January 29, 2016 NOTES
NOT EDITED
Part 4: Liberty, Justice, Equality
Part 4: Liberty, Justice, Equality
Galatians 5:1-
SIS: All liberty, justice, and equality—indeed every human virtue—derives
from Who Yahweh is, and What He has decreed.
Because defining anything,
much less principles as deep and broad as liberty, virtue, and equality, let me
state my sermon in a sentence another way:
There ain’t no liberty, justice or
equality until, and unless, a person or persons submit to the rule and
authority of Almighty God as outlined in the Word of God, the Bible!
Trying to understand concepts like liberty, justice, and equality without starting with God’s revealed nature and decrees is like playing a football game with no out of bounds markers and no goal lines, and no rules. Even if one managed to live through four quarters or *** minutes of play, without some agreed upon basis for scoring points, no winner could ever be declared.
This goes back to the very premise of our four-part study. The title chosen is “Under God?” with a question mark. The implication of the question mark is that it is not at all clear that we, as a nation, or even as churches, agree on a core set of out of bounds markers, rules for life, or objectives for living. The result is ever increasing chaos the longer we play this game.
Politics cannot provide absolute parameters for playing the game of life. Education is all over the the board and is useless for supplying the parameters for playing the game. Philosophers are no help. They don’t even agree with themselves from one thought to next. Science is the most useless of all for while it is excellent at providing answers to questions of “how, how much, and even what,” science cannot provide any question whatsoever as to “why.” Science is like a miserly king who continues to gather massive amounts of treasure but has no idea what to spend his wealth on.
America once had near total agreement upon the Ruler of society and the Rulebook. The Ruler was near unanimously understood by our Founding Fathers to be the God of the Bible, Yahweh. The Bible, quoted profusely throughout the founding days of our Constitutional Republic was the basis for evaluating all practices of government. I could easily prove this by a hefty weight of evidence, but for now you must simply except my premise, or come up with a better one of your own.
Unless a nation is “Under” Yahweh, that nation will never be “one” in spirit and pursuits. That nation will never be “indivisible” in our stand for each other and against common enemies. That nation will not long enjoy “liberty and justice for all.” With a “question mark” after “Under God?” a nation simply will not long survive. Thomas Jefferson recognized this, as did nearly a totality of the 200 or so Founding Fathers. This statement is enshrined on the Panel 3 of the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C.:
"God who gave us life gave us liberty. Can the liberties of a nation be secure when we have removed a conviction that these liberties are the gift of God?”
Trying to understand concepts like liberty, justice, and equality without starting with God’s revealed nature and decrees is like playing a football game with no out of bounds markers and no goal lines, and no rules. Even if one managed to live through four quarters or *** minutes of play, without some agreed upon basis for scoring points, no winner could ever be declared.
This goes back to the very premise of our four-part study. The title chosen is “Under God?” with a question mark. The implication of the question mark is that it is not at all clear that we, as a nation, or even as churches, agree on a core set of out of bounds markers, rules for life, or objectives for living. The result is ever increasing chaos the longer we play this game.
Politics cannot provide absolute parameters for playing the game of life. Education is all over the the board and is useless for supplying the parameters for playing the game. Philosophers are no help. They don’t even agree with themselves from one thought to next. Science is the most useless of all for while it is excellent at providing answers to questions of “how, how much, and even what,” science cannot provide any question whatsoever as to “why.” Science is like a miserly king who continues to gather massive amounts of treasure but has no idea what to spend his wealth on.
America once had near total agreement upon the Ruler of society and the Rulebook. The Ruler was near unanimously understood by our Founding Fathers to be the God of the Bible, Yahweh. The Bible, quoted profusely throughout the founding days of our Constitutional Republic was the basis for evaluating all practices of government. I could easily prove this by a hefty weight of evidence, but for now you must simply except my premise, or come up with a better one of your own.
Unless a nation is “Under” Yahweh, that nation will never be “one” in spirit and pursuits. That nation will never be “indivisible” in our stand for each other and against common enemies. That nation will not long enjoy “liberty and justice for all.” With a “question mark” after “Under God?” a nation simply will not long survive. Thomas Jefferson recognized this, as did nearly a totality of the 200 or so Founding Fathers. This statement is enshrined on the Panel 3 of the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C.:
"God who gave us life gave us liberty. Can the liberties of a nation be secure when we have removed a conviction that these liberties are the gift of God?”
