Time For Christians To Shred Their Bibles
By Chuck Baldwin
December 16, 2010
Archived column:
http://chuckbaldwinlive.com/home/?p=2579Many of us grew up in Sunday School and church. We have heard the
great Bible stories over and over. We heard about the story of how
Moses’ mother defied Pharaoh and hid her little baby boy in
bulrushes. We heard the story of how Moses killed the Egyptian
taskmaster defending a Hebrew slave and later became the great
deliverer of God’s people. We heard the story of young David going
out alone against the Philistines’ greatest warrior, Goliath. We
heard the story of how Saul’s servants refused to carry out the
king’s order to murder the priest Ahimelech. We know well the story
of Daniel who defied his government’s order to refrain from praying.
The names Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are very familiar to us. We
heard our teachers and preachers extol their courage in defying the
government’s order to bow to the image of their emperor. We remember
that John the Baptist went to prison (and was eventually beheaded),
not for preaching the Gospel, but for criticizing the king for his
immoral behavior. We certainly recall the story of Simon Peter who
bluntly told his civil magistrates, “We ought to obey God rather
than men.� We know that the Apostle Paul wrote many of his epistles
from inside government prisons. We certainly recall that before John
penned the Revelation, he had been banished to an island-prison by his
civil authorities.
I challenge Christians to objectively look at the great stories of
Bible heroes (in both testaments) and observe how many times they are
noted for either being martyred for defying a civil authority, or,
perhaps, for being delivered from death for defying a civil authority.
The stories of defiance to civil government (in one form or another)
comprise a great percentage of all the stories contained in the
Bible--perhaps even a majority of them.
So, how has it happened that a majority of today’s Christians, it
seems, have become such sheepish slaves of government? How has it
happened that, for the most part, the concept of courage in the face
of government oppression has been totally lost to the average
Christian, pastor, and church? For all intents and purposes, it is
time for many Christians to shred their Bibles, because the lessons
and principles of God’s Word have absolutely no influence over their
attitudes and conduct.
For example, if the story of Peter in prison were being experienced
today, instead of the church rallying behind their pastor and
conducting an all-night prayer meeting for him, most church members
would be excoriating him in the name of Romans chapter 13. Instead of
Paul being let down the wall in a basket to escape the civil
authorities trying to apprehend him, the average Christian today would
be the first one to turn him over to the authorities.
In the mind of the average Christian, God is not God; government is
God! For instance, when one well-known Christian attorney was recently
confronted by the teaching of Scripture relative to the church’s
independence from government (meaning, no church should allow itself
to be subject to the government’s tyrannical 501(c)3 non-profit,
tax-exempt status), he said, “That might be Biblically correct, but
it is not legally correct.� In other words, the “Christian�
attorney would rather a church be legal than Biblical. And,
unfortunately, that seems to be the attitude of the vast majority of
professing Christians today. They would rather please the government
than please God; they would rather obey the government than obey God;
they would rather be at peace with the government than be at peace
with God.
And when it comes to the courage of risking anything of value in
order to do right, forget it!
Think of what Abram risked when he obeyed God and left his country
and kin and struck out for a land that God had not even told him of.
Think of what Moses risked when he killed that Egyptian; think of what
Joshua and Caleb risked when they defied the entire nation that was
following the evil counsel of the ten spies; think of what David
risked when he faced the giant; think of what Elijah risked when he
confronted 850 false prophets all by himself; think of what the Old
Testament prophets risked when they rebuked or challenged the kings of
Israel and Judah; think of what the disciples risked when they “left
all� and followed Jesus; think of what the early church risked when
it embraced the Gospel and defied the wishes of Rome and Jewry (not to
mention their own families and friends). But these stories are more
like fairy tales to the average Christian today. They serve no
practical benefit whatsoever!
Let a church deacon, trustee, or elder be told by some
government-backed attorney that he is really a corporate officer,
subject to the laws and punishments of IRS tax codes, and that church
leader will say anything, sign anything, or do anything to save his
own financial security. In order to not jeopardize his own standing
with the IRS, that same church leader would turn his back on his best
friend, or gladly join with the government in prosecuting a fellow
believer.
I personally know of more than one case where professing Christians
either lied against a beloved brother in order to protect themselves
against threatened government (read: IRS) penalties, or actually
testified for the prosecution (read: IRS) under oath in a court of law
against a Christian brother. In each case, these “brothers�
actually felt it was their “Christian duty� to betray their
friends and brothers and help the government.
I am reminded of the verse where Jesus said, “Yea, the time cometh,
that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service.�
(John 16:2 KJV)
I am also reminded of the warning from the prophet Jeremiah when he
cautioned, “Take ye heed every one of his neighbour, and trust ye
not in any brother: for every brother will utterly supplant, and every
neighbour will walk with slanders. And they will deceive every one his
neighbour, and will not speak the truth: they have taught their tongue
to speak lies, and weary themselves to commit iniquity.� (Jeremiah
9:4,5 KJV)
Jeremiah’s prophecy is spot-on! Christians today cannot be trusted
to be faithful to the truth; they cannot be trusted to not betray and
turn against their brethren; they cannot be trusted to not be party
with slander and libel. If it means saving their own skin, or keeping
their bread buttered, or staying in the good graces of the IRS, they
would sell out their best friend--maybe even their own mother! And it
is no coincidence that Jeremiah, himself, experienced firsthand that
which he had spoken. It is no wonder he said, “Trust ye not any
brother.�
When will Christians get it through their heads (and in their hearts)
that oftentimes government is the enemy of God? When will they
understand that they have only one Sovereign: King Jesus? When will
they come to comprehend that helping government perpetrate unjust
action against fellow believers is a crime against Heaven? When will
they stop talking about the Bible and actually start internalizing its
teachings, examples, and principles?
It has gotten to the point today many unbelievers are far more
trustworthy than today’s Christians--especially when it comes to the
subject of resisting unjust government. It grieves me say that many
“Christian� attorneys, politicians, pastors, and church leaders
are merely shills and toadies for a government that has often become
both oppressive and illegitimate!
May God help us! He will have to, because we won’t get much help
from the vast majority of today’s professing Christians. That is for
sure!
P.S. THIS IS THE FINAL CALL FOR FREEDOM DOCUMENTS. We are in the
final days of shipping this massive compilation of 50 of America’s
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