1 00:00:04,690 --> 00:00:10,130 Greetings. This is Pastor David Bass at New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian Church 2 00:00:10,130 --> 00:00:15,169 with a moment of truth where we challenge you to think through an important issue of life and 3 00:00:15,169 --> 00:00:22,870 faith. And today, I want to challenge you to think about this biblical truth. God's civil 4 00:00:22,870 --> 00:00:31,510 covenant with mankind demands that we take back our government. There is a biblical mandate for 5 00:00:31,510 --> 00:00:41,570 us to act now in our own day and age to take back our government because we all as God's creatures 6 00:00:41,570 --> 00:00:50,390 are responsible for governing ourselves. God has made a civil covenant with mankind and it demands 7 00:00:50,390 --> 00:00:58,369 that we take back our government. What is the form of this covenant? Where is it mandated? How are we 8 00:00:58,369 --> 00:01:05,170 supposed to responsibly act? I'd like to treat those things here today with you. And we go back 9 00:01:05,170 --> 00:01:14,950 then to the Bible, which indeed does cut a covenant with mankind. God does. And he does it very early 10 00:01:14,950 --> 00:01:22,329 on, right after the flood. You remember from Genesis, the early chapters of Genesis, that indeed God brought 11 00:01:22,329 --> 00:01:30,829 a flood upon all the world and destroyed the wicked generation whose only thoughts were always towards 12 00:01:30,829 --> 00:01:41,469 evil. But he did save out of that group of mankind eight souls with the patriarch Noah. And he then cut 13 00:01:41,469 --> 00:01:48,510 a civil covenant with the rest of mankind for all generations, thereby with the sign of the covenant 14 00:01:48,510 --> 00:01:54,870 that is a rainbow. Yes, the rainbow is not just a sign of a promise, not to send a big flood again, 15 00:01:55,010 --> 00:02:01,170 but it is also a sign of a greater covenant that is a civil covenant, covenant, excuse me, 16 00:02:01,670 --> 00:02:07,849 with government. That is, we establish government for certain purposes. And that is from Genesis 9, 17 00:02:07,930 --> 00:02:14,969 verses 1 to 17. So I want to read those for you first, Genesis chapter 9, verses 1 to 17, 18 00:02:18,509 --> 00:02:26,949 of the civil covenant for government. Genesis 9, verses 1 to 17. Then God blessed Noah and his sons, 19 00:02:27,110 --> 00:02:34,669 saying to them, be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth. The fear and dread of you will fall 20 00:02:34,669 --> 00:02:40,969 on all the beasts of the earth and on all the birds of the sky, on every creature that moves along the 21 00:02:40,969 --> 00:02:47,389 ground and on all the fish in the sea. They are given into your hands. Everything that lives and moves 22 00:02:47,389 --> 00:02:53,430 about will be food for you. Just as I give you the green plants, I now give you everything. But you 23 00:02:53,430 --> 00:03:00,689 must not eat meat that has its lifeblood still in it. And for your lifeblood, I will surely demand 24 00:03:00,689 --> 00:03:08,289 an accounting. I will demand an accounting from every animal and from each human being too. I will demand 25 00:03:08,289 --> 00:03:15,509 an accounting for the life of another human being. Whoever sheds human blood by humans shall their blood 26 00:03:15,509 --> 00:03:24,090 be shed. For the image of God has God made mankind. In the image of God has God made mankind. As for you, 27 00:03:24,310 --> 00:03:30,789 be fruitful and increase in number. Multiply on the earth and increase upon it. Then God said to Noah 28 00:03:30,789 --> 00:03:37,150 and to his sons with him, I now establish my covenant with you and with your descendants after you and with 29 00:03:37,150 --> 00:03:44,030 every living creature that was with you, the birds, the livestock, and all of the wild animals, all those 30 00:03:44,030 --> 00:03:49,409 that came out of the ark with you, every living creature on earth. I establish my covenant with 31 00:03:49,409 --> 00:03:55,889 you. Never again will all life be destroyed by the waters of a flood. Never again will there be a flood 32 00:03:55,889 --> 00:04:02,569 to destroy the earth. And God said, this is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you 33 00:04:02,569 --> 00:04:09,569 and every living creature with you. A covenant for all generations to come. I have set my rainbow in the 34 00:04:09,569 --> 00:04:15,530 clouds and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. Whenever I bring clouds 35 00:04:15,530 --> 00:04:21,470 over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will remember my covenant between me and 36 00:04:21,470 --> 00:04:27,930 you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all 37 00:04:27,930 --> 00:04:34,589 life. Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant 38 00:04:34,589 --> 00:04:42,170 between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth. So God said to Noah, this is the sign 39 00:04:42,170 --> 00:04:50,709 of the covenant I have established between me and all life on earth. That is Genesis chapter 9 verses 1 to 40 00:04:50,709 --> 00:04:59,069 17, which establishes God's covenant with mankind and it demands that we take back our government today. 41 00:04:59,069 --> 00:05:06,810 That's the upshot of that covenant. Well, let me ask you, dear listener, of what does the rainbow remind 42 00:05:06,810 --> 00:05:12,649 you that we've just read about? Of what does it remind you, right? Maybe sentimental feelings of good 43 00:05:12,649 --> 00:05:19,389 things after rain, like somewhere over the rainbow. You can almost hear Judy Garland begin, somewhere over 44 00:05:19,389 --> 00:05:26,569 the rainbow, way up high. And the dreams that you dreamed of once in a lullaby, somewhere over the 45 00:05:26,569 --> 00:05:33,370 rainbow, bluebirds fly. Is that what the rainbow reminds you of, right? Somewhere over the rainbow, 46 00:05:33,670 --> 00:05:40,649 bluebirds fly. And the dreams that you dreamed of dreams really do come true, right? Oh, perhaps the 47 00:05:40,649 --> 00:05:47,129 rainbow reminds you of lucky fortune, like a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. Well, of course, more 48 00:05:47,129 --> 00:05:56,129 seriously, maybe the rainbow, as it more likely should, may remind you about a promise from God not to 49 00:05:56,129 --> 00:06:01,449 destroy the world by flood anymore. That's usually the conception for most people that know their 50 00:06:01,449 --> 00:06:08,569 Bibles. Many more people know the rainbow to be precisely this. Almost every pastor and commentator 51 00:06:08,569 --> 00:06:15,129 and Sunday school teacher understand this much. But how many also know it to be a sign of the civil 52 00:06:15,129 --> 00:06:21,870 covenant? The rainbow, yes, the rainbow, the most ubiquitous covenant sign and seal that we have. 53 00:06:21,870 --> 00:06:28,550 Every time you see a rainbow, dear listener, I hope after this, every time you see one, 54 00:06:28,970 --> 00:06:35,189 you should be reminded of the civil covenant that God has cut with us. There's three points that I'd 55 00:06:35,189 --> 00:06:42,990 like to make with you concerning the civil covenant. Number one, the civil covenant. Under the dominion 56 00:06:42,990 --> 00:06:52,029 mandate, we govern life in the human and animal kingdoms. Mankind governs life in the human and 57 00:06:52,029 --> 00:06:59,449 animal kingdoms. That's true from verses one through seven in chapter nine of Genesis. Under the dominion 58 00:06:59,449 --> 00:07:07,670 mandate, we, humankind, we, people, we, mankind, we govern life in the human and animal kingdoms. That is 59 00:07:07,670 --> 00:07:14,230 part of the covenant that God has made with us. If the flood was a judgment of the old world and a 60 00:07:14,230 --> 00:07:22,149 recreation of a new world, anticipating the final judgment in fire, then here we have a restatement 61 00:07:22,149 --> 00:07:29,209 of the dominion mandate. You remember the dominion mandate for all of mankind, which we need to be 62 00:07:29,209 --> 00:07:35,569 exercising more and more is from Genesis chapter one, verse 28, but reaffirmed in Genesis chapter 63 00:07:35,569 --> 00:07:43,230 nine. You may remember back in Genesis chapter one, verse 28, which commands us and God blessed them. 64 00:07:43,490 --> 00:07:49,769 And he said, and God said to them, that is to Adam and Eve, be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth 65 00:07:49,769 --> 00:07:56,649 and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every 66 00:07:56,649 --> 00:08:03,329 living thing that moves on the earth. Unquote. That is the dominion mandate for