Life Learning Series

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So, what was the other half of the fifth that came from the people? This is that portion:

And Samuel told all the words of the LORD unto the people that asked of him a king. And he said,

   This will be the manner of the king that shall reign over you: He will take your sons, and appoint them for himself, for his chariots, and to be his horsemen; and some shall run before his chariots. And he will appoint him captains over thousands, and captains over fifties; and will set them to ear his ground, and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war, and instruments of his chariots. And he will take your daughters to be confectionaries, and to be cooks, and to be bakers. And he will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your oliveyards, even the best of them, and give them to his servants.

   And he will take the tenth of your seed, and of your vineyards, and give to his officers, and to his servants.

(1 Samuel 8:10-14)

Highlight this portion in your mind;

And he will take your menservants, and your maidservants, and your goodliest young men, and your asses, and put them to his work.

   He will take the tenth of your sheep:    and ye shall be his servants.

(1 Samuel 8:16-17)

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– Continue Navigating Higher Socialism: Part Eight –

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The progressive governments of the world are anxiously trying to emulate the Israelites, in gradation in taxation. This has raised the temperature of some of the critics of various administrations. Various negative words are enlisted in an effort to cast the section of the people that cannot get so much, as being dead weight that should be eliminated. This is not a positive approach to congregational living, in the LORD.

Now, we must admit that there is no shortage of devious people, to lend a measure of truth to some of the criticism. For instance, in the case of the “welfare queens”; these are people that have decided to steal from others, through certain loopholes that are not supervised properly. Unfortunately, some of these loopholes cannot be supervised to a level that would stop the cheats, without harming the people who actually need the benefits. The LORD’S servant, Nehemiah, was beset by this type of behavior. However, since he had the support of the LORD, he was able to see, and close, the loophole.

And there was a great cry of the people and of their wives against their brethren the Jews. For there were that said, We, our sons, and our daughters, are many: therefore we take up corn for them, that we may eat, and live. Some also there were that said, We have mortgaged our lands, vineyards, and houses, that we might buy corn, because of the dearth. There were also that said, We have borrowed money for the king’s tribute, and that upon our lands and vineyards.    Yet now our flesh is as the flesh of our brethren, our children as their children: and, lo, we bring into bondage our sons and our daughters to be servants, and some of our daughters are brought unto bondage already: neither is it in our power to redeem them; for other men have our lands and vineyards.And I was very angry when I heard their cry and these words. Then I consulted with myself, and I rebuked the nobles, and the rulers, and said unto them, Ye exact usury, every one of his brother. And I set a great assembly against them. And I said unto them, We after our ability have redeemed our brethren the Jews, which were sold unto the heathen; and will ye even sell your brethren? or shall they be sold unto us?   Then held they their peace, and found nothing to answer.

Also I said, It is not good that ye do: ought ye not to walk in the fear of our God because of the reproach of the heathen our enemies? I likewise, and my brethren, and my servants, might exact of them money and corn: I pray you, let us leave off this usury. Restore, I pray you, to them, even this day, their lands, their vineyards, their oliveyards, and their houses, also the hundredth part of the money, and of the corn, the wine, and the oil, that ye exact of them.

   Then said they, We will restore them, and will require nothing of them; so will we do as thou sayest.

Then I called the priests, and took an oath of them, that they should do according to this promise. Also I shook my lap, and said, So God shake out every man from his house, and from his labour, that performeth not this promise, even thus be he shaken out, and emptied.

   And all the congregation said, Amen, and praised the LORD.

   And the people did according to this promise.

(Nehemiah 5:1-13)

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– Continue Navigating Higher Socialism: Part Seven – 

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And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.

(Exodus 33:19)

To support any political system, we must have funds. The children of Israel were blessed by the LORD with a significant infusion of assets to carry them forward into the Promised Land. This is that funding source:

And the children of Israel did according to the word of Moses; and they borrowed of the Egyptians jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: And the LORD gave the people favour in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they lent unto them such things as they required. And they spoiled the Egyptians.

(Exodus 12:35-36)

– Continue Navigating Higher Socialism: Part Six –…

Scripture tells us this about the beginning of the redemption of the Israelites, by the devotion of the local power of the overseer of the LORD, Moses with Aaron: 

And the people believed: and when they heard that the LORD had visited the children of Israel, and that he had looked upon their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshipped.

(Exodus 4:31)

Fortunately for the children of Israel, those early signs and wonders that they had seen in Egypt were embedded in their portfolio of psychological principles. However, the mind is a very active place, and later events tend to move prior ones into a dormant place. So, to keep God’s presence in active memory and to give them a later reminder; the LORD gave them an incentive to rely on the new type of environment that He was bringing them to.

