From Magna Carta to the abolition of slavery: the development of Britain's biblical laws.

Last week we looked at how the Gospel spread around Anglo-Saxon England and, independently, the Celtic fringes of Wales, Cornwall, Scotland and Ireland. We saw that Christianity was readily adopted by successive Anglo-Saxon kings, influencing their law codes and building into our developing nation early on a close relationship between Church and state. By the time of the Norman conquest, England could be viewed as one nation under God.

Over the next centuries, enormous battles proceeded as our political structures developed and matured. Major upheavals condensed around the introduction of checks and balances to the power of the monarchy, the development of Parliament and the judiciary; also the English Reformation and our departure from Roman Catholicism; also the fragmentation of British Protestantism thereafter.

This week, we look at how, through all this turbulence and complexity, our ‘unwritten’ constitution nevertheless came to reflect biblical principles and beliefs.

Six Centuries in Brief

Foundational to the British constitution and rule of law is Magna Carta (1215, confirmed as statute law 1297) - particularly its clauses guaranteeing freedom for the Church and the right to due legal process for all citizens. However, even though Magna Carta established in principle that the king was not above the law, it took several centuries to move Britain from the absolute rule of one sovereign (reliant on advisors and the support of regional landowners) to a Parliamentary democracy with checks and balances in place to hold both monarch and government accountable.

Although no political system is perfect, the fundamental idea of limiting the king’s power introduced a notable principle of humility into Britain’s governmental system, framed by the Christian belief that all men are answerable to God. During Henry III’s reign our first elected Parliament was convened (1265), starting the nation on a journey towards a representative democracy. Meanwhile, a parallel move away from autocracy also began within the Church, first with protest against Catholicism and then with dissent against the Church of England, and always with criticism of corrupt and unaccountable clergy.

Through six centuries of upheaval, our ‘unwritten’ constitution nevertheless came to reflect biblical beliefs and principles.

Several turbulent centuries of both international and internal conflict eventually culminated in the ‘Glorious Revolution’ of 1688, when the ascent of William and Mary to the throne led to a new Bill of Rights being introduced guaranteeing, not least, freedom of speech and free elections,¹ as well as a Toleration Act granting freedom of worship to Dissenters. Importantly, the Coronation Oath was also revised to include a promise before God to “maintain the laws of God and the true profession of the Gospel” – a promise still made by our current Queen, to which we believe the Lord holds her.

These were truly landmark moments in the history of Britain’s politics and her position before God. Though they did not rid the nation of violence, poverty and persecution, they undoubtedly laid the foundation for later outpourings of Christian belief and repentance, not least by ensuring key Gospel freedoms. Over the next two or three centuries, Britain saw mass revivals of religious fervour, from the grassroots right up to the uppermost echelons of society, led by evangelists both within and without the established Church.

It was these revivals which changed British culture sufficiently that a host of righteous laws could then be passed including the abolition of slavery, laws preventing child labour and cruelty to animals, and laws promoting family values and protecting the vulnerable, all of which were added to the statute books in the 19^th Century.

Reflections

There are many ways of analysing the developments outlined above, which were in reality far more complex than my brief summary permits. Here, I want to highlight two ways in which the Bible was brought to bear on Britain’s political system and thence its people - by force and by free will – and to ask where God was in all of this.

Faith by Force

The explosion of the Reformation in Europe under Luther galvanised pressure for Church reform across the British Isles. However, Protestantism’s top-down, politicised introduction to England through Henry VIII’s notorious split from Rome in 1534 over the matter of his marriages, did not reflect popular critiques of Catholicism but rather political wrangling, and led to several decades of violent conflict, persecution, execution, revolt and exile. Ambition and power play combined with varying levels of piety and zeal in the persons of several different rulers, passing England back and forth between the two branches of Christianity.

The 16^th-17^th Centuries were marked by attempts to enforce either Catholic or Protestant belief and practice on the general public. Under Elizabeth I’s God-given lengthy reign, Protestantism finally triumphed and was firmly embedded into our national consciousness, but in the process, dissent and genuine calls for reform of the Church of England were outlawed and punished.

