Parent Category:Politics

The 1776 report has been archived

In the closing days of Trump’s presidency, The 1776 Commission released its report. The 1776 commission was authorized by Trump as a counter to Leftist revisionist history. It was written specifically to counter the thesis of the 1619 Project, ‘in which its lead author Nikole Hannah-Jones argues that “one of the primary reasons the colonists decided to declare their independence from Britain was because they wanted to protect the institution of slavery.” She adds that: “Anti-black racism runs in the very DNA of this country.” ‘

The 1619 Project is not substantiated by the historical record, and only makes sense if one views history through a Neo-Marxist lens via Critical Theory. Critical Theory is not scientific, but an untestable and gnostic conspiracy theory. The 1776 Commission Report is a good antidote.

The Christian Post does a good write-up of the report, with a link to the original URL of the publication on the White House Web site. Within one hour of President Biden’s inauguration, it was removed from the White House Website. I have taken the liberty of archiving the The-Presidents-Advisory-1776-Commission-Final-Report which I downloaded on January 19, 2021. It should be noted, that like all other  publications of the United States Government, that this is public domain for any one to copy or republish.

The Church and the Pursuit of Justice

In the last post I quoted Luke 4:18-21 which gives us the definition of the gospel that was prophesied in Isaiah 61. In the last post I covered on how the gospel was to be advanced using private property rights. I noted that there was only one provision that instructed the police power.

The command to “set at liberty them that are bruised” directly addresses slavery, tyranny, and oppression.  Addressing these issues involves addressing the police power.

Psalm 89:14 instructs us that “Justice and judgment are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face.” Justice is the very foundation of God’s kingdom. All of God’s ways are necessarily right and true.

Scripture commands authorities to do justice. The purpose of government is the general welfare and  deterrence of  evil. We are commanded to subject ourselves to government out of the law of love. The obligation to love is the only thing we owe anybody. The government does not own us and deserves allegiance only as that allegiance fulfills the law of love in seeking justice for our neighbors

1 Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. 2 Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: 4 For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil. 5 Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake. 6 For for this cause pay ye tribute also: for they are God’s ministers, attending continually upon this very thing. 7 Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour. 8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.

Romans 13:1-8

This is echoed in Psalm 82 with a specific emphasis on the state doing justice. It should be noted here that ‘Elohiym’ comes from Hebrew root meaning mighty one(compare Strong H433 and H410). God is using wordplay to condemn both statoltry (worship of the state) and  the failure of the state to do justice and execute judgment for those who are oppressed. Verse 6 is a reference to Exodus 22:28 where ‘elohiym’ is used to refer to local magistrates rather as a genetic term for God.

1 A Psalm of Asaph. God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods. 2 How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah. 3 Defend the poor and fatherless: do justice to the afflicted and needy. 4 Deliver the poor and needy: rid them out of the hand of the wicked. 5 They know not, neither will they understand; they walk on in darkness: all the foundations of the earth are out of course. 6 I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High. 7 But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes. 8 Arise, O God, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations.

Psalm 82

In Genesis 18:19, we are instructed that teaching and advocating Justice is an essential part of God Covenantal program. Here, God says of Abraham, “For I know him, that he will command his children and his household after him, and they shall keep the way of the LORD, to do justice and judgment; that the LORD may bring upon Abraham that which he hath spoken of him.”  This goes way beyond Moses. The Abrahamic Covenant is also the basis of the New Covenant (Romans 4). The commands to seek Justice are for today.

Many of the passages on justice in Scripture imply the end of the rule of sinful corrupt humanity. In Psalm 10 we read that God will “judge the fatherless and the oppressed, that the man of the earth may no more oppress.” In Psalm 82: 8 we read “Arise, O God, judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit all nations.” Scripture anticipates the ultimate failure of human justice. Isaiah 59:15-16 tells us  “Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the LORD saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment. And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him. ” In the next installment  I will give instruction on how spiritual warfare will bring justice to the earth.

