95 Days of Christmas

The 95 Days of Christmas - Welcome!

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This is going to be the most extraordinary Christmas season you've ever experienced.

Even if it's the middle of summer.

During the next 95 (or so) days, you're going to read three things:

First, Martin Luther's 95 Theses, which ignited the Protestant Reformation.

Second, you'll be reading a new set of 95 Theses. This is not an updated version of Luther's Theses, which were primarily about the doctrine of "Justification by Faith"; it's a completely new set of Theses.

These New 95 Theses are motivated by the fact that in the 20th century, organized "governments" have deliberately murdered nearly half a billion human beings. Even the governments of historically "Protestant nations." "Governments" have destroyed trillions of dollars of private property. "Governments" have enslaved billions of people, depriving them of their liberty. Elite government leaders are saying they need to kill even more people, confiscate more private property, and impose more comprehensive restrictions on personal liberty in the 21st century.

The New 95 Theses are a journey through the Bible in chronological order, looking at passages that can answer the question, Does the human race really need "governments?" Our answer is: NO.

I greatly appreciate intelligent comments, questions, complaints, or denunciations. After all, the purpose of a public posting of Theses is to inaugurate debate. An older version of these Theses is here. But if you're a part of any "wager" or "coaching program" advertised on other websites, you don't need to read that older version. We recommend against that. Just read one of these theses at a time, following the email you should be receiving. Be sure to leave a comment every day.

Oh yes, the third thing you'll be reading about is "The Christmas Conspiracy." We believe "the reason for the season" (or at least one of the reasons) is the abolition of priests and princes. Christmas is the birth of Jesus the Christ. "Christ" means "anointed king." Jesus was also a priest. He was the last king, and the last priest. He is the only legitimate King, the only legitimate Priest.

In other words, the meaning of Christmas is the abolition of "church" and "state." We are engaged in an open conspiracy to abolish both institutions. The purpose of this blog is to persuade you to join this "Christmas Conspiracy."

Just to sync the "days" and the Theses, you may wish to view these introductory posts:

• Introduction: Taking the Bible Seriously View
• The Importance of Luther's 95 Theses View
• The Origin of The New 95 Theses View

Here is the actual first Thesis:

95 Days of Christmas: Thesis 1: Christ the Word

So, Welcome! Open up your Bible and put on your thinking cap!

Thesis 95: Perfection

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We are to strive for perfection in this life, not wait for the next life.[1]

Notes
[1] Matthew 5:48 Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.
Genesis 17:1; Leviticus 11:44; 19:2; 20:26; Deuteronomy 18:13; Job 1:1,2,3; Psalms 37:37; Luke 6:36,40; 2 Corinthians 7:1; 13:9,11; Philippians 3:12-15; Colossians 1:28; 4:12; James 1:4; 1 Peter 1:15,16

References

MERE PERFECTION

Wrestling with Perfection, I : Truth Observed See comment by Kevin Craig

ThePerfectClub.doc

Those groups criticized by B. B. Warfield almost invariably fudge on the requirements of God's perfect Law. They claim "perfection" only under a re-defined standard of "holiness."

Thesis 94: We are in Heaven Now

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If this isn't heaven, I don't know what is.

References
Restoring Gratitude, Joy, and Optimism.

Thesis 93: The City of God

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Earthly cities depend (in vain) on walls and military garrisons for protection.[1] Christians, as the Temple-City of God,[2] need no such walls, no such polis.[3] The New Jerusalem is the Anti-Polis.[4]

Notes
1. #15; #24; Deuteronomy 28:52; Psalm 18:29; Jeremiah 51:58
2. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17; 2 Corinthians 6:16; Ephesians 2:21; Hebrews 12:22; Revelation 3:12; 21:2ff.
3. #24; 2 Samuel 22:2-3; Isaiah 25:12 - 26:1; 60:11,18; Zechariah 2:4-5
4. Revelation 21

References
Providence, not Violence

Thesis 92: The Last Acts of Earthly Archists

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As kings recognize their obligation to obey Biblical Law, they surrender their rule (“archydom”) over others and begin to exhort and encourage them to obey God’s Law in their households.[1]

Notes
1. Isaiah 49:23; 60:10,16; Mark 10:42-45.

References
No Force, No Fraud: Shunning government down
Abolish the Federal Government
Thesis 78: Patriarchy and Resistance to Tyranny in the Last Days of The Old Covenant

We should abolish "the government" by preaching the gospel, gaining repentence, and seeing resignations of politicians (including those who abolish their own office before leaving).

Thesis 91: The Unconverted In the “Millennium”

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As the Gospel takes root from shore to shore (#63, #67, #61, #51, cf. #23, #61 + #68), even those not genuinely converted will feign conversion, submission to the Covenant, and will generally obey Gospel principles of government and social order.[1] Compared with those who are truly converted, however, these cowards will be a minority,[2] for genuine conversion is the Lord’s will[3] and His will shall be done.[4]

Notes
1. 2 Samuel 22:45; Psalm 18:44; 66:3; 81:15; Deuteronomy 33:29; Proverbs 14:19. Proverbs 16:7
2. Revelation 7:9; Matthew 8:11; Zephaniah 3:9; Acts 14:27; 15:9; Romans 11:12,25; 15:12; Ephesians 3:6; Matthew 13:32
3. Psalm 17:1; 1 Timothy 1:5; 2:5
4. Matthew 6:10; Isaiah 44:21-28; Malachi 1:11; Mark 10:42-45; Matthew 9:9-13.

References
Salvation/Conversion
The point is not that everyone, or even a majority, will be genuinely converted (but see Benjamin B. Warfield, “Are They Few That Be Saved?” in Biblical and Theological Studies (Philadelphia: Presbyterian and Reformed, 1952), 349.), although we do promote a "postmillennialist," "triumphalist," globalist Christianity.

The point is that Christians will be the dominant source of civilization, and civilized people will submit to Christians, not out of coercion, but out of respect and admiration.

And also out of necessity. Members of "the Church" who are excommunicated will find it difficult to participate in the full range of the social benefits of civilization, because they are being shunned.

Conspiracy
Our strategy is not to identify the "conspirators," as though they are the cause of "the breakdown of Christian culture." Christians must build, and unbelievers will fall in line.

In these Theses, "Patriarchy" is not the same as the "nuclear family." (Thesis 8: Patriarchy and "the Extended Family") or even the "extended family" (Thesis 39: Patriarchy and Education). "Patriarchy" means Christian Globalism.

She is like the merchant ships,
She brings her food from afar.
She makes linen garments and sells them,
And supplies sashes for the merchants.
Proverbs 31:14,24

This represents international commerce, even with those who may be feigning Christianity.

Competition in Commerce
In an age of Mercantilism, "archists" create monopolies. Consumers do business with the State's businesses, but not because the State's businesses are the most honest, or sell the highest quality good. The State legislates theft, by coercing consumers into accepting less in quality for a higher price than consumers would choose voluntarily.

Romans 1-2 tells us that even unbelievers know the difference between good and evil, between good and shoddy, between competitive and uncompetitive. The absence of the State and compulsory monopoly thus reinforces morality, by allowing the good, the competent, and the honest, to compete for consumer allegiance. The unconverted are forced to raise their standards to compete. Honesty and service thrive, and all men experience holistic salvation.

Thesis 90: The New Heavens and New Earth

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The Prophets spoke of a “new heavens and new earth.”[1] When this Age would come, people would still die , but not until after they had lived full, abundant lives. The Apostles believed that the inauguration of the New Age and fulfillment of “these promises” was imminent.[2] Christ ascended to the Right Hand of God to make all things new.[3]

Notes
1. Isaiah 65:17-25
2. 2 Peter 3.
3. Revelation 21:1-5; 2 Corinthians 5:17.

References
The New Heavens and the New Earth

Millennialism And Social Theory

Gary North, Preface, Sanctions and Dominion An Economic Commentary on Numbers

Edge: A HISTORY OF VIOLENCE By Steven Pinker

Thesis 89: Edenic Restoration

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The Prophets foretold the future Edenification of the Earth by speaking of Eden, the Mountain of the Lord.[1] These prophecies are now coming to pass: We now have access to the Tree of Life[2] because Christ, in His death on the Tree,[3] removed the Curse brought about by the First Adam.[4] We have been re-admitted to the Holy Mountain (#11) and placed in the wide open spaces[5] of the Garden of the New Jerusalem;[6] our task is now to perfect it.[7]

Notes
1. Micah 4:1-5; Isaiah 2:2-4; 11:9; 25:6-9; 56:3-8; 65:25; Daniel 2:34-35,44-45; #11
2. Revelation 2:7; 22:2,14
3. 1 Peter 2:24; Deuteronomy 21:22-23; Acts 5:30-31; 10:39; 13:29
4. Galatians 3:13; Genesis 3:17-19
5. Exodus 3:8; Judges 18:10; 2 Samuel 22:20,37; 1 Chronicles 4:40; Nehemiah 9:35; Psalm 18:19,36; 31:8; 118:5; 119:45; Isaiah 30:23; 54:2; Hosea 4:16.
6. Hebrews 12:22; Matthew 5:14; Luke 19:46
7. Genesis 2:15; 1:26-28; 3:17 + Revelation 22:3

References
Garden / Property / The Sixth Archetype

The Mountain of the LORD

R.J. Rushdoony, "The Tree of Life," Revolt Against Maturity, pp. 305ff.

Yasha - Salvation

Salvation: Being Placed in a Large Wide Place

Politics as Salvation

On Perfection, see Thesis #95.

A Political View of Life

Thesis 88: Salvation as Light and Social Healing

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Christians who embody the Word[1] provide cultural stability and social healing;[2] they are thus a light to the world[3] because the Light of the Sun of Righteousness shines through them.[4]

Notes
1. Galatians 2:20; Colossians 3:16; 2 Corinthians 6:16; John 14:23; 1 John 3:17,24
2. 1 John 3:17,24; Isaiah 35:3-9; Hebrews 12:12-13
3. Matthew 5:14; John 5:35; Philippians 2:15; Ephesians 5:8; Proverbs 4:18; Daniel 12:3.
4. Luke 1:78; Psalm 37:6; Malachi 4:2; Isaiah 51:4-8; 60:1-3; Revelation 21:22-25; 22:5; Isaiah 30:26

References
Thesis 28: Salvation is Political
This thesis (#88) provides a background useful for interpreting the "sun" and "light" in Revelation 21-22, and when combined with #28, suggests what some would call a "political" interpretation.

Thesis 87: "Ruling with Christ"

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We are ruling with Christ,[1] seated on thrones in the heavenlies,[2] above all powers, lords, and archists of the Old Age.[3] We reign when we suffer at the hands of statists for advancing the cause of God’s Law (“justice”[4]; “righteousness”[5]), which means we endure violence without returning violence (#81) or harboring bitterness. We do not wait for Christ to return and set up an earthly political empire;[6] we overcome evil with good[7] and thereby restore Edenic conditions.[8] Those who reject Christ’s Way of suffering and prefer the way of human vengeance and political domination have been deceived by Satan[9] and overcome by the mythology of the Old Age.[10]

Notes
1. Revelation 2:7,25-28; 5:10; 12:11; 17:14; 1 John 2:13-14; 4:4; 5:4-5; Romans 3:4; 8:37; 12;21; Matthew 19:28; Luke 22:29-30
2. Ephesians 2:6; Luke 22:30
3. Ephesians 1:21; 1 Peter 3:22
4. 2 Timothy 2:12
5. Matthew 5:10
6. Revelation 3:21
7. Romans 12:21; 1 John 2:13-14; 4:4; 5:3-5; Revelation 17:14
8. #89; Revelation 2:7,11,17,26; 3:5,12; 21:7
9. Matthew 16:23; Genesis 3:5 + Luke 4:5-7; Mark 10:42-45
10. 2 Peter 2:19-20; 1 Corinthians 6:7

Thesis 86: “The Millennium”

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“The Millennium” refers to the time described in Revelation 20:1-5. Since Satan was bound at Christ's first coming (#60) and believers were resurrected in Christ,[1] the “millennium” began with the work of Christ in the first century. The figure of “a thousand years” is symbolically designed to convey a perfect, complete, or vast number of years.[2] A “literal” interpretation of the 1000-year figure based on 2 Peter 3:8 (1,000 years = 1 day = 1,000 years) would calculate the “literal” length of the “millennium” at approximately 365,000,000 years (not counting “leap-millennia”). We have thus completed only the second "day" of Church history.

Notes
1. John 5:21,25,28 (4:23; 16:32); Ephesians 2:1-6; 5:14; Luke 15:24; Romans 6:4; Colossians 2:13
2. Psalm 50:10; 84:10; 90:4; 105:8

References

None of the following works express our thesis 100%, but they are nevertheless valuable reading, when read with A Berean Spirit:

J.S. Russell's Position on the Millennium

The "Millennial Reign" of Christ

The New Heaven and New Earth, Millennium, New Jerusalem - Explained!

Dr. Greg Bahnsen : Hermeneutics in the Book of Revelation (1984)

A Letter From Loraine Or A Covenantal View Of The Millennium

The Sabbath Millennium

Tenth Generation, Seventh Millennium

I. PATRIARCHY IN “THE MILLENNIUM”

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There are supposedly one hundred million Christians in The United States of America. But while our forefathers came to these shores to establish the Christian religion and export the Gospel around the world, the USA today exports more weapons of mass destruction than Bibles. Four thousand babies are murdered every day in America. Where are these millions of Christians? What are they doing to resist the New World Order and make America a “City upon a Hill?”
Waiting for the “rapture.”
Waiting for “the Second Coming” of Christ.
The irony of all this stretches credulity:
• When Christ comes again, all these Christians who do not presently lift a finger to promote peace and justice will be “reigning with Christ” in a Kingdom of Peace and Justice.
• Christians who presently subsidize a culture of death in Hollywood will be free from death in a “New Heavens and New Earth.”
“Any moment now” Christ will return to accomplish what He could not do at that First Christmas.
“Any moment now.”
So we have been told. For decades.
This brand of Christianity is a corpse in a state of rigor mortis, precariously balanced in an upright position, ready to be blown over on its face by the Spirit’s breath of Truth. Our first breeze comes from the Prophet Isaiah, who says that in the “New Heavens and New Earth” people die (Isaiah 65:17-25). The Prophet looked forward to the First Christmas, in which the Messiah would destroy the old world of ceremonial liturgy and inaugurate a new world of faithfulness and righteousness. By building on God’s blueprint, the nations would be converted and the world would be renovated. The Prophets waited, yearning for that first Christmas.
The time for waiting has passed. The time for faithful obedience is now.

Thesis 85: The Last Days of the Old Covenant

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As foretold by the Old Testament Prophets, a glorious New Heavens and New Earth would be created in the “latter times.”[1] Christ established this Messianic Kingdom at the time of the Apostles,[2] who knew they were living in “the last days” of the Old Age.[3] The Old Covenant World (the world of the First Adam) was destroyed by fire in A.D. 70,[4] and as the Church is maturing in obedience all Old Testament prophecies concerning the New Covenant Age (the New Heavens and New Earth under the Second Adam) are being fulfilled.[5]

Notes
1. Micah 4:1-5; Isaiah 2:1ff.; Isaiah 11; 65:17ff.; Joel 2:28ff.; Hosea 3:5; Jeremiah 23:20; 30:24; etc.
2. Acts 2
3. Hebrews 1:2; 9:26; 1 Peter 1:20; 4:7; 1 John 2:18; Acts 2:16-17; #73
4. Matthew 24; 2 Peter 3
5. Acts 3:24; 2 Corinthians 1:20; 5:17

References
Gary DeMar writes:

THE LATTER YEARS
Hitchcock and Ice claim that the battle described in Ezekiel 38–39 has to be a distant future battle because it takes place in the “latter years” (38:8) and the “last days” (38:16). “Fortunately,” they write, “Ezekiel actually tells us when this invasion will occur. In Ezekiel 38:8, he says specifically that this invasion will occur in the ‘latter years.’ This is the only occurrence of this exact phrase in the Old Testament” (TBLB 46).[6] The phrase may be unique, but the Hebrew word translated “latter” occurs several times in the OT. More about this in a moment. A careful reading of the text will show that “latter years” is defined for us:

“After many days you will be summoned; in the latter years you will come into the land that is restored from the sword, whose inhabitants have been gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel which had been a continual waste; but its people were brought out from the nations, and they are living securely, all of them” (Ezek. 38:8).

“The latter years” means “after many days,” that is, sometime in the future when a certain series of observable events take place. Ezekiel wrote during the Babylonian captivity. He is prophesying about the future when God will restore the Jews to their homeland “from many nations.” Of course, this took place when Cyrus issued his decree “in order to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah” (Ezra 1:1). Some 50,000 exiles returned to Israel to rebuild the temple and city.
The same Hebrew phrase translated “last days” in Ezekiel 38:16 is often translated as “the days to come” in other contexts. In A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament “the last days” is described as “a prophetic phrase denoting the final period of the history so far as the speaker’s perspective reaches.” In the case of Genesis 49:1, it’s “the period of Israel’s possession of Canaan.”[7] The use of the phrase in Numbers 24:14 probably refers to the battle with the Midianites that took place in Israel’s near future (31:1–12; Josh. 13:21–22). The prophecy of Deuteronomy 31:29, where “latter days” is used in some translations, is best seen as referring to the events described in the period of the Judges. How do we know this? Moses says, “For I know that after my death you will act corruptly and turn from the way which I commanded you; and evil will befall you, . . . For you will do that which is evil in the sight of the LORD, provoking Him to anger with the work of your hands.”[8]
So then, the phrase the “latter years” is a time reference about events that are future to the writer; it is not “eschatological,” that is, it’s not a reference either to a post-rapture tribulation period or a post-tribulation earthly millennium.

6. The fact that this phrase is used only once in the OT should lead the interpreter not to be so dogmatic in his assertions as to its meaning. The process in determining what a phrase means is to see how it’s used elsewhere in Scripture. If it’s not found in any other context, then the closest parallel must be consulted. Hitchcock and Ice fail to follow this procedure in so much of their exposition.
7. Francis Brown, S. R. Driver, and Charles A. Briggs (BDB), A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (Oxford), 31. BDB does go on to say, “But it often=the ideal or Messianic future.” The Messianic future could be the first coming of Christ which was certainly Messianic and in the future. But all the examples following this statement in BDB refer to events in the near future.
8. “In the days to come, Cf. Gn. 49:1; in the Judges’ period (cf. Jdg. 2:11–16; 3:7).” R.K. Harrison, “Deuteronomy,” The New Bible Commentary, eds. Donald Guthrie and J.A. Motyer, 3rd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1970), 227.

