Church and State
Separation is impossible, and it’s not in the constitution
The First Amendment of the US Constitution states in part.. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…
Our founding fathers did not want to have a “state-established church or religion” as they had in England, but they also did not want the state to interfere or prohibit the free exercise of one’s beliefs.
However, even though the constitutional amendment prohibited a “state established religion”, there had to be a basis of how laws were to be established. The founders chose God’s laws as the basis for justice. Otherwise, they didn’t want a state run church, but they were not trying to separate God from state.
Bottom-line: you cannot separate God from government because our government is based on God’s law. You cannot separate His endowment to us of our inalienable rights. Rights that cannot be taken away or transferred. And lastly, you cannot separate your beliefs from your actions.
The misconception of the First Amendment language is that church things and secular state things are to be completely separate. It was never intended to be… in fact, if you think about it, it is an impossibility. What you believe determines how you act. Your underlying beliefs inform your actions. If you are voting on laws in congress, it follows that you will vote based on what you believe to be right decisions for right outcomes. You cannot separate your beliefs from your actions, unless you are double minded and unstable.
If your beliefs are based on your biblical faith and understanding, i.e. your Christian worldview, then you cannot separate your allegiance to God and your allegiance to your country. The God of Abraham and the Apostles comes first, always. We must worship none other.
But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men. Acts 5:29
How Stupid Can We Be?
One cannot bow to Caesar and to Christ at the same time. Jesus points this out to the intellectually challenged Pharisees who were trying to trap Jesus into addressing the issue concerning the roles of church and state. What we often miss in this story is the hidden truth that Jesus reveals. Trying to compartmentalize our allegiance will reveal our true loyalties. Here’s the story from scripture in Matthew 22.
15 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how they might entangle Him (Jesus) in His talk. 16 And they sent to Him their disciples with the Herodians (a political group), saying, “Teacher, we know that You are true, and teach the way of God in truth; nor do You care about anyone, for You do not regard the person of men (man’s opinion). 17 Tell us, therefore, what do You think? Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar, or not?”
18 But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, “Why do you test Me, you hypocrites?
19 Show Me the tax money.” So they brought Him a denarius.
20 And He said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?”
21 They said to Him, “Caesar’s.”
And He said to them, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” 22 When they had heard these words, they marveled, and left Him and went their way.
They marveled?... oh wow, what brilliant words they discovered. Such idiots… they missed the entire point. Jesus gave them an answer that reflected their ignorance of who He was. They didn’t realize who they were talking to. God, the creator of the universe who became the man Jesus, the Messiah, destined to rule the world and to become Lord of all. Otherwise when you render onto Caesar (bow to Caesar) you are recognizing Caesar as LORD…Caesar declared himself Lord and a son of the gods, in the first century. Note Later in John 19:15 the Chief Priests, revealing what they truly believed, told Pilate “We have no king but Caesar.” (By definition, the Chief Priests were New Testament antichrists.)
Once Christ was raised from the dead and was glorified by God the Father, He became Lord of all. If 24-News sources had existed, the headlines could have stated that, Caesar was no longer Lord, as proclaimed in Acts chapter two.
“Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” Acts 2:36
Up to this point in history, Caesar claimed he was both Lord and Savior of the world. The Caesars were the epitome of the antichrist spirit. So, proclaiming Jesus both Lord and Christ was acknowledging the opposite of what was expected from the general Jewish and gentile population. Allegiance to Caesar ‘first’ was imperative in the first century political and religious worlds. Later in Acts we get the first realization that Jesus is Lord.
“These men who have caused trouble all over the world (disciples) have now come here, 7and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.” Acts 17:6-7
The early followers of Jesus, took this seriously. THEY WERE NON-COMPLIANT. They believed that Christ now displaced Caesar as the final and highest authority of all things in heaven and earth. They absolutely defied and denied Caesar’s authority to the point of their personal death for their refusal to bow their knee.
And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Matthew 28:18
To be Christ the Messiah is to be the Savior of the world. To be Christ the Lord, is to be the ruler of the world. Jesus became both Lord and Christ. No longer could Caesar claim the title of Lord of all, and no longer are we to bow before Caesar and put the state above the church. Even the state is to bow to Christ the Lord of all. (If you are a church under the 501c3 status, you may want to rethink your allegiance to the state soon before the state knocks on your door and demands your compliance. Fortunately, there is a better option). Read more about an alternative to 501c3.
There was no more separation of church and state when Christ became Lord. The state is His servant, His subject, if you will, to do his bidding… His agent in carrying out justice and righteousness for the good of the electorate. The government is now upon HIS shoulders, not separate from and not under Caesar (the state).
