[Part
Two]
We have a need for
instituting schools for our children. Many
Christian children go to public school under
anti-Christian rule. God has the ability to
provide Christians with the means of having their
own educational facilities for children including
the indigent--it takes faith on our part. We need
to recognize that we have a responsibility to God
and to one another not to let the minds of our
youth be discouraged and polluted; otherwise, it
may be accounted to our negligence. Such schools
would have a great potential for being a source
of evangelism for all youth through inviting all
to attend.
Furthermore, we should
avoid the social-immoral lawlessness of general
anti-Christianity, such as the disallowance or
resistance of Christian evangelism, teaching, the
promotion of righteousness and Godliness in thttps://hesedken.com/Hesedken.htmlhe
work place. The employment setting should be a
nourishing, didactic, thanksgiving-to-God,
song-singing, praise-hymning, God-given-utterance
speaking, place where employees are discipled to
learn, apply and enjoy the things of God while
work (toil, sweat of the brow, earning bread even
through tortuous, dirty effort) is performed.
We also have a great need
to avoid the social-immoral lawlessness such as
the protection of the legal right of
homosexuality. God can not bless a land or
organization that tolerates it! This particular
sin is an insult against gender, a crime against
nature, a hindrance and offense in the work
place, and an abomination unto God. Just think
how conspicuous potential serial murderers and
child molesters would become if this perversion
were outlawed. The Lord loathes indifference and
other social-immoral and sexual-immoral
lawlessnesses. By the way, if the so called
"pro-choice" people can influence the
government to allow the medical profession to
kill innocent babies--abortion, we believers
should realize we have a need to promote
Christian ideals through obedience unto God's
commands and the encouragement of the unification
of the body (the church)! We should influence the
governments of the world by implementing
Christian principles upon every issue pertaining
to the things of God, even though I have gotten
off the subject of finances, and develop
institutions that will benefit the Christian
people and all of mankind. As in heaven, so in
earth. Amen.
Not only should we have
our own Christian institutions, but we should
also, if we have a choice, avoid being brought
under the direction of non-Christian institutions
such as law courts (I Cor. 6:1-8). The Christians
at Corinth needed to be admonished about going to
law before the unjust, and not before the saints.
The Apostle Paul implied it would be better to
suffer wrong and fraud rather than sue at court.
Christian lawyers have a need to realize this,
disallowing themselves to be partakers of the
sins of those who neglectfully desire to be their
legal clients due to the rejection or ignorance
of Biblical guidance. Such people should be
directed to Christ and to the authority of the
administration of the body of Christ--the Holy
Bible. Let us avoid having a form of Godliness
and denying the power thereof!
Even though, while we are
on this subject, it is not right to be defrauded.
Nevertheless, Paul's advice is acquiescent as to
giving up a possession or right, which is
similarly in concord with the giving up a right
(even though it is not a right after the time
limit) to collect a loan from a brother in the
year of cancellation of debts in the Old
Testament. God's principles are more important
than the monetary value of a right or possession.
The Lord does not want us to be burdened
continually with the collection of debts, nor
does He want us to violate His "loan"
and "rule" commands when we are doing
it. God wants his people to experience financial
and legal freedom. When the Christian body is
willing to unitedly submit to God's direction
with a debt-dropping attitude as a harmonic
organism, and furthermore, give open-heartedly
(loan) to their needy, then prosperity can
flourish.
By the way, I'm not
suggesting wicked or foolish loans that would
jeopardize the good welfare of anyone or his
family. I also realize many of us are not able to
be financially free at the present as God would
like us to be, but we can make decisions now that
will bring a change in our economic and
theocratic future.
We are in a difficult
crisis. The world has terrible economic problems
because it does not follow Christian instruction.
Christians need to be delivered from the futile
world economic system. We are tied up in
something that is against God's instruction and
direction. For an illustrative example, after the
return from the Babylonian captivity the Jews
were released from the world economic system of
that time. Then, they came back to Jerusalem and
developed a financial system that was not for
their good. They began to pollute the system with
usury and their own people were brought into
financial bondage. Even though their interest
rate was relatively low at one percent, this made
Nehemiah very angry. The problem was resolved
through reverence of God and united agreement
among God's people. The Federal Reserve Board did
not have one say in the matter. The creditors
released any hold on fields, vineyards, olive
groves and houses, and also the usury of money,
grain, new wine and oil (Ne. 5:1-13). Similarly,
we need to give up our desire to earn interest
and to get gain through any type of interest
earnings. Also we need to be mindful of our
Christian brothers and sisters and work together
for God's purpose as a collective group, although
independent at times, being holy, non-covetous,
not greedy of gain, not loving money. We could do
a great work for God if we but would by simply
denying ourselves and taking up our cross. May
the Lord touch all of His people today that they
consider their financial situation and resolve it
in an individual and ecclesiastical way that will
help our poor live without being enslaved and
glorify Him. Amen.
Are you aware of the fact
that God wants to bless us financially? He wants
us to function and abound as a loving, faithful,
knowledgeable, scripture-referencing, economic
organism without being in bondage to, but rather
fulfilling His lending and repayment, and rule
provisions. I don't want to seem to impose
legalistic rules upon you as the Israelites were
once subject to, but the beauty and grace of the
idea of giving and release of debts should carry
over into our New Covenant theology, and our
lives should exemplify equal or surpassing care
for one another. If we are willing to respond and
use our finances according to the generous giving
(lending) without grudging that is taught in the
O. T., and the services of alms and grace in the
NT..: (II Cor. 9:7, 8; 8:1-9:15), God can sustain
and bless us because He wants us to prosper. I'm
not making this stuff up--it's wonderful! Look
what the Scripture says, "However, there
should be no poor among you, for in the land the
Lord your God is giving you to possess as your
inheritance, he will richly bless you, if only
you fully obey the Lord your God and are careful
to follow all these commands I am giving you
today" (Dt. 15:4, 5). God wants His people
(Christians) to look after the needs of other
Christians so that there won't be any poor among
us! So what does the Scripture say? "If
there is a poor man among your brothers in any of
the towns of the land that the Lord your God is
giving you, do not be hardhearted or tightfisted
toward your poor brother. Rather be openhanded
and freely lend him whatever he needs" (Dt.
15:7, 8).
I believe it makes sense
to think of the body of Christ as a large,
growing family spread out among every nation.
Since we are a family (a supernatural family--the
members born of God), we have a natural
responsibility to take care of one another. We
should prefer God's instruction (parental
guidance) above any other instruction. But if we
can't take care of our own members how can we
take care of anyone else? We also have a
responsibility not to comply with those that want
to share our material increase but do not want to
obey God's commandments; rather, we should
reprove them. The way Christians obey God and
care for one another should be an inviting
demonstration to others, in so much, that they
would want to be part of us.
The NT. mentions the gift
of imparting (Rom. 12:8), and the gift of
governments (I Cor. 12:28). It is interesting to
note that a study of the administration of loans
and rule (Dt. 15:1-11) may reflect some light
upon the implementation of those gifts. Jesus
Christ is Lord!
May the Lord bless his people
that
they prosper and be in health even
as their souls prosper,
Br. Ken
P.S.
