Good morning,
How are you today my loved ones? I hope you’re all in good spirit, and that would be the Spirit of Yahweh which leads and guides us into all truth. I’ve been in a very pensive mood this weekend, and my disposition resembled the weather outdoors, sometimes wet and gloomy, sometimes bright and hopeful, caught within the awkward phase of a mind in shifting thoughts. Ladies and gentleman, debating is good! Not only does it bring illumination to topics that would otherwise remain shrouded in a cloud of ambiguity, but it also shows us a little more of ourselves, what moves us, where our passions lie and, perhaps more important than all, what drives us to action. In Sabbath School this week we had a lively debate about a question “thanks be to Yahweh” that was broached for the first time within our walls. It is a question which strikes to the very core of our beliefs, and so we laid aside the story of Jonah and the Whale, and the intense spiritual relevance of teaching ten-year converts the significance of Baptism, and took on the 800 pound gorilla that has been looming in the corner of the sanctuary trying to get our attentions:
What is our role as Believers with regard to social injustice?
My answer: I thought the answer was simple. We should confront social injustice and tear down the strongholds of the wicked. We should let our voices be heard from the mountaintops as Yahshua did when he told the people that the meek would inherit the earth. We should stand up for the disenfranchised; the people who have been taken advantage of by this evil system in which we live. We should do our jobs as the salt of the earth by giving flavor to the bland, unfeeling, unpalatable world. We should do our jobs as the light of the world by uncovering the inequities which seek to find refuge in the cracks and crevices. Just as Yahshua was a voice that brought knowledge and wisdom of the Kingdom to the least in society, just as he showed them a better way and stood up for them when they were being persecuted by those in power at the time, so should we devote our lives to the service of setting the captives free. What better way to bring freedom to the people than by attacking the very system which ensures they remain in a state of want.
Opposing View #1: First and foremost we are the children of Yahweh. we see the injustices being carried out around us every day, and we are sensitive to the suffering of the people but our place is not in protest of these things. We should fast and pray for a better day to come about, we should not be joining hands with the heathen on picket lines. We are set as watchmen to warn the people of impending destruction, not to save them from the destruction. Besides, Yahweh has already pronounced judgment on the earth, fighting against the wickedness of man is like fighting against prophecy. What if we died standing in opposition to things like ‘police brutality’ and the blatant disregard for the impoverished people upon whose backs the small percentage of the rich exist? What would become of our souls? Yahweh only promised eternal life if we died standing up for Yahshua and for His Word. Just as in the days of Noah when Yahweh pronounced judgment on the earth, He commissioned Noah to warn the people, so are we to do the same in these days.
My Rebuttal: I find it quite strange that you should bring up the story of Noah to support your viewpoint when if we examine the story more carefully I think you will find that it opposes your view. Yes Yahweh commanded Noah to stand in the gap and to warn the people of the flood that was coming, but aren’t we missing a huge part of this story, I seem to remember something about a boat. Yahweh not only warned the people through Noah but he also provided them with an alternative through the action of Noah. Yes we are called to be watchmen and to warn the people, but there comes a time when the watchmen have to come down from that tower and fight. Who needs watchmen in the middle of a war when the enemy has already breached the borders. This is the time when watchmen become soldiers. Our place may not be on picket lines, that I will concede, but is not to hide ourselves inside the Temple either. As children of Yahweh we should be declaring judgment on this generation, as Yahshua was a thorn in the sides of the Pharisees so must we make the powers of today uncomfortable. As for the loss of life in this struggle, I do believe that Yahweh will accept that ultimate sacrifice in fighting against spiritual wickedness in ‘high places’. This is the danger of serving Yahweh ‘only’ because of promise of eternal life after death, instead of serving Yahweh because of who He is, as Pastor Grant so eloquently put it. He that clings to his life shall lose it, but he that lays down his life shall find it.
Opposing View #2: How can we stand in league with the unrighteous? These are not our brothers and sisters, so why should we stand up for them? If sinners are doing sinful things then evil follows. The children of Yahweh are under his protection, they are covered by the righteousness of the blood of the Messiah. Those who have not accepted Yahshua yet are subject to the horrors of this natural life and our place is not to stand in defense of them.
