Social Justice

The latest buzz word of our time is “Social Justice”.  It is a concept that appears to have a noble theme, the idea of taking from the well to do, and giving to those who have little, but in actuality it is born of a desire to create a peasant class and breeds nothing but envy and a sense of entitlement.  It is not “Social Justice” that Jesus speaks of when He tells us to share our bread and clothe the naked, but “Social Mercies”.  Justice implies that what is taken from those who are financially better off, and given to those who are in need, is deserved, simply by the nature of their need, regardless of their circumstances.   It is of interest that those who push social justice on the working class, are themselves extremely wealthy and could with a stroke of a pen, write off most of the world’s poverty simply by giving of their excess without hardly a notice in their standard of living.  But rather than do that, they “guilt” the working class, or in other words,  the middle class, that already is burdened by taxation to cover social entitlement programs, into thinking that they should not keep what they earn, but must give it to those who do not have through even greater taxation. They add burdens without lifting a finger themselves to offset the burdens.

Ironically, what I’ve observed is that those who wait tables for a living, tip others who wait tables better than the rich, and those who work for a living, contribute more to those who have need, than do the rich.  We have already begun to see the emergence of a two class system…the mega- rich and the poor…as the middle class is being stretched beyond measure and burdened beyond what it can bear.  But what is obvious is that our political system is now run by the mega-rich, and none can even run for office, unless they have come from wealth.  There is no consideration among these who spend millions of dollars of our hard earned money to take vacations, to entertain their friends and to give away money to other countries’ governments,  while adding burden upon burden upon the backs of the working Americans. 

It is hypocrisy when I hear politicians chastise the “rich”, when they themselves are wealthy. It is likewise hypocritical that these same politicians invent ways of keeping the poor, dependent upon a system where those who work to earn wages must support those who do not, and the wealthy politicians with their corporate sponsors skim from the top of the treasury bag for their own use, much like what Judas did.  Additionally, God does not receive the glory for their relief, nor does the working class who earned the money, but the politicians themselves.  As a result, they garner the votes from the ever increasing population of poor who have become addicted to receiving something for nothing. It is a self-perpetuating system which eventually enslaves everyone except those in political power.  This is not the Biblical model of caring for the poor among us.

The Bible states: “If a man does not work, neither shall he eat”.  How many able body men are not working simply because they are being rewarded not to? How many able body men are drunkards, and rather than seek deliverance and healing, they have their alcohol addiction labeled a handicap, and collect disability? How many “poor” are there who have an expectation that they should be taken care of by the working class, simply because they exist? How many feel entitled and therefore have absolutely no gratitude for what they do receive?  Few are thanking God, in fact, many of these expect more than they already have been given.  Some believe because of their ancestors’ slavery, certain classes of people, by virtue of their skin color, “owe” them restitution.  They never give a thought to how God uses the evil acts of men for good, as He did with Joseph, who was sold into slavery. He was then later in a position to save the entire nation of Israel from famine.  They also do not regard the historical fact that most every class of people has been enslaved at one time or another, and in fact, slavery is still rampant in this day and age. In their mioptic view of life, they remain ignorant of their sin of envy and presumption, and help further an agenda for the manipulation of the population.  

 No, social justice is not “ just” , it is the seed of envy and entitlement and is divisive of the community. Jesus said “The poor you will always have with you”.  He did not envision a time in this age where everyone lived a utopian existence.  It is not possible as long as there is sin in the world.  Where there is sin, there is selfishness, and lust, and self-centeredness.  Those who are in positions of power, will not surrender it for the sake of equality, and those who are self-centered, care nothing for the poor, but how they can take advantage of them to further their own lust for power.

Social Justice is a tool of the so called elite and the politicians to manipulate others into giving them what they earn.  If they truly cared for the poor, they would not take lavish vacations, throw lavish parties and buy luxurious items from the treasury that is collected from hard working Americans. 

 The Hollywood rich would not spend thousands of dollars to have their eyebrows plucked, or to fly here and there on a private jet, spending obscene amounts of dollars for a pair of shoes or a purse.  They will not suffer the slightest inconvenience, but will happily give a free performance if it means gleaning even more from the hardworking American worker, and give them free publicity.  How much money was gleaned from the pockets of compassionate Americans for the devastation of Haiti, and yet, none of it went to the need of the people of Haiti. They are still living in poverty and rubble. How much food was sent to Myanmar after their calamity, and rotted in the ports because of a corrupt government?  How many have been oppressed by a power intoxicated political body?

