For Most People, Big Government Has Replaced Elohim

My Experience at a Town Hall Meeting With Our Representative to the US Congress

Last night, my wife and I went to a town hall meeting of our state representative to the US Congress. This was my first time doing this. We had a question for him regarding a personal matter. He is a liberal Democrat; we didn’t vote for him, but he is our elected representative.

To our surprise, the room was packed with several hundred people. He was there for only one hour. Questions were answered on a lottery basis; each person had a ticket, which were then drawn. Only those people got to speak. Our ticket was not drawn. Afterwards, we were blessed to be able to talk with one of the Congressman’s aids who graciously promised to help us with our problem, for which we were most grateful.

Our representative was most polite and diplomatic when answering people’s questions. but clearly his paradigm and value system is different than ours. While we respect him, we don’t hold to his liberal views. Clearly, he doesn’t hold to a biblical worldview.

What amazed me was this. Nearly all the 20 or so people that were allowed to ask a question or to make a comment were of the same mindset: More government is the answer to their problems, not less government. Some of these problems are of their own making like the young lady who complained about the high cost of her college loans, which she and she alone signed for and is responsible for! Some of these problems are beyond man’s ability to control such as climate change. Some of these problems were caused by government intervention and regulation in the first place such as the high costs of medical care or college tuition. Some of these problems are caused by human nature such as big corporate greed, while others are caused by who knows what like alzheimer’s disease. I could go on and on. The bottom line was that, in the minds of these people, bigger government was the answer to every problem. Government was their savior. The state has taken the place of God!

Not only that, every time an opinion was expressed, each person in attendance had been a green or red piece of paper they could wave to express their opinion pro or con. Red was for disapproval, while green was for approval. Whenever a pro-big government opinion was expressed, a sea of green placards went up—enthusiastically waved. I was one of the few nay-sayers in the crowd.

I came away from that meeting feeling as if I were in an alien universe.

Because I have the light of Elohim’s word to guide me from within, I take responsibility for my own actions and don’t look to government for the answers to all of my problems. Because YHVH’s Word is a lamp unto my feet, I make the right decisions in the first place and eat the right food and live a clean lifestyle, so I don’t need government medical assistance or healthcare or financial assistance.  Because I follow the Bible’s admonitions and work hard six days a week to pay my bills, and because I tithe, I don’t need government welfare checks because my Elohim supplies all of my needs. HalleluYah! Because of the wisdom of the Bible, I don’t spent more than I can afford, I don’t covet what I can’t pay for, I’m content with and thankful for what I have. If I have needs, I pray to the Father in the name of Yeshua and he answers my prayers. I don’t have to put it on the charge card, or ask others to pay for it.

Unlike these other people, I was at this meeting because of a problem that is affecting me that was caused by government regulation and is costing me an extra $1000 per month. My problem has to do with so-called “affordable” government run healthcare. We were doing just fine with our  insurance coverage before the government got involved. Now we’re paying twice as much and getting much less the coverage. Thank you very much big government! I was doing just fine before you nosed into my business! Now, I’m seeking relief to get oppressive government off my back! I can manage my own life just fine without government meddling!

I took two things away from that meeting.

First, we’ve come a long way from the famous words of President John F. Kennedy back in the early 1960s, “Ask not what your government can do for you; ask rather what you can do for your government.” Have things changed since then! America has gone from a can-do, self-sufficient people, to a whining and sniveling bunch of cry babies looking to mommy to help them.

Second, the Bible says that a wise man builds his house on the rock. My rock is Yeshua the Messiah and the Word of Elohim, which is a light to guide me on the blessed path of truth in the darkness of this world. And YHVH supplies my needs and answers my prayers. If my main hope were in government to solve my problems, I’d be a most miserable person!

America has largely lost its moral and spiritual compass and is now a house built on sand! Will it stand when the storms come?

 

18 thoughts on “For Most People, Big Government Has Replaced Elohim

  1. Your such a spiritual stud Nathan!
    And such a rugged individualist! I wish more people could be like you! You are in good company with real men of Elohim like president Teddy Roosevelt and Harry Truman. Keep on truckin’ and continue being that bright and shining example of how men of compassion and faith should live!

