Throughout the Bible and throughout human history, there are two important entities that are credited with standing by the Lord. We see direct references to these two entities in many places throughout the scripture, and even more indirect illusions to these entities. There is powerful imagery used to highlight them and communicate their attributes, their work, their relationship to God, their impact in the world, and their legacy both on earth and in eternity.
In one of the places that the Bible directly references these two entities it calls them "The Two Witnesses" - a clear explanation of one of their purposes on the earth - to provide a testimony to the plans and purposes of God and to make those plans and purposes known to the people of the earth who will listen. They are a testimony to the earth, a joy to those who hear, but a torment to the lost - those who refuse to listen.
Powerful symbolism is used to highlight the function of these two entities. They are called the two olive trees and the two lampstands. Lamps provide light and oil fuels the lamps. Their light is a light to the world, causing some to rejoice, but exposing the deeds of others, causing them anguish, and consequently anger and hatred.
These two are each made up of twelve smaller units. We also see the twelve and twelve scattered all throughout the Bible, both in the stories of the Old and New Testaments and throughout the symbolism and prophetic language of books like Daniel, Zechariah, and Revelation.
We also see the two witnesses, the twelve and twelve, working hand in hand with God, and even ruling and reigning along side Him in the powerful imagery of the throne room in heaven.
We also see that there are thousands upon thousands of people who make up the twelve and twelve, who serve as God's witness and light, and who are rewarded with salvation.
So who are these two witnesses and the twelve and twelve of which each witness is comprised?
The first witness, the chosen of God, who brought the word of God into the world is the nation of Israel. Comprised of twelve tribes, Israel provided the foundation to the Kingdom of God in the world. This witness is Judaism.
God promised Abraham that in his Seed, all the nations of the world would be blessed. And in keeping that promise, Christ was brought into the world as that Seed. And through the life, ministry, and work of Jesus Christ, the second witness was given: Christendom. Christ called the twelve disciples, who later became the twelve apostles and who spread the word throughout the world.
Our two witnesses are Judaism and Christendom. One witness brought the Word into the world, one witness spread the Word throughout the world.
Check out Zechariah chapter 4. It is a fantastic introduction to this entire concept. It starts with Zechariah being awoken by an angel who shows him a vision of two olive trees on either side of a lampstand and whose oil flows to the seven lamps of the lampstand. Chapter 4 ends with the angel interpreting the vision for Zechariah, explaining that the two olive trees are the two anointed ones who stand by the Lord all throughout the earth.
In the new testament we are given additional clarity regarding the olive trees in Romans Chapter 11. In a discussion that highlights the challenges faced by Israel, the loss of some of them through unbelief, and also their salvation, Israel is called a cultivated olive tree, and that Christians, though a wild and uncultivated olive branch, are grafted into this olive tree by their faith. Romans 11 tells us that Israel will be saved and that Christianity should not boast of their salvation apart from Israel, for we have been grafted in - that both Israel and Christianity are important to God, that both will be saved, and that we should rejoice in God and in His wisdom, knowledge, and judgment.
Now take a look at Revelation Chapter 11. Here we are shown an incredibly clear picture of our Two Witnesses. The two witnesses will prophesy to the world. They will be powerful in that their prayers are heard by God and that He responds to their requests. It is clear that they are opposed by the world, and that many die in the cause of their mission, and that the world rejoices over their death, but that their resurrection is assured and they will be gathered into heaven with God while their enemies look on.
Revelation Chapter 11 is also important to this discussion because it clearly reveals that the two witnesses are the two olive trees and the two lampstands (Rev 11:4). And in the same language as Zechariah 4, it declares that these are the two olive trees and lampstands that stand before the Lord of the whole earth.
The twelve and twelve play an important role fulfilling all the plans and purposes of God. He does not do his work alone, we of the twelve and twelve play a part.
In Revelation Chapter 4 we are given a tour of the throne room of heaven. Of course God is there at the center. Surrounding Him and His throne are 24 thrones upon which are seated 24 elders with golden crowns on their heads. Twelve and twelve are obviously 24. The scripture doesn't say specifically in this case that the 24 elders are the twelve tribes of Israel and twelve apostles of Christ, but a later verse in Revelation does provide this correlation for us.
See Revelation 21:12 where John is shown the New Jerusalem as it came down from heaven. It is described as having twelve gates and twelve foundations. On the gates were written names of the twelve tribes of Israel and on the twelve foundation stones were written the twelve apostles of the Lamb. This symbology is incredibly powerful: the tribes of Israel provide the gates into the Kingdom of God and the apostles of Christ are it's foundation. (It may not be significant, but I do find it interesting that the verse address of that scripture of Revelation is 21 and 12)
So we can comfortably conclude that the 12 and 12 of the gates and foundations of New Jerusalem are the same 12 and 12 that surround the throne of God. These various references highlight the importance of the Jews and Christians to the plans and purposes of God.
