Kerby Anderson
Today is the 4th of July, and I thought I would take a moment to talk about the origin of the ideas in the Declaration of Independence. Thomas Jefferson said that many of the ideas in the Declaration came from John Locke. Jefferson also gave credit to the writer Algernon Sidney, who in turn cites most prominently Aristotle, Plato, Roman republican writers, and the Old Testament.
Legal scholar Gary Amos argues that Locke’s Two Treatises on Government is simply Samuel Rutherford’s Lex Rex in a popularized form. Amos says in his book Defending the Declaration “that the ‘law of nature’ is God’s general revelation of law in creation, which God also supernaturally writes on the hearts of men.”
This foundation helps explain the tempered nature of the American Revolution. The Declaration of Independence was a bold document, but not a radical one. The colonists did not break with England for “light and transient causes.” They were mindful that Romans 13 says they should be “in subjection to the governing authorities” which “are established by God.” Yet when they suffered from a “long train of abuses and usurpations,” they argued that “it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute a new government.”
Jefferson also drew from George Mason’s Declaration of Rights (published on June 6, 1776). The first paragraph states that “all men are born equally free and independent and have certain inherent natural Rights; among which are the Enjoyment of Life and Liberty, with the Means of Acquiring and possessing property, and pursuing and obtaining Happiness and Safety.”
The Declaration of Independence is more than 200 years old. It was a monumental document at the time. Even today its words ring with truth and inspire new generations.

Kerby Anderson
Tomorrow is the 4th of July, when we celebrate the signing of the Declaration of Independence. For many Americans it is merely a summer holiday that we celebrate with fireworks and parades.
Tomorrow I will talk about the history of the Declaration and its significance to us in America. Today, let’s ask some questions that arise from the foundational principles found in the Declaration of Independence.
A key phrase in the Declaration is the claim that: “We hold these truths to be self-evident.” But do we really believe that phrase? Do we believe there are truths in a culture awash in post-modernism? We don’t seem to believe there is anything like absolute truth. Truth for most Americans is personal and relative.
What about the idea that these truths are self-evident? That assumes we believe in natural law at the very least, or perhaps more significantly, that we believe in biblical principles behind our laws. Is that an accurate assessment of what Americans believe in the 21st century? Do we believe that human reason and experience can be our guide as we pass laws and implement them in society?
The Declaration also says that we are “endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights.” Do we still believe in the Creator? Do we still believe that rights exist because we are created in God’s image? Or do we believe that government creates rights?
The Declaration rests upon the “Laws of nature and of Nature’s God.” The laws of nature are general revelation in creation and human conscience. The laws of nature’s God are revelation found in the Bible. Do we still believe in revelation?
These are important questions we must ask ourselves, and they illustrate why a biblical perspective is crucial to the future of this republic.