What It Constitutes

Believers in Christ, in a sense, have a dual citizenship - we are citizens of heaven and belong to Christ, but we are also placed here as citizens of earth, to represent Jesus here. So, we can apply our heavenly citizenship to live a strong Christian witness in this world. 1st Peter 2 states:
13 Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether to the king as supreme,
14 or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good.
15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men--
16 as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God.
17 Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.

We are called to respect the laws of our land and to exhibit a submissive heart toward those in authority, to the extent that we are called to pray for them so we can lead quiet lives. The parameters of governmental authority are clear in verse 14: punish evil and reinforce good.  How do we know the difference between good and evil; how are good morals reinforced?  Certainly, the Scriptures have been a foundation for many of our laws and provide a guide for good government.  And, they show us how to live in this world as citizens of another.

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There is a passage in the 17th chapter of the book of Jeremiah that can be challenging to us, but can help us conform our lives to God's expectations. We can read these words:
7 "Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, And whose hope is the Lord.
8 For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, Which spreads out its roots by the river, And will not fear when heat comes; But its leaf will be green, And will not be anxious in the year of drought, Nor will cease from yielding fruit.
9 "The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?
10 I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give every man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his doings.

We, thankfully, are residents of a country that was founded on principles that are rooted in Scripture - history teaches us that our founders exhibited a faith in God, which has proven to be a source of guidance and strength throughout the establishment of our nation.  I believe that our Constitution is a document that contributes to our living morally and in unity, as well as our freedom to practice our faith.

There does seem to be a lack of understanding of Constitutional principles these days, and fortunately, there have been some court decisions over the past few years that represent a return to the basic freedom of speech and freedom of religion principles upon which our nation were founded. 

But, that lack of knowledge of these principles of the Constitution have the potential to have devastating consequences. The Daily Citizen from Focus on the Family presented results from a recent survey measuring the degree of Constitutional knowledge.  The article states:

The Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania has conducted its annual civics survey for the past 18 years. The survey focuses on civic knowledge and is released every year in time for Constitution Day – September 17.

The 2023 Annenberg Constitution Day Civics Survey found disheartening statistics; many Americans are entirely unaware about the basic freedoms they enjoy and are ignorant about key facts of the U.S. Constitution.

The survey found that two-thirds of American adults can name all three branches of the federal government – executive, legislative and judicial. However, 10% can name just two; 7% can name only one; and 17% could not name any branches.

As the article points out, there are five rights "guaranteed by the First Amendment."  Only 5% of those surveyed could name all of them.  20% could not name a single one.  Almost half could name "one or two."

Here's the breakdown according to the individual rights:

• Three-quarters (77%) name freedom of speech.
• Less than half (40%) name freedom of religion.
• A third (33%) name the right to assembly.
• Just over a quarter (28%) name freedom of the press.
• And less than 1 in 10 (9%) know the right to petition the government.

The article goes on to say:

Respondents were also asked, “If the president and Supreme Court differ on whether an action by the president is constitutional, who has the final responsibility for determining whether it is constitutional?”

Barely half (54%) of respondents correctly said the Supreme Court; 21% said Congress; 4% named the president while 21% said they didn’t know or were unsure.

Zachary Mettler, the writer of the Daily Citizen article, quotes from two out of our first four Presidents, stating:

James Madison, the architect of the Constitution, recognized the importance of civic knowledge. Madison wrote in an 1825 letter to George Thompson, “The advancement & diffusion of Knowledge … is the only Guardian of true liberty.”

Likewise, in his Farewell Address to the nation given on September 17, 1796, former President George Washington extolled the necessity of the public’s civic knowledge. He wrote:

Promote, then, as an object of primary importance, institutions ‘for the general diffusion of knowledge. In proportion as the structure of a government gives force to public opinion, it is essential that public opinion should be enlightened.

Mettler also notes:

Without knowledge of how our Constitution works, we cannot exercise our role in self-government in a prudent and wise way.

When it comes to educating the public in civic knowledge, as this year’s Constitution Day survey shows, there’s still much work to do.

I believe the U.S. Constitution to be an inspired document.  When you consider the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, which had essentially disintegrated until Benjamin Franklin called for prayer, I believe that you can see the hand of God manifested through hearts that were turned toward Him.  A piece on the Regent University website states: "One of the foremost constitutional theorists of the founding generation, John Adams, observed, 'Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious People. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.'”  It adds that, "Many of our Founders were men of faith or were influenced strongly by the Judeo-Christian tradition...They accepted the premise of mankind’s imperfect nature. They had experienced first-hand the oppressive dictates of Parliament and the Crown that led to the American Revolution. And they were rightly suspicious of the accumulation of governmental power by one person or a small body — 'the very definition of tyranny' according to Madison."

The website adds:

Consistent with these experiences and beliefs, the Founders imbued liberty-preserving principles into the very structure of the new government. They divided power between federal and state governments, apportioned federal power among three branches of government, and limited the power of the federal government to certain delegated functions. But the Founders also knew that these devices alone were inadequate to preserve and sustain our new nation.

It states, "Simply put, the Founders knew that government was downstream from culture. A virtuous people would courageously defend the rights endowed by their Creator and restored by the blood of patriots. But a fearful people would readily cede these rights in exchange for a fleeting sense of security."

That is a great analysis of our challenges today - when you have people who lack the virtue to live up to the ideals of the Constitution, then its effectiveness wanes.  You have people in America today that have been lured by godless socialism and reject the moral fortitude to live under this system.  When you have public officials that show disrespect to our Constitution, the fabric of our nation is torn.  But, the converse is true, which should give us hope.  In Christ and following the teachings of the Bible, we can become a more virtuous people.  But, we, the ambassadors for the Lord, are called to lead - by displaying the character that is consistent with Biblical ideals.  The Constitution does not create morality, that is a matter of the heart.  We can evaluate how well we are promoting the awareness of God in our nation.