-----=====******O******=====-----

But the New Testament writers clearly affirmed that they were then living in "the last days," presumably the last days of the Old Covenant. We are living in "the Messianic future." By a process of elimination, by comparing every occurrence of "the last days" in the New Testament with the prophecies in the Old Covenant, it will be found that there are no "last days" prophecies that are still yet future for us. There are no prophecies of the "Messianic future" which have not already or are now being fulfilled.

Thesis 84: The End of Archists: The Pedagogues Judged by the Church

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It was the hope of the Early Church that Jesus would eventually put down all statists and all institutions[1] through Godly Families (#72; #75). The Early Church wrestled against demonic “powers.”[2]
Christ's judgment of powers began in the Apostolic Church.[3]
Christ’s power and the impotence of the “powers” is demonstrated through an obedient Church.[4]
All the kingdoms of the world have now been definitively delivered to the Resurrected and Enthroned Christ[5] and shall be progressively delivered to Christ by His saints[6]

Notes
1. 1 Corinthians 15:24
2. Ephesians 6:12
3. 1 Corinthians 6:1-4; Ephesians 3:10; Hebrews 12:22; 1 Corinthians 11:10
4. Ephesians 3:10
5. Revelation 11:15; 12:10-11; Acts 26:17-18
6. Daniel 7:13-14,18,22; Romans 16:20; Psalm 149:4-9; Revelation 12:11; 19:14:15; cf. Matthew 28:18-20

References
Full Preterists may argue that all these prophecies were fulfilled during the years when the church battled Israel, c. A.D. 33-70. The result for us is the same: "archists" have no legitimate claim on our allegiance.

B.B. Warfield writes:

The prominence of exorcisms in the notices of marvellous occurrences in these Fathers belongs to the circumstances of the times, and would call for no special notice except for the use which has been made of it in recent discussions (cf. S. McComb in Religion and Medicine, by Elwood Worcester, Samuel McComb, and Isador H. Coriat, 1908, pp. 295-299). In point of fact, Christianity came into a world that was demon-ridden, and, as Harnack remarks (The Expansion of Christianity, E. T., 1904, vol. I, p. 158), “no flight of the imagination can form any idea of what would have come over the ancient world or the Roman Empire during the third century had it not been for the church.” In conflict with this gigantic evil which dominated the whole life of the people, it is not to be wondered at that the Christians of the second and subsequent centuries, who were men of their time, were not always able to hold the poise which Paul gave them in the great words: “We know that no idol is anything in the world, and that there is no God but one.” Accordingly, as Harnack points out, “from Justin downwards, Christian literature is crowded with allusions to exorcisms, and every large church, at any rate, had exorcists” (p. 162). But this is no proof that miracles were wrought, except this great miracle, that, in its struggle against the deeply rooted and absolutely pervasive superstition — “the whole world and the circumambient atmosphere,” says Harnack (p. 161), “were filled with devils; not merely idolatry, but every phase and form of life was ruled by them: they sat on thrones; they hovered over cradles; the earth was literally a hell” — Christianity won, and expelled the demons not only from the tortured individuals whose imagination was held captive by them, but from the life of the people, and from the world.

"The Cessation of the Charismata" by Benjamin B. Warfield, note 21.

Thesis 83: Pedagogy and The Powers

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The “elemental spirits” (stoicheia) which maintained a deceptively superficial order in the Old Covenant are unnecessary for Spirit-empowered believer-priests in the New Covenant.[1] Christians do not need their lives structured by the pedagogical legal institutions of the Old Covenant.[2]

Notes
1. Galatians 4:3,9; Colossians 2:8,20; cf. Hebrews 5:12 - 6:8
2. Galatians 3:24 - 4:9; #31

References
Greg Bahnsen coined the phrase "Pedagogical Law" to describe Old Testament laws which under the New Covenant can no longer be obeyed through a literal fulfillment. He noted especially animal sacrifices and temple rituals.
It is our contention that what is called the "judicial law" is also often part of the "pedagogical law."
We also contend that what we call "the State" was part of a complex of social and legal institutions that were "pedagogical" and not enduring.
Angelic beings ("the powers") were part of this pedagogical system.
The Old Covenant promised and the New Covenant revealed that the salvation brought by Christ eliminated the need for the pedagogical order of the Old Covenant.
Thesis 31: Ceremony, Ritual, Liturgy, And The “Pedagogical Law”
Thesis 33: Patriarchs And “Elders”
Thesis 34: The Need for a Pedagogical Legal Structure
Thesis 35: Angels And The Pedagogical Legal Structure
Thesis 38: Patriarchy and the Temple
Thesis 75: Self-Ordination

Thesis 82: Creationist Anarcho-Socialism and Darwinian Archo-Socialism

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Voluntary communism (“anarcho-socialism” “personalist communitarianism”) is an appropriate Kingdom life style for the Church.[1]
State-socialism is not condoned by the example of the Apostolic Church.[2]

Notes
1. Acts 5:4; Luke 22:24-30
2. Acts 4:32-38

References

Private property still existed in the "voluntary communism" seen in Acts.
One can create "voluntary communism" only by giving, not by taking.
Taking = socialism = theft.
All attempts to create a social system by imposed giving fail.

Distributism

What's Wrong with "Distributism" - Thomas E. Woods, Jr. - Mises Institute

A Guildsman’s Interpretation of History, by Arthur J. Penty - Book review by Patrick Odou

State socialism is condemned by Theses #80 and #81

Thesis 81: Vengeance

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Christians are not to execute vengeance.[1] They are to leave vengeance to the Lord.[2] The Lord uses the State, criminals, terrorists, and other evil-doers to execute (unwittingly) His vengeance.[3]

Notes
1. Proverbs 20:22; 24:29; Matthew 5:38-48; 1 Corinthians 6:7; 1 Thessalonians 5:15; 1 Peter 3:9; Revelation 13:10; #79
2. Romans 12:17-21; Deuteronomy 32:35
3. Romans 13:1,4; Isaiah 10:5-14; 13:1-5; #47

References

Vengeance Belongs to God, Not to Man

Thesis 80: Violence

Thesis 80: Violence

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All they that take up the sword perish by the sword.[1]

Notes
1. Matthew 26:52; Genesis 49:5-7; Revelation 13:10; 1 Peter 2:13-25; #46.

References
A Biblical Defense of Pacifism

A Pacifist in Federal Court

Swords Into Plowshares

Blessed Are the Peacemakers

Thesis 79: Taxation, Kingdom Citizenship, and Overcoming Through Suffering

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Christ’s disciples are not legitimately obligated to pay taxes; the State has no legitimate jurisdiction over the adopted members of the Household of Faith.[1]
Christ’s disciples pay taxes to avoid offense[2] and to counter the evil violence of Humanistic statism/vengeance with non-violent good.[3]

Notes
1. Matthew 17:25-26; Philippians 3:20
2. Matthew 17:27
3. Romans 12:17 - 13:7; Matthew 5:39-42; Isaiah 50:6; Proverbs 25:21-22; Luke 6:27-38; Deuteronomy 32:35; Romans 12:14; Matthew 27:32; 1 Corinthians 6:7 #80 and #81

References
Scandal and Conscience in Romans 13

Render Unto Caesar -- R.J. Rushdoony

Romans 12 and 13

Calvin on Romans 12

Thesis 78: Patriarchy and Resistance to Tyranny in the Last Days of The Old Covenant

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The Apostolic Church knew she ought to obey God rather than men.[1]

Notes
1. Acts 4:19-20; 5:29; cp. #29

References
We may add another thesis on non-resistance.

America's Founding Fathers made a mistake by using armed violence to change things. Taking up arms -- muskets and cannons -- against the British Empire was as unChristian as Jewish proposals to take up arms against the Roman Empire. Jesus said No to these tactics.

But if it was right to call the British government over the colonies a tyranny, and seek to end tyranny, it is more right to call the U.S. government a tyranny, and seek to abolish it.

Here is how:

No Force, No Fraud: Shunning government down

Abolish the Federal Government

The principle of resistance is limited.

We must obey God even if the State forbids it.
• We must preach the Gospel even if the State forbids it.
• The State has no right to prohibit the preaching of the Gospel and sins when it does so.

We must avoid sin even if the State commands it.
• We must not kill even if drafted and commanded to do so.
• The State has no right to draft and deploy, and sins when it does so.

It is a not a sin to be robbed by the IRS.
It is not a sin to be kidnapped and enslaved.

Thesis 77: Political Authority and Kingdom Citizenship

2008-11-09T21:52:00.001-06:00

Christians are not to exercise authority, lordship, or the force of coercion over others,[1] nor seek positions of power in the polis;[2] our citizenship is in heaven.[3]

Notes
1. Mark 10:42-45
2. Revelation 18:4
3. Philippians 3:20

References
What is an "Archist"
The actions described in note 1 are rooted in violence. They violate God's commandments, such as The Eighth Commandment and the Sixth Commandment.

The polis is the institutionalization of disobedience to God's commandments.

POLIS: The Empire of Man vs. the City of God

Coming soon: study on Salvation and Citizenship

Thesis 76: Salt and Statism

2008-11-09T21:39:00.002-06:00

Statists are foolish.[1] Christians who are conformed to the world[2] and no longer prophesy against statism and fail to plead for justice according to God’s Law[3] are also foolish.[4]

Notes
1. Isaiah 19:11,12,13; 1 Corinthians 1:18-23; 2:14; 3:19; Romans 1:22
2. Romans 12:1-2; James 4:4
3. Isaiah 59:4,8-15; Proverbs 28:4; Jeremiah 22:16; Hebrews 11:33
4. Romans 1:22; 1 Corinthians 1:20 + Matthew 5:13 -- “lost its savor” = “made moronic,” “become foolish”

References
A City upon a Hill

Statism - The Worship of "the State"

Thesis 75: Self-Ordination

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Christians should begin replacing the secular political and pedagogical institutions of the Old Age by ordaining themselves to a Christian ministry centering in “the church in their home” and extending to every area of life.[1]

Notes
1. 1 Corinthians 16:15; (cf. Romans 13:1)

References
Coming Soon: "Ordination"
The word "ordained" in Romans 13 is the same Greek word in 1 Corinthians 16:15. You don't need to go to seminary and have someone wearing a clerical robe "ordain" you before you can have a church in your home.

The "Clergy/Laity" Distinction

THE PROBLEM WITH SEMINARIES
Christian Reconstruction, Vol. XIII, No. 4, July/Aug. 1989

Not that there's anything inherently wrong with continuing education:

Where to Get a Calvinistic Seminary Education the Same Way God Created Adam: Dirt Cheap

Whitefield Theological Seminary

Thesis 73: Patriarchy and the “Sacraments”: Baptism

2008-11-09T21:38:00.003-06:00

In the “last days” of the Old Covenant (#92), the “sacraments” were properly administered by Families, as throughout the Old Covenant, most notably under the Patriarchs.

Baptism, as with circumcision,[1] was appropriately administered by the family head (#25). This symbolic washing ritual of the Old Covenant[2] was a sign[3] appropriate for the “terminal generation”[4] and expired with that generation[5] and the end of the Old Covenant in A.D. 70.[6]

Notes
1. Colossians 2:11-12
2. Hebrews 9:10; Exodus 40:32; Numbers 8:7; John 3:25
3. Acts 19:3-6; 1 Corinthians 14:21-22
4. Matthew 3:7; 11:16; 12:34,38-45; 16:4; 17:7; 23:33-36; 24:34; Mark 8:38 - 9:1,19; Luke 7:31-35; 11:29-32,50-51; 17:25; 21:32; Acts 2:40; Philippians 2:15; #92
5. Acts 21:25 (KJV)
6. Hebrews 5:12 - 6:8; #83

References

Are We in "The Last Days?"

Thesis 25: Patriarchy and “Sacraments”: Circumcision

The Terminal Generation

"Ultra-dispensationalists" have also arrived at the conclusion that Baptism is not for the post-temple era of today, but for very different reasons than we have. Their reasons have a respectable Scriptural basis, even if their dispensationalism does not.

Thesis 74: Patriarchy and the “Sacraments”: “The Lord’s Table”

2008-11-09T21:38:00.002-06:00

“The Lord’s Supper,” the sacramental neomorphosis of Passover[1] in the “last days” of the Old Covenant[2] was properly celebrated in a home.[3] Jesus commanded this Passover to continue to be observed[4] until the world of the old sacral order came to a complete end[5] at His coming in A.D. 70.[6]

Notes
1. Mark 14:12; Matthew 26:2,17-19; Luke 22:15
2. #92; John 18:28 + #73
3. #32; Acts 2:42-46; 20:7-8; cf. 1 Timothy 5:13; #72
4. cf. Acts 18:18; 21:24-26
5. Hebrews 6:2,8; 8:13; 9:10; 2 Peter 3:12; cf. 1 Corinthians 5:7
6. 1 Corinthians 11:26; Matthew 16:27-28; Luke 22:16,18 + Mark 14:62; Hebrews 8:13 + Matthew 26:29

References
All the references contained in previous Theses on the sacraments should be consulted:

Thesis 25: Patriarchy and “Sacraments”: Circumcision

Thesis 32: Patriarchy and “Sacraments”: Passover

Thesis 72: Patriarchy and the House-Church

Thesis 73: Patriarchy and the “Sacraments”: Baptism

Two verses encapsulate this Thesis:

1 Corinthians 11:23-26
23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” 25 In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” 26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes.

Matthew 16:27-28
For the Son of Man is about to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to his works.
Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.”

After that (A.D. 70), no more Passover.

Thesis 72: Patriarchy and the House-Church

2008-11-09T21:37:00.003-06:00

The Family, as the central unit of God’s social order, is also the center of the cultural outworking of the Gospel in the Church of Christ.[1] The Apostolic Age was not characterized by hundreds of atomistic “nuclear families” attending “services” at buildings of State-chartered ecclesiastical corporations exempted from tax under Empire approval. The Early Church was not centered on liturgy but on Hospitality; the architectural paradigm was the house, not the altar/temple. The House-Church/Patriarchy is the hub of Christian Community, and Hospitality is the Patriarchal “Royal Virtue.”[2]

Notes
1. Acts 2:46; 5:42; 20:20; Acts 18:2-4 + Romans 16:3 and 1 Corinthians 16:19; Romans 16:5,10,11; 1 Corinthians 1:11,16; Colossians 4:15; 2 Timothy 4:19; Philemon 2; 2 John 10; etc.; #75
2. #23; Deuteronomy 10:18-19; 14:29; 16:11,14; 1 Kings 8:41-43; Job 31:32; Psalm 68:6,12; 113:7-9 + Revelation 1:6; 5:10; Matthew 25:35; Romans 12:13; 1 Timothy 3:2; Titus 1:8; 1 Peter 4:9; 3 John 5.

References
Family
• Gary North, "Family Authority vs. Protestant Sacerdotalism," in the Journal of Christian Reconstruction symposium on the Family, Vol. IV, No. 2, Winter 1977-78, reprinted in Vol. XVI, "The 25th Anniversary Issue" available at The Chalcedon Store.
• The Family: Foundation of Society
• The Family / The Fifth Archetype

Liturgy
Jesus destroyed the temple in A.D. 70. It must not be rebuilt.

Hospitality
James B. Jordan: "God's Hospitality and Holistic Evangelism," in Sociology of the Church, pp. 221-257.

The Royal Virtue
R.J. Rushdoony, "The Royal Virtue," Law and Society, (Vol II of Institutes of Biblical Law), ch. 49, pp. 246-248, plus chapters 50-54. Also, "Communion and Community," ch. 23, pp. 132-137.

Note: Patriarchy is the paradigm; not the priesthood.
Hospitality is the blueprint, not "liturgy."

The Bible describes Godly patriarchs as "priests" and "kings"
(Revelation 1:6; Revelation 5:10). But this could be described as a negating analogy. Patriarchs are the true priests and kings, but "real" priests and kings are Biblically sub-standard.
• Any person who claims to be a "real" priest, offering "real" blood sacrifices, denies the blood atonement of Christ, the True High Priest.
• Anyone who claims to be a "real" hereditary monarch denies the Kingship of Christ.
Patriarchs are those who affirm the true priesthood of Christ and the true kingship of Christ; they are thereby "priests and kings," reigning with Christ on earth, not those who claim to be "real" priests and kings.

The way we reign as priests and kings is through hospitality. This is the blueprint of dominion. We are to offer sacrifices (Romans 12:1; 1 Peter 2:5; Hebrews 13:16; Hebrews 13:15; Philippians 4:18). But those who offer "real" sacrifices and engage in "real" liturgies are missing the point (Hebrews 10:5-7; Mark 12:32-34; Matthew 12:5-8;; Matthew 9:13).

As we will see, Christians in the last days of the Old Covenant were required to continue observing Old Testament liturgies, such as Passover (Luke 22:7-20), but that continued only until Christ came in judgment against Jerusalem and destroyed the temple (1 Corinthians 11:26; Matthew 16:27-28).

The house-church is not a wanna-be "church"; a "we're going to be a real church someday, with a big steeple on top." The house-church is where dominion is exercised, and hospitality practiced. This is the liturgy of the Church.

Hospitality is also the Christian paradigm for business, though this is beyond the scope of this Thesis, which centers on the Church. See Jennifer Roback Morse, Love and Economics: Why the Laissez-Faire Family Doesn't Work, and Gary North, "Social Overhead Capital," Chalcedon Report. Coming: an analysis of "The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase its Profits," by Milton Friedman.

Thesis 71: The Apostolic Church and the Spread of Power

2008-11-09T21:37:00.001-06:00

Apostles (or “elders”[1]), and their appointees[2] worked to complete the pouring out of the Holy Spirit,[3] bear miraculous witness to the authority of the Apostolic Word,[4] and guard against the great apostasy of the transitional period between the Old and New Ages.[5] It was expected that all believer-priests would take over the task of dominion (#7) on their own after the complete destruction of the age that was.[6] “Deacons” and others who were not “ordained elders” were not prohibited from “authoritative preaching.”[7]

Notes
1. 1 Peter 5:1; 1 Timothy 4:14 + 2 Timothy 1:6
2. e.g., Timothy (2 Timothy 1:6; cp. Titus 1:5)
3. Acts 8:14-17; 19:1-6
4. 1 Timothy 4:12,14; Mark 16:20; Hebrews 1:1; 2:4; Acts 6:8; etc.
5. Acts 15:2,4,6; 16:4; cf. 2 Timothy 3:1-9; 1 John 2:18-26; #59
6. Acts 15:22,23; 1 Corinthians 4:8; 5:3; #94
7. Acts 6:10; 7; 8:1,4; 8:5,12

References
Coming: The Myth of Apostolic Succession

All Churches today are Roman Catholic in their belief that there are some human beings who are "ordained" (in the same way Timothy was Ordained by the Apostle Paul), and there are the rest of the human beings.