The next important revelation is the count of the sealed and saved. Revelation 7:4 tells us that 144,000 is the number of those who were sealed, and that they came from every tribe of the sons of Israel. It is probably obvious that 144,000 is 12 times 12 times 1000. The number 1000 is used several times in scripture to mean a vast number and generally to mean "all", or "complete", or "the full number", and if you remember back to the fact that Christians, the wild olive branch, are grafted into the cultivated olive tree, then you'll know that both Jews and Christians make up this number.
We see the 144,000 again in Revelation 14:1 where the Lamb is shown standing with those who have His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads. So a vast amount, the full number, of those who are saved, coming from the twelve tribes of Israel, times the twelve apostles of Christ represent the number of the saved.
So when you are tempted to think that we as Christians or that the saved of Israel aren't a significant force on the earth and an important part of God's plan for salvation, or that the witnesses of Revelation are two "end times" characters that have some special power, instead be reminded that we Christians, along with the Jews, are one of the witnesses of God, both on earth, and in heaven. We are the ones anointed with the power to call down fire from heaven; we are the ones who rule and reign with the Father from the throne room of heaven; we are the ones who stand beside Him; and yes, we are the ones who are saved.
Revelation Isn't Chronological
One of the things that makes interpreting the visions of John, Daniel, Ezekiel, and others difficult is our tendency to try to read them chronologically. The reader of, say Revelation chapter 11, might assume that the events described there happen before the events of Revelation chapter 20. This approach makes a common sense interpretation impossible.
The visions given to the prophets are highly symbolic. The writers are seeing an image in their mind and then putting those images to paper in the form of words - using words to describe what they saw.
They weren't seeing future events, like watching the news. They were seeing scenes, full of symbolic images that conveyed concepts about the future. Remember God's goal in giving these visions to the prophets: to tell the saints that they ultimately win.
Jesus said that He spoke in parables so that they "would not understand" (Matthew 13:10-17). The message of the parables is intended for those who love and follow the truth. A parable is a memorable and convenient way to deliver a deep message - but only for those who "have ears to hear". Those who pursue, accept, and respond to truth will get it - and be given more.
In parables, ideas are conveyed through stories, or scenes. The images given symbolize something else. The diligent student will start to pick up on these symbols and through that start to "decode" meaning from the scenes being described.
The visions given to the major prophets are intended to accomplish the same thing as when Jesus spoke in parables; namely, to communicate deep meaning to the person for whom it is intended and who is willing to seek it out and believe it.
Revelation chapter 5 starts with "Then I saw..."
Chapter 6 begins with, "Now I watched..."
And chapter 7, "After this I saw..."
Each of these is a variation on the statement, "and I saw". John is telling us the order in which he saw things - not necessarily the order in which they are meant to be understood or that they take place in historical time.
Further, we are reading these visions as experienced and told by prophets who know clearly what they saw, but not necessarily the meaning of what they saw.
Think of the way people tell a story of something that they experienced. They tend to tell highlights, the things that were most memorable, followed by other details as they come to mind and are needed to fill in the gaps. If a child comes home from an amusement park, they don't start with talking about how they rode in the car, then stood in line for tickets, then walked through the park, etc. They start with, "Mom! I rode a roller coaster!" Then as the story unfolds about their experiences of the day, other less poignant details get added. "We ate hotdogs for lunch, and Dad let me have a chocolate shake." You get a progressively expanding picture in your mind of the day that was experienced by the child, although the story wasn't given to you chronologically.
In each "and I saw" John is revealing some additional facet, some truth, some detail that is relevant to what the churches will face in the future, who the major players in this story are, and how it will turn out - but the order of these "and I saw" statements is not communicating the order in which they will happen as prophecy unfolds.
To miss this fact will require wild interpretations of the prophetic visions - especially the Book of Revelation which is quite long and contains lots of detail. Requiring a chronological interpretation of events will entirely distort the meaning of the book.
All the major prophecies found in the Bible communicate to the reader a complex scene that is multi-dimensional. While time unfolds in a linear manner, describing it linearly doesn't work. To get the full message, John, in the Book of Revelation and their other prophets in their writings have to see and communicate to us ideas and concepts that are happening partly in heaven, partly on earth, with some events having elements in the past and others in the future, with parties that are involved in some elements and not others. There is a lot going on here which cannot be explained with an "A happened, then B happened, then C."