Here again, I do not have
the time nor space to show you that the thousands of references to God in the
founding documents refers to Yahweh, the God of the Bible. I will summarize by saying this: our laws are not compatible with the judicial
processes of a godless nation, nor a nation such as India that believes in many
gods, nor the Muslim nations that believe Allah in the Quran is Yahweh in the
Bible. We have never been a nation under
Sharia Law, the law of Mohammed. The God
of the Quran is a bastardization of the God of the Bible. The stories use many of the same characters,
but an entirely different script. All
this is provable upon substantial evidence, but exceeds my purpose in this
message.
Stated again, my sermon in a sentence is this: All liberty, justice, and equality—indeed every human virtue—derives from Who Yahweh is, and What He has decreed.
We depart from this basis for American politics at the peril of losing our nation for rebellion against Yahweh is sin and the Bible declares, “sin condemns any people” (Proverbs 14:34). From here, we can now discuss the issues of “Liberty and Justice for All.” We will begin by reading from Galatians 5. In regard to
Stated again, my sermon in a sentence is this: All liberty, justice, and equality—indeed every human virtue—derives from Who Yahweh is, and What He has decreed.
We depart from this basis for American politics at the peril of losing our nation for rebellion against Yahweh is sin and the Bible declares, “sin condemns any people” (Proverbs 14:34). From here, we can now discuss the issues of “Liberty and Justice for All.” We will begin by reading from Galatians 5. In regard to
1. LIBERTY
we understand several important facets (1-6)
We read in Galatians
5:1: Christ has liberated us to be
free. Stand firm then and don’t submit again to a yoke of slavery. This verse indicates that there are
facets of our freedom or liberty that we cannot lose, and other facets that we
can lose. The most significant aspect of
freedom, which we can never lose, is SPIRITUAL
FREEDOM. This inviolable freedom
is the basis and source for all freedom.
If someone is not “spiritually free from the bondage of sin,” any other
freedom one might enjoy is at best temporary, and at worst an illusion.
Paul describes our spiritual freedom in terms of grace overcoming the bondage to the Law.
Paul describes our spiritual freedom in terms of grace overcoming the bondage to the Law.
2 Take note! I, Paul, tell you that if you get
yourselves circumcised, Christ will not benefit you at all. 3 Again
I testify to every man who gets himself circumcised that he is obligated to
keep the entire law. 4 You who are trying to be justified by
the law are alienated from Christ; you have fallen from grace. 5 For
through the Spirit, by faith, we eagerly wait for the hope of
righteousness. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor
uncircumcision accomplishes anything; what matters is faith working through
love.
Specifically, Paul has in
mind the Christian leaders-Judaizers-who felt that trusting in Christ’s
completed work on the cross was not enough to assure spiritual freedom, hence
salvation. One needed also to keep the Law,
which they defined as all the rituals of the Jewish faith. The primary example of such was the Jewish
ritual of circumcision. Paul’s
conclusion is that not only is it impossible to be set free from sin by keeping
the Law, it actually becomes another form of bondage. Look again at verses 3-4: 3 Again I testify to every
man who gets himself circumcised that he is obligated to keep the entire law. 4 You
who are trying to be justified by the law are alienated from Christ; you have
fallen from grace.
Law and grace are
incompatible. If you want to practice
keeping the Law, including circumcision and all the other 1000’s of rules, then
you “alienate”
yourself from God and Christ. The
ESV gives a stronger sense of what Paul is trying to say, You are severed from Christ, you
who would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace. Paul may be offering a word play on
the idea of circumcision, or “cutting off the foreskin for religious
merit.” Taking into account the context,
a useful translation of this text, supported by the ESV would be, “If
you allow your foreskin to be cut off for religious merit, you will be cut off
from Christ.” Look at how verse
12 supports this play on “cutting off parts.”
12 I wish those who are disturbing you might also get
themselves castrated! (HCSB).
While specifically Paul is
addressing the Jewish ritual of circumcision, in a broader application, Paul is
condemning any attempt to gain spiritual freedom apart from grace, whether it
be religious practice or philosophical reasoning. Grace, and grace alone, provides the
SPIRITUAL FREEDOM that releases one from bondage to sin and eternal
damnation. This is “true” freedom and
the source of any other freedom. This
freedom, once gained, is permanent and can never be diminished in any way. It is freedom from the PENALTY of sin. Theologically, it refers to justification
There is also in regard to
the matter of Liberty, the facet of PERSONAL
FREEDOM. This relates to the
freedom from the power of sin in one’s own life. Look at verses 16-
16 I say then, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the
desire of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is against the Spirit,
and the Spirit desires what is against the flesh; these are opposed to each
other, so that you don’t do what you want.