This is not a question of ecclesiology alone (the study of the church). This is a question of eschatology as well (the study of "last things," prophecy, the future).

"Preterism" is the idea that Christ fulfilled all Old Testament prophecies at His first coming, and that New Testament prophecies concerning a "second coming" of Christ were fulfilled in A.D. 70 when Christ returned in Judgment against Jerusalem. This means that we are now living in "the New Heavens and the New Earth" predicted by Isaiah, a world without priests and teachers, as Jeremiah described:

Vine & Fig Tree: A World Without Priests

The Elder's Checklist

The desire to preserve the apostolic church which existed in "the last days" of the Old Covenant puts New Covenant believers in a vegetative state.

The parallel is with Moses and the judges:

Thesis 37: The Temporary Character of The First “Church Officers”

Thesis 70: Judgment and the Church-Courts of Christ

2008-11-09T21:36:00.001-06:00

Christians should judge other Christians[1] in all matters,[2] thus rendering non-Christian (secular) courts and systems of judgment unnecessary.[3]

Notes
1. 1 Corinthians 5:12; John 7:24
2. #68; 1 Corinthians 6:4; Micah 4:3 + Psalm 149:4-9
3. 1 Corinthians 6:1-6; (cf. James 2:6); #93.

References
Why Christians Should Be Judgmental and Intolerant

Tolerance vs. Liberty

"Lex Mercatoria" is a legal phrase which has come to signify the power of a stateless society to prevent most disputes and resolve those that arise in a peaceful, harmonious and orderly way -- without dependence upon political institutions such as monarch, crown, parliament or congress.
The history of the Lex Mercatoria
Self-government versus "the government"
Free-Market sanctions

NAGocracy.com! - Anarcho-Theocracy - Self-Government in Action

Thesis 69: Sons of God and Pedagogues

2008-11-09T21:35:00.002-06:00

The Old Covenant declared that under the New Covenant believers would have the Law of God written on their hearts,[1] causing them to be obedient[2] and eliminating the need for guardian/tutors as in the Old Covenant.[3] The Church no longer needs political mediators.[4] Christ governs through His Church, His saints, believer-priests.[5]

Notes
1. Jeremiah 31:33; Hebrews 8:10
2. Ezekiel 36:27
3. Jeremiah 31:34; 1 John 2:27,20-21; Galatians 3:24 - 4:9
4. #41; Exodus 7:1; 22:9 [elohim]; John 10:34-35; Revelation 1:6; 5:10; Romans 8:14; Isaiah 56:5
5. John 1:12; 1 John 3:1; 2 Peter 1:4; #84

References
Vine & Fig Tree: A World Without Priests

Law / Micah's Third Archetype

"Spirit" vs. Law

The Elder's Checklist See Essay 18: "The End of Teachers" (online soon)

Thesis 68: Extremism Vs. Neutrality

2008-11-09T21:35:00.001-06:00

There is no “neutrality.”[1] Patriarchy is personal obedience to God’s Law in every area of life.[2]

Notes
1. Matthew 12:30; 1 Corinthians 10:31; Colossians 3:17; Titus 2:7,10; 2 Timothy 2:7; Matthew 6:24; James 4:4; 2;10; 1 John 2:15; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Timothy 3:11; 2 Peter 1:3; Colossians 1:18; Philippians 4:8; 1 Corinthians 15:28; Ephesians 5:20; 4:15; 2 Corinthians 2:9; 1 Corinthians 16:14; 14:26,40; 2:15; Hebrews 11:24-26
2. Joshua 24:14-15

References
"Extremism"
"Radical"
"Alarmist"
Worldview: Your Philosophy of Life
W.W.J.D.?

There are two ways to speak of "neutrality": breadth and depth.

The breadth of Christianity extends to every area of life. God has jurisdiction over everything you do, at all times of the day, not just "religious" things on Sunday. God has given commandments that apply to everything that a human being can do: work, marry, raise children, science, arts, social institutions, etc. There is no "King's X" or zone of neutrality.

The depth of Christianity leaves no room for apathy or indifference. Better to be hot or cold -- passionately wrong or fanatically right -- than to be lukewarm. The Catechism says man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. There is so much to enjoy, so much to be thankful for, and so much to do, that neutrality is not just a psychological defect, it's a sin.

Theocracy vs. "Neutrality"

H. PATRIARCHY AND THE EARLY HOME-CHURCHES

2008-11-09T21:34:00.002-06:00

Early Christianity was a house-centered phenomenon. This was not just because the Empire was at war with Christianity and drove the Christians underground (although this was true). Christians followed Christ in rejecting political power. True power is nurtured in Christian Patriarchy.

Theses 68-86 show how Christian home-churches battled an Empire in the Apostolic Age.

Thesis 67: Jesus The Nazarene

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Jesus is fulfills the promise given through Isaiah that a Branch from the root of Jesse would reign over the Gentiles.[1]

Notes
1. Isaiah 11:1-10; Romans 15:12; 2 Corinthians 1:20; Jeremiah 23:5-6; Matthew 2:23; Acts 13:23; Revelation 5:5; 22:16

References
The Branch / Jesus the Nazarene

Thesis 66: The Anointed King vs. Political Kings

2008-11-09T21:33:00.000-06:00

Jesus does not allow Himself to be made a political king.[1] He is not limited to the institutional machinery of the earthly State.[2] Do the politicians know that Jesus is the Messiah, the Anointed King?[3]

Notes
1. John 6:15; Matthew 20:25-28
2. Matthew 28:18; Revelation 19:15 + Hebrews 4:12; John 18:35-37; 2 Corinthians 10:3-5
3. John 7:26; #64; #56

References

• The Divine Right of Kings & The Divine Ordination of Government: The Parallels
• www.NAGocracy.com

Thesis 65: Fox News and the Coming of the Kingdom

2008-11-09T21:32:00.002-06:00

Christ’s Kingdom was not (nor will it be) inaugurated with world-wide spectacular display, televised coverage live via satellite, military victory parades, or political regalia.[1] The Dominion of Christ over nature and kingdoms comes through meekness[2] and suffering for the sake of the righteousness and justice of God’s Word.[3]

Notes
1. Luke 17:20-21; John 3:3
2. Matthew 21:4-9
3. Matthew 17:21-23; 5:10-12; Luke 24:46-47 + Micah 4:1-2; #87

Thesis 64: The Camaraderie of “Church” And State

2008-11-09T21:32:00.001-06:00

The world’s wise and politically cushioned[1] reject the King.[2] Jewish religious leaders enlisted the State to support their rebellion.[3] Institutionalized religion always seeks the support of the State.[4] The secular State is often more Godly than the institutional “church,”[5] but the “church” convinces the State to be as lawless as the ecclesiocrats.[6]

Notes
1. e.g., John 11:48; 19:15
2. Luke 2:34; 1 Corinthians 2:6-9; Hosea 14:9
3. John 18:35
4. Revelation 13:11ff.
5. John 19:6
6. John 19:7-8,12-13,15

References
Both "Church" and "State" are archist. They trust -- and therefore seek -- human power. Denying God's Predestination, they seek earthly predestination at their own hands.

Thesis 63: Christ’s Ascension to the Throne of David

2008-11-09T21:31:00.001-06:00

The baby born of the Virgin was given the Throne of David, and is now enthroned at the right hand of God.[1] As the True Shepherd (#58), He is now extending His Kingdom in the uttermost parts of the earth.[2]

Notes
1. Luke 1:32-33; Acts 2:30-36; 7:48-49; Mark 16:19; Psalm 110:1
2. Luke 2:28-32; Isaiah 42:1-13; 25:7-9; 49:6-8; Habakkuk 2:14

References
These Theses are generally in chronological order through the Bible. This one arises from the prophecy recorded in Luke 1, when the Angel told Mary that the Baby she was carrying will be given "the throne of His father David."

The Birth of the Anti-King

The actual Ascension took place some 33 years after this prophecy.

Thesis 62: Agrarianism As Environmentalism

2008-11-09T20:02:00.002-06:00

Those who despise the Kingdom of Christ come from both rural and urban environments.[1]

Notes
1. Matthew 22:5 cf. #10

References
The word "environmentalism" is not used in the modern sense of "concern for global warming and green technology," but in the sense used back in the 1970's by R.J. Rushdoony, e.g., "Environmentalism," Revolt Against Maturity, 86-90.

The idea here is that being raised in the right environment can save a person.

But Man's revolt is against God, and God is found in every environment. Even if an agrarian environment is more Theonomic than an urban one, the reprobate will still rebel against God as they see Him in an agrarian environment.

Thesis 61: True Power vs. Political Power

2008-11-09T20:02:00.001-06:00

Although rejecting political clout (#66), the Kingdom of God shall be greater than all other kingdoms,[1] permeating every area of life[2].

Notes
1. Matthew 13:32; Ezekiel 17:22-24; Isaiah 2:2-4; Daniel 2:35,44-45; Micah 4:1-3; Haggai 2:3-9; Zechariah 4:10. See also Mark 10:42-45 on "greatness."
2. Matthew 13:33 #68; Luke 17:20-24.

References
ChristianGlobalism.com
Christ was executed, giving an impression of powerlessness.
His disciples were disarmed. (Matthew 26:52; 2 Corinthians 10:3-5)

Revelation 17:13
These are of one mind, and they will give their power and authority to the beast.

Revelation 19:1
After these things I heard a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God!

Same word, but two different kinds of power.

Thesis 60: Christ’s Binding of Satan

2008-11-09T20:01:00.002-06:00

By His Power over demons, Jesus demonstrated that the Kingdom was not “postponed” but rather “at hand.”[1] By His Power over demons, Jesus indicated that Satan was being bound.[2] Through the death (execution) of Christ, Satan was judged,[3] and in His Resurrection and Ascension, Christ was enthroned, and the power which Satan and his host formerly held over the nations has been transferred to Christ.[4] Christ spoiled the powers, making possible the fulfillment of the Great Commission.[5]

Notes
1. Matthew 12:28
2. Matthew 12:29; Luke 10:18; 11:20-22; Mark 1:24; Revelation 12:10-12; 20:1-4
3. John 12:31-33; 14:30; 16:11
4. #22; Matthew 28:18-20; Revelation 20:1-4; Luke 10:18; 11:17-22; Colossians 2:15; Psalm 68:18 + Ephesians 4:8; Hebrews 2:14; 1 John 3:8; 4:4; Genesis 3:15; Romans 16:20
5. Colossians 2:15; cf. Matthew 28:18-20

References
Here's a preterist, amillennialist, and a postmillennialist:
Does "SATAN" Exist Today? Preterist Archive
JOLLYBLOGGER: Is Satan Bound?
The Person, Work, and Present Status of Satan Greg Bahnsen

We are contemplating adding a new thesis in Part I (following Part H) on Revelation 20.

Who is the Anti-Christ?

What is the "Kingdom of Heaven"

I am an Overcomer

Thesis 59: Jewish Opposition To The Kingdom

2008-11-09T20:00:00.000-06:00

In the Age of the Old Covenant, Jews preferred to live in bondage to a distorted “obedience” to the “Pedagogical Law” (#31), and persecuted the prophets who faithfully explicated the requirements of God’s Word.[1] As the New Covenant Age dawned, the Gospel of the Kingdom of Christ[2] was opposed by the Israelites with even greater ferver.[3] This opposition to the Messiah and persecution/seduction of His followers grew especially intense as the final destruction of the Old Age grew closer.[4] The generation of Jews which murdered Christ was the most unGodly generation of people in human history.[5]

Notes
1. Acts 7:51-52; 1 Kings 19:10; 2 Chronicles 24:19; 36:15-16; Jeremiah 2:30; Nehemiah 9:26,30; Malachi 3:7
2. Matthew 4:23
3. Matthew 5:12; 23:34-39; 21:(33-)43; 1 Thessalonians 2:15
4. prophesied: Matthew 24:24; Acts 20:29-30; 2 Timothy 3:1; manifested: 2 Timothy 3:6-13; 1 John 2:18-19; 4:1; 2 John 7
5. Matthew 3:7; 11:16; 12:34,39-42,45; 12:45; 16:4; 17:17; 23:33 et passim; 23:36 - 24:34; Mark 8:12; 8:38 - 9:1; 9:19; 13:30; 7:31; 9:41; 11:29-32,50-51; 17:25; 21:32; Acts 2:40; Philippians 2:15.

References
"Spirit" vs. Law See the verses at note 39. The Old Testament (Jewish "Tanakh") is arguably the most anti-semitic book in history. It portrays Israel as having been given extraordinary advantages and privileges with God, only to continually rebel against Him.
"This Generation"

Thesis 58: The Civil Authority of The Pastor: Christ The Shepherd

2008-11-09T19:59:00.002-06:00

The “shepherd” or “pastor” is a “civil” office,[1] again showing the mythical nature of our modern conception of “church-state separation”[2] and the irrelevance of most churches. The Kingdom was established by the Christ born in Bethlehem; “He shall shepherd His people.”[3]

Notes
1. Ezekiel 34; Jeremiah 23; Isaiah 44:28; Psalm 78:71-72
2. Ezekiel 37:24-28; Revelation 19:15-16.
3. Matthew 2:4-6; #55: The Throne of David.

References
Kittel, vol VI, pp. 486ff., notes that in the ancient orient, "shepherd" is a "common term for political and military leaders," used by kings to describe themselves as "one divinely chosen to bring salvation." The text at note 69 refers to "an ancient motif of world renewal, namely, that of gathering the dispersed flock." Ancient kings gathered by military conquest. Christ shepherds by regeneration.

Every Man a Lawyer
How lawyers (and other "public servants") should carry out pastoral functions. A clear threat to ecclesiastical "pastors." (Not all essays have been linked yet.)

How the Church Should Replace Empires

Revelation 1:6 and has made us kings and priests to His God and Father, to Him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.

Revelation 5:10 And have made us kings and priests to our God; And we shall reign on the earth.”

Self-Government in Action: Christians -- The Body of Christ -- at first a shadow government, then progressively illuminating the world and leaving institutionalized violence ("the State") in the dark.

Thesis 57: Kingship, Citizenship, and The Gospel

2008-11-09T19:59:00.001-06:00

The Gospel of the Kingdom[1] is the “good news” of the advent of the Messiah (“Anointed King”[2]) foretold by the Old Testament Prophets; the Son of God has come and we will be mercifully blessed by this King if we repent and submit to Him.[3] He promises to dwell with the one who obeys His Word[4] and yet this very power to obey is itself a gift from the King.[5]

Notes
1. Mark 1:14-15
2. John 4:25-26
3. Matthew 5:1-12; Deuteronomy 28:1-14
4. John 14:21,23; Acts 5:32
5. John 1:12; Philippians 2:13; 1 Corinthians 15:10; Romans 8:3-4; Ezekiel 36:27

Observations
Jesus preached "the Gospel of the Kingdom."
Jesus pronounced blessings for obedience to the true Law (as He laid it down, purged of pharisaical corruption).
Jesus promised reconciliation/fellowship.

Isaiah 33:22
For the LORD is our Judge, The LORD is our Lawgiver, The LORD is our King; He will save us.

The Good News of the Kingdom is in conflict with the bad news of all humanistic kingdoms:

Revelation 11:15
Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!”

Matthew 28:18-20
18 And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.

Thesis 56: Statism At The Time Of Christ

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Greco-Roman religion was worship and service to the State (polis), its legal interests and customs,[1] the wealth it secured,[2] and the demons behind it.[3] Rulers were not just in a different economic class from the masses; they were considered to be in a different class of being, a pseudo-ontological participation with the “principalities and powers” in a continuum of evolutionary progress in the “Chain of Being.” The Early Church thus spoke of politicians (humans) and powers (demons) as a unity.[4] The civil officials which killed infants to get at Christ and persecuted Christ's Body (the Apostolic Church) were dominated by demonic powers,[5] but the powers were ordered by God.[6]
Roman Law has served as the cradle of the Church.[7]

Notes
1. Acts 16:21; 17:7
2. Acts 19:23-28
3. Acts 17:18,22; cf. 8:9-11; 14:11-16
4. Romans 13:1-4; Ephesians 6:12; Colossians 2:15; Ephesians 1:21
5. 2 Corinthians 11:14; 1 Thessalonians 2:18 + Acts 17:8,15
6. Romans 13:1
7. Isaiah 44:27-28; 60:16; Daniel 2:34-35,40-44; Galatians 4:4; #94.

References
Daniel predicted that the Messiah would come during the Roman Empire, and Paul explained that this was the perfect time (note 7). Many apologists have noted that Koine Greek served as a universal language, and the Roman roads facilitated the spread of the Gospel. But more than this is involved. The Greco-Roman world marked a kind of "epistemological self-consciousness" in terms of the "principalities and powers" of the ancient world. The false religions of the Old Testament era were destroyed by Christ at His coming.

The Demonic Origin of the State
"Principalities and Powers" -- pt. 1
"Principalities and Powers" - pt 2
Unlucky 13 -- Romans 13, Revelation 13 and Isaiah 13
A Roman's-Eye View of Romans 13
Lakes of Fire in "Smoke-Filled Rooms"

G. PATRIARCHY AND THE MESSIAH

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In our chronological tour through the Bible, we come now to the coming of the Messiah.

The Advent of Jesus the Christ (Christ means "anointed King" -- an office, not a surname) was resisted by both church and State. Both the Roman civil rulers and the Jewish religious leaders knew their power was threatened by a righteous Servant-King. The powers plotted against Him from womb to tomb.

Empires and false religions have always been at war with Patriarchy and the Seed of Abraham, which is the Messiah.

Thesis 55: The Throne of David

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I am currently revising completely this thesis. Your contributions would be appreciated. Write me at Kevin4VFTatVFTonline.org [189] [190] [191] [192]

Notes
189. [existence]
190. [conditional]
191. [other holders]
192. [Christ] cf. #63

References
The Sure Mercies of David
Thesis 63: Christ’s Ascension to the Throne of David

It is a sin to form "the State." Deuteronomy 17:14 does not contradict this, and this is where most of the expositors' mistakes originate. Example: Deuteronomy 31:16, though part of "the Law," is prophecy, obviously. Deuteronomy 17:14 is also prophecy, though perhaps not as obviously. It is not a command. It speaks of sin, ordained but not approved by God. Perhaps instead of arguing over labels ("prophecy" vs. "law") for Deuteronomy 17:14, we should acknowledge a third category, which we might call "witness" (Deuteronomy 30:19; 31:19; 31:21,26,28). Deuteronomy 17:14 is not a command to have a king, and not solely a prophecy, but a future witness against Israel.