Charles I’s attempts to force English Anglicanism on Presbyterian Scotland prompted numerous military conflicts and fuelled the English Civil Wars. Cromwell’s ascent to power led to Puritanical standards being imposed - albeit probably in good conscience, but without long-lasting success.

Landmark constitutional freedoms combined with popular revivals to transform the fabric of British culture, such that a host of righteous laws could then be passed.

Then, following the restoration of the monarchy in the 1660s and the return of traditional Anglicanism, dissent was once again stifled through a series of laws known as the Clarendon Code, together with the infamous Test Act. Dissenters (later known as non-conformists) may have been allowed freedom to worship, but they were barred from holding public office or attending Oxbridge. Unofficial small group meetings were also banned.² Thousands of non-conformist clergy resigned and nearly two centuries of discrimination against Dissenters ensued.

Faith by Free Will

These centuries teach us, amongst other things, that the top-down enforcement of any kind of religious practice by the state cannot change men’s hearts. God has given mankind a measure of free will and the Gospel was ordained to spread by the preaching and hearing of the word, not by violence and coercion. Nevertheless, true faith was alive and well during those centuries and the Lord did not reject entirely the zeal of our rulers, nor did he abandon our island to tyranny. Instead, in ways we cannot fully comprehend, he worked in the midst of the upheaval and conflict.

John Wesley, preaching outside the church walls. See Photo Credits.He did this, vitally, through successive generations of individuals and groups who were raised up, often from the grassroots, to campaign for repentance, reform and a return to the plain truths of Scripture. Through all the ups and downs of Britain’s history, as soon as any one form of the faith became codified and ‘established’, particularly in the sense of outward displays of religiosity not reflective of genuine inner transformation, the Lord raised up prophetic servants to hold the establishment to account.

From Wycliffe’s outspoken criticism of Catholicism (mentioned last week) through Puritanism in Tudor England to non-conformist movements of the 18^th and 19^th Centuries, it has been the faithful living and witness of ordinary Christians, often in the face of significant persecution, that has born lasting spiritual fruit in our nation and gradually steered our parliamentary and judicial systems in a godly direction.³

For example, I have already mentioned that the 19^th Century saw a host of righteous laws added to our statute books, such as those campaigned for by the Clapham Sect (including, most famously, the abolition of slavery). These laws were the culmination of decades of faithful campaigning but they also owed significant debts to a general evangelical revival throughout Britain that, in the space of a generation, completely transformed its socio-cultural fabric (more on this next week). The Lord had raised up John and Charles Wesley and George Whitefield outside of the institutional Church, and inside vocal evangelicals such as Charles Simeon, Henry Ryder and JC Ryle, to thunder Gospel truths from their pulpits and in the highways and byways, saving and inspiring millions. Their faithful service laid the cultural foundation for laws which in turn blessed a countless number.

It has been the faithful witness of ordinary Christians, often in the face of significant persecution, that has born lasting spiritual fruit in our nation and gradually steered our parliamentary and judicial systems in a godly direction.

Blessing Through Struggle

Arguably, Britain has been the more blessed for having a professing Christian monarchy and government over the years, even though this has also brought bloodshed and sorrow and has been shaped by the vagaries of political necessity as much as genuine belief. However, although the development of Godly laws in our nation and the general acceptance of biblical principles into our culture are due in part to this overarching system, they are just as much if not more due to successive generations of faithful ordinary believers, raised up by the Lord as prophets to the nation, calling people to account and crying for justice in the streets and in the pulpits.

It is God’s faithfulness to Britain that the failings of our professing Christian establishment have always galvanised passionate believers to pray, speak and work for change, for his glory. We cannot forget, especially today, that our godly heritage developed as the Lord blessed the struggle and sacrifice of many believers over long centuries of difficulty, which forced people to think seriously about what they believed and what they were willing to live and die for.

In biblical terms, Britain has taken after Jacob/Israel, wrestling long and hard to receive the blessing of a God-given identity. And by God’s grace, the result of this struggle by the 19^th Century was a degree of individual freedom and popular religious fervour which, combined with Britain’s imperial might, led to the Gospel being taken to virtually the whole world.