all of mankind and 67 00:08:03,329 --> 00:08:12,230 reaffirmed here in Genesis chapter nine. Here, however, the subduing of all of creation is given 68 00:08:12,230 --> 00:08:17,290 in greater detail. Let me make a several points with you. Number one, the inhabitants of the animal 69 00:08:17,290 --> 00:08:26,310 kingdom will know us as vice regents of the creator. We are vice regents of the creator. That's the sense of 70 00:08:26,310 --> 00:08:32,649 the fear of you and the dread of you shall be upon every beast. We are mediators of the civil covenant 71 00:08:32,649 --> 00:08:39,690 to not only one another, but also to animals. Oh, how often they are included in both judgment and 72 00:08:39,690 --> 00:08:44,929 blessing all through the Bible. And now maybe, you know, a little bit more why animals are also 73 00:08:44,929 --> 00:08:50,909 included. They, they wore sackcloth and ashes, right? Under the judgment, under the repentance of 74 00:08:50,909 --> 00:08:56,669 Nineveh. And they're also judged often in the scriptures. Well, secondly, we also see under the 75 00:08:56,669 --> 00:09:02,710 civil covenant that the inhabitants of the animal kingdom will know themselves as provender for us, 76 00:09:02,750 --> 00:09:09,750 as food for us. Now, I don't see this as a new provision, but rather a repromulgation of the old 77 00:09:09,750 --> 00:09:16,529 one. We are to eat animals now. And thirdly, we are to acknowledge the giver of life, the covenant head, 78 00:09:16,529 --> 00:09:23,889 by refusing the blood. That is commanded us as well. Refuse to eat the blood that is in the animal. 79 00:09:24,309 --> 00:09:29,950 It's not as though blood is ipso facto poisonous to us. No, that's not. The British make blood pudding. 80 00:09:31,529 --> 00:09:38,009 Rather, blood is a symbol of the life of the creature. And that life is given by God. And we 81 00:09:38,009 --> 00:09:44,649 acknowledge this fact in the blood. The entire Hebrew sacrificial system is testament to this. 82 00:09:44,649 --> 00:09:51,950 And then fourthly, we also see in verses one through seven, chapter nine, that the beginnings 83 00:09:51,950 --> 00:09:57,990 of human government are laid in foundation. The beginnings of human government are laid in 84 00:09:57,990 --> 00:10:04,850 foundation. This is a warp and woof of the civil covenant, the covenant we have with one another to 85 00:10:04,850 --> 00:10:12,429 govern ourselves, the civil covenant that we have with God, that he governs us immediately through human 86 00:10:12,429 --> 00:10:19,870 legislators and magistrates. It's not a bare proof text for capital punishment either. Rather, it is 87 00:10:19,870 --> 00:10:26,970 the prime directive and the founding principle for human government. And that is justice. Justice shall 88 00:10:26,970 --> 00:10:35,169 you do. It reprises man's creation. Back in chapter one, verses 26 and 27, right? Then God said, 89 00:10:35,169 --> 00:10:41,210 let us make men in our image after our likeness and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea 90 00:10:41,210 --> 00:10:46,850 and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every 91 00:10:46,850 --> 00:10:54,009 creeping thing that creeps on the earth. So God created man in his own image and in the image of 92 00:10:54,009 --> 00:11:03,070 God, he created him. Male and female, he created them. All from chapter one of Genesis. This, even this 93 00:11:03,070 --> 00:11:08,230 is structured covenant language. This is how God works, dear listener. He works through covenants, 94 00:11:08,230 --> 00:11:15,289 not through dispensations, or not randomly. He works logically, systematically in covenants. 95 00:11:16,490 --> 00:11:23,370 It is Hebrew poetry that is given in chapter one, and it's Hebrew poetry that's given in Genesis 96 00:11:23,370 --> 00:11:29,590 chapter nine as well. Whoever sheds human blood by humans shall their blood be shed. For in the image 97 00:11:29,590 --> 00:11:36,029 of God has God made mankind. That is verse six from Genesis chapter nine, structured very much like 98 00:11:36,029 --> 00:11:44,450 Genesis chapter one, 26 and 27. Structured covenant language. Hebrew poetry. In them, then, in these 99 00:11:44,450 --> 00:11:52,450 verses are ensconced founding principles upon which others are to be elaborated, right? Especially as 100 