Thesis 54: War, Capital Punishment, and “The Sword”

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“Sword”[1] does not refer to individual penal sanctions (e.g., “capital punishment”). The shedding of a criminal’s blood[2] performed the functions of all other ritual acts of bloodshed, prefiguring the atonement for sin secured by Christ’s blood in His execution.[3] “The Sword” refers to national “capital punishment” (i.e., a shedding of blood[4]), which is the sacrifice of a sinful people who will not accept the Lord’s sacrifice and righteousness by faith. The sword of vengeance, which belongs to God[5], is the warfare whereby God slaughters a disobedient people in a fiery sacrifice,[6] relegating these idolatrous self-sacrifices and their dreams of Empire to the “dung-heaps” of history.[7]

Notes
1. cf. Romans 13:4
2. Genesis 9:4-6
3. Numbers 35:31,33; Deuteronomy 21:1,9
4. Ezekiel 35:5-6
5. Romans 12:17-21; #81:
6. Deuteronomy 32:43 [NIV]; Judges 20:40; Isaiah 34:5-8; Jeremiah 46:10; Ezekiel 39:17-20; Zephaniah 1:7-8; Matthew 23:35 + Revelation 19:3
7. Exodus 29:14; Leviticus 16:27; Zephaniah 1:17-18

References
www.GodandtheDeathPenalty.com
God Sends Evil
Is War Ever "Just?"

This thesis is a linchpin.
If true, it destroys both war and capital punishment as legitimate functions of "the State," and effectively destroys the necessity or even legitimacy of "the State."
If false, the overall thrust of these 95 Theses is still valid, namely, that all legitimate social functions (which would include vengeance, war, and capital punishment if this thesis is false) can be carried out by the Family (patriarchy) rather than the State (polis).

Thesis 53: Moloch-Worship and the Nature of Idols

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Idols are demons (or pin-ups, icons, knick-knacks and/or medallions honoring great heroes of the State, perhaps believed now [after their death] to be demons, climbing the Great Cosmic Ladder of Being, and inspiring some current ruler/hero[1]). Moloch is the Secular State; Moloch worship is the patriotic sacrifice of infants to nationalistic advancement, roughly parallel to the “Amerikanization” of children into worker-drones of the State through State schooling/socialization,[2] but more strikingly seen in abortions, the slaughter of infant humans in the name of national gods such as “the American dream.”[3]

Notes
1. 2 Chronicles 11:15; Leviticus 17:7; Jeremiah 7:18; 13:18; Acts 7:43
2. cp. Deuteronomy 6:6-9; #39
3. Leviticus 20:1-5; cp. 1 John 3:16; Philippians 2:4-8; John 15:13

References
R.J. Rushdoony, "Images, Ikons and Pin-Ups," Journal of Christian Reconstruction, vol I, No. 1, 1974.
Otto Scott, "The Artist as Propagandist," Journal of Christian Reconstruction, vol 10, No. 1, 1983.
R.J. Rushdoony, "Humanism's Prophet: The Artist," Journal of Christian Reconstruction, vol 2, No. 1, 1975.

Thesis 52: Judgment of the State in Heaven and Earth

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When States are overthrown and “archists” are put down, their angelic guardians are also judged, and the “stars,” “sun” and “moon” are said to cease “shining” with respect to that empire.[1]

Notes
1. Isaiah 24:23; 13:10; 34:4; 60:19-20; Jeremiah 4:28; Joel 2:10,31; 3:15; Ezekiel 30:18; 32:7,8; Matthew 24:29; Revelation 17-19; Revelation 21:22-25; 22:5; #88.

References
David Chilton, "The Sun, Moon, and Stars," in Paradise Restored.
James B. Jordan, " Sun, Moon, and Stars," chap. 5 in Through New Eyes.
On stars and angels, see James B. Jordan, Judges: God's War Against Humanism, p. 102.
Along these lines, see also, Baalism vs. Predestination. Pagans worship the star-demons, Christians understand them to be controlled by God. This was the irony of the "natural" plagues in Egypt.
Stars and Idolatry
Unlucky 13 -- Romans 13, Revelation 13 and Isaiah 13
A Roman's-Eye View of Romans 13
"Principalities and Powers"
"Principalities and Powers" - part 2
Lakes of Fire in "Smoke-Filled Rooms"
#22; #30; #35

Thesis 51: Only One King Self-Consciously Serves God

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Although God is continually and sovereignly ordering all political entities for the eventual accomplishment of His purposes, rebellious men do not submit to and honor God as they should. Legal and personal recognition of Christ in the government of human society was prophesied in the Old Testament to be a characteristic of the Age inaugurated by the God-man Jesus Christ at His First Advent.[1] Seated at God’s right hand (the Throne of David[2]) as the King of kings[3], He would sovereignly and Spiritually order all things to accomplish justice on earth[4] and men would give due honor to Him,[5] as He honors His Father in heaven. It is the purpose of these Theses to nurture faithful obedience to these Command-Prophecies.

Notes
1. Isaiah 7:14; 9:6-7
2. Acts 2:29-36; 13:32-33; #63
3. Psalm 72:11; Philippians 2:9-11; 1 Timothy 6:15; Revelation 1:5; Revelation 17:14; Revelation 19:16;
4. Isaiah 11; 32:15-18
5. Psalm 22:27-31; 46:10; 66:4; 67:2; 72:8-11,17; 86:9; 102:15-22; 138:1-5; Isaiah 11:9; 27:6,13; 49:22-23; 51:4-5; 60:6; 66:18-23; Jeremiah 3:17; 4:2; Daniel 7:13-22; Micah 4:1-3; Zechariah 2:11; 8:20-23; Malachi 1:11

Thesis 50: The State Does Not Serve God Self-Consciously

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Nevertheless,[1] these same “ministers” -- kings and leaders of political (polis-centered) systems -- can also be identified with Satan himself.[2] The “State” is only an unwitting “minister.”[3] By definition, it is impossible for a State (a system of institutionalized violence and revenge) to self-consciously obey God’s Law and serve Christ.[4]

Notes
1. #49
2. Isaiah 14:11-15; Ezekiel 28
3. Isaiah 10:7; #94, #83; #78
4. Romans 12:17-21; #81

References
We have seen that the State is created by those who want to rebel against God's Law, and do not want to be confined to God's approved methods of dealing with social and personal problems.

"The State" is what people who want to steal and kill form, because if they tried to steal and kill as private citizens, public opinion would turn against them. There's no need for "the State" if you're content to use persuasion to raise money for your project. There's no need for "the State" if you intend to leave vengeance to God.

Romans 13 says we are to "submit" to the State because the State serves God's purposes. Many theologians say that if it is not self-consciously trying to obey God's Law, we don't have to "submit," but we can overthrow the State. That's not what the Bible says. It says "the State" serves God's purposes by disobeying God's Law (#48, #49); that no State is obeying God by stealing from people to purchase the instruments of death to take vengeance on enemies, but we are to "submit" to such empires and not to employ violence against them, because God is in control.

"The State" serves God's purposes even while it is busy denying God, defying God, and disobeying God's commandments.

Thesis 49: The State As Sanctified “Servant”/ “Deacon”/”Minister”

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The lawless raiders of the State, be they agents of War or agents of Revenue, are so firmly in the hand of the LORD[1] and so completely dedicated (useful) to His purposes that they may be said to be His “sanctified ones.”[2] They so serve His purposes of anger,[3] indignation,[4] wrath,[5] and vengeance,[6] that they may be called His “ministers” (from deaconeo, “to serve”), and a pagan king can even be called His “christ”[7] although he does not know the Lord or honor Jesus as the Christ of christs and King of kings.[8]

Notes
1. Proverbs 21:1
2. Isaiah 13:3
3. Isaiah 13:3
4. Isaiah 10:5
5. Isaiah 10:6
6. Romans 13:4
7. Isaiah 45:1 -- “anointed king”
8. Isaiah 45:5

References
God Sends EVIL !
Notice that the concepts in notes 3-6 are highlighted in red in the above essay.
Evil empires accomplish the task for which God sends them.
God's sending is effectual. They always serve Him.
It is not the case that the State should serve Him (be His "minister") but doesn't always.
It is not the case that we need not submit to those empires that are not effectively being His servants/deacons/ministers in self-conscious obedience.
They always serve His purposes, and we are never to rise up against them in violent revolution.

The prophets, such as Isaiah, form the backdrop for Paul's teaching on the State in Romans 13.

Romans13.com

Thesis 48: The State Serves God by Sinning

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By His decree, God can be said to “command” nations to do His bidding, carrying out His judgments against covenant-breakers.[1] The acts of rape, murder, theft, and violence committed by the “State” are nevertheless contrary to God’s written (revealed) commands, and these political machines will be judged for their lawless “obedience” to God’s “command.”[2]

Notes
1. Isaiah 10:6
2. Isaiah 10:12

References
God Sends EVIL !
This link is primarily a collection of verses.
Read each one and ask, who suffered at the hands of the "evil" described?
Did the "evil"doer have the moral right or moral approval of God to do the evil described?
Make the verses personal, that is, imagine the effects on real people.
Imagine real people -- your neighbors, your son -- committing these "patriotic" acts. Are they justified? Do their actions please God?

In the Isaiah passages above, some have said Assyria did the right thing but with the wrong reasons in their hearts. If Assyria were China and committed these acts against America, would China/Assyria be justified? Exonerated under "International Law?" Exonerated under God's Law?

We can easily imagine God sending the Chinese/Assyrians against America -- as one wit has put it, if God doesn't judge America, He owes Sodom and Gomorrah an apology -- but it's difficult to see how China will be applauded rather than condemned by God for their actions.

Therefore the State "serves" God's purposes by sinning.

We will return to these verses when we examine the "minister" (servant) of God in Romans 13.

Thesis 47: God’s Sovereign Ordering of Every State

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The decisions of all kings and other political leaders are under the complete sovereign control of God. Even political and military decisions which are patently lawless and work great evil and injustice are predestined by God[1] and serve His purposes (#49). God hardens the hearts of Pharaohs and other political gods[2] so that their empires would be destroyed in judgment[3] and so that God’s covenant promises of cursing upon disobedience would be fulfilled.[4] All imperial acts are calculated and predestined by God for the execution of God’s judgment and His Kingdom purposes.[5]

Notes
1. Proverbs 16:4; Isaiah 45:7; Jeremiah 4:6; 21:10; Amos 3:6; 9:4; Micah 2:3
2. Romans 9:17; see Who Hardened Pharaoh's Heart?
3. Luke 1:52-53; #46 note 5
4. Exodus 7:3-5; #9
5. 1 Chronicles 5:26; Proverbs 21:1; Isaiah 40:23

Thesis 46: Romans 8:28 and The State

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All things -- even evil things -- work together to serve God’s purposes[1] because evil is predestined and dispatched by God.[2] Often the evil things which God sends are the armies of depraved empires.[3] Evil is carried out according to God’s sovereign plan by statist politicians, generals, and others, who think they are exercising their “free will.”[4] Sometimes the evil God causes an empire to do makes the State its own worst enemy.[5] (Some would prefer to believe that God does not “predestine” evil, but that it “just happens.”[6] Such Arminians [and other politicians] receive God’s judgment.[7]) As pacifists (#79, #80, #81), Christians are not to resist the evil State with violence, but are to “submit” to it.[8] But this fact (that we are to “submit” to the State, the evil acts of evil politicians) does not mean that they have a morally legitimate existence, even though we recognize that they were “ordained” (predestined) by God.[9] God often sends angels to carry out evil acts, or to prompt human beings to do evil.[10] These angels or demons are often called “powers.”[11] Providence, Pacifism, and the Powers: this is the context in which we must understand that much-abused passage, Romans 13:1-7.

Notes

1. Romans 8:28.

2. Deuteronomy 31:29; Joshua 23:15; 1 Kings 14:9-10; 21:29; 2 Kings 21:12; 22:16,20; Nehemiah 13:18; Numbers 14:35; Deuteronomy 29:21; 30:15; Judges 2:15; Job 2:10; 42:11; Psalm 54:5; Isaiah 45:7; Jeremiah 6:19; 11:11; 18:11; 19:3,15; 23:12; 25:32; 32:42; 35:17; 36:3,31; 39:16; 44:2; 51:64; 42:6; 26:3; 26:13; Lamentations 3:38; Ezekiel 7:3-5; Daniel 9:12:14; Amos 3:6; Micah 1:12; 2:3; 2 Samuel 17:14.

3. Leviticus 26:25; Judges 3:12; 2 Samuel 7:14; 12:11; 1 Kings 5:4; 9:9; 2 Kings 19:7; 2 Chronicles 20:9; Proverbs 16:4; 1 Chronicles 5:26; Jeremiah 4:6; 9:16; 21:10; 24:10; 25:27,29; 29:17; 42:17; 44:27; 49:37; Ezekiel 5:17; 14:21; 28:23; 29:19-20; Jeremiah 49:37; Amos 9:4; [the “sword”].

4. Genesis 50:20; 2 Samuel 17:14; Isaiah 10:5-7; Micah 4:11-13; Acts 2:23; 4:24-29; 13:27-28; Revelation 17:17.

5. Exodus 14:4; Deuteronomy 2:30; 1 Kings 12:15; Daniel 11:27.

6. 1 Samuel 6:9.

7. Zephaniah 1:12.

8. Matthew 5:39,41; Jeremiah 29:7; 27:12; 38:17-18; Romans 12:14,18 - 13:4; 1 Peter 2:11-24.

9. Isaiah 10:12; Jeremiah 30:16; Matthew 26:52.

10. 2 Samuel 24:16; Psalm 78:49; Judges 9:23-24; 1 Samuel 16:14-16; Luke 4:5-7.

11. Ephesians 6:12; Colossians 2:15; 1 Corinthians 15:24; Ephesians 2:2; 1:19-21.

References
• God Sends EVIL !
• A Biblical Defense of Pacifism - "Pacifism" is obedience to God's Commands, "Thou shalt not kill," and "Thou shalt not steal."
• TOTAL Predestination!

F. PATRIARCHY AND PROVIDENCE: THE STATE

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If God never commanded men to form a State, why do such empires exist?

The answer is “Providence.”

Romans 13 says God “ordained” the State.
This does not mean the State has God’s ethical commendation or "seal of approval."

Romans 13 says the State is the “minister” or “deacon” of God.
But Isaiah 13 says the bloodthirsty nation which destroyed Babylon “served” God’s purposes. God calls these murderous rapists “My sanctified ones.”

“Providence” is another word for “Predestination.”

Murder is evil.
God sometimes sends murderers in divine judgment against sin.

God has predestined the State.
The State is evil.
God has predestined evil.

The conclusion is difficult to accept, but the premises are Scripturally true and the logic is inescapable.

In this next group of Theses we will examine God's Providence and His sovereignty over empires which have no right to exist.

Thesis 45: The Inferiority of Old Covenant Typological Mediators

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King David, for all his goodness, would have been disqualified from being an overseer in the Apostolic Church.[1] Likewise Solomon, for all his wisdom, was a polygamist,[2] military dictator,[3] and idolater;[4] under him were fulfilled the curses of 1 Samuel 8.[5] Although representing a departure from God’s Law (as given to the Patriarchs[6]), God allowed non-Familial institutions; they (a) helped maintain some social order[7] and (b) served as a pedagogue, teaching the people about the True King, the coming Christ.[8]

Notes
1. 1 Timothy 3:2 + 1 Samuel 25:43; 1 Timothy 3:3 + 1 Chronicles 28:3; 1 Timothy 3:4 + 1 Kings 1:6,11
2. 1 Kings 11:1ff.
3. 1 Kings 4:26ff.; 5:13ff.
4. 1 Kings 11:4-11
5. 1 Kings 10:14+c.; 12:11; cp. Deuteronomy 17:14-20; cf. #24
6. Genesis 26:5; 18:19
7. 2 Chronicles 19:5-11; Isaiah 49:23; #94, #34
8. Psalm 72; Galatians 4:8; 1 Corinthians 8:5-6; 10:11

References

What is an "Institution"?

Thesis 41: The Character of “gods”

Thesis 44: The State as the Answer to the Prayers of Rebels

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The monarchy in Israel was a result of rebellion in families,[1] a desire to be like the demonic States around Israel,[2] a rejection of the Lord’s priestly calling to be a holy nation,[3] and a rejection of God’s Law as given to the Patriarchs.[4] When the people desire centralized political structures it is because they desire to flee personal patriarchal responsibility.[5] God judges their sin by granting their wish, and inflicting upon these covetous, irresponsible Families the curse of the State.[6] Empire is a substitute for Godly Families: The alternative is always Patriarchy (government by Godly Families) or the Paternalistic State (“the government” instead of Godly Families).[7] Political officers were therefore at all times to be called “father” and “mother”[8] to remind both citizen and officer of the Patriarchal ideal in God’s Law.

Notes
1. 1 Samuel 2:12ff.,29; 3:13; 8:2-5
2. 1 Samuel 8:5,20
3. Numbers 23:9; Exodus 33:16
4. 1 Samuel 8:7,18[LXX]-19; 10:19; 12:12, 17,19; Hosea 13:11; Ezekiel 20:24-25
5. 1 Samuel 8:20
6. 1 Samuel 8:11-18; Ezekiel 20:25.
7. Genesis 41:43
8. Cf. references in Westminster Larger Catechism, qq. 124-125, + Job 29:16; Judges 17:10; 1 Sam 24:11,21; Acts 7:2; Judges 5:7.

Of course, many Christians in our day support the existence of the State because they were trained to believe the State is good and necessary. The people in Samuel's day had not been brainwashed like this (though the "media" of that day were probably agitating for the State, comparing the "prosperity" of the other nations with the "crisis" that Israel was experiencing).

Thesis 43: The Prohibition of Monarchism

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The movement toward centralization of power under political mediators is a rejection of God.[1] Decentralization is less archist, and more salvational [re: health, wealth, welfare, victory, etc., cf. #41].

