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WHY
WE HAVE AND WHY WE NEED GOVERNMENT
By Henry Anderson
Before Yahweh brought the children of Israel out of slavery in Egypt, all nations had governments
ruled by men. Most had kings who held absolute power, or dictatorial power, but when Yahweh brought Israel out
of Egypt, He established a theocratic government, a government with Him as King and the people living under His
laws, instead of laws decreed by human kings.
Israel lived under this government for several hundred years, then in the days of Samuel they demanded that they
be able to have a king like the rest of the nations around them. Yahweh complied with their wishes and told Samuel
to anoint and establish a man as king over them. He told the nation of Israel through Samuel, what would be the
results of having a king like the rest of the nations.
10 And Samuel told all the words of Yahweh to the people that asked of him a king.11 And he said, This will be
the manner of the king that shall reign over you: He will take your sons, and appoint them for himself, for his
chariots, and to be his horsemen; and some shall run before his chariots.12 And he will appoint him captains over
thousands, and captains over fifties; and will set them to ear his ground, and to reap his harvest, and to make
his instruments of war, and instruments of his chariots.13 And he will take your daughters to be confectionaries,
and to be cooks, and to be bakers.14 And he will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your olive yards, even
the best of them, and give them to his servants.15 And he will take the tenth of your seed, and of your vineyards,
and give to his officers, and to his servants.16 And he will take your menservants, and your maidservants, and
your goodliest young men, and your asses, and put them to his work.17 He will take the tenth of your sheep: and
ye shall be his servants.18 And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king which ye shall have chosen you;
and Yahweh will not hear you in that day.19 Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they
said, Nay; but we will have a king over us;20 That we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge
us, and go out before us, and fight our battles.21 And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he rehearsed
them in the ears of Yahweh.22 And Yahweh said to Samuel, Hearken unto their voice, and make them a king. And Samuel
said unto the men of Israel, Go ye every man unto his city. 1 Sam 8:10-22 (KJV)
There are those today who are crying out because of the king that they and also their fathers, have chosen to rule
over them. They say that Yahweh=s law is the law that we should go by, and to ignore some of the laws and rules
of the Aking@ they and their fathers chose. Yahweh says that He will not hear them.
In other words He will not free them from the abuses of the man ruled governments that they demanded. He warned
them of the abuses of a government composed of men like themselves, but man insists that he be able to rule himself.
That warning has been preserved in the pages of the Bible for all of us today.
But, someone will say, those who demanded a human king instead of Yahweh as their King, lived many centuries ago.
I was born under a government of men, I have had no choice.
We did have a choice. For many years we chose to have a king like the rest of the nations around us. We did not
want Yahweh ruling over us. We disobeyed His laws, we did not submit to Him as our King. Only when He in His
mercy drew us to His Son and granted us repentance did we begin to submit to Him and accept Him as our King.
When Yahweh granted to the people their desire to have a human government over them, He also granted that government
the right to rule over them.
Ro 13:1 Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which
Yahweh has established. The authorities that exist have been established by Yahweh.
Yahweh says here in this scripture that the government over the nation has been put there by Him, for they are
the authority that exists. He says, and He is speaking to those He has called to submit to His laws, to submit
to the existing authorities. Of course He does not command us to submit to them when what they demand is in conflict
with His law.
13 Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for Yahshua=s sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme;14 Or
unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that
do well.15 For so is the will of Yahweh, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men:
1 Peter 2:13-15 (KJV)
Here again Yahweh is telling us (those of us whom He has called) to submit to every ordinance of man. He goes
on to show that it is the government of man by saying, whether it be
to the king, or to governors. In our case, we who live in the USA, this means whether to the federal government,
or to the State which include the counties and cities.
We are to submit to the government, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers. It is unclear
here whether he is meaning the ones the governors send to punish evildoers, or that Yahweh is the one who sends
them. In truth it is Yahweh who sends them, for the governments have been put there by Him.