Let's say that someone is writing a book about the Battle of Gettysburg during the Civil War. Fully describing this major historical event could not be done chronologically very well. A better method would be to tell the story over and over - each time from a different perspective. In one chapter you may discuss it from the perspective of a soldier on the front lines. In another from the perspective of the President. Later from the point of view of family whose loved one is on battlefield. You may tell the story of a slave whose future hinges on the war's outcome. The writer will probably move from perspective to perspective, focusing here for a bit, there for bit, moving forward and backwards through chronological time to emphasize elements at the appropriate point to communicate the ideas that the author finds most important.
With each rendering of the same story, the reader picks up additional detail and gets a deeper understanding of the events, their impact, the people affected, and how they were affected. This is the technique being used by God as the prophets experience the various visions that they wrote about.
So lets dive into the Book of Revelation next "reading" it in this context.
Technorati Tags: The Book of Revelation, Interpreting Biblical Prophecy, Understanding the Book of Revelation
The visions given to the prophets are highly symbolic. The writers are seeing an image in their mind and then putting those images to paper in the form of words - using words to describe what they saw.
They weren't seeing future events, like watching the news. They were seeing scenes, full of symbolic images that conveyed concepts about the future. Remember God's goal in giving these visions to the prophets: to tell the saints that they ultimately win.
The Purpose of Parables
But I think God has another goal in choosing to reveal these things in symbolic language: to keep this message concealed from those for whom it is not intended - to keep it hidden from the enemy and the lost. The message of the prophets isn't plain. You really have to think about it. You need the help of the Holy Spirit to understand it. You have to want to know the truth and seek it every day. God wants to reveal His plans to those who love Him, love the truth, and prove that by pursuing it every day.Jesus said that He spoke in parables so that they "would not understand" (Matthew 13:10-17). The message of the parables is intended for those who love and follow the truth. A parable is a memorable and convenient way to deliver a deep message - but only for those who "have ears to hear". Those who pursue, accept, and respond to truth will get it - and be given more.
In parables, ideas are conveyed through stories, or scenes. The images given symbolize something else. The diligent student will start to pick up on these symbols and through that start to "decode" meaning from the scenes being described.
The visions given to the major prophets are intended to accomplish the same thing as when Jesus spoke in parables; namely, to communicate deep meaning to the person for whom it is intended and who is willing to seek it out and believe it.
Interpreting the Visions
When interpreting the visions written down by the prophets, I believe the reader must be ready to approach them understanding this fact: the writers of these visions write what they saw chronologically, but what they saw isn't chronological. For example, in the Book of Revelation, after the messages to the churches in Revelation 1-3, John sees a vision of the throne room of heaven in Revelation 4. He starts with the words, "After this I looked, and behold a door standing open in heaven!"Revelation chapter 5 starts with "Then I saw..."
Chapter 6 begins with, "Now I watched..."
And chapter 7, "After this I saw..."
Each of these is a variation on the statement, "and I saw". John is telling us the order in which he saw things - not necessarily the order in which they are meant to be understood or that they take place in historical time.
Further, we are reading these visions as experienced and told by prophets who know clearly what they saw, but not necessarily the meaning of what they saw.
Progressive Revelation
Through all the the prophetic visions, especially Daniel, Ezekiel, and Revelation, we the readers are receiving a progressively expanding picture of what is going on in heaven, on earth, who the major participants are, and the nature of each of these things - all delivered through the language of parables. We are receiving progressively more information with each vision. Especially in the Book of Revelation, with each "and I saw", we pick up additional information about some element of the story that increases our understanding of the whole.Think of the way people tell a story of something that they experienced. They tend to tell highlights, the things that were most memorable, followed by other details as they come to mind and are needed to fill in the gaps. If a child comes home from an amusement park, they don't start with talking about how they rode in the car, then stood in line for tickets, then walked through the park, etc. They start with, "Mom! I rode a roller coaster!" Then as the story unfolds about their experiences of the day, other less poignant details get added. "We ate hotdogs for lunch, and Dad let me have a chocolate shake." You get a progressively expanding picture in your mind of the day that was experienced by the child, although the story wasn't given to you chronologically.
In each "and I saw" John is revealing some additional facet, some truth, some detail that is relevant to what the churches will face in the future, who the major players in this story are, and how it will turn out - but the order of these "and I saw" statements is not communicating the order in which they will happen as prophecy unfolds.
To miss this fact will require wild interpretations of the prophetic visions - especially the Book of Revelation which is quite long and contains lots of detail. Requiring a chronological interpretation of events will entirely distort the meaning of the book.