In the process of moving the Israelites to a new place in reality, the LORD activated a very controlled environment. Though, it was not the type of control that dictators wield; instead, it is the type of control that a social leader delivers. In that respect, Moses was the means by which the LORD was delivering the children of Israel to the height of socialism. The signs and wonders of the LORD, in Egypt, and the wilderness, also served to move the Israelites to the point in mind at which they were willing to begin the process.

The process of substituting the activity of the mind, in lieu of dependence on signs and wonders, started with the spiritual stirring of fear. The end result was the request of the people for intercession of a local power source, the LORD’S elected one. In that request, the LORD had delivered the people to a point of establishing Moses as the recognized power in the congregation.

The LORD did not command the people (directly) to accept a local authority; they did so willingly and openly–when we recognize our need for it, socialism merges more peacefully into societies. However, whether we recognize our need, or not; when the LORD ordains this, or any other environment, God’s will is done. Understand this: God is, here, the Author of both the interactions and the associated reactions.

And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking:

and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off.

And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die.

And Moses said unto the people, Fear not: for God is come to prove you, and that his fear may be before your faces, that ye sin not.

And the people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness where God was.

(Exodus 20:18-21)

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– Continue Navigating Higher Socialism: Part Five –

In the time of Moses and the prophets, righteousness involved a leveled approach to clearing away the guilt; a leveled approach that started with the physician putting himself in a sterile environment: this is much like the preparation that a surgeon does before entering the operating theater. First, the spiritual preparations had to be completed; similar to laying out the surgical instruments, equipment, and materials (including the soap for scrubbing and the sterile gloves). Scripture describes such a period of preparation that involved the spiritual surgeon, Aaron, the high priest. The congregation, in general, and Aaron, specifically, suffered a trauma that required spiritual healing.

And the LORD spake unto Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they offered before the LORD, and died; And the LORD said unto Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the holy place within the veil before the mercy seat, which is upon the ark; that he die not: for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy seat.

(Leviticus 16:1-2)

In Aaron’s period of emotional trauma, the LORD delivered the instructions on what preparations are required for remediation.

Thus shall Aaron come into the holy place: with a young bullock for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering. He shall put on the holy linen coat, and he shall have the linen breeches upon his flesh, and shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen mitre shall he be attired: these are holy garments; therefore shall he wash his flesh in water, and so put them on.

And he shall take of the congregation of the children of Israel two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering.

(Leviticus 16:3-5)

Then, there is the preparation for the cleansing of the spiritual surgeon, Aaron.

And Aaron shall offer his bullock of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make an atonement for himself, and for his house.

(Leviticus 16:6)

Also, there are preparations that are required for the healing of the patient.

And he shall take the two goats, and present them before the LORD at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats; one lot for the LORD, and the other lot for the scapegoat. And Aaron shall bring the goat upon which the LORD’S lot fell, and offer him for a sin offering. But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat, shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness.

(Leviticus 16:7-10)

Once the preparation of the spiritual environment had been completed, then the spiritual physician needed to remove any spiritual impurities that could infect the congregation–which is the patient.

– Continue Navigating Higher Socialism: Part Four – 

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Government of the people, 

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   Moses, Aaron and the priests were the institutional support for the care of the people; including, their physical, psychological and spiritual well-being. The workload of Moses, and Aaron and the priests was definitely not trivial; for, the people of the congregation of Israel were animated in their demand for public services. To give you an introduction to the mood of the people, here is an incident in the life of the congregation of Israel that incorporates at least two of their requirements for support: such as would be provided by a modern fire department, and public welfare–as in, food stamps in the cities of the United States of America.

And when the people complained, it displeased the LORD: and the LORD heard it; and his anger was kindled; and the fire of the LORD burnt among them, and consumed them that were in the uttermost parts of the camp. And the people cried unto Moses; and when Moses prayed unto the LORD, the fire was quenched.

   And he called the name of the place Taberah: because the fire of the LORD burnt among them.

And the mixed multitude that was among them fell a lusting: and the children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat? We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlic: But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes.

   And the manna was as coriander seed, and the colour thereof as the colour of bdellium. And the people went about, and gathered it, and ground it in mills, or beat it in a mortar, and baked it in pans, and made cakes of it: and the taste of it was as the taste of fresh oil. And when the dew fell upon the camp in the night, the manna fell upon it.

(Numbers 11:1-9)

   Of course, the LORD knew what the people needed. Of course, too, the LORD knew what the people wanted. However, to move the people to the end of their journey, the needs and the desires were kept apart from one another. This did not please the children of Israel; they wanted the desires to be meshed with the needs, and then fulfilled as if they were requirements. This is not a socialist thing to do; wherefore since God is a Socialist, this could not be done. Let us look at some of the real needs that can be satisfied under a socialist system, as was done in the wilderness days of the congregation of Israel.