18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
19 Now the works of the flesh are obvious:
a sexual immorality, moral impurity,
promiscuity, 20 idolatry,
sorcery, hatreds, strife,
jealousy, outbursts of
anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions,
factions, 21 envy, o drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar. I tell you about these
things in advance—as I told you before—that those who practice such things will
not inherit the kingdom of God.
Spiritual freedom, at
least theoretically, is absolute. Christ
did not offer a partial redemption on the cross. However, salvation is not only an event, in
which we by the grace of God, are made immediately justified upon our
repentance, but salvation is a process.
We call that process, sanctification—or, the process of being made
“holy.” We see the “absolute” quality of
our freedom in Christ in the conditional statement of verse 16. If we “walk by the Spirit,”—this is
absolutely possible—then we will not “carry out the desire of the flesh,”—this
is highly probable. While we are in this
body of flesh, we must constantly battle the temptations of our sinful nature. When we give in to our sinful nature, “we
are submitting again to the yoke of bondage” (v1). To be PERSONALLY FREE we must
constantly exercise our faith and trust in Christ to overcome temptation. If we don’t, any manner of sinful addictions
and predilections will overcome us.
While a Christian’s soul can never again become enslaved to the penalty
of sin, the Devil can gain absolute control over the mind and body. This is why so many Christians cannot
overcome heroin addictions or any number of the sinful predilections we read in
the list above. This is why so many
Christians never really come to an understanding of what it means to be a
“child of God.”
So many Christians think they can drink like the world, dance like the world, talk like the world, party like the world and not suffer the consequences of God’s wrath in the body like the world! Paul said in 1Cor. 11:30: That is why many of you are weak and sick, and quite a few are dead! Sin can’t kill the soul of a Christian, but it will kill the body as sure as night follows day!
So many Christians think they can drink like the world, dance like the world, talk like the world, party like the world and not suffer the consequences of God’s wrath in the body like the world! Paul said in 1Cor. 11:30: That is why many of you are weak and sick, and quite a few are dead! Sin can’t kill the soul of a Christian, but it will kill the body as sure as night follows day!
Third, our Liberty is a
matter of POLITICAL FREEDOM. By this, I do not mean freedom from
government restriction, government oppression, or even outright, government
persecution. What I mean by “political
freedom” is the freedom from the PRACTICE of sin in our daily interactions with
other people. Look at the end of verse
21 through verse 23
--that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of
God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit
is love, joy, peace, patience,
kindness, goodness, faith, 23 gentleness, self-control.
Against such things there is no law.
Political freedom is a
matter of how one “practices” one’s faith.
We can follow all the selfish, self-righteous, self-gratifying penchants
of the flesh, or we can choose to express the “fruits of the Spirit.” We don’t need government permission
or sanction to “love our neighbor.” We
don’t need political power or preferential treatment to feel the “inexpressible
joy of our salvation!” We don’t
need the government’s sanction to “live peaceably with others” or “be
patient, kind, or good.” Our “faith”
is not dependent upon who sits in Oval Office, but Who sits on the Throne of
Heaven! We have no need whatsoever for
the government’s help in practicing “gentleness or self-control.” We have complete and total freedom in
our political interactions with both friend and foe to “practice the fruits of the
Spirit. Against such things there is NO
law!”
Victor Frankl, a famed
psychiatrist and survivor of a German prison camp, gives this advice on how to
remain truly free: “When we cannot change our situation, we are challenged to change
ourselves.” The essence of freedom
is not what government does or does not do, but true Liberty is a matter of
What God is doing in our hearts.
So, liberty, like all
virtues stems from how one stands in relationship with God through Christ. When we are “Under God,” we have complete
freedom—SPIRITUAL, PERSONAL, AND POLITICAL.
Another issue we must consider is in regard to
2. Justice
2. Justice
Defining even the simplest
terms can be like nailing jello to a tree—a technical term often used by
theologians in scholarly debates. It
seems like the answer to the question of “what is justice” would be as simple
as opening the dictionary and reading the definition. That would tell us something like this: “the quality of being just; righteousness,
equitableness, or moral rightness.” Have
we now settled the issue of what it means in our Pledge of Allegiance to
provide “Justice for All?