All the major prophecies found in the Bible communicate to the reader a complex scene that is multi-dimensional. While time unfolds in a linear manner, describing it linearly doesn't work. To get the full message, John, in the Book of Revelation and their other prophets in their writings have to see and communicate to us ideas and concepts that are happening partly in heaven, partly on earth, with some events having elements in the past and others in the future, with parties that are involved in some elements and not others. There is a lot going on here which cannot be explained with an "A happened, then B happened, then C."
Let's say that someone is writing a book about the Battle of Gettysburg during the Civil War. Fully describing this major historical event could not be done chronologically very well. A better method would be to tell the story over and over - each time from a different perspective. In one chapter you may discuss it from the perspective of a soldier on the front lines. In another from the perspective of the President. Later from the point of view of family whose loved one is on battlefield. You may tell the story of a slave whose future hinges on the war's outcome. The writer will probably move from perspective to perspective, focusing here for a bit, there for bit, moving forward and backwards through chronological time to emphasize elements at the appropriate point to communicate the ideas that the author finds most important.
With each rendering of the same story, the reader picks up additional detail and gets a deeper understanding of the events, their impact, the people affected, and how they were affected. This is the technique being used by God as the prophets experience the various visions that they wrote about.
So lets dive into the Book of Revelation next "reading" it in this context.
Technorati Tags: The Book of Revelation, Interpreting Biblical Prophecy, Understanding the Book of Revelation
Allegiance - Setting the Stage for the Great Tribulation
A Reminder: We Win!
I want to discuss the Beast and the Great Tribulation by starting with Daniel 7.
In chapter 7: 1-15 Daniel sees a vision of four beasts with various characteristics. The fourth and final one being terrifying, dreadful, and exceedingly strong. This beast overcame all the others.
Yet, in verse 9, we see that the Ancient of Days (God), took His seat, pronounced judgement on this beast, it was killed and its body turned over to be burned. The dominion was also taken away from all the other beasts.
Verses 13 and 14 show that the Ancient of Days gave dominion to "one like a son of man", that everyone would serve Him, and His dominion will never be taken away.
So a quick interpretation: here on the earth, worldly kings will rise and fall. One king will overtake another. Governments will grow in strength, handing over their power one to the next until a final earthly king who is exceedingly strong will have dominion over all the earth. This king it says elsewhere will even prevail against the saints, but God comes, takes His seat, pronounces judgement, destroys the enemy, and hands us the victory.
So lets unpack that and I'll show you how I got there. Lets start with a discussion of the enemy over whom we'll eventually have victory.
Interpretation of the Beasts
Daniel had the vision of chapter 7 interpreted for him by an angel starting in verse 15. The angel plainly tells him in vs 17 that:
The Counterfeit Messiah
The beasts of Daniel and Revelation are human based earthly governments. Further, they are a counterfeit Messiah. The lost, who have been deceived because they see with their eyes rather than with eyes of faith, can only put their trust in that which they see. They cannot see God. But they can see government. They can see kings. So they ask the king to care for them, to protect them, to provide for them. They ask earthly kings for that which they should be asking of Christ - namely, salvation.
The Israelites asked Samuel for a king (1 Samuel 8:6). At the time they were completely free. God had merely placed judges in their land to resolve disputes. But they were not ruled by the Judges, God Himself was their only King. When Israel pressed Samuel for a king, God said that it was a rejection of Him (vs 7). He also warned them that a king would cost them their freedom and their wealth (vs 11-18). An an aside, America was the first nation on earth founded deliberately on the notion that human beings should be free, and that when too much authority is given to government, it will consume the people. The founders of this nation purposely tried to limit government, but warned posterity that only through their personal relationships with God would they be able to keep it limited.
It is human choice that empowers either the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Hell. Jesus said in Luke 17:21 that "The Kingdom of God is within you." Simply put - the Word of God shapes us from the inside out. When Jesus "comes to live in our hearts" it means that we believe the Word in our hearts (Rom 10:8) and are changed on the inside. That change starts to take effect in the things we do and say. The things that we do and say shape our environment and our relationships. Rejecting the Word of God has the opposite, but same kind of effect. Individuals produce in the world around them either the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Hell by what they agree with and act upon.
Taken together (those that believe and those that reject the Word of God), our beliefs shape the entire world. The world we live in is a product of what its inhabitants believe - a product of what every human being, taken as a whole, says and does.
The Great Tribulation
The Great Tribulation is the final playing out of the misplacement of human allegiance. It is the final culmination of human trust in a physical government rather than a trust in God.
