Hi all,
I conclude this little study with:
Using the Courts - the short cut to get what you want
Those vying for their ‘rights’ to be recognized have learned to go through the court system rather than Congress, which makes laws. Court rulings become de facto law immediately, which serves the liberal left well. Victims rights become the focus to the exclusion of the rights of the other side of the argument. The natural result is a nation of victims, all trying to get their voice heard in the court system.
The result is Government no longer protects people's God-given rights, it provides rights to those who have suffered.
A baker who is a Christian was specifically targeted by liberals among all the bakeries in an area to provoke the courts to intervene, knowing this bakery would decline baking a wedding cake for a homosexual couple. The lower courts and government sided with the homosexual couple who were the 'victims' of discrimination.
What if...
...a school lunch provided cookies (biscuits for our UK friends) for all the children and had them all laid out on a table for any child to walk by and choose, but 1 bully targeted a child who was sitting alone and eating his cookie? What if that child stood up to the bully and refused to give him their cookie? The bakery case would be like the teacher defending the bully, claiming he had the right to take another child's cookie.
That would not be wisdom nor common sense. But the government championed the case of the ‘victims’ and issued rights to them. Fortunately, the Supreme Court eventually threw out the lower court ruling against the couple, recognizing their rights to run their bakery according to their religious beliefs.
At this point,
...having lost sight of the role of government being to protect Creator-given rights, government officials then make arbitrary decisions based on their belief THEY hand out rights. This is one reason Christians and conservatives are becoming increasingly involved in government. To restore traditional understanding of the role of government.
Wisdom and compromise is how things should get done, as that involves common sense and walking in love.
On a day to day basis, compromising is what government does best. It's the nature of politics in a Representative Republic such as the USA. (A representative republic means the citizens elect officials to represent them. The USA is not a democracy.)
We expect our leaders who we elected to represent us, use wisdom and weigh all the options. We elect them to represent us so they can make wise decisions considering the rights of all when involving the public. We want them to understand that God gave rights and government must manage those rights for its citizens.
Alexis de Tocqueville said of America in his 2 volume work, 'Democracy in America' (1835/1840), that everyone in America has “the chance to make mistakes that can be retrieved” and that is a privilege Americans have. He wrote that this defines America more than any other quality. We have the chance to make mistakes that can be corrected and try again, because government at that time in 1835 when he wrote it, worked to secure unalienable rights for its citizens.
Now government gives rights defined by the lowest common denominator; Whoever feels they are victimized believes their rights should be elevated above the rights of others. Now it seems, each person must stand before the government to give account as the supreme giver of rights. That is backwards from the founding Documents, and another reason Christian patriotism is rising in this nation - (again) to restore historical perspective.
That then leads to people only seeing their side of things and refusing any other point of view, unable to talk about other perspectives, editing history and refusing to hear speakers who don't agree with their beliefs.
When Rights become absolute choices...
...discussion and reasoning between groups to address their differences never needs to happen. We've lost the art of debate. We've lost the art of conversation and compromise. Each group just stands their ground on their own rights, no discussion needed or wanted. We have become a nation of tribes warring against one another, taking no prisoners. This is opposite the Christian point of view. Walking in love, talking things out, praying for one another are our culture.
In the modern world, law becomes free from human input for all the difficult conversations need never happen. We cannot argue politely our points, but Rights makes society devolve into shouting matches so that no one has to make sense of the issues, problems, differences or solutions. Generations now - Christians included unfortunately - only know knee-jerk reactions to sound bytes having lost the ability to use common sense and how to argue a point without making it into a personal attack.
This is exactly opposite life in the Spirit of God. We are told in the NT to make allowances one for another, to be patient, to be kind, to be forgiving. When government thinks it is the giver of rights, love is lost, the hearts of many turn cold due to the government supported increase in iniquity, calling it normal and that it must be accepted by all.
Founding Father James Madison wrote:
“...in forming a government of men over men, the greatest difficulty lies in this: You must enable government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself.”
Government becomes unable to function, weighed down under its own weight
Government then becomes a behemoth where no one is in control, no one takes responsibility, for each group, each tribe has its rights, which are set in stone so that one bureaucrat shuffles paperwork to the next bureaucrat and no one has the authority or desire to use common sense, wisdom, or to exert their will aside from the enforcement of the Law.
The Law then undermines the decisions which make a Democracy work. Why elect anyone, for nothing changes. Human input is talked about, but the Machine keeps rolling along; laws given by government must be kept over and above common sense and fairness.
For the American Christian...
But we Americans can trace it back to the 3 main points this little blog is about: The Creator gives rights, not government. Those rights cannot be transferred or infringed upon. Therefore each person is responsible for their own life. That is the Christian point of view and the traditional American culture. Unfortunately it clashes with what many are trying to do in America and other western nations.
Paul wrote that we should pray for*...
"...kings and all in authority...that we may live quiet, peaceful, and godly lives in all honesty." Most people just want that - to live in a society where honest work and godly living allows all to live in peace. That means taking personal responsibility for our lives to live according to certain moral standards.
Paul lived in a time when Rome ruled and allegiance to Caesar was mandatory. Christianity was a counter-culture about taking responsibility for your own life because you will stand before God to give account, Who is greater than Caesar. The wrestling between Caesar and Christian culture is still going on today, and we all are part of it. *(I Timothy 2:2)
I hope this has helped explain why America's Christian Patriot movement is rising. New subject next week, until then, blessings,
John Fenn
www.cwowi.org and email me at [email protected]
I conclude this little study with:
Using the Courts - the short cut to get what you want
Those vying for their ‘rights’ to be recognized have learned to go through the court system rather than Congress, which makes laws. Court rulings become de facto law immediately, which serves the liberal left well. Victims rights become the focus to the exclusion of the rights of the other side of the argument. The natural result is a nation of victims, all trying to get their voice heard in the court system.
