January 16, 2022

Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized:” Then Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”  Acts 8:36-37

After months in the American wilderness, Roger Williams at last found his way to the shores of Narragansett Bay. In establishing a colony there, he laid out the principle that “every man should have liberty to worship God according to the light of his own conscience.” The first American Baptist church was founded. Williams believed that, according to the Bible, baptism is for those who have decided of their own free will to follow Jesus. Rhode Island became a haven for those who were “distressed of conscience” to use the words of Williams. It grew and prospered, and its foundation of civil and religious liberty eventually came to be the cornerstone of the American Republic. The constitution was framed by men who recognized that man’s relationship to God is above human legislation, and inalienable are his rights of conscience.

God has built this into each person, and it is this very knowledge that sustained countless millions throughout Europe as they were cruelly put to death for worshiping God according to their consciences. Any form of coercion runs counter to the heart of the gospel message. The prevalent mindset in the early days of this country was one of thankfulness for freedom, accompanied by contentment to earn a bare subsistence, while patiently and frugally making slow but steady progress.

The Bible was held as the foundation of faith, the source of wisdom, and the charter of liberty. They endured privations of the wilderness, watering the tree of liberty with their tears, and with the sweat of their brow, till it took deep root in the land. Biblical principles were diligently taught in the home, in the school, and at church, the fruits of which were manifest in thrift, intelligence, purity, and temperance. A settler would go for years and never see a drunkard, hear foul language, or meet a beggar. It was demonstrated that the principles of the Bible are the surest safeguards of national greatness. The Great Controversy by E.G.White (p296)

“Show Me the tax money.” So they brought Him a denarius. And He said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” They said to Him, “Caesar’s.” And He said to them, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”