Revelation 13 has many parallels to Daniel 7. Revelation 13:3-4 says that humanity "marveled as they followed the beast." God has given each human being the freedom to choose. That freedom gives us authority. Trusting in man gives that authority over to Satan.
It is the dragon that gives the beast power. Revelation 13:4 says:
Generation after generation of empowering the dragon led to his eventual "release" (Rev 20:3). It has always been the aim of the dragon to control the entire earth through a centralized government. Every "great" ruler throughout world history has attempted to increase the size of their Kingdoms. Even our movies and various stories reveal that the villains' goal was always to "rule the world!"
Fully aware of the threat imposed by that possibility, God decentralized human government when he confused the languages at the Tower of Babel. He said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them." (Gen 11:6) The lost have been trying to centralize it again ever since.
The Great Tribulation is the accomplishment of that perpetual goal of the enemy - total centralization. At that time, the people of the world will have utterly surrendered over their lives, their freedom, their hope, their wealth, and their potential to one final earthly all-powerful government. And they will have done so willingly in their vain search for security. Once that occurs there will be no human power capable of stopping the dragon and the beast. Anything the enemy chooses to do during the Great Tribulation is possible to him. During that time the enemy will have total and complete control over human beings on the earth. You won't even be able to buy or sell anything unless you are part of his system (Rev 13:7).
In the Great Tribulation the enemy will prevail even against the saints:
Technorati Tags: The Book of Daniel, The Great Tribulation, The Beast
I want to discuss the Beast and the Great Tribulation by starting with Daniel 7.
In chapter 7: 1-15 Daniel sees a vision of four beasts with various characteristics. The fourth and final one being terrifying, dreadful, and exceedingly strong. This beast overcame all the others.
Yet, in verse 9, we see that the Ancient of Days (God), took His seat, pronounced judgement on this beast, it was killed and its body turned over to be burned. The dominion was also taken away from all the other beasts.
Verses 13 and 14 show that the Ancient of Days gave dominion to "one like a son of man", that everyone would serve Him, and His dominion will never be taken away.
So a quick interpretation: here on the earth, worldly kings will rise and fall. One king will overtake another. Governments will grow in strength, handing over their power one to the next until a final earthly king who is exceedingly strong will have dominion over all the earth. This king it says elsewhere will even prevail against the saints, but God comes, takes His seat, pronounces judgement, destroys the enemy, and hands us the victory.
So lets unpack that and I'll show you how I got there. Lets start with a discussion of the enemy over whom we'll eventually have victory.
Interpretation of the Beasts
Daniel had the vision of chapter 7 interpreted for him by an angel starting in verse 15. The angel plainly tells him in vs 17 that:
These four great beasts are four great kings that will arise out of the earth.The beast is symbolic of earthly kingdoms, or earthly governments. More pointedly: governments of men. The number 666 that we see in Revelation 13:18 is interpreted for us as the number of a man. In Daniel 7:8, it says the fourth beast has the "eyes of a man".
The Counterfeit Messiah
The beasts of Daniel and Revelation are human based earthly governments. Further, they are a counterfeit Messiah. The lost, who have been deceived because they see with their eyes rather than with eyes of faith, can only put their trust in that which they see. They cannot see God. But they can see government. They can see kings. So they ask the king to care for them, to protect them, to provide for them. They ask earthly kings for that which they should be asking of Christ - namely, salvation.
The Israelites asked Samuel for a king (1 Samuel 8:6). At the time they were completely free. God had merely placed judges in their land to resolve disputes. But they were not ruled by the Judges, God Himself was their only King. When Israel pressed Samuel for a king, God said that it was a rejection of Him (vs 7). He also warned them that a king would cost them their freedom and their wealth (vs 11-18). An an aside, America was the first nation on earth founded deliberately on the notion that human beings should be free, and that when too much authority is given to government, it will consume the people. The founders of this nation purposely tried to limit government, but warned posterity that only through their personal relationships with God would they be able to keep it limited.
Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other (John Adams)But many people, those who have no love or trust for God, want a king/government they can see, and are willing to give all that they have to get the security that they believe a king will provide. Unfortunately, what they will receive instead is the ultimate insecurity.
We will bankrupt ourselves in the vain search for absolute security. (Dwight Eisenhower)Human history is a story of allegiance. A story of our choice, made as individuals and collectively, about whom we will follow, love, and serve.
It is human choice that empowers either the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Hell. Jesus said in Luke 17:21 that "The Kingdom of God is within you." Simply put - the Word of God shapes us from the inside out. When Jesus "comes to live in our hearts" it means that we believe the Word in our hearts (Rom 10:8) and are changed on the inside. That change starts to take effect in the things we do and say. The things that we do and say shape our environment and our relationships. Rejecting the Word of God has the opposite, but same kind of effect. Individuals produce in the world around them either the Kingdom of God or the Kingdom of Hell by what they agree with and act upon.
