Benjamin Franklin’s “Faith”

I have seen the following quote online, credited to Benjamin Franklin:

“Here is my Creed. I believe in one God, the Creator of the Universe. That He governs it by His Providence. That He ought to be worshipped.”

I have heard a lot of conflicting things about Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790). So, I put a question mark by the quote. Would he have said that? Well, he did – or rather wrote it. These are the words of Franklin. However, the brief extracted quote above sounds more “orthodox” Christian than Franklin actually was. The context brings out more of the “faith” or “religion” associated with Franklin. He follows this statement above in saying “That the most acceptable service we render to Him is in doing good to His other children.” He goes further to address man being judged by his good works, that the religion of Jesus is “the best the World ever saw,” but that he has “some Doubts as to his Divinity, tho’ it is a Question I do not dogmatise upon.” Nevertheless, Franklin saw “no harm however in its [Jesus’ Divinity] being believed,” as long as that belief resulted in the good consequences.

I suppose the whole is a good summary of what Benjamin Franklin believed – and that is what Franklin intended it to be. He did not hold biblical Christianity, though he considered it to be generally a good thing.

The statements are made in a letter from Franklin to U.S. educator and theologian Ezra Stiles, dated March 9, 1790, written a little over a month before his demise.

Speaking God's Grace

Excerpts from “Christians Speak of God’s Grace, Not of Their Works” by Daniel E. Parks, October 30, 2016

Paul the apostle exhorts Christians “Let your speech always be with grace …” (Colossians  4:6)...some professing Christians speak otherwise, as though saying “My speech will be of my works.” 

• Some say “I found the Lord.”  Others say “I was lost, but the Lord found me” (Luke 15:3-6; Luke 19:10).
• Some say “I accepted Christ.”  Others say “Christ accepted me, and then drew me to Himself” (Ephesians 1:6; Jeremiah 31:3).
• Some say “I let Jesus come into my heart.”  Others say “God removed my old stony heart, and replaced it with a new and living heart, and then occupied it as its ruler” (Ezekiel 36:26ff).
• Some say “I was saved because I chose the Lord.”  Others say “I was saved because the Lord chose me” (2 Thessalonians 2:13f).
• Some say “I made Jesus my personal Savior.”  Others say “God made Jesus to be the Savior of His people, and Jesus gave to them repentance and forgiveness of sins” (Acts 5:31).
• Some say “Let me tell you what I have done for God.”  Others say “Behold what Jesus has done for me!” (Luke 8:39; Mark 5:19ff).
• Many at the Final Judgment will say “Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?” – but Jesus will reply “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'” (Matthew 7:22f).  Others say “I hope to hear Jesus say to me at that day, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world’” (Matthew 25:34).

Tis my desire

Tis my desire with God to walk,
And with His children pray and talk;
Although I persecuted be
Yet Jesus suffered so for me.

Tis my desire above the rest
To lean my head on Jesus' breast;
To be baptized, like Christ, my King
And yield to Him in everything.

Tis my desire, around the board
To meet Thy saints, my dearest Lord;
In union with Thy saints to be,
And oft commune with them and Thee.

Tis my desire His saints to meet,
To wash the dear disciples' feet;
And serve them, as my dearest Lord
Has taught me in His blessed Word.

From A New and Choice Selection of Hymns and Spiritual Songs for the Use of the Regular Baptist church, and all lovers of song, 17th edition by Elder E(rasmus) D. Thomas, pastor of the Regular Baptist Church, Danville, Ind. No. 546 (pp. 498-499)

The first two lines were used by B. F. White in his tune Desire for Piety (No. 76b The Sacred Harp, all editions). He credited the source as Baptist Harmony, p. 479. Perhaps this is The Baptist Harmony, being a Selection of Choice Hymns and Spiritual Songs for Social Worship, by Staunton S. Burdett, Pleasant Hill, SC, 1834.

Doing positive things

"Any positive thing man does is done by God's grace. This has to be the case, because man is by nature a totally-depraved, totally-enslaved being.We repent, believe, confess Christ in baptism, and do good works by God's grace." -- John Kohler New Covenant Christian Forum, Mon, 20 Aug 2007