Addendum: Verses  addressing Justice, injustice, and oppression

Here are some passages that address Justice, injustice, and oppression and God’;s concern for getting justice for those who are oppressed

Read more

The Power of the Church: The Compassionate Use of Private Property Rights

The church is called to use her property rights to assist those who are in need in a sustainable way. In the parable of the Talents, different individuals were assigned resources at  a level they could sustainably develop that would both provide for their own needs, advance God’s kingdom and care for others.

In the Parable of the Talents, God – specifically Christ – as the Master of the Household of God gave private property to His servants. They received according to their ability and were to go into the marketplace. It should be apparent that the Master had police power as He was able to cast the unprofitable servant “into outer darkness.” He could have sent His servants to the marketplace with swords to conquer His enemies. He does not do so. He dis not send them to Ceasar to play the harlot to gain special favors from the household of Ceasar. He send them into the marketplace to manage what He delivered to them using  the delegated private property rights to engage in commerce to increase the wealth they had been given.

How this private property is to be used
One insight as to how we are to use our private property rights is found in the fact that the Lord’s parable echoes Deuteronomy 8:18 “But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day. ”   The purpose of the dispensation of the power to get wealth is to provide the means to administer the covenant. Deuteronomy was written in the context of the Mosaic Covenant. The Lord Jesus, in the parable of the Talents, sought its application in  the New Testament Church. Wealth was given so that the gospel might go forth.

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him. And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.

(Luke 4:18-21)

This passage is the very definition of what the gospel is. The Lord has anointed His servants to propagate the gospel to do seven specific activities, six of which Jesus  cites in His synagogue reading. (More on the seventh in the next installment.)

He hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. This is the good news of the cross and the resurrection of Christ. We are all poor in this context, needing a Saviour!!!

He hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted. The gospel provides for emotional healing.

He hath sent me to preach deliverance to the captives. The gospel provides for liberty from all addictions due to sin through application of the word of God with power.

He hath sent me to recover the  sight to the blind. The gospel provides for physical healing through both supernatural prayer of faith and by mean of Christ followers using their private property rights to pursue medical treatment.

He hath sent me to set at liberty them that are bruised. We are to advocate for the rights of the oppressed. This is the only provision of the gospel that compels us to directly address the police power of the communities where we live. We are called to advocate for the rights of all who are oppressed. The church of late  has miserably failed in this area, which is sad given that it is the church of Jesus Christ that brought to the world liberty and benevolence ministry. Prior to the gospel, the world was a very harsh place.  This is also the only provision of the gospel that provides for redistribution of wealth through either private means or the police power.

He hath sent me to preach the acceptable year of the Lord. This is simply proclaiming that the grace of God has appeared to all humanity. Grace is available to “whosoever,” and we are saved by grace through faith. This grace has freely available to all men and is manifested through various means. It is also libertarian (unlike modern socialism) as it is not forced on anyone who does not wish to receive it. This grace touches the whole of human experience, spiritual, intellectual, social, and physical (Luke 2:52). As such the people of God are called to minister to the whole human experience, including social and physical; needs. Matthew 25:31-46 gives a summary teaching of the “social gospel.” We know it is a summation of the entirety of the social aspect of the gospel because it is being used here to determine the eternal destiny of individuals. This should not be interpreted as salvation by works or salvation by philanthropy. The Bible repeatedly says salvation is by grace alone (compare Eph 2:8-9 and the book of Galatians). We should see this as a “by their fruits you shall know them” moment. Those who brought their own oil  and have a personal relationship with Christ through faith and have received the anointing of the Holy Spirit will act differently than those who walk by the flesh.

When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:

And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me. Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink? When saw we thee a stranger, and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee? Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee? And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels: For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me no drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me not in: naked, and ye clothed me not: sick, and in prison, and ye visited me not. Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when saw we thee an hungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto thee? Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these, ye did it not to me. And these shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.