    • I’m not sure how to respond to this, since the word “stud” has colloquial connotations I’m not really comfortable with. Thank you, anyway. I think that I hear your heart. As far as TR and HT go, they might have been rugged individualists, but not sure about the real men of Elohim part.

      Anyway, I receive the positive reinforcement and encouragement in the loving heart and spirit that was meant. Sometimes it get lonely out here!

      • Sorry. I didn’t mean for the word “stud” to be offensive or anything. I simply meant that you are the Man!!! If there was an election for who would be the pope of the Messyanic movement I would definitely vote for you Nathan! I mean, it’s like you and God have this direct connection and I have never read anything that you wrote to be wrong. (at least in my opinion) Plus, you are so humble and open minded! It simply blows me away! Thanks!

      • Please be careful now! 😉 I might lose my humility after reading your post!

        No apologies needed; no offense taken.

        Look, it’s all about Yeshua. He’s the real man here——the real stud if you will. We’re only who we are because of him. These aren’t just nice words, I mean this with everything in my heart and mind!!! He is my love and life and the ultimate example to follow. I’m simply doing my time in this life in preparation for being in his Presence for eternity. We’re just vessels and any good that’s in us is simply what Yeshua through his Spirit has put in there. That’s all—nothing more or less.

  2. The big bad wolf will huff and puff till he blows your house down…wonder where that came from?! but if its built on the rock it won’t fall…bless the name of YHVH!

  3. Although I agree with what you are saying about big government, there is another side to this story, especially with health care–Obama care was a big mistake–forcing everyone on that plan, even if they already had a good affordable plan, like you. However, there are those who need help with health care, like my daughter, who was taken off our insurance at 21, and because she had pre-existing conditions, could not get another plan. She has had a disabling disease for years, caused by an overwhelming infection, through no fault of her own, which caused her immune system to overreact, attacking her brain, causing it to swell, which led to seizures, dystonia, and many other problems. I quit my job to take care of her to avoid putting her in a facility. I thank God everyday for the blessing of Medicaid. We are not millionaires, so we could not afford to pay for all the medical care she needed. If not for the care she received, paid for by Medicaid, we might have lost her.

    Government programs can not be ALL or NOTHING! Not everyone needs help, but there are some who will need help, whether they rely on G-d or not. It is not about doing everything right. Keeping G-d’s laws doesn’t exempt anyone from the trails He gives us. If we love Him, He will test our love. I prayed for help and G-d sent a government program! G-d is in control of the government after all! But, if the Church would do its job to help those in need, we would not need the help of the government.

    I give G-d the glory for the Medicaid and also for the miracle of continued healing for my daughter. She is now able to attend on-line classes, two at a time, and plans to get a job to pay back her student loans and pay for her own insurance. She praises G-d for the ability to do even the smallest things. G-d has plans for her. It is this very experience of suffering that He is going to use, to touch the lives of many.

    May G-d bless you for this site. Your teachings are very inspiring.

    • You’ve made good points about which I can’t disagree. As you know, the Torah makes provision for those truly in need. Even the Torah contains aspects of “socialism” where “government” steps in to help those who truly need it.

      My wife had pre-existing conditions as well, which we had to work through and pay extra for. So I get that. The answer to the problem wasn’t government mandated healthcare, which is one step away from a single-payer system, which is the goal of the social engineers. There were other intermediate steps that could have been taken to address the flaws in our health care system that the “progressive” social engineers refused to consider. There needs to be government oversight to protect us from the greed of oligarchic, fascistic corporatism, but when big government is in bed with big corporations, then we the people have little or no hope. This is the system we see in place at the end of days as prophesied in Revelation 18 where the people become serfs on the government’s plantation. This is a whole other discussion, which we’ll leave for another day.

      Thanks for your comments!

      • I agree that the answer is not government mandated healthcare with a single payer system. And I agree that the Torah makes provision for those in need. Our government’s laws were originally designed on spiritual laws. But it is getting further and further away from it. Mandated healthcare is one indication. Like I said, “the answer is not all or nothing.” I hope that the Republicans can get their act together and pass something that addresses it without taking from those who are in need.

