Watchman on the Wall

Intro Voice: Welcome to Watchman on the Wall, a daily outreach of Southwest Radio Ministries and swrc.com. God is still on the throne, and prayer changes things. Time for a brand new week of bringing clarity to the chaos. This week is packed with guests like historian Bill Federer and author Doug Stauffer. Josh Davis will share the latest headlines from the end times, and we'll learn how to brainwash a nation.

Friends, as we move into the summer months, we need your help. Every year as temperatures rise, financial support for Southwest Radio Ministries tends to decline. But the need to proclaim God's truth through Watchman on the Wall, Prophecy in the News, and our many outreach ministries continues every day.

Please don't let our ministry support dry up this summer. Your gift today will help us continue bringing biblical truth, prophetic insight, and the hope of Christ to thousands of listeners and viewers across the country. Would you prayerfully consider making your best gift today? Give securely online at swrc.com or call us at 1-800-652-1144. That's 1-800-652-1144. Thank you for your prayers, your encouragement, and your faithful financial support of Southwest Radio Ministries. Here's our host, Dr. Larry Spargimino.

Larry Spargimino: Dr. Doug Stauffer is a pastor, a careful student of the Bible, and also an historian who loves America and its founding principles. We are approaching America's 250th birthday, 1776 to 2026, and Dr. Stauffer has a very excellent book titled America at 250: A Republic If You Can Keep It.

Now, I want to read a word from the foreword written by Brigadier General Pat Meaney, and I want to quote him because this is a tremendous statement. He says, "America is unique in human history. It is the first nation founded on ideas rather than tribe, race, ethnicity, geography, monarchy, or conquest." Doug, thank you so much for being with us once again, and thank you for this tremendous book. I just love it.

Doug Stauffer: Well, I appreciate it. I am just one of those guys that just keeps on writing, about like you. This is my 25th book. I've already got my 26th book out on Revelation that we did some programs on, and I'm excited about today and these interviews.

Larry Spargimino: America is in such a confused state with the woke people, and people literally hate America. There's a lot of them in America, and I think your book is so important especially for parents who have kids going to public school. I'm sure the kids come back and they say all kinds of bad things about Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, and that it's a racist nation they got from public school. So this book is really, really important, and I want to emphasize that. So Doug, what is the main purpose of America at 250?

Doug Stauffer: Larry, I would say the main purpose of this book is to encourage Americans to do more than just celebrate an anniversary: 1776, 2026, anniversary, birthday, whatever. It encourages them to reflect on the principles, the sacrifices, and even how God's intervention gave birth to the Republic.

Now, we're not a democracy; otherwise, the majority rules. 2026 should not simply be treated as a patriotic milestone but as a moment for national self-examination. America's future depends on whether the principles that built it are remembered, or if they're forgotten. Then I think we're in trouble, and I think that's the main purpose of this book.

Larry Spargimino: Well, I think you certainly accomplished that purpose. You've done a fantastic, or I should say historical research, but you also have a pastor's heart, and you realize the place of self-examination, even national self-examination, and the importance of the pulpit. So like I said, I've said it so many times, this is really a fantastic book. So Doug, why do you focus on the years 1776 to 1783 instead of only 1776?

Doug Stauffer: That's a great question, and I think Pete Hegseth, the Secretary of War, said really we started in 1775 because that's when the fighting was going on, and I put a little quote of his in the book. But the reason I go through 1783 is that the American story didn't end with the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1776.

The Declaration announced liberty, but it took seven difficult years of war to secure our liberty. The book emphasizes that true completion of the founding era came when George Washington resigned his military commission in December of 1783. Washington's actions ensured that America would not become a military dictatorship, but a Constitutional Republic. Power remained accountable to the people, and his resignation of his rank and going back home was very significant.

Larry Spargimino: You mention George Washington. From what I've read in your book and elsewhere, he was a tremendous man. I know he was an Anglican. I don't think he kept on praying God save the king, but he was a man of great character. Is that not true? I mean, just a model.

Doug Stauffer: It is. I think God supernaturally protected him. Sometimes we don't understand how these people get the awards that they get during war, but if they're a child of God and God says I have a job for you to do, and he supernaturally keeps them alive through all the bullets flying like he did with George Washington and like he did with some of our Medal of Honor recipients that did great things, I think that's part of the whole story. George Washington was a great man that served this country in a way like very few others have been committed to.

