This is one of the most important subjects in the NT. It’s totally relevant for SELF-GOVERNING PEOPLE. The reason is because it’s how you GROW UP AND BECOME A MATURE ADULT with minimal interference from outside influences and forces. This is one of Paul’s KEYS for Christian living. Here’s one of his self-explanatory texts:
Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day…. (Colossians 2:16)
That sounds ALL INCLUSIVE, right? In order to get a better understanding of what that text means, you have to know what he’s talking about. First off, he’s NOT telling you that you do NOT have to obey the OT food laws, or the Sabbath, festivals, etc. Look at the words and take them at face value: He’s saying, “NO ONE IS TO ACT AS YOUR JUDGE”. Then he lists a few things they CAN judge: food, Sabbath, etc. He’s definitely NOT telling you: “You do not have to obey the Mosaic Law.”
So what’s his point? Simple: GOVERNMENT HAS NO AUTHORITY TO TELL YOU HOW TO OBEY GOD. The government operatives that did that in Paul’s day he called “JUDAIZERS”:
But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter before them all, ‘If you, being a Jew, live in the manner of Gentiles and not as the Jews, why do you compel Gentiles to live as Jews?’ (Galatians 2:14)
Here’s the Greek text that verse is translated from:
ἀλλ᾽ ὅτε εἶδον ὅτι οὐκ ὀρθοποδοῦσιν πρὸς τὴν ἀλήθειαν τοῦ εὐαγγελίου, εἶπον τῷ Κηφᾷ ἔμπροσθεν πάντων· εἰ σὺ Ἰουδαῖος ὑπάρχων ἐθνικῶς καὶ οὐχὶ Ἰουδαϊκῶς ζῇς, πῶς τὰ ἔθνη ἀναγκάζεις ἰουδαΐζειν (Galatians 2:14)
The last Greek word in that verse is transliterated: “joudaizein”, or JUDAIZE. I believe this is the only occurrence of the term in the NT. More on this in another blog entry. Bottom line: What does JUDAIZE mean? In that verse, it obviously means FORCING SOME CITIZENS OF ONE NATION TO OBEY THE LAW OF ANOTHER NATION. Again, note the words: “you, being a Jew … compel Gentiles to live as Jews”. In this particular case, it’s JEWS FORCING GENTILES TO LIVE LIKE JEWS. IOW, it means Jews are forcing non-Jews to obey Jewish law. Pretty self-explanatory text. You can read more about it in Moor’s “Judaism”, Vol. 1, Ch 7.
Suffice to say that Paul was condemning the Apostle Peter for requiring Christians to be controlled by 2nd Temple GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS, who were forcing them (as law enforcement agents) to obey the laws of 2nd Temple Israel. How did they do that? Simple: These Christians would become 2nd Temple CITIZENS by being CIRCUMCISED (including obeying all the requirements of immigration), THEREBY BEING OBLIGATED TO OBEY ALL THE LAWS OF 2nd TEMPLE ISRAEL.
So why was Paul so ‘down’ on this? Because after Christ procured our redemption with God, God CHANGED HOW HIS THEOCRACY IS ADMINISTRATED. No longer did Israel have the lead in this. Instead, God ‘set aside’ the nation Israel due to their disobedience. It happened in 722 BC and again in 586 BC. Then it happened again in 70 AD. “Three strikes and yoooooooooour OUT!” If that doesn’t speak volumes on what God thinks about “the chosen people” TODAY, then nothing does.
But there’s much more to this, at least according to Paul. Don’t forget: PAUL AND CHRIST’S 12 APOSTLES WERE “JEWISH”. When you become familiar with the NT literature, especially Paul and John, you see that they make a BIG DEAL about the Holy Spirit. Why is that? Because, after God raised Christ from the dead, Christ changed the MARK OF CITIZENSHIP in God’s Theocracy from CIRCUMCISION to the INDWELLING HOLY SPIRIT. That is a MAJOR change in government policy on God’s part. Check it out, read John 16. Look up the word “spirit” in an exhaustive concordance for John’s gospel and see what he has to say about this.
Paul considers the Holy Spirit the KEY UNITING FACTOR among God’s people today:
… being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
(Ephesians 4:3)
The Holy Spirit creates the unity, and it’s our job to maintain it through PEACE, not war, backbiting, slander, scheming, stealing, etc. NO POLITICS IN GOD’S KINGDOM. Check out Paul’s lists of sins and wrongdoing in his letters to see what I’m talking about. For example, take a look at Romans 1:18-32. Notice: “inventors of evil”. Then go to 1 Timothy 1:8-11. There are many more lists in Paul’s letters. I’m sure he knew well the kinds of evil, sneaky, tricky, violent schemes that people did, himself having been in law enforcement for many years. Remember: “inventors of evil”. That’s a good one!
