Pastor-teacher Don Hargrove
Faith Bible Church
Sunday, Dec 20, 2009
http://fbcweb.org/Audio.html
Salvation (Gal 2:16; Rom
11:6); SL (2 Pet 3:16-18), SM (2 Cor 10:4-5)
GOD’S COVENANTS – Part 29: The Mosaic Covenant, Part 21:
Suppression of Truth – National Reversionism vss the Blessings of Christ on Society
(Messiah
& A.C. #275)
A. Epistemology:
the Word of God, Scripturalism, Bible Doctrine, Revelationism.
1. Only the Bible
is the Word of God and only through Bible doctrine do we have the whole counsel
of God concerning all things necessary for God’s own glory, man’s salvation,
faith, and life, Jn 10:35; 2 Tim 3:16-18; 2 Pet 1:20-21.
2. Bible
doctrine is end result of the exegetical, logical and systematic arranging,
connecting, and developing of the axioms and theorems of God’s infallible Word
into a whole rational non-contradictory system.
3. The doctrinal
system proceeds by rigorous deduction from one axiom to thousands of theorems;
each of the theorems fits into the whole system; each of the theorems, even
though minor, is important.
4.
Christianity/BD is far superior to all forms autonomous human
“knowledge” which is rife with the errors of empiricism, rationalism, and
intuition.
5. Only Bible
doctrine relies exclusively on deductive reasoning – all other systems depend
upon the fallibility of the senses, the fallacy of induction, and the
fallaciousness of creating axioms (a priori) arbitrarily out of thin air.
6. Bible doctrine
provides us with absolute truth as it connects the
the axioms of the Word of God
along with their good and necessary logical connections so as to provide a
total worldview regarding every issue of life before God, man, and the world, 2
Tim 3:16-18.
7. Rejection
of Bible doctrine necessarily results in
reversionism with its ADOKIMOS mind (Rom 1:28; Eph 4:17-24).
8. Any person who
rejects God’s truth (unbeliever or believer) will end up exchanging the truth
of God for the lie of Satan and in their love for that lie will become active
promoters of Satan’s pagan programs, 1 Sam 8; Lk 22:24-26; Rev 2-3.
9. Reversionism
is degeneracy of soul due to exchanging the truth of God for a lie which sets
up a chain reaction of dissatisfaction, frantic search for happiness/meaning,
covetousness, idolatry, mammonism, and illicit religious and sexual activity,
Col 3:5; Rev 2:20-23.
10. The evil in reversionism is not what lie the
truth is exchanged for but the very exchange of truth for the lie itself, i.e.
it does not matter if the lie is immoral degeneracy or moral degeneracy, sin or
human good (cf. Galatians; Jn 8:44).
B. Christ, Bible doctrine, and Civilization.
1. Christmas and Civilization’s Celebration of
Christ’s Birth.
2. Human history and Jesus Christ.
3. The Truth-suppressing pagan world that
Christ entered, Rom 1:18-25.
4. Christ will return and smash the final
one-world government that is currently being established, Dan 2; Rev 13, 19.
5. The wonderful influences of Christ and BD
on society for the first time through Martin Luther and doctrinal principle of
Schriftprinzip.
6. Luther’s return to the Word of God (BD)
laid the necessary foundation for the emergence of a free, humane, and truly
civilized society for the first time.
7. It was return to BD as the Schriftprinzip
that lead to the slogan of the Reformation of “the liberty of the Christian
man.”
8. It was return to BD as the Schriftprinzip
that brought true Biblical and societal enlightenment to Europe.
9. The Christian doctrinal enlightenment quickly
spread to civil governments and lead to a reduction in the size and scope of
governments.
10. The influence of Jesus Christ through Bible
doctrine led to fantastic economic development – a new civilization for the 1st
time in human history.
11. Through BD, Jesus Christ blessed His people
in Western Europe and America beyond anything they could have imagined, and his
blessings spilled over into society at large, creating what we now call Western
Civilization.
12. However, since the late 19th century,
Christ and BD increasingly is being rejected by Western Civilization and as a
result, there is now a resurgence of paganism with its religious, political,
and economic “values,” cf. Rom 1:18-25.
