Election Day and resulting government

No matter who the winner on November 2nd is (was) the Christian has a responsibility to recognize the government and obey the laws and the leadership of the government.

As we examine the Israel of old, we learn that God had carved out a nation from a man of faith. Abram, or Abraham, as he was later called was a man who trusted God and was promised that a great nation would arise from his posterity. Of course that nation was Israel, a people that had grown to become a nation, not only by number, but by their status as having been chosen by God Himself.


Israel had yielded themselves to God for hundreds of years, living in a varied state of obedience to disobedience being led by God through men and women who had been raised up by God as the leader. Those leaders ranged from the Patriarchs to Moses and from Joshua to the various Judges; leaders all, but each one listening to the rule from God. There came a day, however, when the people looked to the nations around them and said they wanted a king.


Samuel served as a Judge to the people of Israel at the time, and served as a prophet as well. The people’s call for a king left Samuel feeling as if he was being rejected. In 1 Samuel chapter 8 God talked to Samuel:


“The Lord said to Samuel, ‘Do everything the people requires of you. For it is not you that they have rejected, but it is me that they have rejected as their king. Just as they have done from the day that I brought them up from Egypt until this very day, they have rejected me and have served other gods. This is what they are also doing to you. So now do as they say. But seriously warn them and make them aware of the policies of the king who will rule over them.’” (1 Samuel 8:7-9)


God’s people had finally made the break; they rejected God’s Theocracy in favor of a monarchy; Saul, the first King, David second, then his son, Solomon. In the span of time it took to form the first government to the middle of the third, the monarchy had managed to birth government corruption, a loss of wisdom and a full-blown establishment of government bureaucracy.


Corruption was identified by Solomon in his book of Ecclesiastes when he recorded for us the following information:


“If you see the extortion of the poor or the perversion of justice and fairness in the government, do not be astonished by the matter. For the high official is watched by a higher official, and there are higher ones over them! The produce of the land is seized by all of them. Even the king is served by the fields.” (Ecclesiastes 5:8-9)


Corruption and perversion of justice completed at all levels of the government bureaucracy. Resources produced by the people are seized at every level, including the king. Instead of manna from God given to the people, it is personal property taken by the government to support the layers of officials from the lowest official to the court of the King.


God had ruled with Wisdom beyond the human mind. But with human government ascending to leadership, wisdom waned as it trickled through the layers of bureaucracy. The third King of Israel, Solomon, wrote again in Ecclesiastes the following insight on the matter:


“Who is a wise person? Who knows a solution to a problem? A person’s wisdom brightens his appearance, and softens his harsh countenance. Obey the king’s command, because you took an oath before God to be loyal to him. Do not rush out of the king’s presence in haste – do not delay when the matter is unpleasant, for he can do whatever he pleases. Surely the king’s authority is absolute: no one can say to him, ‘What are you doing?’ Whoever obeys his command will not experience harm, and a wise person knows the proper time and procedure. For there is a proper time and procedure for every matter, for the oppression of the king is severe upon his victim. Surely no one knows the future, and no one can tell another person what will happen. Just as no one has power over the wind to restrain it, so no one has power over the day of his death. Just as no one can be discharged during the battle, so wickedness cannot rescue the wicked. While applying my [Solomon] mind to everything that happens in this world, I have seen all this: Sometimes one person dominates other people to their harm.” (Ecclesiastes 8:1-9)


We must be satisfied with the wisdom of men to rule with the wisdom of men if we have turned from the Wisdom of God and His rule.


Now for the Christian all of this history of God’s people abdicating God’s rule to man’s rule may not seem relevant. However, from the writings from the Apostle Paul we find it is the Christian’s responsibility to be submissive to Civil Government. In his letter to the Christians in Rome, Paul gave the following word as inspired by the Holy Spirit:


“Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except by God’s appointment, and the authorities that exist have been instituted by God. So the person who resists such authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will incur judgment (for rulers cause no fear for good conduct but for bad). Do you desire not to fear authority? Do good and you will receive its commendation, for it is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be in fear, for it does not bear the sword in vain. It is God’s servant to administer retribution on the wrongdoer. Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of the wrath of the authorities but also because of your conscience. For this reason you also pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants devoted to governing. Pay everyone what is owed: taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due.” (Romans 13:1-7)


We are not talking about any specific form of government here except “governing authorities.” We must take from this passage the authority of the Apostle Paul in his admonition to submit to the governing authorities. The reason is simple: “There is no authority except by God’s appointment, and the authorities that exist have been instituted by God.”


