Sermon Notes: What is the Baptism of the Holy Spirit?

 

The Baptism of the Holy Spirit:

"What is it?"

(Pastor Terry L. Reese; Valley GBC of Armagh, PA; February 13, AD 2022)

 

TEXT: Mark 1:1-8.

 

Intro: We have examined the matter of the Divine & Personal Identity of the Holy Spirit, as well the matter of His Indwelling—a Post-Pentecostal, NT era, Church distinctive, involving the universal, permanent indwelling of the Christian believer, transforming him into a living Temple of the living God.

 

Another distinctively post-Pentecost ministry of the Spirit predicted by John the Baptist (Mark 1:8) and promised by our Lord (Acts 1:5) is the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.

 

The Historic Grace Brethren Statement of Faith:

Art. IV. The Holy Spirit: We believe in the Holy Spirit, in His personality (John 16:7-15), deity (Acts 5:3-4), and His work in each believer: baptism and indwelling at the moment of regeneration (1 Corinthians 12:13; Romans 8:9) and filling (Ephesians 5:18) to empower for Christian life and service (Ephesians 3:16; Acts 1:8; Galatians 5:22-23). 

 

I. A matter of controversy.

A. Confusion regarding the nature of the Church; what is it, and when did it begin?

Those who confound the Church with Israel will typically conflate Spirit-baptism with conversion, not seeing its distinctive elements. Dispensational confusion.

 

The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is a work of the Spirit that is unique to the present Church Age, beginning with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost (compare Acts 1:5, Acts 2, and Acts 11:15).

 

The distinctive ministry of Spirit Baptism serves a distinctive and particular purpose: namely, adding people to the Body of Christ. Prior to Pentecost, however, there was no spiritual body called the Christian Church to be baptized into!

 

B. Confusion regarding the distinction between water baptism and Spirit baptism.

Ritual confusion. Not every reference to Baptism is water baptism (e.g., 1 Cor. 12:13, Eph. 4:5).

 

C. Confusion created by the Pentecostal/Charismatic Movement, which classically has presented the Baptism as a special enduement of Divine power subsequent to salvation, evidenced by speaking in tongues (contra 1 Cor. 12:30). Charismatic confusion.

 

D. Confusion created by mislabeling the Filling of the Spirit as the Baptism; so with Moody & Torrey. Terminology confusion.

 

These misapprehensions serve to obscure important truths involving our union with Christ & His Church, and also a great truth concerning the solid basis for holy & victorious holy Christian living in this present evil Age.

 

II. Definition.

Whereas the Spirit’s Ministry of Indwelling speaks of His coming to dwell within us, Spirit Baptism points to our being placed in union with Christ (Rom. 6:3, 5), who is the Baptizer, and our being placed in union with His Church. We are immersed into the Church Universal—that Community where the Spirit (the baptizing Agent) dwells (I Cor. 12:13)—even as the symbol of water baptism marks our entrance into the local and visible church.

 

A succinct definition from GotQuestions.com:

The baptism of the Holy Spirit may be defined as that work whereby the Spirit of God places the believer into union with Christ and into union with other believers in the body of Christ at the moment of salvation.

 

Paul Enns (The Moody Handbook of Theology):

The baptizing work of the Holy Spirit may be defined as that work whereby the Spirit places the believer into union with Christ and into union with other believers in the body of Christ (1 Cor. 12:13).

 

Let us amplify what it accomplishes…

 

1) The baptism of the Holy Spirit brings Spirit-indwelt Church Age believers into union with other Spirit-indwelt Church Age believers in the body of Christ. 

With the Baptism of the Spirit, we are in vital union with all Church Age believers, whether they be Jew or Greek, male or female, master or slave. We all share in the ONE baptism (Eph. 4:5)!

 

Eph. 4:4-6: ⁴There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; ⁵one Lord, one faith, one baptism, ⁶one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.

 

2) The Baptism of the Holy Spirit brings believers into vital union with Christ.

Those who are “baptized into Christ” (Rom. 6:3) were also “united with Him” in the likeness of His death & resurrection (Rom. 6:5). This union & identification with Christ is the basis for holy & victorious Christian living—i.e., for our separation from the power of indwelling sin and our continued walk in newness of life. Dead to sin, alive to God (Rom. 6:11)!

 

Col. 2:12: Having been buried with him in baptism, you also have been raised with him through your faith in the power of God who raised him from the dead.

 

III. A Church Age Distinctive. The Baptism of the Holy Spirit is a work of the Spirit that is unique to the present Church Age, beginning with the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost (compare Acts 1:5, Acts 2, and Acts 11:15).

