Category Archives: Theonomy

Christianity, Theonomy

Why We’re In Trouble

A guy from my former church, who is one of the higher ups in the church, and occasionally preaches, posted this stupidity on Facebook:

What I keep coming back to is the life of Jesus. Where is the biblical case for Christians being involved in political activism? When do we ever see Jesus involving himself in the politics of his day? Jesus and his disciples lived in tumultuous times too… the Romans completely razed large sections of Israel and killed hundreds of thousands just a few years after Jesus’ resurrection and during the early formation of the Church. But what was Jesus’ response to Pilate when asked if he was a king? “Jesus said, ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.'” That seems pretty cut and dry to me. As followers of Christ our hope is in the resurrection and the kingdom to come.

It’s as if he never read a page in the New Testament. I will correct these common arguments, and answer his questions that young Christians ought to be able to answer, much less those who have had formal Bible training.

“Where is the biblical case for Christians being involved in political activism?”

Has this guy ever heard of the Great Commission? We are to make disciples of the nations, and teach them (the nations) to obey everything Christ commanded. That is done partially, by proclaiming the death, burial and resurrection of Christ to individuals. But, it’s not just individuals who are to obey all of Christ’s commands, but all of the nations.

One of Christ’s commands is, “You shall not steal.” This precludes socialism and our current fiat currency/Federal Reserve system and 95% of all government activities. Governments don’t get to steal anymore than individuals.

Another command is, “You shall not murder.” Do you think this might have implications for abortion laws and defense policy? You bet your sweet bippy.

I don’t think every single Christian has to be involved in political activism if you define it as campaigning for a candidate or cause. But, we should all work towards expanding the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God doesn’t spread by voting or campaigning, necessarily, but working to expand the Kingdom of God is political activism.

What is God’s Kingdom? It is every area of life that has been brought under the healing power of the gospel. The purpose of the gospel is to bring that healing by putting everything under the lordship of Christ.

Furthermore we are all to aspire to maturity, which means knowing God’s Word and knowing how to judge righteously (1 Corinthians 2:15). The Bible talks often of politics so where it speaks on politics, we should know what it says, and be ready to apply it in the real world.

To sum it up, Bojidar Marinov says this, “Behind every case of injustice, there is a case of idolatry. And where there is systemic injustice in a system, this is only because there is systemic idolatry embedded in that system. And if the church is not speaking against injustice, then the church is not speaking against idolatry, and therefore the church is not preaching the Gospel.”

So yes, the Bible teaches us to be politically active.

The next question is:

“When do we ever see Jesus involving himself in the politics of his day?”

The Bible reaffirms the Old Testament teaching on proper government in Romans 13. It says the only purpose of government is to be God’s servant to carry out God’s wrath on the evildoer (verses 3-4). God’s Word applies to all areas of life and magistrates are explicitly supposed to be servants of God and seeking His will in their work. The government of the Old Testament was strictly judicial, and so is the proper government described in Romans 13.

Jesus spoke on the proper punishment for rebellious sons (Mark 7:1-13). He reaffirmed Old Testament jurisprudence when He disqualified the witnesses against the woman caught in adultery (John 7:53-8:11). He called Herod a fox (Luke 13:32). And there are many other examples.

If Joe Biden were to be truly born again and seek to serve Christ through his daily work, would that affect his policies? I think we would all agree that there are differences between how Christians ought to behave in office and how an unbeliever typically behaves. That is because Scripture has a standard to hold leaders to, it defines who a leader is and what is required of someone who thinks of themselves as a leader.

Here is Justin’s next argument referencing John 18:33-40):

“Jesus and his disciples lived in tumultuous times too… the Romans completely razed large sections of Israel and killed hundreds of thousands just a few years after Jesus’ resurrection and during the early formation of the Church. But what was Jesus’ response to Pilate when asked if he was a king? “Jesus said, ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place.'” That seems pretty cut and dry to me.”

What did Jesus mean when He said His kingdom is not of this world? He was explaining to Pilate how He could be a king while being in a serious legal predicament, apparently not having an army to defend Him. What Pilate didn’t understand is that Jesus wasn’t a believer in the power religion (the worship of power) like Pilate. Jesus taught the opposite of power religion: that the greatest leaders are humble servants, and victory doesn’t come through power, but through service and the power of God; the last will be first and the first will be last. Jesus was saying that the source of His authority didn’t come from earthly armies, not that the Kingdom of God isn’t on earth.