Notes
1. Judges 8:23; 1 Samuel 8:7; Judges 9

References
1 Samuel 8: The State as Rejection of God
Rushdoony on The Implications of 1 Samuel 8
Thomas Paine on 1 Samuel 8
Common Sense by Thomas Paine
I SAMUEL 8 - David Boaz

The argument here is not just against monarchism (one archist), but against all archism, such as oligarchy (small group of archists). Archists are gods, attempting to bring salvation. See also, James B. Jordan, "Appendix E: Salvation and Statism," in Law of the Covenant: An Exposition of Exodus 21-23 pp. 240-242.

A Political View of Life

The goal is to move away from earthly archists.

What is an "Archist"

Thesis 42: National Security Without a State

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Life without a “State” can be peaceful and safe,[1] especially when Christ is King.[2]

Notes
1. Judges 18:7 + 1 Kings 4:25; Leviticus 25:18-19; 26:5; Ezekiel 28:26; Genesis 13-14
2. Micah 4:1-5

References
Patriarchy and "National Security"
This is a rather lengthy discussion of the situation described in Judges 18, a state of "anarchy" with no civil magistrate.

Thesis 41: The Character of “gods”

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Political mediators are “gods”[1] and “saviors.”[2]

Notes
1. Exodus 21:6; 22:8-9,20,28; 1 Corinthians 8:5; 2 Peter 2:10 + Jude 9; Psalm 95:3; 82:1; 138:1; Jeremiah 2:28; cf. Deuteronomy 29:26, #22, #35; Exodus 34:15/Leviticus 17:7/2 Chronicles 11:15
2. Judges 3:9 - 16:31; Obadiah 1:21.

References
Politicians are "political mediators." They are called "gods."

They mediate salvation between the Sovereign and the People.

There is no need for priests and gods under the New Covenant. They were temporary and remedial.

There is now only one true Mediator, one true Savior, one path to salvation.

Thesis 28 may be deleted and incorporated into this thesis.

E. PATRIARCHY AND THE RISE OF THE STATE

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The Chronicle of History infallibly recorded in Scripture is clear: the “State” was the property of rebellious, pagan nations. They invented the State; they lived under political regimes. We have seen the birth and rise of the State in Cain, Nimrod, and people who rebelled against God and left the righteous, forming nations outside of Israel. The creation of the State is the creation of a false Messiah/Savior, and a violation of God's commandments.

There came a point in time when Israel definitively rejected Patriarchy in favor of Politics.

The Bible says the desire for a State is the rejection of God.

But God is still in control of this rebellion. Providence is sovereign over Politics.

Thesis 40: Patriarchy and Oaths

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[null]

Notes
[1] Deuteronomy 10:20 Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God; him shalt thou serve, and to him shalt thou cleave, and swear by his name.

[2] Exodus 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
Leviticus 19:12 And ye shall not swear by my name falsely, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the Lord.
2 Corinthians 1:23 Moreover I call God for a record upon my soul, that to spare you I came not as yet unto Corinth.
2 Chronicles 6:22 If a man sin against his neighbour, and an oath be laid upon him to make him swear, and the oath come before thine altar in this house; 23 Then hear thou from heaven, and do, and judge thy servants, by requiting the wicked, by recompensing his way upon his own head; and by justifying the righteous, by giving him according to his righteousness.

[3] Deuteronomy 6:13 Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and serve him, and shalt swear by his name.

[4] Exodus 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
Jeremiah 5:7 How shall I pardon thee for this? thy children have forsaken me, and sworn by them that are no gods: when I had fed them to the full, they then committed adultery, and assembled themselves by troops in the harlots' houses.
Matthew 5:34 But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne. 37 But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.
James 5:12 But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.

[5] Hebrews 6:16 For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife.
2 Corinthians 1:23 Moreover I call God for a record upon my soul, that to spare you I came not as yet unto Corinth.
Isaiah 65:16 That he who blesseth himself in the earth shall bless himself in the God of truth; and he that sweareth in the earth shall swear by the God of truth; because the former troubles are forgotten, and because they are hid from mine eyes.

[6] 1 Kings 8:31 If any man trespass against his neighbour, and an oath be laid upon him to cause him to swear, and the oath come before thine altar in this house.
Nehemiah 13:25 And I contended with them, and cursed them, and smote certain of them, and plucked off their hair, and made them swear by God, saying, Ye shall not give your daughters unto their sons, nor take their daughters unto your sons, or for yourselves.
Ezra 10:5 Then arose Ezra, and made the chief priests, the Levites, and all Israel, to swear that they should do according to this word. And they sware.

[7] Exodus 20:7 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
Jeremiah 4:2 And thou shalt swear, The Lord liveth, in truth, in judgment, and in righteousness; and the nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory.

[8] Genesis 24:2 And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh: 3 And I will make thee swear by the Lord, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell. 5 And the servant said unto him, Peradventure the woman will not be willing to follow me unto this land: must I needs bring thy son again unto the land from whence thou camest? 6 And Abraham said unto him, Beware thou that thou bring not my son thither again. 8 And if the woman will not be willing to follow thee, then thou shalt be clear from this my oath: only bring not my son thither again. 9 And the servant put his hand under the thigh of Abraham his master, and sware to him concerning that matter.

[9] Numbers 5:19 And the priest shall charge her by an oath, and say unto the woman, If no man have lain with thee, and if thou hast not gone aside to uncleanness with another instead of thy husband, be thou free from this bitter water that causeth the curse. 21 Then the priest shall charge the woman with an oath of cursing, and the priest shall say unto the woman, The Lord make thee a curse and an oath among thy people, when the Lord doth make thy thigh to rot, and thy belly to swell.
Nehemiah 5:12 Then said they, We will restore them, and will require nothing of them; so will we do as thou sayest. Then I called the priests, and took an oath of them, that they should do according to this promise.
Exodus 22:7 If a man shall deliver unto his neighbour money or stuff to keep, and it be stolen out of the man's house; if the thief be found, let him pay double. 8 If the thief be not found, then the master of the house shall be brought unto the judges, to see whether he have put his hand unto his neighbour's goods. 9 For all manner of trespass, whether it be for ox, for ass, for sheep, for raiment, or for any manner of lost thing, which another challengeth to be his, the cause of both parties shall come before the judges; and whom the judges shall condemn, he shall pay double unto his neighbour. 10 If a man deliver unto his neighbour an ass, or an ox, or a sheep, or any beast, to keep; and it die, or be hurt, or driven away, no man seeing it: 11 Then shall an oath of the Lord be between them both, that he hath not put his hand unto his neighbour's goods; and the owner of it shall accept thereof, and he shall not make it good.

[10] Jeremiah 4:2 And thou shalt swear, The Lord liveth, in truth, in judgment, and in righteousness; and the nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory.
Psalm 24:4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.

[11] 1 Samuel 25:22 So and more also do God unto the enemies of David, if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light any that pisseth against the wall. 32 And David said to Abigail, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, which sent thee this day to meet me: 33 And blessed be thy advice, and blessed be thou, which hast kept me this day from coming to shed blood, and from avenging myself with mine own hand. 34 For in very deed, as the Lord God of Israel liveth, which hath kept me back from hurting thee, except thou hadst hasted and come to meet me, surely there had not been left unto Nabal by the morning light any that pisseth against the wall.
Psalm 15:4 In whose eyes a vile person is contemned; but he honoureth them that fear the Lord. He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not.

[12] Ezekiel 17:16 As I live, saith the Lord God, surely in the place where the king dwelleth that made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant he brake, even with him in the midst of Babylon he shall die. 18 Seeing he despised the oath by breaking the covenant, when, lo, he had given his hand, and hath done all these things, he shall not escape. 19 Therefore thus saith the Lord God; As I live, surely mine oath that he hath despised, and my covenant that he hath broken, even it will I recompense upon his own head.
Joshua 9:18 And the children of Israel smote them not, because the princes of the congregation had sworn unto them by the Lord God of Israel. And all the congregation murmured against the princes. 19 But all the princes said unto all the congregation, We have sworn unto them by the Lord God of Israel: now therefore we may not touch them.
2 Samuel 21:1 Then there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David inquired of the Lord. And the Lord answered, It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he slew the Gibeonites.

[13] Isaiah 19:21 And the Lord shall be known to Egypt, and the Egyptians shall know the Lord in that day, and shall do sacrifice and oblation; yea, they shall vow a vow unto the Lord, and perform it.
Ecclesiastes 5:4 When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed. 5 Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay. 6 Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thine hands?
Psalm 61:8 So will I sing praise unto thy name for ever, that I may daily perform my vows.
Psalm 66:13 I will go into thy house with burnt offerings: I will pay thee my vows, 14 Which my lips have uttered, and my mouth hath spoken, when I was in trouble.

[14] Psalm 76:11 Vow, and pay unto the Lord your God: let all that be round about him bring presents unto him that ought to be feared.
Jeremiah 44:25 Thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, saying; Ye and your wives have both spoken with your mouths, and fulfilled with your hand, saying, We will surely perform our vows that we have vowed, to burn incense to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink offerings unto her: ye will surely accomplish your vows, and surely perform your vows. 26 Therefore hear ye the word of the Lord, all Judah that dwell in the land of Egypt; Behold, I have sworn by my great name, saith the Lord, that my name shall no more be named in the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt, saying, The Lord God liveth.

[15] Deuteronomy 23:21 When thou shalt vow a vow unto the Lord thy God, thou shalt not slack to pay it: for the Lord thy God will surely require it of thee; and it would be sin in thee. 22 But if thou shalt forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee. 23 That which is gone out of thy lips thou shalt keep and perform; even a freewill offering, according as thou hast vowed unto the Lord thy God, which thou hast promised with thy mouth.
Psalm 50:14 Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most High.
Genesis 28:20 And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on, 21 So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the Lord be my God: 22 And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.
1 Samuel 1:11 And she vowed a vow, and said, O Lord of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the Lord all the days of his life, and there shall no rasor come upon his head.
Psalm 66:13 I will go into thy house with burnt offerings: I will pay thee my vows, 14 Which my lips have uttered, and my mouth hath spoken, when I was in trouble.
Psalm 132:2 How he sware unto the Lord, and vowed unto the mighty God of Jacob; 3 Surely I will not come into the tabernacle of my house, nor go up into my bed; 4 I will not give sleep to mine eyes, or slumber to mine eyelids, 5 Until I find out a place for the Lord, an habitation for the mighty God of Jacob.

[16] Acts 23:12 And when it was day, certain of the Jews banded together, and bound themselves under a curse, saying that they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul. 14 And they came to the chief priests and elders, and said, We have bound ourselves under a great curse, that we will eat nothing until we have slain Paul.
Mark 6:26 And the king was exceeding sorry; yet for his oath's sake, and for their sakes which sat with him, he would not reject her.
Numbers 30:5 But if her father disallow her in the day that he heareth; not any of her vows, or of her bonds wherewith she hath bound her soul, shall stand: and the Lord shall forgive her, because her father disallowed her. 8 But if her husband disallowed her on the day that he heard it; then he shall make her vow which she vowed, and that which she uttered with her lips, wherewith she bound her soul, of none effect: and the Lord shall forgive her. 12 But if her husband hath utterly made them void on the day he heard them; then whatsoever proceeded out of her lips concerning her vows, or concerning the bond of her soul, shall not stand: her husband hath made them void; and the Lord shall forgive her. 13 Every vow, and every binding oath to afflict the soul, her husband may establish it, or her husband may make it void.

[17] Matthew 19:11 But he said unto them, All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given. 12 For there are some eunuchs, which were so born from their mother's womb: and there are some eunuchs, which were made eunuchs of men: and there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it.
1 Corinthians 7:2 Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband. 9 But if they cannot contain, let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burn.
Ephesians 4:28 Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.
1 Peter 4:2 That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.
1 Corinthians 7:23 Ye are bought with a price; be not ye the servants of men.

References
This Thesis is a temporary one, currently being re-written.

Oaths are a significant and neglected Biblical subject. One-fifth of the Ten Commandments relate to oaths. The Notes above are from the Westminster Confession of Faith. An entire chapter is devoted to oaths out of 33 chapters, so surely there should be one thesis out of 95.

An Oath is A Sacred Act of Worship

Does the Bible Forbid Taking an Oath?

The oath issue is at the heart of America's Apostasy:

My Conflict with the Oath of Office

Battling Secularism by Charging Secularists with Perjury

Christians for a "Test Oath" -- Table of Contents

Political Polytheism

National Oath-taking has a long history:

Paleopresbyterianism Versus Neopresbyterianism

Thesis 39: Patriarchy and Education

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Education (imparting the knowledge of God’s comprehensive Word and wisdom [the ability to apply it in every area of life]) is the responsibility of the Family, including fathers and grandfathers,[1] who also have a duty of lifelong learning.

Notes
1. Deuteronomy 4:9f.; 6:7f., 20f.; 11:18-21

References
TheLifelongLearner.com
Education
How to Socialize Young Children
A Gutsy Journalist Asks: Is Day Care Child Abuse?

Theocratic Education
The Founding of Education in America
The Bible in Public Schools: The Founders' View
Bible Reading in the Schools
In Defense of Horace Mann
McGuffy's and the New England Primer
Government-Led Prayers
Literacy and Knowledge without Christianity?
Non-Sectarian, but still Religious
The Northwest Ordinance of 1787
Religion and Education

Thesis 38: Patriarchy and the Temple

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The True Temple is in Heaven[1]; the temple in Jerusalem was but an earthly model of it.[2] This pedagogical teaching aid was destroyed at the end of the Old Covenant world.[3] The body of Jesus, the Second Adam, was a model of the New Temple, and of the Redeemed individual.[4] The Body of Christ (His Church) is now the New Temple.[5] We will never see another earthly temple (building) constructed by God’s Elect.[6]

Notes:
1. Revelation 7:15; 11:19; 14:17; 15:5; 16:17; #27.
2. M.G. Kline, Images of the Spirit
3. Matthew 23:29 - 24:3ff.; Luke 21:20-22; Luke 23:44-45.
4. Matthew 12:6; John 2:19-22; Exodus 28.
5. 1 Corinthians 3:16-17; 6:19; 2 Corinthians 6:16; Ephesians 2:21; Revelation 3:12.
6. Revelation 21:22.

References:
Roderick Campbell, "The New Temple," chap 17 in Israel and the New Covenant

The building of a temple in Jerusalem by either Jews or Moslems has no Biblical significance (except to deny the teachings of the Bible). The Bible neither prophesies or condones such a construction project.

Thesis 36: The Promised Land

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A parcel of land was promised to Abraham as a place where “the seed of the woman”[1] could multiply and eventually produce a Messiah, the Savior of the World.[2] The land functioned as a kind of geographical incubator for the genetic line leading to Christ.[3] In the New Covenant, neither the land nor the raising of seed[4] has any prophetic or moral importance, the Seed having come.[5] Christians, as the true heirs of Abraham,[6] are promised the entire world.[7]

Notes
1. Genesis 3:15
2. Genesis 12:7; 13:15; 15:18; 17:8; 22:17-18; Hebrews 2:16
3. Matthew 1:1-17; Luke 3:23-38
4. Genesis 3:15; 16:2; 19:32; 38:8ff.; Leviticus 12; 15:16-32
5. Galatians 3:16; 1 Timothy 3:2; Luke 20:35; Galatians 3:19
6. Galatians 3:7,9,14,28-29; Romans 4:13,16; 9:8; 1 Peter 1:23
7. Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; Psalm 2:8; #91

References
Roderick Campbell, "The New Inheritance," chap 18 in Israel and the New Covenant
Israel: Is the State God?
Who Owns the Holy Land?
God’s Conditional Gift of Land to Abraham [pdf]

Thesis 37: The Temporary Character of The First “Church Officers”

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Judges were appointed to ease the burden of Moses’ mediatorial task.[1] Israel’s mediators were given a measure of Moses’ Spirit.[2] It was Moses’ desire that all believers would have the capacity to make judgments.[3] While Moses’ immediate purpose was to resolve disputes, his ultimate purpose was to teach the people the principles of God’s Law and make them competent therein.[4] Not until the New Covenant did God’s people become
• kings and priests
• a kingdom of priests
• a royal priesthood.[5]
Prior to this, they lacked the Spiritual power which comes only through Christ.[6]

Notes
1. Exodus 18:21-26
2. Numbers 11:17
3. Numbers 11:29; 35:24; cf. Acts 2:17f.; Deuteronomy 5:29-31; Proverbs 6:6-8; 30:24,27
4. Exodus 18:16,20
5. These phrases are obviously saying the same thing:
Exodus 19:5-6; Hosea 1:9; 2:23; 4:6; 1 Peter 2:5-10; Revelation 1:6; 5:10
6. Romans 8:3-5; Hebrews 7:19; 8:8-13; John 1:12,17

References
Elders as Judges
Patriarchs as "Elders"
The Elder's Checklist
The resources above attempt to show that all the duties of "elders" (as defined by those who defend the traditional view of the institutional church) are duties for all Christians, and that all Christians should aspire to be servants when they are elders, exercising the offices of prophet, priest, king, and judge, in the way these offices are theoretically exercised in the traditional view only by the "ordained" (insofar as these functions and offices are appropriately exercised by anyone today). In other words, if anyone has a duty as a priest or king, everyone has that duty, and we should all be growing into those duties.

Numbers 11:29 is a key passage, showing Moses' desire not to be a permanent judge all of his life over a slave-like people, but for heads of households in Israel to be self-governing:

25 Then the LORD came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and placed the same upon the seventy elders; and it happened, when the Spirit rested upon them, that they prophesied, although they never did so again.
26 But two men had remained in the camp: the name of one was Eldad, and the name of the other Medad. And the Spirit rested upon them. Now they were among those listed, but who had not gone out to the tabernacle; yet they prophesied in the camp. 27 And a young man ran and told Moses, and said, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.”
28 So Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, one of his choice men, answered and said, “Moses my lord, forbid them!”
29 Then Moses said to him, “Are you zealous for my sake? Oh, that all the LORD’s people were prophets and that the LORD would put His Spirit upon them!” 30 And Moses returned to the camp, he and the elders of Israel.

All Christians are to be kings (judges) and priests (note 5). The idea of a separate caste of "ordained" "elders" who function as kings and priests over the rest of the (non-functioning, non self-governing) Body was a temporary pedagogy in the Old Testament and is now sub-Biblical.

Thesis 35: Angels And The Pedagogical Legal Structure

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Just as (fallen) angelic forces were placed over the unclean nations (cf. #21, #22), the holy nation of Israel was given a pedagogical legal structure by God’s angels.[1]

Notes
1. Deuteronomy 33:2; Psalm 68:17; Acts 7:53; Galatians 3:19; Hebrews 2:2

References
We have now introduced the concept of angelic government over both the ungodly:

Stars and Idolatry

and the Godly:

Angels and God's Throne of Government Part one.