 

Prior to Pentecost, there was no spiritual body called the Christian Church to be baptized into! In Acts 1:5, Jesus identifies the Baptism of the Spirit as a yet future event. In Acts 11:15, however, Peter retrospectively identifies “the beginning” of the Spirit’s work in this manner as something that occurred back on the Day of Pentecost (recorded in Acts 2).

 

IV. Further clarifications, in light of modern error.

As I Cor. 12:13 further observes (along with Gal. 3:27-28), this ministry of the Spirit, like indwelling, is universal to all believers—not merely some spiritually elite, “Charismatic” few. Even the carnal saints of Corinth were included.

 

I Cor. 12:13: For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.

 

Gal. 3:26-28: For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man…

 

The Baptism of the Spirit is something that is done unto the believer at the outset of his salvation; it is not something done by the believer (i.e., non-experiential). It is not a special empowerment to be repeatedly sought subsequent to salvation—as is commonly taught within the Pentecostal/Charismatic tradition. Nor is it to be confused with the Filling of the Spirit.

 

Conclusions & application.

1) With the Baptism of the Spirit, we are in vital union with all Church Age believers, whether they be Jew or Greek, male or female, master or slave. We all share in the ONE baptism (Eph. 4:5)!

 

Let us strive to bring this accomplished spiritual reality to practical realization! As with marriage, what the Lord has joined together, let no man cast asunder.

 

Eph. 4:1-3: I, therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, urge you to live worthily of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

 

2) As 1 Cor. 12 emphasizes, the believer who has been baptized into the Body has been endowed with spiritual gifts to build-up the entire body. Let us use our gifts unto that end, and benefit from the gifts of others.

 

3) Jesus is interested in the present tense of our salvation—our present contest and struggle with sin. Let us be mindful of what our present identification with Christ means with regard to our walking in the newness of life, in accordance with our new identity and reality in Christ.

 

The Spirit's Work in Individual Believers

 

The Spirit’s Multi-Faceted Work in the Life of Believers

(Pastor Terry Reese, Valley GBC, Feb. 20, 2022)

 

Text: Gal. 5:16-26.

 

Intro. William Carey, in a message delivered unto the Baptist Association Meeting at Nottingham, England on May 30, 1792, said "Expect great things; attempt great things." This he said, in order to inspire and encourage his brethren to launch out into the world, with regard to the missionary enterprise.

 

God has lofty expectations for us, and has given us an astoundingly high bar: to effectively serve as ambassadors, representatives, and witnesses for our Lord Jesus Christ both at home and abroad. But to do this requires power—the power of the Holy Spirit (Luke 24:49, Acts 1:4-5, 8, John 20:22, Mark 16:17-18, Matt. 28:20)!

 

Divine Goals: It is God’s will that we be as One, both spiritually and experientially… that we build up one another… that we be progressively sanctified… that we mature… that we reflect the beauty of Christ…

 

 

The Spirit’s Multi-Faceted Work in the Individual Christian Believer

  

1. Regenerates - John 3:5, Titus 3:5

Ezek. 36:26-27: I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them.

 

John 3:3: Jesus answered and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God."

 

Titus 3:5-8: ⁵He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, ⁶whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, ⁷so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

 

Regeneration: a theological term describing rebirth; To be “born again” is to experience a new generating or second genesis; a new beginning. Regeneration by the Holy Spirit is a radical change into a new kind of being; we are changed from spiritually dead human beings into spiritually alive human beings. The Spirit recreates the human heart, quickening it from spiritual death (Eph. 2:1, 3, 5) to spiritual life.

 

2. Indwells - 1 Cor. 6:19, Rom. 8:9

Firmly to be believed, but hard to conceive, best apprehended through metaphors; indwelling is the abiding presence of the Spirit.

 

1Cor 6:19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God?

Rom 8:9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.

 

This truth is humbling, encouraging, and demanding.

3. Baptized “in” or “with” the Spirit - 1 Cor. 12:13

1 Cor. 12:13  For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body--Jews or Greeks, slaves or free--and all were made to drink of one Spirit.

Eph. 4:4-5: There is one body and one Spirit, just as also you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism

 

The baptism of the Holy Spirit may be defined as that work whereby the Spirit of God places the believer into union with Christ and into union with other believers in the body of Christ at the moment of salvation.

 

We are immersed into the universal church. ALL genuine believers are incorporated into the Body of Christ; the Spirit is the Body’s organic vitality. We are surrounded by the Spirit’s very life and power. We are united to one another in the Spirit.

 

4. Seals - Eph. 4:30

Eph 4:30  Do not grieve the Holy Spirit, by whom you were marked with a seal for the day of redemption.