17 The sentence is by the decree of the watchers, the decision by the word of the holy ones, to the end that the
living may know that the Most High rules the kingdom of men, and gives it to whom he will, and sets over it the
lowliest of men.' Dan 4:17 (RSV)
Yahweh says here plainly that He is the one who sets up these governments and sets over them the lowliest of men.
In spite of them being the lowliest of men, He tells us to submit to them, as we have seen by the scriptures quoted
above, and this one below.
1 Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers.: for there is no power but of Yahweh the powers that be are
ordained of Yahweh.2 Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of Yahweh: and they that
resist shall receive to themselves damnation.3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt
thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same:4 For he is
the minister of Yahweh to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword
in vain: for he is the minister of Yahweh, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.5 Wherefore ye
must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake. Romans 13:1-5 (KJV).
18 O king, the Most High gave Nebuchadnez'zar your father kingship and greatness and glory and majesty;19 and because
of the greatness that he gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages trembled and feared before him; whom he
would he slew, and whom he would he kept alive; whom he would he raised up, and whom he would he put down. Dan
5:18-19 (RSV)
Here was a king, a government, and he had the power, because of Yahweh, to put to death any one he wanted to.
Yahweh had made him king, and allowed him to rule in this manner.
When Yahshua was before Pilate on trial for His life, Pilate said to Him, A10 ......., "You will not speak
to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you, and power to crucify you?" John 19:10 (RSV), 11
Yahshua answered, ``You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above. Therefore the one
who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.''
Yahweh had given Pilate the power to rule, just as He had given Nebuchadnezzar, it was not just a momentary power
in order to carry out Yahweh=s purpose, as I heard one man try to explain in order to justify his stance against
the government.
The governments that are in place, are there because Yahweh put them there, and if we resist the government, we
resist Yahweh.
We are not to speak evil of a ruler, one in the government who has a governing position would be considered a
ruler. We see by the scriptures that Paul was very much aware of this,
4 Those who were standing near Paul said, ``You dare to insult Yahweh's high priest?'' Ac 23:5 Paul replied,
``Brothers, I did not realize that he was the high priest; for it is written: `Do not speak evil about the ruler
of your people.'''
Was this high priest a just ruler? No, he had ordered that Paul be struck, which was contrary to the law.
6 For this cause pay ye tribute also: for they are Yahweh=s ministers, attending continually upon this very thing.7
Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour
to whom honour. Romans 13:6-7 (KJV).
Strong's Greek Number (5411) tribute, esp. the annual tax levied upon houses, lands, and persons.
Yahweh tells us to pay the taxes that these governments levy on us, and this includes income, and all other taxes
levied by the government.
There are those that say that these taxes are not due to the government, because it is an illegal government.
Yet if we believe that the scriptures quoted above are Yahweh=s word, how can we say they are not legitimate when
they are put there by Yahweh? He warned those who wanted to have a king, that the king (government) would abuse
those he ruled over, yet they insisted. Yahweh hasn=t given us the right to resist those abuses, in fact He tells
us to endure them, and He will bless us. Men=s greed and lack of faith that Yahweh will supply their every need,
causes them to blind themselves to the plain instructions of Yahweh.
King David, before he became the second king over Israel, did not fight against the king who preceded him, king
Saul. Saul had been anointed by Samuel according to Yahweh=s instructions as the first king over Israel. Even
when Saul was seeking to kill him, David did not lift his hand against Saul.
4 And the men of David said unto him, Behold the day of which Yahweh said unto thee, Behold, I will deliver thine
enemy into thine hand, that thou may do to him as it shall seem good unto thee. Then David arose, and cut off the
skirt of Saul's robe privily.5 And it came to pass afterward, that David's heart smote him, because he had cut
off Saul's skirt.6 And he said unto his men, Yahweh forbid that I should do this thing unto my master, Yahweh=s
anointed, to stretch forth mine hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of Yahweh. 1 Sam 24:4-6 (KJV)
Saul became an evil king, but David waited patiently for Yahweh to remove him, although Samuel had already anointed
him to be king in place of Saul.