Keep in mind, however, if the government forces us to turn away from God or requires us to not obey God we must resist. In the earliest beginnings of the Church we have an excellent example from the Apostles Peter and John who had healed a lame man through the power of Jesus. This disturbed the leaders who commanded the two Apostles to cease speaking of Jesus. The writer of the Acts of the Apostles [Luke] recorded for us the results of this matter:



“And they [the leaders] called them [Peter and John] in and ordered them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John replied, ‘Whether it is right before God to obey you rather than God, you decide, for it is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.’” (Acts 4:18-20)


Therefore, our first responsibility is to submit ourselves to God and His Will.  We must obey the laws of the land and obey the government in regard to taxes, laws and requirements for living.  The exception is when the government attempts to require us to disobey God, or substitute our worship of God to any other than the One and Only True God of the universe.

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Gray Power voting on 11-2

Do you hear that sound? It is the sound of thousands of AARP eligible Grandparents marching toward the polls. That's right! We are going to march to the polling place and as we punch the card we will remember the flag that we stand straight for, the constitution we studied in school, the values we shared as we grew up, the freedoms our fathers fought for in WWII and our mothers who supported them by keeping the industrial fires burning at home.

We will remember the freedoms we sustained as we served in our military while many gave their lives in Korea and Viet Nam, and the celebration as we listened to our Great American President demand from a totalitarian dictator, "Tear down This Wall!"






We will remember the fall of communism and the destruction it caused. We will remember our history of holding back a world take-over attempt from a madman who killed six million Jews as his government slaughtered them in a process referred to as the "Holocaust" while some today deny its very existence. We old-timers who actually studied history in school will remember the Russian Bear and the madman in Red Square who killed over 12 million of his fellow citizens who simply disagreed with the socialistic-communistic view points.






We will stand as a pillar of strength as we remember the once revered moral teachings of the Bible and the message of truth, faith and love. We will pull the lever and make "lame-ducks" of those who have practiced a whole-sale give-away of our national treasures to other countries for their thirty pieces of silver.






Perhaps as we stand at those polling places in the midst of higher taxes, a larger deficit, experiencing a more socialistic bureaucratic government, drowning in a red sea of debt, sinking into the abyss of sludge created by unscrupulous politicians baptized in corruption and racketeering, we will defeat the "progressive" and we will hearken back to Winston Churchill's famous words spoken as Britain was beaten down by the blitz of the enemy bombs on London and paraphrase, "If Americans, and these United States live on for a thousand years, men will know this as one of their finest hours."



Jim Killebrew

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The discussion

Scene: Some remote, unseen place that exists in God's creation, where two angels are conversing about Mankind.

"It is magnificent to be an angel," said the first angel to the second. "We see and hear some of the works of God that humans find so difficult to comprehend. In fact, since they are bound to His created earth, it is completely impossible for the human's finite mind to fully comprehend the awesome power of God."

"Yes, it is true," the second angel said, "His attributes reach far beyond what they can intellectually or emotionally grasp. The process by which He makes decisions is even difficult for us to comprehend; for them it is mostly unknown."

"How true," said the first angel, "they can only begin to understand His essence by thinking of Him within the context of their own 'human Characteristics.'"

"But by translating what they believe He may be like and transferring that likeness into human terms, only allows them to have a dim view and limited knowledge of His Being," the second angel interjected. “Yes, it is almost like looking into a dark reflection and seeing only a partial image, not seeing it in a face-to-face experience,” said the first angel.

"His actions toward them, on the other hand, are much easier for them to understand," said the first.

Pondering the thought, the first angel continued, "God's Word details to humans many ways in which He has moved through their history. His Word has recorded deeds and events beginning even with their very own creation. He spoke into existence their sun, moon, stars, their own earth, and indeed, the entire universe."

"And we were there to experience that first hand," the second angel added.

"And the crowning glory, too," reminded the first.

"Of course, the creation of the very first human," voiced the second.

"But it was the work of salvation that was the most fascinating to behold," the first angel added.

"You actually experienced that?" asked the second.

"Only by happenstance," the first angel added. "The man and his wife had accepted the word of the deceiver, and had rejected their face-to-face communion with The Father," the first angel said. "Feeling that enormous shock wave that reverberated throughout creation at man's choice of rejection," the first angel continued, "I happened to be close to the Throne. Bracing myself for what I expected to be the complete destruction of all of mankind's existence, only a discussion occurred instead."

"Please tell me about the discussion," the second angel pleaded.