Angels and God's Throne of Government Part two.

We have barely scratched the surface.

Soon enough we will suggest that Christ replaced the angels.

Thesis 34: The Need for a Pedagogical Legal Structure

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The generation that came out of Egypt was unable to apply the Law of God to every area of their lives, being dominated by the slave mentality inculcated by Egypt.[1] Therefore God raised up Moses as a social-legal mediator between God and the people.[2] Although God’s Law was given to the Patriarchs,[3] it was necessary for Moses to re-issue it and institutionalize it for the immature and slave-like Israelites coming out of bondage.[4] This temporary regression was thus necessary at the time, and God was rightly praised for it.[5]

Notes
1. Exodus 14:11-12; 16:3; 17:3; Numbers 9:16-17; 11:4-7; 13:31 - 14:4,7-10; 21:5-6 + Exodus 7:11-12; 1 Samuel 15:22; Psalm 78; 106:7; Ezekiel 20:8; Hosea 6:4-7; Acts 7:39.
2. Exodus 18:19-20; John 1:17; Hebrews 3:1-6
3. Genesis 18:19; 26:5
4. Deuteronomy 4:14; John 7:19,22
5. cf. 1 Kings 8:5; 2 Chronicles 2:12; Galatians 3:9.

References
Moses and Pharaoh: Dominion Religion vs. Power Religion
What Bible commentators have failed to understand is that the conflict between Moses and Pharaoh was at heart a conflict between the two major religions in man's history, dominion religion and power religion, with the third religion - escapist religion - represented by the Hebrew slaves. What they have also failed to point out is that there is an implicit alliance between the power religion and the escapist religion.
-- Gary North

"Dominion Religion" is the religion of obedient stewardship under God and service toward others. "Power Religion" is the worship of the State. "Escapist Religion" is a desire to escape responsibility, a refusal to exercise dominion under God, and the desire for the State to provide womb-to-tomb security at no cost.

The Old Testament is arguably the most "anti-semitic" book ever written. It describes a miracle-working God who is long-suffering and gracious, and a "chosen people" who ignore the miracles and exhaust God's patience by disobeying the commands. You and I may think to ourselves, "Boy, if I had seen all those miracles, I would have believed and been faithful." Maybe, but Israel was not faithful.

For a people dominated by a slave-mentality, God instituted a visible priesthood and rules which are inconsistently described as both "civil" and "ecclesiastical." We contend that these priestly institutions -- both civil and ecclesiastical -- were temporary and remedial.

Note 3 will eventually contain references from James B. Jordan, "The Law Before Sinai," in The Law of the Covenant: An Exposition of Exodus 21-23, pp. 50-52.

Thesis 33: Patriarchs And “Elders”

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“Elders” existed before the giving of the law at Sinai,[1] and if they are not simply heads of Families[2] then they are the products of social/cultural impotence, political bondage, and the slave mentality acquired in Egypt.[3]

Notes
1. Exodus 3:16
2. Exodus 12:21; 2 Chronicles 19:8
3. Exodus 5:6,14; Numbers 11:16

References
Patriarchs as "Elders"
In the New Testament, the "elder" is usually considered an exclusively "ecclesiastical" office. In the Old Testament it is usually considered a "civil" office. In both testaments they are either a temporary, pedagogical appointed office, or they are the natural patriarchal heads. (Of course there is no such thing as "natural"; a Godly patriarch is a gift of God's grace.) The goal is the unification of "civil" and "ecclesiastical" functions in the family, if they are legitimate functions at all.

Thesis 32: Patriarchy and “Sacraments”: Passover

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The “sacrament” of Passover was administered by heads of Families.[1]

Notes
1. Exodus 12:3-4

References
Gary North denies this Thesis in his book Baptized Patriarchalism, pp. 45ff., where he points out that Jesus did not celebrate Passover with families, but only with Apostles. This puts North on a trajectory that says only ordained clergy can observe the Lord's Table.

The fundamental assumption going through North's book from cover to cover is the assumption that "the State" and the institutional church are instituted and approved by God: "three covenantal institutions" (family, state, church). These Theses are designed to show that the institution of "the State" was an act of rebellion. It was predestined by God, but does not carry God's ethical approval, and in fact is contrary to God's commandments. Secondarily, these Theses attempt to prove that the Old Testament priesthood was remedial and temporary. This priesthood is the basis for the contemporary "institutional church." That leaves the Family, or "patriarchy."

Readers are wholeheartedly invited to post references to North's commentaries as well as the works of James Jordan regarding the family and Passover. We will interact with them in more detail. "Clarification of thought" is the goal.

Thesis 31: Ceremony, Ritual, Liturgy, And The “Pedagogical Law”

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Before the Coming of Christ, the path to reconciliation with God was taught through ceremonial rituals which pictured the atonement and cleansing which Christ made in His death. Together with the priests who administered these laws, this liturgical system served as our Pedagogue.[1] After the Coming of Christ, the path to reconciliation with God is taught to us by the Holy Spirit;[2] ritual cleansings and sheddings of blood (which only prefigured the work of Christ) have no place in this age,[3] and the terms of the Old Covenant itself made this explicit.[4]

Notes
1. Galatians 3:23 - 4:3
2. 1 John 2:27; Hebrews 10:15
3. Galatians 3:25 - 4:7; Hebrews 5:13 - 6:6; 10:4
4. Psalm 51:16; Hosea 6:6; 2 Chronicles 30:18-20; 1 Corinthians 7:19; Hebrews 7:12,18,28; Micah 6:6-8; Psalm 40:6-8 (Hebrews 10:4-9); Psalm 50:8-9; I Samuel 15:22; Proverbs 15:8; 21:3; 28:9; Isaiah 1; 58:6-7; Jeremiah 7:22; Hosea 6:6 (Matthew 9:11-13; 12:6-7); Amos 5:21-24; 2 Chronicles 30:18-20; (cf. Mark 12:33); #59

References
This is a fairly straight-forward statement of the Bahnsenian "Theonomic" position. Of course, nobody who used to be known as a "Theonomist" is a Theonomist any more. All of those Theonomists who are no longer Theonomists will agree that these Theses are not Theonomic, especially since they place "capital punishment" among the "ceremonial" laws.

Theonomy in Christian Ethics

By This Standard

No Other Standard

Theonomy: An Informed Response

Was Calvin a Theonomist?

Covenant Enforced: Sermons on Deuteronomy 27 and 28

The Sinai Strategy: Economics and the Ten Commandments

Tools of Dominion: The Case Laws of Exodus

Leviticus: An Economic Commentary

Boundaries and Dominion: An Economic Commentary on Leviticus

Sanctions and Dominion: An Economic Commentary on Numbers

Inheritance and Dominion: An Economic Commentary on Deuteronomy

Beyond Theonomy
I give credit to Jim Jordan for being a very stimulating writer. I gather he would disagree with this post's claim that "ritual" has no part in the Christian life any more:

Ritual Versus Christianity « Biblical Horizons

We will be discussing the New Covenant ritual Jordan mentions -- from a consistent preterist perspective.

Here is a link to a time-management guru who speaks of "ritual" in the business world:

WakeUpProductiveBlog: How To Manage Yourself And Your Time (And How To Dramatically Increase Your Personal Productivity)

This is a completely different meaning (in my opinion) from what Jim Jordan is talking about. The way I used the word "ritual" in this blog post describes a ceremony prescribed by God which has some atonement value, or else has some kind of "religious" value, as opposed to a "ritual" habit or practice in business. Ritual in this last sense is an extension of the precept laid down by Paul, "Let all things be done decently and in order." Peter Maurin "was the kind of teacher who believed in repetition, restatement, and the continual return to first principles." It might be a good idea to schedule a regular time of day to re-read a question from the Larger Catechism. One might speak of this as a "ritual." But it is not the type of ritual described in this Thesis.

Thesis 30: As With All Angelic Activity, No State Action Is Coincidental or Random

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Officers of the Egyptian court derived their power from fallen angels.[1] Like pestilence, famine, and storm, acts of "the State" are attributable to personal angelic forces.[2] Like pestilence, famine, and storm, the State is ordered by God[3] often for the judgment of other statists.[4] Joseph's enslavement into Egypt was predestined by God[5], as were the acts of the Pharaoh who "knew not Joseph.[6] Stars are associated with both the State[7] and other forms of pestilence and storm.[8]

Notes
1. Exodus 8:19; Luke 11:20
2. Ezekiel 1; 10; Psalm 18:9-12; 104:2-4; Exodus 19:6 + Hebrews 2:2; 2 Samuel 24:16; Psalm 78:49
3. Romans 13:1ff.
4. Habakkuk 1:12; 1 Samuel 8:11-20
5. Genesis 50:20
6. Exodus 1:8; Acts 7:18; Romans 9:17
7. Isaiah 45:12-13; Jeremiah 10:1-16; 8:1-2; Amos 5:26; Zephaniah 1:5; Isaiah 24:21; Judges 5:20; Acts 7:42-43. Joseph: Genesis 37:9
8. Job 38:7; Isaiah 14:13; Revelation 12:4

References
The Story of Joseph in Egypt

Who Hardened Pharaoh's Heart?

On stars and angels, see James B. Jordan, Judges: God's War Against Humanism, p. 102.

Along these lines, see also, Baalism vs. Predestination. Pagans worship the star-demons, Christians understand them to be controlled by God. This was the irony of the "natural" plagues in Egypt.

Stars and Idolatry

Thesis 29: Patriarchy and Resistance to Tyranny in the Early Days of the Old Testament

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God blesses the Families of those who stand against the lawless State.[1]

Notes
1. Exodus 1:17-21; cp. #78; James 2:25

References
In Tactics of Christian Resistance Gary North writes:

Confronted by Tyrants:
Abraham deceived Pharaoh, and God blessed him (Genesis 12).
Jacob wrestled with Laban, and God prospered him (Genesis 29-31).
Joseph performed outstanding slave service, and became ruler of Egypt (Genesis 39-41).
Moses said, "Let my people go," and God gave deliverance (Exodus 1-14).
Ehud presented Eglon with a gift: a hiltless sword in the gut (Judges 3).
Jael lured Sisera to sleep, and drove a tent-peg through his skull (Judges 4-5).
David cut off the corner of Saul's robe, and then repented of it (l Samuel 24).
Jehosheba and Jehoiada concealed prince Joash from Athaliah (ll Kings 11).
Obadiah worked quietly for the LORD at Ahab's court, while Elijah prophesied against Ahab's sins (I Kings 18).
Azariah rebuked King Uzziah for trying to make the church a department of the state (II Chronicles 26).
Jeremiah counseled submission to Nebuchadnezzar, while Hannaniah counseled rebellion (Jeremiah 26-28).
Daniel and his friends served Nebuchadnezzar faithfully, but refused to worship his gods (Daniel 3-6).
Jesus Christ answered not a word to the charges of the High priest and to the questions of the Roman Governor (Matthew 26:63;27:14).
Paul made full use of his rights as a Roman citizen in arguing his case (Acts. 23-26).
The Early Christians paid their taxes, but went to the lions rather than turn in scrolls of the Bible.
Thomas Becket was slain in a cathedral rather than let King Henry II lay taxes directly on the Church.
Andrew Melville told King James VI of Scotland that he was not a king, nor a lord, nor a head, but only a member in Christ's Church.
The Founding Fathers declared that George III had broken covenant with the Christians of America.

D. PATRIARCHY UNDER MOSES

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Thus far, from the Garden of Eden to the end of the book of Genesis, God has not commanded human beings to form "the State." Some commentators differ, of course, seeing the formation of the State in some incipient form in Genesis 9, or elsewhere. Certainly God hasn't yet commanded an institution as socially pervasive as the modern Leviathan State. Other commentators, who disagree with our "anarchist" theories, still agree that "the State" does not enter Israel until after the Judges (in 1 Samuel 8).

In this next section we look at history from Moses to the Judges.

Under Moses the Levitical Priesthood came into being. Many verses pertaining to this priesthood have been erroneously applied to justify the existence of the State, as well as to buttress the power of modern priests and ecclesiastical institutions -- centuries after Christ ended the Levitical priesthood.

The existence of “elders” pre-dates Sinai, and have been carried over in Christian times into the ecclesiastical institutions we call “churches” (not the political institution we call "the State").

Although God commanded Moses to form an ecclesiastical institution, God did not command Moses to establish a “political” institution.

The ecclesiastical (sacerdotal) institution established at the hand of Moses was not to have perpetual existence.

That leaves "Patriarchy." We will argue that Moses revealed a remedial system which was designed to restore fully-functioning families ("Patriarchy") who functioned as priests and kings in a priesthood of all believer-kings (Exodus 19:6; 1 Pet 2:5, 9; Rev 1:6; 5:10).

John Frame writes:

Was there, at this point in history, also a divinely appointed "state?" I would say no if, again, "state" refers to something above and beyond the natural authority of the family. As far back as Gen. 9, as we have seen, God called the family to execute vengeance for bloodshed, and so no new order was needed to administer capital punishment. [17] There was, of course, in Moses' time, a national army to be commanded, but even that has its precedents in tradition (Gen. 14). [18] New machinery, of course, was put in place (by some combination of tribal tradition and Mosaic appointment) to resolve disputes, but that too was essentially a family function.

Moses himself should not be seen as the occupant of a new "perpetual office" in Israel. He was a "charismatic" official, one with a direct appointment from God. Joshua did succeed Moses and inherited Moses' powers; but Joshua, also, was directly appointed by God (Num. 27:18-23, Deut. 31:1-8, Josh. 1:1-9), and no one after him had such comprehensive authority over the nation. Apart from his prophetic and priestly functions, Moses was essentially the chief of the clan leaders, the head of the family of God. Had God not selected him directly, the people might well have selected him or someone else as a chief of chiefs, without violating the overall family structure. Such a choice would merely have been a natural continuation of the movement toward greater complexity as the nation increased in size. Indeed, there was popular ratification of Moses' rule. When Moses returned to Egypt from the desert, the elders "believed," indeed "bowed down and worshipped," Ex. 4:31. And after God, from Mount Sinai, appeared to the whole people, the people requested through their elders that God not again speak to them directly, but that Moses serve as mediator (Exod. 20:19, Deut. 5:5, 23-33, 18:16).

During the period of the judges, no new institutions were added. God raised up judges, new charismatic leaders, to deliver Israel from its enemies (Judges 2:16). These judges were not only military leaders, but they had broad authority to command obedience within Israel (Judges 2:17). [19] One of them, Deborah, was also a prophet (Judges 4:4), as was, of course, Samuel (I Sam. 3:19-21). Samuel, though an Ephaimite rather than a Levite (at least on his father's side, I Sam. 1:1), exercised priestly functions (probably implied in I Sam. 2:35f; cf. 3:1, 7:9, 17, 10:8), recalling the unity of prophet, priest and king in the patriarchs and Moses, and foreshadowing Christ. Again, however, this charismatic leadership did not produce any new, continuing institution in Israel. Government by tribal elders continued as during the time of Moses. Indeed, in the case of Jephthah, the judge receives his authority, humanly speaking, by the appointment of the elders (Judges 11:1-11). Under Samuel, the elders continued to command armies (I Sam. 4:3) and to determine such courses of action as the recovery of the sacred ark (4:3).

Thesis 28: Salvation is Political

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"Salvation" is political.[1]

Notes
1. Genesis 49:17-20
17 Dan shall be a serpent by the way,
A viper by the path,
That bites the horse’s heels
So that its rider shall fall backward.
18 I have waited for your salvation, O LORD!
19 “Gad, a troop shall tramp upon him,
But he shall triumph at last.

References
This is one of the earliest occurrences of the word "salvation" in the Bible.
It has to do with military victory.
The overwhelming majority of occurrences of the word "salvation" in the Bible do not point to "heaven" after death. They describe social, political, military, economic, and medical health. In this world.

This Thesis is not intended to deny any other-worldly or next-worldly meanings for the word "salvation" or "save." It is simply intended to affirm something most Christians never think about. See Thesis #88.

Politics as Salvation

A Political View of Life

Cultural Salvation

Salvation as Sanctification

Thesis 26: The Myth of The “Separation Of Church And State”

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Priest and prince have always been united.[1] The “separation of church and state” is a myth which allows the polis to rationalize its hatred and evasion of God’s Law.

Notes
1. Genesis 14:18; 41:43-45; Judges 17:10; 1 Peter 2:9; Revelation 1:6; 5:10

References
Priests have always been instruments of the State.
The "palace" and the "temple" have always been united.
The polis is religious to the core.
The "separation of religion and state" privatizes the Christian religion whenever the religion of the State is the religion of Secular Humanism. The State then becomes its own god, and its own law.

Death Penalty Debate - "Separation of Church and State"

Thesis 27: Patriarchy, Precious Metals, and Money

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Gold and other precious commodities were placed in The Garden of Eden.[1] After the Fall, they were the most marketable commodities, and therefore functioned as the Biblically preferred medium of exchange.[2] Debasement of precious commodity-monies with baser substances is an abomination to God.[3] Inflationary money transfers wealth from the weak and struggling to the debt-ridden polis and its minions.[4] A debased currency can exist only under an Imperial monopoly: a Central Bank.[5] A debased currency is the machinery of revolution: the institutionalization of a debased heart.[6]

Notes

1. Heaven: Ezekiel 1:22:26-27; 10:9; 2 Corinthians 12:2,4 + verses below;
The Eden-Model of Heaven: Ezekiel 28:13-16; cf. Genesis 2:11-12;
The Temple-Model of Heaven: Exodus 25:3-8 et passim; 28:8-9,12,17-20; 39 passim; 1 Kings 6 passim;
The New Jerusalem/New Earth: Isaiah 54:11-12; 60:5-6,9,11; Revelation 21:11,18-21, Malachi 3:17; 1 Corinthians 3:11-15.

2. Genesis 23:16; 43:21 + Leviticus 19:35-37; Genesis 44:1,8; Ezra 8:25-30; 11:2-3 + 12:35-36 + Psalm 105:37; Ezekiel 7:19; 28:4; 1 Chronicles 21:24-25; Job 28:12-20; Jeremiah 32:9-10; 1 Peter 1:18. Cf. Job 31:24; Psalm 19:10; 119:72; Proverbs 8:10-11,19; 16:16; Isaiah 60:17; 2 Timothy 2:20. Cp. Matthew 10:9; Acts 3:6.

