Thanksgiving
And The Rest Of The Story
The first half of the
story came to the north; the rest of the story took place in the south. Both
halves had to do with the covenant.
The Pilgrims, who
celebrated the first thanksgiving in America, came in 1620 to be free from
tyranny. 44 Puritans calling themselves saints sailed from England with 66
others, whom the Puritans called the "Strangers."
An agreement was
worked out before landing, and they made a covenant called the Mayflower
Compact, that unified the two groups and named themselves the
"Pilgrims."
Freedom is not easy. Of
the 110 Pilgrims and crew, less that 50 survived the first winter. But God’s
providence brought an Indian named Squanto who spoke English that taught
the Pilgrims how to plant corn and other survival methods. As a slave he had
learned English. His importance to the Pilgrims was enormous and it can be said
that they would not have survived without his help. As a result, the harvest in
October was very successful and the Pilgrims found themselves with enough food
to put away for the winter.
The Pilgrim Governor
William Bradford proclaimed a day of thanksgiving to be shared by all the
colonists and the neighboring Native Americans.
The covenant of the Mayflower
Compact was the foundation for America’s blessing. According to Scripture, God
swears with an oath to bless those who keep the covenant and to equally curse
those who break it. God remembers the blessings of the covenant to a thousand
generations, but visits the iniquities of the fathers on the 3rd and
4th generation. For this reason America is still enjoying the
blessings in spite of our sins.
Liberty brings the
blessings of prosperity. Tyranny brings the curses of poverty. The key to
prosperous liberty is obedience to God’s covenant.
Now, the rest of the story: The
other key element to America’s freedom took place in Scotland 18 years later.
In 1638 Scotland made a national covenant with God. But 22 years after that it
was violated when the king of England made himself the head of the church and
seized the churches of Scotland. 400 Scottish Covenanters said, “No. Christ is
the head of the Church. We’ll preach in the fields. This freedom cost them
their incomes, their homes, and death for many. The penalty for preaching in
the fields was death. But as many as 14,000 would attend these field meetings.
After 20 years of
persecution only a small handful of field preachers remained. They were all
that remained of the Covenanters. One of them was a young schoolteacher called,
The Lion Of The Covenant, Richard Cameron. He went to Holland to be ordained by
some exiled Covenanters. After the three ministers laid hands on him and
prayed, two of them removed their hands, but Rev McWard’s hand stayed. He had
sort of a trance and found himself in the field in Scotland watching while they
beheaded Richard Cameron. Then he found himself transported to Edinburg where
he witnessed Cameron’s head on display. He reported this to the congregation.
So Richard Cameron
knowing what was in store for him, returned to Scotland and began to preach in
the fields. Two men who had opposed him came and asked his forgiveness. He
said, “I freely forgive you for what you did to me. But because of what you did
to God’s cause,” he said to one, “Your house will burn down.” To the other he
said, “You will be childless.” Both prophesies by this Presbyterian Covenanter
were fulfilled.
The Sanquhar
Declaration was the idea of our Declaration of Independence. A public
declaration for freedom had to be made. The Bible calls it, “The word of our
testimony.” Richard Cameron rode into the town of Sanquhar Scotland with 20
horsemen with a legal document written by his lawyer brother. They posted it in
the town square, read it out loud, and distributed copies throughout the town.
It declared the illegitimacy of the king of England on the grounds of his
tyranny. This precedent of the Declaration of Independence made him the most
wanted man in the British kingdom.
In one of his last
sermons he prophesied the genocide and ethnic cleansing that would take place
in the sinful highlands of Scotland. This was fulfilled 66 years later at the
Battle of Culloden. This battle brought a great migration of Scots to America.
That’s when my ancestors came. America became the Greater Scotland. There are
now 5 times more Scots in America than in Scotland. Country-Western music, Blue
Grass, and even Negro Spirituals came from Scotland. The Scots mixed with all
the other races in America and scholars say the culture became essentially
Scottish, especially in the South.
Cameron was convinced
that his blood would not be shed in vain. He knew it would bring liberty after
he was gone. Eight years later was the Glorious Revolution in England. Just
before he was killed, Richard Cameron said, “Do not be discouraged for you few
numbers. For when Jesus Christ comes to do His work in Scotland, He will not
lack volunteers.” The volunteers showed up in America 100 years later when
America’s War of Independence was raging.
America was losing
the war until it went south. The Scots then came down out the hills and ran the
British all the way to York Town and won liberty. Cameron’s Puritan hope came
true! Jesus Christ had come to do His work in the Greater Scotland and did not
lack volunteers.
That, my friends, is
the rest of the story of thanksgiving. The Pilgrims brought the covenant in the
North and the Scots completed it in the south.
Our fathers' God, to
thee, author of liberty, to thee we sing; long may our land be bright with
freedom's holy light; protect us by thy might, great God, our King.
