Christianity is often accused of being authoritarian, rigid and anti-democratic. The fact is that modern western democracy in general and American democracy in particular have their roots in biblical religion and biblical philosophy. The Bible gives us the dignity of the individual because it teaches that people are created in God's image. Therefore each individual is not just valuable but is sacred.
The Bible says that the born-again believers that comprise the church are a "royal priesthood" (I Peter 2:9). Democracy arose in post-reformation Europe where for the first time in history the Bible was readily available to all people across a whole continent. The Bible was no longer restricted to just an ecclesiastical elite or to a persecuted minority.
In the 1500s Martin Luther and the reformers gave us understanding of the priesthood of the believer. All Christians are priests. This priesthood is a one on one relationship with God in which we offer up sacrifices of praise and intercession.
In the 1600s, just a century after the reformation, Thomas Hooker and other early American churchmen taught the concept of the sovereignty of the believer. They showed that the Bible teaches that we are a ROYAL priesthood which means a priesthood with "royal" (i.e., governing) prerogatives.
Remember that even before the Pilgrims got off the Mayflower they held an election. The only way for a Bible-believing society to operate is by elections because everyone is royalty and no one can claim exclusive royal privileges. Everyone is equal before God (Galatians 3:26-28). Romans 14:5 teaches about the freedom and autonomy of the believer.
All this budding of democracy came more than a century before the secular "Enlightenment" of the mid 1700s. Secularists claim that Enlightenment philosophers such as Hume, Rousseau and Voltaire gave us democracy. On the contrary however, the Enlightenment's immediate fruit was the brutality of the French Revolution and its long term legacy was communism. The founding fathers of America quoted the Bible in their writings far more than they quoted any other source.
The highly secular 20th century, of recent memory, saw the rise of totalitarianism which regards individuals as purposeless "atoms in motion" or as the descendants of apes. No wonder that evil men, void of the knowledge of God, sought (and still seek) to gather humanity into an authoritarian anthill of regimentation. However, the light of Christ still shines and where it shines brightest is where freedom reigns!
"We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord." II Cor. 5:8
The Bible is scientifically accurate! Find the evidence at www.icr.org.
Steps to salvation:
Jesus said "Ye must be born again." (John 3:7)
- Believe that God created you and loves you and sent the Messiah (Messiah is Hebrew for Christ) to redeem you.
- Believe that Jesus the Messiah came in fulfillment of over 300 Bible prophecies to die for you to take upon Himself the penalty for your sins. (Isaiah 53:5-6, John 6:29, Romans 4:5, First Peter 3:18)
- Turn from sin and call on the name of Jesus to receive forgiveness. (Romans 10:13)
- Receive Jesus as Savior and experience the new birth. (John 1:12, Acts 2:38)
- Follow Him as Lord. (John 14:21)
"Whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved" (Romans 10:13)
To receive the salvation that Jesus purchased for us at the terrible cost of His suffering and death on our behalf I invite you to pray this simple prayer:
"Dear heavenly Father, I thank you for sending Jesus, the promised Messiah, to die for my sins. I admit that I am a sinner and I ask for your forgiveness on the basis of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I ask you to fill me with your Holy Spirit to empower me to serve you under the Lordship of Jesus Christ, Amen."
If you prayed that prayer in the humble sincerity of your heart then you have received everlasting life, which includes power to live right in this life and entrance into heaven in the afterlife!
Bill Nugent, Overcomer Ministries of West Harrison, New York, USA
(C) 2010 William P. Nugent, permission granted to email or republish if credit given
Read Bill Nugent's award winning Christian book, Lawful or Legalistic: How New Testament Believers Must Understand Old Testament Laws. For more information and to order click here.
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DEFENDING THE FAITH
APOLOGETIC ARTICLES
Bill Nugent currently writes a series of articles called "Defending the Faith" which, as the title suggests, defend the Christian faith from the many attacks leveled against it in our postmodern world.
The articles deal with such topics as evolution, UFOs, cults, modern/postmodern philosophy, liberal theology and popular culture. At the end of each article is an invitation to receive Christ as Savior and Lord. These articles are sent out over the Internet to several opt-in email lists. People who receive these articles are encouraged to resend them to their own lists and in this way reach their own unsaved relatives and friends with the Gospel.
All Defending the Faith articles are © 2009 William P. Nugent, permission is granted to email or republish if credit given.
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