A Letter to Pastors
By Pastor T. P. Coleman
The Baptist Church on 35th Avenue, commonly called, 35th Avenue Baptist Church
The Baptist Church on 35th Avenue, commonly called, 35th Avenue Baptist Church
America is in trouble. We are losing our liberties one by one. It won’t be long to where, if there is no turning back of the advances of the enemies of our country (most of them are within the halls of what used to be our government), we will have no freedom or liberty to preach the gospel without risking our very lives.
I have, therefore, become a very strong proponent of preachers and Christians getting involved in restoring our nation to its constitutional (biblical) roots.
But I have noticed a strong belief permeating the minds of most preachers and Christians, that we should be focused on the work of God: winning souls, baptizing those who believe, training others to serve God, etc., to the exclusion of being involved in the preservation or restoration of constitutional governance.
While I have spent the majority of my life doing my best to serve God, winning souls to Christ, getting them baptized, and training them to do the same; and though I have started one church from scratch and have pastored another church for 13 years now; I see and hear a lot of resistance from preachers when the subject of “politics” comes up.
First of all, I want to say that I despise politics. Now that that's out of the way, I must also say, I love Liberty.
Christians and pastors in particular have forgotten the price that was paid for our Liberty. We have grown fat and sassy living off the sacrifices of others. It is time to toughen up during these “lean” years. We must prepare ourselves to stand up for liberty once more before it is too late.
The American people are waking up to the fact that their freedoms and liberties are being stripped away right before their eyes. What a shame it would be that when they are ready to stand, those who know the Author of Liberty are sound asleep and lethargic due to their lack of diligence to know the law and stand for lawfulness. Look, it is anything but difficult to see that if you do not stand for lawfulness, you allow unlawfulness!
While pondering the reasons why pastors and churches are not standing up like they should be, I believe God has brought some things to my mind, from the Scriptures that ought to be proclaimed.
Please take the time to read this whole article if you care at all for the people of America and the people who could be reached for Christ by the Bible-preaching churches of America. If you don’t care and you are a preacher – resign!
There are two main principles that I believe are being overlooked and not understood which are the cause of most Christians and pastors not getting involved in the governance of their communities, states and nation:
#1 – The behavior of God’s people while suffering under the judgment of God is to be different in certain aspects than when they are being blessed by God.
#2 – The behavior of God’s people when God has given them liberty is to be different in many aspects than when they are being judged by God.
If we use only the New Testament for principles in living, we may be misapplying many of the principles and bring about circumstances that will leave us no other choice but to live as the disciples did during the New Testament era.
Let me illustrate.
If a person is living under conditions that require rationing of food, he will conserve his energy as energy burns up the nutrition that food supplies the body, which in turn leads to the need of more food.
Conversely, if a person who HAS plenty of food, rations his food and conserves energy, he will work less (to conserve his energy), thus producing less. As a consequence, he will begin to rely on and use up his food supply and soon reach the point where he will HAVE to ration his food and conserve his energy.
Likewise, if we live according to New Testament commands only, we will soon have no choice but to live according to them because we will move from the condition represented by Old Testament Israel to the condition of New Testament Israel. This is the fatal mistake (to our country) that Christians, and preachers in particular, have been making for decades – all my life for sure. We must live by the “whole counsel of God” and understand why He gave principles and commands in the New Testament that seem to contradict the principles and commands in the Old Testament.
Let’s look at some of them.
In the Old Testament, God raised up a nation (Israel) to be “for a people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory” unto Him. (2 Samuel 7:24; Jeremiah 13:11) He wanted one nation to be a witness for Him to the rest of the nations.
He gave them His written Word. As long as they followed His Word and the leading of the prophets, they prospered. Remember, the kings went to the prophets to enquire of the will of God relating to all sorts of things, but especially for counsel before battles with enemy nations. In other words, the prophets were involved in government affairs!
But Israel departed from God, so He delivered them into the hands of the Gentiles. It was a see-saw ordeal - revival after apostasy, and then apostasy after revival - back and forth. But gradually the apostasy overcame the spirit of revival. Prophets became fewer in number, or at least less conspicuous to where Elijah thought he was the only one left standing. (1 Kings 19:9-10) But, of course, he was wrong. (1 Kings 19:18)
When God sent Jeremiah to prophesy against Judah, at one point, some men decided that since judgment was coming and they could not avoid it, they would move to Egypt. God told Jeremiah to tell them that the sword would follow them. (Jeremiah 42:1-16) Why? Because the judgment of God cannot be escaped from, we can only hope that by our righteousness we would be spared by God, not from the judgment, but from dying as a result of the judgment “until that He have mercy” (Psalm 123:2).
This same principle is found in the book of Ruth. God judged Israel by sending famine to the land. Elimelech decided that rather than endure it, he would escape it. He left Bethlehem-Judah (“house of bread and praise”) and went to Moab with his wife and two sons. It did not go well for him there. He died; his two sons died; and only his wife and one daughter-in-law came back home to Israel many years later. She changed her name to Mara, which means bitter, as a result of having borne the judgment of God in the land to which she and her husband had fled to escape it.
The reason I give these illustrations is because in the New Testament, Israel was suffering under the judgment of God. The Roman Empire was oppressing Israel. It was not all that bad, unless you rebelled against them. And since the judgment was of God, Jesus gave the people specific principles and commands on how to endure and even prosper. He said things like, “whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also”, which, if you look at the actual words He used, He was telling them (and us) specific conditions to which this command applied. When an authority figure disciplines a subordinate, it is often with a backhand slap. That is a mark of humiliation and is intended to cause submission. When you slap with the back hand (most people are right-handed) the hand will land on the RIGHT cheek of the one being slapped. As a sign of submission to the powers ordained of God as a tool of divine judgment, Jesus told the people to turn the other (LEFT) cheek also.
The same principle applies to the other commands He gave regarding “going the extra mile”. The desire of empire-building pastors to build their ministries and get their people to work more (for less or nothing; hence, the many sermons on "Going the Extra Mile"), and the sincere (but semi-ignorant) desire of pastors to motivate their people to serve God has led to the concealment of the true meaning of Jesus’ instructions, thus hiding from people the importance of the distinctions between how to live in liberty and how to live under oppression.
Let’s fast forward to the era of the birth of America. For years, God’s people had languished under persecution in Europe. So began a growing emigration from Europe to the New World. Colonies were established, many of them by church groups, desiring freedom from persecution. Businessmen either accompanied or soon followed, and the colonists flourished. As English subjects, the colonists were quite willing to remain subjects to the king of England. However, over time, they began to realize that the king did not view them as subjects with rights of Englishmen, but treated them as foreigners under occupation. He was more concerned about profiting from the colonists than he was the colonists being successful and their success being a shining example of the greatness of the British Empire.