We are to put on bowels of “tender mercies”, and to be sensitive to the needs of those around us.  We are to be in prayer for those in the world who have not Jesus Christ as their Savior, so that they are in a position to be blessed of the Lord, so that they may know God personally.  Our work is not one of fixing the world’s injustice, but of pointing the way to Christ, the Great Physician.  Where there are the hungry, we are to feed them. Not through government programs, but through the church.  Where there are the naked, we are to clothe them, not through government programs, but through the various ministries that serve the poor, and in circumstances where we ourselves might be able to personally help.  Not for “justice” sake, but for “mercy” sake. We give, because God gave to us, not because anyone “deserves” it.  If a man should refuse to work, he should also be refused financial assistance so that the resources might supply for the needs of the widow and orphaned.  Sadly, these are the ones most often neglected in government programs, while these are the very ones that God has instructed us to help.

The widowed (and abandoned mother) and orphaned are prevalent in this fatherless generation, and find themselves in a predicament not usually of their own choosing.  We should do all we can to help feed, clothe and house them.  However, the Bible qualified the term “widow” by calling them “widows indeed”….suggesting that if there were family members, that they should show piety at home and supply for their need. God demonstrates that He is interested in our welfare, both for those in need, and for those who have something to give.  He desires that we be free from the bondage of poverty and free from the bondage of self-centeredness and selfishness. Social Justice does not do this. It merely takes and redistributes, so rather than deliverance from bondage, there is further bondage added.  People become enslaved to envy, greed, entitlement, and resentment.  That is the fruit of the “world’s way”.  It is divisive and perpetuates a corrupt system.  It is what has propelled atheistic and demonically inspired communism into power creating a system of the powerful so called elite ruling over the dispensable masses who serve them.  

Only Jesus Christ can save the world. We are to serve one another in reverence to Him and in observance to the Word of God.  Anyone who collects a treasury under a pretense of “Social Justice” extorting for their own agendas, will one day truly understand what “Justice” means when they stand before the only Judge of mankind and are called to give an account for what they have done. Justice without mercy is given to those who have shown no mercy…I would not want to be that person.

The Fallacy of Neutral Ground

One of the greatest delusions of our generation is that there is “neutral” ground.  Having been brainwashed to believe that there is such a thing as a “secular” non-religious component to this life, has blind-sided many and deceived many.  How often we have heard it said that in the “name of religion”, wars are waged…and, so the argument goes: World and societal affairs should remain “neutral” and “secular” if we are to avoid a "religious" war.  If this premise were true, then it is a reasonable and logical conclusion…if this, then that…  Unfortunately, the problem lies with the premise.  There is no neutral ground.

It doesn’t matter how many people believe that there is neutral territory, it does not in any way, dissuade from the truth of the matter.  People are either in the Kingdom of God, or they are in the kingdom of the world. They are either joined to Christ, or they are not.  It is written that Jesus declared: ”He that is not with Me, is against Me, and he that gathereth not with Me, scattereth abroad.” (Mt.12:30) This is not a provocative declaration, such as one would declare before heading into a battle, this is a simple statement of fact. As long as a person is not joined to Christ, he is subject to the spiritual principalities and dominions of this fallen and captive world.  If a person is not “translated from the kingdom of darkness, to the Kingdom of Jesus Christ”, he remains a vessel through whom the devil can operate.  This is easy to see betwixt believers and non-believers of God, but what is less discernible, is the influence that this kind of premise has over the thinking of a Christian. 

We have been brainwashed to accept this fallacy of neutral ground, and as a result, we tend to compartmentalize our faith.  We may have our devotions in the morning, our worship services and our Bible studies, but our mindset once we leave these sacred places, is we are now venturing out into the neutral world with some evil elements around us.  As a result, we are living our lives with a double-mind, or as the more accurate translation of the greek, a “double-soul”.   Having our faith compartmentalized, we box in our faith, and are left handicapped.  We relegate many of the occurrences of the day to non-consequential   events.  We live a sort of “haphazard” Christian walk, because we walk in a daze when we walk with a double soul.  We cannot see the correlation of events as it pertains to the spiritual world around us. We are ignorant of cause and effect and we don’t connect the dots. We are divided on the inside and as Jesus said: “ Every kingdom divided against itself, is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself shall not stand”.(Mt.12:25) Our integrity is compromised, because we are “double-souled” and there is little wonder that we find ourselves stumbling so often in our pursuit of Perfection in Christ.  When we step into a world that we believe is neutral, we become careless, and as Christians, we cannot afford to be careless. The spirit of this world is by no means neutral, on the contrary, the spirit of this world despises Christians.

