Challenging Our Rights

Ever since the Covid shutdowns began, I have had time to ponder and to think about what all we have lost.  And one thing that keeps popping up is “rights.” I started to think about that in terms of the many freedoms many of us may have taken for granted.  For instance, how many times have we thought that it is our right to travel? And we would do it at any cost because it is our right.  Or we thought it is our right to have a good job, money, a nice car, and all that money can buy (since we worked for it). Here is one of my favorite ones:  We think it is our right to have a driver’s license.  I am reminded of what they often said at Driver Licensing, where I once worked, “Driving is a privilege, not a right.” And so are many of these “extra” things we think we deserve and have a right to enjoy.

Well, the Lord has been showing me something about rights. He has reminded me that everything could be stripped away, and then how much of my “rights” will come into play when I try to replace what I’ve lost? It won’t—rights will be completely thrown out the window, kind of like many of them are right now in this lockdown. For now, safety is more important than rights.

Have you ever wondered where this idea of human “rights” originated in the first place? Well, first of all, if you believe in God and that He created everything, you need to ask if human rights is something that God created, or is it something man-made? I believe it began with Satan and Eve. He made her think God was withholding something from her, since she did not know about evil. She only knew about good. God wanted to protect her from having knowledge of evil. But Eve believed Satan’s lie instead.  But God has always wanted us to relate to Him by faith, to trust Him, that He never lies, and He’ll always make good on His Word. There is no need to fight for human rights when you have a loving God always on your side and watching your back. So upon entering a relationship with God, we can wholly trust Him that He will hold nothing back from us. We can trust Him no matter how difficult the circumstances in life. 

 This is not so in the world. Legislating human rights has, no doubt, saved many human lives when you see the atrocities that some tyrants have unleashed on their subjects, as in Hitler and Stalin. These were murderous men that had to be stopped. Such men, to this very day, still exist in the world, and are a threat to all. So in this case, yes, human rights matter, because we need to live without the threat of someone cutting our life short. Thank goodness for the RCMP, the police, and the army, who serve to keep us safe! We must always protect children and vulnerable people from tyrants and people who wish others harm. Canadians have the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. I believe that the United States Constitution talks about “inalienable rights,” as well, offering a democratic freedom, and the right to worship, work, speak, and so on without persecution. This is the whole idea of the “free” Western world, also prevalent in the United Kingdom. Let’s pray that these freedoms, so hard fought for, remain with us for some time to come, but without being abused and used for selfish or evil purposes.

As a Bible-believing Christian, I have often questioned the idea of rights to begin with. I’m not talking about human rights to protect and save us from tyrants and murderers. I’m talking about the mindset that something is “mine,” and I don’t really care how it affects you. In other words, a self-centered kind of right. And I think this is something that I’ve seen abused in our free western world. In some cases, the mindset behind women’s rights and the right to abort their unborn baby applies here. It is taken out of context because the baby is also a separate human being but has no “right” to keep its own life. I am so sorry for the babies, and the mothers that made that decision, many of them unaware of the devastating after-effects that would never go away. Forgiveness and healing are readily available, but the message to women has been based on false information, and a lack of valuable information, so that they can make informed and ethically sound decisions.

 As a Christian, are our rights something we should embrace and fight for, or even die for? Or does it fly in the face of everything the Gospel message stands for? After all, Jesus gave up His heavenly paradise to come to this earth in the most humble fashion, lose all the rights He had, and was more than entitled to. He denied Himself even to the end when He gave up His life, never mind his rights, to save a sick and dying world that He loves so much.

The following passage is talking about how we are to conduct ourselves.  In this passage, Jesus is our supreme example of giving up His rights. Would we not follow His example?

 Php 2:3  Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.

Php 2:4  Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.

Php 2:5  Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:

Php 2:6  Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:

Php 2:7  But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men:

Php 2:8  And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.