Since the colonists were not being afforded their rights, but were having their rights trampled more and more, something had to give. This was not a judgment from God, as the same thing was not happening to their brethren back home. It was tyranny and wrong. They decided such illegitimate ill-treatment should not be allowed to continue, so after making one last plea that was derided, and summarily rejected (the Olive Branch Treaty) by both the king and Parliament, they declared their right to separate. (See the “Annotated Declaration of Independence”, by yours truly, by clicking here.)
During the Constitutional Convention, much emphasis was placed on maintaining the principles expressed in the Declaration of Independence, i.e., protecting the rights of the people by making it clear that they were the sovereigns. The Preamble establishes that with the words, “We the People, in order to… do ordain and establish this Constitution FOR the United States of America”. The Constitution was ordained BY the People, not FOR them, but FOR the government they established as their servant with its limitations clearly enumerated. Thus, We the People are the higher power. That totally changes the meaning, falsely established in the minds of most Christians, of Romans 13, which says in verse 1, “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers.” Since we the People are the higher powers, we must all “be subject one to another” (1 Peter 5:5). In other words, subject to the unalienable rights that God has given each of us.
James Madison said, “We have staked the whole future of American civilization not upon the power of government - far from it. We have staked the future of all of our political institutions upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God.”
So our country was founded on the power of each of us to govern ourselves. That makes us the “bosses”. Yet most Christians are taught that we are to always submit to the power of government. Why are we taught that? Because of the lack of understanding of the conditions present at the giving of various principles and commands in the Old Testament and the New Testament.
Now, let’s look at the New Testament and you will see that the principles of the Old Testament are still present, and given, in fact, by Jesus Christ Himself because He knew the future and wanted to prepare His disciples for it.
Luke 22:35-38 And he said unto them, When I sent you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye any thing? And they said, Nothing. {36} Then said he unto them, But now, he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip: and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one. {37} For I say unto you, that this that is written must yet be accomplished in me, And he was reckoned among the transgressors: for the things concerning me have an end. {38} And they said, Lord, behold, here are two swords. And he said unto them, It is enough.
Here Jesus makes a clear distinction between how to live under occupation and how to live when the occupation ends. Earlier He sent His disciples out without purse, scrip or shoes (or sword), but now He prepares them for what is going to come. He knows the Roman Empire will collapse. So He wisely prepares them way ahead of time. He says, “but now…” and proceeds to list the things He forbade them to take earlier and adds, “he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one.” (vs. 36)
As their Pastor, He is preparing them not to go on the offense and force people to believe in Him, but to defend their right to believe and preach the gospel! His intention that they keep their arms is seen when, after Peter takes a swing at one of the men in the mob that came to arrest Jesus, He says, “Put up again thy sword into his place.” (Matthew 26:52) Jesus does not scold him. He does not tell him to turn his sword over to the soldiers. He tells him to put it where it goes – in the sheath, so he’ll have it for later! Now is the time for Jesus to be taken and crucified as “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world”. (John 1:29) He makes this clear by saying, “But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled?” (Matthew 26:54)
As their Pastor, He has to prepare them before He is taken from them, and also so they will not be arrested when He is arrested. It is not time for the disciples to use their sword in defense. Jesus confirms this when He arranges for His disciples to be let go. (John 18:8)
But when they say, “Lord, here are two swords,” He, not wanting them to interfere with His plan to be taken and crucified for their sins and the sins of the whole world, said, “It is enough.” In other words, it is enough for now. You can get more swords to protect yourselves later, after I’m gone.
History shows us that they did not obey that command very well, and hence, when persecution broke out, they were scattered. Of course it can be argued that that was a good thing, but who’s to say so? What would the world be like if they had successfully defended themselves and the People had rallied behind them? We don’t know that either. One thing we do know is that it was said of them, “These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also.” (Acts 17:6) That could have still happened, even if they had defended themselves from the Pharisees.
Another thing we know is that the world went through what is called the “Dark Ages” for centuries. During this time persecution after persecution had to be endured by God’s people, I believe, because of the failure to obey this particular command of Jesus.
By the grace of God, a new world was discovered – America, a new “promised land”. It was here that God called some of His people to come and form communities built on principles of liberty. These communities, colonies, became States. After fighting a war for independence from a tyrannical king, these States banded together to form a union of States under the Articles of Confederation. Finding the government under the Articles to be inefficient for defending all the States, it was determined, at a Convention, to amend the Articles, to start over with a new constitution.
For their Constitution they adopted many biblical principles of liberty. But before ratification, the People demanded a Bill of Rights be added. (A “bill” is a declaration. When a waitress or plumber, for example, gives you a bill, it is a declaration of what you owe them for the services they rendered to you.) They also granted (We the People are the grantors), certain powers (which we still have the right to take back) to certain branches of government in a method designed to keep a check on the abuse of power and to balance it out through the various branches of government to prevent any branch from becoming too powerful or tyrannical. Thus, limited, delegated powers were enumerated (numbered out, hence Article _, Section _) in the Constitution. Only those powers constitute the powers of the government. All other powers are reserved to the States, respectively (because they all have different constitutions), or to the People.
Here’s something most Christians do not know. The rise of this great nation was foretold by Jesus Christ, Himself.
Matthew 21:33-43 Hear another parable: There was a certain householder, which planted a vineyard, and hedged it round about, and digged a winepress in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country:
34 And when the time of the fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandmen, that they might receive the fruits of it.
35 And the husbandmen took his servants, and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another.
36 Again, he sent other servants more than the first: and they did unto them likewise.
37 But last of all he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son.
38 But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance.
39 And they caught him, and cast him out of the vineyard, and slew him.
40 When the lord therefore of the vineyard cometh, what will he do unto those husbandmen?
41 They say unto him, He will miserably destroy those wicked men, and will let out his vineyard unto other husbandmen, which shall render him the fruits in their seasons.
42 Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?
43 Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.
In this parable, Jesus gives the history of Israel, prophesies his death at the hands of the Pharisees, and foretells the rise of “a nation” that would bring forth the fruits of the kingdom of God. No nation in history fulfills that prophecy like America. Look at all the fruit (souls saved) that has come from the liberty to preach the gospel both in America and in countries all over the world through missionaries sent from America!