Eph 1:13-14  In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

 

The Holy Spirit is referred to as the “deposit,” “seal,” and “earnest” in the hearts of Christians (2 Corinthians 1:22; 5:5; Ephesians 1:13-14; 4:30). The Holy Spirit is God’s seal on His people, His claim on us as His very own; the “earnest” money or “pledge,” given in advance as a security or down payment for the rest. The gift of the Spirit to believers is a down payment on our heavenly inheritance, which Christ has promised us and secured for us at the cross. It is because the Spirit has sealed us that we are assured of our salvation. No one can break the seal of God.

 

5. Fills - Eph. 5:18

Eph 5:18  And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit…

 

A matter of control; apart from Christ, we can do nothing (John 15:5). The Spirit controls the believer’s life—his thoughts, speech, attitudes, conduct, and labors. Note the descriptive consequences of the Spirit’s fullness…

 

Eph 5:18-21  ¹⁸And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, ¹⁹addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, ²⁰giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, ²¹submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

 

A continuing obligation and repeatable experience… We should be so completely yielded to the Holy Spirit that He can possess us fully and, in that sense, fill us.

 

6. Leads, or guides - Rom. 8:14

Rom 8:14  For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

 

A matter of both guidance and submission to his influence and control. The Spirit is represented as influencing, suggesting, and controlling. He uses a variety of means to accomplish this.

 

Our gracious, loving Guide, whose “leading” is enjoyed by all in whom is the Spirit of God’s dear Son, shows that they also are “sons of God.”

 

7. Imparts special gifts - 1 Cor. 12

1Cor 12:4-7  ⁴Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit;  ⁵and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; ⁶and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone. ⁷To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good.

 

The differences between spiritual gifts and talents:

1) A talent is the result of genetics and/or training, while a spiritual gift is the result

of the power of the Holy Spirit.

2) A talent can be possessed by anyone, Christian or non-Christian, while spiritual

gifts are only possessed by Christians.

3) While both talents and spiritual gifts should be used for God’s glory and to

minister to others, spiritual gifts are focused on these tasks, while talents can be used entirely for non-spiritual purposes.

 

There are three Biblical lists of the “gifts of the Spirit:”

1) Rom. 12:6-8: prophesying, serving, teaching, encouraging, giving, leadership,

and mercy.

2) 1 Cor. 12:4-11: the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, faith, healing,

miraculous powers, prophecy, distinguishing between spirits, speaking in tongues and interpretation of tongues.

3) 1 Cor. 12:28: healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.

 

8. Teaches & illuminates - John 14:26

John 14:26  But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my Name, He will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

 

1 Cor. 2:12-16: But we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit from God, so that we might know the things that are freely given to us by God. Which things we also speak, not in words taught in human wisdom, but in Words taught of the Holy Spirit, comparing spiritual things with spiritual things. But a natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he is not able to know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But the spiritual one discerns all things, but he is discerned by no one. For "who has known the mind of the Lord?" "Who will teach Him?" But we have the mind of Christ.

 

1 John 2:27  And the anointing which you received from Him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone teach you. But as His anointing teaches you concerning all things, and is true, and is not a lie, and as He taught you, abide in Him. [cf., v. 20]

 

Rev 2:11  He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.

 

9. Sanctifies - 2 Thess. 2:13

2Thess 2:13  But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as the firstfruits to be saved, through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth.

 

10. Produces Fruit - Gal. 5:22

Gal 5:22-23  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

 

11. Witnesses - Rom. 8:16

He bears witness to the fact of our redemption…

Rom 8:15-17  For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, "Abba! Father!"  The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs--heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with Him in order that we may also be glorified with him.

1John 4:13  By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit.

 

The Holy Spirit furnishes evidence to our minds that we have truly been adopted into the Family of God. Is the Fruit of the Spirit present in our lives? Some introspection is required!

 

12. Intercedes - Rom. 8:26

Rom 8:26  Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.

 

He edits and makes acceptable our prayers before the Father.

 

Barnes:

The reasons why Christians do not know what to pray for may be,

(1) That they do not know what would be really best for them.

(2) They do not know what God might be willing to grant them.

(3) They are to a great extent ignorant of the character of God, the reason of his dealings, the principles of his government, and their own real needs.

(4) They are often in real, deep perplexity. They are encompassed with trials, exposed to temptations, feeble by disease, and subject to calamities. In these circumstances, if left alone, they would neither be able to bear their trials, nor know what to ask at the hand of God.

 

13. Raises and changes the body - Rom. 8:11

Rom 8:11  If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.

 

A Biblical Case for Limited Government

 

Does the Bible favor a certain concept of human government?