"The heavenly host gathered about the Throne. Upon the Throne sat God, The Father. The Father is not dominated by time. He is not held captive by the limitations and boundaries imposed by the changing patterns of daylight and darkness. As the heavenly host approached Him in thought He was deeply engrossed in remembering. But His thinking was almost a brooding or an attitude or a thought too deep for understanding."

"In all of creation there seemed to be a reaction to His thoughts. As if expecting the heaven to melt at His reaction, the world He had created was waiting, almost gasping, and holding on watching for a small glimmer of what His action would be."

"As the host watched in quiet reverence, The Most Holy One began a discussion with Himself."

"'Share with me your feelings, Father' a voice said as it approached His powerful presence.

"'The man whom I have created and love has followed another,' He replied. 'My decree is to allow him and his to turn forever because they have chosen so.'"

"'Father,' the voice whispered, 'have you not proven to them your love?' 'Have you not communicated with them your understanding?' 'Have you not provided them a way to see your mercy?' 'Have you not made them free?'"

"'Yes, my son,' He replied, 'I have given them their choice.'"

"Silence prevailed throughout creation as He contemplated one last choice. Finally, He spoke: 'There is one thing yet to do. I will accept only the most righteous blood of one man who can follow My every precept. For that one man who will make his final choice for me I will approve and accept. From him I will set the standard for all to follow. Through him, I will allow all mankind to choose My acceptance or My wrath. By accepting him they will accept Me.'"

"At that moment the heaven reeled and all of the created spiritual beings flashed throughout all eternity, and all creation focused itself upon the small earth as the angelic host, with myself as leader, in unison began to proclaim to the Shepherds in the fields of Bethlehem, 'Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.' (Luke 2:14) "Then I said: 'Fear not: for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.'" (Luke 2:10 11)

"With this, the Word became flesh, and lived among men; the discussion ended, and God, the Father smiled."

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Blessed beyond measure

In Ephesians 1:1-14 the Apostle Paul reveals the grace of God in such a beautiful way. The Apostle shares with each of us who read the passage how God bestows upon each of those who accept Him the spiritual blessings that are found by being in Christ. As Christians read and study Paul’s letter to the Christians who lived in Ephesus, they will be blessed by knowing how much God cares for us, even before the creation of the world.

God has blessed us with spiritual blessings. He prepared for our salvation long before the world was created. The plan of redemption was placed in motion in eternity past. At a perfect point in history God’s plan unfolded and redemption was achieved by the very Son of God giving His life as a sacrifice for all mankind. Then in our personal past history beginning with our conversion as we accepted Him in faith, God planned for us to receive the gift of His Holy Spirit. We praise God because we were chosen to take part in His Plan before the world began.


In His sight we are holy and unblemished from within His love. Christ is the unblemished paschal lamb who was the sacrifice for the sins committed by mankind. When we accept Christ as our Lord and Savior we are viewed by God positionally as being in Christ and in turn there will be a time when we become like Christ and will be made without blemish as well.


We have been adopted as His children through Jesus Christ…just because it is God’s will. In the position of adopted children in Christ, we have the full rights of inheriting the gifts that God has made available, not the least of which is eternal life in Him. As part of the family of God we enjoy the benefits that God has offered. Our inheritance is part of the plan of God that was devised by Him before the world began.


Our purpose is to praise Him because He is our Father. We are given God’s grace because of what Jesus His Son has done. Only when we are in Christ and remain in Him will God bestow His grace on us as heirs of salvation. When God sees us He sees the blood of Jesus and the sacrifice of the unblemished lamb that is Jesus.


It is by His Grace that He has given His Son, Jesus so we might have forgiveness. Jesus is the substitute and served as the sacrifice to pay the price of our sin. So it is the blood of Jesus that has bought the redemptive act that saves us; that is the sacrificial death of Christ on the cross. It is by His Grace that He has given His Son, Jesus so we might have forgiveness.


It is through the blood of Jesus that we are redeemed, and all because there is no end to God’s Grace. To sum it up and make sense out of what God has done for us, and to make sense out of what we have when we are in Christ, we must realize that all things in heaven and earth have been given to Jesus Christ, and at the fullness of time He has been exalted and appointed as ruler or head over all things in heaven and earth. Those who have accepted Him and are in Him constitute the church and come under His subjection.


He communicated to us the secret of His will that He had established long before the world began in Christ His Son. When the time is right all things in creation will reach a climax and be led by Christ that includes the way He has it in heaven and on earth. God has claimed us in Christ long before our birth and has given us a purpose that is within His will to accomplish.


When we set our hope on Christ and accept Him in faith because of what He has already done through the shedding of His blood for us, we offer up our praise to Him and become the praise of His glory.