1Pe 2:17 Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear Yahweh, honour the king. How
does one honor a king? A king is a ruler, so that command would apply to any ruler. We honor our father by obeying
him, so we honor a ruler by obeying the laws.
WHAT WOULD LIFE BE LIKE IN THIS WORLD WITHOUT GOVERNMENT ?
What would our society be like if the state didn=t have laws pertaining to marriage? Look what has happened even
with laws. Fornication is rampant. Children are being born to unwed mothers, growing up without fathers who can
discipline them and teach them to obey the laws of the society, laws that enable people to live in harmony with
each other. Instead we see gangs of lawless children who rob, kill, steal, and commit all sorts of criminal acts.
These children grow up and propagate other children who are worse than they are.
This society is fast becoming a society without government. This is because the marriage laws have been relaxed
and not enforced. Where there is no government with laws of marriage that are strictly enforced, there are no
strong family units. A nation becomes weak when the strong family units disappear, and are ripe to be conquered
and taken over by another nation.
What would happen if we didn=t have adoption laws, if we didn=t have courts and judges to make an adoption legal
so that adoption laws could be enforced? If you took some children to rear whose parents had both died, what would
prevent some one else from taking them from you, if you had not been granted custody of them by a court which had
the power of the government to back it up?
These are just two areas of society that we have glanced at, there are many more areas that if we didn=t have government
and the laws of the government, also the power to enforce those laws, our society would be in chaos. It would
be frightening and very dangerous to live in such a society. Without laws, government, and punishment, men will
not live together in peace and fairness one toward the other.
Mankind has refused to submit to Yahweh=s government, to His laws. Yahweh therefore has established the governments
of the world by allowing mankind to form their own forms of governments Yahweh is the one that chooses the rulers
whether it is a democracy, dictatorship, or a kingship, or any other of the varied forms of government, and He
puts over them the lowliest of men.
What about Stalin, Hitler, Pol Pot, and others just as evil. The more lawless a society becomes, the more depraved
are their rulers. The history of the rulers of the Roman Empire bears this out.
Yahweh tells us to pay the government we are under, the tribute or taxes that they require of us. Many of these
governments use some of this money to build roads, railroads, create waterways for barges, housing for the poor
and less fortunate, although this is taken advantage of by the lazy, and others. Here in this nation the government
has set up what is known as a social security system. Employers are required to take out a percentage of their
employees wages and add the same percentage and send it in to the social security system and after we reach a certain
age, supposedly when we are no longer able to work, we can receive a monthly pension, usually barely enough to
live on. If a woman=s husband dies, then if she has children, she can receive benefits from social security in
order to be able to shelter, feed and clothe herself and her children until the youngest reaches the age of sixteen,
then her benefits cease on herself but continue on the remaining children until they reach the age of eighteen.
I heard a man who has a vendetta against the government, crying out because of the king or government that Yahweh
says is there because it is of Him, misapplying scripture in an effort to convince others that they are disobeying
Yahweh if they obtain a social security card. This man used Deut. 7:2 And when Yahweh shall deliver them before
thee; thou shalt smite them, [and] utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy
unto them:
He applied it to individuals saying that Yahweh tells us to not make a contract with a heathen nation. He further
said if we got a social security card we were making a contract with the government, and therefore disobeying Yahweh.
What a stretch!
Yahweh told the children of Israel, when He brought them out of Egypt, and into the promised land to kill all the
inhabitants, utterly destroy them, not to show any mercy to them, NOT to make covenants with them instead of destroying
them.
To apply those instructions to individuals and the government today, doesn=t make sense. We would have to go out
and kill all the inhabitants of this land if we apply that scripture. Those instructions were only for that time
and those heathen nations. This is not a heathen nation, we believe we are one of the lost tribes of Israel.