It doesn’t much matter if a non-Christian is careless in his day to day life as he remains faithful to the “god of this age”. But when we, as children of God,  are careless, we slip from our place of safety and sustain injury because we have not been diligent to put on the whole armor of God, whilst we walk in this sin infested world.  Scriptures describe  friendship with the world as “enmity against God” and “whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world, makes himself an enemy of God” (James 4:4) This is not to say that we should be hostile, fearful or combative, for we are admonished that if at all possible, so much as it depends upon us, that we should live peaceably with others (Rom.12:18)…but that we ought to know that those who are worldly, whether they consent or not, are subject to the kingdom of this world, and this kingdom is the kingdom of darkness.  

All that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world (1Jn.2:16) and this carnal mindset, is enmity against God, for it is not subject to the Law of God, nor indeed can be. (Rom.8:7)  God has made it clear in His Word, that there are only two choices…as it is written “I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing…therefore, choose life that both you and your descendants may live (Dt. 30:19) From the very beginning of time, there were only two choices: obedience or rebellion.  There was never a third neutral choice, and there is nothing new under the sun even today.  We are either walking in obedience, or we are slipping into rebellion.  

 When we maintain the false notion that we live in a secular, non-religious environment that is neutral towards God, the creator, we live much of our lives in utter ignorance and are vulnerable to error.  God declared that we are destroyed because of our ignorance. (Hosea4:6) How can we be strong in Christ, if we are ourselves, a divided temple?  How can we, as a church, the bride of Christ, be united as a body, if we are divided in ourselves?  It is necessary to put away this nonsensical doctrine of the existence of neutrality in this captive world, if we are ever to be fully integrated Christians.  

One effective measure, I have learned, of “mind-control” is to “splinter” the personalities of the victims. Having accomplished this, the perpetrator creates new and unopposed personalities that he is able to manipulate because the splintered personality is vulnerable and the person is disintegrated and compartmentalized.  It is the same method that the adversary uses on the individual member of the body of Christ regarding spirituality. His aim is to partition off one’s faith and having locked it up in compartments, he is able to manipulate their mind, which is left unguarded as they meander ignorantly in the world, having the belief that they are in neutral territory.  The devil knows well that the double-minded man is unstable in all his ways. (James 1:8) But God says “Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts you double-minded...gird up the loins of your minds…be sober, be vigilant for your adversary, the devil, prowls around seeking whom he may devour…” (James 4:8; 1 Peter1: 8,13) We are not living in neutral territory, on the contrary, we are living in a hostile and predatory territory.

The disintegration of each individual Christian, explains the disintegration of families, fellowship, and society. It has been this indoctrination of neutral ground that has seduced the children of God to sleep in the meadow of poppies, while a war is waged upon them.  Because we have been so indoctrinated in this lie, we have been unarmed and unprotected and slapped silly so that while we may remain devoted to God in Christ, we are weak, weary and self-absorbed in our private battles and find little in the way of help from our church leaders.  Our task is to ask God to transform and renew our minds so that we are not double-minded or divided, but that we are fully integrated, having the Word of God as our lamp and light. We are at a disadvantage in trying to do this in our own strength, can a leopard change his spots? (Jer.13:23) We must ask God to make us whole in Christ.  But we must also endeavor to “gird up the loins of our minds”, this is not an effortless transformation. Our mind is washed and renewed by the faithful study of the Word of God.  That is our work in reintegrating ourselves so that we are perfected in Christ. There is no neutral ground. The world’s territory is hostile and predatory. It is in bondage to the devil and the devil is vehemently hostile to Christians.

 Set your mind on things above, not on things of the earth. (Col.3:2) We must be constant in prayer and ask the Lord to open our eyes to see what we have been missing in our slumber. If we do not see it, how can we pray about it? If we are sleeping in our worldly interactions, how can we see Jesus, never mind fix our eyes on Him.  We must integrate ourselves to be whole in Christ, so that we may be healed, and that we may be a people who are effectually fervent in prayer, knitted together in the bond of love and peace, a bride that is without spot or wrinkle, a church ready for her husbandman.  We have confidence that in this endeavor we will prevail, for this is the will of God, in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The Unmerited Gift of Salvation

We are accepted in the Beloved (Eph.1:16)  and we are perfected by His Grace.(Jn17:23) We are reckoned dead to sin but alive to Christ.(Rom.6:11) We are so utterly and hopelessly corrupt when we are born in this world, that there is no rehabilitation. We are simply declared dead. But, God has redeemed our soul and given His Holy Spirit, creating for Himself a New species of mankind. We can never be a "new and improved version" of ourselves. We can only be a new creation. (2Cor.5:17) God has salvaged our soul and spirit, cleansed them with the blood of Jesus Christ, and put us in Christ so that we are in Him and He is in us.  We cannot add anything to what He has done. No external form can ever surpass this divine creation of the new second man, the Last Adam.. We are each unique and special in Christ and are particular members of His body, with a unique calling and function.  We cannot add nor take away from what He has done, we must merely labor to rest in His divine mercies.