Larry Spargimino: Douglas, why do you believe the 250th anniversary is so important and so significant? Is it a big deal? Should it be a big deal?

Doug Stauffer: Absolutely, and I know that's a rhetorical question from you, but anniversaries encourage nations to stop and reflect, and I think that's the key. The 250th anniversary is significant because no nation in history has maintained this level of liberty, prosperity, and influence for as long as America has.

The book presents 2026 as more than a celebration; it's a crossroads. It gives Americans an opportunity to look backward with gratitude and then forward with responsibility. The founders believed republics survive only when each generation preserves the principles that created them.

Larry Spargimino: Since we're talking about that, does your book claim America is a chosen nation like Israel?

Doug Stauffer: That's a good question, and absolutely not. The book clearly rejects that idea. America is not Israel, nor does Scripture give America a covenant relationship with God like Israel possessed.

But the book strongly argues that God's providence is clearly evident in America's history and development. The founders themselves often spoke of divine guidance and providence and a national accountability before God, and I think that's what we're losing in the present society.

Larry Spargimino: Well, I know when I get to talk to people on a plane or at a bus station or whatever, and they always say, "Do you think America should be a theocracy?" I don't think so, but what would you say if somebody said, "You sound like a fundamentalist Christian. You want to bring Christianity back. Are you trying to make America a theocracy?"

Doug Stauffer: No, I don't think so because man is corrupt. What we have is a Constitutional Republic, and if we get away from the Constitution and we get into any other area, reject the Constitution and go into a theocracy or the other extreme, then we are doomed to fail. We have a document that we swear allegiance to that does the checks and balances on government and on the sinfulness of man.

Larry Spargimino: Yes, that's so true. I'm sure you've got a real good answer for this next question, but what dangers do you see in how Americans think about their history today? What are those dangers?

Doug Stauffer: In the book, I warn about two extremes. One extreme treats America as though it has never done any wrong, and we know that's not true. We've got abortion and we have slavery in our past, and abortion in our present. But the other treats America as though she has done nothing right; that's the rewriting of history.

The truth is really balanced and more honest. America has those serious sins in her present and her past. But when you look at America and how she's been greatly used to advance liberty, spread the gospel around the world, defend human dignity, and restrain tyranny, it's really an amazing country that we need to look to God not only in the past for what he did, but the future and what he's going to do in the present too. My book argues that integrity requires us to acknowledge both truths but realize that America is in between. We're not perfect, and we're certainly not completely useless like some of the liberal people try to tell us.

Larry Spargimino: Why does the book place such an emphasis on George Washington's resignation?

Doug Stauffer: Washington's resignation is probably the most significant moment in world political history. Throughout history, when military leaders won wars or like the Revolution, they seized power, they became dictators, they became kings, and there is no king in America because kings don't let you have a no kings day.

But Washington did just the opposite. After he led the Continental Army to victory, he surrendered authority, and he returned home. That act alone demonstrated that liberty requires restraint and that leaders must be willing to give up power for a republic to survive. That's what we are, and that came specifically from Washington relinquishing his commission and not trying to take over as a king or a dictator.

Larry Spargimino: I know we often say power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely, but Washington was not under that kind of a curse. What a great man. Humility, I can just imagine having a lot of power and then just stepping back. That's a pretty good Christian virtue. I think there's kind of like the Antichrist spirit in so many people, the spirit to control, whether it's in the home and especially in government like a national government. We see that in history so much.

Doug Stauffer: Absolutely we do, and thankfully Washington, with all of his unique abilities and power and prestige, he did not allow that to influence him to take over the government and become a dictator.

Larry Spargimino: You are a pastor, you've done a lot of writing on theological topics, and you're certainly a victorious Christian. So what role does faith play in the book?

Doug Stauffer: Faith is central to this book because faith was central to much of early American thinking. The book that I wrote clearly shows how Scripture and preaching and God and biblical morality shaped the worldview of many early Americans, and especially the founders. It doesn't claim that every founder was an orthodox Christian, quite the contrary. But it does show that most of them believed rights come from God and that morality was essential to liberty and that nations were accountable to divine authority. That's how faith was so important for the founders and long after them also.

