The Blood Trail in Our Tree

Dr. Rowland Taylor

Dr. Rowland Taylor was born in 1510, just a year after King Henry VIII became King of England. He died a Christian martyr on February 8, 1555, burned at the stake on the order of Queen Mary, King Henry VIII’s daughter by his first wife, Queen Catherine of Aragon. Queen Mary rose to power in 1553; during a time of confusion after the death of King Henry VIII. Queen Mary was a staunch Catholic, like her grandparents, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain. She sought to convert England back to the Catholic religion after her father, King Henry VIII, had separated from it so that he could remarry. Events of Christian persecution during the time of her reign from 1553 to 1558 are commonly known as the Marian Persecutions and she is known as “Bloody Mary”.

For reference, the following men were contemporaries of Dr. Rowland Taylor:

1. Rev. William Tyndale was born in  1494 and was martyred in 1536. He was the first person to translate the Bible into English from the original Hebrew and Greek texts and he utilized new printing technologies to make it more accessible to the masses.

2. John Calvin, the French leader of the Protestant Reformation was born in 1509. He published Institutes of the Christian Religion, which strongly influenced the Puritans, Presbyterians, and fueled the Protestant Reformation.

3. John Knox was born in 1514, and he later became the leader of the Protestant Reformation in Scotland. He founded the Presbyterian Church.

4. In October of 1517, Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses, opposing the sale of indulgences among other problems he had with the Catholic Church, to the door of the church in Wittenburg, in Saxony. This act began the Lutheran Church and the Reformation. He also translated the Bible into German.

Not all of these men were martyred but all left a Trail of Sacrifice that leads straight to the Cross of Jesus Christ. Many of us have been lost in the wilderness; grasping for some Sign of the Trail that will lead us safely home, but we need only catch sight of the Precious Trail of Blood that was shed for us by Jesus Christ in His Holy Word. We, who are children of God, connected by Faith in Him, can ALL lay claim to the cleansing Bloodline of Jesus Christ. I’m sharing these stories because they must not be forgotten and Dr. Rowland Taylor is one of my direct ancestors! We need to remember the sacrifices of those who laid the groundwork for our Freedom to Worship and honor them by reading God’s Word and surrendering to Jesus Christ while we still have the privilege to preserve the Freedoms they died to win.

Dr. Rowland Taylor’s story unfolds during a time of great persecution of Christians, while at the same time, God was pouring out His Spirit upon those seeking His Divine Will. He was first arrested in 1553, after being accused of being involved in the case of Lady Jane Gray, who was Queen for only nine days. He was released but later arrested again for objecting to the Catholic mass in church. Those who refused to succumb to the influence of the Catholic Church were persecuted mercilessly at the time.

Rev. William Tyndale’s niece, Margaret Tyndale, married Rowland Taylor so I will include some of his information as it is relevant to the overall message. The translation of the Bible into English by Tyndale opened up the world to a Spiritual Awakening because people could read and hear the Holy Scriptures in their own language, rather than in Latin, which is what the Catholic Church sought to enforce. No more were priests the only ones allowed to interpret what was written and now the masses could hear and discern for themselves what God was saying to them through His Word. Different people were all receiving Divine Discernment from God to spread the Gospel Message across the world during that time. Our time also has a Providential Purpose and we must each surrender to the Holy Spirit in order to live out what God has ordained, for such a time as this. An excellent resource is: (396) The Forbidden Book (1997) | Full Movie | Brian Barkley | Craig Lampe | Jim Birdsall - YouTube.

Both men were martyred because of their beliefs, Tyndale in 1536 and Taylor in 1555. They both supported having the Bible available in common languages among other things considered heretical by the Catholic Church. They were tortured, persecuted and burned at the stake for their faith. Do we have that kind of faith? Would we renounce our beliefs on threat pain or death? Perish the thought and surrender your all to Jesus Christ because it is only through the power of the Holy Spirit that we could endure such suffering and not renounce our Faith.

Tyndale is quoted as saying:

“I defy the Pope and all his laws; and if God spares my life, ere many years, I will cause the boy that driveth the plow to know more of the Scriptures than thou dost!"

From Foxe’s Book of Martyrs, a letter written by Dr. Rowland Taylor before he died demonstrates the Trail of Blood that leads us straight to Jesus Christ. He lived out the gospel and we should all be reminded of these stories so that the Trail never dulls to our sight. He writes:

“To my wife, and to my children, the Lord gave you to me, and the Lord has taken me from you, and you from me: blessed be the name of the Lord! I believe that they are blessed who die in the Lord. God cares for sparrows, and for the hairs of our heads. I have ever found Him more faithful and favorable than is any husband or father. Trust in Him by means of our dear Savior Christ’s merits: believe, love, fear, and obey Him. Pray to Him, for He has promised to help. Count me not dead, for I shall certainly live, and never die. I go before, and you shall follow after, to our eternal home.

I say to my dear friends of Hadleigh, and to all others who have heard me preach, that I depart from here with a quiet conscience concerning my doctrine, for which I pray you thank God with me. For I have, in keeping with my little talent, declared to others those lessons that I gathered out of God’s book, the blessed Bible. Therefore, if I, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you any other gospel than that which you have received, God’s great curse be upon that preacher!

Departing from here is sure hope, without any doubting of eternal salvation, I thank God my heavenly Father, through Jesus Christ my certain Savior.”

What a privilege we ALL enjoy to have a Heritage filled with ancestors who gave everything for our Freedom and Liberty! It is up to us to preserve them through Faith in God and Worship His only Son, Jesus Christ. The Blood Trail laid down before us to share God’s Message of HOPE in His Holy Word has faded over time and it needs to be Refreshed with the Living Waters of Obedience, for such a time as this...

“If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways: Then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14

May we all remember the True Struggle we are all in. It is Good against Evil and those who work to shut down Freedom and Liberty are always on the side of darkness. Choose wisely whom you will serve this day! Let the evidence of our ancestor’s lives, lived in surrender to Jesus Christ, be the Blood Trail that leads us directly to the Sacrificial Cross of Christ, where we can receive forgiveness to cross the Great Gulf of Shame that separates us from full communion with God.

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