All that the adversary does, is to try to move us from our place of rest. His intention is to plant a seed of doubt so that we wonder if "His grace is sufficient for me?". The adversary desires that we leave that firm foundation, the Rock of our Salvation, and build our house on shifting sand.  We are saved by grace through faith, not our own, but a gift from God. (Eph.2:8) We have died, and are reborn in Christ, a new creation...period. This is a done deal. This is the testimony of God, who cannot lie.(Heb.6:18) and this is the only impossible thing attributed to God. God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who does not have the Son, does not have the life.(1Jn.5:11-12) However, the devil attempts to divert a true believer by suggesting that grace alone is not sufficient. He poisons the truth by suggesting that salvation is dependent on grace "plus" something else.
Grace plus fasting, Grace plus walking perfectly, Grace plus weekly church attendance, Grace plus covering your head...none of these things are bad, in fact, they may be useful if done in the right attitude, but none of these additional external acts are "essential" for salvation, and this is where the enemy would like to divert believers from their rest in Christ. I submit that these non-essentials are also those things which have divided the body of Christ. The source of discord among fellow believers. This division alone bears witness to its origin, for Christ is not divided against Himself...but we know who does invest himself in breaking up the house of God, for God hates the one who sows discord among brethren. (Prov.6:16-19)

The devil has supplanted many a Christian's faith by suggesting that grace alone is not sufficient, and this he has done throughout the ages. Paul addressed the controversy of circumcision vs uncircumcision...in other words, an external religion versus an internal re-birth. Whether one is circumcised or uncircumcised has no bearing on salvation, God cares only for our hearts.

Women covering or not covering their heads, again, no bearing on our salvation. We are free to honor God in whatever way we feel, but it is the humility of heart that God cares about, not the crown of our head. Sunday or Saturday worship? Both days are named after pagan so-called deities, lets settle this controversy... worship God every day, for THIS is the day the Lord has made, be glad and rejoice in it. Observe civil holidays or shun them? Choose whatever eases your conscience but none adds nor takes away from the efficacy of the grace of God and the sacrifice of our Lord Jesus Christ, who bore our sins, sicknesses, shame and pain on the cross in order to grant us a means of mercy and reconciliation to Yaweh, our Creator.   We are perfect in Christ, as long as we remain in Him. This is the secret place of the Most High. We cannot add anything to our salvation. Whenever we try to perfect ourselves in our own strength, we nullify the grace of God and fall under the curse. We through the Law, died to the Law that we might live for God (read Galations 2&3)

The only way to be "perfect" is to abide in Christ.. Therefore, it is this abiding that the devil would like to distract the saints from.  It is a cleverly designed snare because instead of God's all sufficient grace, we insult God by adding some fleshly work to it.  When we abide in the vine, we bear fruit as a natural consequence. A fruitful work is produced, but by means of the vine, not the branch.

If I spent countless hours creating a painting for a person, made it perfect, and gave it to him, and then he took a big black brush and painted some odd symbol on it, it would have ruined the gift, even though the receiver may have intended to match his decor.  We do the same when we receive God's grace conditionally. It is a testimony that we are unwilling to accept that we are hopelessly corrupt and want to leave a legacy of ourselves in this new work.  We insult God in the process, we nullify His grace, and we practically testify that we know nothing of the work of the cross.  If our righteousness could be manufactured from our efforts, then Christ died in vain.

Jesus Christ said "I am the vine, you are the branches...abide in Me....".(Jn15:1-4) Whatever else comes our way... "abide in Christ". Temptations and trials disguised as many things are all designed to draw us out from our tabernacle in God, for we are in Christ, and Christ is in God.(Heb.8:2;Col.3:3) He is the secret place of the Most High, He is our hiding place.(Ps.32:7)

Often times the Lord will lead us into desert experiences. A time of spiritual dryness, and this is the time that the devil is most active in interjecting these sorts of temptations.  Spiritual dryness, is an unpleasant experience, but is necessary in order that we drive down our roots in faith. The Just shall live by faith (Gal.3:11)...and when we are feeling this arid season, we are often tempted to think we've done something wrong and that we've grieved the heart of God. Certainly we ought to examine ourselves to see if there is something we have done to grieve Him, and prayerfully ask that He reveal it to us, but after having done this, and confessing any sins we might have committed, we are to remember that He is faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us of all unrighteousness.(1Jn.1:9) If we are genuine and penitent, we have the confidence that God has forgiven us.  We proceed into this desert knowing that the Lord will provide a source of spiritual water to keep us alive, as He did when the Israelites wandered the desert for 40 years. 

