Natural Law and Rights

by Susan Snelling

In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson used the phrase “the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God.” The laws of nature and the laws of Nature’s God were considered to be two sets of laws but identical. Samuel Adams said: In the Declaration of Independence the Laws of Nature are announced and appealed to as identical with the laws of nature’s God, and as the foundation of all obligatory human laws.

There is one Law Giver, from whom natural laws originate. According to James Wilson: The law of nature and the law of revelation are both Divine; they flow, though in different channels, from the same adorable source. It is indeed preposterous to separate them from each other.

Sir William Blackstone, an influential philosopher at the time of the Founders wrote: Upon these two foundations, the law of nature and the law of revelation, depend on all human laws; that is to say, no human laws should be suffered to contradict these.

The law of nature and the law of revelation have God as their source. The law of nature is the creation and the laws written on man’s heart. The law of revelation is the written word of God. The Founding Fathers devised the Constitution and the American government in a way so as to not violate these laws. They understood that all human law depends on the two foundations of nature’s law and of Nature’s God.

Alexander Hamilton said that the natural rights of man depend on the law of nature and that the law of nature is an “eternal and immutable law” which comes from God. Blackstone said, “the laws of nature are the will of the Maker.” They are intrinsically linked and cannot be separated.

This natural law that comes from God is evident in human nature or what the Framers refer to as “self-evident”. John Adams gives this example: Human nature itself is evermore an advocate for liberty. There is also in human nature a resentment of injury, and indignation against wrong. A love of truth and a veneration of virtue.

One of those natural rights that comes from natural law that Madison called “the first law of nature” is “self-preservation:” Among the natural rights of the colonists are these: first, a right to life; secondly, to liberty; thirdly to property; together with the right to support and defend them in the best manner they can. Those are evident branches of, rather than deductions from, the duty of self-preservation, commonly called the first law of nature.

The Founding Fathers believed that civil laws should not violate God’s laws and that all legislation should reflect them. If civil laws do oppose the laws of God, we still stand before the Supreme Judge and civil laws cannot protect us from Divine punishment.  George Mason understood this principle when he said: the laws of nature are the laws of God; whose authority can be superseded by no power on earth. A legislature must not obstruct our obedience to him from whose punishments they cannot protect us.

In other words, our state and national legislatures cannot create laws that put us in a position where we are forced to violate the laws of God. If they do, it is the duty of the citizen to disobey those civil laws in order to obey God’s laws. It is God, the Supreme Judge and the Ultimate Lawgiver that each person answers to in the end. We are to obey civil laws unless they violate God’s Law; then it is our duty to obey God. As Christians, we are first citizens of the Kingdom of God.

Natural Law is God’s Law and on this, the U.S. Constitution is based and all legislation should be founded; with the natural rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Keep this in mind when your legislators are making laws and other demands of local, state, or federal government that will cause you to violate God’s Law and that infringe on the natural rights that emanate from Him.

Stand up for the inalienable rights of freedom of speech, the free exercise of religion, the right to bear arms, and many other inalienable rights that are not all specifically mentioned in the Constitution. They come from God and no government can take them away. Any government that interferes with those rights is one to be contended with, or disbanded. Our God-given rights are worth fighting for. Any government that stands in the way of those rights is standing against God who gave us those rights. We have a citizen duty to stand.

RISE UP: STAND FIRM

by Rich Farm

We shall not fail – if we stand firm, we shall not fail. Wise counsels may accelerate, or mistakes delay it, but, sooner or later, the victory is sure to come.  Abraham Lincoln

Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm. Stand firm therefore… Ephesians 6:13-14a

If you have been following along over the last few months, we have learned that we have a calling, a place to establish ourselves and do good in this world as we walk with God and be obedient to what He has assigned for us. We have also learned that passivity is fatal to our call and our mission. It is making the Church ineffective in this dark world. We are called to engage in the battle against the spiritual forces of darkness that are influencing those in this world trying to control everything. Warfare is not pretty or clean, it is actually quite messy. There will be casualties in war, but if we look to the biblical history of Israel, we see those casualties came from them not following the Captain of the Hosts’ orders.

If we look to Judges 7, we see that Achan directly violated orders of the Lord when He told them no one was supposed to keep any plunder for themselves. The result of this was the next battle was devastating. God promised them victory but it was not delivered. Why? Because Achan chose to sin against the Lord. If we look at this from the perspective of current events, is it possible that we as the Church have not been seeing the victory we would like to be seeing in this nation because there are things we still need to clean up in our house? There have been many prophetic words as of late that God has been speaking of a cleansing. He is purging the compromise out of His people and we can either repent and get on board with Him or get cut off.

If we keep on with this story God says they cannot stand against their enemies until you clean house. This goes the same for us as the Church and a nation. We need to clean out the filth if we are going to see victory. 1 Peter 4:17 says For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begins at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? We need to search our own hearts personally, then as a corporate body, and deal with any compromise or corruption in order to experience the victory of the Lord in our lives and our nation.

If we are obedient to the Lord and His will, we will see the victory we so desire. We will be able to stand against the wiles of the enemy if we don’t give him any place in our lives through compromise or sin. In our obedience, we have confidence in our faith to stand on what God has promised for this nation. If we are in disobedience our faith will waiver and we may become a casualty of war because our foundation had cracks in it. Let’s make sure we are standing on a firm foundation of faith and obedience to God. Then surely, we can walk in what Moses promised the people in Exodus 14:13 Then Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid! Take your stand [be firm and confident and undismayed] and see the salvation of the LORD which He will accomplish for you today; for those Egyptians whom you have seen today, you will never see again.”

Do we really want to be like the generation prior to Joshua and die off in the wilderness never seeing the promises of God or do we want to partner with Him, in faith and obedience, and see the fulfillment of the prophetic words being spoken in this time?