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I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day
By Jay Rogers
Published December 15, 2020
The following is an excerpt from the script of a video to be produced in the future, Christ’s Victorious Kingdom: Postmillinnialism Rediscovered. Some of the following has been edited from the writings of my friends, Bob and Rose Weiner.
The Immeasurable Power of the Gospel
I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet the words repeat
Of peace on earth, good will to men.And in despair I bowed my head,
“There is no peace on earth,” I said,
“For hate is strong and mocks the song
Of peace on earth, goodwill to men.”Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth he sleep,
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth good will to men.”— Henry Wadsworth Longfellow,
“I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day,” December 25th, 1864
The U.S. Civil War was still raging when Longfellow wrote these words. Over 600,000 died, more than half due to disease and primitive medical care. He had just received news that his son, Charles Appleton Longfellow, had suffered crippling wounds as a soldier in battle. Just two years earlier, he had lost his wife to an accident with fire. Sitting down at his desk that Christmas Day, he heard church bells ringing. It was in this setting that Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, a committed Christian, wrote these lines.
Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
“God is not dead, nor doth he sleep,
The wrong shall fail, the right prevail
With peace on earth good will to men.”
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, 1868
While it might have looked as though the apocalypse was at the doorstep of his nation, Longfellow quoted scripture and persisted in what was known in early America as the “Puritan Hope” – that the Gospel was strong enough, not only to convert souls, but also to transform the nations bringing “peace on earth.”
The historic belief of the Church that the Gospel is destined to overcome all opposition is totally opposite of the ideas of the end-times that have been propagated throughout evangelical Christendom over the last century. The presence of evil in the world and sin in our nation has been viewed by modern Christians as an indication that civilization is crumbling, and that we Christians on that “sinking ship” should spend as much time as possible trying to rescue as many of the passengers as we can. This has resulted in an escape-orientated Christianity rather than dominion-oriented Christianity.
As David Chilton wrote in Paradise Restored:
Regardless of their numerous individual differences, the various defeatist schools of thought are solidly lined up together on one major point: The gospel of Jesus Christ will fail. Christianity will not be successful in its worldwide task. Christ’s Great Commission to disciple the nations will not be carried out. Satan and the forces of Antichrist will prevail. Jesus returns at the last moment, like the cavalry in B-grade westerns, to rescue the ragged little band of survivors.
As a result of almost a century of this type of teaching, the Church has lost many major battles to the enemy. The Gospel is just as powerful today as it was in the days of the Reformation and the two Great Awakenings in America. It is not the Gospel that has changed; it is the orientation of the Christian that has made the difference.
Therefore, some questions we ought ask ourselves.
Do I have an eschatology of defeat or an eschatology of victory?
Do I see the devil running the world and getting more and more powerful all the time?
Do I see the ministry of the church as mainly that of a rescue mission, with no other lasting effect in the world other than saving a few individuals from hell?
Is my message for the “last days” simply: “Antichrist is coming, run to the wilderness”?
- or -
Does the Gospel center on a powerful vision that sees Christianity becoming victorious throughout the entire world before the second coming of Christ?
Such a worldview was completely foreign to many of the great Christian scholars of past centuries. On the contrary, the view of the Church in history was held by such godly and respected men as throughout history, such as, Athanasius, Augustine, Eusebius, John Calvin, John Owen, Jonathan Edwards, Charles Hodge, Robert L. Dabney and Benjamin Warfield to name just a few.
This ought to tell us that the postmillennial worldview is well worth considering.
Publications
- The Forerunner: America's campus newspaper
- The Forerunner Weblog: Archived blog articles by category
- The Boston Awakening: It's time for another Great Awakening!
- Predvestnik: Articles translated from the Russian language Forerunner
- Russian Predvestnik: Russian Forerunner (in Russian!)
- The Mandate: China's Christian newspaper
- El Campeón: Spanish Champion (in Spanish!)
- Pakistani Forerunner: Articles on Christian foundations in Urdu!
- Turkish Forerunner: Apologetics for Christians in Turkey!
- The Champion: Proclaiming the Crown Rights of King Jesus!
- The Puritan Storm: A chronicle of the neo-Puritan revival
- Chalcedon Report: Articles from the magazine by staff and friends
Books
- Why Creeds and Confessions? Foundations in Biblical Orthodoxy
- The Four Keys to the Millennium: Foundations in Biblical Eschatology
- In The Days of These Kings: The Book of Daniel in Preterist Perspective
DVDs & Online Videos
- The Abortion Matrix: Ending Child Sacrifice and the Culture of Death
- The Real Jesus: A Defense of the Historicity and Divinity of Christ
- God's Law and Society: Now includes a free Study Guide!
- The Beast of Revelation: Identified: Ken Gentry's powerful teaching
- Abortion Clinic 911 Calls: Exposing the Dangers of Abortion to Women
- Amazing Grace: The History and Theology of Calvinism
- A Revival Account Asbury 1970: What is true Revival?
