Freedom comes from God.
God designed men to be free. Adam
and Even before the fall were free to roam, love, and live in the Garden of
God. Fellowship with the Creator was the
normal condition. God made only one
rule; to not eat from the tree in the center.
But He gave them the choice to obey or not to obey. He never bothered with their freedom. God never pushed Himself on either one of
them. He never invaded their space
uninvited.
Freedom has to do with space as in the air around you. You are free to occupy your space and anyone
who enters your space without your permission has violated your freedom. As God never invaded the space of Adam and
Eve, so we are not to invade the space of one another uninvited.
Men and women who understand this principle over time formed
communities which became towns and villages.
Violators of freedom or what we can call “space invaders” were
punished. Laws were established and
people were appointed to enforce these laws; today we call this profession “law
enforcement”.
As the centuries
progressed, towns and villages became cities and provinces and then became
nations. But then some nations did not
regard the law of freedom as ordained by God and so nations had to form groups
of people to maintain national freedom.
In this country, this profession is called the U.S. Armed Forces or the
Military.
Today, “space invaders”, both individuals and nations are
dealt with by that means necessary to effect voluntary compliance. From simple words of warning up to physical
death, freedom is ensured.
In a fallen world, this form of governing works. Those men who founded this nation understood
these principles and wrote them into the constitution. When the constitution is followed freedom is
maintained and the “space invaders” are kept at bay.
I spent 18 years in the profession of law enforcement
therefore it was my job to keep the “space invaders” in my periphery at
bay. Consider that when the “space
invader” invades the space of someone else he or she loses his or her space
privileges and they are incarcerated or worse.
The same principle applies on a national scale as well.
Guess what? sometimes
I had to get “violent” with people to effect voluntary compliance.
I am also a Christian.
I have been one since the age of 12.
Therefore, the entire time I was in law enforcement I also was a
believer in Jesus Christ.
Due to the fact that I believe in a Constitutional
Representative Republic, law enforcement, and a strong military and that I am a
Christian; myself and those like me are labeled war mongering, violence loving,
American Imperialists. At least this is
the case sometimes. But honestly, all
any of us are trying to do is keep the space invaders at bay.
Some Christians believe that we are to live a life of peace
at any cost. To allow the space invaders
to have their way and let God deal with them.
After all, Jesus Himself allowed the space invaders to nail Him to a
cross.
In the Old Testament, one of the names of Jesus is “The Lord
of Heaven’s Army’s” or “The Captain of the host of the Lord” which are military
titles. Long before Jesus was the
suffering Servant, the humble God-man who hung on the cross, He is first of all
the Captain of the Angelic Army currently billeted in Heaven.
Jesus when He came to the earth He was on a covert mission
behind enemy lines. The ultimate space invader
named Satan had won a victory in the Garden of God. So Jesus in turn set aside His command long
enough to take out the space invader at the cross and resurrection. His mission at that time required Him to be
humble and merciful so that we could have our space back.
So today, what about military, violence, law enforcement and
the body of Christ? How does it all work
together?
The answer is freedom.
Law enforcement and the military (as designated in the constitution) are
designed to keep the space invaders at bay.
And sometimes the space invaders
choose not to comply easily so violence is required. When the space invader is
kept at bay then freedom reigns. When
freedom reigns then the design of God for the human race works even in the
midst of a fallen world.
By the way, when Jesus returns He will be in battle array,
ready or war, and will have to use violence on a scale never before seen in
human history (Psalm 2, Psalm 110,
Zechariah 14, Revelation 19) to name but a few.
To end on a good note, Jesus loves the space invaders as
well. They just need to let Him invade
their space :)