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6
Fresh off the boat from England, the original founding fathers of America had just recently experienced the State (or King), as the head of the church of England. The control of the church was under the state. In the early days of the colonies, freedom from religious oppression was foremost on their minds. No more did they want the State or government to determine the fate or operation of the church. Thus religious liberty and the practice there of was born with the adoption of the First Amendment.
First Amendment (ratified in 1791)
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. 2
The founders didn’t want a “state church” like the church of England was. They didn’t want the state to interfere with the practice of their religion, which still is the case in England. They wanted freedom to pursue the integration of their faith with their life and work in the world without state interference. But they didn’t take it far enough. In 1954, President Eisenhower declared “one nation under God” adding that phrase to the pledge of allegiance.
All of our rights and liberties are acknowledged in our founding documents as given to us by our Creator… not by Caesar or the state, but by God alone.
The statement in the first amendment...’or the prohibiting of the free exercise thereof’ requires that we Take Another Look at what this is saying… the FREE EXERCISE THEREOF. If you are a Christian with allegiance to the Lord of all in everything you do, everything you say, everything you believe, then you are freely exercising your allegiance to Christ the Lord.
The Free Exercise of your beliefs (your religion in this case) means that you ought to obey Christ rather than humanistic laws and regulations.
WHAT ABOUT THE OTHER RELIGIONS?
The first amendment allows any religion, yes even satanism, to practice their religion UNLESS or UNTIL their actions are contrary to God’s law… e.g. human sacrifice, abortion, murder, lying, stealing, fraud… and so on. So it is important that “the law” remain established as founded upon God’s biblical law or we will have chaos, anarchy and tyranny. So, in this instance even Satan’s worshipers are subject to GOD. Even Islam must subjugate their shariah law to biblical law in America which would result in obvious conflict. If Muslims enact our laws, they will be in direct opposition to God’s laws. Islamic law does not fit with the Republic form of government that we have. Eventually, Islam will have to bow its knee to Christ.
By having this kind of religious freedom, we are allowing God’s sovereignty to guide us and to allow the proclamation of the Truth to override or supersede the other religions of the world including secular humanism. The Gospel will reveal the false beliefs in other religions and eventually become the dominant belief system before it’s all over. Because that was the plan. God’s Truth and other false religions cannot co-exist. The tenants of other faiths are not always in harmony with the Gospel of the Kingdom and our rights and liberties under the constitution.
There are arguments from both sides of the aisle as to whether we are a Christian nation, (no matter what Obama says)3. But the fact is, our founders, our forefathers, beginning with the Pilgrims and Puritans, in the Mayflower Compact, acknowledged that America had a special destiny. And they came to America to practice biblical religious liberty and expand the Gospel. From the writings of Governor William Bradford…
Last and not least, they cherished a great hope and inward zeal of laying good foundations, or at least of making some way towards it, for the propagation and advance of the gospel of the kingdom of Christ in the remote parts of the world, even though they should be but stepping stones to others in the performance of so great a work.
Our Nation Cries Out For Renewal
To put it bluntly, we have forgotten the covenant that our Founders made with our Creator. Its very meaning has been canceled by a secular elite at war with the truth.
Dr. Marshall E. Foster – The World History Institute
The vision and desire of the early pilgrims was that this New Land would have a good foundation for the “propagation and advancement of the gospel of the kingdom of Christ”, otherwise the continuation and re-launching of the great commission. America was to be the stepping stones for the Gospel to the remote parts of the World. You can’t be any clearer than that as to whether the purpose of America started with a desire to spread the Gospel and advance the Kingdom of Christ throughout the world. The pilgrims planted that seed, and we still need to nurture it now more than ever. We need to see the manifestation of the Great Commission 2.0, as America gets back on track.
From the writings of William Bradford and other early documents including the acknowledgement of God in the writing of the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and Bill of Rights… we have been endowed by our Creator with rights unlike any nation on earth. To denounce America as a Christian nation is a lie. The fact that we have strayed away from God and have put the Humanist State above his Lordship does not deny the fact that our roots are forever embedded in a biblical worldview. May we be so renewed and re-energized by the power of the Holy Spirit to rededicate our allegiance to Christ and His eternal plan.
Every Knee Shall Bow
We rendered (past tense) unto Caesar until Jesus became Lord and displaced Caesar. After the resurrection, Caesar (all forms of government) must now bow their knee to the Lordship of Christ. He has all authority now. (Matthew 28:18)
His Kingdom has been invading earth as it is in Heaven for 2,000 years and displacing injustice, unrighteousness and eventually will put down all rebellion against the King and replacing it with His justice, righteousness and peace. His throne in heaven is the seat of His Government, and it will grow on this planet until it fills the whole earth. (Isaiah 9:7) The Father is subduing all enemies under His feet including death which is finally swallowed up on the Last Day. (I Cor 25: 25 & 26)
All things are bought and paid for by His blood and will find their completeness in Him. All things (visible and invisible) will be under His Lordship including government. Secular government must bow its knee to the Lordship of Christ. It is not a co-existing political arrangement. It is on earth as it is in Heaven. One nation under God means, His governmental authority must be recognized in order to govern the affairs of men with justice. Separation of church and state is a myth. You cannot separate government from God and His justice without being in rebellion against God.