Taken together (those that believe and those that reject the Word of God), our beliefs shape the entire world. The world we live in is a product of what its inhabitants believe - a product of what every human being, taken as a whole, says and does.
The Great Tribulation
The Great Tribulation is the final playing out of the misplacement of human allegiance. It is the final culmination of human trust in a physical government rather than a trust in God.
Revelation 13 has many parallels to Daniel 7. Revelation 13:3-4 says that humanity "marveled as they followed the beast." God has given each human being the freedom to choose. That freedom gives us authority. Trusting in man gives that authority over to Satan.
It is the dragon that gives the beast power. Revelation 13:4 says:
And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who is like the beast, and who can fight against, it?When mankind trusts government instead of God, they empower the dragon (who is Satan, as interpreted in Rev 20:2). One government may rise and be replaced by another - we see this clearly in Daniel 7 in the four beasts described there. But the authority given away by each individual to the beast (when they trust man rather than God) strengthens the dragon.
Generation after generation of empowering the dragon led to his eventual "release" (Rev 20:3). It has always been the aim of the dragon to control the entire earth through a centralized government. Every "great" ruler throughout world history has attempted to increase the size of their Kingdoms. Even our movies and various stories reveal that the villains' goal was always to "rule the world!"
Fully aware of the threat imposed by that possibility, God decentralized human government when he confused the languages at the Tower of Babel. He said, “If as one people speaking the same language they have begun to do this, then nothing they plan to do will be impossible for them." (Gen 11:6) The lost have been trying to centralize it again ever since.
The Great Tribulation is the accomplishment of that perpetual goal of the enemy - total centralization. At that time, the people of the world will have utterly surrendered over their lives, their freedom, their hope, their wealth, and their potential to one final earthly all-powerful government. And they will have done so willingly in their vain search for security. Once that occurs there will be no human power capable of stopping the dragon and the beast. Anything the enemy chooses to do during the Great Tribulation is possible to him. During that time the enemy will have total and complete control over human beings on the earth. You won't even be able to buy or sell anything unless you are part of his system (Rev 13:7).
In the Great Tribulation the enemy will prevail even against the saints:
As I watched, this horn was waging war against the holy people and defeating them (Daniel 7:21)
It was given power to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And it was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. (Revelation 13:7)
And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them (Rev 11:7)
And at the latter end of their kingdom, when the transgressors have reached their limit, a king of bold face, one who understands riddles, shall arise. 24 His power shall be great—but not by his own power; and he shall cause fearful destruction and shall succeed in what he does, and destroy mighty men and the people who are the saints. (Daniel 8:23-24)
For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. 22 And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short...29 “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man (Matthew 24:21-30)But God will end the Great Tribulation and the suffering of the saints by His coming. Don't forget Daniel 7 (reviewed at the start of this article) - God pronounces judgement on the beast and destroys his work with His coming and all dominion is given to the Son of Man. So while there will be a time of great suffering on the earth for the saints due to the world's love for and empowerment of the dragon and the beast, this will be cut short and we will be handed the victory. So take heart Christian - you're on the winning team.
Technorati Tags: The Book of Daniel, The Great Tribulation, The Beast
The Resurrection & Rapture
If we're currently in the Millennium (see my last post), then when do the Rapture and the Great Tribulation take place? Let's see what the Bible has to say about these events.
First, the word "Rapture" isn't in the Bible, but it's a generally accepted term for the gathering of the saints. There are dozens of references to this event. Here is one:
Further, trumpets are a tool of war, much like the battlefield radio is today - they were used to coordinate troop movements over long distances. The trumpet announcement is almost like a "charge". Christ is coming to do battle. The saints are being prevailed against in the Great Tribulation and it is time to end it. His second coming does so:
The clauses: "we will by no means proceed those who have fallen asleep" (1 Thes 4:15) and "the dead in Christ shall rise first" (1 Thes 4:16) are immediately explained by 1 Thes 4:17 that says, "After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air." The phrase "rise first" and "after that" are a discussion about the saved who have passed away and the saved who are still living.
The Bible makes a clear statement via many scriptures that there is one resurrection of the dead. All the dead. The dead who are saved and the dead who are lost. I just showed you one of those in Daniel 12:2 above (multitudes will awake, some to everlasting life, some to everlasting contempt).
