Political
Activism?
____________________________
page 1 l 2
-2-
Save
Me From My Brother
When a majority of
people in a democracy come to a place
where they no longer love God or one
another and become controlled by
their sinful natures, they become
unfit to self-government. Therefore,
the magnificent freedoms granted to a
free society must be reduced in order
to protect brother from brother so
that society can continue to
function.
Even the newest member
in Congress can see the problem. Even
though he or she may not fully
understand the sinful nature,
legislators clearly see the corporate
effects of sin and they have no tools
but legislation and law to
enforcement to stop predatory abuses.
For example, Congress enacted the
Credit Card Act of 2009 to reduce the
predatory practices of credit card
banks. Why would banks do this to
their customers? (A) They could get
away with it. (B) Everyone else was
doing it. (C) It was a fast way to
make a lot of money. (D) All of the
above. Obviously, the correct answer
is (D). On the other hand, how many
people do you know who are willing to
charge the limit on their credit
cards knowing they plan to declare
bankruptcy?
The
Need for New Laws Will Never End
As a free society
descends into the chaos of lawless
behaviors, freedoms necessarily must
be reduced to protect ourselves from
one another. Consider this: The 108th
Congress of the United States
(2003-2004) passed 480 new federal
laws. The 109th Congress
of the United States (2005-2006)
passed 482 new laws. The 110th
Congress (2007-2008) passed 460 new
laws. So far, the 111th
Congress (2009-2010) has passed 160
laws. The number of federal laws
created in the past six and half
years (1,582) speaks volumes. Almost,
1,600 additional laws (not counting
approximately 600 new laws within
each of the fifty states during the
same period) prove that we need
increasing protection from one
another. There is a deadly virus that
is killing our free society. This
virus is the sinful nature of man.
Each person who
listens to the news knows that the
U.S. economy is like a run away train
and Congress cannot stop it. Congress
attempted to stop this train in 1990
with a law called “Paygo.”
Thus far, Congress passed the Paygo
law three times: 1990, 2007, and
2010. History says, “First
enacted as part of the Budget
Enforcement Act of 1990 (which was
incorporated as Title XIII of the
Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of
1990), PAYGO required all increases
in direct spending or revenue
decreases to be offset by other
spending decreases or revenue
increases. It was thought that this
would control increases in deficit
spending…. After the expiration
of PAYGO [in 2002]. Budget deficits
returned. The federal surplus
shrank from 236.2 billion in 2000 to
128.2 billion in 2001, then 157.8
billion deficit in 2002 – the
last year statutory PAYGO was in
effect. The deficit increased to
377.6 billion in 2003 and 412.7
billion in 2004. The federal deficit,
excluding trust funds, was 537.3
billion in fiscal year 2006. In the
fist 6 years of President Bush’s
term, with a Republican controlled
Congress, the federal debt increased
by $3 trillion [to 8.5
trillion].” (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PAYGO , insertions
and bold emphasis mine.) Since 2007,
a Democratically controlled Congress
has increased the federal debt to
more than $12 trillion. President
Obama signed a new Paygo Law on
February 12, 2010, but this law will
not stop the runaway train. The U.S.
deficit during 2009 ballooned to 1.42
trillion. On March 20, 2010, the US
Congressional Budget Office projected
a deficit of 1.8 trillion for 2010.
Can the U.S. be able to avoid
national bankruptcy? This is the
question which political groups like
the Tea Party and others are
debating, but before you answer, go
back and take a quick look at the
social consequences of forced
austerity in the tiny nation of
Greece (who has run out of money and
defaulted on its loans). Angry
citizens protest in the streets!
The problem is that an
economy is like an airplane in
flight. If the airplane flies too
slow, it stalls and falls to the
ground and everyone inside dies. If
it goes too fast, the wings tear off
and it falls to the ground and
everyone inside dies. If our
government should suddenly stop
increasing the deficit (slow down the
airplane), it would have to more than
double our taxes to pay for current
obligations. If this happened, the
economy would implode. So,
what happens when several million
unemployed people and ten of millions
who receive some form of government
assistance each month suddenly
receive no money? How safe would
America be? How angry will people
become? Can you imagine long lines of
people standing outside Wal-Mart
begging for food? Can you imagine
being robbed at gunpoint for
groceries as you exit a food store?
