Separation of Church and State II

The "State" church has been around since Nicea (324) when Constantine usurped it for his political ends:

"Two things have happened at the time of Nicea. The Church became a "State" entity with the full backing of the Emperor Constantine, and the Christian Church expelled Judaism from its ranks."¹

A State church is a scriptural nonsense, and is where Reformed Theonomy and Kingdom Now Theology meet. Some refer to the Church being coupled to the state as infidelity, and I agree with this position. The Church is NOT supposed to be used as a repository for State power or as a way to dominate and control people (Dominionism).

HOWEVER, this does not proscribe/prohibit political activism by Christians. In fact, the way I read my bible, we are commanded to influence all we possibly can and oppose all evil.

Jefferson used the term "Wall of Separation" when writing to the Danbury Baptist Association in 1802, to assure them concerning "the religious liberties they enjoyed were not seen as immutable rights, but as privileges granted by the legislature". (See here: http://www.usconstitution.net/jeffwall.html) Jefferson took much time "to assure that his words would not offend while still conveying his message: it was not the place of the Congress or the Executive to do anything that might be misconstrued as the establishment of religion."

The term - Separation of Church and State appears no-where in the US Constitution, which is a surprise to many people, but has appeared in a number of other constitutions, including the Soviet Unions.

David Barton deals with this very well here: http://www.davidbarton.org/2010/02/12/separation-of-church-state-part-one-by-david-barton/

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Footnotes:

1. The Roots of our Faith, Normative Hermeneutic

Separation of Church and State

Another top offering from Creation.com

Separation of faith and reality

A Christian, standing for the Federal parliament in Australia, recently lamented that he found it very difficult to get overt support from others in the churches. When pressed, the reluctant often respond, ‘You don’t mix politics and religion’. These people seem to have a misguided notion of what ‘separation of church and state’ means (and it’s not in the constitution of Australia, or the USA for that matter). It originally meant that no one Christian denomination should have favoured status as a ‘national church’, not that Christians should have no input or influence in government. Jesus taught that we should be ‘salt’ and ‘light’ to the communities in which we live (Matthew 5:13 ff.). Surely this includes every legitimate avenue of human endeavour, including government, which God ordained (Romans 13). Certainly, the Reformers, such as Luther and Calvin, did not regard withdrawal from public life as a pious thing to do.

A must read for every committed Christian.

I have the right to be poor!!

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How refreshing to find this on a Church website:

The Church must be free to be poor in order to minister among the poor. The Church must trust the Gospel enough to come among the poor with nothing to offer the poor except the Gospel, except the power to discern and the courage to expose the Gospel as it is already mediated in the life of the poor…When the Church has the freedom itself to be poor among the poor, it will know how to use what riches it has. When the Church has that freedom, it will know also how to minister among the rich and powerful. When the Church has that freedom, it will be a missionary people again in all the world. When the Church has the freedom to go out into the world with merely the Gospel to offer the world, then it will know how to use whatever else it has–money and talent and buildings and tapestries and power in politics–as sacraments of its gift of its own life to the world, as tokens of the ministry of Christ.

– William Stringfellow - A Private and Public Faith (1962)¹

No prosperity Gospel or demands upon the purse strings to "honour" a member of a self-appointed clique. How real, how simple. I think I would like this Church. They even proclaim their articles of faith. How bold. How nice that they know what they believe. How sadly unusual. How...right.

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Footnotes:

1. Downloaded from Christ's Sanctuary www.christsanctuary.org.nz, February 21, 2011

Things are Getting Better. Really?

At the turn of the 21st Century, the world was immediately gripped by the War on Terrorism followed by the Iraq War. In reflection, the 20th Century was a period marked by tremendous technological and economic progress — but it was also the most violent century in human history. It witnessed two horrendous world wars, as well as the conflicts during the Cold War.¹

No further comment.

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Footnotes:

1. WAR AND PEACE IN THE 20TH CENTURY AND BEYOND, Downloaded from http://www.worldscibooks.com/general/5130.html 10 March 2011 Copyright © 2011 World Scientific Publishing Co. All rights reserved. Updated on 9 March 2011.

Are all Theologies Equal? A comparitive time line

Kingdom Now	Normative Interpretation
1. Death of Yeshua (Jesus)	1. Death of Yeshua (Jesus)
2. Resurrection of Yeshua (Jesus)	2. Resurrection of Yeshua (Jesus)
3. Impartation of Holy Spirit	3. Impartation of Holy Spirit
4. Kingdom established	4. Great Commission
5. Church works to establish God Kingdom on earth so Yeshua may return to rule.	5. Church preaches the gospel to all nations
6. Kingdom is established on earth, Yeshua can now return	6. Church is taken out of the world which is about to be judged
7. Yeshua (Jesus) Returns	7. Anti-Christ is revealed
8. Messiah rules on earth	8. Tribulation
9. Eternity	9. Yeshua returns to earth with the Church and rescues Israel
10. ???	10. Millenial Kingdom established by Yeshua

God does not care about your theology. Really?

