BLOG

The filet mignon of the word, part 9, International relations

Empires have now been replaced by hegemons, largely because nations no longer want to give the appearance of being an oppressor of other nations. With the rise of so-called democracy, it is preferable to maintain secret empires rather than overt empires. The change of terminology is more cosmetic than real, of course

So the Babylonian Empire has now been replaced by Mystery Babylon, that is, a secret or hidden form of empire that is, nonetheless just another form of Babylon, according to Scripture. The main reason for this secrecy is to avoid international criticism that may inspire opposition. Hegemony is perceived by the public as merely a sphere of influence—a friendly relationship—when, in fact, it is usually a form of bondage.

This becomes apparent if and when a nation wants to break out of its shackles and pursue policies and relationships that are in its own interests. When hegemony is challenged, it puts economic, military, or political pressure upon the breakaway nation in order to maintain the benefits of the hegemon itself. It is at those crisis points that hegemons are seen more clearly as actual empires.

Empires are defined as a conglomeration of multiple nations, each having its own king and yet ruled by a single “king of kings” (Daniel 2:37; Ezra 7:12). The rise of modern democracies properly started with the Magna Charta in 1215 A.D., followed 600 years later by the Congress of Vienna in 1814-1815, when modern colonialism was fully established. Colonialism, however, proved to be too visible to the world and was replaced by hegemony a century ago. In fact, it is often said that the Israeli state in 1948 was the last European colony.

Democracy itself, first introduced by the Grecian beast empire of Daniel 7:6, sounds good on the surface, but in the end, it is the manifestation of the second beast empire (a leopard). In actual practice, democracies have always allowed the wealthy class to gain power and to replace monarchs as the real rulers of those nations.

The Ideal Biblical Government

Scripture sets forth the monarchy as the ideal form of government. The main problem with a monarchy is that kings are at least as susceptible to being corrupt and immoral as are the wealthy sponsors of democracy. It was for this reason that America’s founders formed a republic rather than either a monarchy or a democracy. It chose a democratic republic with a system of checks and balances of power.

Even in ancient Israel, it is clear that if Israel had not demanded a king too early, God would have given them a righteous king. Any monarch prior to David was going to be somewhat less than the ideal. David, being a messianic type, was far from perfect, but when he sinned, he readily repented. Saul, on the other hand, rebelled against the word of the Lord and refused to repent.

David’s monarchy was an imperfect picture of the monarchy of Jesus Christ, called in Revelation 19:16, “King of Kings and Lord of Lords.” Jesus Christ is not running for president; He is coming as a King and will not accept a lesser position. The only way that an ideal form of government can be established in the earth is to have an incorruptible monarch to rule the people by the unselfish principle of divine love.

Since the end of the Pentecostal Age in 1993, the world has begun to move steadily toward such a place. The overcomers were called to engage in spiritual warfare from 1993-2000 according to the pattern of King David, the warrior. This warfare was successful, although no nations were physically conquered by force. The overcomers used spiritual swords to win their battles, and this is one of the main differences with the conquests of David.

With the addition of Joseph from 2001-2009 to secure the birthright, the overcomers were able to begin the work of preparing the way for Christ’s second coming through the Elisha ministry. We are now coming to the latter stage of the Elisha ministry, and so far it does not appear that we will need a fourth type of ministry prior to His coming as King.

Solomon’s Reign

All prophetic types and shadows are of a limited nature, giving us a basic outline without much detail. As with David, his son Solomon also presents a limited revelation of truth about Christ. Solomon was given the gift of wisdom (1 Kings 3:12; 4:30; 10:23), which guided him in the first half of his reign. But his heart was turned aside in his later years, and so he became corrupt and even satanic. So we read in 1 Kings 3:3,

³ Now Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of his father David, except he sacrificed and burned incense on the high places.

Nonetheless, as a son of David, he was a prince. His name means “peace,” and so he was a type of the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6). Solomon’s reign was peaceful, but he became ungodly. 1 Kings 11:4, 5 says,

⁴ For when Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart away after other gods; and his heart was not wholly devoted to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father had been. ⁵ For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians and after Milcom the detestable idol of the Ammonites.