Larry Spargimino: America at 250 should be required reading by every high school student in America. I pray that such would come to pass. America at 250 should certainly be required reading in every Christian school in America. It is also a book that should be in church libraries. It is historically true, glorifying to God, and will help every listener to realize how much things have changed from the vision of the Founding Fathers.

It will challenge all of us. We need to get back to our founding principles and you need this book. Our toll-free number is 1-800-652-1144. Ask for the book America at 250. What do you believe modern Americans misunderstand the most about the founding of our country?

Doug Stauffer: I think many Americans underestimate how fragile liberty is. You see, the founders did not believe freedom was automatic or permanent. They repeatedly warned that liberty depends on virtue. It depends on morality, self-government, accountability, and in my book, I emphasize that constitutions alone cannot preserve freedom if the people lose character, they lose discipline, and they lose moral clarity.

You look where we are today and you see people talking against the Constitution and that it's an outdated, worn-out document, and we need to rewrite it or reconsider it or bring it in. No, you need to abide by the Constitution because it's the greatest document that's ever been written. When people lose their moral clarity, we have problems that are coming, and that's where we are today.

Larry Spargimino: Well, I think as I've read your book, I see that you understand God's providence and his activity in the world and in America. So why does chapter one place a strong emphasis on God's providence in America's beginning? And that's really a tremendous question, and you've got some good answers about that.

Doug Stauffer: In that chapter early on, I try to set a foundation. It explains that many founders believed America's survival and success could not be explained or attributed to human effort alone. Here they were, struggling colonies, and unlikely revolutionary victories took place. They saw what they called the hand of providence guiding events.

The chapter does not claim America's perfect or equal to Israel, anything like that that we already discussed. But it does show that the founders believed nations are accountable to God and that America had received extraordinary blessings. I think of Psalm 9:17, "The wicked shall be turned into hell and all the nations that forget God." We can't forget God, and our history shows that we were founded upon Judeo-Christian principles, and we need to go back and relook and reconsider them and then move forward with that understanding.

Larry Spargimino: I think one of the very important aspects of America's founding documents is liberty of conscience. That's a precious concept. I don't think there are too many countries that have that. Why was liberty of conscience so important to early Americans?

Doug Stauffer: Early Americans believed that true liberty begins with the freedom to obey God without government coercion. That's liberty of conscience. Many of the settlers came to the New World because they'd experienced religious persecution in Europe, where governments often controlled churches, they punished dissenters, and the founders and the early colonists increasingly concluded that conscience ultimately belongs to God and not to civil authority. Imagine that when they came from Europe, what a change that was. That belief became a foundational idea behind religious liberty in America.

Larry Spargimino: I know the idea that we see in some countries, especially in Muslim countries, is coercion. If you don't become what our national religion is, we've got the sword. I think this idea of liberty of conscience is so precious. So many people I've found in America do not appreciate that, and I think that's very, very sad.

Doug Stauffer: I do too, and I wish that we could, well, that's the reason I wrote my book was to help educate people into what it means, why it's important, how if we lose that belief and those other beliefs that are mentioned in the book, that we are in a lot of trouble.

Larry Spargimino: So Doug, how did religious liberty shape the American Republic?

Doug Stauffer: The founders believed that government should protect religious freedom rather than control religious belief. That conviction eventually helped shape protections such as the First Amendment. America's system was unique because it rejected both a national church and government control of worship.

The goal was not to remove faith from public life. I sit on city council and I take my faith with me. But it was to allow religion to flourish freely without state interference or coercion, and that is what made America great. That's what we're losing today. I mean, they think separation of church and state, and I'm not necessarily going to get into it on the program, but it's to keep the state out of the church, not the church out of the state. Amen to that.

Larry Spargimino: The liberals bandy that about, and they think that's the killing point. It's not. Why did the founders believe virtue was necessary for liberty? And I think that's really pretty important because, well, I'll let you give your answer.

Doug Stauffer: The founders believed that self-government, which is what America was, the premise of our government, only works when people are capable of governing themselves morally. Now, think about how immoral this country is becoming, and you'll see where we're headed. Freedom without discipline eventually leads to disorder, and then in turn, that creates demands for stronger government control. And that's what you see in many of the cities.