No wonder Satan has been busy trying to destroy our liberty. The fruit of the tree of liberty is people enlightened with the gospel and living righteously. Proverbs 14:34 says, Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people. Conversely, the Bible says in Psalms 9:17, The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.
Isn’t it interesting that the second amendment to our Constitution declares that the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed? God wants us to defend our liberties and prolong our days in the land He has given us!
The second amendment was not declared so we could go hunting or target shooting. It was to remind those in government to fear the real kings – We the People! Do not violate our rights! As Romans 13: 4 says, “he beareth not the sword in vain.”
Thomas Jefferson wisely said, “When governments fear the People, there is liberty. When the People fear the government, there is tyranny.”
All nations either have a government that secures their liberty, or a government that restricts liberty and controls the people. In Paul’s day, the government (Rome) controlled the conquered people and kept them in submission. In our day, We the People are the power and we set up a government to protect our liberty. It still exists (the Constitution has not been repealed or replaced, just ignored and violated); but is under attack and its influence has been eroded due to the negligence of God’s people, especially preachers.
What we have today is a government, that should be bound by the Constitution, running roughshod over the rights of the People because preachers are afraid to proclaim the wrongs of the public servants. We think we are doing a great job because we can preach good sermons to the choir in a beautiful, comfortable building, built with the permission of the local government, and win a few timid souls here and there; but where are the John the Baptists who preach to the public servants and keep them in check? Herod wasn’t even a public servant as we have. He was a king. John the Baptist was braver than anybody who stands up today against the wrongs of government because he stood against a king. We can only stand against servants and we are too weak to even do that! God pity us! God have mercy on us!
I hope that as you read this you are getting a better understanding of what I meant about the two principles I mentioned earlier:
#1 – The behavior of God’s people while suffering under the judgment of God is to be different in certain aspects than when they are being blessed by God with liberty.
#2 – The behavior of God’s people when God has given them liberty is to be different in many aspects than when they are being judged by God.
If we behave as Jesus commanded those who were under the occupation of Rome to behave, as they endured the judgment of God until He delivered them, we cannot at the same time behave like the people of Israel did when the Lord was their King. (Isaiah 33:22) We cannot have liberty when we act like slaves. Liberty produces industry, ingenuity, inventions and abundant blessings, as American history shows. Slavery, on the other hand, stunts industry, ingenuity and inventions, and is clearly not a blessing from God, as the Dark Ages clearly showed. So, if we are a free People, we must act like it. We must act like we are sovereigns - otherwise we will cease to be sovereigns. Like the person who rations food while there is abundance and conserves his energy soon is forced to conserve energy and ration food, we will soon cease to have the energy or personal productivity to exercise our liberty if we are too busy conserving it.
Liberty is intended to be used. It is not a badge or a bumper sticker. It is an atmosphere where one can do what he ought to do without fear of anyone forbidding him; and one of the things he ought to do is defend liberty.
Now, regarding the issue of priorities of churches and preachers who get involved in government affairs, there are biblical principles that we must consider.
Most preachers, as you well know, prefer to be disengaged from “politics”, or at least they are careful to not get too involved. The centuries that preceded the rise of America should have taught us well that liberty must be maintained or slavery, oppression and persecution will prevail. Someone once said, “The price of liberty is eternal vigilance.” How true!
The Bible also says, “…where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” (2 Corinthians 3:17) This proves that the Spirit of the Lord produced the “spirit of 1776”! Any honest study of the founding fathers of our country reveals that they had great reverence for God and His Word. The Spirit of God always blesses those who honour His Word. Honouring God’s Word does not mean to make a statue of it, or a coffee table display, but to believe it and live by it. If God gives us the gift of liberty, we must not despise it like Esau despised his birthright, or God will take it away (another biblical principle). We must value it and fight for it. Naboth would not sell his vineyard to Ahab because of his respect for the Word of God, which forbade selling the inheritance (land) of his fathers. (1 Kings 21:1-16) It cost him his life because he was under a tyrant. Israel had turned away from God. Ahab and Jezebel were serving the false god Baal. Thus a loss of liberty occurred.
The Israelites went into captivity because of their turning away from God and His Word. After seventy years of captivity (judgment), God gave them liberty. When Nehemiah, with proper authority, went to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, he faced resistance from tyrants who were not following the “law”. God gives us this story to teach us a very important principle regarding priorities in the struggle to maintain liberty. Nehemiah did not go there in rebellion to the king. He went there with freedom and liberty to do what God wanted Him to do – rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.
It was out-of-control “politicians” who gave him resistance. So what did he do? Did he say, “Well, I must submit to the higher powers, and this Sanballat seems to be a higher power. Oh, well, I’ll just try to win souls and not rock the boat?” NO! He did not. He stood against Sanballat. But that’s not all. Look at the change he made in the prioritization of the use of the resources he had at his command.
Nehemiah 4:16 And it came to pass from that time forth, that the half of my servants wrought in the work, and the other half of them held both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the habergeons; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah.
This clearly shows that when their liberties were under attack, instead of 100% of the people working on the wall, only 50% worked on the wall. The other 50% were diverted from the work of building the wall to protecting their right to do the work of God. Why, for Jesus’ sake, are there not more churches doing this? When our right to preach the gospel, to travel without a license, to build a building for our God without a building permit, etc., is being infringed, preachers ought to be devoting at least 50% of their resources to defend their right to do the work of God!
But that’s not all!
Nehemiah 4:17 They which builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, with those that laded, every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon.
Of the 50% that worked on the wall, they each held a weapon in one hand. So 50% of the 50% were also dedicated to the defense of the right to do the work of God! That’s another 25%, for a grand total of 75 % of their resources! I am absolutely convinced that unless we get close to that percentage of dedicated resources in the defense of our right to exercise our religion freely, we will lose all our rights. We will soon see government licensing every aspect of our ministries. It has already begun and preachers are kowtowing to the government left and right because they do not understand the biblical principles of liberty.
Another example of prioritization in the work of God in a time when liberty is at stake is in II Kings. Here we will see the way God led His people to restore liberty after the tyranny of Ahab and Jezebel, referenced earlier by the story of Naboth. Upon the death of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Athaliah, the wife of Ahaziah, slew all of the seed royal so she could be queen and rule in the absence of her husband. Athaliah was the daughter of Ahab, whose wife was the infamous Jezebel. Unknown to her, Jehosheba, her sister, rescued the youngest, Joash (also called Jehoash), and hid him in the house of the Lord where he was trained and brought up for seven years by Jehoiada the high priest.