Solomon’s many wives violated the law (Deuteronomy 17:17; 1 Kings 11:3), and yet if his wives had been converted to the God of Israel, this may not have been a problem. The bride of Christ, too, has been called from among all nations, but this marriage is successful only because His bride believes in Him.

The true Prince of Peace, then, is greater than Solomon in both wisdom and godliness. His international relations are based on true righteousness as established by the New Covenant.

Righteous Wars

David was a man of war. There is no doubt that he was led by the Spirit, even in warfare, but in the end this disqualified him from building the temple (1 Chronicles 28:3). So also, during the time of the rise of the house of David from 1993-2000, we would not see the construction of the spiritual temple that God intended. This would have to wait for the rise of Joseph (2001-2009). Specifically, this was completed 2,520 years after the completion of the second temple in the days of Haggai. It was completed in 515 B.C., and 2,520 years later was the year 2006.

Hence, this was completed by “Joseph,” not by “David.”

The laws of righteous war are recorded in Deuteronomy 20. These laws presume ahead of time that there is a righteous cause for the war. Obviously, a simple war of aggression for the purpose of establishing an empire is not a righteous war. The purpose of war is to establish justice on an international scale, in the same manner that domestic crime incurs a war on crime in the courts.

In the past century the nations of the world have attempted to promote international justice through the United Nations, the International Court of Justice, and the World Court. Although these are all man-made organizations, they served their purpose to some extent. It is not possible to know how much these have deterred unjust wars, for we know that wars have continued unabated to the present time. Nonetheless, the underlying idea was noble.

The main problem has been that certain nations have dominated the process of law enforcement, denying justice to the weak and giving undue advantage to the powerful. Once again, the process is only as good as the men who are given authority to judge. I foresee the day when international laws will reflect the principles of biblical law and when the judges will be immune from the pressures of the rich and powerful hegemons who seek advantages over weaker nations.

The Overcomers as Judges

Revelation 20:6 prophesies that the overcomers “will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with Him for a thousand years.” One aspect of reigning is to have the authority of judging disputes. Hence, if anyone seeks to be an overcomer and to reign with Christ, he or she ought to know the laws of God. They cannot simply rely upon the Holy Spirit telling them how to judge. Certainly, a judge must rely on the Holy Spirit for discernment, but this is no excuse to remain ignorant of the Scriptures.

To be a judge requires a spirit of impartiality. Exodus 23:1-3 instructs judges:

¹ You shall not bear a false report; do not join your hand with a wicked man to be a malicious witness. ² You shall not follow the masses in doing evil, nor shall you testify in a dispute so as to turn aside after a multitude in order to pervert justice; ³ nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his dispute.

Impartial justice is the overriding concern for a biblical judge. He cannot even show partiality to a poor man. It is not lawful to steal from a rich man to help the poor. Governments are not allowed to tax the wealthy in order to redistribute wealth to the poor. God’s Kingdom is based on the Eighth Commandment, “You shall not steal” (Exodus 20:15). God’s tax system is set by the tithe of ten percent and no more unless one converts the grain into money—in which case the tax is twelve percent.

Of course, if a man has gained wealth by unjust means, then he ought to be prosecuted for his sin.

Socialism is a political and economic system that is based on theft. It is banned in the Kingdom of God. Poor people are to be assisted by voluntary gifts, not by governmental theft. Charity is the responsibility of the church, not of the government. When governments are granted the right to steal, it is not long before they continue to increase taxes in order to gain the power of the purse. This power is always misused, because it lies in the hands of ungodly men.

As prospective overcomers, we are constantly learning how to judge through the lens of the New Covenant. To accomplish this, we must study the Scriptures—the law, the prophets, and the New Testament gospels and epistles. We must be filled with the Spirit and receive the revelation of His word so that we discern its meaning and practical application.