00:11:52,450 --> 00:11:59,870 Israel is made as a nation. And there are several important principles, founding principles that are 101 00:11:59,870 --> 00:12:06,149 here. First of all, number one, as covenant mediators, we are to administer justice as we 102 00:12:06,149 --> 00:12:14,509 exercise government over one another. As covenant mediators, we mankind are to administer justice as 103 00:12:14,509 --> 00:12:20,889 we exercise government over one another. This is the prime directive of government. God does not sit at 104 00:12:20,889 --> 00:12:26,070 some heavenly judge's bench every day, personally handing out everything from death sentences to parking 105 00:12:26,070 --> 00:12:32,470 tickets. No. Exacting perfect and immediate justice for every infraction, great or small, what kind of a 106 00:12:32,470 --> 00:12:39,230 world would we be in if that was the case? That would be a true theocracy. Instead, God has entrusted 107 00:12:39,230 --> 00:12:46,990 government to his vice regents, his subordinates, that is us. And secondly, we must also note, since we 108 00:12:46,990 --> 00:12:54,169 are image bearers of God, we are justice bringers of his as well. Since we are image bearers of God, 109 00:12:54,169 --> 00:13:01,309 we are justice bringers of his as well. That's one of the communicable attributes of God. That is, 110 00:13:01,470 --> 00:13:08,450 we image God by bringing justice. We image God by bringing love. We image God, indeed, by bringing 111 00:13:08,450 --> 00:13:14,750 other attributes like wisdom as well. But in government, the prime attribute that we share 112 00:13:14,750 --> 00:13:19,649 with God is that we bring justice. Not perfect, but we do bring justice. We're expected to. 113 00:13:19,649 --> 00:13:28,450 Deuteronomy 32.4 says of God, for example, the rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are 114 00:13:28,450 --> 00:13:36,669 justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is he. Yes. So this is God, 115 00:13:37,090 --> 00:13:44,529 and consequently, as his image bearers, we as well can be just, and we can exercise justice, 116 00:13:44,529 --> 00:13:51,110 for the one in whom justice resides to perfection, has communicated this attribute to his image 117 00:13:51,110 --> 00:13:57,830 bearers. In fact, we are obliged to do so. This is the responsibility of every image bearer, 118 00:13:58,009 --> 00:14:04,570 especially Christians. As Deuteronomy 16 says, justice and only justice you shall follow, 119 00:14:04,970 --> 00:14:10,389 that you may live and inherit the land that the Lord your God is giving you. We are to be justice 120 00:14:10,389 --> 00:14:16,110 bearers. Oh, and some people, I can hear you now, but oh, pastor, this was part of Israel, 121 00:14:16,350 --> 00:14:22,990 and we're no longer obliged to apply the civil laws of Israel to our current circumstances, right? 122 00:14:23,070 --> 00:14:29,049 That's what I hear from many, many people, absolving responsibility from taking part in government, 123 00:14:29,450 --> 00:14:36,049 absolving themselves from caring about government and doing something risky, and risking even perhaps 124 00:14:36,049 --> 00:14:43,730 your own very property and lives to correct the injustices of government. Oh, really? Is that 125 00:14:43,730 --> 00:14:50,570 what you think, dear listener? We're no longer obliged to administer justice? If not found principally 126 00:14:50,570 --> 00:14:56,809 in the law court of Israel, then the idea of justice, where is it found? And if we're not to bother with 127 00:14:56,809 --> 00:15:03,590 insisting upon justice in government as individuals and churches, are we not covenant breakers? I would 128 00:15:03,590 --> 00:15:09,549 submit to you that that would indeed be the case. We are found to be covenant breakers if we do not 129 00:15:09,549 --> 00:15:15,490 participate in government and insist that government, as we as citizens in particular, as responsible 130 00:15:15,490 --> 00:15:22,490 citizens, must insist that our government administer justice. Well, that brings me to verses 8-11, then. 131 00:15:22,730 --> 00:15:31,909 That brings me to verses 8-11, 8-11. Under the dominion mandate, God deals in a covenant 132 00:15:31,909 --> 00:15:45,389 economy for his kingdom and in his kingdom. Oh, dear listener, many, many do not realize this. I'm 133 00:15:45,389 --> 00:15:54,669 afraid, you know, in verses 8-11, God says he now establishes his covenant. This civil government 134 00:15:54,669 --> 00:16:01,870 mandate is given to us in the form of a covenant because God establishes his covenant here with 135 00:16:01,870 --> 00:16:10,629 Noah and succeeding generations. But, like true schizophrenics or like true dispensationalists, 136 00:16:11,090 --> 00:16:19,450 we compartmentalize verses 8-17 from the previous verses. But can we do this with exegetical integrity? 