How Big Should Government Be? Left vs. Right #1 God’s Way vs Man’s Way
How big should the government be? And what is its proper role in the daily lives of Americans? The Left and Right have opposite answers.
Matthew 25:31-46 (NLT2)
31 “But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit upon his glorious throne.
32 All the nations will be gathered in his presence, and he will separate the people as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.
33 He will place the sheep at his right hand and the goats at his left.
34 “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world.
35 For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home.
36 I was naked, and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison, and you visited me.’
37 “Then these righteous ones will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or thirsty and give you something to drink?
38 Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing?
39 When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?’
40 “And the King will say, ‘I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’
41 “Then the King will turn to those on the left and say, ‘Away with you, you cursed ones, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his demons.
42 For I was hungry, and you didn’t feed me. I was thirsty, and you didn’t give me a drink.
43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t invite me into your home. I was naked, and you didn’t give me clothing. I was sick and in prison, and you didn’t visit me.’
44 “Then they will reply, ‘Lord, when did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and not help you?’
45 “And he will answer, ‘I tell you the truth, when you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me.’
46 “And they will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous will go into eternal life.”
God’s Way is LIMITED GOVERNMENT, but freedom is messy and hard work. Even Israel surrendered their liberty out of fear to BIG GOVERNMENT. Forced to serve the government, big taxes, financial restrictions, loss of religious liberty, loss of property rights, etc.
1 Samuel 8:1-20 (NLT2)
1 As Samuel grew old, he appointed his sons to be judges over Israel.
2 Joel and Abijah, his oldest sons, held court in Beersheba.
3 But they were not like their father, for they were greedy for money. They accepted bribes and perverted justice.
4 Finally, all the elders of Israel met at Ramah to discuss the matter with Samuel.
5 “Look,” they told him, “you are now old, and your sons are not like you. Give us a king to judge us like all the other nations have.”
6 Samuel was displeased with their request and went to the LORD for guidance.
7 “Do everything they say to you,” the LORD replied, “for it is me they are rejecting, not you. They don’t want me to be their king any longer.
8 Ever since I brought them from Egypt they have continually abandoned me and followed other gods. And now they are giving you the same treatment.
9 Do as they ask, but solemnly warn them about the way a king will reign over them.”
10 So Samuel passed on the LORD’s warning to the people who were asking him for a king.
11 “This is how a king will reign over you,” Samuel said. “The king will draft your sons and assign them to his chariots and his charioteers, making them run before his chariots.
12 Some will be generals and captains in his army, some will be forced to plow in his fields and harvest his crops, and some will make his weapons and chariot equipment.
13 The king will take your daughters from you and force them to cook and bake and make perfumes for him.
14 He will take away the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his own officials.
15 He will take a tenth of your grain and your grape harvest and distribute it among his officers and attendants.
16 He will take your male and female slaves and demand the finest of your cattle and donkeys for his own use.
17 He will demand a tenth of your flocks, and you will be his slaves.
18 When that day comes, you will beg for relief from this king you are demanding, but then the LORD will not help you.”
19 But the people refused to listen to Samuel’s warning. “Even so, we still want a king,” they said.
20 “We want to be like the nations around us. Our king will judge us and lead us into battle.”
Matthew 20:1-16 (NLT2)
1 “For the Kingdom of Heaven is like the landowner who went out early one morning to hire workers for his vineyard.
2 He agreed to pay the normal daily wage and sent them out to work.
3 “At nine o’clock in the morning he was passing through the marketplace and saw some people standing around doing nothing.
4 So he hired them, telling them he would pay them whatever was right at the end of the day.
5 So they went to work in the vineyard. At noon and again at three o’clock he did the same thing.
6 “At five o’clock that afternoon he was in town again and saw some more people standing around. He asked them, ‘Why haven’t you been working today?’
7 “They replied, ‘Because no one hired us.’ “The landowner told them, ‘Then go out and join the others in my vineyard.’
8 “That evening he told the foreman to call the workers in and pay them, beginning with the last workers first.
9 When those hired at five o’clock were paid, each received a full day’s wage.
10 When those hired first came to get their pay, they assumed they would receive more. But they, too, were paid a day’s wage.
11 When they received their pay, they protested to the owner,
12 ‘Those people worked only one hour, and yet you’ve paid them just as much as you paid us who worked all day in the scorching heat.’
13 “He answered one of them, ‘Friend, I haven’t been unfair! Didn’t you agree to work all day for the usual wage?
14 Take your money and go. I wanted to pay this last worker the same as you.
15 Is it against the law for me to do what I want with my money? Should you be jealous because I am kind to others?’
16 “So those who are last now will be first then, and those who are first will be last.”