3. Leviticus 19:35-37; Deuteronomy 25:13-16; Proverbs 11:1; 16:11; 20:10,23; Amos 8:5-6; Micah 6:10-12; Zechariah 11:12; cf. Psalm 119:119; Proverbs 25:4; 26:23.

4. Isaiah 1:23; Amos 8:6; Micah 6:10; James 5:1-6.

5. Genesis 10:7-12; cf. #19, #20; Revelation 13:16-17.

6. Jeremiah 6:28-30; Ezekiel 22:18-20; Isaiah 1:25; Proverbs 17:3; 27:21; Zechariah 13:9; Malachi 3:3.

References
On the various models of heaven, see James B. Jordan, Through New Eyes. Notice that gold and similar commodities are precious (price-ly) in places where most folk would think them irrelevant: the Garden of Eden and the New Jerusalem.

On money as the most marketable commodity, see Gary North, "Gold: Is It Just Another Commodity?," Mises on Money, and Honest Money: Biblical Principles of Money and Banking.

On debasement, see Banking and Money.

On violence and the transfer of wealth from poor to polis, see How Fractional Reserve Banking Oppresses The Poor.

On the need for a state-enforced central bank to preserve debased currency, see Gresham's Law in "Gold: The Sovereign Power of the Veto," and Ron Paul's suggestion to Legalize Competing Currencies.

On a debased heart, see R.J. Rushdoony, Larceny in the Heart.

This thesis could be placed in the section "A. PATRIARCHY BEFORE THE FALL." It is placed here rather arbitrarily because it came chronologically in Genesis 23:16:

And Abraham listened to Ephron; and Abraham weighed out the silver for Ephron which he had named in the hearing of the sons of Heth, four hundred shekels of silver, currency of the merchants.

Debased currency is the lifeblood of the institution of violence (the State).

Many people feel that we need "the State" to provide our money. These people do not understand how money originated, nor do they appreciate the function money serves in our economy. Understanding the origin and function of money produces an appreciation of how a truly Free Market prospers, and why "the State" is unnecessary.

In late 2008, the Federal Reserve has used its powers of "fractional reserve banking" to create more than a trillion dollars in unbacked currency to give, basically, to its friends. Entire industries, involving hundreds of thousands of workers, are moved and shaken by the creation of debased currency. The State creates enormous power for itself by redistributing purchasing power from ordinary people to special interests, using a fraudulent money system.

Abolish the Federal Reserve System

Thesis 25: Patriarchy and “Sacraments”: Circumcision

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The “sacrament” of circumcision was administered by the head of the Family, not an institutional “church.”[1]

Notes
1. Genesis 17:23; Exodus 4:24-26

References
Gary North and James Jordan (neither of whom agree with all of these Theses) have written interesting articles on circumcision. Jordan's article is "Proleptic Passover," Appendix F in Law of the Covenant. North's essay is entitled, "The Marriage Supper of the Lamb," in Christianity and Civilization No. 4: The Reconstruction of the Church. North's earlier views are in "Family Authority vs. Protestant Sacerdotalism," in the Journal of Christian Reconstruction symposium on the Family, Vol. IV, No. 2, Winter 1977-78, reprinted in Vol. XVI, "The 25th Anniversary Issue" available at The Chalcedon Store.

Gary North denies this Thesis in his book Baptized Patriarchalism, pp. 44ff. He says,

As a household priest, the father may have circumcised his sons. But if he did, he did so a delegated agent of the Levitical priesthood.

The Levitical Priesthood did not exist when Abraham began circumcizing his sons. Abraham tithed to the Melchizedek Priesthood. The "priesthood of all believers" is certainly more likely through Christ and the Melchizedek priesthood than the Levitical.

This Thesis and future Theses will argue that "sacraments" were originally and rightfully administered by families (in the pages of the Old Testament and in the pages of the New Testament, during "the last days" of the Old Covenant), that "the church" was a remedial organization for the family, and that both "church" and "sacraments" were part of the Old Covenant, and did not remain after the coming of Christ in A.D. 70.

Thesis 24: Patriarchy, “National Defense,” And Military Socialism

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Godly Patriarchies need not worry about defending themselves against any political State.[1] God blesses Christian Patriarchy with security.[2] Those who violate Biblical Law are subject to the Curse (#9); they cannot defend themselves against God’s avengers.[3] Reliance upon carnal weapons of war is forbidden,[4] as well as the international alliances and trade agreements which further such arms build-ups.[5] The end result of the quest for “national security” through strengthened “national defense” is the centralization of power in the State, producing military socialism.[6] An economy dependent upon the production and threatened use of arms is idolatry.[7]

Notes

1. Genesis 14; Genesis 23:6; Exodus 14:14,24-25; Deuteronomy 20:1; Psalm 46:9; 76:6; Zechariah 9:10,15; Joshua 24:7; 2 Kings 7:6-7; Proverbs 21:31; Hosea 1:7; 14:3; 2 Kings 19:35; 2 Chronicles 16:8; 20:15; 18:31.

2. #42; 1 Samuel 12:11; Psalm 78:53; Proverbs 1:33; 3:23; Isaiah 32:17; Jeremiah 23:6; Ezekiel 34:28; Hosea 2:18

3. Isaiah 10:5-6; Leviticus 26:14-17,25,33,36-37; Deuteronomy 28:25,52; Nahum 2:13; Haggai 2:22; Zechariah 9:10; Isaiah 22:7; 30:16; 31:3; Jeremiah 4:13; 6:23; 21:4-5; 50:42; Ezekiel 38:4; Amos 2:15; 4:10; Micah 5:10; Zechariah 12:4; Ezekiel 26:7-11

4. Deuteronomy 17:16-17; Psalm 33:16-17; 147:10; Zechariah 4:6; 2 Corinthians 10:3-6; Psalm 20:7

5. Ezekiel 17:15; 23:6-7,12,23; Isaiah 31:1; 36:9

6. 1 Kings 10:26 - 11:14; 12:11

7. Isaiah 2:7-8

References

Patriarchy and National Security

A Theonomic Defense of Pacifism

Swords Into Plowshares

Thesis 23: Evangelism In The Old Covenant

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Abram expanded his household through hospitality, evangelism and domestic apprenticeship.[1] Evangelism expands the dominion of Patriarchy. Biblical evangelism is Patriarchy (#71, #75). The “Gospel” is the “good news” that Christ is King and is going to turn back the curse and bless all nations. The Scripture preached this good news (“Gospel”) to Abraham,[2] saying that God would build and bless all the Families of the earth[3] through his Seed.[4] The Gospel promise to Abraham is being fulfilled in Christ and His Church.[5]

Notes
1. Genesis 12:5, #20
2. Galatians 3:8
3. Genesis 12:3; 18:18-19.
4. Galatians 3:16; #36
5. Acts 13:32-37; 3:25-26; #69

References
"Patriarchy" is defined on this blog as a family-centered society with no "church and no "state." Our definition would therefore include something that might be called a "matriarchal" society, if that family structure is the sole social structure. Our word is derived from patria, family, not pater, father. It's a separate, historical argument as to whether there is any such thing as a "matriarchal" society. We're not arguing for or against a particular relationship between husband and wife (for the most part); we're arguing against non-familial institutions.

On "blessing":
• The Meaning of "Blessing"
• Christmas: A Celebration of Paradise
• Deuteronomy 28 - God's Blessings upon Obedience

On hospitality, evangelism and domestic apprenticeship:
• James B. Jordan: "God's Hospitality and Holistic Evangelism"
cf.: Sacred spaces and places
• Gary North: "Family Authority vs. Protestant Sacerdotalism"

• Abraham and Government.
• Government without the State
• Public Service
• www.Nagocracy.com

The take-home point here is that "New Testament Christians" should not be less evangelistic and less hospitable than Abraham, and there is more power from the Holy Spirit under the New Covenant to bring order to society through families and the businesses and associations created by families.

Thesis 22: The Division of The Nations

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God divided and separated the Humanistic nations, which were followed by the demonic powers[1] called the “sons of God”[2] or “sons of the mighty.”[3] Thus each nation had demonic “guardians” generally associated with it.[4] All the Humanistic kingdoms of the world were the happy hunting ground of Satan and his political appointees.[5]

Notes
1. Deuteronomy 32:8,43 LXX [NIV]; 29:26; 4:19; cf. Acts 17:26-30
2. Job 2:1
3. Psalm 89:6; cf. Jude 8-9; 2 Peter 2:10-11
4. Daniel 10:13,20; Judges 11:24
5. Luke 4:5-7; Acts 14:16; cf. Genesis 10:9-10 (#19)

References
This Thesis lends credence to the idea of demonic presence in Genesis 6. See: Thesis 16: The Demonic Roots of Violent Tyranny. But it is not the purpose of this Thesis to appeal to or to support such writers as Alexander Hislop or Henry Morris (not that I rate Morris that low). The purpose is simply to note (as we go through the Bible chronologically) that there is a connection between "the State" and "the powers" (Epheisians 6:12; Romans 13).

Stars and Idolatry

If Hislop is too literal or fanciful, Walter Wink is too liberal. There is a more "literal" reality to "the powers" than Wink allows. Our purpose is not to describe this reality exhaustively, but simply to connect it to "the State."

R.J. Rushdoony, "Tyranny," Revolt Against Maturity, 129-133. See also "The Demonic City" in Death Penalty Debate - Appendix B.

Thesis 21: Demonic Activity At Babel

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Babel, the epitome of the State, was a demonic and Humanistic effort to preserve the unity of the godhead of Man.[1] This temple “unto heaven” was evidence of the quest for godhead (#13) by both men and demons, and a belief in the “Chain of Being” which denies the un-bridgeable gap between Creator and creature[2] (#56).

Notes
1. Genesis 11:1-9; Revelation 17:5
2. Romans 1:25

References
On political godhead, see R. J. Rushdoony, The Nature of the American System, "The United Nations," chap 7, and "The Religion of Humanity," chap. 6. More.

Thesis 20: Patriarchy vs. Political Slavery

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Nimrod built his city by slavery, and the relationship between the polis and slavery is an inescapable symbiosis.[1] The Biblical alternative to slavery to the State is domestic (household) apprenticeship.[2]

Notes
1. Genesis 10:8; 9:25-27; 47:21 (LXX [NIV])
2. Proverbs 17:2 + Genesis 15:2-3; 17:12; 14:14; Exodus 21:2-11; Deuteronomy 15:12-18; Jeremiah 34:8-17; Leviticus 25:39ff.

References
Nimrod: The "Hunter" Of Men

The commentators are fairly agreed that Nimrod was a violent enslaver of men. Slavery, however, is inescapable, at least in non-Christian cultures. Abraham is the Christian anti-type of Nimrod, building his household by evangelism and domestic apprenticeship. Secular Humanists would say Abraham's "servants" should have been "emancipated" -- that homeless autonomy is better than working in a Christian household.

Abraham as a Model of Community and Government

See Thesis #23

Thesis 19: Nimrod: The First Politician (Post-Flood)

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Nimrod, following Cain’s error, left the Godly Family to form a “State.”[1] His name means “let us rebel.”[2]

Notes
1. Genesis 10:8-12
2. cf. 1 Samuel 15:23; Revelation 18:23

Nimrod: Old Testament Hebrew - StudyLight.org

By the time we get to the account of Nimrod, God has not said to man, "Form the State." Formation of the State is the act of rebels, not saints.

Nimrod: The First Politician

Thesis 18: The Patriarchal Power Of “Capital Punishment”

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After the flood, the command to shed the blood of capital criminals (and not to eat blood) was given to the Family, not a “State.”[1] Thus (cf. A), even after man’s Fall and expulsion from the Garden of Eden, neither a political (“State”) nor an ecclesiastical (“church”) institution was needed to supplement the Family.

Notes
1. Genesis 9:1,4-6

References
John Frame writes:

Some have found divine warrant for the state in Genesis 9:6, where God commands Noah’s family to return bloodshed for bloodshed. But this is a command given to a family. There is no indication here of any new institution being established. And in the law of Moses, the execution of murderers was carried out, not by the state as such, but by the "avenger of blood," kin of the murder victim (Num. 35:19,21; Deut. 19:12). The family, here, is the instrument of justice. We have no reason to believe, therefore, that any special institution beyond the family for the establishment of justice was created in Genesis 9:6.

A. PATRIARCHY BEFORE THE FALL
We began the previous section (A) with these words:

In the Garden of Eden there was no State, nor was there an ecclesiocracy (institutional church). Biblical Society consisted of the Family. Every sociological function necessary for the smooth (shalom) and Godly (“righteous,” “just”) operation of a society (e.g., health, education, welfare, etc.) can be provided by Godly Families.

We repeat the same claim here as we look at the next period of time, the time immediately after the Flood, looking specifically at what we now call "capital punishment." We referred to :

Appendix A of our "Death Penalty Debate," which also applies here.

Genesis 9:5-6 is always cited with reference to "capital punishment" -- verse 4 is not:

4 But you shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood.

A few verses earlier we had read:

8:20 Then Noah built an altar to the LORD, and took of every clean animal and of every clean bird, and offered burnt offerings on the altar.

In all of this the subject is blood: dietary blood, "civil" blood, and "religious" blood.
• Everyone agrees that the laws which directed Noah concerning religious blood shed on the altar are fulfilled only in Christ.
• Many also agree that the laws regulating blood and other dietary concerns are also fulfilled.
• Very few will see that the shedding of the blood of criminals also served an atoning function.

Numbers 35:32 And you shall take no ransom for him who has fled to his city of refuge, that he may return to dwell in the land before the death of the priest. 33 So you shall not pollute the land where you are; for blood defiles the land, and no atonement can be made for the land, for the blood that is shed on it, except by the blood of him who shed it. 34 Therefore do not defile the land which you inhabit, in the midst of which I dwell; for I the LORD dwell among the children of Israel.’”

In all three cases, Noah served as a kind of priest. In the personal, civil, and churchly spheres, the common denominator was blood.

In Deuteronomy 21, Moses commanded that in cases of an unsolved homicide, the blood of a heifer must be shed to make atonement. Nobody (well, almost nobody) believes that the civil magistrate is obligated to apply Deuteronomy 21 literally, and shed blood in the case of an unsolved homicide. Reason: only Christ's blood can make atonement. But if the homicide is solved, these same Christians go back to Genesis 9 and Numbers 35, which say that

no atonement can be made for the land, for the blood that is shed on it, except by the blood of him who shed it.

and they demand that the murderer's blood be shed (well, they ignore the blood part; they just want death).

We will return to this idea in Thesis #54, concerning war.

Thesis 17: The Post-Flood Absence of The Institutional Church

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After the Flood, there was no “church”; “religious” activities were carried out by the Family.[1] The Church (the Body of Christ’s believer-priests) is not to be equated with the institutional “church.”

Notes
1. Genesis 8:20 - 9:4-6

References
The Family in Its Civil and Churchly Aspects B.M. Palmer

Capital Punishment in Genesis 9 -- surprisingly, a "churchly" aspect, not a "civil" one, but still an aspect of the Family.

C. PATRIARCHY BEFORE SINAI

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The world was destroyed by the Flood because it was covered with violence (Genesis 6:11,13). Many commentators have suggested that this violence was the result of demonic influence.

After the Flood, we see increasing evidence that the formation of the State was demonic in its impetus.

But just like the Fall of Man did not result in God's command to form "the State," we see no evidence that the violence judged by the Flood prompted God to command men to form “the State.” Noah built an altar ("church") and what we call “capital punishment” was also given to the Family -- “to Noah and his sons” (Genesis 9:1,8) -- not to a “Civil Magistrate.”

If God ever commanded men to form "the State," He hasn’t done so up to this point.

Thesis 16: The Demonic Roots of Violent Tyranny

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The growth of political kingship[1] was demonic in power,[2] and was rooted in violence.[3]

Notes

1. Genesis 4:19-24
2. Genesis 6:1-4; cf. Jude 6; #22
3. Genesis 6:11-13

References

R.J. Rushdoony, "The Song of Lamech," Revolt Against Maturity, 97-101.

Many have debated the identity of the "sons of God" in Genesis 6. Many respectable scholars have claimed that they were fallen angelic (demonic) beings. [#22] Even if this theory proves incorrect, the central message is clear: those who grasped for power and greatness also embraced violence. The genealogy in Genesis 5 is surrounded by violence in Genesis 4 and 6 which is political in nature. [#15] The demonic nature of political power will be seen elsewhere, even if it's not to be found in Genesis 6.

The Forerunner • View topic - Giants in the Bible

Don't be an Archist!

Thesis 15: Cain’s City: The Autonomy of the State

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Cain’s polis was an attempt to escape the Presence of God,[1] and was an “autonomously creative” act of rebellion.[2] Apostate man has ever since been characterized by the City/State[3] (polis - a deified, fortified political system). Enoch was first to build a "city," but believers will eventually build a better city.[4] Unbelievers tend to take greater risks than believers, and in many cases "get there first" in their rebellion against God or their quest to get something for nothing.

Notes

1. Genesis 4:16
2. Genesis 4:17 (as distinguished from an “analogically re-creative” act, thinking God’s thoughts after Him [“Enoch” = “dedication,” “creation”])
3. Numbers 13:28; Deuteronomy 1:28; 3:5; 1 Kings 4:13
4. Revelation 21-22

References

R.J. Rushdoony, "The Cainite," Revolt Against Maturity, p. 91-96.

Jacques Ellul - The Meaning of the City

"The Enoch Factor" - Introduction James B. Jordan

Biblical Horizons » No. 37: The Case Against Western Civilization, Part 2: "The Enoch Factor"

Biblical Horizons » No. 38: The Case Against Western Civilization, Part 3 February, 1998

If we realize that human beings are the images of God, and that man hates God, then we realize that all non-Christian political philosophy is founded on a fundamental hatred of other human beings, a hatred manifest in contempt. All non-Christian political philosophy embraces the idea that most people are to be slaves of the elite. Non-Christian political philosophy inevitably thinks nothing of going to war and killing thousands, even millions, of images of God in order to advance some scheme. Think of the thousands of teenaged Iraqi soldiers slain by Americans in Mr. Bush’s Gulf War, which was fought, he himself insisted, merely to keep down the price of oil! They inconvenienced us, so we slaughtered them!

Biblical Horizons » No. 39: The Case Against Western Civilization, Part 4 The Nephilim Factor

Thesis 14: The Purpose of Cain’s “Suspended Sentence”

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Cain rebelled against Godly Patriarchy.[1] Cain’s murder of his brother was worthy of death,[2] but the Lord by Divine mandate had Cain’s life spared.[3] Cain was thus free to establish “the State”[4] (#15), which eventually executed Christ[5] -- the only way His Blood could have been shed for our sins.