At this point, we go back to the Great Commission to see that all authority in heaven and on earth have been given to Christ. The disciples, and Christians to this day are to continue to make disciples of the nations and teach them to obey all the commands of Christ.

Christianity provides a complete worldview. The Bible is profitable for correction on every topic. Of course, we should be involved in politics. Unfortunately, I believe that we will suffer consequences for selling out for Donald Trump. And our strategy shouldn’t be so hyper focused on presidential politics anyway. But stupidity like this person who is supposed to know the Bible is going to cause huge problems as well.

Abolish The Police, Christianity, Gun Rights, Police Abuse, Power Trip, Theonomy

The Murder of Jerame Reid

People say Jerame Reid was murdered, and conservatives say, “If he had obeyed the police, he wouldn’t have been shot.”

Maybe man’s law says if the cop feels a little bit scared he can just empty his clip into someone. But that’s not God’s standard. Anyone who shoots an unarmed man who isn’t even attacking is a murderer. These cops may evade justice in a country with unjust laws, but they won’t evade God’s justice. The blood of Mr. Reid will cry out from the ground to God for justice. If cops are so skittish and afraid, maybe they should become hairdressers.

The other thing conservatives say about this is, “He had a gun in his car.”

Guns are legal in this country. Conservatives are supposed to be pro Second Amendment. If having a gun in your car is worthy of police freaking out, I hope conservatives never get pulled over.

I’m tired of people being murdered by police. I’m tired of being forced to pay for substandard, government police services. I’m tired of the double standards of conservatives. I’m tired of liberals seeing that socialist-funded police services are substandard yet asking for more socialist-funded services.

Here’s a podcast from Bojidar Marinov that is related to this issue and is well-worth listening to.

Abolish The Police, Christianity, Police Abuse, Power Trip, Theonomy

Cool Story and Proves My Point

This is a cool story from Tony Miano. I’ve criticized him in the past for some stupid things he’s done (you can search this website for those articles), but I’ve always thought that he is a good evangelist. And this is a good evangelism story. If that’s all you get out of it that’s fine, but he admits to some things about himself and police in general that lend credence to everything I’ve said about police. Of course some police don’t want to abuse people, but a very good percentage of them are on a permanent power trip and enjoy inflicting pain. Tony admits that about himself before he was saved.

What Tony would disagree with is that even cops who aren’t out to hurt people are unable to discern just laws from unjust laws, so they go on to enforce all kinds of wicked laws such as protecting the abortion business. So, that is just a side point on this story. Enjoy it.

~ Weeping with Jerry ~
33 years ago I might have taken Jerry behind his county jail barracks and put him in a rear armlock, torquing his arm not so far as to dislocate his shoulder, but to place him in considerable pain. Then, I would have mocked his manhood when he started crying.

But not today.

I was #crosswalking at Marquette/Locust when a car came to a stop at the corner. The driver leaned across the front seat toward the open front passenger window.

“I gotta question for ya,” he said.

“Pull into the parking lot and ask your question,” I replied.

His name was Jerry. I approached the car and handed Jerry a gospel tract. We shook hands and introduced ourselves.

“My question is this. Why do you do this?” He asked.

“Can I have a few minutes to answer your question?” I asked.

“Sure,” Jerry replied. “You probably smell alcohol on my breath,” Jerry added as he picked up an open beer from the center console. It was shortly after Noon. “I’m sorry about that.”

Starting from the beginning, I shared the entirety of my testimony with Jerry.
As I talked about the early immediate fruits of repentance in my life, which included no longer desiring to belittle and torment inmates, Jerry began to weep.

“And this brings me to the answer to your question, Jerry. The Lord saved me. The two greatest commandments are to love God and to love people. And I can’t think of a greater way to do both than to share the gospel with people. Why do I do this, Jerry? Because of you. I do this so I can share the gospel with you.” I explained.