Let the Bible tell the story from here:
2 Kings 11:4-11 And the seventh year Jehoiada sent and fetched the rulers over hundreds, with the captains and the guard, and brought them to him into the house of the LORD, and made a covenant with them, and took an oath of them in the house of the LORD, and showed them the king's son. {5} And he commanded them, saying, This is the thing that ye shall do; A third part of you that enter in on the sabbath shall even be keepers of the watch of the king's house; {6} And a third part shall be at the gate of Sur; and a third part at the gate behind the guard: so shall ye keep the watch of the house, that it be not broken down. {7} And two parts of all you that go forth on the sabbath, even they shall keep the watch of the house of the LORD about the king. {8} And ye shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand: and he that cometh within the ranges, let him be slain: and be ye with the king as he goeth out and as he cometh in. {9} And the captains over the hundreds did according to all things that Jehoiada the priest commanded: and they took every man his men that were to come in on the sabbath, with them that should go out on the sabbath, and came to Jehoiada the priest. {10} And to the captains over hundreds did the priest give king David's spears and shields, that were in the temple of the LORD. {11} And the guard stood, every man with his weapons in his hand, round about the king, from the right corner of the temple to the left corner of the temple, along by the altar and the temple.
Notice that Jehoiada, a high priest, organizes the servants of the Lord in the house of God to fight! “For shame!” “Stick with the fundamental task of winning souls,” is what many of today’s preachers would say if they lived back then and were consistent with the stand (or lack thereof) they take now on Christians’ involvement in government.
Now, notice the percentage of the servants of the Lord who served in the House of God that Jehoiada organized into a fighting force to defend the LEGITIMATE king:
1) One-third (33%) of the priests and Levites that were to begin their month’s term of service that Sabbath day were given weapons (armed – “Lock and load, Buddy”) and commanded to keep watch over the king’s house. (vs. 5)
2) One-third (33%) of the same course of priests and Levites were armed and commanded to keep watch at the gate Sur. (vs. 6a)
3) One-third (33%) of the same course of priests and Levites were armed and commanded to keep watch behind those guarding the gate Sur. (vs. 6b)
What percentage of all the priests that were coming in to their “shift” were assigned to guard duty with arms? 100%!
But that’s not all!
There were priests and Levites who had just finished their monthly term of duty and were headed home. Two thirds (66%) were commandeered to stand watch around the house of the Lord and around the 7-year-old king!
Now, if the people of God did that in the Old Testament, why can’t we in America, who have been given liberty by the same God, have the same respect and fighting spirit to hold onto what God has given us? It was protecting and fighting for the life of their king that restored their liberty, which was being stripped from them under the tyrant, Athaliah.
One last example, given in Genesis 14:
Abraham was a man that God knew would stand for truth when he heard it, so God called him out of his father’s house, in Ur of the Chaldees (Genesis 12), and led him to the land he promised to give him and his seed for ever.
Abraham had great faith in God, and was called “the Friend of God”. (James 2:23) He is also called the “father of all them that believe”, as well as the “father of us all" [believers]. (Romans 4:11,16)
Abraham had a nephew, Lot, whom he had raised after the death of Lot’s father. To make a long story short, after Lot was grown, he moved and eventually ended up in Sodom.
Four kings of nearby nations united to conquer other kings and their cities and plunder them. They attacked Sodom and carried away many captives, among them, Lot and his goods. Look at what the Bible says happened next:
Genesis 14:13-16 And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew; for he dwelt in the plain of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol, and brother of Aner: and these were confederate with Abram. {14} And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan. {15} And he divided himself against them, he and his servants, by night, and smote them, and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus. {16} And he brought back all the goods, and also brought again his brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the people.
Abraham was already prepared to defend his or his family’s liberty. All he had to do was arm them (they were working at the time). They were already trained!
Would God the preachers and pastors all across this land of liberty would train their people to be ready to defend their liberties. The time will soon come when it will be too late to do so. Any resistance to any government acting under color of law (illegitimate) will be squashed; and it will be the fault of those who wrongly believed that they are supposed to behave in times of God-given liberty the same way we are supposed to act when under the judgment of God.
I dare say that the time will come when those who think wrongly, will be judged by God via another nation. The irony of it will be that they will think they are martyrs! How silly!
For those who ask, What about a New Testament example? I already gave you the best example from the very lips of our Saviour! But if you need more, check out the fact that the book of Acts lists at least three examples of the apostles standing up for their rights, especially the apostle Paul (I'll let you study to find those references). His ministry was "impeded by litigation" the rest of his life. Yet God used him to win many of Herod's household to Christ and to write several prison epistles. Do you really want to argue that he should not have stood for his rights?
How much more should we who have been given this great gift of liberty. "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." (2 Corinthians 3:17)
I can't help but ask, "Where are the Lester Roloffs? Where are the preachers with the fire of J.Frank Norris? WHere are the Billy Sundays?
Can any preacher or Christian claim to be spirit-filled if they do not care about standing up for their rights and the rights of their fellow citizens against tyranny, especially when those who are acting as tyrants are under oath or affirmation to protect our rights??
If we do not respect our birthright of liberty, God will take it away just like He did Esau's birthright when he did not respect it like he should have. God judged Esau and God will judge America's preachers and Christians if they don't get right with God about the unalienable rights with which He has endowed them.
When a nation is under judgment of God, we can only hope that God will preserve us who stand for truth like He preserved Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. But due to the failure of the disciples, Stephen was killed, James was killed, and later Paul. Eventually all the disciples died as martyrs, except John, who was exiled to Patmos.
It is sad that the trail of biblical churches grew cold and went practically into oblivion after that, until, by God’s preserving grace and mercy, He gave, as He promised, the vineyard and the responsibility of bringing forth fruit to “a nation” – America!
Let’s not drop the ball! Should we bear fruit? Yes! Should we preach the Gospel? Yes! Should we be separated and holy? Yes! Should we baptize those who believe? Yes! And let’s train them to go into all the world and do the same thing. BUT... let’s not forget – WHEN GOD GIVES US LIBERTY, LET’S BE READY IN AN INSTANT TO DEFEND IT SO WE CAN CONTINUE TO OBEY HIS COMMANDS AND BRING FORTH FRUIT!!!!!!!
The greatest difficulty is getting preachers and Christians to understand these principles. The next big difficulty will be to get them to learn how to protect their rights and liberties. I pray they will ask God for wisdom. I will do my part in assembling helpful materials on our website to help in that regard.
May God have mercy on America and open the eyes of its preachers!
I have, therefore, become a very strong proponent of preachers and Christians getting involved in restoring our nation to its constitutional (biblical) roots.
