Government

Is For the People, Not People for the Government: Connecting the law of the Spirit with the US Constitution

Our Bibles are divided into two parts: the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Old Law is found in the Old Testament. Christ appears in the New Testament and establishes the Law of the Spirit. This transition changed the role of people who held authority.

          The Bible begins with God creating everything, tells of God’s special creation made in His image, mankind, and then shows the fall of mankind, but not without a promise for restoration.

The history of mankind quickly advances to

a man of faith, Abraham.

          His descendants, the Jews, eventually become slaves in Egypt. They are rescued by God through a man named Moses. The Old Law is established in the wilderness where the Jews wandered for 40 years. The story of the Jews continues to unfold in the Old Testament until finally ending with the expectation of the appearance of the Christ, who will save the people.

          The New Testament begins by introducing the Christ, Jesus, in four accounts. Each of the four gospels tells of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection. Jesus is shown as the fulfillment of the promise of the restoration of mankind.

          Abraham is no longer just the father of the Jews, but the spiritual father of all who believe in Jesus. The New Testament shows how the early followers became the church. It explains not only who Jesus is, but how to live with an expectation of eternal life, how to walk in the Law of the Spirit.

          The Old Law had priests and leaders who interceded for the people. The Law of the Spirit calls all God’s people His priests, His holy people that came out of darkness into God’s light (See 1Peter 2:9).

This not only changes how people relate to God, but how people relate to leaders.

          When the Israelites were in the wilderness, they went to their leader Moses and complained of their great thirst. There was a lack of water in the desert. The people were not led to pray and entreat God for their needs by Moses. But, in the new Law of the Spirit, the apostles Peter and Paul teach the people to go directly to God (see 1Peter 5:7 & Philippians 4:6-7). Instead Moses and Aaron, his brother the priest, bow down and humble themselves before God for the people. They receive an answer that will yield the necessary water, but instead of following instructions, the leaders Moses and Aaron dishonored God in the way they brought forth the water. They also called the people rebels—not how God wanted them to see themselves as they entered the Promised Land. So as a result, Moses and Aaron disqualified themselves from taking the people into the Promised Land (See Numbers 20:2-13). This shows that even the best leaders may fail to use their authority properly.

          The New Testament tells of a better way. There is a transition from leaders/priest being intercessors to all believers praying to God. Shortly after Jesus ascended into heaven, all the believers began to meet together as a group, along with the women (see Acts 1:14-15). They were all together when Holy Spirit descended on everyone (see Acts 2:17). Later when there was conflict and the apostles Peter and John were told to stop preaching in the name of Jesus, all the believers met and prayed together.

Holy Spirit filled them all,

not just the apostles, and they all went out to preach God’s message ( see Acts 4: 24, 31). Later persecution scattered believers and they all preached (see Acts 8:4).

          We have a better way than under the Old Law. We are the prayer intercessors. We are the leaders and priests. We work together in the new Law of the Spirit. Even when the people have fallen into bad habits, they are not called rebels. Instead, they are urged to change their wicked conduct and submit to God.

          So, get rid of every filthy habit and all wicked conduct. Submit to God           and accept the word that he plants in your hearts, which is able to              save you. James 1:21

          The apostle Peter wrote to church leadership that they should do their work of watching over the people from a desire to willingly serve; not to try rule over the people, but to be an example (see 1Peter 5: 1-3). Leaders are to help people move into their own relationship with God, to serve the people so the people can learn to walk with God, not to Lord their authority over them. Similar teaching comes from Apostle Paul. He explains in Ephesians 4:12 that God appointed a variety of leaders in order to prepare God’s people to do His work.

          So… the government of the church is for the people, not the people for the church government just as the Sabbath was made to help people rest, not to serve the Sabbath law.

          The US Constitution was designed with God’s principles found in the Law of the Spirit, of the people ruling themselves and the leaders being the servants of the people. Even if the people need correction (like the Israelites who complained about a lack of water), leaders are not to be abusive in their authority, but always show respect. If they respect the people, they respect God who created the people in His image.

So Jesus called them all together and said, “You know that the rulers of the heathen have power over them, and the leaders have complete authority. This, however is not the way it shall be among you. If one of you wants to be great, you must be the servant of the rest; and if one of you wants to be first, you must be the slave of the others—like the Son of Man, who did not come to be served, but to serve and give his life to redeem many people.”

Matthew 20:25-28

          We have a unique form of government in the United States based on the teachings of Jesus. Why would anyone want to return to the ways of the world where a king and his government have complete authority over the people? To change the basic structure of the US Constitution is an act of treason.

          Truth is found in knowing Jesus, the Word of God, who promises us eternal life, who died for you, not in an atheistic government that wants to control you, for your safety.

Read the documents for yourself. Following are important documents that should be familiar to you.

The Preamble to the Constitution of the United States

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

From the Bill of Rights, 2nd paragraph

We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness—That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed…

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