Jerry’s face was now in his hands. His shoulders heaved as he wept. He cried out to God asking for God’s forgiveness and mercy and thanking Him for allowing him to stop and talk to me.

“I’ve seen you here and there and there and over there,” Jerry explained pointing in various directions, indicating different parts of the city. I see you all the time and I’ve thought of stopping, but I had to stop today to talk to you. Thank you.”

Jerry and I spent more time talking about genuine repentance and faith. I reiterated the gospel to him multiple times. Jerry wept some more.
I’m hopeful the Lord saved Jerry today. Pray for him.

Christianity, Theonomy

Here’s What Happens When You Reject Theonomy

This Amburgy guy says we’re not under the Old Testament law, so we don’t have to worry about that. He’s read the Bible dozens of times, and he had an exact count. Yet just reading it hasn’t seemed to help him very much. If you reject theonomy, this is the kind of stupid stuff you end up saying.

He says that in Islamic countries, it is just to cut off a thief’s hand! I have no idea what to say. Is justice different in Muslim countries? Why would justice change from place to place? God’s throne is built on righteousness and justice, but he doesn’t really care what justice is on earth? What a stupid thing to say.

Maybe he needs to read the Bible several dozen more times.

And to think that a theonomist who wants to apply God’s perfect law to society is saying that our salvation is anything but a free gift is silly.

I’ve yet to hear a good argument against theonomy that doesn’t eventually lead to some sort of abject stupidity. It was just much easier to get out of Glenn than it is out of most other people.

Christianity, Conversation, For My Kids, Resistance to Tyranny is Obedience to God, Theonomy

Typical Response

Whenever I discuss politics with a Christian, the other person usually ends up quoting Romans 13 to suggest that I ought to shut up and just submit to the government.

This happens so often that I coined a new word to describe this occurence, “romansthirteen”. Here’s the definition.

Of course, the bootlicking, Hitler-glorifying interpretation of Romans 13 most (90+%) of Christians teach is incorrect. Romans 13:3-4 clearly teaches that there is one purpose of government, and that is to be God’s servant to carry out His wrath against evildoers. Any government worker who cares to glorify the Lord in his or her duty, has clear direction on how to do that.

1. Stop attempting to punish people who aren’t committing evil.
2. Stop attempting to collect taxes for anything government does other than punishing evildoers.
3. Be God’s servant to carry out His wrath on evildoers.
4. Stop harassing children with lemonade stands.

Of course, this is a radical idea to Christians who may have read this passage many times without paying attention to what it actually says, and believe that if a cop says kids must have a permit for their lemonade stand, the kids should jump up and go get a street vending permit, a food service license, and a sales tax license. I’ve tried to communicate this true message of Romans 13 to Christians many times online, and even meeting with otherwise knowledgeable people from church in person.

The only counterargument I’ve received is them jumping to some other passage in some other book and trying to explain Romans 13:3-4 away. This is a sure sign of a failed argument.

Whatever biblical doctrine you’re advocating, you must be able to walk through any and all passages and present a clear explanation of what that passage is talking about.

I learned this principle when studying Calvinism and Arminianism. There are passages that appear difficult for both of those systems of thought, and there are passages that initially appear to teach one over the other. The true test for which is correct is to listen to a Calvinist walk through a difficult passage for him, and see if he has a sensible explanation. Then, do the same thing for an Arminian. Of course, you would want to listen to the best and brightest individuals each side has to offer.

Calvinists can walk through 2 Peter 3:9, 1 Timothy 2:1-4 and Matthew 22:37, and explain what those passages are actually talking about in context, in a way that makes sense. Arminians can’t walk through John 6, 8, Ephesians 1, Romans 8:28-30, Romans 9, etc. without jumping to some other passage. This is how we know Arminianism is false.

Anyone can take a few verses out of context, and twist them to teach anything they want. The real test is whether they can make sense of the verses that are difficult for them. Whatever doctrine is true, is true from Genesis to Revelation, in every single passage.

So I’m still looking for someone to explain how Romans 13:3-4 teaches something other than what I’m saying without jumping to some other book of the Bible. Until then, I will support my kids’ black market lemonade stands.

Border Policy, Theonomy

Bo Clears That Right Up

There are often misunderstandings among Christians over what the Old Testament teaches on a certain topic. Here is one such example.

