The Rand Ruckus of Rosslyn [Rand Records P1]
April 10, 2017
Are We There Yet?
July 5, 2017
A New Declaration
Pastor Vinnie
“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.”[1]
The Declaration of Independence is perhaps the single most important document of liberty in the western world with the only other possible exception being the Magna Carta Libertatum[2] that forged the direction that would lead to the dream that true liberty could exist in a free, civilized world of everyday people. Still, as great of a document as the Declaration of Independence is I have come to ask, “self-evident,” to whom?
Self-evident literally means “not needing to be demonstrated or explained; obvious.”[3] It seems it needs to be explained to a lot of people still these days! This dream that was cast over 241 years ago has never yet come to pass for many living in the “land of the free and home of the the brave.”
Liberty, freedom, equality, the pursuit of happiness, they are not left or right ideas. They don’t excessively belong to liberals or conservatives but rather ought to be the basis where both can and should have full agreement. Let the bleeding heart liberal, who’s own name stands for “Liberty,” say to the conservative patriot, who’s desire it is to hold up founding principles, “All men deserve compassion, respect, and basic human rights.” And let the conservative patriot echo back, “Amen brother, our founding conservative documents declares that, “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.”
Among Liberals and Conservatives, there ought to be no disagreement, yet there is still too much and often more noise of conflict than peace and clarity. Certainly, Christians can fare better overall than the divide found in modern politics right?
For the Christian, also have a founding document, but this founding document is superior even to the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution of the United States, and even the Bill of Rights. Our founding document is the very word of the Creator and cannot be denied by any real Christian regardless of political ideology. This founding document also offers some unalienable Rights that will be self-evident by those who follow God’s Declarations but perhaps its seem at times to be getting lost in the political fray of the left and right that echo even in the hallways of the church. Let us this Independence Day declare our self-evident values of liberty we hold because of God’s Declaration to us!
1) The Word of God declares people of faith will respect immigrants.
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“You must not oppress foreigners. You know what it’s like to be a foreigner, for you yourselves were once aliens in the land of Egypt” (Exodus 23:9)
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‘This is what the LORD says: Administer justice and righteousness. Rescue the victim of robbery from the hand of his oppressor. Don’t exploit or brutalize the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow. Don’t shed innocent blood in this place. (Jeremiah 22:3)
2) The Word of God declares liberty to the poor and that people of true faith should aid in that liberty.
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Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed. (Proverbs 19:17)
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For I was hungry, and you gave me food, I was thirsty, and you gave me drink, I was a stranger, and you welcomed me. (Matthew 25:46)
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You shall give to him freely, and your heart shall not be grudging when you give to him because for this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in all that you undertake. For there will never cease to be poor in the land. Therefore I command you, ‘You shall open wide your hand to your brother, to the needy and to the poor, in your land.’ (Deuteronomy 15:10-11)
3) The Word of God showed tolerance and not hate towards the seed of Islam just as God did to the seed of the Jews who shared the same father, Abraham. Let us seek to reach both for Christ.
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And the angel of the LORD said to her, “Behold, you are pregnant and shall bear a son. You shall call his name Ishmael because the LORD has listened to your affliction. (Genesis 16:11)
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And God heard the voice of the boy, and the angel of God called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “What troubles you, Hagar? Fear not, for God has heard the voice of the boy where he is. Up! Lift up the boy, and hold him fast with your hand, for I will make him into a great nation. (Genesis 21:17-18)
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Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6)
4) The Word of God declares God loves sinners and so should His followers.
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And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Mark 2:17)
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But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)
5) The Word of God declares that His followers will protect the children.
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Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. (Psalm 127:3)
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See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that in heaven their angels always see the face of my Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 18:10)
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Before I formed you in the womb I knew you before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.” (Jeremiah 1:5)
6) The Word of God declares we should stand against oppression in all its forms
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Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause. (Isaiah 1:17)
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“Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms by injustice, who makes his neighbor serve him for nothing and does not give him his wages.” (Jeremiah 22:13)
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The Lord is a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. (Psalms 9:9)
7) The Word of God declares all people equal, and God followers likewise should engage in no forms of prejudice, discrimination, or racism.
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“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” John 14:34
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There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. (Galatians 3:28)
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For God does not show favoritism. (Romans 2:11)
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If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. (James 2:8-9 )
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Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth—to every nation, tribe, language, and people. (Revelation 14)
These are inalienable, self-evident, biblical rights, principles, and declarations of liberty, justice, and freedom of oppression that come from the mouth of God! All who accept the Bible as their creed must yield to its word above ideology least they make politics an idol that they worship above Jesus!
This Independence Day we have the opportunity to make a New Declaration. That Declaration regardless of if we Republication, Democrat, or Independent, on the left or the right or hugging the center, would be that we are first and foremost Christians who declare the Word of God over the politics of man as our founding documents, principles, and values! We can declare, anew, that we will not justify away what is inalienable, self-evident, and above all Biblical!
Let the church say AMEN!
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FOOTNOTES:
[1] Declaration of Independence; Thomas Jefferson with influence from John Locke.
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magna_Carta
[3] Google Dictionary.
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