(Mat 25:31-46)

Notice that this judgment begins by a gathering of the nations. however, this is not a judgment of the collective entity of nations. The reason we know this is that these “shall go away into everlasting punishment: but the righteous into life eternal.” Nations do not have eternal souls; they are only the matrix of the individual souls that have identified with them. If a nations loses each and every one of its citizens to death or repatriation, its soul ceases to exist.

The judgment is inaugurated by separating the nations into only two groups: this would be sheep and goats that are both composed of individuals who do have eternal souls. This means, that at the moment the books are opened to begin the process, that the individuals being judged were no longer identified with their nationalities within the context of this judgment.  When the Lord convenes judgment  based on how well or poorly people fulfilled their social responsibility,  He judges them as individuals and not as states. In this judgment,  leaders such as Donald Trump will not be judged as the President of the United States or other leadership position but as individuals.  World leaders,  will of course,  answer to God for their actions as leaders (Psalm 2.)  The judgment for these was intentionally hidden in the context of Matthew 25:31-46 because the Biblical mandate for social justice applies to how people use their property rights to minister their wealth and time to the vulnerable; this set of mandates was not intended to apply to the police powers of the world.

 

It is in the context of the compassionate use of private property rights that are to care for the aliens and foreigners in our midst.  Leviticus 19:33-34   was not meant to prevent the use of police power of  communities from protecting their borders from potential threats. It was meant to address how individuals used their property rights to minister to the foreigners in their communities. While this passage does not constrain the United States government,  its moral principles do instruct how the Church should behave

And if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not vex him. But the stranger that dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.

(Lev 19:33-34)

We have discussed the compassionate use of private property rights that as a weapon of the Church. It is in the Church that the Lord does the subversive thing of turning private property rights into police power when it is done under the anointing of the Holy Spirit. There is, however, a place where we pursue the use of police power in pursuing justice,  which is the topic of the next installment.

 

 

The Power of the Church: Private Property Rights

The Church uses spiritual power and private property rights to advance the Kingdom. The 25th chapter of Matthew lays out the two fold application of the police power of the church. Verses 1-13 are the parable of the Ten Virgins. Ten virgins prepare to meet the bridegroom at night with lamps. Five of them are wise enough to take extra oil with them. The five foolish ones do not. The oil symbolizes the Holy Spirit and specifically the anointing.  The Lamps symbolize the preaching of the Word of God under the anointing of the Holy Spirit. The extra oil symbolizes the individual person’s relationship to God. Only those who have cultivated their own personal relationship with God and having received their own anointing from God will be ready to meet Christ at His Coming. Verse 14-30 contains the second parable, called the Parable of the Talents, described a master distributing his private property to His servants. The servants then exercise the delegated private property rights in the marketplace. The Master is Christ, but neither his delegation nor His servants exercise of it  involves the use of His divine police power but of private property rights. Verse 31-46 contain the third and last section which describes the scene at the Final Judgment where people are separated between the sheep and goats and judged on whether they use their private property rights to help the vulnerable.

Using private property rights to advance God’s Kingdom
The church is called to use her property rights to assist those who are in need in a sustainable way. In the parable of the Talents, different individuals were assigned resources at  a level they could sustainably develop that would both provide for their own needs, advance God’s kingdom, and care for others.

In the Parable of the Talents, God – specifically Christ – as the Master of the Household of God gave private property to His servants. They received according to their ability and were to go into the marketplace. It should be apparent that the Master has police power as He was able to cast the unprofitable servant “into outer darkness.” He had both power and authority to  send His servants to the marketplace with swords to conquer His enemies. He does not do so. He also did not send them to Ceasar to play the harlot to gain special favors from the household of Ceasar. He send them into the marketplace to manage what He delivered to them using  the delegated private property rights to engage in commerce to increase the wealth they had been given.