137 00:16:19,669 --> 00:16:27,970 I submit to you, we can't. Oh, because these verses and verses 1-7 follow with all logic and context. 138 00:16:27,970 --> 00:16:29,970 Verse 8 and 9 say, 139 00:16:30,350 --> 00:16:36,389 Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, Behold, I establish my covenant with you and your 140 00:16:36,389 --> 00:16:42,370 offspring after you. That's us. That's us. What covenant then? What covenant is established? 141 00:16:42,950 --> 00:16:47,529 The one, the provisions and stipulations and participants for which have just been given. 142 00:16:47,909 --> 00:16:54,990 The promises and the signs and seals are about to be given. But the other components of covenant, 143 00:16:54,990 --> 00:17:01,370 without which we have no covenant, were just articulated for us. That is the establishment 144 00:17:01,370 --> 00:17:08,309 of civil government, for which we are all responsible. Every covenant also has a provision 145 00:17:08,309 --> 00:17:14,509 for the propagation of the covenant to subsequent generations. Ergo, God said to his sons with him, 146 00:17:14,569 --> 00:17:22,890 right? And the covenant was made for offspring after him. As John Calvin points out at this point, 147 00:17:22,890 --> 00:17:29,089 he says, It was not, therefore, a private covenant confirmed with one family only, but one which is 148 00:17:29,089 --> 00:17:35,789 common to all people and which shall flourish in all ages to the end of the world. That is so true. 149 00:17:36,069 --> 00:17:43,849 Verses 8-11. Indeed, God works in a covenant economy, not through dispensations. That is a figment 150 00:17:43,849 --> 00:17:52,250 of some theologians' imaginations who wish to avoid the implications of covenant. God works through 151 00:17:52,250 --> 00:18:00,890 covenant. We have an economy that we work in with God. There are economies that we know of, right? 152 00:18:01,049 --> 00:18:08,809 Capitalist economy, socialist economy, maybe a feudal economy from long, long ago, where indeed goods and 153 00:18:08,809 --> 00:18:15,829 services are exchanged. Well, God works through an economy, too. He dispenses justice and righteousness, 154 00:18:16,589 --> 00:18:24,369 life and death, mercy and goodness. All of these things he does within a structured covenant. And 155 00:18:24,369 --> 00:18:31,329 Genesis chapter 9 articulates for us how we are to govern ourselves in a civil covenant. This is 156 00:18:31,329 --> 00:18:37,609 established in Genesis chapter 9. Let's go on to verses 12-17 then and see how this is borne out for us. 157 00:18:37,609 --> 00:18:46,210 Because we have the civil covenant. Under the dominion mandate, the rainbow is the sign of the 158 00:18:46,210 --> 00:18:53,150 covenant given to us in his kingdom. Indeed, the rainbow is the sign of the covenant given to us in 159 00:18:53,150 --> 00:18:59,670 his kingdom. And this is under the dominion mandate. A covenant sign is given us. Every covenant has 160 00:18:59,670 --> 00:19:06,309 signs and seals by which the abstract elements of the covenant are made concrete and tangible for their 161 00:19:06,309 --> 00:19:12,630 better understanding and fulfillment. We have baptism in the Lord's Supper in the new covenant. We have 162 00:19:12,630 --> 00:19:18,410 the rainbow for the civil covenant. And the rainbow indeed is a vivid, tangible sign and seal of a 163 00:19:18,410 --> 00:19:24,710 covenant. It's not a sentimental maudlin icon for fleeting human hopes and dreams or worse, a symbol for 164 00:19:24,710 --> 00:19:30,970 progressive degenerate sexual identities. It's not a sign or a bare promise that God won't flood the 165 00:19:30,970 --> 00:19:37,450 world again either. No. The right use and administration of human government is the 166 00:19:37,450 --> 00:19:43,470 covenantal responsibility of every image bearer. That's you and me, dear listener. We are responsible 167 00:19:43,470 --> 00:19:49,230 for civil government in our own day and time. We can't just slough it off. We can't just vote every 168 00:19:49,230 --> 00:19:54,950 four years for president and think we have executed our responsibility as civil covenant bearers. 