Now go look up in a concordance the word “spirit” in Paul’s letters. You will see how central the Holy Spirit is to God’s Theocracy and to living the Christian life, in Paul’s mind.
The KEY function of the Holy Spirit in God’s Theocracy is YOUR MARK OF CITIZENSHIP. Notice what the MARK OF CITIZENSHIP was for Israel in the Old Covenant government system, which began with Abraham – CIRCUMCISION (Genesis 17):
9 God said further to Abraham, ‘Now as for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations. 10 This is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: every male among you shall be circumcised. 11 And you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be the sign of the covenant between Me and you. 12 And every male among you who is eight days old shall be circumcised throughout your generations, a servant who is born in the house or who is bought with money from any foreigner, who is not of your descendants. 13 A servant who is born in your house or who is bought with your money shall surely be circumcised; thus shall My covenant be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant. 14 But an uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that person shall be cut off from his people; he has broken My covenant.’
Pretty self-explanatory. Covenant + Circumcision = Citizenship, starting with Abraham. God was in the process of building a nation, just like he promised Abraham in Genesis 12:12:
Now YHWH said to Abram, “Go forth from your country, And from your relatives
And from your father’s house, To the land which I will show you; And I will make you a great nation ….
That nation consisted of the descendants of Abraham, through his son Isaac, through Isaac’s son Jacob, then through Jacob’s 12 sons who became the 12 patriarchs of the 12 Tribes of ancient Israel, who ‘begot’ all the descendants for many generations until God made the Sinai covenant with those descendants. Aside from a small percentage of Gentiles, Israel was pretty much ONE BLOOD LINE. And BY LAW, on the 8th DAY after birth, EVERY MALE was required to be CIRCUMCISED. Why? Because that was the MARK OF CITIZENSHIP in Israel:
And you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be the sign of the covenant between Me and you. (Genesis 17:11, see context above)
Now YHWH said to Abram, “I will make you a great nation …”
And He [God] gave him [Abraham] the covenant of circumcision; and so Abraham became the father of Isaac, and circumcised him on the eighth day; and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs. (Acts 7:8ff) [This is Steven’s rehash of 2nd Temple Israel’s foundations.]
So under the MOSAIC COVENANT which Moses MEDIATED between God and Israel, CIRCUMCISION was the MARK OF CITIZENSHIP. But under the New Covenant of Christ, the MARK OF CITIZENSHIP was changed. It became the INDWELLING HOLY SPIRIT, that is, GOD LIVING IN YOUR BODY:
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? (1 Corinthians 6:19)
Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and anointed us is God, who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge. (2 Corinthians 1:21-22)
… In Him 11 also we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to His purpose who works all things after the counsel of His will, 12 to the end that we who were the first to hope in Christ would be to the praise of His glory. 13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory. (Ephesians 1)
Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. (Ephesians 4:30)
I’d call that a MUCH BETTER “mark of citizenship” than under the Moses covenant, wouldn’t you? Although you can’t become UN-circumcised, you certainly can’t take it to the grave with you, because your body rots. But you certainly CAN take God’s Holy Spirit with you to the grave and beyond. Much better deal, it seems to me.
So what does all this MARK OF CITIZENSHIP stuff have to do with SELF-GOVERNMENT vs. LAW ENFORCEMENT? Simple:
Under ancient Israel’s government system you had the obligation to obey the laws of the time, and if you didn’t you got in trouble, just like governments operate today. You can bet things got corrupt and oppressive too. But under Jesus Christ’s government system, you have NO BUREAUCRATS RULING OVER YOU. Instead, you have GOD LIVING “INSIDE YOU” helping you live-out your life the way He wants. THAT is the difference between CIRCUMCISION and “the INDWELLING”; MEN RULING OVER YOU vs. GOD RULING OVER YOU. THAT is what Paul was referring to when he mandated “NO ONE IS TO ACT AS YOUR JUDGE”.
