Education is extolled by today's "authorities" as the answer to all of mankind's problems. Whether they are discussing drugs, immorality, aids or some other moral blight, movie stars, celebrities and sports figures alike repeatedly remind the American public to "Get all the facts!" Education and more education is heralded as being "The Answer!," as if it, in and of itself, will solve all of the world's vices and depravity.
This is reminiscent of the so-called "Age of Enlightenment," that period during the eighteenth century known for "great intellectual awareness." The pundits of that age placed strong emphasis upon education and scientific research and advanced the idea that intellectual development was the answer for all of mankind's woes. However, the outcome of that "great" period in history was quite different from what they imagined. The Age of Enlightenment gave birth to naturalism, resulting in evolutionary theorizing, resulting in atheism, resulting in humanism, resulting in decadence, resulting in one of the most morally impoverished periods in the history of mankind. Those were the consequences of that time when so much emphasis was put on "getting all the facts." Can we expect results any different when this generation promotes the same agenda?
Nevertheless, true science and education are not to be denigrated. The Scriptures encourage God's people to pursue learning, instruction, understanding and wisdom:
Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. (Proverbs 4:7; see also Proverbs 1:5-7; 2:2; 3:13)1Nevertheless, education that is not centered on Yahweh, the God and Creator of the universe, is nearly worthless:
Except YHWH2 build the house, they labour in vain that build it.... (Psalm 127:1)Moreover, the Apostle Paul warned Timothy against pseudo science:
O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called. (1 Timothy 6:20)The educators of today's masses make no pretense of eliminating God from their process of instruction. Consequently, their education will prove futile in solving society's problems and they and their "wisdom" will eventually be destroyed:
For it is written, I [Yahweh] will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. Where is the wise [man]? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this world? Hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? (1 Corinthians 1:19-20)
For the wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. For it is written, He [Yahweh] taketh the wise in their own craftiness. And again, YHWH knoweth the thoughts of the wise, that they are vain. (1 Corinthians 3:19-20)Simply put: there is no answer in education without Yahweh, the God of the Scriptures, in the education.
The secular world has no enduring answers for today's world, but does modern Christianity fare any better? What is Christianity's answer for homosexuality, aids, rapists, murderers and plunderers, or for any major problem facing America or the rest of the world today? About the only solution that modern Christianity proffers for such crimes is prayer. It reminds me of the cartoon that depicts a family spending their evening together. The father is busy working on a crossword puzzle, the mother is reading her Bible and their adolescent son is sitting in front of the television set. The father asks, "What's a six letter word for something that can stop the spread of aids?" The mother responds, "P-R-A-Y-E-R." Their son, with his eyes glued to a female rock star on the boob-tube with most of her bosom exposed, is thinking to himself, "C-O-N-D-O-M." Which one had the better answer? Many Christians may not want to admit it, but the better answer for stopping the spread of aids is "condom(s)."
There are times and situations when prayer is inappropriate. I can almost hear the cries of Christian outrage: "Heresy! The Scriptures admonish us to pray without ceasing!" The last statement is quite true, albeit, there are occasions that require more than prayer. In Joshua 7, in response to a military defeat, it is recorded that Joshua and the elders of Israel had fallen on their faces before Yahweh in prayer and supplication. Yahweh responded to their prayer by commanding them to do what many Christians might find offensive in light of today's pervasive prayer theology:
...Rise up! Why is it that you have fallen on your face? (Joshua 7:10 NASV)In other words, there are times that call for us to get off our knees and act! To this admonition, some Christians would respond: "Well, if prayer isn't the answer, then the solution must be in a more concentrated effort in preaching against the evils of society!" "Preaching Abstinence Isn't Enough" is the title of the article underneath the cartoon previously described. The article's first paragraph begins by pointing out what would be an unpopular truth to most Christians:
"''Naïve' would be a polite word to use in reference to people who think admonishing sexual abstinence outside heterosexual marriage is going to do anything to stop the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. Churches have been bleating that message since I was a child. It didn't work then and still doesn't."The author of that article is right! Preaching is not enough to halt the perpetrators of evil. Prayer and preaching are modern Christianity's answer to the world's problems - but they are not enough!
The only lasting solution is summed up in the following eleven words: Give your life to Yeshua(3) (Jesus' given Hebrew name), and He will transform your life! There is no greater resolution than to make Yeshua Lord and Savior of one's life.(4) However, let us be realistic, those who make this decision will never constitute more than a minority of society:
Enter by the narrow gate; for the gate is wide, and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and many are those who enter by it. For the gate is small, and the way is narrow that leads to life, and few are those who find it. (Matthew 7:13-14 NASV)Consequently, what about the majority who will not surrender to the life changing power and influence of God and His word? In the previous cartoon we were limited to only two possible solutions. One solution was superior to the other, nevertheless, both were incorrect answers. Given only the choice of two wrong answers, we are actually left with no answer at all.