169 00:19:54,950 --> 00:20:02,390 Oh, how much more the Christian, huh? The lack of such use and administration leads necessarily to 170 00:20:02,390 --> 00:20:08,829 tyranny and slavery. Part of the reason we are under slavery and tyranny even now is because even 171 00:20:08,829 --> 00:20:14,529 Christians have sloughed off this idea of being under a civil covenant and being responsible for 172 00:20:14,529 --> 00:20:21,430 their governments. All of us will be held to account for our fidelity to this covenant, regardless of 173 00:20:21,430 --> 00:20:27,329 whether we believe we're under such a covenant or not. It doesn't matter. God holds you responsible 174 00:20:27,329 --> 00:20:32,390 to it. It doesn't mean that you go to the voting booth once every four years. You've fulfilled your 175 00:20:32,390 --> 00:20:38,109 covenantal obligations. Rather, it means that you become an informed, engaged, and vocal participant 176 00:20:38,109 --> 00:20:43,769 in a constitutional republic. Take up your responsibilities, dear listener, and change things. 177 00:20:43,769 --> 00:20:50,589 A case can be made that a Christian constitutional republic is indeed a close model of biblical 178 00:20:50,589 --> 00:20:57,410 government. And we make that point time and time again. I've got a 10-part series indeed on how 179 00:20:57,410 --> 00:21:04,150 a Christian constitutional republic is the model of biblical government and how we've abdicated our 180 00:21:04,150 --> 00:21:12,150 responsibilities to it and forming one as well. And dear listener, you are obliged to take your place 181 00:21:12,150 --> 00:21:18,089 under the civil covenant and see what you can do with your gifts, with your resources, 182 00:21:18,089 --> 00:21:25,190 indeed to change things, to stand against tyranny, and to indeed foster true biblical justice. 183 00:21:26,170 --> 00:21:34,750 Oh, yes, how we have been given opportunity here to exercise in America our responsibilities under the 184 00:21:34,750 --> 00:21:40,910 civil covenants and how we have wasted that opportunity, especially the church, by abdicating 185 00:21:40,910 --> 00:21:47,829 covenantal theology. We have believed three lies, for example. First of all, we say there is no civil 186 00:21:47,829 --> 00:21:54,630 covenant, pastor. No, no, no. All we need to do is sit around and wait for the rapture, and we're out of 187 00:21:54,630 --> 00:22:00,869 here, and let the beast take over, and then, oh, Christ will rule in a literal thousand-year 188 00:22:00,869 --> 00:22:07,769 kingdom, right? That's an abdication of your civil covenant, dear listener, by taking that attitude. 189 00:22:08,450 --> 00:22:14,269 The second lie that we have believed is that we must not soil the garments of the gospel with 190 00:22:14,269 --> 00:22:23,309 politics, right? I've heard that for years and years, the equivalent of this, indeed, that the 191 00:22:23,309 --> 00:22:27,769 Christian is not obliged to get involved with politics. In fact, it spoils the gospel when we 192 00:22:27,769 --> 00:22:34,950 do so. It is part of your sanctification, dear listener. Indeed, sanctify everything around you. You 193 00:22:34,950 --> 00:22:42,849 sanctify your own life. You make it holy, and you weed out, and you throw out, and you discipline your 194 00:22:42,849 --> 00:22:48,890 lives so that there is no injustice in your life, so that there is a modicum of holiness and 195 00:22:48,890 --> 00:22:54,250 righteousness, and you begin to slay sin, right? That's sanctification, and you do it not only in 196 00:22:54,250 --> 00:22:59,190 your personal lives, but you do it in your family. You do it in your church, and you're expected to do 197 00:22:59,190 --> 00:23:05,190 it in your society, culture, and government, too. So the second lie is that we must not soil the 198 00:23:05,190 --> 00:23:10,769 garments of the gospel with politics, that we must remain separate, right? That's the third lie, 199 00:23:10,769 --> 00:23:16,849 that there's a