For the kingdom of heaven is as a man travelling into a far country, who called his own servants, and delivered unto them his goods. And unto one he gave five talents, to another two, and to another one; to every man according to his several ability; and straightway took his journey. Then he that had received the five talents went and traded with the same, and made them other five talents. And likewise he that had received two, he also gained other two. But he that had received one went and digged in the earth, and hid his lord’s money.

After a long time the lord of those servants cometh, and reckoneth with them. And so he that had received five talents came and brought other five talents, saying, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me five talents: behold, I have gained beside them five talents more. His lord said unto him, Well done, thou good and faithful servant: thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

He also that had received two talents came and said, Lord, thou deliveredst unto me two talents: behold, I have gained two other talents beside them. His lord said unto him, Well done, good and faithful servant; thou hast been faithful over a few things, I will make thee ruler over many things: enter thou into the joy of thy lord.

Then he which had received the one talent came and said, Lord, I knew thee that thou art an hard man, reaping where thou hast not sown, and gathering where thou hast not strawed: And I was afraid, and went and hid thy talent in the earth: lo, there thou hast that is thine.

His lord answered and said unto him, Thou wicked and slothful servant, thou knewest that I reap where I sowed not, and gather where I have not strawed: Thou oughtest therefore to have put my money to the exchangers, and then at my coming I should have received mine own with usury. Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents. For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
(Mat 25:14-30)

The first two servants were skilled servants. They could actually run  businesses and successfully used those skills as merchants in the marketplace to double the wealth they had been given. The third guy was not skilled. He was also lazy. While he did not have the skills to succeed in the marketplace as a business person, he could have deposited the money in  the bank and allowed the bankers to grow his investment.

The third servant was also wicked in  that he was only concerned about his own hide and not the welfare of the Master who had entrusted him with these resources. Contrast his words “I was afraid.” with the words of the first two servants “Lord, thou deliveredst unto me… talents: behold, I have gained beside them… talents more. ” Their focus on the Lord. The two faithful servants were like the five wise virgins. They had cultivated a personal relationship with their Master and were willing to take risk to advance their Masters interests in the marketplace.  The third servant was like the foolish virgins who did not cultivate their own relationship with the Master and sat on his masters wealth.

 

Notice that there is no scenario where the Master returned to find his servants having faithfully  tried but failed. This would seem odd as we see such in  the world quite frequently. It is common for people to try their best and be faithful but fail due to a number  of factors beyond their control. This passage assumes success. The Lord Jesus had previously given the parable of the Ten Virgins. The righteous are those who have cultivated a personal relationship to the Holy Spirit and received anointing from God.  With this comes wisdom and power to do what the Lord wants. In Revelation 5:6 Christ  is revealed as “Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.” The Seven Spirits of God that Christ has is a reference to the Holy Spirit. The connection to the Seven Eyes is a reference to 2 Chronicles 16:9 “For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect [Completely Devoted] toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars. ” Those who have cultivated a relationship with the Holy Spirit will have complete devotion  to the Lord. For such God will look out for you for your good. The eyes of the Lord also carries a deeper meaning. In the Standard Interpretation of quantum mechanics, physical reality exists as information defined by a wave function which collapses into material reality when an observer conducts a measurement on the wave function. The eyes of the Lord conduct such measurements to manifest the hidden realities ordained by His Word into the physical realm.

In the words of Don Moen

Oh, God will make a way
Where there seems to be no way
He works in ways we cannot see
He will make a way for me

How this private property is to be used
One insight as to how we are to use our private property rights is found in the fact that the Lord’s parable echoes Deuteronomy 8:18 “But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day. ”   The purpose of the dispensation of the power to get wealth is to provide the means to administer the covenant. Deuteronomy was written in the context of the Mosaic Covenant. The Lord Jesus, in the parable of the Talents, sought its application in  the New Testament Church. Wealth was given so that the gospel might go forth.