        It was fortunate for you that you were able to work extra and pay for your wife’s care. My daughter’s medical needs required catastrophic insurance care. We couldn’t even pay for one of the IV medications she needed for several years. We would have had to work night and day for ever to pay for all her medical care, even with the help we received from others. Like, I said, I don’t think of being dependent on the government, but thankful to G-d for providing what was needed for my daughter through the government.

        I think the real issue in this country is the cost of care, not just how to pay for it. Pharmaceuticals and equipment costs are outrageous. The epi-pen case is a good example of that. It is these big companies we are up against, and should be fighting. Instead of addressing healthcare with Obama care, it should have been to put limits on what these big companies can charge, as well as to help those who couldn’t pay for insurance. Let me say again, I am totally against mandated healthcare. It is not freedom. It is part of a conspiracy to bring our healthcare system down. Innovation would be stifled and we would loose control of making our own decisions. Like, the parents of the baby in Britain, who had to watch their baby die. I don’t want that. I had to fight enough for my daughter with the medical people. Fighting the government would have been a nightmare.

        Thanks for being there. This is really the first time I have discussed how I feel about this subject with anyone outside my family. I have learned so much from your site about G-d’s laws and living as He prescribes. Thank you.

      • Linda, what we really need in a huge way is to see supernatural healing for all of our health needs from Yeshua, the Great Physician!!!! In this way, we can circumvent the health care system and its high costs altogether. This is the realm that I attempt to operate in and to promote. None of us are completely there yet, but it has worked for me personally. My life is a living testimony of the efficacy of prayer and faith with regard to divine healing. All praise and glory to YHVH and his gracious mercy!

      • I think that Natan said a mouthful when he stated, “when big government is in bed with big corporations, then we the people have little or no hope.” That is the key and Both parties are as guilty. What about ‘Messianic Doctors Without Borders’ ? That might be a good pre Kingdom Idea aye? Or from what I understand, countries like Canada,Germany,France,Skandinavian countries etc. have universal healthcare and people can also choose to go to private sectors as well. I heard a colonoscopy costs like 20 bucks or so. Any thoughts on that? Is our country too big for sort kind of thing or is there just too much corruption?

  4. It is sad to see just how lost this nation has become. The deception is growing greater and greater everyday. Myself and the congregation I am apart of no doubt feel alone at times (in an earthly sense), however I’ve come to feel joy in being one of the few that is recognizing this insanity. I only pray that more will start to wake up, hear the call from YHWH and teshuva. It will be at that point that they will begin to search out the truth and they will be drawn to the light coming from the lamps of a peculiar people who are residing within the gates of Bozrah. I look forward, along with my brothers and sisters in the body, to welcoming them inside the gate. I try my best to stay patient and humble in the mean time.
    Thanks for all your writings and insight. It has tremendously helped me on my Halakhah
    Your Brother Nathan

    • Amein! We must keep our eyes on Yeshua and not lose our spiritual focus. As the days get darker, the saints are in a time of spiritual refinement in the wilderness of the peoples. In the mean time, we will occupy and stand faithfully proclaiming the most powerful and life-transforming message of the gospel as the enemy cringes and flees at the sound of it!

  5. Well said Natan….enjoyed your insight into that meeting …yes as true believers in Elohim…especially your strong stand…( stand firm stand strong !) you r not reliant on big govt & beuracracy…its like a huge octopus with many fierce tentacles…better away from that strong hold.

  6. Progressives are stumped. They are asking these questions over and over again on social media, TV, and radio:

    1) Why don’t Trump supporters turn against Trump even though he is doing things that hurt them? (like taking away their healthcare)

    2) Why do Republicans hate the Affordable Care Act, and why are they so transparently acting to give wealthy people a tax break by making healthcare unaffordable?

    Here is the short answer: All politics is moral. Supporting Trump – and gutting public healthcare resources in order to provide tax cuts for the wealthy – fits perfectly within the strict conservative moral worldview, which is hierarchical in nature. Voters don’t vote their self-interest. They vote their values.