Notes
1. Genesis 4:5-8; 1 John 3:12; Jude 11
2. Genesis 4:10; 3:19,21; 4:11-12; Romans 1:32
3. Genesis 4:14-15
4. Genesis 4:17.
5. Genesis 3:15; Psalm 2:2; 1 Corinthians 2:8; Acts 2:23; 3:17; 4:26-28; #47

References

The Patriarchal Power of "Capital Punishment"

GodandtheDeathPenalty.com

How else could a sinless Savior be put to death but by a lawless institution like “the State?” There was no lawful way Christ could be put to death. Cain was spared to set it in motion.

Thesis 15: Cain’s City: The Autonomy of the State

Thesis 13: The Fall of Man

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Satan’s temptation of man involved denying God’s Word and promising evolution into political godhead.[1]
Because of this rebellion, the descendants of the First Adam experience
• a curse in nature: genetic disorder in plants,[2] animals,[3] and humans,[4] shortened lifespans,[5] non-sabbatic metabolism,[6] and in weather;[7]
• and spiritual darkness: this “original sin” is passed to subsequent generations sociologically (dysfunctional, compulsive urge to sin and death[8] in children and grandchildren[9]) and genetically (e.g., chemical imbalances associated with deviant behavior).[10]
The victory of the Second Adam
• reverses the curse (overcoming entropy[11] and restoring longevity[12])
• and dispels the darkness (victory over sin[13]) with effects passing to descendants for a thousand generations.[14]
Descendants of the Second Adam reject the Tempter’s promises of political godhead.[15]

Notes
1. Genesis 3:5 [elohim]; 3:22; 11:6 #41, #30
2. Genesis 3:18
3. Romans 8:22
4. from inbreeding (Leviticus 18:6ff.)
5. Genesis 5; Psalm 90:10
6. need for meat in diet (Genesis 9:3)
7. termination of stable “greenhouse” effect (Genesis 2:5-6; 7:4)
8. Proverbs 8:36
9. Exodus 20:5; Leviticus 20:5; 26:39; Numbers 14:18
10. Proverbs 14:30; 17:22; Psalm 32:3; 2 Corinthians 7:10
11. Isaiah 55:13; Deuteronomy 29:5; Romans 8:19-23.
12. Isaiah 65:17-20,22; #89
13. Romans 8:1-4; #88
14. Exodus 20:6; Deuteronomy 5:10; 7:9; Jeremiah 32:39; Acts 2:39
15. Luke 4:1-13; Romans 5:15; 1 Corinthians 15:22; #77.

References
On political godhead, see R. J. Rushdoony, The Nature of the American System, "The United Nations," chap 7, and "The Religion of Humanity," chap. 6. More.
On "non-sabbatic metabolism," see Arthur Custance, Sweating of Fallen Man, and Modern Methuselahs.

Thesis 12: The Fall Of The Angels

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Satan, a chief angel,[1] was filled with pride[2] and led a rebellion with a major part of the stars (angels) of heaven.[3] (Angelic beings are often described in terms of celestial phenomena [#30; #53].) Satan tempted man as a serpent,[4] but his head would eventually be crushed.[5]

Notes
1. Ezekiel 28:14,16
2. Isaiah 14:9,12-21; 1 Timothy 3:6; Ezekiel 28:11ff.
3. Revelation 12:9
4. Genesis 3:1-5, 13-15; Exodus 4:1-4;
Rahab: Job 26:12-13; Psalm 87:4; 89:10; Isaiah 30:7;
Dragon: Psalm 91:13; Exodus 7:8-12; Jeremiah 51:34; Isaiah 51:9-10; 27:1; Revelation 12-13
Leviathan: Ps 104:26; Ps 74:13-14
Behemoth: Job 40:14-25
5. Genesis 3:14; Judges 4:21; 5:26-27; 9:50-57; 1 Samuel 5:1-5; 17:49-51; 2 Samuel 18:9; 20:21-22; Psalm 68:21; Habakkuk 3:13; Psalm 110:6; John 12:31-32; Colossians. 2:15; Hebrews. 2:14; Revelation. 12:5-10; 20:1-3, 7-10; Romans 16:20; Isaiah 65:25 [#59]

References
David Chilton, "The Garden of the Lord," Paradise Restored, chapter 5.

B. PATRIARCHY BEFORE THE FLOOD

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We have seen that before the Fall, God gave no human being a command to form "the State."

Even after the Fall, God issued no commands to form a State. Yet one of the most oft-heard justifications for the State is that, after the Fall, man’s will is depraved. He is prone to sin, and there needs to be some force that will keep man from committing crimes and to keep society from becoming lawless and chaotic.

Unfortunately, these theorists always nominate fallen, sinful men to occupy this seat of power. It’s as though all citizens are thought to be on the verge of committing all manner of serial murders, rapes and robberies, and are easily bribed and corrupted, but not once they become politicians. Do we really believe that if some of these depraved citizens are armed with weapons (and a legal monopoly on the use of these weapons, with no competitors) and given a new name (transforming them from “voters,” to “public servants,” “officers,” or “ministers”) they will then be sanctified, undepraved, uncorruptable human beings who will magnanimously keep the rest of their fellows from committing these crimes?

If human beings are fallen and prone to sin, a small minority of them should not be given a monopoly of violence. Or as someone has put it, “If man were not sinful, we would not need to have a State; if man is sinful, we dare not have one.”

Both before and after the Fall, God did not command men to form a State. The formation of the State is evidence of the Fall; the State is an expression of man’s original sin, the desire to be as gods (Genesis 3:5).

Thesis 11: Patriarchy and the Mountain

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The Garden of Eden was on a Mountain.[1] Our sin caused us to be cast out of the Mountain.[2] When God reveals His Edenic Grace through Redemptive acts on mountains,[3] He symbolizes concretely what the Prophets foretold by speaking of this Mountain: the future Edenification of the Earth.[4] These prophecies are now coming to pass.[5] The vision of the “Vine & Fig Tree” is a vision of the restoration of Patriarchal society and Edenic conditions.[6]

Notes

1. Genesis 2:10-14; Ezekiel 28:13-14
2. Genesis 3:24; Exodus 19:12
3. Genesis 22:2; 2 Chronicles 3:1; Exodus 24:9-11; Matthew 5:1; Mark 3:13f.; 2 Peter 1:16-18; Matthew 26:30; 28:16-20; Acts 1:9-12
4. Isaiah 2:2-4; 11:9; 25:6-9; 56:3-8; 65:25; Daniel 2:34-35,44-45
5. Hebrews 12:22; Revelation 2:7; Matthew 5:14 + Isaiah 60:3; #89
6. Micah 4:1-5

References
See David Chilton, "The Holy Mountain," Paradise Restored, chapter 4.

Don't think "Mt. Everest" when you see "mountain" in the Bible; just think "elevated plateau."

Text at note 5 says mountain prophecies "are now coming to pass." The Bible speaks of days when God's Holy Mountain is elevated above the hills. In a sense, that elevation took place at the first Christmas, when Christ was resurrected and ascended. This is called the "preterist" view. In another sense, there is still future fulfillment. The Bible never posits a time when human beings do not act. Human action is purposeful behavior; action aiming at an end or goal. This means there is always building, development, or perfection. [This in itself is an extraordinarily controversial thesis, if you think about it.] As an example, in "the New Heavens and New Earth" of Isaiah 65, when people are living in God's Holy Mountain (Isaiah 65:25), they are described as building houses and planting vineyards (v.21). The Prophet Isaiah would say that with the coming of Christ, this New Heavens and New Earth has been inaugurated, and we are on God's Holy Mountain. But not all the houses that will be built have been built. There are infants (v. 20) being born (v. 23), who eventually need houses built.

See Gary North, Millennialism and Social Theory, chap. 5.

Since there is Growth and Progress even in the New Heavens and New Earth, we need to start Thinking Like Adults.

Thesis 10: The Priority of Agrarianism

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Man was created in a Garden, with the basic command to dress, cultivate, and guard the land.[1] Meaningful work was given to man in the pre-Fall Garden of Eden;[2] food was plentiful but required harvesting.[3] Economic scarcity is not a product of the Fall in a vague, ubiquitous, automatic, “natural” sense, but is a product of deliberate human action (laziness, theft, price controls, war), and less frequently, the direct judgment[4] or testing[5] at the hand of God through angelic agency (#30).

Notes

1. (Genesis 2:15 ) And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.

2. Cult: Genesis 1:26
(Genesis 1:26) And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.
Culture: Genesis 1:28 ; 2:12 ; 2:19 .
(Genesis 1:28) And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
(Genesis 2:12) And the gold of that land is good: there is bdellium and the onyx stone.
(Genesis 2:19) And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them unto Adam to see what he would call them: and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof.

3. Cultivation:
Genesis 1:29; 2:5; 2:9; 2:15 ; 2:16
(Genesis 1:29) And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
(Genesis 2:5) And every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground.
(Genesis 2:9) And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
(Genesis 2:15-16) And the LORD God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it. {16} And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:

4. cf. Thomas Jefferson, "And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are of the gift of God? That they are not to be violated but with his wrath? Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just: that his justice cannot sleep for ever: that considering numbers, nature and natural means only, a revolution of the wheel of fortune, an exchange of situation, is among possible events: that it may become probable by supernatural interference! The Almighty has no attribute which can take side with us in such a contest. -- But it is impossible to be temperate and to pursue this subject through the various considerations of policy, of morals, of history natural and civil. We must be contented to hope they will force their way into every one's mind. I think a change already perceptible, since the origin of the present revolution. The spirit of the master is abating, that of the slave rising from the dust, his condition mollifying, the way I hope preparing, under the auspices of heaven, for a total emancipation, and that this is disposed, in the order of events, to be with the consent of the masters, rather than by their extirpation."

5. Job 2:3
(Job 2:3) And the LORD said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause.

References
This is a controversial Thesis. The human race was initially agrarian. This Thesis is not necessarily intended to imply (though one might infer it) that the human race should have remained agrarian.

On the one side in this debate might be found writers like Wendell Berry and Christians in the Anabaptist (e.g., Amish) tradition.

On the other side are writers like Gary North, who suggests that Old Testament law actually intended cities to take priority over farms.

Revelation 21-22 suggests that "the City of God" is the goal;
but there are multiple trees of life in the New Jerusalem.

Even farmers despise the Kingdom (Matthew 22:5).

The "cult-culture-cultivation" triad is Peter Maurin's.

The following items are from the "food for thought" department:

"The Presbyterian Magazine," May 1852, says of True Blue Presbyterianism:

A true-blue Presbyterian is never found advocating the abolition of capital punishment, resisting the law of the land, affording new facilities for divorces, encouraging agrarianism in any shape. Conservatism, as opposed to extravagance, is the law of his life; the first and second nature of the inner man. HT

Here's another item:

Farm pregnancy 'cuts asthma risk'

Clearly, human beings need agriculture. No food, no life. Are the motivations that move human beings to a "Star Trek" future where food is created by computer-assisted molecular re-arrangement Godly motivations? Are the motivations for moving from rural to urban Godly motivations? I'm not saying there's only one right answer, only that they are interesting and potentially illuminating questions, which can prevent an "unexamined life." (In addition to the c-c-c triad, above, Peter Maurin also advocated "round-table discussions" for "clarification of thought.")

Thesis 9: Patriarchy and the Sanctions of the Covenant

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Cultural prosperity will be given only if Families will do their duty;[1] obedience is blessed under the terms of God’s Covenant with man[2] while disobedience is cursed.[3] The terms of God’s Law as revealed by the Holy Spirit to Adam and subsequent generations,[4] recorded by Moses and applied by the Prophets is written on the hearts of believers in the New Covenant,[5] and they follow these statutes and ordinances in every area of their lives[6] (#68)

Notes
1. Luke 17:10; Micah 6:8
2. Deuteronomy 28:1-14; Leviticus 26:3-13
3. Deuteronomy 28:15-68; Leviticus 26:14-39
4. Law before Sinai
5. Jeremiah 31:31-34; Hebrews 8:7-13.
6. Ezekiel 36:25-27; Romans 8:1-4.

References
This Thesis is just a statement of what's known as "Theonomy."

Note 4 will contain references from James B. Jordan, "The Law Before Sinai," in The Law of the Covenant: An Exposition of Exodus 21-23, pp. 50-52.

Law is "The Third Archetype" of the seven Vine & Fig Tree "archetypes."

Thesis 8: Patriarchy and "the Extended Family"

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In the Bible the Godly “Family” answers to our “extended” Family.[1] While it is the basic legal unit of society,[2] the “nuclear family” is culturally sub-Biblical.

Notes
[1] Genesis 6:18; 14:14; Joshua 7:18
[2] Genesis 2:24

References
We'll see more on this subject when we get to Thesis #39 on Education, where grandparents are commanded to have a role. Extended families are usually broken up over "financial opportunities" (e.g., a "better" job away from family).

Thesis 7: The Dominion Mandate

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Man was created to exercise “dominion” over the earth.[1] This mandate is sometimes called “The Cultural Mandate,” both to signify its comprehensive scope (#68), and to distinguish a Godly stewardship from an unGodly and selfish domination of the creation.[2]

Notes
[1] Genesis 1:26-28; 9:1-3,7,10; Psalm 8:5-8
[2] Deuteronomy 20:19; 25:4; Proverbs 12:10

References

The Dominion Mandate
Stewardship
Environmentalism
The Godly Quest for Unlimited Wealth
Why we Resist Becoming Patriarchs

Thesis 6: The Biological Basis of Patriarchy

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God creates people in Families.[1] No one is born autonomously[2]; every human being is born into a Family of at least a mother and a father. That Home is either a Godly Home or a dysfunctional (broken) home. “Individualism” is an inadequate sociological paradigm.[3]

Notes
[1] Genesis 1:27; Ephesians 3:15; Genesis 9:1; Genesis 29:31; Genesis 30:22; Psalm 127:3; Psalm 128:3-4; Isaiah 8:18; Malachi 2:15
[2]
[3] Genesis 2:18

References
The point of this thesis is that biologically speaking, human beings are created familialy. The family is self-replicating in a way other institutions are not.

. .

I've made room for more verses at [2]. When this Thesis was written in the 1980's, "cloning" was about as real as StarTrek. Now it appears that extra-familial birth is more of a reality. That renders this Thesis suspect, or at least requiring additional defense. Does cloning prove that the Family was a historical stage, no longer necessary? It certainly could become easier for human beings to be cloned than to reproduce them the old-fashioned way. Can this prove the superiority of the institutions of church and state through their ability to clone their own new members to compete with the Family and render the Family irrelevant? Does the Bible anywhere suggest the biological or moral superiority of the Family over church and state?

A. PATRIARCHY BEFORE THE FALL

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The first five Theses set forth the basic theological foundation for the rest of the 95 Theses.

From now on we'll be going through the Bible -- its history and its commandments -- in more or less chronological order.

Our overall purpose is to discern the Biblical pattern for human social organization. This is bigger than figuring out the "Biblical form of Government." That question is usually answered with such terms as "monarchy" or "democracy" or "republic." We're asking whether human beings are required to have a "form of government" at all.

We frequently use the term "patriarchy" to describe a Biblical society. The emphasis is on the family, which is how God created human beings. The emphasis is not on some domineering abuse of women by men. "Patriarchy" is simply is the best word we've been able to come up with to describe a society where the Family is the central unit of society, and there exists nothing we would call "the State" or "the Church."

Patriarchy Defined

Rehabilitating the Word "Patriarchy"

Patriarchy and Anarcho-Theocracy

The Fifth Archetype: Family

The Tenets of Biblical Patriarchy - Vision Forum Ministries

The other phrase we use to describe such a state of "anarchy" is just "Vine & Fig Tree."

When people hear the idea of a society with no government, they are as scandalized as people were in 1776 when they heard the idea of abolishing the rule of the British monarch in the colonies and setting up a new system of social order with no king at all. Benjamin Rush, Signer of the Declaration of Independence, upon hearing of Locke's rejection of the doctrine of the Divine Right of Kings, said:

Never before had I heard the authority of kings called in question. I had been taught to consider them nearly as essential to political order as the sun is to the order of our solar system.

America's Founding Fathers would never have dreamed of creating a society with no order, but they didn't believe social order required a king. They believed in "self-government" -- but they were also the product of their times, and believed that some form of representative civil government was necessary, even if it didn't require a king.

Their system failed.

The United States today is by every measure an atheistic dictatorship. Taxes are 20-30 times greater than those that sent tea into the Boston Harbor. And George III would never violate the liberties of the people as George W. has, and would never think of using tax revenue to fund abortions, pornography, offensive ("preemptive" as opposed to "defensive") foreign wars, or the removal of copies of the Ten Commandments from public places.

This means the Constitution of 1787 has failed its most fundamental task. America's Founders, separated by 200 years, would see this instantly, even though we have grown accustomed to it, and we think we are free.

If they were here today, America's Founding Fathers would be utterly outraged and indignant over what has happened to their "novus ordo seclorum" (new order for the ages). Our government is not in any meaningful sense adhering to their Constitution. The Founders would unquestionably take immediate steps to abolish the government they created, with more resolve and urgency than they abolished the British monarchy in the colonies.

What would they put in its place? In creating the Constitution, they deliberated for months, based on the study and reflection of a lifetime, to create a system of government which would protect ordered liberty, and preserve a nation of "Liberty Under God." But their best efforts to bind the state down by the chains of a well-deliberated Constitution were unsuccessful. It's impossible to imagine the dreary "statesmen" of our day writing a better Constitution.

It's time we admitted what they would admit.

Our claim is that America's Founding Fathers would now see the need to go beyond eliminating a king, to eliminate altogether the institutionalization of violence and plunder; that is, to organize society without any "civil government" at all. Rather, to let society organize itself spontaneously under the "Invisible Hand" of a Free Market, which is to say, with "Liberty Under God."

In the Garden of Eden there was no State, nor was there an ecclesiocracy (institutional church). Biblical Society consisted of the Family. Every sociological function necessary for the smooth (shalom) and Godly (“righteous,” “just”) operation of a society (e.g., health, education, welfare, etc.) can be provided by Godly Families.

But if there was no State in the Garden of Eden, when did it arise? Did God command its creation, or is the creation of the State an act of Humanistic rebellion?

As we go through the Bible, we will be asking, "Is this where God commanded human beings to set up a monarch, or a parliament, or an Internal Revenue Service?" At the end of each chapter, we will see the answer is No.

The next few theses will cover the period of human history from Creation to the Fall.