Exclusive from Gen. Flynn: I’m Issuing a Challenge To Every Dad in America This Father’s

If you are a student of American history like me, you have heard President Reagan’s many references to America as a “shining city on a hill.”

As proud patriots, it is easy to relish in the Great Communicator’s bold picture of an America whose destiny is to shine the light of freedom far beyond our own borders. Yet many Americans do not realize that President Reagan did not develop the “city on a hill” concept on his own.

The great Puritan John Winthrop had a vision for the New World to be a city on a hill.

He famously cast this vision in a sermon delivered before he even stepped onto American soil. His inspiration came from the fifth chapter of Matthew’s gospel, which charges that “Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid.”

As governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, Winthrop lived out his vision, and many other colonies followed suit. America grew into her independence and quickly became a beacon of freedom to the rest of the world, just like Matthew wrote, just like Winthrop envisioned and just like Reagan acknowledged.

Our nation’s role as a “city on a hill” has a rich heritage worth being proud of.

However, it is important to note that the challenge of being a city on a hill is not a vague allusion to some watered-down idea of good living. It is a clear and direct call to action.

As Winthrop preached, “We are entered into a covenant with for this work. We have taken out a commission. … If we shall neglect the observation of these articles which are the ends we have propounded … the Lord will surely break out in wrath against us … and make us know the price of the breach of such a covenant.”

Winthrop believed that the settlers of the Massachusetts Bay Colony would be held accountable for their calling to be a city on a hill.