much as an APPRECIATION of JESUS CHRIST.

Now let me see if I can take these three thoughts and help us look at and apply them in light of July 4^th.

I. The recognition of things GREATER than me. God has created and rules all that we enjoy. We live in an incredible country, created by God, that spreads from the Atlantic to the Pacific and beyond, that is for the most part, exercising a benevolent influence around the world. That should make us continually thankful.

Psalm 107:31-38 – 31 Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! 32 Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people, And praise Him in the company of the elders. 33 He turns rivers into a wilderness, And the watersprings into dry ground; 34 A fruitful land into barrenness, For the wickedness of those who dwell in it. 35 He turns a wilderness into pools of water, And dry land into watersprings. 36 There He makes the hungry dwell, That they may establish a city for a dwelling place, 37 And sow fields and plant vineyards, That they may yield a fruitful harvest. 38 He also blesses them, and they multiply greatly; And He does not let their cattle decrease.

Humility, in this passage expresses itself as "thankfulness" that arises out of a recognition of the goodness of the Lord.

This poem encourages us to observe the beauty of it all – the spacious skies, and all that is below them. Then we are to recognize the hand of God in it all – "God shed His grace on thee." The reason for the spacious skies, and amber waves of grain, and purple mountain majesties rising above the fruited plain is the Grace of God. The marvelous Grace of God. We are blessed beyond reason. There is absolutely no logical explanation why we are living here in comfort and the rest of the world is living in much less. There is no sensible way to justify our blessings of freedom.

Humility is the recognition of things far greater than me, like an amazing country, blessed repeatedly by God. Why? Why haven’t foreign wars been fought on our fields of grain and mountains? Why do we enjoy such a gentle climate? God could have given America a climate like that on the Arctic ice cap. And we could be eking out a living in the snow and ice in igloos on whale blubber and fish? Why did God give us such a beautiful land?

The author of this poem wrote it one summer as she viewed the beauty of our country. Kathryn Lee Bates was born in Massachusetts in 1859. By the time she was 30 she became a professor of English at Wellesley College. She made a trip to Colorado when she was 33 to teach a 3 week summer school course at a college in Colorado Springs. The train stopped in Chicago, where she saw the "alabaster" buildings of the 1893 World’’s Fair. It passed through Kansas on the Fourth of July where she saw "amber waves of grain." On arriving in Colorado Springs, she climbed Pike’’s Peak. From the top she could see the miles of plains on one side and the miles of the Rocky Mountains on the other side. She wrote a poem to summarize her summer experiences and called it "America, the Beautiful."

What we have here is a 33 year old English teacher who is calling us to recognize things that are greater than we are.

II. The awareness of God’s STANDARD. July 4^th calls us to remember the kind of people that God raised up to give us this great country. What did it take to start the United States of America? Mark 10:42-45: But Jesus called them to Himself and said to them, "You know that those who are considered rulers over the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 43 "Yet it shall not be so among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant. 44 "And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of all. 45 "For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many."

Here the writer directs us to think of the beauty of pilgrim feet who beat a thoroughfare across the wilderness for freedom because of their "stern impassioned stress." The reason why America has thoroughfares and interstates that provide for the movement of freedom is attributed to pilgrim feet.

Pilgrim feet go where no one has gone before. They are the first to move out in a new direction. There are large "unknowns" for pilgrims. "How will this turn out?" "What will it cost me to go this direction?" "How long will it take?"

Think of the new direction established by the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. Fifty Six men signed that document. What did that mean to sign a document that stated your intolerance of British rule? It probably meant something close to treason. The second Continental Congress was not a relaxed family atmosphere of cushioned chairs with cigars with wine. There was a danger to it, not only for them, but for their children and the entire 13 colonies. The step they were taking was irreversible, and the consequences were unknown. Benjamin Franklin was not just joking when he said, "we must all hang together or assuredly we shall all hang separately."

Here are some of the people who set the standard as servants for our country – those who put life and limb on the line for the cause of freedom.

Five signers were captured by the British (Heyward, Rutledge, Walton, Middleton and Stockton). Fifteen had their homes ransacked and burned [Ellery, M'Kean, Hall, Clymer, Heyward, Middleton, Nelson, Lewis, Hart, Morris, Livingston, Floyd, Hooper, Stockton, and Hopkinson]. Two lost their sons serving in the Revolutionary Army, another [Clark] had two sons captured.

Ten of the 56 [Heyward (wounded), Rutledge, Walton (wounded), Middleton, Whipple (lost leg), Wolcott, Nelson, Ross, M'Kean, and Rodney] were military leaders in the war and suffered great hardships.

And what kind of men were they? Twenty-four were lawyers and jurists. Eleven were merchants, nine were farmers and large plantation owners, five were doctors, there was a preacher, a shipbuilder, and then Benjamin Franklin, who didn’t fit any of the categories. They all signed the Declaration of Independence knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured.

Carter Braxton of Virginia, was a wealthy planter and trader, who saw his ships destroyed by the British Navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts.