Can you imaginer gangs holding
“gated communities” hostage
within their gates until their
financial demands are met? Can
you imagine hospitals and doctors
offices closed because there is no
insurance and people cannot pay
actual costs? When the government
tells a huge number of people they
will no longer receive government
assistance, what choices will they
have for survival? Consider Greece
again (even tough there has been a
temporary respite for Greece by the
European Union, the drama is not over
– keep an eye on it).
In
Closing
JoAnn, the continent
of Africa has been on public display
for several hundred years. There have
been an endless round of governments
whose leaders started out with good
intentions, but they quickly fell
into horrible abuses because the
virus of the sinful nature is
everywhere. We cannot count the
number of cycles that African nations
have gone from limited freedom to
totalitarian dictatorship. There
is no earthly remedy in Africa and
America when the citizens of
government have no love for each
other. This is why generally
speaking; political activism in the
United States is of a secondary
concern to me. There are always two
sides to a controversy and wisdom
dictates that we carefully consider
both sides of the conflict. If it
appears that a good solution is
possible, I think activism should be
encouraged. If a better solution is
not clearly possible, then activism
is like starting a war. The danger is
that no one can know the outcome at
the beginning. In closing, please
consider these three issues:
1. First, Jesus
was not a political activist.
Jesus was a spiritual activist. Jesus
understood the sinful nature and this
is why His ministry focused on
changing people’s cold hearts
into hearts of love. Slavery was very
common in Christ’s time and
women had no rights. The Jews hated
the Romans and the Romans hated the
Jews. Yet, Jesus did not start a
movement to fee Israel, nor did He
condemn slavery or seek equal rights
for women. Rather, Jesus went to the
core of the problem. He showed people
how to love one another for love can
overcome the virus of the sinful
nature. He showed what the human
heart can be and should be. Jesus
promised, “The meek will inherit
the Earth.” A free society is
coming, a society truly free from the
virus of sin! In the meantime, Paul
wrote, “Keep your lives free
from the love of money and be content
with what you have, because God has
said, ‘Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you.’”
(Hebrews 13:5)
2. Second, most
people do not understand our
prophetic perspective. (I know that
you understand what I mean by this.)
We know that the Bible states that
the book of Daniel was sealed up
until the time of the end. (Daniel
12:4,9) After reading my book, Daniel:
Unlocked for the final generation, you
know that I am convinced that we arte
living at the time of the end. This
does not necessarily mean that we
should be politically indifferent; it
just means that political changes
(whatever may be achieved) will be
short lived. We are living at a time
when sin and rebellion has reached
critical mass. For reasons presented
in my book on the Seven Trumpets, I
believe that the world passed the
point of no return in 1994. This
means corporately speaking, that
spiritual reformation and repentance
will not be possible until the wrath
of God begins (the seven trumpets of
Revelation). As I see it, the whole
world is on a runaway freight
train – not just the USA. No man
or political party can save us from
the painful consequences that are
coming. Our problems are far too
complex and there is no human remedy.
The Bible says, “…no
king is saved by the size of his army
and a horse is a vain hope for
deliverance, despite its great
strength it cannot save.” (Psalm
33:16,17)
3. Finally, the
best thing that any citizen can do at
this late hour is to embrace the Lord
and obey His commands. “But
seek first his kingdom and his
righteousness, and all these things
will be given to you as well.
Therefore do not worry about
tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry
about itself. Each day has enough
trouble of its own.”
(Matthew 6:33,34)
Turn off the radio and refuse to
listen or engage in political
discussions. Pray for our political
leaders. Turn off the TV and spend
more time studying your Bible. Visit
a shut-in or a sick person. Help a
neighbor. Go out of your way to show
kindness and compassion. Make an
effort to help abused women. Send a
gift to charity. Read a story to a
child. Walk with the Lord, pay
attention to whatever God sets before
you. Get out and stay out of debt. Do
not cheat your employer. Give him a
full day’s work. Tell the truth
in all cases. Jesus said, “Love
one another.” This is the
revolution that we really need. “And
do this, understanding the present
time. The hour has come for you to
wake up from your slumber, because
our salvation is nearer now than when
we first believed. The night is
nearly over; the day is almost here.
So let us put aside the deeds of
darkness and put on the armor of
light. Let us behave decently, as in
the daytime, not in orgies and
drunkenness, not in sexual immorality
and debauchery, not in dissension and
jealousy. Rather, clothe yourselves
with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do
not think about how to gratify the
desires of the sinful nature.” (Romans
13:11-14)
Larry Wilson
____________________________
page 1 l 2
-2-
