Luck Or Providence? (d)

By Author: Terry Dashner
Total Articles: 105
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Luck or Providence? (D)

Terry Dashner..Faith Fellowship Church PO Box 1586 Broken Arrow, OK 74013

May I share several more significant historical events that didn't just happen by luck. I believe that the hand of Providence was behind them to serve God's purpose. Let me start with Charles Martel the grandfather of Charlemagne.

Charles Martel (Charles the Hammer) defeated the Spanish Muslims at the Battle of Tours in 732-733 AD. His grandson, Charlemagne would later be crowned Emperor of the Romans by Pope Leo III (751-816 AD) on Christmas Day 800 AD. Thus, the Western Roman Empire, which had not existed for 325 years, was back in business, this time as the Holy Roman Empire. Had not Charles Martel defeated the Spanish Muslims at the Battle of Tours, there would have been no revived Roman Empire in 800 AD. As a matter of fact, the West would have been dominated by Islam, and Christianity would have had little impact on Western culture. Was God behind this balance of power? I believe so. But, then again, I believe that God rules as Sovereign over the affairs of men.

As recent as the ...
... 20th century dictators have tried to invade England by force, Hitler being the most recent one. He failed. Napoleon tried but met his Waterloo. The last invading force which succeeded was led by William of Normandy (1027-1087 AD). William gathered an army of Normans and Frenchmen, crossed the English Channel from Normandy and invaded England. King Harold II (1027-1066 AD) met William on October 14, 1066, at the Battle of Hastings.

Says author Bill Yenne in his book entitled, 100 Events that Shaped World History (Bluewood Books 1993), With the Norman conquest, England was opened to the influences of European art and literature. Although England retained its English language, it filtered and adopted the best that Europe had to offer. It was this basic building block of English civilization which would in turn create and define that of North America.

From mighty England came the greatest polity of law since the Decalogue of Moses—The Magna Carta. The original Charter was a 63-part compendium of rights granted to free men. The Magna Carta is still recognized as the foundation of the English legal system, and indeed for the legal systems in many parts of the world—including North America. It stipulated numerous rights which protected the individual, including the right to a jury trial, that punishment should fit the crime and that taxes should be based on fairness and proportion. However, the most important, lasting accomplishment of the Magna Carta was that it made sure the king was no longer above the law but would be held accountable to the laws and customs of the land just like any other citizen (Yenne p.34).

The underlying principle of the Magna Carta is what is known as habeas corpus, which in Latin means, you shall have the body. To us who are guarded by habeas corpus it means that a person can not be held in jail or against his will without evidence of wrongdoing. This is the crux of United States criminal law. It is powerful. It is just. It came by the hand of Providence, no doubt, because God is all about justice.

In 1679 English Parliament compelled Charles II to accept habeas corpus as a specific statute. The king was not above the law. Today, the legal systems of most of the world's democratic nations support the principle of habeas corpus. The Constitution of the United States declares that the ‘privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless, when in cases of rebellion or invasion, the public safety may require it.' The privilege was suspended by President Lincoln during the Civil WarHabeas corpus is one of the most fundamental principles of the criminal justice system. It guides the actions of police and prosecutors, even though usually it is not specifically invoked (Yenne p. 45).

By the way, the Magna Carta reflects the Law of God. Any stable and lasting law of civilizations does. America would do well to acknowledge her chief law, the U.S. Constitution, subject to only one Law—the Law of God. Keep the faith. Stay the course. Jesus is coming soon. Pastor T.dash.


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