Thomas Nelson, Jr., at the battle of Yorktown, noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters and quietly urged General George Washington to open fire. The home was completely destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

The home and property of Francis Lewis was destroyed, his wife was jailed by the enemy for six months and died about two years later.

John Hart, at the age of 66, 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. Within two years he died from exhaustion and ill health. These were men who had security, but they valued liberty more. Standing tall, straight, and unwavering, they pledged: "For the support of this declaration, with firm reliance on the protection of the divine providence, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor." And they meant it.

John Adams said in a letter to Abigail Adams on July 3, 1776, "I am well aware of the toil, and blood, and treasure, that it will cost us to maintain this declaration, and support and defend these states. Yet, through all the gloom, I can see the rays of light and glory; I can see that the end is more than worth all the means, and that posterity will triumph."

Think of what it would be like today, July 4^th to walk up here and sign a document that would in effect be your own death warrant in the name of freedom? Or that of your children. Could you stand to loose all that you had worked so hard for in the name of a dream, not even a guarantee, of freedom for your family and your neighbors? Here’s the standard that God chose to bless. Our nation today is a direct result of these men and women, our forefathers, making a collective stand in the face of certain death in order to establish our birthright........freedom.

Seventy eight years ago, President Calvin Coolidge said it so well at the 150^th Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in 1926: "We live in an age of science and of abounding accumulation of material things. These did not create our Declaration. Our Declaration created them. The things of the spirit come first. Unless we cling to that, all our material prosperity, overwhelming though it may appear, will turn to a barren sceptre in our grasp. If we are to maintain the great heritage which has been bequeathed to us, we must be like-minded as the fathers who created it. We must not sink into a pagan materialism. We must cultivate the reverence which they had for the things that are holy. We must follow the spiritual and moral leadership which they showed. We must keep replenished, that they may glow with a more compelling flame, the altar fires before which they worshiped."

If my people who are called by My name will humble themselves. Will realize what I have given them. Will realize who I use (servants only); will understand the importance of Spiritual life more than IQ, and commitment to My will more than commitment to self will. We can see in this God’s standard.

III. The awareness of one’s PRIVILEGE. Deut 4:32-40 – " For ask now concerning the days that are past, which were before you, since the day that God created man on the earth, and ask from one end of heaven to the other, whether any great thing like this has happened, or anything like it has been heard. 33 "Did any people ever hear the voice of God speaking out of the midst of the fire, as you have heard, and live? 34 "Or did God ever try to go and take for Himself a nation from the midst of another nation, by trials, by signs, by wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and by great terrors, according to all that the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your eyes? 35 "To you it was shown, that you might know that the LORD Himself is God; there is none other besides Him.

Moses was saying to the people of Israel, "do you understand the significance of what you have??? Does the privilege of living right here, right now, strike you at all? Do you realize that no other nation on the face of the earth has ever had your privilege?

The heroes in liberating strife were distinctive in the fact that they loved their country more than their own lives. They moved beyond living for themselves. They were willing to die for something – America. I’m thinking, as I am sure Kathryn Lee Bates was thinking, of young men and women today who are defending our freedoms with their lives in different parts of the world.

On May 6, 2004, Leslie Bryant received an invitation from the French Government to attend the ceremonies for the 60^th anniversary of D day. Leslie Bryant is Cathy Walker’s father who served in the 28^th infantry division as a combat medic from 1941-1945. He was flown to Paris a month ago, given red carpet treatment, was put up in the George the Fifth hotel, was given $2300 to spend, met the presidents of the USA and France and the Queen of England, toured Omaha Beach, and was awarded the Legion of Honor, France’s most prestigious award, for his contribution in liberating France from the Germans.

Leslie Bryant is one of those "heroes proved in liberating strife." We need to continually remember and thank such heroes. Thomas Paine said, those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it.

What is God saying to us this July 4^th, 2004?

1. Humble yourself. God has created things far greater than you. He has placed before you a STANDARD. He has given you incredible PRIVILEGES. Appreciation engenders humility.

2. Pray for your government and leaders. Have you prayed? I gave you this command 5 weeks ago on Memorial day.

The fact that we have been free for 228 years now is not an indication that we have freedom figured out and it is permanent in this country. The protection of our freedom is a continual, careful responsibility. Ronald Reagan said in his first inaugural message as Governor of California, January 5, 1967, "Freedom is a fragile thing and is never more than one generation away from extinction. It is not ours by inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation, for it comes only once to a people. Those who have known freedom, and then lost it, have never known it again."

Have you "prayed?" Think of this last week. Can you remember stopping to pray specifically for the health of our country? For wisdom for our leaders? For protection for our fighting men? For the maintenance of freedom in America and the world? Would you say that you fulfill your responsibilities faithfully?

It doesn’t say, "Humble yourself and become politically active." Not that there is anything wrong with that. But the direction is to "pray." Pray for what? "That God will become (and remain) politically active on America’s behalf!" The key to the future of America is the involvement of Almighty God.