If a person obtains a social security number, he is able to obtain a much better job , and can provide much better
for his family. If one is trying to hide from the government, then he would be a little harder to find, I suppose,
if he didn=t have one, but it still wouldn=t be much of a problem for the government to find him. Those who try
to make you think that you are displeasing Yahweh if you obtain a number, have their own axe to grind.
If a man and his wife desires a life without some of the better things that more money would provide, then that
is fine, but to live a more Spartan life because they have been deceived into thinking that they are displeasing
Yahweh by getting a social security number, is lamentable.
I realize that some of these individuals are sincere in taking an unnecessary stance against the government. They
believe that it is Yahweh=s will, and are willing to endure hardships in order to please Him
Another man accused me of blasphemy for saying that a man should get a marriage license and make his marriage legal
in the eyes of the government, in order that if he were killed or died, his wife could draw these benefits. I
believe that a couple would be married in the eyes of Yahweh if they took the vows of marriage according to the
laws of Yahweh before witnesses, even without a marriage license from the state. I say before witnesses because
scripture shows that for anything to be established it must be before witnesses.(Yahweh raised him on the third
day and made him manifest; not to all the people but to us who were chosen by Yahweh as witnesses, Acts 10:41 (RSV)
Yahweh chooses witnesses to confirm things that He does. Another scripture that shows that we should have witnesses
is (Matt 18: 16 But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every word may be confirmed
by the evidence of two or three witnesses (RSV). For the sake of their children they should be legally married
in the eyes of the state and society, so their children would not be classified as bastards.
There is no place in Yahweh=s word that says it is wrong to do so, in fact His word tells us to comply with the
ordinances of the government. Neither is it wrong to draw the benefits that the government chooses to give. One
will ordinarily receive back only a fraction of the money he has paid them in taxes. If anyone drives on the highways
and roads, he is using the benefits that the government is giving the citizens. The truckers use and receive these
benefits, because they use the highways to haul goods and food stuffs to the grocery and other stores, so one is
indirectly receiving benefits from the government when he goes to the stores and buys items that he needs. If
one uses the mail service, he is receiving benefits from the government. If one moved out onto an island or on
top of a mountain and was entirely self sufficient, and never left, he could probably avoid receiving government
benefits.
In Peter, Yahweh tells us to follow in the footsteps of the Messiah Yahshua.
1Pe 2:21 For even hereunto were ye called: because the Messiah also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that
ye should follow his steps:
We were called to follow in the steps of the Messiah. What did He do concerning taxes?
24 & And when they were come to Capernaum, they that received tribute [money] came to Peter, and said, Doth
not your master pay tribute? 25 ``Yes, he does,'' he replied.. When Peter came into the house, Yahshua was the
first to speak. ``What do you think, Simon?'' he asked. ``From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and
taxes? from their own sons or from others?''
26 ``From others,'' Peter answered ``Then the sons are exempt,'' Yahshua said to him. 27 ``But so that we may
not offend them, go to the lake and throw out your line. Take the first fish you catch; open its mouth and you
will find a four?drachma coin. Take it and give it to them for my tax and yours.''
Even though, since they were citizens, they technically did not owe the tax, Yahshua paid it anyway so as not to
offend them. Shouldn=t we pay taxes that this government levies on its citizens? We could argue that our citizenship
is in heaven, but couldn=t Yahshua have had a much greater claim to that than we, yet He paid the tax, giving us
an example.
We are commanded to live at peace with all men, as far as it is possible with us. Rom. 12:18 If it is possible,
as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.
It is possible with us to live at peace with those who are agents of the government as far as taxes are concerned,
if we don=t defy them and give them the tribute they require of us.
I have endeavored to do this for over 40 years, and I have lived at peace with those who represent the government.