    The longer answer requires a deeper explanation.

    Let’s start with the place where all ideas and questions originate – the brain.

    Most thought (as much as 98% by some accounts) is unconscious. It is carried out by neural circuitry in our brains. We have no conscious access to this circuitry, but it’s there. This is basic neuroscience.

    When it comes to politics, progressives and conservatives essentially have different brains. The unconscious beliefs conditioned in their brains are nearly exact opposites.

    Here are two statements you will almost certainly agree with if you’re a progressive:

    1) In Lincoln’s words, the American government should be a government of, by, and for the people.
    2) Citizens care about other citizens, and work through their government to provide public resources for all — resources required for the wellbeing and freedom of all.

    These imply just about all of progressive policies.

    With a government of the people, those in the government are not separated from those outside. There is two way communication and transparency, and response to the people’s concerns.

    With a government by the people, those in the government have the same basic experiences as those outside. The government therefore responds with empathy to the basic needs of its citizens.

    A government for the people cares for its citizens and gives necessary help as a matter of course. There is no democracy without care.

    The second principle – the need for public resources – has been essential to American democracy from the start. From the beginning, the Private Depended on Public Resources.

    Public resources, including roads and bridges along with public education, a national bank, a patent office, courts for business cases, interstate commerce support, and the criminal justice system are necessary to have private enterprise. These public resources include protection — not just a military and police, but protection from harm by unscrupulous corporations either by poisoning products, the air, water, etc. or by unscrupulous banks, mortgage holders, and investors. These protections are carried out by “regulations”: protective laws and agencies.

    Over time those resources have included sewers, water and electricity, research universities and research support, and technologies like computers and satellite phones.

    Private enterprise and private life utterly depend on public resources. These public resources provide freedom: freedom to start and run a business, and freedom in private life.

    You’re not free if you are not educated, because your possibilities in life are limited.

    You’re not free if you have cancer and no health insurance.

    You’re not free if you have no income — or not enough for basic needs.

    And if you work for a large company, you may not be free without a union. Unions free you from corporate servitude. They free you to have a living wage, safety on the job, regular working hours, a pension, health benefits, dignity.

    If you’re a progressive, you most likely agree with these ideas. If you’re a conservative, you may be apoplectic by now.

    It should be clear that most progressive policies follow from these basic, largely implicit and unconscious, principles. When we state them consciously and overtly, we can see where questions (1) and (2) come from.

    Why should Trump voters support him when his government does not supply necessary care, when it can hurt them deeply, threatening their health and possibly their lives by, say, taking away their health care? Why should Republicans, who are Americans after all, hate the Affordable Care Act, which was for the people, and which supplies care of the most essential kind for tens of millions of Americans?

    From a progressive point a view, questions (1) and (2) are mysterious, especially when you ask them together. What do they have to do with each other — support for a Trump who harms them and hate for government care?

    One Answer to Both Questions: Moral Politics

    All Politics Is Moral. Progressives and conservatives have opposing moral worldviews. When a political leader proposes a policy, the assumption it that the policy is right, not wrong or morally irrelevant. No political leader says, “Do what I say because it’s evil. It’s the devil’s work, but do it!” Nor will a political leader say, “My policy proposal is morally irrelevant. It’s neither right nor wrong. It doesn’t really matter. Just do it.”
    Everyone likes to think of himself or herself as a good person. That means that your moral system is a major part of your identity. To vote against your moral identity would be to reject your self.

    What Are Conservative Moral Values?

    In my 1996 book, Moral Politics, I examined how political values tend to arise from the fact that we are all first governed in our families. The way that your ideal family is governed is a model for the ideal form of government. This is often a matter of how your real family is governed, though some people rebel and adopt an opposite ideal.

    Conservative moral values arise from what I call the Strict Father Family.

    In this family model, father knows best. He decides right and wrong. He has the ultimate authority to make sure his children and his spouse do what he says, because what he says is right. Many conservative spouses accept this worldview, uphold the father’s authority, and are strict in those realms of family life that they control.