We are living in the Days of Vengeance (His Justice), and they are escalating in order to root out Satan's evil agenda of prematurely trying to end history with war, sickness, strife and tyranny (The New World Order).
The ecclesia (the called ambassadors of the Kingdom) will prevail and the unauthorized gatekeepers will bow their knees or be removed before it's all over, and His peace will subdue the earth before Christ delivers the victorious ecclesia to the Father on the Last Day.
We are in the process of making a painful yet glorious transition into His Final World Order, the advancement of the Kingdom under His Lordship, and the gates of hell (places illegally under Satan's rule) will not prevail. Good news, right? Yes, it's the Gospel of the Kingdom in its complete realization. It is the fulfillment of our commission.
And the whole earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. Hab 2:14
Every nation will operate under the laws of God and the knowledge of His ways.
…that in all things He may have the preeminence (Colossians 1:18)
For it is written: “As I live, says the Lord, Every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall confess to God.” Romans 14:11
Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 2:9-11
A Christian nation is one that allows for the Holy Spirit, God’s wisdom and the laws of God to guide us. It is not meant to ‘make or force people to become Christians’ as happened with Constantine in the 4th century. Remember God’s Kingdom is inside you as a believer, and manifests in justice and blessing as you ‘live out’ the Gospel in all areas of life, including government.
Remember, and let it sink in, Jesus is both Lord and Christ with all authority.
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Note: When an emperor was coronated (1st Century AD), there was a procession called a Triumph that evolved from a practice by the ancient Greeks. The entire procession was to show that Caesar was lord, savior, and a son of the gods. In many ways it was a deification ceremony for the new emperor. (From an article at the website Living in the Word Read the whole article to get fascinating insight as to the resemblance of Caesar’s coronation and the documentation of Christ’s Lordship).
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2In 1802 Thomas Jefferson penned a letter to the Danbury, Connecticut, Baptist Association in which he described the First Amendment as erecting a "wall of separation between church and state." However, the phrase “separation of church and state” is not found in the constitution. Read more on this at The Rutherford Institute
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3 We are no longer a Christian nation, at least not just [a Christian nation] we are also a Jewish nation a Muslim nation and a Buddhist nation and a Hindu nation and a nation of non-believers. Barack Hussein Obama
In this quote, Obama uses crafty and carefully chosen language to undermine and deny our Christian heritage. Yes, it is true that the population is made up of a variety of beliefs, therefore we should agree with him that we are not just a nation ‘of Christian people’… rather than acknowledging that our founding principles are based soley on a Christian and biblical worldview and therefore we are a nation with Christian roots and laws. There is no way under God’s law that our roots are based on the tenets of the Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu religions nor are we a non-believing nation.
The idea that the basis of our country, its very foundation is designed from a plurality of beliefs and dogmas is foolishness and a lie from the pit of hell. Diametrically opposed beliefs cannot co-exist without one belief compromising its actions resulting in hypocritical outcomes inconsistent with their beliefs. More could be said about how the state has established “humanisim” at the state religion disgused in secular language.
The American Covenant by Marshall Foster
DISCOVER THE UNTOLD STORY OF AMERICA’S SACRED COVENANT WITH GOD, AND WHY IT STILL MATTERS TODAY.
The American Covenant: The Untold Story documents in exciting and vivid detail the Biblically-based principles and personalities that formed the foundation for America’s economic, governmental, legal, educational, and spiritual institutions. The brilliant strategy of our Founders is contained in this volume and is providing hope for families and nations worldwide.
America is a mighty nation undergoing a historic national crisis. We have turned our backs on the sacred covenant forged between America’s founders and our Creator.
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To understand our Christian roots, this is a must read: The Pilgrims: The Untold Story Free PDF download
What Is The Relationship Between Church and State by R.C. Sproul (Amazon affiliate link)
In the United States, people often hear the phrase “separation of church and state.” Many assume this means the government should rule without taking God into account. But that idea is a distortion of the truth.
In this booklet, Dr. R.C. Sproul explains where the government ultimately gets its authority: from God Himself. God ordained the state to protect life and promote justice. Christians must respect and honor their earthly authorities but at the same time remember that God is the highest authority of all.