But I have noticed a strong belief permeating the minds of most preachers and Christians, that we should be focused on the work of God: winning souls, baptizing those who believe, training others to serve God, etc., to the exclusion of being involved in the preservation or restoration of constitutional governance.
While I have spent the majority of my life doing my best to serve God, winning souls to Christ, getting them baptized, and training them to do the same; and though I have started one church from scratch and have pastored another church for 13 years now; I see and hear a lot of resistance from preachers when the subject of “politics” comes up.
First of all, I want to say that I despise politics. Now that that's out of the way, I must also say, I love Liberty.
Christians and pastors in particular have forgotten the price that was paid for our Liberty. We have grown fat and sassy living off the sacrifices of others. It is time to toughen up during these “lean” years. We must prepare ourselves to stand up for liberty once more before it is too late.
The American people are waking up to the fact that their freedoms and liberties are being stripped away right before their eyes. What a shame it would be that when they are ready to stand, those who know the Author of Liberty are sound asleep and lethargic due to their lack of diligence to know the law and stand for lawfulness. Look, it is anything but difficult to see that if you do not stand for lawfulness, you allow unlawfulness!
While pondering the reasons why pastors and churches are not standing up like they should be, I believe God has brought some things to my mind, from the Scriptures that ought to be proclaimed.
Please take the time to read this whole article if you care at all for the people of America and the people who could be reached for Christ by the Bible-preaching churches of America. If you don’t care and you are a preacher – resign!
There are two main principles that I believe are being overlooked and not understood which are the cause of most Christians and pastors not getting involved in the governance of their communities, states and nation:
#1 – The behavior of God’s people while suffering under the judgment of God is to be different in certain aspects than when they are being blessed by God.
#2 – The behavior of God’s people when God has given them liberty is to be different in many aspects than when they are being judged by God.
If we use only the New Testament for principles in living, we may be misapplying many of the principles and bring about circumstances that will leave us no other choice but to live as the disciples did during the New Testament era.
Let me illustrate.
If a person is living under conditions that require rationing of food, he will conserve his energy as energy burns up the nutrition that food supplies the body, which in turn leads to the need of more food.
Conversely, if a person who HAS plenty of food, rations his food and conserves energy, he will work less (to conserve his energy), thus producing less. As a consequence, he will begin to rely on and use up his food supply and soon reach the point where he will HAVE to ration his food and conserve his energy.
Likewise, if we live according to New Testament commands only, we will soon have no choice but to live according to them because we will move from the condition represented by Old Testament Israel to the condition of New Testament Israel. This is the fatal mistake (to our country) that Christians, and preachers in particular, have been making for decades – all my life for sure. We must live by the “whole counsel of God” and understand why He gave principles and commands in the New Testament that seem to contradict the principles and commands in the Old Testament.
Let’s look at some of them.
In the Old Testament, God raised up a nation (Israel) to be “for a people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory” unto Him. (2 Samuel 7:24; Jeremiah 13:11) He wanted one nation to be a witness for Him to the rest of the nations.
He gave them His written Word. As long as they followed His Word and the leading of the prophets, they prospered. Remember, the kings went to the prophets to enquire of the will of God relating to all sorts of things, but especially for counsel before battles with enemy nations. In other words, the prophets were involved in government affairs!
But Israel departed from God, so He delivered them into the hands of the Gentiles. It was a see-saw ordeal - revival after apostasy, and then apostasy after revival - back and forth. But gradually the apostasy overcame the spirit of revival. Prophets became fewer in number, or at least less conspicuous to where Elijah thought he was the only one left standing. (1 Kings 19:9-10) But, of course, he was wrong. (1 Kings 19:18)
When God sent Jeremiah to prophesy against Judah, at one point, some men decided that since judgment was coming and they could not avoid it, they would move to Egypt. God told Jeremiah to tell them that the sword would follow them. (Jeremiah 42:1-16) Why? Because the judgment of God cannot be escaped from, we can only hope that by our righteousness we would be spared by God, not from the judgment, but from dying as a result of the judgment “until that He have mercy” (Psalm 123:2).
This same principle is found in the book of Ruth. God judged Israel by sending famine to the land. Elimelech decided that rather than endure it, he would escape it. He left Bethlehem-Judah (“house of bread and praise”) and went to Moab with his wife and two sons. It did not go well for him there. He died; his two sons died; and only his wife and one daughter-in-law came back home to Israel many years later. She changed her name to Mara, which means bitter, as a result of having borne the judgment of God in the land to which she and her husband had fled to escape it.
The reason I give these illustrations is because in the New Testament, Israel was suffering under the judgment of God. The Roman Empire was oppressing Israel. It was not all that bad, unless you rebelled against them. And since the judgment was of God, Jesus gave the people specific principles and commands on how to endure and even prosper. He said things like, “whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also”, which, if you look at the actual words He used, He was telling them (and us) specific conditions to which this command applied. When an authority figure disciplines a subordinate, it is often with a backhand slap. That is a mark of humiliation and is intended to cause submission. When you slap with the back hand (most people are right-handed) the hand will land on the RIGHT cheek of the one being slapped. As a sign of submission to the powers ordained of God as a tool of divine judgment, Jesus told the people to turn the other (LEFT) cheek also.
The same principle applies to the other commands He gave regarding “going the extra mile”. The desire of empire-building pastors to build their ministries and get their people to work more (for less or nothing; hence, the many sermons on "Going the Extra Mile"), and the sincere (but semi-ignorant) desire of pastors to motivate their people to serve God has led to the concealment of the true meaning of Jesus’ instructions, thus hiding from people the importance of the distinctions between how to live in liberty and how to live under oppression.
Let’s fast forward to the era of the birth of America. For years, God’s people had languished under persecution in Europe. So began a growing emigration from Europe to the New World. Colonies were established, many of them by church groups, desiring freedom from persecution. Businessmen either accompanied or soon followed, and the colonists flourished. As English subjects, the colonists were quite willing to remain subjects to the king of England. However, over time, they began to realize that the king did not view them as subjects with rights of Englishmen, but treated them as foreigners under occupation. He was more concerned about profiting from the colonists than he was the colonists being successful and their success being a shining example of the greatness of the British Empire.
Since the colonists were not being afforded their rights, but were having their rights trampled more and more, something had to give. This was not a judgment from God, as the same thing was not happening to their brethren back home. It was tyranny and wrong. They decided such illegitimate ill-treatment should not be allowed to continue, so after making one last plea that was derided, and summarily rejected (the Olive Branch Treaty) by both the king and Parliament, they declared their right to separate. (See the “Annotated Declaration of Independence”, by yours truly, by clicking here.)