Next week: How God blessed Britain through successive revivals.

Notes

1 The 1689 Bill of Rights is credited with inspiring and influencing the US Constitution and Bill of Rights in the 18^th Century.

2 Similar penal laws were introduced to Ireland in 1695, mainly affecting Catholics, who were not emancipated until 1829.

3 These dissenting groups have always been split between those seeking to reform the establishment from within and those seeking to work outside of it. History seems to confirm that both strands are needed.

Passion for the Gospel must be our motive in spiritual warfare.

My recent visit to the birthplace of the Welsh Revival has prompted me to add a third reflection on that great movement – with particular reference to the ministry of Rees Howells, whose biography I have recently rediscovered; a veritable treasure half-hidden on our bookshelves.¹

Rees was a product of the 1904 revival whose influence spread across the globe, but is perhaps best remembered for the intercessions he led during World War II which, in the opinion of many, probably did more for Allied victory than any amount of military firepower.

But when Rees and his Bible College students fought the great battles of the war on their knees, it wasn’t just for our freedom. Their prime motivation was to clear obstacles to the preaching of the Gospel, because Hitler’s regime blocked the path to fulfilling Christ’s Great Commission.

Not only was the Nazis’ atheistic ideology the very antithesis of Christianity, but the upheaval of ongoing war would continue to distract people everywhere from a consideration of their soul’s destiny.

Clear Scriptural Goal

And because the Swansea college’s chief concern was for the Gospel, they were also greatly burdened for the Jewish people, who were under threat of genocide. After all, the gospel is “to the Jew first…” (Rom 1:16). And if the Jews were destroyed, they could never be restored to their ancient land as the prophets had predicted, and Jesus could not return, for the Bible clearly states that the Jews must be back in the Holy Land before this happens (see Zech 12-14).

Rees and his students fought the great battles of the war on their knees – not just for our freedom, but to clear obstacles to the preaching of the Gospel.

The college company, however, knew what must take place (it is so important that Christians are familiar with scriptural prophecy) and thus had confidence to pray for victory as the Holy Spirit led them.

Their prayers during the Battle of Britain, for example, were informed by a very clear scriptural goal: “Every creature is to hear the gospel; Palestine is to be regained by the Jews; and the Saviour is to return.”²

An illustration of the influence of the Welsh Revival on the United Kingdom is among exhibits at the Moriah Chapel, the church where it all began in October 1904. Photo: Linda GardnerLaying Their Lives Down

Time and again the German forces were on the point of winning crucial battles when, quite inexplicably, the tide suddenly turned – and the only reasonable explanation was that God must have intervened miraculously in response to prayer.

These Bible students were laying down their lives as much as those young men at the front. From the time of Dunkirk, through the rest of the war years, the entire college (about 100 strong) prayed every evening from 7 o’clock to midnight, with only a brief interval for supper, in addition to an hour-long prayer meeting every morning, and very often at midday.

Passionate Young People

I have already mentioned how the Welsh Revival was ignited (humanly speaking) by passionate young people determined for God to come down and use them as his instruments.

Tragically, few of the UK’s young generation have even heard the Gospel, but among the few are outstanding men and women whom God has already touched, and the mantle is falling on them to usher in a new era of radical Christianity, filling the vacuum created by the hopeless, lifeless and meaningless ideologies of secular-humanism.

Will they be up for the task? Remember Gideon, who only needed 300 men to defeat the enemy, and young David – the anointed ancestor of Messiah Jesus – who required just a single well-aimed stone to slay an intimidating giant. I have met, come to know and even work with some passionate young people who are up for the fight.

These Bible students were laying down their lives as much as those young men at the front.

Just as the 1939-45 battles were fought chiefly by young men, so must the spiritual warfare for our nation be fought in the main by millennials.

If we are to pray for nations, we must first have the kind of passion for individual souls that Rees possessed in bucket-loads; he would fast and pray for a tramp, or drunkard, or village trouble-maker until he had gained victory – however long it took. He also learned to walk by faith for every move he made, refusing to make his financial needs known, trusting God for every penny. In the case of the Bible College, he began with just two shillings and saw God send him £125,000 (the equivalent of millions in today’s money) over the next 14 years.