separation of church and state. That's not a biblical principle whatsoever. That 200 00:23:16,849 --> 00:23:25,130 is, indeed, the lie that's been propagated for years and years now, especially by progressives 201 00:23:25,130 --> 00:23:30,849 in our culture, in our society. It's kind of the Jedi mind trick that they played on most of America, 202 00:23:30,849 --> 00:23:36,410 that there's a separation of church and state, and you shouldn't mix the two in any way, shape, 203 00:23:36,410 --> 00:23:43,390 or form, right? No, they have been mixing their religion of progressivism now for decades and 204 00:23:43,390 --> 00:23:49,109 decades, and we have abandoned the playing field. It's time to suit up and get back out on the 205 00:23:49,109 --> 00:23:54,210 playing field again, dear Christian, and fight for the civil covenant, because you will be held 206 00:23:54,210 --> 00:23:59,490 accountable for it, whether you think there is accountability or not. God is holding you 207 00:23:59,490 --> 00:24:03,210 accountable for what you're doing, and if you're living under slavery and tyranny, 208 00:24:03,210 --> 00:24:09,230 it's our own fault. We get the government we deserve, in part because the church has not stood 209 00:24:09,230 --> 00:24:16,670 for the civil covenant. Indeed, as the church, so goes the nation. That has been a truism that 210 00:24:16,670 --> 00:24:22,990 Western civilization has recognized for centuries, but we have ignored, we have forgotten, we have 211 00:24:22,990 --> 00:24:29,769 abandoned that principle that as goes the church, so goes the nation. And if we're living under tyranny 212 00:24:29,769 --> 00:24:35,910 and slavery becoming more and more evident all the time, it is primarily the church's fault. The 213 00:24:35,910 --> 00:24:44,170 church's responsibility is to awaken to the civil covenant and begin to exercise its power. If indeed 214 00:24:44,170 --> 00:24:50,930 sanctification is a necessary component of the gospel, and it is, then your obligations will necessarily 215 00:24:50,930 --> 00:24:57,049 extend not only to personal holiness, but also to your immediate world, your family, your church, 216 00:24:57,049 --> 00:25:04,470 your community, which includes its government. Oh, dear listener, looking ahead to the future, 217 00:25:04,569 --> 00:25:11,289 I hope we have a 4th of July parade here in Idaho Falls. I really hope we do. I'm not sure whether one 218 00:25:11,289 --> 00:25:17,349 is being planned or not, but I hope we do. And I hope that this 4th of July, there's a rainstorm in 219 00:25:17,349 --> 00:25:23,630 Idaho Falls and then a rainbow. Yes, a rainbow in the sky on the 4th of July. If there is, I hope 220 00:25:23,630 --> 00:25:31,150 that you, if you see it, that you think more than of a maudlin human hope or dream. I hope you think 221 00:25:31,150 --> 00:25:38,490 of more than degenerate sexual identities, right, where the rainbow has been stolen from us. And I hope 222 00:25:38,490 --> 00:25:45,029 that you think of more than just a bare promise of no more flood. No, rather, dear listener, I hope 223 00:25:45,029 --> 00:25:51,549 that you are reminded of and are thankful for Christ and his covenants, Christ and his covenants 224 00:25:51,549 --> 00:25:58,230 under which we live in the civil covenant. Take up your responsibilities under the civil covenant, 225 00:25:58,430 --> 00:26:04,789 dear listener, and bring justice to America, to a Christian constitutional republic. This has been 226 00:26:04,789 --> 00:26:11,150 Pastor David Bass at New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian Church. New Geneva meets for holy worship on Sunday 227 00:26:11,150 --> 00:26:18,049 at 10 a.m. at 101 4th Street on the corner of 4th and Boulevard. And we recognize that we're under a 228 00:26:18,049 --> 00:26:23,569 civil covenant. We also recognize we're under other covenants, especially a church covenant. We love 229 00:26:23,569 --> 00:26:29,430 one another. We fellowship together, and we would welcome you as a visitor as well. So come cross our 230 00:26:29,430 --> 00:26:37,369 threshold at New Geneva Orthodox Presbyterian Church on Sunday at 10 a.m. 101 4th Street on the corner of 231 00:26:37,369 --> 00:26:49,589 4th and Boulevard. And call us for more information or feedback at area code 208-523-0196. That's 208-523-0196.