During the Constitutional Convention, much emphasis was placed on maintaining the principles expressed in the Declaration of Independence, i.e., protecting the rights of the people by making it clear that they were the sovereigns. The Preamble establishes that with the words, “We the People, in order to… do ordain and establish this Constitution FOR the United States of America”. The Constitution was ordained BY the People, not FOR them, but FOR the government they established as their servant with its limitations clearly enumerated. Thus, We the People are the higher power. That totally changes the meaning, falsely established in the minds of most Christians, of Romans 13, which says in verse 1, “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers.” Since we the People are the higher powers, we must all “be subject one to another” (1 Peter 5:5). In other words, subject to the unalienable rights that God has given each of us.
James Madison said, “We have staked the whole future of American civilization not upon the power of government - far from it. We have staked the future of all of our political institutions upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God.”
So our country was founded on the power of each of us to govern ourselves. That makes us the “bosses”. Yet most Christians are taught that we are to always submit to the power of government. Why are we taught that? Because of the lack of understanding of the conditions present at the giving of various principles and commands in the Old Testament and the New Testament.
Now, let’s look at the New Testament and you will see that the principles of the Old Testament are still present, and given, in fact, by Jesus Christ Himself because He knew the future and wanted to prepare His disciples for it.
Luke 22:35-38 And he said unto them, When I sent you without purse, and scrip, and shoes, lacked ye any thing? And they said, Nothing. {36} Then said he unto them, But now, he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise his scrip: and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one. {37} For I say unto you, that this that is written must yet be accomplished in me, And he was reckoned among the transgressors: for the things concerning me have an end. {38} And they said, Lord, behold, here are two swords. And he said unto them, It is enough.
Here Jesus makes a clear distinction between how to live under occupation and how to live when the occupation ends. Earlier He sent His disciples out without purse, scrip or shoes (or sword), but now He prepares them for what is going to come. He knows the Roman Empire will collapse. So He wisely prepares them way ahead of time. He says, “but now…” and proceeds to list the things He forbade them to take earlier and adds, “he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment, and buy one.” (vs. 36)
As their Pastor, He is preparing them not to go on the offense and force people to believe in Him, but to defend their right to believe and preach the gospel! His intention that they keep their arms is seen when, after Peter takes a swing at one of the men in the mob that came to arrest Jesus, He says, “Put up again thy sword into his place.” (Matthew 26:52) Jesus does not scold him. He does not tell him to turn his sword over to the soldiers. He tells him to put it where it goes – in the sheath, so he’ll have it for later! Now is the time for Jesus to be taken and crucified as “the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world”. (John 1:29) He makes this clear by saying, “But how then shall the scriptures be fulfilled?” (Matthew 26:54)
As their Pastor, He has to prepare them before He is taken from them, and also so they will not be arrested when He is arrested. It is not time for the disciples to use their sword in defense. Jesus confirms this when He arranges for His disciples to be let go. (John 18:8)
But when they say, “Lord, here are two swords,” He, not wanting them to interfere with His plan to be taken and crucified for their sins and the sins of the whole world, said, “It is enough.” In other words, it is enough for now. You can get more swords to protect yourselves later, after I’m gone.
History shows us that they did not obey that command very well, and hence, when persecution broke out, they were scattered. Of course it can be argued that that was a good thing, but who’s to say so? What would the world be like if they had successfully defended themselves and the People had rallied behind them? We don’t know that either. One thing we do know is that it was said of them, “These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also.” (Acts 17:6) That could have still happened, even if they had defended themselves from the Pharisees.
Another thing we know is that the world went through what is called the “Dark Ages” for centuries. During this time persecution after persecution had to be endured by God’s people, I believe, because of the failure to obey this particular command of Jesus.
By the grace of God, a new world was discovered – America, a new “promised land”. It was here that God called some of His people to come and form communities built on principles of liberty. These communities, colonies, became States. After fighting a war for independence from a tyrannical king, these States banded together to form a union of States under the Articles of Confederation. Finding the government under the Articles to be inefficient for defending all the States, it was determined, at a Convention, to amend the Articles, to start over with a new constitution.
For their Constitution they adopted many biblical principles of liberty. But before ratification, the People demanded a Bill of Rights be added. (A “bill” is a declaration. When a waitress or plumber, for example, gives you a bill, it is a declaration of what you owe them for the services they rendered to you.) They also granted (We the People are the grantors), certain powers (which we still have the right to take back) to certain branches of government in a method designed to keep a check on the abuse of power and to balance it out through the various branches of government to prevent any branch from becoming too powerful or tyrannical. Thus, limited, delegated powers were enumerated (numbered out, hence Article _, Section _) in the Constitution. Only those powers constitute the powers of the government. All other powers are reserved to the States, respectively (because they all have different constitutions), or to the People.
Here’s something most Christians do not know. The rise of this great nation was foretold by Jesus Christ, Himself.
Matthew 21:33-43 Hear another parable: There was a certain householder, which planted a vineyard, and hedged it round about, and digged a winepress in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country:
34 And when the time of the fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandmen, that they might receive the fruits of it.
35 And the husbandmen took his servants, and beat one, and killed another, and stoned another.
36 Again, he sent other servants more than the first: and they did unto them likewise.
37 But last of all he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son.
38 But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance.
39 And they caught him, and cast him out of the vineyard, and slew him.
40 When the lord therefore of the vineyard cometh, what will he do unto those husbandmen?
41 They say unto him, He will miserably destroy those wicked men, and will let out his vineyard unto other husbandmen, which shall render him the fruits in their seasons.
42 Jesus saith unto them, Did ye never read in the scriptures, The stone which the builders rejected, the same is become the head of the corner: this is the Lord's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes?
43 Therefore say I unto you, The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.
In this parable, Jesus gives the history of Israel, prophesies his death at the hands of the Pharisees, and foretells the rise of “a nation” that would bring forth the fruits of the kingdom of God. No nation in history fulfills that prophecy like America. Look at all the fruit (souls saved) that has come from the liberty to preach the gospel both in America and in countries all over the world through missionaries sent from America!
No wonder Satan has been busy trying to destroy our liberty. The fruit of the tree of liberty is people enlightened with the gospel and living righteously. Proverbs 14:34 says, Righteousness exalteth a nation: but sin is a reproach to any people. Conversely, the Bible says in Psalms 9:17, The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God.
Isn’t it interesting that the second amendment to our Constitution declares that the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed? God wants us to defend our liberties and prolong our days in the land He has given us!