Americans, both secular and religious alike, generally live in a world where the philosophies of no absolutes, situational ethics and "anything goes" are the only standards of the day. Consequently, neither group is seeking the clear and absolute solution found in the laws of Yahweh, particularly His judgments. The answers for every major problem we face are found therein. The Prophet Habakkuk described our current predicament quite aptly:
...the law is ignored and justice is never upheld. For the wicked surround the righteous; therefore, justice comes out perverted. (Habakkuk 1:4 NASV)Since Yahweh's people have traditionally rejected the justice that comes from obedience and enforcement of His laws, God went on to proclaim that He would allow others (humanists) whose "justice and authority originate in themselves" to rule over us - Habakkuk 1:5-7. This is essentially the same as Yeshua declared in His Sermon on the Mount:
Ye [Christian Israelites] are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing [ineffective, impotent], but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men. (Matthew 5:13)Although rejected by most of modern Christendom, the laws of Yahweh are still for those of us living under the New Covenant; that is, they remain in force(5). It is a Biblical fact that Yahweh's laws are in force, nevertheless, they are not being enforced! Consequently, the potency of Yah's laws is limited.
Convincing Christians that the laws of Yahweh have not been abolished under the New Covenant will be a major victory on America's road to triumph over immorality, depravity and slavery. But even then, the efficacy of Yah's laws will still be restricted. Only a minority of people will choose to freely comply with Yah's laws (Matthew 7:14 in principle). Thus, only when a Christian civil body politic enforces the judgments of Yahweh upon those who choose to disobey Yahweh's laws will there be any major impact upon society as a whole.
In order to be dynamic, every law must contain three integral components: commandments, statutes and judgments. Moses revealed that Yah's law is comprised of these same three components:
...he [Yahweh] declared unto you [the Israelites] his covenant [law], which he commanded you to perform, even ten commandments; and he wrote them upon two tables of stone. And YHWH commanded me at that time to teach you statutes and judgments, that ye might do them in the land whither ye go over to possess it. (Deuteronomy 4:13-14)Without any one of those three components, the law is essentially crippled. For example, modern society has initiated laws concerning the safe operation of motorized vehicles. One of man's commandments for this area of law is: "Thou shalt not speed!" However, without statutes to explain what speeding is in each particular situation (such as 30 miles per hour in a residential zone), the commandment cannot be fully understood or obeyed. In like manner, unless the law has judgments that are brought to bear upon the transgressors of any particular commandment and/or statute, the law has no "teeth." The Apostle Paul, while promoting the perpetuity of Yahweh's laws, revealed that the judgments of Yahweh are what keeps in check those who are predisposed criminals:
... we know that the law is good, if a man use it lawfully; knowing this, that the law [specifically the judgments] is ... for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and for sinners, for unholy and profane, for murderers of fathers and murderers of mothers, for manslayers, for whoremongers, for them that defile themselves with mankind [homosexuals], for menstealers, for liars, for perjured persons, and if there be any other thing that is contrary to sound doctrine. (1 Timothy 1:8-10)Additionally, in Romans 13 (which describes a Christian government enforcing the laws of Yahweh(6), the Apostle Paul identified two classes of people, those who obey the existing Christian government for conscience sake (out of Christian principle) and those who obey out of compulsion:
For [Christian] rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? Do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: For he [the Christian ruler] is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou [non-Christian] do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath [judgments] upon him that doeth evil. Wherefore ye [Christians] must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake. (Romans 13:3-5)Clearly, if our society is ever to return to any semblance of law and order, to any degree of morality, it is imperative that we understand that the laws of Yahweh are not only in force, but must also be enforced by the judgments of Yahweh!
1. All Scripture is quoted from the King James Bible unless otherwise noted.
2. Where the Tetragrammaton "YHWH" (the four Hebrew characters that represent the personal name of God) has been incorrectly rendered as "the LORD" or "GOD" in Scripture, the author has taken the liberty to correct those passages and insert "YHWH."
3. "Yeshua" is the English transliteration of our Savior's Hebrew name, and is preferred by the author.
4. For a fuller explanation concerning the Biblical plan of salvation, One Lord, One Faith, One Baptism and God Accepts No Substitutes can be ordered on two 60-minute cassette tapes from Mission to Israel Ministries, PO Box 248, Scottsbluff, NE 69363. A $4.00 donation for each tape or a $6.00 donation for both tapes is suggested. These two tapes are available free of charge for anyone who cannot afford to send a donation.
5. For more information regarding God's law as it applies to today, write Mission to Israel Ministries, PO Box 248, Scottsbluff, NE 69363 from which the following tapes can be ordered: T-006 Deliverance From Christian Anarchists, T-065 Harmonizing the New Testament Scriptures on the Law of God, T-143 Law or Grace?, T-222 Love: A New, Old Commandment, and T-235 The Mosaic Law: Added & Abolished. These cassette tapes can be obtained on a listen-and-return basis or are available for a $4.00 suggested donation per tape.
6. For a more exhaustive study on Romans 13:1-7, Christian Duty Under Corrupt Government: A Revolutionary Commentary on Romans 13:1-7, written by Evangelist Ted R. Weiland, can be ordered from Mission to Israel Ministries, PO Box 248, Scottsbluff, NE 69363. Soft cover - 95 pages. Suggested donation - $7.00.