Here is another scripture that shows one resurrection of both the saved and the lost:
So to lay out what I believe will be the timing of these major events that immediately surround the second coming:
1) The saints are enduring the Great Tribulation and are being prevailed against by satan and the beast (this will be discussed in detail in a future blog post)
2) Christ cuts short the Great Tribulation for the sake of the saints with his coming which will be very public and obvious
3) All who have ever lived will be resurrected.
4) The saved, those who were living, and those who were just raised from the dead, will be gathered to meet Christ in the air.
5) Jesus does battle against satan and those who reject his offer of salvation and destroys them.
6) The earth is destroyed
7) All humanity kneels before God at the Great White Throne Judgement where the saved are welcomed into heaven (a new heavens and a new earth) and the lost are thrown into hell.
Technorati Tags: The Rapture, The Second Coming of Jesus Christ, The Great White Throne Judgement
First, the word "Rapture" isn't in the Bible, but it's a generally accepted term for the gathering of the saints. There are dozens of references to this event. Here is one:
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17The Rapture is a day when the saints of God are gathered up to meet Christ when he returns at His second coming. The Bible makes it clear that while we won't know the exact day or hour, the Rapture does coincide with His coming and that arrival won't be a secret. The sound of a trumpet announces His arrival in both the reference noted above and the one noted below. Trumpets aren't quiet.
For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.
Matthew 24:29-31This is a great scripture because you see so many elements of the second coming addressed in it. You see the rapture itself described: "gather his elect from the four winds." You see the timing of the rapture, "immediately after the tribulation". You see that the rapture coincides with the second coming. We also learn here that there is a great shaking of the earth at this time, in other places called the second, or final shaking of the earth (the first was the flood of Noah).
The Coming of the Son of Man
29 “ Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 30 Then will appear in heaven the sign of the Son of Man, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 31 And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
Further, trumpets are a tool of war, much like the battlefield radio is today - they were used to coordinate troop movements over long distances. The trumpet announcement is almost like a "charge". Christ is coming to do battle. The saints are being prevailed against in the Great Tribulation and it is time to end it. His second coming does so:
Daniel 7:21-22 "As I looked, this horn made war with the saints and prevailed over them, until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given for the saints of the Most High, and the time came when the saints possessed the kingdom."
Daniel 12:1-3 “At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people—everyone whose name is found written in the book—will be delivered. Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake: some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever.An important component of the rapture is the resurrection of the dead. In 1 Thes 4, quoted earlier, we see this phrase, "the dead in Christ shall rise first." Pre-millennialists use this scripture to say that the rapture only includes the saved. While only the saved are gathered to meet Christ in the air, everyone is resurrected simultaneously.
The clauses: "we will by no means proceed those who have fallen asleep" (1 Thes 4:15) and "the dead in Christ shall rise first" (1 Thes 4:16) are immediately explained by 1 Thes 4:17 that says, "After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air." The phrase "rise first" and "after that" are a discussion about the saved who have passed away and the saved who are still living.
The Bible makes a clear statement via many scriptures that there is one resurrection of the dead. All the dead. The dead who are saved and the dead who are lost. I just showed you one of those in Daniel 12:2 above (multitudes will awake, some to everlasting life, some to everlasting contempt).
Here is another scripture that shows one resurrection of both the saved and the lost:
John 5:28-29The parable of the Wheat and the Tares (Matt 13:24-30) also makes it plain, especially when Jesus interprets the parable for the disciples. In the parable, an enemy planted weeds among a man's field which was freshly planted with wheat. When the servants asked if they should pull the weeds, the man said that to protect the wheat they should instead wait and harvest both the wheat and the weeds together and separate them at that time, bundling the weeds to be burned and bringing the wheat into the barn. Jesus interprets this parable for His disciples starting in Matt 13:37
28 Do not marvel at this, for an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice 29 and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.
37 He said to them: “He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38 The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one. 39 The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. 40 Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. 41 The Son of Man will send out His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, 42 and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. 43 Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.This is another clear reference to the rapture (harvest at the end of the age) where all are gathered and then separated. You see the same concept in the separation of the sheep and the goats at the Great White Throne Judgement discussed in Matt 25:31-33
31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.Again, the same elements are given: first you see the arrival of Jesus Christ ("When the Son of Man comes"), then there is the gathering of all nations (the resurrection of everyone), then a separation.
So to lay out what I believe will be the timing of these major events that immediately surround the second coming:
1) The saints are enduring the Great Tribulation and are being prevailed against by satan and the beast (this will be discussed in detail in a future blog post)
2) Christ cuts short the Great Tribulation for the sake of the saints with his coming which will be very public and obvious
3) All who have ever lived will be resurrected.