- Massacre of Innocence: The Occult Roots of Abortion
- World Changers: A Blueprint for Revival and Reformation
- Jesus Christ: Lord of All of Life! 1998 Reconstruction Conference
- U.S. Taxpayers Party: 1997 National Committee meeting
Pro-Life Ministry
- Melbourne's Abortion Industry: Exposing the evil of abortion
- Florida's Abortion Industry: Exposing the unfrutiful deeds of darkness
- Abortion Wars: An open letter to the pro-life community
- Pro-life Videos: Streaming videos about pro-life activism
- Pro-life Florida: Pro-life resources for the state of Florida
- Personhood Florida: Constitutional Personhood for all human beings
- Personhood USA: Protecting the pre-born by love and by law
- Life Coalition International: Reports from pro-life missionaries
- The Counselor Corps: Pro-life health referral counselors
Civil Government
- Theonomy FAQ: Frequently asked questions on theonomy
- Theonomy Debate: Is theonomy exegetically sound?
- Pass The Word: Political cartoons and articles
- Second American Revolution: Clips from God's Law and Society
- The Christian Statesman: Christian publication founded in 1864
The Hall of Church History
- Creeds and Confessions: Patristic Creeds and Reformed Confessions
- Church Fathers: Writings of the Ante-Nicene Fathers
The Beast of Revelation: Identified (DVD)
Who is the dreaded beast of Revelation?
Now at last, a plausible candidate for this personification of evil incarnate has been identified (or re-identified). Ken Gentry’s insightful analysis of scripture and history is likely to revolutionize your understanding of the book of Revelation — and even more importantly — amplify and energize your entire Christian worldview!
Historical footage and other graphics are used to illustrate the lecture Dr. Gentry presented at the 1999 Ligonier Conference in Orlando, Florida. It is followed by a one-hour question and answer session addressing the key concerns and objections typically raised in response to his position. This presentation also features an introduction that touches on not only the confusion and controversy surrounding this issue — but just why it may well be one of the most significant issues facing the Church today.
Ideal for group meetings, personal Bible study — for anyone who wants to understand the historical context of John’s famous letter “… to the seven churches which are in Asia.” (Revelation 1:4)
Running Time: 145 minutes
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Frank Schaeffer Will You Please Shut Up! (Book)
High Quality Paperback — 200 pages
A Reasonable Response to Christian Postmodernism
Includes a response to the book Christian Jihad by Colonel V. Doner
The title of this book is a misnomer. In reality, I am not trying to get anyone to shut up, but rather to provoke a discussion. This book is a warning about the philosophy of “Christian postmodernism” and the threat that it poses not only to Christian orthodoxy, but to the peace and prosperity our culture as well. The purpose is to equip the reader with some basic principles that can be used to refute their arguments.
Part 1 is a response to some of the recent writings by Frank Schaeffer, the son of the late Francis Schaeffer. This was originally written as a defense against Frank’s attacks on pro-life street activism – a movement that his father helped bring into being through his books, A Christian Manifesto, How Should We Then Live? and Whatever Happened to the Human Race? These works have impacted literally hundreds of thousands of Christian activists.
Part 2 is a response to Colonel Doner and his book, Christian Jihad: Neo-Fundamentalists and the Polarization of America. Doner was one of the key architects of the Christian Right that emerged in the 1980s, who now represents the disillusionment and defection many Christian activists experienced in the 1990s and 2000s. There is still great hope for America to be reformed according to biblical principles. As a new generation is emerging, it is important to recognize the mistakes that Christian activists have made in the past even while holding to a vision for the future.
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Abortion Clinic 911 Calls (DVD)
Exposes the Dangers of Abortion to Women!
These shocking eyewitness accounts expose the dangers of abortion not only to unborn children, but to the health and lives women as well. An antidote to the smokescreens of the liberal media, these short clips show what really happens in and around abortion clinics.
Although the content is emotionally gut-wrenching, these videos have been used in church seminars and small groups to educate Christians on the abortion issue and to lead people toward a pro-life position. Contains 2 hours and 40 minutes of materials that can be shown separately.
Watch these pro-life videos on-line.
“These videos helped change my mind from pro-choice to pro-life. Your videos are what did it for me. I will be walking in next year’s March For Life in San Francisco.” — A. Jackson, California
“I was going to have an abortion until I saw your video. Praise Jesus!”
— M. Drew, YouTube Commenter
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Dr. Francis Schaeffer - How Should We Then Live? (DVD)
Special Two-Disc Set!
After 40 years of intense study and world-wide ministry, Dr. Francis Schaeffer completed his crowning work of scholarship – to present profound truths in simple film language. Dr. Schaeffer’s brilliant analysis of the past and predictions for current trends have proven so uncannily accurate that this amazing series still feels contemporary almost three decades after its initial release. Ultimately, Schaeffer concludes that man’s only hope is a return to God’s Biblical absolute, the truth revealed in Christ through the Scriptures.
Available for the first time on DVD, this documentary spectacular also includes intimate in-depth conversations with Francis and Edith Schaeffer. With the on-disc study guide, this presentation forms a unique course of comprehensive study. While this series forms an innovative analysis of the past, this outstanding work is more than history. Each episode focuses on a significant era, yet speaks clearly to 21st-century man with answers for modern problems.
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