My Response: The most noble thing a man can do is to stand against injustice when it does not affect his life directly. Case in point – Mary Magdelene. Yahshua came across Mary as she was running for her life. Men were chasing her to put her to death for the sin of adultery, a sin according to the scripture, she was indeed guilty of. Yahshua stood up for her against evil men who would have stoned her outside the city walls. The Messiah stood in defense of an adulteress against the injustice of these men. The system in which we live is designed to punish the under-privileged and to overlook the faults of the powerful and wealthy. Case in point – Eliot Spitzer. This man was appointed to uphold the laws of man, but every day he would, in essence, cast the first stone. He placed people in jail for the very crimes he was practicing, and has yet to face the judgment he was so willing to dole out. As Believers in the Righteousness of Yahweh should we not attack such a partial, unjust system. It is not standing up for the unrighteous as much as it is standing against the wickedness of Babylon. And what better way to draw men unto Yahweh than by standing in their defense, as Yahshua drew the adulteress, and not only her but countless others who were looked upon as ‘unrighteous’ and the refuse of society. Who are we to judge? I think we may be under the misconception that this truth belongs to us, but it doesn’t, we are only servants of the Most High and he has given us an edict not only to ‘go into all the world preaching the good news’ but also showing signs of the Spirit he placed in us through action, showing the people a better way, and not just telling people of the Ark of safety, but showing them to the Ark, which is Yahshua.
Opposing View #3: The Disciples of Yahshua did not protest. When Paul and Silas were thrown into jail nobody picketed to have them released. They simply praised Yahweh because they knew he was more powerful than the bars that kept them locked in, and Yahweh delivered them from their afflictions. If we follow their example we will not show physical resistance to evil but rather carry on our battle spiritually. For what can be gained if we give our lives fighting against the immoral Babylon, we are in this world but not of this world.
My Response: The Disciples did not protest? Are you kidding? Where am I? How did Paul and Silas get arrested in the first place if it was not resisting the system that they were under. Each of the Disciples lost their lives in resistance to the government at the time, some of them were crucified, some burnt alive, others tortured, and in Paul’s case beheaded. They did not partake in the system, hence the difference between them and us. We compromise so we can remain comfortable and suck at the teats of Mother Babylon, so it is no wonder we resist the idea of resisitance. John the Baptist resisted the system, choosing to live his short life in caves and to dress himself with camel hair, and to find his sustenance from nature. He resisted evil Herod, shouting his unrighteousness at the top of his lungs. This is what got him thrown into prison and eventually beheaded, I ask you – was this not resistance? Stephen was stoned to death because he stood against injustice. Peter was crucified upside down (in protest!).
In conclusion
We cannot, as a people, afford to sit idle anymore. Whether we call it protest or whether we give it some other, more digestive name is of no moment. We have to take up arms and fight. Not literally with stones and fire bombs as I said in Sabbath School, but with the Word of Yahweh as our sword, and his righteousness as our shield. by pointing out the evils of this age in which we live and standing up for the downtrodden. I know its a scary prospect but Yahweh has not given us the Spirit of fear. Eventually they will burst through the doors and begin handcuffing our ministers. Eventually they will separate family members. This capitalistic machine that we live in will not stop, and it will not be negotiated with, but Yahweh has already said in His Word that the needy shall not always be forgotten. Let equal rights and justice prevail, and may the way of the heathen perish and be driven away as the chafff. This is the generation of those who will not compromise, but will tear down the wicked, no matter where they rise from.
This is the generation of Revolution.
Marc Wellington
Scriptures of The Day
Matthew 3:7-10 (New King James Version)
But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that Yahweh is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
Hebrews 12:4 (New King James Version)
You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin.
Quote of The Day
“History will have to record that the greatest tragedy of this period of social transition was not the strident clamor of the bad people, but the appalling silence of the good people. – Martin Luther King: Civil Rights Activist; Protestor of an Unrighteous System; Martyr
Have a blessed day everybody!