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I was listening to a world renowned preacher this weekend. In the process of his address he said "God does not care about your theology." This is true, but untrue. In the context of the address and his heart to save the lost, his assertion that God is not interested in getting your theology correct is an attempt to get as many people across the line into his eternally loving arms as possible. However, the idea that God does not care about what you believe about Him and how he works his plans for the world out is, in my opinion, not correct.

Why then do I say that is God interested in your theology? The reason is simple. Heresy, which is wrong theology, causes a loss of freedom and adds unnecessary burdens to peoples lives. When Yeshua called the Pharisees a brood of vipers it was not just because they were hypocrites. It was that their theology was wrong and it was hurting people.

Mat 23:1 - 23:36

Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples. "The teachers of the Law and the Pharisees are the authorized interpreters of Moses' Law. So you must obey and follow everything they tell you to do; do not, however, imitate their actions, because they don't practice what they preach. They tie onto people's backs loads that are heavy and hard to carry, yet they aren't willing even to lift a finger to help them carry those loads. They do everything so that people will see them. Look at the straps with scripture verses on them which they wear on their foreheads and arms, and notice how large they are! Notice also how long are the tassels on their cloaks! They love the best places at feasts and the reserved seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to have people call them 'Teacher.'

You must not be called 'Teacher,' because you are all equal and have only one Teacher. And you must not call anyone here on earth 'Father,' because you have only the one Father in heaven. Nor should you be called 'Leader,' because your one and only leader is the Messiah. The greatest one among you must be your servant. Whoever makes himself great will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be made great.

"How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You lock the door to the Kingdom of heaven in people's faces, but you yourselves don't go in, nor do you allow in those who are trying to enter! "How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You sail the seas and cross whole countries to win one convert; and when you succeed, you make him twice as deserving of going to hell as you yourselves are! "How terrible for you, blind guides! You teach, 'If someone swears by the Temple, he isn't bound by his vow; but if he swears by the gold in the Temple, he is bound.' Blind fools! Which is more important, the gold or the Temple which makes the gold holy? You also teach, 'If someone swears by the altar, he isn't bound by his vow; but if he swears by the gift on the altar, he is bound.' How blind you are! Which is the more important, the gift or the altar which makes the gift holy? So then, when a person swears by the altar, he is swearing by it and by all the gifts on it; and when he swears by the Temple, he is swearing by it and by God, who lives there; and when someone swears by heaven, he is swearing by God's throne and by him who sits on it.

"How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You give to God one tenth even of the seasoning herbs, such as mint, dill, and cumin, but you neglect to obey the really important teachings of the Law, such as justice and mercy and honesty. These you should practice, without neglecting the others. Blind guides! You strain a fly out of your drink, but swallow a camel! "How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You clean the outside of your cup and plate, while the inside is full of what you have gotten by violence and selfishness. Blind Pharisee! Clean what is inside the cup first, and then the outside will be clean too! "How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look fine on the outside but are full of bones and decaying corpses on the inside. In the same way, on the outside you appear good to everybody, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and sins. "How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You make fine tombs for the prophets and decorate the monuments of those who lived good lives; and you claim that if you had lived during the time of your ancestors, you would not have done what they did and killed the prophets. So you actually admit that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets! Go on, then, and finish up what your ancestors started! You snakes and children of snakes! How do you expect to escape from being condemned to hell?

And so I tell you that I will send you prophets and wise men and teachers; you will kill some of them, crucify others, and whip others in the synagogues and chase them from town to town. As a result, the punishment for the murder of all innocent people will fall on you, from the murder of innocent Abel to the murder of Zechariah son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the Temple and the altar. I tell you indeed: the punishment for all these murders will fall on the people of this day!

What we believe about God, and how we should show our love for Him, is based on our theology. Wiktionary defines as:

The study of a god or gods and the truthfulness of religion in general; An organized method of interpreting spiritual works and beliefs into practical form

The way we interpret our Bible, what Yeshua (Jesus) says, and how we live our lives are a result of what we have decided God is wanting from us. The Pharisees got it wrong, and it getting it wrong they placed burdens upon peoples backs that they should not have had to carry. These things are by definition our theology. Our theology is not an add on, everyone has a theology, whether they like to acknowledge it or not.

Does your God make your life easier, or have you become weighed down by the demands your beliefs have placed upon you. Maybe, you need to examine your beliefs again, re-evaluate your theology.