That’s also why Paul came down so hard on the judaizers. They were shoving their government agenda down the throats of all these Jesus people, saying that NOBODY could be a citizen in God’s Theocracy UNLESS they were Israeli citizens. That automatically meant you had to obey all the applicable 2nd Temple laws, and become subject to the 2nd Temple GOVERNMENT LAW ENFORCERS, which also meant you had to “PAY YOUR TAXES” and whatever PENALTIES might arise, besides all the other government stuff. But that’s not how the new Jesus system worked, according to Paul and the other NT writers.
These judaizers were a real threat to the existence of Christ’s people. Paul got so frustrated and angry with the judaizers that he CUSSED THEM OUT:
I wish that those who are troubling you would even mutilate themselves.
(Galatians 5:12)
Think about that: Paul’s exclaiming, “THEY NEED TO RIP-INTO THEIR WIENERS!” He must’ve been pretty ticked to issue that rant IN WRITING to many groups of “church people”! Think of little old Matilda sitting in the front row hearing THAT! “Oh my Gawd, what’s this world coming to!” LOL!!
Besides all that, when you get to know the NT as a book of law and politics, you get to see how much of the NT involves LAW: Mosaic law, 2nd Temple law, Christ’s law, the Apostles’ law, Roman law, etc. That’s what the term “walk” means in the NT. Like I said in a previous blog: “Halakha” is the Hebrew noun, which cognate verb is HaLaK, which translated into NT Greek is “peripateo”, being then translated into our English language Bibles as “WALK”. Go look up that word in an exhaustive concordance in Paul’s letters to see how many times he uses it. You’ll be amazed!
So what does “walk” mean? In modern lingo, it means REGULATE. IOW, Paul’s telling us that we need to REGULATE OURSELVES accordingly. According to what? “In a manner worthy of our calling”. What “calling”? CITIZENS OF GOD’S THEOCRACY, that’s what. Our calling is to HOLINESS. But this is a huge subject that falls into the theological category of SANCTIFICATION (or, living the Christian life). More on this in another blog series. Paul is very explicit about what is important and what isn’t, in terms of law and law enforcement. It will take a lot of blogs to show all of this, so now’s not the time.
One book that really does a good job of showing the difference between Mosaic Law and 2nd Temple “halakha” is Peter Tomson’s book, “Paul and the Jewish Law”. His best part is where he talks about ANTI-IDOLATRY HALAKHA AND FOOD LAWS. Jesus, too, was particular in his teachings on the law and law enforcement, especially in the examples of his teachings on record in the “sermon on the Mount” (Matthew 5 ff). They are classic legal analysis for the time in which he lived. More on them in another blog. Our studies in Matthew are what motivated me to begin this blog in the first place.
Let’s review an important fact: Historically speaking, Israel was the ONLY Theocracy ever to exist throughout the span of human history. As a result, the “Jews” held a very high opinion of themselves as a nation. After all, THEY had THE CREATOR as their national God. Consequently, they figured that THEY ALONE were the “gateway to God”. And if ANYBODY knew what God required of humanity, it was THEM! They were, after all, technically right, except for one pesky little detail: God rejected them for disobeying His law and corrupting their government and social institutions.
How so? They legislated GENTILE laws and obeyed THEM. Along with that came all the CORRUPTION of non-YHWH societies, because the corruption was BUILT INTO THE LAWS AND THE ADMINISTRATIVE SYSTEM that enforces them. Along with all that political corruption and social oppression came the typical “HEDONISM”. THAT was so far beyond “the mind of God” that He had to do something about it. Check out one example:
30 For the sons of Judah have done that which is evil in My sight,” declares YHWH, “they have set their detestable things in the house which is called by My name, to defile it. 31 They have built the high places of Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, which I did not command, and it did not come into My mind. (Jeremiah 7)
Since Israel ‘dropped the ball’ as a nation regarding God’s purpose for them, God had to adjust His plans a bit. God is in the business of “reconciliation”. He wants ALL HUMANITY to be in a “relationship” with Him, and He intended ancient Israel to be the MEDIATOR between Himself and the rest of the world. Here’s how the NT writers say that:
18 Now … God, … reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us [Apostles] the ministry of reconciliation, 19 namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and He has committed to us [Apostles] the word of reconciliation. (2 Corinthians 5)
Unfortunately, Israel’s law and government system had developed to the point that it blockaded the Gentile world from being part of God’s Theocracy. They did it, technically speaking, through the enactment of their “anti-idolatry halakha” (long story for another blog entry). God loves THE WORLD, not just Israel. Why? Because it’s HIS CREATION, and He is , and wants the best for EVERYBODY. Israel was very Important to God in the greater scheme of things: He wanted Israel to be the AMBASSADORIAL NATION who would ‘show the way’ to all the other nations of the world. In other words, YHWH wanted ALL HUMANITY to be under His rule and authority, with the nation Israel as His MEDIATOR (Exodus 19):
5 ‘Now then, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be My own possession among all the peoples, for all the earth is Mine; 6 and you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words that you [Moses] shall speak to the sons of Israel.