 I can’t help but think that we are being tested during this exacerbating time of fighting off the Covid, and enduring the severe lockdowns. But I think it helps a great deal to read the above passage of Scripture and remember what Jesus gave up for our sakes! You’ll notice a stark difference to Jesus life compared to ours, in fact, there is NO comparison! Basically, Jesus WILLINGLY gave up EVERYTHING! In Matthew 8:20, Jesus says that He had no place to lay His head. He had no earthly possessions of any kind. He had no kingly status, He belonged to no special clubs. He had every “right” to anything He wanted because He is the great Creator of all things, the GREAT I AM, The Prince of Peace, Mighty Counsellor, El Shadai, etc.  He owns everything!  But He firmly refused it all!

Just read the temptations He went through and at his weakest moments, like when the devil offered him the kingdoms of this world, or bread to stop His hunger, Jesus refused it all and rebuked the devil instead! And on the cross, when He suffered immeasurably with no skin left on most of His body, He was alone, rejected, abused, scorned, spat on, shamed, mocked, lied to and about, and the Father had turned His back on Him, He could have called on tens of thousands of angels to save Him, but He didn’t! He thought you and I were worth the excruciating pain, the immeasurable agony, and the shedding of His own blood! His love drove Him to such lengths, and He carried out every single prophecy ever declared about Him, and it cost Him everything, and cost Him His life.

And He asks so little of us. Jesus has a cross for us to bear. It is really a test we will experience for our entire life, once we decide to follow Jesus. In fact, if we refuse to pick up our cross, we are not worthy of Him.

Mat 10:38  And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.

Mat 16:24  Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

This is such a hard passage because we all know what it means to carry a cross. It means that you have to let everything else go, including yourself, like Jesus did. What kind of baggage are you and I carrying? You can’t carry the cross, yourself, and all your beloved things at the same time. Something will give, something will fall. The load will be too heavy. Will it be you and your things that you let go of, or will it be the cross?

Such sobering thoughts for sobering times we are in. Rights or no rights, I choose to follow Jesus. Why? Because even though it seems like a hard and unpredictable way to go, it is the only way to go, and the Lord will never ever lead us astray. He will even help us carry our own cross when it becomes too heavy. Sometimes He will just take it from us for awhile until we can resume carrying it! The point is, to trust Him with all that comes our way, for He knows what He’s doing, and He is the ONLY way to everlasting life.

Mat 7:13  “Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.

Mat 7:14  For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few. ESV

 

 

In Prison No More

We are in a severe lockdown in our part of the country. Everything is closed again. You can still shop, but after awhile even that wears thin. You go shopping and then straight home. You’re not allowed any visitors on your property, neither can you visit anyone except a single person if you are the one designated person.

And it is discouraging, especially if you’ve been following the rules.  Is there no relief or reward?  The numbers go down, and we get a brief reprieve, then they’ve gone up, and we’re locked in again.  A normal life seems so far away when the virus never seems to end its dirty evil work.  There is no doubt that these lockdowns bring great stress, duress, sadness, panic, depression, addictions, abuse, loss of jobs, family, friends, your health on every level, and even your life.  You dare not get sick and need hospital care because they’ve run out of beds, and now ship you out of province, away from your family, whom can’t visit you anyway.  In every sense of the word, it feels like we’re in a prison. 

I have asked God many times what is the purpose of this from a spiritual standpoint?  First of all, I had to discover that it was more than just being ordered to basically stay at home that has been causing me to feel “locked in,” or “caged in,” like a prisoner. I think back to other times in my life when I felt similar, that I was in a prison - would it ever end, would I ever be free?  Many of our prisons are self-made, and they are the worst kind because you have to come to terms with yourself.  The first time I can remember feeling like I was in a prison was when I was a teenager, and I became addicted to drugs.  Also, throughout most of my life, I was addicted to tobacco.  Addictions are a prison all their own - something else is directing your life. You feel you have no control over it.  I’m happy to say I was delivered from drugs and eventually from smoking.

Then there are prisons of our negative thinking and lack of faith.  I suffered with years of depression. I still don’t know the real cause of it.  I read many books on how to overcome it, I went for counselling, was offered medication that I couldn’t take, and finally, I attended a self-help group similar to AA, and I got free of the depression.  I learned to lean on God, accept and express my feelings, make things right with God and others, and even myself, and within a couple of years, armed with the right tools and knowledge I needed, I was free!  A few years later, though, after a series of unfortunate circumstances, I suffered with a severe anxiety disorder.  This led to a loss of my job, loss of health, loss of social life, loss of living (it took a huge toll on my overall health).  Many years of my life I was unable to travel or do other things because I didn’t have the money or the energy.  Anxiety, and/or nerve fatigue, takes everything out of a person.

