“He [Christ the Messiah] will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth. In his teaching the islands [coastline, of the seas] will put their hope.” … 6 “I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles [nations]” – Isaiah 42:4, 6 NIV
Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) is credited with being the first European to carry news of a New World back to Europe. As far as was generally known at the time, Columbus was going where no one had ever been. His endeavor was heroic for on maps of the day, sea monsters and dragons were shown as inhabiting the oceans.
Legends from all over the world describe monstrous, serpentine creatures of the sea to fire-breathing beasts that made the ground tremble. These terrifying creatures were witnessed by men who spoke and wrote extensively of their encounters in cultures around the world that survive today as legends and what some believe are simple myths. But according to Job 41:1-34 the massive dragon (Leviathan) of the sea was not a myth. The “Leviathan” (the Hebrew word literately means, sea monster or dragon) roamed the sea and lived at the time of men. This magnificent creature was probably a sea dinosaur like a pliosaur, mosasaurus, or sarcosuchus. His description clearly was not “poetical extravagance” as many Bible notes suggest!
(For further clarification about the text of Job 40:15-41:34 refer to the notes from the Henry Morris Study Bible.
So why would Columbus undertake such an endeavor?
He explained:
“I have seen and put in study to look into all the Scriptures…Which our Lord opened to my understanding (I could sense His hand upon me), so that it became clear to me that I was feasible to navigate from here to the Indies, and He gave me the will to execute the idea.”
– Christopher Columbus’s Book of Prophecies
When Columbus wrote King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain, who sponsored his voyage, he told them:
“All those who heard about my enterprise rejected it with laughter, scoffing at me… Who doubts that his illumination was from the Holy Sprit? … No one should be afraid to take on any enterprise in the name of our Savior if it is right and if the purpose is purely for His holy service…”
Columbus finally began his long trek, and a massive painting of him and his crew stepping ashore in the New World on a tiny island off the coast of Florida hangs in the Rotunda of the U.S. Capitol. With eyes raised to heaven, he is planting a cross in the sand; and the name he bestowed on that small isle was San Salvador, which is translated in Spanish as “Holy Savior.” That name and the cross he erected say much about what was in his heart and the commission he believed he had received from Isaiah 42.
Columbus’ unwavering Christian motivation was evident throughout his writings, but textbooks today do not present this information. In recent decades, secularist and progressive educators and writers have, relentlessly attacked Columbus and regularly claim just the opposite. This attack is directed toward values—Biblical values and the Christian civilization that is based on Biblical values that our Founding Father’s believed were the foundation to a moral and upright society.
“We are persuaded that good Christians will always be good citizens, and that where righteousness prevails among individuals, the Nation will be great and happy. Thus while just government protects all in their religious rights, true religion affords to government it’s surest support.”
– George Washington
To read an accurate historical view of Columbus, consult a work such as Columbus and Cortez by Dr. John Eidsmoe.
An Action To Take:
Strike up a conversation with someone by asking them what their understanding of Christopher Columbus is and of his Christian influence and motivation in the shaping of America.
In Christ,
Dale
dale@daleebel.org