In 1915 he and his wife Elizabeth went out to Africa as missionaries and witnessed marvellous revivals, accompanied by extraordinary healings, blazing a trail for a future student, Reinhard Bonnke, who would see millions drawn into the kingdom through his huge rallies across the continent.

Even the Queen of Swaziland came to faith. Rees reported: “I told her that God had one Son, and he gave him to die for us; and we had one son, and had left him to tell the people of Africa about God. She was very much affected by hearing that my wife and I loved her people more than we loved our own son.”³

The Bible says: “Anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me” (Matt 10:37). It’s that sort of commitment to which we are called.

Same Battles Today

Some of the issues that burdened the intercessors at Swansea are very similar to those we are faced with today. Anti-Semitism is once again raising its ugly head all over the planet, though no longer led by Nazis but by an unholy alliance between the hard left and fanatical Islamists. Are we going to let these tyrannical groups complete what Hitler failed ultimately to achieve – the destruction of the Jewish race and of civilisation as we know it?

Those wartime intercessors prayed Israel back into their own land, where they would be safe. But now the 70-year-old Jewish state is surrounded by implacable enemies bent on their annihilation. And even in Britain their future is threatened as a potential Prime Minister is apparently unable to deal with anti-Jewish sentiment in his party.

If we are to pray for nations, we must first have a burning passion for individual souls.

How can we forget? We hold Holocaust Memorials every year so successive generations will learn from history, but it cuts no ice with God-haters. The reason they despise the Jews is because they reject the God who has chosen them as the apple of his eye. He is, after all, the God of Israel, whom we Christians also worship. He wrote the Law on how to live – summed up in the Ten Commandments – at Mt Sinai. But the brave new world has replaced it with an ideology that makes our genes responsible for bad behaviour.

We are no longer categorised as either male or female, but there are now some 70 other ways to identify our gender – all of which makes Alice in Wonderland sound positively sane. No wonder we are faced with a shattering breakdown of family life along with a vicious attack on the sanctity of life and sexual morality.

But the word of God teaches that we are born sinners whose natural tendency to rebel needs dealing with. This was achieved by Jesus on the Cross, where he took the full punishment for our sins, paying for it with his blood. God’s own precious Son chose to die in our place so that we would not perish, but inherit eternal life.

The devil tries every trick to prevent us from acknowledging our deep need of life, love, hope and peace which can only be found at the Cross.

Sharpening Our Vision

When, as a Church and nation, we recover a passion for the Gospel as the only means of mending our broken society and restoring truth and righteousness to our once great country, then I’m sure revival will follow.

Most Western Christians have only a blurred vision of what the Gospel stands for, but our focus must be sharpened to the point where we are prepared to lay our lives on the altar for its truth, and for the freedom to proclaim it on our streets, in our prisons, in our churches, and in our schools and universities.

With such a sharpened vision, we will also gain a fresh understanding of God’s great end-time purpose for the Jews and be better prepared for the return of our Lord to this troubled world. Come, Lord Jesus!

Notes

1 I am indebted to Rees Howells, Intercessor by Norman Grubb (published by Lutterworth Press) for much of the background to this article.

2 Quoting the prayer journal entry for 14 September, 1940.

3 Samuel was brought up by Rees’s uncle and aunt, and later succeeded his father as Bible College Director.

Moral decadence and cowardice…or demonically inspired madness.

Ely Cathedral proclaims solidarity with the LGBT community and flies the rainbow flag at the city’s first ever Gay Pride Parade¹: yet more evidence, if any were needed, of the Church of England’s growing celebration of apostasy.

Let us be clear, the Bible unequivocally prohibits any and all behaviours identified as sexual sin, which includes fornication, adultery, homosexuality and incest – in fact anything outside marriage between one man and one woman for life. It also clearly states that in the beginning God created Adam. Then, because there wasn’t any fit helper or companion that could be found for the man, and he was lonely, God took one of his ribs and made a ‘woman’.

