Paul's Passing Thoughts

If you want to evaluate world philosophy by its least common denominator, you could focus on its definition of God, or presuppositions concerning mankind. If you focus on the latter, it’s a statement in regard to God’s will for creation. There are a handful of least common denominators that could be used under different categories.

For purposes of this post, we will choose the category of politics. This is not a subject that belongs to the nomenclature of “politics” as we commonly think of it; politics is the method that we use to communicate what we believe about our ethic formed by our metaphysics and epistemology.

At any rate, in regard to the contemporary world stage, the following question is a major factor in determining ethics and politics: is man capable of self-governing? If the masses are in control, will chaos ensue? And why does chaos matter? What is the primary purpose of being?

America was the first country in world history to form a government based on answering the question of self-governing in this way:  Yes, mankind is not only capable of self-governing, but man is best served by this construct.

Let’s be clear: NO politician has ever done anything stupid or said anything stupid; what they do is based solely on how they answer the question of self-governing… “Do those idiots think we are stupid!?” Well, not exactly, politicians are driven by their presuppositions in regard to mankind.

The results of the American experiment speak for themselves, but the process, from the beginning, has been a debate, and at times a war, between two differing philosophies concerning the ability of man to self-govern. From the cradle of civilization, this has been a deeply spiritual question as well: can the masses know reality? I believe that we must go to the Bible to observe where all of this started. It started with the serpent selling Eve on the idea that she couldn’t really understand what God was saying without his help. She only had half of the metaphysics: the knowledge of good. He had the whole package: the knowledge of good AND evil. Hence, she could be more like God if she would only allow him to guide her. The rest is history. This is the epistemological caste system that has dominated world history until the advent of the American idea.

Wherever you stand with God, the fact remains that He created an orderly cosmos which includes Earth. And it is irrefutable that life works better when it is ordered according to the apparent construct. But, can man see and understand God’s order of things? The framers of the American Constitution, for the first time in world history, said, “Yes.”  This question drives everything in American politics. What every American politician does is defined by how they answer this question.

And, the naysayers of self-governing acknowledge that the American idea has yielded positive results, but you see, they love humanity so much that they are unwilling to settle for mere good results. Yes, their love for humanity will not rest until perfect utopia is established, and that is only possible if man understands that he cannot govern himself. If only mankind would give oligarchy a chance!

So, don’t be surprised when the naysayers use a good thing to bring about the best thing. Some are confused when they see those who have benefited from capitalism (free markets representing the will of the people) using those resources to fight against capitalism. This does not befuddle me. In their minds, they are using a good thing to bring about the best thing. You see, self-governing will only bring about temporary change, but their goal for the humanity that they love sooooo much is “real and lasting change.” Yes, if humanity would only understand that tyranny will eventually end all tyranny, and will usher in the utopia that we all desire where truth is defined by one thing and one thing only: unity. To them, unity equals truth. That is at least one aspect of their metaphysics: war and conflict can be ended; poverty can be ended; perfect harmony can be obtained. But in order for this to happen, man must understand his limitations.

And so it goes, we see capitalism under siege in this country. But has the American experiment survived too long? Has it gained too much awareness to ever be defeated? Yes, I think it has. Points in case:

Gun control: some arrogant little American punk designed a machine the size of a desk copier that will print guns. It can also print bullets. I’m not kidding you. He also does this as a non-profit venture.

Mandated minimum wage for fast-food restaurants…which will eventually put fast-food chains under the control of the federal government: some wacko American designed a food machine that will manufacture the perfect burger. This promises to be a windfall for the fast-food chains under the categories of food waste and food theft alone. It will also deplete federal tax income. This power play is an atomic backfire.

Government controlled health care: Walmart will soon be selling health care directly to the public and there isn’t a damn thing that the government can do about it. Any attempt to stand in the way will have appearances of evil that even a child can ascertain.

State secession: if one understands government politics and continues to learn more about it, the genius of the American founders will never cease to amaze. The threat of states seceding from the nation, particularly Texas, would be the endgame to many political debates. A weak stomach for war fueled by the anti-capitalist liberals themselves only fuels the idea more.

Overall colonial America bad attitude: strangely, the idea that life isn’t worth living without freedom that came from colonial America is yet very strong in our culture. Ironically, weak immigration laws proffered by liberals will only add to this reality because people who come here from other countries know why they came: freedom. The fact that they risk their lives to come here only makes them kinsmen with the spirit of colonial America that much more. Republicans should focus on educating these immigrants in regard to this kindred spirit.

So, what does this all have to do with America and Bible prophecy? Where does America fit in? Is America in Bible prophecy? Yes, I think it is, indirectly.

Before America, tyrannical governments ruled with an iron fist, or iron feet that trampled anything in their way. Whenever a particular government emerged as the leader in the only political game ever played until America; viz, conquest, the leader ruled unabated until someone else emerged as the new king of the world hill. This is depicted by symbolism in Daniel 2:31-45. The image, which coincides with the four beasts in Daniel chapter 7, depicts four major world kingdoms in human history. It is interesting that the final form of the final kingdom is iron mixed with clay. I believe that speaks to the idea that America will continue to have enough strength and influence to prevent world dominance by any one government.

As an alternative to conquest, America was the first nation to replace conquest with wealth creation, or capitalism. Because of this, America for the most part, is not interested in occupation. The American ideal is setting people free to create their own individual wealth. It is a government for the people and by the people because it is founded on the belief that mankind is capable of self-governing. Oligarchy is the anti-politics of self-governing. The final form of the final world power will be a weak oligarchy accordingly. America is NOT defined within specific biblical symbolism because it is a historical anomaly. I suggest it is the reason behind the scene of iron feet mixed with clay.

Another reason America is not specifically mentioned regards another historical anomaly: most tyrannical world empires were ruled by an alliance between its religion and state. A cursory review of the book of Revelation reveals that the final form of the final empire will be a church state on steroids, perhaps fueled by the reunification of Catholicism and Protestantism. Both are firmly grounded in the idea that man is unable to self-govern.

For this reason, no political party defined by free markets should assume that the evangelical vote is in their camp. Indeed, people in the community where Susan and I live continue to be surprised that Cedarville University, a conservative Christian institution, has many professors and leaders that endorse President Obama. That doesn’t surprise me at all.

“But Paul, are you saying that evangelicals don’t believe people are able to self-govern?”

Of course they believe that people are able to self-govern! As long as those people are good Christians.

paul