Men like John Adams and George Washington repeatedly warned that the Constitution depended on a moral and responsible people. I know people complain about police control or police interference or interference by ICE and so forth, but what happens when people become unruly? You need more control. What happens when people become selfish and overbearing and corrupting the schools and other people? History showed that when virtue declines, lawlessness, dishonesty, division, and really dependence on government increases. They believed America's greatest threat would come not from outside enemies, but from a moral decay within the nation itself. That warning remains one of the strongest themes throughout time and what I emphasize in the book because it's so very true.

Larry Spargimino: Well, that is really a good point because as there is moral decay and as we depart from the word of God and throw morals out the window, guess what's going to happen? Not freedom, but more control. What the founders hoped for and what they worked for was freedom, but it had to be responsible freedom. Apart from that, we can't have freedom or liberty. Why did the founders believe law must be rooted in God's moral order?

Doug Stauffer: The founders believed that justice could not rest on shifting public opinion alone. That's why we have the Constitution. They regarded God as the ultimate lawgiver and held that human law should reflect fixed moral truths rather than political trends or personal preference.

Influences such as Scripture and Blackstone taught them that laws detached from morality eventually become unstable and really unjust. In their view, liberty and justice required a higher standard beyond human opinion. I know today many atheists believe we don't need God to be moral, which they can say that because they don't admit the depravity of the human heart. But if they understood the depravity of the human heart, then they would see that we need God and we need his sovereign control and his law over our lives to be moral.

Doug Stauffer: Larry, that's why open borders brought in influences that were not reflected in what America's all about. We should have immigrants. We are a nation of immigrants. Legal immigrants coming in to help shape America in a way that it is not being redone, but they're coming in to assimilate into our culture, not bring their own and try to overtake America. And that's why you have the unchecked influences that have gone on for several years because the whole idea was to bring America down from being the superpower.

Larry Spargimino: I keep on seeing that the founders had unbelievable wisdom. For example, they were concerned about judges gaining too much power, and I think that's a problem. But what were the founders aware of with regard to that?

Doug Stauffer: The founders believed that judges interpret laws, not create new ones through personal ideology. They feared that if courts became lawmakers, unelected judges would gradually override the will of the people and weaken constitutional government. We can just look in the mirror today and see that.

This concern led them to emphasize limited judicial authority and separation of powers. They believed liberty would be endangered if any branch, executive, legislative, judicial, of government gained unchecked authority. And that's where we've been heading for a long time. And now what the Supreme Court is doing is going back to constitutional law and not trying to legislate from the bench.

Larry Spargimino: Why then were covenants and compacts important in early America? What kind of protection did they give to liberty and freedom?

Doug Stauffer: Early Americans used covenants and written agreements to organize communities around shared responsibilities and moral commitments. And the documents such as the Mayflower Compact reflected the belief that the people could voluntarily, and that's the key, bind themselves under God for the common good. So these early agreements helped instill self-government, accountability, cooperation long before the Constitution was ever even written.

Larry Spargimino: Douglas, this book of yours is tremendous and we're going to have you back with us for our next broadcast. So friends, there are certainly many more things about the book America at 250. This is the perfect time of the year to think about the real America and also to think about some of the things that we've talked about: repentance, faith, obedience to God, supporting liberty of conscience, supporting the biblical family. All of these things are challenges to us because they're being challenged today. Please be sure to tune in to our next broadcast of Southwest Radio Church.

Intro Voice: As America approaches her 250th birthday, one question echoes across the centuries: Can we keep the Republic we've been given? In America at 250: A Republic If You Can Keep It, Douglas Stauffer takes readers back to the founding years of our nation, exploring the faith, courage, and biblical principles that shaped America's birth. Discover why the founders chose a Constitutional Republic, how liberty depends on virtue, why free speech and accountable government matter, and what happens when a nation forgets God.

Part history, part warning, and part call to action, this timely book reminds us that America's future depends on remembering the truths that made her free. Order your copy of America at 250. Call 1-800-652-1144 or visit swrc.com. That's swrc.com. America at 250 by Doug Stauffer.

Join us tomorrow as Doug Stauffer examines the faith, principles, and sacrifices that shaped America's founding and the challenges threatening those foundations today. From liberty and virtue to faith, family, and freedom, discover why the lessons of our nation's past are more important now than ever. Don't miss this timely and thought-provoking discussion tomorrow on Watchman on the Wall. Watchman on the Wall is a production of Southwest Radio Ministries and is supported by faithful listeners like you. Visit swrc.com. That's swrc.com. America at 250 by Doug Stauffer.