Second, the Bible tells us true things about people and about nature. It does not give men and women exhaustive truth about them the world and the cosmos, but it does give truth about them. So one can know many true things about nature, especially why things exist and why they have the form they have. Yet, because the Bible does not give exhaustive truth about history and the cosmos, historians and scientists have a job to do, and their work is not meaningless. . . . [Therefore] man can know both truth about God and truth about the things of creation because in the Bible God has revealed himself and has given man the key to understanding God's world." - Francis A. Schaeffer (How should we Then Live? pp.84, 85)
It was this knowledge that began to plant the seeds of freedom that would eventually find form in the establishment of the American experience. The ideas of political and religious freedoms did not just arise from thin air. It was the knowledge that God revealed about himself and what He revealed about man that laid the foundation of law by which man could live free. No one has ever carried out the biblical model perfectly, wherever these principles have been applied, they have always been marred by men and sin.
As men began to understand these precepts and implement them into their society, the doors of freedom gradually began to swing open. It did not bring social and political perfection, but it did bring forth a vast and unique improvement. It was unique because it produced freedom without chaos. The foundation for this was based upon the absolutes given in the Bible.
In the foreground are legal cases being presented and behind their bench stand the judges in their black robes. How are they to judge? Where will they find their wisdom? Where can men find justice? The answer is clear, "The Law of God"
Before Lady Justice would adorn the stairway in Lausanne, Alexandre Vinet (1797-1847) would declare, "Christianity is the immortal seed of freedom of the world."
It is the proclamation of “the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God,” the foundation of our Declaration of Independence, which Blackstone’s Commentary affirmed to the Holy Scriptures. The foundation of our American experience takes us back to our Independence, and that independence takes us back to the Puritan understanding of God's rule in all areas of life. The root of that understanding finds its rest in the Reformation and the rediscovering of Biblical truth.
Before Paul Robert and Lady Liberty, before Alexandre Vinet, there was Samuel Rutherford and Lex Rex, which place in writing what "Justice Lifts the Nations" said in mural form. The idea would be Law is King, and as Lady Liberty established, it would be the law of God. Lex Rex had a great influence on the United States Constitution, one such influence came through John Witherspoon Signer of the Declaration of Independence. Lex Rex laid the foundation of government upon the solid ground of absolutes. Justice and governance would not be arbitrary, changing with the whims of men's minds. It would ring secure resting on the absolutes of God's law. It provided a moral compass that transcended man, for it would be God's absolutes that would judge society through men's consciences. To the extent to which Christian principles are practiced, one can control the despotism of the majority vote or the despotism of one person or group.
Out of all of this, freedom gradually began to reach new heights in human experience. The American experience has not been perfect, many injustices still abounded throughout its history. Men have been inconsistent with the biblical teaching they claimed to follow. One profound example can be seen in the Declaration of Independence, as it proclaimed, "We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness, That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed, that whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its Foundation on such Principles, and organizing its Powers in such Form, as to them shall seem most likely to affect their Safety and Happiness." Yet these Noble words could not break the bonds of slavery that survived the Revolution. That would take another 100 years and rip the nation apart with civil war. America was free, but she was not living up to her Noble precepts. To understand slavery in America see my post American Slavery, "Setting the Record Straight"
There will be objections to the concept of Biblical law because of the institution of slavery. Many will surmise, that if the Bible is written by God, and these are the words of the Lord, then you can come to only one possible conclusion: God is an impressive advocate of slavery and is fully supportive of the concept. These views accumulate a host of regulations and commands scripture gives concerning slavery. It is very easy to take those scriptures and promote the Bible and therefore God as instituting and supporting slavery.
We must recognize the slavery described in the Old Testament was quite different from the kind of slavery we think of today - in which people are captured and sold as slaves. According to Old Testament law, anyone caught selling another person into slavery was to be executed:
"He who kidnaps a man, whether he sells him or he is found in his possession, shall surely be put to death." Exodus 21:16
The idea that God or Christianity encourages or approves of slavery is shown to be false. However, since slavery was widely practiced during biblical times, the Bible prescribes laws to protect the lives and health of slaves. Paul, the author of many of the New Testament writings, encouraged the Christian Philemon to release his Christian slave from his service. In addition, numerous verses from the New Testament show that God values slaves as much as any free person and is not partial to anyone's standing before other people.
The Bible presents the world to us as it is, sin and all. There are some 27 million people enslaved in the world today for forced labor or sexual pleasure. One study from the United Nations’ International Labour Organization estimated in one previous year 3.8 million adults and 1 million children were victims of forced sexual exploitation around the world. If the New Testament regulations concerning slavery were applied here, it would eliminate the sex trade. This is not the slavery regulated in the scriptures, what we see in the Bible is similar to that of bankruptcy law. With this, a government doesn’t step in, but a person, who has lost themselves to debt, can sell the only thing they have left, their ability to perform labor. This is a harsh reality in the world we live in, a result of sin, either ours or others. People who did this made a wage, had their debt covered, had a home to stay in, and did it until their debt was paid. In some societies, this debt was passed on to the children or other family members. This is not pleasant nor fair at times, but it is life and it is what the Scriptures speak to us of.
It is said sometimes, one can take the Bible and make it say anything you want it to. Sadly, without careful study and understanding of all the context involved, this has proved true. It has caused many Christians to land on the wrong side of truth often. This takes us back to the quotes at the start of this post by Francis A. Schaeffer, understanding what God has revealed about Himself and what He has revealed about man, puts all these things in the correct perspective.
May the grace of God be upon each of you,
David