While in English, justice and righteousness are two different words, in both Hebrew (the O.T.) and Greek (the N.T.) they are one word. There are verb forms, referring to the “act of being just,” and noun forms relating to the state of being we refer to justice.
While in English, justice and righteousness are two different words, in both Hebrew (the O.T.) and Greek (the N.T.) they are one word. There are verb forms, referring to the “act of being just,” and noun forms relating to the state of being we refer to justice.
Our Pledge of Allegiance
makes a plea for “Justice.” But, what
exactly does that mean. It is not so
easily defined as Liberty. But, in a sense,
understanding justice is quite simply.
To be just or righteous (two words in English but only one in both
Hebrew and Greek), simply means, “doing what God would do in any given
situation.”
Throughout both
testaments, the Bible speaks of righteousness, justice, judgement and related
ideas. God even debates with Job when
Job entertains the idea that God is not being just, along with three of his
friends. God replies to the challenge to
His righteousness beginning in chapter 38.
We read
Then the Lord answered Job from the
whirlwind. He said:
2 Who is this who obscures
My counsel with ignorant words? 3 Get ready to answer Me like a
man; when I question you, you will inform Me. 4 Where were you
when I established the earth? Tell Me,
if you have understanding. 5 Who fixed its dimensions?
Certainly you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? 6 What
supports its foundations? Or who laid its cornerstone 7 while
the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy? 8 Who
enclosed the sea behind doors when it burst from the womb, 9 when
I made the clouds its garment and thick darkness its blanket, 10 when
I determined its boundaries and put its bars and doors in place, 11 when
I declared: “You may come this far, but no farther; your proud waves stop here.
Yahweh continues this same kind of
challenge to Job’s challenge for four chapters.
God impresses upon Job, and you and I by application, that He not only
is “just,” but He is the essence of justice, and the foundation for any kind of
justice in the world. So powerful was God’s presentation and self-revelation
that Job finally replied in chapter 42:
2 I know
that You can do anything and no plan of Yours can be thwarted. 3 You
asked, “Who is this who conceals My counsel with ignorance?” Surely I spoke
about things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know. 4 You said, “Listen
now, and I will speak. When I question
you, you will inform Me.” 5 I had heard rumors about
You, but now my eyes have seen You. 6 Therefore
I take back my words and repent in dust and ashes.
One of the reasons our nation is in such a
mess is because, like Job, we “speak about things we do not understand” (v2). Lawmakers and political pundits think
they know what is “just and right” but they speak from a mere human standpoint
that is light-years away from reality.
Justice cannot be understood, much less distributed among the populace,
unless we begin with Yahweh Who is the essence of justice. In Deuteronomy 32:3-4 justice is described as
that which is like God and conforms to His decrees in the Bible.
3 For I will proclaim Yahweh’s name. Declare the greatness of our God! 4 The Rock —His work is perfect; all His ways are entirely just. A faithful God, without prejudice, He is righteous (just) and true.
3 For I will proclaim Yahweh’s name. Declare the greatness of our God! 4 The Rock —His work is perfect; all His ways are entirely just. A faithful God, without prejudice, He is righteous (just) and true.
Take God out of the equation of human
politics and “justice” will be more elusive than a unicorn. Liberty and Justice have no meaning
whatsoever apart from Who God is and What He has declared in His Word. Now, let us address the final issue in our
quest to put the Pledge of Allegiance into a biblical context.
3. The Issue of EQUALITY-Liberty and Justice FOR ALL
3. The Issue of EQUALITY-Liberty and Justice FOR ALL
Again, we come to one of
those matters in national life where everybody can tell you what it means for
men and women to be “equal,” but it leaves us with nearly as many options as
there are people with opinions.
Are “all” men and women “equal” in this world? I don’t think anybody would venture to answer yes to that question. According to Fortune Magazine, the world’s 8 richest men hold as much wealth as the half the world’s population of roughly 3.6 BILLION people. That hardly seems “equal.”
Equality, like most important concepts is more easily defined than understood. Coming up with a good explanation is a bit like nailing “jello” to a tree. It may be helpful to see three different facets of equality. I can only mention them briefly.
