Scribner graph:
0% Government (Anarchy)--------------------Constitutional Republic------------------100% Government (Communism)
Handout: Origins and Development of Civil Government
1. self-government and the dominion mandate
Genesis 1:26-28
People display God’s principle of individuality (each person has a unique purpose and call from God, unique characteristics, both internal and external)
2. civil government for protection (Genesis 9)
3. the origin of nations (Genesis 10)
4. centralization of civil government at Babel (Genesis 11)
5. the Hebrew republic with biblical civil laws (Exodus 20)
6. Greece and Rome’s pagan attempts at civil liberty
7. Gospel of Jesus Christ introduces the Christian idea of man and government
Declaration of independence:
| Outlines a general philosophy of government that justifies revolution when government harms natural rights |
| We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, |
God’s pathway to liberty
2 Corinthians 3:17 - where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty (when God’s Spirit comes inside a man, that man is liberated - and into a nation).
Galatians 5:1,3 - Christ came to set us free -> Spiritual freedom / liberty ultimately produces political freedom. external political slavery reflects internal spiritual bondage
Through Christ, God releases the “law of liberty” into society through cleansed hearts of men (James 1:25, 2:12). The self-governing Christian is governed by the internal law written on his heart interpreted by the Holy Spirit
Christ’s Teachings on Politics and Government
1. The Lord is sovereign in human history and government
John 19:11 - Jesus to Pilate - you have no authority unless it had been given from above
Romans 13:1 - no authority except from God, those that exist are established by God
2. The individual has inherent value because He is made in the image of God
Matthew 22:17-21 - contrasted the pagan idea that someone is valuable only if he can contribute something to society or the state or belonged to a certain social class or race
3. Government exists to serve the common good of every individual
Matthew 20:25-28 - Jesus is referring to civil authorities and declaring that they should be “public servants” -> the purpose of civil government is to serve people (a radical new idea, contrasting with the pagan idea of rulers dominating the people, an idea which existed throughout the entire world at the time). Today we call our civil leaders “public servants”
That the civil government is the servant of man is a Christian idea
4. Civil government and the church have separate jurisdictions
Matthew 22:17-21 give to Caesar (the state) what is his and to God the things that are God’s.
Christ’s guidelines for resistance to tyranny
1. protest or legal action
(matthew 27:14, Luke 10:11, 13:31-32)
2. Flight
(Matthew 10:23, 24:15-18, Acts 8:1-4)
3. Force in Self-Defense
Luke 22:49,50
Matthew 26:52 - using the legal sword to restrain the illegal sword of an aggressor
the authority and responsibility of using the sword to punish evil or protect the righteous resides with the civil government (Romans 13:1-4)
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