So from the beginning the man and the woman were a part of each other. They were ‘bone of bone’ and ‘flesh of flesh’, and together they ‘completed’ each other. God’s command and gift to them was to live with each other in lifelong and exclusive union, so that they might support each other, and together care for any children they might have.

That’s the template for humanity and the way we are made – not as gender-neutral beings who can choose for ourselves if we want to identify as men, women, or anything in between, but as biological beings with clear identifying characteristics based on our sex at birth.

The template for humanity, the way we are made, is not as gender-neutral beings who can choose for ourselves how to identify, but as biological beings with clear identities from birth.

Of course this isn’t to say that on occasion things don’t go wrong: sadly, a very few babies are born with ambiguous genitalia, just as others are born with life-threatening conditions or disability – and when that happens, all alike need help. But the starting point is that we are created male or female – it’s in our DNA - and we are designed to live in lifelong, exclusive ‘relationship’ with someone of the opposite sex. For the Church, in its wisdom, to hold or maintain anything that deviates from this fundamental order is a denial of Christian faith, and apostasy.

Assault Now Permitted

At a similar event to that in Ely, earlier this summer in Bournemouth an elderly gentleman was physically assaulted by a gang of LGBT thugs, for daring to say homosexuality was a sin prohibited in the Bible. You’d think on the basis of age alone such bully-boy tactics would have provoked public outrage and calls for punishment of the offenders. But no! Apparently in 21^st Century Britain, ‘hate crime’ goes only one way, so that if you’re gay, lesbian or trans-gender, you can say and do whatever you want.

Is this really what democracy has become? Where free speech is permitted only for those who follow current – and, by definition, transitory - cultural norms? And is this why the Church has buckled? Is it afraid? Or has it been infiltrated and taken over by the self-serving and/or deliberately malign?

When the Church loses its voice, the rot in society spreads, and the weak and voiceless become increasingly vulnerable to abuse. Now, on the coat tails of adult licence, it is becoming mandatory that children as young as four be inculcated with this sexually damaging ideology that flies in the face of biology and refutes science. At the very least, teaching a child of four that it’s up to them to choose their gender is deeply confusing; at worst it is pure and simple exploitation, prioritising justification for adult behaviours over child welfare. But subsequently teaching children the finer details of anal and oral sex, without mention of the attendant, but well-established, physical risks and harms, is criminal.

The unhappy truth is that we are breeding a damaged generation, caught in the slime of moral degeneracy, and for whom sex in all its forms has become the be-all and end-all of life, with paedophilia and abuse flourishing for the simple reason it is very hard any longer to say ‘no’.

When the Church loses its voice, the rot in society spreads and the weak and voiceless become increasingly vulnerable to abuse.

Enough!

No matter what LGBT and transgender activists would have us believe, sin is not a variable concept subject to cultural change that can be redefined at whim. And God has not become more sophisticated in the two thousand years since his Son walked the Earth calling people to repentance. Nor has he changed his mind about what is and isn’t acceptable behaviour.

The bottom line is, either God is a figment of mankind’s collective and fevered imagination - in which case nothing said in the Bible matters a jot. Or he really is the Supreme Being and Creator of all, and the moral precepts in Scripture stand, in which case we need to get a bit of backbone and defend the faith for which Christ died.

It is not possible to compromise with sin. A little bit of pre-marital sex or adultery isn’t okay, no matter what we teach children today about their sexual rights. Anal sex isn’t ‘normal’. Destroying innocent life before birth because the mother doesn’t ‘feel ready’ is not a woman’s inalienable human right. And self-identifying as a surgically changed man or woman, with a lifetime ahead on drugs, is not fulfilment: it’s mutilation.

As the battle for the soul of our nation grows, the devil still prowls around like a wolf, seeking those he can devour. He is becoming worryingly successful. It is time for the Church and ‘ordinary’ Christians alike to stand up for and defend our faith.

First published on the Voice for Justice UK blog, 21 August 2018. Rev Lynda Rose is Director of VfJUK. 

References

1 See coverage here.