The devil takes advantage of our ignorance and fretting and accuses us during these seasons of dryness...you should do this, or do that...you should incorporate this external religious rite, or turn  inward to endless introspection...for our hearts are desperately wicked and we will never run out of things to be guilty of.  No, we haven't earned our way!! We don't "deserve" salvation. Regardless of how we try, we can't find the bottom of self to uproot it! But then...."O despair, O discouragement! O pointless and unprofitable life!" That, my friend, is the devils reward for this kind of thinking. We are moved away from grace, and sunk under the curse of the law.

Let us agree, we all fall short in every good work and deed. We haven't earned anything, but praise be to God, His steadfast love, grace and mercy abundantly supplies for all our needs and is forever. We find rest for our weary soul, but we have treated our resting place like a way-station, a stopping place to catch up on our rest and refreshing, only to go out into the world until we are worn out and then back to the way-station.  This is not God's way. His way is for us to continually abide.  We are in Christ, and He is in us. He supplies an endless fountain of life to us who abide. Abide...abide...abide in Christ.  The old man is rotten flesh, we can't make it pretty. Its odious and offensive. We can't improve it. It is decay and useless.  Our work is to believe God and in Him Whom He sent (Jn.6:29) and labor into rest. (Heb.4:11) To abide "in Him". Salvation is not self-improvement, its death to self, and life in Christ.  The simplicity of the Gospel truth is this: Christ died, and I died with Him, Christ is risen, and I live in Him, He sent His Holy Spirit and He lives in me. Christ in me, I in Christ...a new creation, a new species of mankind, incorruptible and no longer subject to the fall of Adam. All things are new.

Some computer hard drives are so infested and corrupted with computer viruses that they can not be of any use to anyone. They are best discarded and a new hard drive put in the computer. But a fool will try to extract files from the corrupted hard drive to put them on the new hard drive, thereby infecting the new one and in time, be no better off as eventually, the entire new hard drive become utterly corrupted and useless.  We likewise, cannot go back and pick out files from our old life and think it won't corrupt the new.  Cast it off, bury it, its dead.  Trust and obey. We can add nothing...we bring nothing to the table but our open hands and hearts.

The Lonely Road

In our Journey along the narrow and difficult road to perfection in Christ, we discover that it is a lonely journey. Jesus made clear to us that there is a broad road, and a narrow and difficult road. There be many who follow the broad road, and they are likely comforted by the fact that there are so many along side of them. This may be the worldly road that leads to destruction, but there are also turn-offs and exits that are broad with all the appearance of Christianity externally, but no inner change or submission to Almighty God. No "new birth". They remain the same on the inside.  These are those whom Jesus referred to as "hypocrites", and who are also heading towards destruction, or as Jesus Himself described the outer darkness where there will be "weeping and gnashing of teeth"....those who honor Him with their lips, but their heart is far Him.  Jesus pronounces that these hypocrites would be utterly cast out into the abyss.  Does a hypocrite realize that they are a hypocrite?  That is the question to ask ourselves...are we people of integrity in Christ, or are we hypocrites? How can we possibly answer that question unless we are first honest with ourselves before God.  I am not writing for the hypocrite, nor for those who are content with one foot in the world and one foot in Christ. We are to "Love God with ALL of our heart, ALL of our mind and ALL of our strength"...do we? Or have we a "divided" mind? Do we partition off our mind so that we divide our "ALL" into partials.  Jesus said "If you love Me, you will obey Me". That is our demonstration of love...walking in obedience to the Word of God. That is the evidence of Loving God with all of our mind, and all of our strength. But there is then the matter of the "heart".

This blog isn't for the half-hearted Christian, but to my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ who find that they are on a lonely journey of perfection in Christ.  An absolute surrender to the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit in TRUE believers. As a citizen of heaven and sojourner in this world, on that difficult and narrow path.... I am grateful for those true saints who have gone before me, and have shared their experiences which have helped me along the way, but relatively speaking, just as Jesus said, there are "few" who have found this narrow difficult road and who were willing to travel it. Yet, the Lord Himself bids us "come on to Me, you who are weary and heavy laden...and I will give you rest."  This is a labor unto rest, and worth the difficulties.