 One of the most wonderful things I learned during these very difficult times, is that when we are weak and needy, this is when we actually cry out to God, and draw closer to God.  In our weakness He is made strong. 

 2Co 12:9  And he hath said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my power is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 

2Co 12:10  Wherefore I take pleasure in weaknesses, in injuries, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong. 

 During these times of weakness, I discovered were to be the most precious times I ever spent with the Lord, learning of Him, and from Him.

But we must be ever aware of Satanic traps set for us.  Satan is our enemy, and he will viciously and constantly attack us in our thought life.  If we’re not careful and cognizant of satanic “popped in” suggestions, we can create our own prison by accepting the wrong thoughts and developing the wrong attitudes towards others and God.  This is what Satan hopes, to poison our thoughts, and disrupt and cause dissension in all our relationships.  Why? Because it is through relationships with God and one another that God reveals His lavish love for the world to see.  So, this is where Satan will most often target.  It will also create unforgiveness, and we will naturally separate and isolate from one another (sad to say, but we don’t need the government to tell us to distance ourselves).

Unforgiveness creates a prison for us regardless of what the other person has done.

Besides relationships, there are other negative thoughts the devil will try and plant in our minds, like thinking - “Will this COVID NEVER END?” The devil wants us to believe that it will never end. We may wonder, “Will my pain never go away?” or “Will my partner or my kids never change?”  “Will I be stuck in this job forever?”

 What are some other traps you can think of that leave you feeling like you are in a prison?

Well, the biggest thing that keeps us in a prison is our own sin. People think that their good works will cancel the sin, but this is not true. Our own good works will keep us in a prison of sin. I used to think that you had to be a good person all the time, and knew I could never be good enough, so I just gave up altogether and continued to live a sinful life. But my sins caught up with me, and I found myself in a worst prison than I could ever have imagined. I had a nervous breakdown to boot. I had run out of all my own resources, and medicine didn’t help. I was desperate, and so I cried out to God. He did hear me, and He did save me in a miraculous way. He forgave me and took my heavy weight of sin, healed me, and filled me with His unshakeable peace. I was never the same again, and nor would I ever want to go back to the life of slavery to sin.

What is the answer for being in a prison? There is only one answer, and that is Jesus. Take a look at this:

Luk 4:18  The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,

Luk 4:19  To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.

I love the part, “to preach deliverance to the captives.” Who are the captives? You and I! We are captive by our own sin.

And I love this verse also,

2Co 3:17  Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

What does this mean? It means that when you feel or sense an oppressive sprit, that is not God! You can rebuke that spirit and know that God’s spirit gives you immeasurable freedom (in line with all that is righteous and all that He approves of).

There’s more:

Joh 16:33  These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.

So even though the messages of the world and ungodly people may try to make you a slave to what they want, Jesus always has complete authority. They are only allowed to go so far, and then no more.

And I love these verses. I quote it (I John 4:4) often when I feel that I’m under any kind of attack:

1Jn 4:4  Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.

1Jn 5:4  For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.

1Jn 5:5  Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?

 If you feel that you are in a prison for any reason, I hope you can take to heart, and know that nothing is too great for our God. Reach out to Him with a simple prayer, and He will hear and answer, and He’ll lift your heavy burden, whatever it might be.

You might like to read about the life of the Apostle Paul, who spent several years in prison and continued to rejoice in His Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.  And we can do the same. Praise and thankfulness bring deliverance, because our God of the Hebrew Bible and of all creation, is worthy, and He is the only one who can set us free. No man, no nation, no government, or vaccine can do that! Only Jesus can!  So, take heart, as I am, that no matter what kind of government regulations are handed down because of Covid, or any other thing, nothing will be able to steal our real freedom, which is in Jesus Christ our Lord!

Joh 8:36  If therefore the Son shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.