13. Christ will return and smash the last powerful
kingdom of the one-world government, Dan 2; Rev 13, 19.
C. History of economics and the Christ’s
blessings through Bible doctrine.
1. What economics is and is not.
2. Aristotelian economics, 1st -16th century.
3. Mercantilism.
4. Marxism.
5. Adam Smith, the father of modern economics.
6. Laissez-faire – Christian economics of
individual choice and freedom.
7. Joseph Schumpeter and theory self-destruction
of capitalism.
8. Austrian Rationalistic Economics.
9. Milton Freidman - Chicago school of free
enterprise.
10. Modern Keynesian (homosexual/hedonistic)
economics.
11. Ethic’s and morality’s impact on economics.
12. Laissez-faire capitalism is the economic
system that is most compatible with axioms of divine revelation set down in
God’s Word (Rom 13; 1 Pet 2:14-15).
13. It was the rise of Laissez-faire capitalism
through BD of the protestant work/life ethic that brought the world the most
fantastic temporal freedom.
14. The Bible clearly teaches the divine right
of private property and therefore supports capitalism, Ex 20:15, 17; Mt 20:15;
Acts 5.
15. In spite of the fantastic success of true
capitalism, attacks on capitalism (private property, the marketplace,
individual responsibility, individualism, private enterprise) continue at a
fever pitch.
16. Socialism is not only a reversionistic
economic policy, it is a logical impossibility.
17.
Only in true capitalism is there the recognition of the sacredness of
privacy, property, freedom, and life under the rule of law.
18.
Only in true capitalism is there a separation of business and the
state.
19. Capitalism and free enterprise are consistent
with the biblical view of man.
20. Capitalism and free enterprise work best in
a society which is influenced by the biblical ethic.
D. Truth & Freedom versus relativism and loss of
freedom – and reversionism.
1. True personal freedom is incompatible with
government security - which requires controls.
2. The 8 building blocks of temporal
freedom.
a) #1, Primacy of the individual.
b) #2, Private property.
c) #3, The Protestant work ethic.
d) #4, Individual responsibility.
e) #5, Generosity.
f) #6, Rule of law.
g) #7,
Federalism.
h) #8, Republicanism.
3. When man, believer or unbeliever, fails to
orient to Truth, he will necessarily default to relativism and reversionism,
with his twin “gods” of personal peace and affluence.
4. In personal & national reversionism
there is always a willingness to give up freedom for personal peace & affluence - as well as
excuse evil for price of expediency.
5. The reversionist with his twin gods of
personal peace and prosperity is always more than happy to accept any kind of
authoritative government for security – just as long aS it means security for
his personal peace and prosperity.
6. The Biblical truths with all their virtues,
values, and absolutes demand absolute commitment, 2 Tim 4:1-18.
7.
Lack of absolute commitment always results in reversionism, 2 Tim
4:10.
a. The
Lord, the POG, and Bible doctrine are relativized, Mt 26:70.
b.
Priorities are reversed, 2 Tim 4:10.
c.
Life dominated by the OSN w/degeneracy – Eph 4:17-19.
d. Life of reaction and distraction, Mt
6:31-33; 1 Jn 2:15.
e.
Life of FSH, 2 Tim 3:4; Ecc – contra 1 Tim 6:6-7; Philip 4:11.
E.
Massive reversionism in the last days of the Church Age: lawlessness and rejection of Truth, 2 Thess
2:3, 7.
1. Lawlessness, 2 Thess 2:3, 7.
2. Religious ascetic reversionism, 1 Tim
4:1-3.
3. Rejection of the Person and Work of Jesus
Christ, 2 Pet 2:1-3
4. Religious hucksterism, 2 Pet 2:15.
5. Denial of the Return of Jesus Christ, 2 Pet
3:3-4.
6. Hedonistic, narcissistic, emotional,
“religious” Christianity, 2 Tim 3:1-5
7. Rejection of sound doctrine, 2 Tim 4:3-4.
8. Self-confident in self-improvements and
attainments, Rev 3:15-16.