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession …. (1 Peter 2:9) [talking about new covenant persons, aka: “Christians”]
That’s what a priest is: A MEDIATOR between God and men, whether it’s just one man, or a well-organized group of people like a nation, that’s what a MEDIATOR does. It’s kind of like an attorney, except minus all the laziness, self-indulgence, lying, scheming, and money-grubbing … minus the personality-saturated corruption. In a word: REPRESENTATIVE.
However, due to political corruption and human failings, Israel refused, so God accomplished HIS plan by procuring redemption through Jesus Christ. That’s when world history changed course for Israel. NOW the entire world could be saved from the mess they made for themselves by joining Christ’s Theocracy. THAT’s what this world is all about. THAT’s what “Christians” are training for in God’s Theocracy in the coming ages.
So Paul was telling everybody that ISRAEL IS NOT CENTRAL TO GOD’S PLAN OF SAVING THE WORLD (Romans 11). But INSTEAD, Jesus Christ IS. That’s why Paul discredited CIRCUMCISION. Circumcision – that is, CITIZENSHIP IN ISRAEL – is no longer the necessary condition for being in God’s Theocracy. Moreover, not working with Israel any longer, that is, until the apocalyptic era begins. More on that in another blog entry. So, saying: You do NOT have to become an Israeli citizen to be in God’s Theocracy. That’s why Paul was so down on circumcision. Let’s face it: Circumcision is not bad in and of itself. It’s actually good for people’s hygiene. But as a POLITICAL TOOL, it became TABOO to God’s plans for humanity, . It’s really that simple.
So when you read CIRCUMCISION in Paul, think: CITIZENSHIP IN ISRAEL. Take another look at Ephesians 1:
… In Him also we have obtained an inheritance … the Holy Spirit of promise … is given as a pledge of our inheritance …. (vv 11, 13-14)
Therein Paul clearly states that today’s people of God DO have an INHERITANCE with God. What that is, we have yet to discover (besides the idea of being a part of God’s theocratic government). But suffice to say that God provided us who are citizens of His Theocracy with some sort of heritage. That’s what Israel’s promise was all about.
So you can see WHAT the Judaizers were doing: Intimidating people into becoming Israeli citizens, by falsely alleging citizenship in God’s Theocracy was impossible UNLESS you were a citizen of 2nd Temple Israel. So under Christ’s rule, you did NOT have to OBEY ALL THE 2nd TEMPLE LAWS to be a citizen of God’s Theocracy. That’s what the Judiazers were peddling as GOVERNMENT OPERATIVES. They were NOT “Christian Jews”, they were 2nd Temple Israeli government agents, like the FBI in the USA today. Imagine how you’d feel if the FBI showed up at your door?! Well, that’s how Peter felt. It’s also how the early “Christians” felt (remember: they were all JEWS at the beginning). Notice that these government operatives “crept in unnoticed” (Jude 4) into the Jesus covenant communities. Basically, they were political infiltrators and agitators. They were perpetrating ‘sedition’ in God’s Jesus-Theocracy. My oh my, such politics “in church”!
What does all this have to do with “Love”?
Simple: You don’t need a man to tell you how to obey God’s law, because as a “new covenant” Christian, you have God’s indwelling Holy Spirit to help you learn how. It’s really that simple. That’s how you accomplish “self-government”, which is what God expects AND REQUIRES of all His people. And if you don’t, then you AREN’T!
Consequently, regarding “food and drink”, “Sabbath”, “festivals”, etc. Paul was telling the Christians that THEY THEMSELVES (not 2nd Temple Israeli politocrats and activists) were to determine HOW to observe WHAT the Apostles taught them. And guess where they got the information about WHAT to observe? Simple: The LAW OF MOSES. What other book did they have commanding them to observe the Sabbath or other “days”? What about “foods”, etc.? This isn’t rocket science. You just need to get to the history of it AND KEEP IT SIMPLE.
