Posted by
ValiantForTruth on Friday, September 24, 2010 2:07:55 PM
Bradford’s diary of Plymouth colony is an account of ordinary people who possessed extraordinary faith in their God. Often they doubted their own abilities, but never does Bradford allude to any instance where the Pilgrims doubted God’s commitment to them in His covenant promises to bless their labors through the tribulations they encountered.
They often read from Isaiah the prophet of the promise to the ‘offspring of Abraham’…
But you…the descendants of Abraham My friend,
You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth,
And called from its farthest regions,
And said to you,
‘ You are My servant,
I have chosen you and have not cast you away:
Fear not, for I am with you;
Be not dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you,
Yes, I will help you,
I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’ [Isaiah 41:8-10]
In context they rightly saw themselves as part of the New Covenant church and therefore the spiritual sons of Abraham and heirs according to the promises [Galatians 3:28-29].
Their belief in a sovereign and good God enabled them to persevere through the hardships of their first winter in New England. In the spring the English speaking Indian named Squanto came to their aid. Bradford considered him a gift from Heaven. The Pilgrims and Indians agreed to a treaty of peace and mutual assistance as follows…
- That neither he nor any of his should injure or hurt any of their people.
- That if any of his did hurt any of theirs, he should send the offender, that they might punish him.
- That if anything were taken away from any of theirs, he should cause it to be restored, and they should do like to his.
- If any did unjustly war against him, they would aid him; if any did war against them, he should aid them…
This compact was an extension of the Mayflower Compact and would remain intact for 50 years [from Benjamin Hart’s book Faith and Freedom].
So what shall we say of the covenants of men compared with the covenants of God? When men break their promises it shows again the depravity of human nature and the deceitfulness of sin. We are reminded why the everlasting covenant depends only on the finished work of Christ: the Lamb cannot fail to bring His elect to glory.
And what does it say of the accusers that define Christianity by the sins of the Christians? They do not know the depth of their own corruption nor the necessity of grace to overcome their own depravity. But as for us, we will praise God for His work in America among His people. The Law and the Gospel have gone forth and the kingdom of God has advanced and is advancing because the grace of God has come near. Christ has magnified His word among us [Psalm 138:1-3].
We will continue to remind men that grace alone has caused us to differ from the other nations, for in forgetting this we are becoming more and more like them.