The second amendment was not declared so we could go hunting or target shooting. It was to remind those in government to fear the real kings – We the People! Do not violate our rights! As Romans 13: 4 says, “he beareth not the sword in vain.”
Thomas Jefferson wisely said, “When governments fear the People, there is liberty. When the People fear the government, there is tyranny.”
All nations either have a government that secures their liberty, or a government that restricts liberty and controls the people. In Paul’s day, the government (Rome) controlled the conquered people and kept them in submission. In our day, We the People are the power and we set up a government to protect our liberty. It still exists (the Constitution has not been repealed or replaced, just ignored and violated); but is under attack and its influence has been eroded due to the negligence of God’s people, especially preachers.
What we have today is a government, that should be bound by the Constitution, running roughshod over the rights of the People because preachers are afraid to proclaim the wrongs of the public servants. We think we are doing a great job because we can preach good sermons to the choir in a beautiful, comfortable building, built with the permission of the local government, and win a few timid souls here and there; but where are the John the Baptists who preach to the public servants and keep them in check? Herod wasn’t even a public servant as we have. He was a king. John the Baptist was braver than anybody who stands up today against the wrongs of government because he stood against a king. We can only stand against servants and we are too weak to even do that! God pity us! God have mercy on us!
I hope that as you read this you are getting a better understanding of what I meant about the two principles I mentioned earlier:
#1 – The behavior of God’s people while suffering under the judgment of God is to be different in certain aspects than when they are being blessed by God with liberty.
#2 – The behavior of God’s people when God has given them liberty is to be different in many aspects than when they are being judged by God.
If we behave as Jesus commanded those who were under the occupation of Rome to behave, as they endured the judgment of God until He delivered them, we cannot at the same time behave like the people of Israel did when the Lord was their King. (Isaiah 33:22) We cannot have liberty when we act like slaves. Liberty produces industry, ingenuity, inventions and abundant blessings, as American history shows. Slavery, on the other hand, stunts industry, ingenuity and inventions, and is clearly not a blessing from God, as the Dark Ages clearly showed. So, if we are a free People, we must act like it. We must act like we are sovereigns - otherwise we will cease to be sovereigns. Like the person who rations food while there is abundance and conserves his energy soon is forced to conserve energy and ration food, we will soon cease to have the energy or personal productivity to exercise our liberty if we are too busy conserving it.
Liberty is intended to be used. It is not a badge or a bumper sticker. It is an atmosphere where one can do what he ought to do without fear of anyone forbidding him; and one of the things he ought to do is defend liberty.
Now, regarding the issue of priorities of churches and preachers who get involved in government affairs, there are biblical principles that we must consider.
Most preachers, as you well know, prefer to be disengaged from “politics”, or at least they are careful to not get too involved. The centuries that preceded the rise of America should have taught us well that liberty must be maintained or slavery, oppression and persecution will prevail. Someone once said, “The price of liberty is eternal vigilance.” How true!
The Bible also says, “…where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” (2 Corinthians 3:17) This proves that the Spirit of the Lord produced the “spirit of 1776”! Any honest study of the founding fathers of our country reveals that they had great reverence for God and His Word. The Spirit of God always blesses those who honour His Word. Honouring God’s Word does not mean to make a statue of it, or a coffee table display, but to believe it and live by it. If God gives us the gift of liberty, we must not despise it like Esau despised his birthright, or God will take it away (another biblical principle). We must value it and fight for it. Naboth would not sell his vineyard to Ahab because of his respect for the Word of God, which forbade selling the inheritance (land) of his fathers. (1 Kings 21:1-16) It cost him his life because he was under a tyrant. Israel had turned away from God. Ahab and Jezebel were serving the false god Baal. Thus a loss of liberty occurred.
The Israelites went into captivity because of their turning away from God and His Word. After seventy years of captivity (judgment), God gave them liberty. When Nehemiah, with proper authority, went to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, he faced resistance from tyrants who were not following the “law”. God gives us this story to teach us a very important principle regarding priorities in the struggle to maintain liberty. Nehemiah did not go there in rebellion to the king. He went there with freedom and liberty to do what God wanted Him to do – rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.
It was out-of-control “politicians” who gave him resistance. So what did he do? Did he say, “Well, I must submit to the higher powers, and this Sanballat seems to be a higher power. Oh, well, I’ll just try to win souls and not rock the boat?” NO! He did not. He stood against Sanballat. But that’s not all. Look at the change he made in the prioritization of the use of the resources he had at his command.
Nehemiah 4:16 And it came to pass from that time forth, that the half of my servants wrought in the work, and the other half of them held both the spears, the shields, and the bows, and the habergeons; and the rulers were behind all the house of Judah.
This clearly shows that when their liberties were under attack, instead of 100% of the people working on the wall, only 50% worked on the wall. The other 50% were diverted from the work of building the wall to protecting their right to do the work of God. Why, for Jesus’ sake, are there not more churches doing this? When our right to preach the gospel, to travel without a license, to build a building for our God without a building permit, etc., is being infringed, preachers ought to be devoting at least 50% of their resources to defend their right to do the work of God!
But that’s not all!
Nehemiah 4:17 They which builded on the wall, and they that bare burdens, with those that laded, every one with one of his hands wrought in the work, and with the other hand held a weapon.
Of the 50% that worked on the wall, they each held a weapon in one hand. So 50% of the 50% were also dedicated to the defense of the right to do the work of God! That’s another 25%, for a grand total of 75 % of their resources! I am absolutely convinced that unless we get close to that percentage of dedicated resources in the defense of our right to exercise our religion freely, we will lose all our rights. We will soon see government licensing every aspect of our ministries. It has already begun and preachers are kowtowing to the government left and right because they do not understand the biblical principles of liberty.
Another example of prioritization in the work of God in a time when liberty is at stake is in II Kings. Here we will see the way God led His people to restore liberty after the tyranny of Ahab and Jezebel, referenced earlier by the story of Naboth. Upon the death of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Athaliah, the wife of Ahaziah, slew all of the seed royal so she could be queen and rule in the absence of her husband. Athaliah was the daughter of Ahab, whose wife was the infamous Jezebel. Unknown to her, Jehosheba, her sister, rescued the youngest, Joash (also called Jehoash), and hid him in the house of the Lord where he was trained and brought up for seven years by Jehoiada the high priest.