    In this moral worldview, it is his moral duty to punish his children painfully when they disobey. Harsh punishment is necessary to ensure that they will obey him (do what is right) and not just do what feels good. Through physical discipline they are supposed to become disciplined, internally strong, and able to prosper in the external world.

    What if they don’t prosper? That means they are not disciplined, and therefore cannot be moral, and so deserve their poverty. In this conservative view, the poor are seen as lazy and undeserving while the rich deserve their wealth. Responsibility is thus taken to be personal responsibility, not social responsibility. What you become is only up to you, not society. You are responsible for yourself, not for others.

    The Conservative Moral Hierarchy

    The strict father logic extends further. The basic idea is that authority is justified by morality (the strict father version), and that, in a world ordered by nature, there should be (and traditionally has been) a moral hierarchy in which those who have traditionally dominated should dominate.

    Why do conservatives love Trump (who harms them) and hate healthcare (which helps them)? It makes more sense when you consider the conservative moral hierarcy.

    The Conservative Moral Hierarchy:
    • God above Man
    • Man above Nature
    • The Disciplined (Strong) above the Undisciplined (Weak)
    • The Rich above the Poor
    • Employers above Employees
    • Adults above Children
    • Western culture above other cultures
    • America above other countries
    • Men above Women
    • Whites above Nonwhites
    • Christians above non-Christians
    • Straights above Gays

    Sound familiar?

    On the whole, conservative policies flow from the Strict Father worldview and this hierarchy. Trump is an extreme case (he wants to be the ultimate strict father), though very much in line with conservative policies of the Republican party.

    (Please bear in mind that many, if not most, conservatives are bi-conceptual, that is, “moderates” in that they have a strict father major worldview together with a nurturant minor worldview on some issues or other. Those moderating issues vary from person to person. But in their major worldview, they fit the Strict Father pattern.)

    The Two Questions

    1) Why don’t Trump supporters turn against Trump even though he is doing things that hurt them? (like taking away their healthcare)

    Most Trump supporters have Strict Father morality. It determines their sense of right and wrong. They see Trump as bringing America back to their values in a powerful way, making their values respectable and in line with the way the country is being run. Trump’s presidency has given them self-respect. Their self-respect is more important than the details of his policies, even if some of those policies hurt them. On the whole, they like the way he has restructured the government and what he is doing throughout the government.

    2) Why do Republicans hate the Affordable Care Act, and why are they so transparently acting to give wealthy people a tax break by making healthcare unaffordable?

    Strict Father morality insists on a particular notion of self-responsibility. Being taken care of by “the government” is seen as immoral because it gives the government an authority above strict father principles. The care of the Affordable Care Act in itself violated the moral sense and the very identity of conservatives – even those who benefit greatly from it.

    Moreover, the Affordable Care Act attempted to help people lower on the conservative Moral Hierarchy: the poor, African-Americans and other minorities, women, and so on.

    The Mandate to buy insurance went directly against self-responsibility overall, giving Americans responsibility for their fellow Americans. It also went against the laissez-faire market ideology because it put constraints on insurance companies.

    And why do conservatives love tax breaks for the rich? Because, in the Conservative Moral Hierarchy, the rich are better than the poor. The poor deserve their poverty. They rich deserve their wealth.

    Conservative hatred of the Affordable Care Act makes sense when you understand the mechanics of their moral worldview.

    The Importance of Understanding

    These two questions provided an opportunity to write about moral bases of progressive and conservative thought and how they manifest in our politics. At a time when the country is tearing itself apart, when progressives and conservatives each see the other as immoral and un-American, and as attacking what is right, we must begin to understand why this is happening. We won’t be able to address the problem until we do.

    • Thank you for your comments although they’re too lengthy for the comments section of a typical blog including this one.

      Even though your comments are contrary to main philosophical tenets of this blog and grossly mischaracterize my philosophical views, I am not opposed to counterpoints when presented intelligently and respectfully as you have done. As the Bible wisely states, iron sharpens iron, and when our beliefs are challenged, as you have done, this opens the channels for dialog allowing, hopefully, the advancement of truth.