Misunderstander 1 says, “Restore OT immigration policy. Servants until the 3rd generation so that they are adequately educated on the culture and assimilated before they enjoy benefits and authorities of a “member of the congregation “.

[At least this individual wants to restore biblical policy, unlike most Christians who want a police state to enforce their arbitrary whims.]

Bo says, “There was no such “immigration policy” in the OT. No one could be forced to be a servant for any reason whatsoever except for crime. Even those who were slaves in foreign lands and fled to Israel, automatically were to be considered free persons.

Caleb was a second generation “immigrant.” His father was a Kenezite – from one of the Canaanitic tribes. He was a prince of Judah, not a servant. Obed-Edom was a first generation immigrant from the Philistines; he was originally from Gath, a compatriot of Goliath. He was appointed worship leader in the Temple. Certainly not a servant.

I am afraid, some of your practical theology may be rather based on modern politics than on the plain Biblical text.”

Misunderstander 2 writes, “Not all the individuals the Israelites made to serve them were guilty of a crime, but they were part of the spoils of war.”

Bo says, “To the contrary, they WERE guilty of a crime. They were Canaanites, the original inhabitants of the land, who were able to trick the Israelites into making a covenant with them. As Canaanites, they were guilty of the crimes that God condemned all Canaan for, but they got grace.

Again, those were not immigrants. Those were the original inhabitants of the land. As to immigrants, there was absolutely no rule about their immigration. There was only the rule about citizenship, and that was only about SOME of the cultures, not all. Ammonites and Moabites took ten generations to become citizens, Edomites and Egyptians took three generations. Everyone else could become a citizen upon conversion. And that was only about citizenship. Immigration was open to all.”

Hopefully, this will help us all remember, and understand God’s law better.

Border Policy, Theonomy

Conversation With Conservatives

Conservatives are just as socialist as liberals. They just have different programs, and don’t call it socialism. They are also just as anti-constitution. If half their lip service were true, I’d probably still be willing to call myself a conservative.

Here’s a typical conversation I’ve had on the topic of the constitution and immigration. I’ve had almost this exact conversation with about 15 different people now.

Me: “The Constitution doesn’t give the federal government power to regulate immigration. The founding fathers didn’t think it was the government’s business to control who comes and goes.”

“Conservative”: “You’re stupid.”

Me: “Prove me wrong. Cite the Constitution.”

After skimming the Constitution for the first time in their life, the conversation continues.

“Conservative”: “Well, times were different then. They needed to populate the continent.”

Me: “That’s the same argument they use when they want to ban guns. They say times were different then. The 2nd Amendment only applied to muskets. You have such little respect for the Constitution that you don’t even care to amend it. I always thought liberals were the ones who wanted to ignore the Constitution. ”

Abolish The Police, Christianity, Practical Ideas, Reject Socialism, Taxation, Theonomy

What Am I Willing To Do To Make Government Irrelevant?

Why is government so involved in nearly every aspect of our lives? Because Christians have been disobedient. We weren’t supporting our parents and grandparents, so the government gave us Social Security. We weren’t taking care of education properly, so government gave us public school and so on.  Once the government started doing those jobs, we really gave up doing those jobs.

What is the solution? How do we shrink the size of government? We have to start doing those jobs again, and do them better than the government is doing them. Someone on Facebook said that sounds nice, but what are you willing to do? Here is what I told them:

1. I’m willing to homeschool my children in spite of being forced to pay property taxes that are used to educate other people’s children.
2. Lord willing, I’ll be able to rip up my Social Security checks in spite of being forced to pay into it.
3. I’m willing to come when my neighbors call to help to protect them from intruders, so that we don’t have to call the cops.
4. I’m willing to never call the cops/government on Christians because I’d rather be wronged than go to unbelievers to solve disputes as Scripture commands.
5. I’m willing to help my in-laws in their old age so that they might tear up their Social Security checks, as Scripture commands.
6. I’m willing to help orphans, widows and foreigners as Scripture commands.
7. I’m willing to listen to ideas for other ways we can make our antichrist government irrelevant and demonstrate the inferiority of secular humanism to Christianity.