Let the Bible tell the story from here:
2 Kings 11:4-11 And the seventh year Jehoiada sent and fetched the rulers over hundreds, with the captains and the guard, and brought them to him into the house of the LORD, and made a covenant with them, and took an oath of them in the house of the LORD, and showed them the king's son. {5} And he commanded them, saying, This is the thing that ye shall do; A third part of you that enter in on the sabbath shall even be keepers of the watch of the king's house; {6} And a third part shall be at the gate of Sur; and a third part at the gate behind the guard: so shall ye keep the watch of the house, that it be not broken down. {7} And two parts of all you that go forth on the sabbath, even they shall keep the watch of the house of the LORD about the king. {8} And ye shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand: and he that cometh within the ranges, let him be slain: and be ye with the king as he goeth out and as he cometh in. {9} And the captains over the hundreds did according to all things that Jehoiada the priest commanded: and they took every man his men that were to come in on the sabbath, with them that should go out on the sabbath, and came to Jehoiada the priest. {10} And to the captains over hundreds did the priest give king David's spears and shields, that were in the temple of the LORD. {11} And the guard stood, every man with his weapons in his hand, round about the king, from the right corner of the temple to the left corner of the temple, along by the altar and the temple.
Notice that Jehoiada, a high priest, organizes the servants of the Lord in the house of God to fight! “For shame!” “Stick with the fundamental task of winning souls,” is what many of today’s preachers would say if they lived back then and were consistent with the stand (or lack thereof) they take now on Christians’ involvement in government.
Now, notice the percentage of the servants of the Lord who served in the House of God that Jehoiada organized into a fighting force to defend the LEGITIMATE king:
1) One-third (33%) of the priests and Levites that were to begin their month’s term of service that Sabbath day were given weapons (armed – “Lock and load, Buddy”) and commanded to keep watch over the king’s house. (vs. 5)
2) One-third (33%) of the same course of priests and Levites were armed and commanded to keep watch at the gate Sur. (vs. 6a)
3) One-third (33%) of the same course of priests and Levites were armed and commanded to keep watch behind those guarding the gate Sur. (vs. 6b)
What percentage of all the priests that were coming in to their “shift” were assigned to guard duty with arms? 100%!
But that’s not all!
There were priests and Levites who had just finished their monthly term of duty and were headed home. Two thirds (66%) were commandeered to stand watch around the house of the Lord and around the 7-year-old king!
Now, if the people of God did that in the Old Testament, why can’t we in America, who have been given liberty by the same God, have the same respect and fighting spirit to hold onto what God has given us? It was protecting and fighting for the life of their king that restored their liberty, which was being stripped from them under the tyrant, Athaliah.
One last example, given in Genesis 14:
Abraham was a man that God knew would stand for truth when he heard it, so God called him out of his father’s house, in Ur of the Chaldees (Genesis 12), and led him to the land he promised to give him and his seed for ever.
Abraham had great faith in God, and was called “the Friend of God”. (James 2:23) He is also called the “father of all them that believe”, as well as the “father of us all" [believers]. (Romans 4:11,16)
Abraham had a nephew, Lot, whom he had raised after the death of Lot’s father. To make a long story short, after Lot was grown, he moved and eventually ended up in Sodom.
Four kings of nearby nations united to conquer other kings and their cities and plunder them. They attacked Sodom and carried away many captives, among them, Lot and his goods. Look at what the Bible says happened next:
Genesis 14:13-16 And there came one that had escaped, and told Abram the Hebrew; for he dwelt in the plain of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshcol, and brother of Aner: and these were confederate with Abram. {14} And when Abram heard that his brother was taken captive, he armed his trained servants, born in his own house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued them unto Dan. {15} And he divided himself against them, he and his servants, by night, and smote them, and pursued them unto Hobah, which is on the left hand of Damascus. {16} And he brought back all the goods, and also brought again his brother Lot, and his goods, and the women also, and the people.
Abraham was already prepared to defend his or his family’s liberty. All he had to do was arm them (they were working at the time). They were already trained!
Would God the preachers and pastors all across this land of liberty would train their people to be ready to defend their liberties. The time will soon come when it will be too late to do so. Any resistance to any government acting under color of law (illegitimate) will be squashed; and it will be the fault of those who wrongly believed that they are supposed to behave in times of God-given liberty the same way we are supposed to act when under the judgment of God.
I dare say that the time will come when those who think wrongly, will be judged by God via another nation. The irony of it will be that they will think they are martyrs! How silly!
For those who ask, What about a New Testament example? I already gave you the best example from the very lips of our Saviour! But if you need more, check out the fact that the book of Acts lists at least three examples of the apostles standing up for their rights, especially the apostle Paul (I'll let you study to find those references). His ministry was "impeded by litigation" the rest of his life. Yet God used him to win many of Herod's household to Christ and to write several prison epistles. Do you really want to argue that he should not have stood for his rights?
How much more should we who have been given this great gift of liberty. "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." (2 Corinthians 3:17)
I can't help but ask, "Where are the Lester Roloffs? Where are the preachers with the fire of J.Frank Norris? WHere are the Billy Sundays?
Can any preacher or Christian claim to be spirit-filled if they do not care about standing up for their rights and the rights of their fellow citizens against tyranny, especially when those who are acting as tyrants are under oath or affirmation to protect our rights??
If we do not respect our birthright of liberty, God will take it away just like He did Esau's birthright when he did not respect it like he should have. God judged Esau and God will judge America's preachers and Christians if they don't get right with God about the unalienable rights with which He has endowed them.
When a nation is under judgment of God, we can only hope that God will preserve us who stand for truth like He preserved Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. But due to the failure of the disciples, Stephen was killed, James was killed, and later Paul. Eventually all the disciples died as martyrs, except John, who was exiled to Patmos.
It is sad that the trail of biblical churches grew cold and went practically into oblivion after that, until, by God’s preserving grace and mercy, He gave, as He promised, the vineyard and the responsibility of bringing forth fruit to “a nation” – America!
Let’s not drop the ball! Should we bear fruit? Yes! Should we preach the Gospel? Yes! Should we be separated and holy? Yes! Should we baptize those who believe? Yes! And let’s train them to go into all the world and do the same thing. BUT... let’s not forget – WHEN GOD GIVES US LIBERTY, LET’S BE READY IN AN INSTANT TO DEFEND IT SO WE CAN CONTINUE TO OBEY HIS COMMANDS AND BRING FORTH FRUIT!!!!!!!
The greatest difficulty is getting preachers and Christians to understand these principles. The next big difficulty will be to get them to learn how to protect their rights and liberties. I pray they will ask God for wisdom. I will do my part in assembling helpful materials on our website to help in that regard.
May God have mercy on America and open the eyes of its preachers!