(A Biblical Case for Limited Government)

(Pastor Terry Reese, Valley GBC of Armagh, PA; 1/29/22)

 

Intro. Our recent topic for Sunday School discussion: God & Politics—the Christian’s appropriate response to the state, and his proper civic responsibilities.

 

A controversial topic: God & Politics! But one in which God has much to say, both directly & indirectly!

 

 I. We have been looking at general principles in terms of their compatibility with the Judeo-Christian Worldview, and at various concerns that should be of interest to American Christian voters as they exercise the Constitutional Rights that this country affords in a responsible manner.

 

Various important concerns:

1) Sanctity of Life, 2) Sanctity of the Home, 3) Economic Freedom, 4) Protection of People (National Security, the Rule of Law, Crime & Punishment), 5) Defense of Israel, 6) Nationalism vs. Globalism, 7) Civil Liberties & Freedom of Conscience...

 

There has been a collapsing consensus amongst evangelicals in recent decades…

1) a pietistic suspicion of the general concept of involvement;

2) evangelicals focusing upon other issues (e.g., climate-change, social justice)…

 

II. Today’s questions focus on the seventh concern listed above:

The Preservation of FREEDOM OF CONCIENCE & RELIGIOUS LIBERTY, and  Limited government/constitutionalism vs. Statism.

 

Related questions:

“Does the Bible favor a certain concept of human government?”

“Is there a Biblical Case for limited, constitutional government?”

 

III. A Biblical case for limited government. 

 

A. The reign of tyrants—a great cause and source of human misery!

Eccl. 4:1-2: Again I saw all the oppressions that are done under the sun. And behold, the tears of the oppressed, and they had no one to comfort them! On the side of their oppressors there was power, and there was no one to comfort them.  And I thought the dead who are already dead more fortunate than the living who are still alive.

Prov. 29:2: When the righteous increase, the people rejoice, but when the wicked rule, the people groan.

 

As we seek to observe the spirit of the Royal Law and Gal. 6:10 (“So then, while we have opportunity, let us do good to all people”), this is a major concern. Open Doors World Watch List: 360 mill. Christians (1 out of 7) live under supreme duress. This has spiritual implications: consider N. Korea (hardly any evangelism) vs. S. Korea (much evangelism).

 

Also, let us be mindful that Caesar is not entitled to molest & violate our consciences before God! (Dan. 3 & 6).

Luke 20:25: And He said to them, Therefore render to Caesar the things which are Caesar's, and to God the things which are God's.

Acts 5:29: But Peter and the apostles answered, "We must obey God rather than men.”

 

Martin Luther at the Diet of Worms, AD 1521—a declaration of the right to be faithful to the Word of God, in accordance with the dictates of one’s conscience:

 

“Since your most serene majesty and your highnesses require of me a simple, clear, and direct answer, I will give one, and it is this: I cannot submit my faith either to the Pope or to the Council, because it is clear that they have fallen into error and even into inconsistency with themselves. If, then, I am not convinced by proof from Holy Scripture, or by cogent reasons, if I am not satisfied by the very text I have cited, and if my judgment is not in this way brought into subjection to God's word, I neither can nor will retract anything; for it cannot be either safe or honest for a Christian to speak against his conscience. Here I stand. I cannot do otherwise. God help me. Amen.”

 

B. A basic theological case for Limited Government: we live in a FALLEN world!

“If men were angels, no government would be necessary. If angels were to govern men, neither external nor internal controls on government would be necessary.”—James Madison

 

"Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”—Lord Acton

 

i. Preliminary comments.

1) In the deepest sense, Christianity is trans-cultural, trans-national, and trans- political; Christians can, have, and must thrive and carry out the Great Commission within a variety of circumstances and environments—including under a variety of political circumstances.

 

2) NO BLUEPRINT for any specific form of Government is laid-out in the Scriptures. The church’s emphasis is primarily SPIRITUAL, and Church & State occupy differing realms under the rule of God.

 

3) No form of government will bring us UTOPIA; we await the KINGDOM!

 

4) However, this does not mean that certain political ideas and systems are as consistent with Biblical reality and truth as are others! The issue is one of degrees of compatibility with the Scriptures.,

 

ii. Human fallenness requires the Divinely mandated institution of human government; otherwise, the world would descend into a lawless chaos.

 

>Extreme forms of anarchism & libertarianism are inconsistent with Biblical Anthropology; men are not angels!

 

iii. The Scriptural emphasis behind the purpose of human government centers around the civil protection of human life from evildoers, and the administration of justice unto that end (Gen. 9:5-6, Rom. 13:1-4, 1 Pet. 2:13-14). Again, the concern deals with the preservation of society from an antediluvian-style chaos.