If you’re a church goer, you just need to purge from your head the COGNITIVE DISSONANCE you’ve been brainwashed with all your life. FACT OVER FICTION. HISTORY OVER DOGMA. It’s very liberating when you begin to experience it. And you’ll find this to be the antidote to ANARCHY and the “no government” movements of today. It is also the antidote to OPPRESSIVE BUREAUCRATIC REGULATORY GOVERNMENT. Think about it: If you’re doing your level best to do what God requires, by obeying His law, then as a government agent, how can you choose to obey evil government orders that contradict what God requires in His law, and not get in trouble with God, either in this life, or on Judgment Day, or both? You won’t do wrong, because you “fear God more than man”:
The fear of man brings a snare, But he who trusts in YHWH will be exalted. (Proverbs 29:25)
Here’s another verse from John on self-government:
But the anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need that anyone teach you; but as the same anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you will abide in Him. (1 John 2:27) [Presumably this is a summary of his gospel saying as recorded in John 16.]
What’s this “anointing”? As we saw previously, it’s “the Holy Spirit”, or God’s “indwelling” Spirit presence. So basically, the Apostle John is telling these Christians that the indwelling Holy Spirit God is in their life to teach them HOW to obey God’s law and live the way God wants them to live. Let’s paraphrase that verse now:
But the indwelling Holy Spirit which you have received from the resurrected Jesus Christ lives inside your soul, and you do not need anyone teach you; but since the indwelling Holy Spirit teaches you about all things (which is the truth, and is not a lie, as you know from how He’s taught you in the past), keep learning from Him the way you already have been. (1 John 2:27)
Pretty self-explanatory, right? The question begs to be asked: Have you, or have you NOT, been learning from the Holy Spirit how to live your Christian life? If so, then QUANTIFY IT. If you can’t, then you may not be the Christian you consider yourself to be. Or worse, you may not be a Christian AT ALL (yikes!). If you’ve been learning God’s law and applying it to your daily life, then you will be able to quantify your progress just like a project manager charts his progress in a project at work. But if you haven’t been learning God’s law and applying it to your life, then you will NEVER be able to quantify your progress as an obedient Christian, because you have NOTHING TO OBEY!
It’s one thing to arrive at a point in your life where you’ve eradicated all the personals sins you commit. And if you arrive at a place in life where you’ve even quit doing social sins, there’s still more to it, as shown in God’s law. So if you haven’t learned God’s law yet, or if you know it and haven’t been working on applying it to your life, then it’s time to “take inventory”, as they say in AA, and act appropriately.
Here’s another aspect to doing self-government: COMMUNITY SYNERGY. Paul talks about this in a difficult to interpret text in 2 Corinthians 3:
17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 18 But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3)
It would take too long to get into the context and ‘exposit’ this text, so I’ll paraphrase. Paul’s saying, “The liberty we have is found in the community and consists of Christ’s people living with God’s indwelling Holy Spirit helping them. Each person is positively affected by the others they have contact with, so that one person’s change for the good affects another person in the same way. Everybody gets motivated as well as changed just by keeping company with good people who belong to God’s Theocracy.”
An affirming verse, although stating the converse of the above, is found in 1 Corinthians 15:53:
Do not be deceived: ‘Bad company corrupts good morals.’
So the other way to learn how to live the way God wants you to live is by keeping company with God’s people, that is, people who are learning and obeying God’s law. Note the admonition by this other NT writer:
“… not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” (Hebrews 10:25)
What day? God’s Son Jesus coming to establish God’s Theocracy on earth. Peter says it this way:
10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up. 11 Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat! 13 But according to His promise we are looking for new heavens and a new earth, in which righteousness dwells. (2 Peter 3)
Notice the phrase, “in which righteousness dwells”. That’s what we want, not what goes on today. Today’s governments are nothing but broad-based, multi-tiered mafia shakedown money laundering rackets. Today’s governments are filled with self-serving people with the power to destroy. They do whatever they have to do to keep their paychecks coming, their climb up the ladder, and to ensure their retirements. Bottom line: God’s righteousness doesn’t exist in today’s governments. That’s the whole point of the “Jewish Messiah” of 2nd Temple social consciousness. And you get there by SELF-GOVERNMENT BASED ON THE STANDARD OF GOD’S AND CHRIST’S LAW.
There are a number of other verses in the NT about how to SELF-GOVERN through APPLYING GOD’S LAW under the GUIDANCE OF GOD’S HOLY SPIRIT, but this should be a good introduction to the subject. More later.
Now we can “get to down to brass tacks” (as my parents used to say). In the next blog entry we’re going to take a look at WHAT LAWS Christians should learn and obey.
Reality Bible 