Common sense. God gave us common sense. He wants us to use it. Another word for common sense is wisdom, but there is a difference. How do we get wisdom? I will tell you, but your not going to like it. It requires work. I also do believe both aren’t very common anymore. People seem to think their sense is the only common sense. But both come from experience and education. True wisdom, however, comes from God. Solomon could have asked God for anything he wanted. Fame, fortune, women, etc. He asked for wisdom. God was so pleased with Solomon’s request that He not only granted it, but also gave him the fame and fortune too. So we pray, pray, pray for wisdom. We also read God’s word for wisdom. Hopefully we learn from what we read. Whatever you do, don’t pray for wisdom and hope that it just comes down from heaven and invades your mind. Although I think God does open your mind to receive it. The other way we get wisdom is through experience. I have often said I wished I wasn’t so hard headed. It takes too long for God to pound it into my head. Trials and tribulations can be a very good teacher. I do know this for sure.
We don’t always use our God given wisdom. Solomon didn’t use his later in his life either. It should be a great lesson for us. We need to be wary of falling into the same trap. I had to bring up this point about common sense and wisdom before I wrote anything else. It would do me no good at all to talk about anything else on my mind without first getting you to understand that we all need more wisdom.
A wise person is humble and knows when to listen. God called Job “a man of perfect integrity”. What did he get for this integrity? He was allowed to endure more than most could have conceived. He lost his wealth, his entire family and his health. Jobs “friends” spent a lot of time with Job trying to figure out what sin Job was guilty of. What would have brought this judgment on him from God? Job defended himself from them. “I have done nothing wrong”. Job was trying to explain God’s view and what God was to him to his friends. It should give you pause before speaking for God. God finally interjected Himself into the conversation. He began asking Job series of questions Job couldn’t answer.
Job 38
4 Where were you when I established the earth? Tell [Me], if you have understanding.
5 Who fixed its dimensions? Certainly you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it?
6 What supports its foundations? Or who laid its cornerstone
God was only a little way through with His questioning of Job and he had this response to God…
Jobs response...
Job 40
4 I am so insignificant. How can I answer You? I place my hand over my mouth.
5 I have spoken once, and I will not reply; twice, but [now] I can add nothing.
Job knew when to keep his mouth shut and listen. Listening with humility to what God said. This leads to the next mistake we make when making decisions. The process of using our feeling to determine a decision.
Instinct or Gods word?
We’ve all heard the saying “he doesn’t have the sense God gave a goose”. Of course we know that God doesn’t give a goose sense. Wisdom and sense are only given to man. The goose must rely on instinct. We are separated from the animals in that we can rely on wisdom and common sense. Too many people, however, DO rely on instinct. The first thing that will perk up my ears is to hear someone say “I believe this is what God wants” or “I feel God is leading me in this direction”. Oh really? Well maybe, but how did you come to that conclusion? Did you study God’s word on the matter or is it just something you feel and want? I doubt very seriously God WANTS you to have the Lexus with all the bells and whistles. I’m not saying that you’re wrong in having one. If God blessed you so you can have a nice home or car, wonderful. I love seeing people that are prosperous. I hope to be that blessed myself someday. But lets just admit that it was what you wanted, not God.
One other place we derive wisdom. That is learning from history. People tend to read history and think that it somehow doesn’t apply to them. “Oh that could never happen here”. I believe if you give people enough information, they will make the right choices. The problem gets to be that truth is hidden and no one wants to investigate it.
That was a long introduction to set up the subjects I wanted to talk about in these next few blogs. It should give you some insight on how I look at things. That is, where my arguments come from. Don’t get me wrong, I can make a fool out of myself like the next guy. You know, opening my mouth before I think. I have become quite the expert on that. That is usually when my “feelings” rule what I say and not my mind.
Part One: Governments Roll
(SOME writers have so confounded society with government, as to leave little or no distinction between them; whereas they are not only different, but have different origins. Society is produced by our wants, and government by our wickedness; the former promotes our happiness POSITIVELY by uniting our affections, the latter NEGATIVELY by restraining our vices. The one encourages intercourse, the other creates distinctions. The first is a patron, the last a punisher. – Thomas Paine “Common Sense” 1776)
Government should be very limited. We have allowed the government in this country to grow so big, I see no reversing it. I have experienced government for many years. I work for the government now. If my job went away tomorrow, I know I would be fine. God always will take care of me.
"Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." – Benjamin Franklin 1755
We have given up a lot of liberty lately. Well actually it started about 100 years ago with the progressive movement. More and more government programs to “help” the masses. It always seems to come along during a crisis. The depression of the 1930’s brought us the “New Deal” and ushered in programs like Social Security. The really bad thing about programs such as Social Security is what happens to most government run systems. Whether or not you like Social Security and whether you think it was a good idea doesn’t matter. The bad thing is anytime government sees a chance to grab power or money, it will. When Social Security first started it was taking in a lot more than it was paying out. Shortly there after, Roosevelt expanded it to cover the survivors of workers. This was all based in the fact that there were so many workers putting into it and so few taking out. Fast forward to today. Social Security is losing money fast. No way to stop it. If a politician even mentions fixing the problem, he is demonized. This is the one single biggest problem with big government programs. People get dependant on them and will not let them go no matter what the cost. Once they are in place, there is no getting rid of them.