I and mine have not gone hungry because of paying the taxes that this government requires. I haven=t gotten rich,
but Yahweh has prospered me. It is true that we can be unjustly accused and hounded by the IRS, but the vast majority
of those who are targeted by the IRS have tried to avoid paying the taxes required of them.
If we believe and do what Yahweh says, He will see that we survive. If He does require us to suffer to test us
and to refine us, we should endure it patiently. In other words we should not give in and start withholding our
taxes etc.
We should concentrate on living as the Messiah lived, on walking in His steps, instead of defying an unjust government.
Yahshua did not defy the government. He complied even unto death. He admonished Peter to put up his sword when
the government authorities came to arrest Him.
48 Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, "The one I shall kiss is the man; seize him."49 And
he came up to Yahshua at once and said, "Hail, Master!" And he kissed him.50 Yahshua said to him, "Friend,
why are you here?" Then they came up and laid hands on Yahshua and seized him.51 And behold, one of those
who were with Yahshua stretched out his hand and drew his sword, and struck the slave of the high priest, and cut
off his ear52 Then Yahshua said to him, "Put your sword back into its place; for all who take the sword will
perish by the sword.53 Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve
legions of angels? Matt 26:48-53 (RSV)
Yahweh=s government is the only just government there is, and until Yahshua comes again and establishes that government,
He has told us to submit to our human rulers, whom He has put in place to keep this world from being one big jungle
with the law of the jungle.
A true believer=s duty is to obey the laws of Yahweh and the laws of man, unless the laws of man conflict with
the laws of Yahweh.
27 And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them,28 saying,
"We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching
and you intend to bring this man's blood upon us."29 But Peter and the apostles answered, "We must obey
Yahweh rather than men. Acts 5:27-29 (RSV)
If the circumstances arise where we have to obey Yahweh, and in so doing break man=s law, we should not fight them
to avoid being punished by them. We should accept whatever punishment they inflict on us, looking to Yahweh to
deliver us if it is His will. We have the example of Daniel and also Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego. Daniel
was thrown into a lions den, and the three others were thrown into a burning furnace, because they obeyed Yahweh
instead of Men. Yahweh chose to save them from harm, and delivered them.
If one could peacefully avoid being apprehended, and not bring suffering on others because of it, that would not
be wrong. Mt 10:23 When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another. I tell you the truth, you will not finish
going through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes.
Mt 10:16 I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.
If one is defying the government and not paying taxes etc. and by doing this casting aside the word of Yahweh who
instructs us to pay taxes to whom they are due, and they are due this government, then we cannot expect Yahweh
to deliver us.
25 Agree with thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the way with him; lest at any time the adversary deliver
thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into prison.26 Verily I say unto
thee, Thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou hast paid the uttermost farthing. Matt 5:25-26 (KJV)
The IRS becomes our adversary when we fail to pay taxes to the government.
Instead of contending with the government, and trying to avoid paying tribute, wouldn=t it be much more beneficial
to concentrate in obedience to Yahweh, in studying His word and living by it, to work at honest and fulfilling
work at the highest pay we can honestly get. Pay our taxes as Yahweh instructs us to do, and using any benefits
that the government gives us to make our wife and children=s lives as pleasant as possible?
Those who think they are pleasing Yahweh by trying to isolate themselves to avoid compliance with the laws of the
land, are misled. They do not make any points with Yahweh, but instead are needlessly making life more difficult
for themselves and those who depend on them.
Yahweh says He doesn=t expect us to drop out of society in order to get away from the evil in the world. What
He tells us to do, is to not be a part of the evil.
9 I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with fornicators:10 Yet not altogether with the fornicators of
this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or with idolaters; for then must ye needs go out of the world.
1 Cor 5:9-10 (KJV).
Yahweh=s will is for us to live quietly, obedient to the existing authorities, and to Yahweh=s commandments and
laws, waiting for the Messiah to deliver us.
19 Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.
Romans 14:19 (KJV)
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