Recommendation:  Mr. Rick Williams

History Teacher & Academic Dean

Judah Christian High School, [ACSI]

Champaign, Illinois

February 10, 2006

By Bill Burtness

I am pleased to write this letter on behalf of my good friend, Bill Burtness, to encourage Christian educators to make use of his fine book   Bill has been a friend of our school and a parent of four students here for many years.  I was impressed with his insights regarding government and Biblical principles from my very first year as a Civics and History teacher.  Ten years later, I still use many of his basic principles as a framework for introducing my students to principles of civil government and the concept of Christian self-government.

This past year, I was excited to learn that Bill’s material was finally being published, and I rushed to obtain copies to use in my class.  I spend the first three weeks of my 11^th-grade Civics class laying a foundation in political philosophy and principles of government before we begin an in-depth examination of American government.  Students read Bill’s chapters on “The Source of Liberty” and “The Three Philosophies of Government” along with original writings of Classical, Renaissance, and Enlightenment political thinkers.  We do a comparative analysis of political systems, and then consider the role of Christian self-government that Bill so insightfully presents as “The Third Alternative.”

Other chapters on “The American Experiment,” “Economics,” and “Stewardship” make fine supplemental readings for my units the Constitution and Economics.  This fine book also includes several chapters that provide a fine overview of “God’s Hand in History” that are useful as a supplemental material for any World History or Bible curriculum.

Bill thoughtfully examines the spectrum of political perspectives in this book and masterfully advances the premise that only through the transforming power of the Gospel to change individual hearts can societies truly enjoy “freedom without anarchy, order without tyranny, peace and prosperity.”   Moreover, he points out that the “Third Alternative” of Christian self-government is essential to secure a healthy balance between civil government and individual liberty.  Ultimately, he rightly instructs students and readers regarding the crucial role of sovereignty in civil government.  When we fail to acknowledge God as the ultimate sovereign, the state will quite readily assume that role in the lives of its citizens.

I encourage Christian educators to read this fine book and consider using it in Civics, History, or Bible classes.  It is by far the most helpful and thorough Scripturally-based treatments of civil government and human society I have ever read.

Cordially,

Rick D. Williams