      This blog is primarily a Bible study blog, and it’s from this perspective and worldview that we operate. Thus I will answer you accordingly. I will be brief and to the point. The older I get, the more I see the value in saying more with fewer words.

      The God/Elohim of the Bible isn’t sectarian. He is neither a Democrat or Republican, a progressive or a conservative, a socialist or a capitalist. He is on the side of truth—his truth. Therefore he can’t be pigeon-holed into labels. As a follower of him neither can I. Truth as the Bible defines it can be found in many areas. In the political arena, the so-called Progressives have some truth as do the Conservatives. In determine who to follow, the questions to ask are these: What is truth? Who determines it? Who enforces it thus legitimizing it? How much truth does a person or group have? One can have one percent truth and 99 percent lives, or vice versa. Which is better? Who determines this?

      The idea that “all politics is moral” quite frankly is laughable. That presumes that all men are moral. If that were the case, then why are there politicians in jail convicted of crimes? Was Mao, Stalin, Hitler, et al moral? They were politicians.

      The problem here is that the social evolutionist presumes that man is evolving upward and improving morally. If that were the case, then why, when left to themselves, do things in the physical world naturally go from a state of order to disorder? That law of physics alone disproves the evolutionary model right there. This is true of humans as well. At this point, I’m reminded of the book and movie, “The Lord of the Flies.”

      Next, your thesis presume that man is innately good. This is the typical foundation upon which cosmic or secular humanists base their beliefs. This is neither a biblical worldview and nor logical one. If man is innately good, then why all the problems, sin, disease, pollution, war, criminality, misery, suffering, etc. on the earth? The secular humanist and Marxist models blame this on man’s environment and how they were raised (i.e. nature and nurture). If they can just manipulate (called social engineering) the environment (political, economic and social systems) and destroy religion, then we’ll have paradise on earth. Hmm?! Show me where that’s ever worked? Castro, Pol Pot, Mao, Stalin, Hugo Chavez, etc., etc. have all failed miserably!

      The Bible, on the other hand, teaches that men are innately sinful and morally debased. He needs redemption, deliverance and to be brought to a higher level through divine intervention. He needs a hand up, not a hand out. Elohim provides the former, governments of men the latter. The former improves a person from the inside out; the latter enslaves and often debases a person!

      You see, the political progressive looks to government to supply all of its needs and to fix all of its problems. Government has become their god. This is called the religion of statism. This seems to be the ladder you have leaned your ladder up against. The problem is that government is run by sinful men who are not always moral. Therefore, putting one’s faith in government is regressive, not progressive. That’s why I view Progressivism largely as a joke. It’s not working in Europe. Why do you think it will work in America? A wise man learns from other people’s mistakes (and from history), so he doesn’t have to make them himself.

      Over the history of the world governments have come and gone. There is nothing new under the sun. Men still have the same social ills they always have. So why should I trust government? Usually it’s the source of the problem, not the solution. Government enslaves, not liberates.

      I could go on and on. And I have only made it to the fourth paragraph of your rather lengthy comment. I shall stop here.

      On this blog today, I posted an article I wrote some years ago about the nature of secular humanism—the devil’s religion. It goes to the heart of some of the issues you raise. You’re welcome to read it. It probably won’t change your mind, but at least you’ll have a better idea of what the Bible has to say about it.

      • The Bible also sais that we were “created in the Image of Elohim” Gen 1:27 and…”he that touches you touches the apple of his eye”. Zechariah 2:8 and “ye shall be as gods and…and sons of the Most High” psalm 82:6

        Shalom to You all!

  7. Gerald Lankershim’s comments are plagiarized from George Lakoff. A simple google search on key phrases will reveal this. Lankershim appears to have done a simple copy and paste from one of Lakoff’s articles. Note the phrase “In my 1996 book, Moral Politics.” That book is by Lakoff, not Lankershim.

    • I don’t have the time or energy to vet out each comment that is made on my blog by people I don’t know. I can tell you that my blog posts are not plagiarized. For me, that’s the most important thing. I think most readers of this blog would agree.

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