The result is Government no longer protects people's God-given rights, it provides rights to those who have suffered.
A baker who is a Christian was specifically targeted by liberals among all the bakeries in an area to provoke the courts to intervene, knowing this bakery would decline baking a wedding cake for a homosexual couple. The lower courts and government sided with the homosexual couple who were the 'victims' of discrimination.
What if...
...a school lunch provided cookies (biscuits for our UK friends) for all the children and had them all laid out on a table for any child to walk by and choose, but 1 bully targeted a child who was sitting alone and eating his cookie? What if that child stood up to the bully and refused to give him their cookie? The bakery case would be like the teacher defending the bully, claiming he had the right to take another child's cookie.
That would not be wisdom nor common sense. But the government championed the case of the ‘victims’ and issued rights to them. Fortunately, the Supreme Court eventually threw out the lower court ruling against the couple, recognizing their rights to run their bakery according to their religious beliefs.
At this point,
...having lost sight of the role of government being to protect Creator-given rights, government officials then make arbitrary decisions based on their belief THEY hand out rights. This is one reason Christians and conservatives are becoming increasingly involved in government. To restore traditional understanding of the role of government.
Wisdom and compromise is how things should get done, as that involves common sense and walking in love.
On a day to day basis, compromising is what government does best. It's the nature of politics in a Representative Republic such as the USA. (A representative republic means the citizens elect officials to represent them. The USA is not a democracy.)
We expect our leaders who we elected to represent us, use wisdom and weigh all the options. We elect them to represent us so they can make wise decisions considering the rights of all when involving the public. We want them to understand that God gave rights and government must manage those rights for its citizens.
Alexis de Tocqueville said of America in his 2 volume work, 'Democracy in America' (1835/1840), that everyone in America has “the chance to make mistakes that can be retrieved” and that is a privilege Americans have. He wrote that this defines America more than any other quality. We have the chance to make mistakes that can be corrected and try again, because government at that time in 1835 when he wrote it, worked to secure unalienable rights for its citizens.
Now government gives rights defined by the lowest common denominator; Whoever feels they are victimized believes their rights should be elevated above the rights of others. Now it seems, each person must stand before the government to give account as the supreme giver of rights. That is backwards from the founding Documents, and another reason Christian patriotism is rising in this nation - (again) to restore historical perspective.
That then leads to people only seeing their side of things and refusing any other point of view, unable to talk about other perspectives, editing history and refusing to hear speakers who don't agree with their beliefs.
When Rights become absolute choices...
...discussion and reasoning between groups to address their differences never needs to happen. We've lost the art of debate. We've lost the art of conversation and compromise. Each group just stands their ground on their own rights, no discussion needed or wanted. We have become a nation of tribes warring against one another, taking no prisoners. This is opposite the Christian point of view. Walking in love, talking things out, praying for one another are our culture.
In the modern world, law becomes free from human input for all the difficult conversations need never happen. We cannot argue politely our points, but Rights makes society devolve into shouting matches so that no one has to make sense of the issues, problems, differences or solutions. Generations now - Christians included unfortunately - only know knee-jerk reactions to sound bytes having lost the ability to use common sense and how to argue a point without making it into a personal attack.
This is exactly opposite life in the Spirit of God. We are told in the NT to make allowances one for another, to be patient, to be kind, to be forgiving. When government thinks it is the giver of rights, love is lost, the hearts of many turn cold due to the government supported increase in iniquity, calling it normal and that it must be accepted by all.
Founding Father James Madison wrote:
“...in forming a government of men over men, the greatest difficulty lies in this: You must enable government to control the governed; and in the next place oblige it to control itself.”
Government becomes unable to function, weighed down under its own weight
Government then becomes a behemoth where no one is in control, no one takes responsibility, for each group, each tribe has its rights, which are set in stone so that one bureaucrat shuffles paperwork to the next bureaucrat and no one has the authority or desire to use common sense, wisdom, or to exert their will aside from the enforcement of the Law.
The Law then undermines the decisions which make a Democracy work. Why elect anyone, for nothing changes. Human input is talked about, but the Machine keeps rolling along; laws given by government must be kept over and above common sense and fairness.
For the American Christian...
But we Americans can trace it back to the 3 main points this little blog is about: The Creator gives rights, not government. Those rights cannot be transferred or infringed upon. Therefore each person is responsible for their own life. That is the Christian point of view and the traditional American culture. Unfortunately it clashes with what many are trying to do in America and other western nations.
Paul wrote that we should pray for*...
"...kings and all in authority...that we may live quiet, peaceful, and godly lives in all honesty." Most people just want that - to live in a society where honest work and godly living allows all to live in peace. That means taking personal responsibility for our lives to live according to certain moral standards.
Paul lived in a time when Rome ruled and allegiance to Caesar was mandatory. Christianity was a counter-culture about taking responsibility for your own life because you will stand before God to give account, Who is greater than Caesar. The wrestling between Caesar and Christian culture is still going on today, and we all are part of it. *(I Timothy 2:2)
I hope this has helped explain why America's Christian Patriot movement is rising. New subject next week, until then, blessings,
John Fenn
www.cwowi.org and email me at [email protected]
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