Are “all” men and women “equal” in this world? I don’t think anybody would venture to answer yes to that question. According to Fortune Magazine, the world’s 8 richest men hold as much wealth as the half the world’s population of roughly 3.6 BILLION people. That hardly seems “equal.”
Equality, like most important concepts is more easily defined than understood. Coming up with a good explanation is a bit like nailing “jello” to a tree. It may be helpful to see three different facets of equality. I can only mention them briefly.
There is basic HUMAN EQUALITY. By virtue of being a human, everyone has
intrinsic value. Every person was or is
created by God. As the cliché goes,
“There is only one race—the human race.”
Paul suggests this Peter suggests that God views all people equally when
he says(Acts 10:
34 Then Peter began to speak: “Now I really understand
that God doesn’t show favoritism 35 but in every nation the
person who fears Him and does righteousness is acceptable to Him.
Second, there is the
matter of CIVIL EQUALITY. God instituted government, and government
institutes “civil laws.” We, as
believers, would hope that “civil” laws are founded upon God’s Law, but this is
not the case. A glaring example of the
divide between God’s Law and Civil Law is the legalization of homosexual
marriage. This is the “civil” law of the
land. We as Christian citizens should
have resisted this becoming civil law—and many did—but it is now the law of the
land—unless and until it can be changed.
We, as Christians, should seek every legal means to change the Law, but
for the time being, we must accept it.
This is God’s design, not ours.
He said (Rom. 13:1-4):
Everyone must submit to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except from
God, and those that exist are instituted
by God. 2 So then, the one who resists the authority is
opposing God’s command, and those who oppose it will bring judgment on
themselves. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Do you want to
be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have its approval. 4 For
government is God’s servant for your good.
There are more edges to
the puzzle pieces of “civil” law versus God’s Law, but this is the
foundation. Under our government, every
citizen is bound by “civil” laws.
This brings us to a final
consideration in regard to “equality.”
This is the matter of MORAL
EQUALITY. While all men and women
have basic human rights, and under our form of government men and women have
basic civil rights, all men and women are not MORALLY EQUAL. What government declares “right” oftentimes
God declares “wrong.” Let’s follow our
line of thinking in regard to homosexual marriage. It is now a “civil” right granted by
government and enshrined in law. But, is
a homosexual marriage morally equal to heterosexual marriage in God’s eyes. We read this in Romans 1:
18 For God’s wrath is revealed from heaven against all
godlessness and unrighteousness of people who by their unrighteousness suppress
the truth, 19 since what
can be known about God is evident among
them, because God has shown it to them. 20 For
His invisible attributes, that is, His eternal power and divine nature, have
been clearly seen since the creation of the world, being understood through what He has
made. As a result, people are without
excuse. 21 For though they knew God, they did not glorify Him
as God or show gratitude. Instead, their thinking became nonsense, and their
senseless minds were darkened. 22 Claiming
to be wise, they became fools 23 and
exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man,
birds, four-footed animals, and reptiles. 24 Therefore God
delivered them over in the cravings of their hearts to sexual impurity, so that
their bodies were degraded among themselves
Certainly, God views
heterosexual marriage differently than homosexual marriage. Not all actions and attitudes are “morally
equivalent” even if they are equal in the civil code. At some point, when a nation’s civil laws
diverge to such a degree as to incur the wrath of God, the consequences are
grave. Our nation is at that point
now. What is “civilly” right is often
not “morally right.”
“Liberty and Justice for All.” This is the altruistic
promise set forth in our Pledge of Allegiance.
However, unless we return to a position as a nation being “Under God,”
liberty and justice for all will become bondage and injustice for all but the
powerful.
All liberty, justice, and equality—indeed every human virtue—derives
from Who Yahweh is, and What He has decreed.
As we reflect back upon
this study putting the Pledge of Allegiance into a biblical context, it should
have been a sobering undertaking. As we
now see a new leader in the White House, we must seek a new passion for the
Lord in the church house, or our nation does not have many good years left.
Our Pledge refers to us as “One Nation Under God.” But, the question is, are we really “Under God?” The challenge for us as believers is to seek with all our passion to “erase the question mark” after the words, “Under God.”
Our Pledge refers to us as “One Nation Under God.” But, the question is, are we really “Under God?” The challenge for us as believers is to seek with all our passion to “erase the question mark” after the words, “Under God.”
Let us pray for and work
for a revival in our own lives that extends to our churches, to our communities
and to our nation.