From the time we accepted Christ by hearing the Truth of His gift for us, and we believed through faith in Him, He marked us with a seal of the promised presence of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit in our lives is a down payment toward our inheritance as adopted children, and is paid in full when God redeems us as His possessions and we live eternally with Him to praise Him forever.

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Hunger satisfied

The Lord satisfies the appetite of the righteous, but he thwarts the craving of the wicked. (Proverbs 10:3)

Wisdom cries out to those who want to submit to the Righteousness of God. Even at best life is difficult in a world that is filled with decadent cultures. There is a tension that is at play between those whose desire is to make appropriate choices and those whose motives and actions are to lead those same people to total corruption.


Seeking the Lord and His Righteousness is a hunger that moves the person toward submission to obedience to God’s will. The appetite of those who seek God’s Righteousness is satisfied and will not reach that state of constant hunger; the appetite of the righteous is satisfied by the Lord. Deep inside the person is a desire to be successful in accepting the Lord and His Righteousness. Paradoxically the cravings of the wickedness of the world seek to devour those who wish to submit to the Lord’s Wisdom.


But, “Greater is He who is in me than the one who is in the world” and the power of the Almighty God of Wisdom will not only bring complete satisfaction to the seeker of Righteousness, but will at the same time thwart and refuse to satisfy those wicked ones whose desire is not to seek His Righteousness.


Returning to this Proverb, we have assurance from God that when we finally move toward Him in faith and have a hunger to seek Him and His Righteousness, He will satisfy that hunger. Not only that, He will put a ring of protection around us as we seek Him. No person can stop us; He will prevent those who practice wickedness and crave to stop us from doing so. He stands with open arms and nothing can prevent our being accepted by Him as we seek Him in faith.

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What goes around, comes around

Treasures gained by wickedness do not profit, but righteousness delivers from mortal danger. (Proverbs 10:2)

What goes around, comes around is almost the way of history. Eventually something that happens will return and happen again; maybe not exactly the same way, but close enough that it can be related to the same incident. Things have a tendency to come full cycle. It is a truth that a person’s actions will have consequences for that person and others close to that person.


It is sometimes ironic how justice seems to turn the corner just in time to even up the scales again. The world is replete with greed and ill-gotten gain; treasures that seem to flow like bees to flowers to the wicked. But ultimately God administers judgment and justice to purveyors of wealth that is received unjustly by dishonesty and causes it to lose its profit. There is no payoff with diminishing value of riches obtained by cheating others. Witness the final outcome for those whose Ponzi schemes are finally discovered.


God is righteous and He is in control. In the final analysis the Righteousness of God and the power of His Spirit brings honesty and ultimately reduces wickedness to its rightful place. Honesty banishes greed; honesty wipes clean the infestation of lies and mortal danger. It is only when we place ourselves in the hands of the Righteous God and allow Him to practice His honesty in our lives will we be delivered from mortal danger.


Chase not after the temporal riches of this world, but rather hide your spirit safely in the Spirit of the Honest God.

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Ripple effect of choices

The Proverbs of Solomon: A wise child makes a father rejoice, but a foolish child is a grief to his mother. (Proverbs 10:1)

We face decisions each and every day. We have choices to make about almost everything. Whether we are fifteen or fifty-five the choices we make have an impact not only on ourselves, but those around us as well.


Each decision is like a link in a chain; as we make choices about everything we are living as we move through our lives day by day. Our perceptions form our attitudes and we decide for or against whatever issue we confront. Our feelings are formed either positively or negatively as we accept or reject. We become like a snowball gaining momentum and adding content to our lives as we go. It propels us into a “lifestyle” that is uniquely formed as one idea is added to another and our “worldview” emerges.


As we internalize the world around us we form a personality and a unique identification. That personality is shaped by everyone and everything we encounter; and yet we continue to be uniquely independent because of our own personal choices. We maintain freedom in our thoughts and we have choices to act on those thoughts as we will.


Because of that interconnectedness with ourselves, our thoughts, environmental stimuli, others in our lives and our past learning history, we inexorably touch and influence those closest to us.


Returning to the Proverb written by Solomon we can see that it really does matter about the choices we make in our lives. We have an effect on those around us in more ways than we can imagine. This Proverb says that if we make wise choices and submit ourselves to Wisdom, with the power of God we become wise and give reason for our parents to rejoice. The obverse or counterpart is true as well: if we make foolish choices we shun the power of God and His Wisdom and become foolish in our ways. Such a decision causes grief to our parents and those around us.


How many people are suffering and grieved because of the decisions of others?

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