Providence Today: Preserving History

Dr. Peter Lillback:
We’re standing outside a wonderful building called the Second National Bank, which has now become a great museum of early American paintings, and we want you to take a look at that as part of the work of Providence Today. We’re here in this place in Philadelphia and we remember that history is everywhere, but we remember that history is a reality that only lasts for a time and it needs to be preserved. That great bank is no longer a bank, it’s now an art museum. The portraits of all those people inside, those people are long gone, but the significance of each one lives on through the impact they made through their actions, through their message or through their involvement in their culture.

Dr. Peter Lillback:
At Providence Today, we want to remind you that God’s Providence is very much at work and that our lives can make an impact. But when we go inside, you need to realize, I need to keep my voice a lot lower because there are other people enjoying it. Come on in, let’s take a look, with Providence Today, at some of the great portraits inside

Dr. Peter Lillback:
The picture that we see of Lafayette that’s much larger, that’s the one that flanks the side of the president when he gives the State of the Union address, when he speaks in the House of Representatives. It’s a remarkable reminder that Washington and Lafayette were both united together in their common vision, and their labors made freedom possible.

Dr. Peter Lillback:
There are other important people you see here. Richard Henry Lee, he’s the man who helped make ocean that said we ought to be an independent nation. This here is Charles Thompson, the only clerk the continental Congress ever had. He is a brilliant scholar of original classic languages, he was a Presbyterian elder, and he’s the only man to translate the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament into English. He also helped us shape some of the great things that we see every day, like the great seal of the United States with Latin mottos, he helped choose those from classic literature, like Novus ordo seclorum, we have the language, E pluribus unum, those languages that we have are all part of the dollar bill. He found those.

Dr. Peter Lillback:
Then we also have this marvelous picture of George Washington, Washington in Philadelphia. We see he’s a little more dignified than a younger Washington, but not quite as old as we see him on the dollar bill. It reminds me of that image when he’s speaking to his soldiers at Newburgh, New York, when they said, “Okay, you’re the new King George,” and as he got ready to speak to his officers, simply rejecting the notion, he went to read his speech, but he couldn’t read it. He had to fumble in his pocket and look for his glasses, and he said those famous words, “I have grown old and nearly blind in the service of my nation.”

Dr. Peter Lillback:
One of the officers who was there made the interesting comment, “We had never seen Washington use glasses before.” They realized he was aging and they said there was not a dry eye in the room as they saw their commander who’d led them to victory showing the advance of years in his life. I think Abraham Lincoln spoke about the silent artillery of time. That really speeds up for those who are in public service leading through tumultuous times, like Washington.

Dr. Peter Lillback:
Well, we’re glad you’re here today. This is Providence Today.

Dr. Peter Lillback:
If you enjoy the messaging that we bring through Providence Today and you understand more about the work of the Providence Forum to reinstill the faith and values of our founders, to proclaim liberty throughout the land, to all the inhabitants thereof, to realize that we are alive at such a time as this to make a difference for freedom and the great values that come to us from the Bible, then I hope you’ll join us in supporting our work. You can do that by going online to providenceforum.org, there’s an opportunity to invest in our work.

Dr. Peter Lillback:
You can share this messaging by downloading our Faith & Freedom app and showing it to others, encouraging them to bring others to Philadelphia and learn more about our work. You can order some of our books, they’re available from our website or even online through Amazon and other great retailers.

Dr. Peter Lillback:
But we’re so glad that we have this opportunity to tell you about the continuing work of American history, because divine providence was at work back then and providence is at work right now. Thanks for being with us at Providence Today.