– Continue Navigating Higher Socialism: Part Three – 

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Ancient Egyptian Model (God the Socialist)

Group Dynamic

   It seems that there was a thirteen-part organization that was too big to fail. In this case, the main distributor showed an extreme amount of bias in the distribution of the bailout funds. The main distributor favored his family, over an entire world of people. This is pork barrel government at its finest; isn’t it?

And Joseph said unto his brethren, I am Joseph; doth my father yet live?   

   And his brethren could not answer him; for they were troubled at his presence.

And Joseph said unto his brethren, Come near to me, I pray you.

   And they came near.

And he said, I am Joseph your brother, whom ye sold into Egypt. Now therefore be not grieved, nor angry with yourselves, that ye sold me hither: for God did send me before you to preserve life. For these two years hath the famine been in the land: and yet there are five years, in the which there shall neither be earing nor harvest. And God sent me before you to preserve you a posterity in the earth, and to save your lives by a great deliverance. So now it was not you that sent me hither, but God: and he hath made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house, and a ruler throughout all the land of Egypt.

   Haste ye, and go up to my father, and say unto him, Thus saith thy son Joseph, God hath made me lord of all Egypt: come down unto me, tarry not: And thou shalt dwell in the land of Goshen, and thou shalt be near unto me, thou, and thy children, and thy children’s children, and thy flocks, and thy herds, and all that thou hast: And there will I nourish thee; for yet there are five years of famine; lest thou, and thy household, and all that thou hast, come to poverty.

(Genesis 45:3-11)

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– Continue Navigating Higher Socialism: Part Two –

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Part One 

Forging a Mold

We begin our study of God the Socialist with the example that he gave us in Jacob’s son, Joseph: let us set the authority for the example. First, please realize that natural phenomena are the sole territory of the LORD, so far; and, especially, in the day of Joseph. To give the example of Joseph its authority, the LORD set a natural phenomenon in the path of Joseph, in the kingdom of Pharaoh, in the land of Egypt. (The phenomenon was introduced as a part of a prophetic gift to Pharaoh.)

Then Pharaoh sent and called Joseph, and they brought him hastily out of the dungeon: and he shaved himself, and changed his raiment, and came in unto Pharaoh. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I have dreamed a dream, and there is none that can interpret it: and I have heard say of thee, that thou canst understand a dream to interpret it. And Joseph answered Pharaoh, saying, It is not in me: God shall give Pharaoh an answer of peace.And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, In my dream, behold, I stood upon the bank of the river: And, behold, there came up out of the river seven kine, fatfleshed and well favoured; and they fed in a meadow: And, behold, seven other kine came up after them, poor and very ill favoured and leanfleshed, such as I never saw in all the land of Egypt for badness: And the lean and the ill favoured kine did eat up the first seven fat kine: And when they had eaten them up, it could not be known that they had eaten them; but they were still ill favoured, as at the beginning.

So I awoke.

And I saw in my dream, and, behold, seven ears came up in one stalk, full and good: And, behold, seven ears, withered, thin, and blasted with the east wind, sprung up after them: And the thin ears devoured the seven good ears:

and I told this unto the magicians; but there was none that could declare it to me.

(Genesis 41:14-24)

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– Continue Navigating Higher Socialism: Part One – 

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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 effect theirSafety and Happiness.Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed.But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.

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They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?

Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin. And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever. If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

– Read the whole consideration: A Place for Judicial Activism? –

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(Up Close and Personal)

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There has been much discussion about a certain linguistic flourish, which contained the expression, wise Hispanic. This expression, along with its containing thought, was for a limited audience. It is a way of striving to achieve a first mark in the journey toward excellence in judicial behavior. It is only a first marker, and only one of several such markers. We could replace the words, wise Hispanic, by any other personality that a person might express when they have set their mind to performing consistent judgment, for the rendering of decisions based on the applicable law. It is not an exclusive, or negatively comparatively, expression; except where experience might raise a negative feeling in those who are without it.

In that light, let me extend the statement (not amend it) with the following . . .

“For, I know that there is a wise Hebrew, who continually makes more righteous judgments than any man or woman–for there is no man or woman who can ever attain to the richness of his experiences. This Hebrew man is the true higher mark of judicial activity; not, me. Please receive a portion of his words, following:

Then certain of the scribes and of the Pharisees answered, saying, Master, we would see a sign from thee. But he answered and said unto them, An evil and adulterous generation seeketh after a sign; and there shall no sign be given to it, but the sign of the prophet Jonas: For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here. The queen of the south shall rise up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for she came from the uttermost parts of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and, behold, a greater than Solomon is here.(Matthew 12:38-42)

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– Leaning on the Highest Judge (Portion 04) Conclusion – 

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