 

 

Unlike modern welfare state theory, the main Scriptural focus is NOT upon providing the public with goods and services (i.e., “Where’s my free stuff?”).

 

 

iv. In a fallen world, tyrannical rulers also present a threat to public safety.

Thus, the necessity for a limited government with a meaningful system of checks-and-balances that dilutes the concentration of absolute power in the hand of sinful ruling authorities (e.g., individual potentates, elite classes, large governmental bureaucracies, etc.). 

 

>A basic principle that favors limitations upon the Government, and mitigates against the idea of an all-powerful state can exercise a godlike authority: man is created in the Imago Dei (Gen. 1:26-27, 9:6).

 

The more all-embracing and extensive a governing authority, the greater its potentiality for evil (Gen. 11:6).

 

>In both the commonwealth of Israel and the Church, we see the people often having a voice and being involved in the choice of leadership.

 

>Totalitarian systems that rely upon heavy-handed, all-embracing, expansive authority are ill-suited to a fallen humanity; we are not ruled by angels!

 

>However, as John Adams observed, there is a connection between popular morality and popular sovereignty; the greater the depths of societal depravity, the greater the requirement for social control and rule by coercion.

 

“Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”

 

>Democracy is not a panacea that brings utopia: one of the leading persecuting states against modern Christians is India, the world’s largest democracy! Popular mob rule can indeed be unjust—the tyranny of a depraved majority—and thus, we have a Constitution and Bill of Rights, making the US a Republic, as opposed to an unfiltered democracy.

 

Churchill & Aquinas.

Having said that, we note several relevant thoughts from Winston Churchill and the great medieval theologian Thomas Aquinas.

 

Churchill: “Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time…”

 

Aquinas argued in a work entitled On Kingship that a monarchy—if the hypothetical sovereign were just & righteous—is probably the most suitable form of human government. On the other hand, he further conceded that a monarchy could also be the worst form of government it the king were a base tyrant!

 

Ultimately, we await the perfect monarchy and the perfect government of Jesus Christ during the Millennium. At last, a just and righteous absolute Sovereign!

Isa. 11:1-5: Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit. The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and strength, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. And He will delight in the fear of the LORD, and He will not judge by what His eyes see, nor make a decision by what His ears hear; but with righteousness He will judge the poor, and decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; and He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked. Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, and faithfulness the belt about His waist.

 

v. Scriptural examples, cases, & warnings with regard to the tyranny and corruption associated with expansive and overreaching government.

 

1. The expanding power of the Pharaonic Regime of Egypt.

Pharaoh assumes full possession of the land and its people in the Days of Joseph (Gen. 47), and ultimately his political heirs enslave the Hebrews of Goshen, instituting various genocidal policies (Ex. 1). Egyptian tyranny is resisted under the prophetic leadership of Moses and ultimately broken by the power of God. This deliverance is celebrated in Passover.

 

2. Gideon declines the monarchy, when offered by the people.

Judges 8:23: But Gideon said to them, "I will not rule over you, nor shall my son rule over you; the LORD shall rule over you."

 

Sadly, his power-hungry son, Abimelech, was cut of a different cloth (Judges 9).

 

3. Samuel is dismayed by the nation’s demand for a king.

In I Sam. 8:10-22 the Prophet Samuel, the last of the Judges, warns the people of the perils of kingship and expansive government—oppression, servitude, and the confiscation of private property. Kings are takers!

 

4. The folly of Solomon and his son Rehoboam (1 Kings 11-12).

Solomon’s worldly lapses in his later reign result in a tyrannical heavy-handed oppression (1 Kings 12:4)—a policy that was embraced by his son Rehoboam, resulting in Jeroboam’s revolution and the tragic division of the Israelite Kingdom into two realms.

 

5. The Judgment announced by Amos 1-2 upon various nations is based upon

their negative acts of oppression—not upon some expectation that they failed to positively provide their populations with goods or services.

 

6. The unlimited universal power of the Antichrist Beast (Rev. 13).

The nightmare of unlimited global authority that the world was rescued from at Babel (Gen. 11) now becomes a reality during the Great Tribulation, in which the deified ruler of a world-state demands complete allegiance over all things—political, economic, and spiritual.

 

Conclusion: Lord Acton’s maxim is validated by the Biblical data. Our American Founding Fathers were indeed wise in diluting Federal power by giving us a constitutional republic based upon the principles of popular sovereignty, states rights (10^th Amendment), and the separation of powers characterized by a system of checks-and-balances—punctuated by a firm, open, and definite Bill of Rights.