Medicare and Medicaid are two more examples of how a failed government program that loses money by the boat load cannot be fixed. Once again it would be political suicide. The next big thing down the pipe is government health care. Once it’s in, we are stuck with it to the very collapse of our country. Once you have that many more government employees, how could you possibly get rid of it. Why can we not go to a flat tax? Think of all of the out work IRS workers would be unemployed. Not to mention the power that the government would be giving up. The Republicans have said lets try tort reform and limit liability of Doctors. Now I don’t know if this would work or not, but I do know that if it were to fail it could be reversed. Not so with another government agency.
But really, how could someone be against health care for everyone? Wouldn’t that be what God would want? As President Obama recently told a group of religious clergy "we are God's partners in matters of life and death". Sounds good, but is it biblical? I have heard the argument that you couldn’t possibly be taking a Christian view point if you oppose this plan. That’s what Christ would want, right? We should WANT to take care of our brothers and sisters right?
I know what some of you are thinking, that the President doesn’t want government health care, just a government option. He does. He just knows he couldn’t get that passed. So they are taking the "lets just get a foot in the door” approach with the government option. Don’t believe me, believe him…
“I happen to be a proponent of a single payer universal health care program.” (applause) “I see no reason why the United States of America, the wealthiest country in the history of the world, spending 14 percent of its Gross National Product on health care cannot provide basic health insurance to everybody. And that’s what Jim is talking about when he says everybody in, nobody out. A single payer health care plan, a universal health care plan. And that’s what I’d like to see. But as all of you know, we may not get there immediately. Because first we have to take back the White House, we have to take back the Senate, and we have to take back the House.” Obama speaking to the Illinois AFL-CIO, June 30, 2003.
Really would you want the government running 14% of the GDP? The problem with this whole thing is I totally disagree with the argument that your somehow “not following Christ’s example” if your against this. Progressives like to believe that all people are basically good and may have just gone astray. But if we can give them a hand up or reform them to their natural self, they will be good again. The bible says the opposite, Mark 10:18 "Why do you call Me good?" Jesus asked him. "No one is good but One—God.
Capitalism does something nothing else does. It turns men’s greed into a force for good. How? I will bust my tail to make extra. To do this, I must make you as a trading partner happy or you simply will go to the next guy. This competition makes things more efficient, better and cheaper. Do I think we don’t need any regulation? No, but very little. Punish the wicked when they do corrupt things. But don’t destroy the system to fix one thing. If you give away free stuff, people become complacent and lazy.
Matthew 26:11 You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have Me.
Jesus didn't say maybe. He said ALWAYS have the poor. We should do our best to keep as many as we can from being poor, but know that you can only go so far to eliminate poverty. Socialism is not the answer.
The pilgrims had already experimented with socialism long before Marx and Lenin. They nearly starved to death. William Bradford realized the futility of collectivism and abandoned the practice. Instead, Bradford assigned a plot of land to each family and permitted them to market their own crops and other products, thereby unleashing the power of capitalism. What Bradford had wisely realized was that these industrious people had no reason to work any harder than anyone else without the motivation of personal incentive.
That’s just the way it is. People are still the same. You can't give away things for free. People start feeling entitled to it. They don’t appreciate the work people did to give it to them because it is given by the nameless government. If people get a hand up from the church or the community, they actually appreciate it. Is it perfect? No, but until we all become robots it is the best way. Has the church fallen down on the job in these areas? I would say maybe, but why shouldn’t they when “Christians” are looking to government for these things too.
God never promised us nothing bad would ever happen to us, quite the opposite. We will have trials and hardships. It’s up to God’s family to take care of downtrodden. Not the government.
Lastly, this republic was set up in a great way. States have power to make laws that are suited to the people of that state. Just because you want something in your state doesn’t mean it should be forced on mine. Things that may work in California, doesn’t mean they will work in mine. If my state starts becoming tyrannical, I can move to another state that fits my beliefs better. Utopia is not attainable. The more you reach for it the further it slips away. The Soviet Union thought they were building Utopia.
One other thing to mention. That is the term liberal. Liberal is a term that has been highjack by the progressive movement in this country. They are not "liberal" at all. Other than the belief we should legalise drugs they don't believe in much of anything liberal. A liberal doesn't grab control and power the way these modern day "liberals" do. The founding Fathers were liberal in their thinking and beliefs. Limited government, liberty and such are liberal ideas. We were free to pursue life, liberty and happiness. Even if we failed to do so. We were free. Free to succeed or free to fail. For if we are to become slaves, it is by our own hand. So far we seem to be going in that general direction.
So from now on read about the people you elect before you elect them. Read history so we don't repeat it. Ask questions. Always ask yourself why you believe what you do and why. Know why you believe what you do. One last thing. Question God. It's ok to question God. Only you have to read His word to get the answer. He will answer you. Only ask!