4) The saved, those who were living, and those who were just raised from the dead, will be gathered to meet Christ in the air.
5) Jesus does battle against satan and those who reject his offer of salvation and destroys them.
6) The earth is destroyed
7) All humanity kneels before God at the Great White Throne Judgement where the saved are welcomed into heaven (a new heavens and a new earth) and the lost are thrown into hell.
Technorati Tags: The Rapture, The Second Coming of Jesus Christ, The Great White Throne Judgement
Millennium?
Some of the various perspectives on Biblical Prophecy center on the question of the placement of the "Millennium" in the interpretation; asking, is your "eschatology" (study of end-times) "Pre-Millennium", "Post-Millennium", or "A-Millennium". Others frame their interpretation on the question of the Great Tribulation and the placement of the rapture; asking, does your interpretation place the rapture before or after the Great Tribulation?
We are introduced to the idea of the Millennium here:
So what does it mean that satan is bound during this time? As I posted in my last blog entry about our tendency to attempt to interpret biblical prophecy in a fantastical way, I believe this verse has been way over-literalized. Jesus taught in parables, highly symbolic language. Revelation should be read with that in mind.
Most interpret the binding of satan to mean that he has no impact on people during that time or that we will see no evil during that time. This over-literalization forces them to conclude that we must not be in the millennium depicted here at this time on the earth. I believe that is an error that greatly skews the various interpretations, making them "not common" to the experience of man. (see my last post).
The binding of satan should be understood in the context of the work of Christ on the cross. We no longer stand accused before God by satan.
In this he is "bound". He has no authority over us and has been defeated. In this he is "thrown into the bottomless pit", a place from which he cannot prevent our salvation. Jesus even said in John 12:31
There are so many other scriptures that confirm this. The Bible says that Christ defeated death. It says that we've been handed the keys of the Kingdom, it says we now have the authority to bind and loose. For the saints, if we resist satan, he must flee.
So this one reference to the millennium in Revelation 20 is not talking about a far off, mythical, thousand year window of time in which we hear no evil and see no evil. It's now! Christ does reign now! Satan is defeated now!
If you can accept this, then there will obviously be implications for your interpretation of the placement of the rapture, the timing of the Great Tribulation, and the eventual release of satan from the bottomless pit. Lets dig into those next.
Technorati Tags: Book of Revelation, Biblical Eschatology, Great Tribulation, Biblical Prophecy, The Millennium
We are introduced to the idea of the Millennium here:
Revelation 20Later in Revelation 20 we see also that Christ rules during this time. The symbolic number of 1000 simply means "vast". Other places in scripture we read, "God owns the cattle on a thousand hills", or "To God, a day is like a thousand years and a thousand years is like a day." In these places it is entirely obvious that one thousand is not an exact number, if it were, then why doesn't God own the cattle on hill numbered 1001? I apply the same logic to the interpretation of Revelation 20:2. Satan is bound for a long time and Christ rules for a long time.
1 Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. 2 And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years
So what does it mean that satan is bound during this time? As I posted in my last blog entry about our tendency to attempt to interpret biblical prophecy in a fantastical way, I believe this verse has been way over-literalized. Jesus taught in parables, highly symbolic language. Revelation should be read with that in mind.
Most interpret the binding of satan to mean that he has no impact on people during that time or that we will see no evil during that time. This over-literalization forces them to conclude that we must not be in the millennium depicted here at this time on the earth. I believe that is an error that greatly skews the various interpretations, making them "not common" to the experience of man. (see my last post).
The binding of satan should be understood in the context of the work of Christ on the cross. We no longer stand accused before God by satan.
Colossians 2:13-15We are forgiven, the record of debt has been erased! Satan can no longer hold a list of our sins before God and say, "see what they did!" Jesus triumphed over him on the cross. Satan is disarmed. He has been put to shame.
And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, 14 by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. 15 He disarmed the rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in him.
In this he is "bound". He has no authority over us and has been defeated. In this he is "thrown into the bottomless pit", a place from which he cannot prevent our salvation. Jesus even said in John 12:31
Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out.
There are so many other scriptures that confirm this. The Bible says that Christ defeated death. It says that we've been handed the keys of the Kingdom, it says we now have the authority to bind and loose. For the saints, if we resist satan, he must flee.
So this one reference to the millennium in Revelation 20 is not talking about a far off, mythical, thousand year window of time in which we hear no evil and see no evil. It's now! Christ does reign now! Satan is defeated now!
If you can accept this, then there will obviously be implications for your interpretation of the placement of the rapture, the timing of the Great Tribulation, and the eventual release of satan from the bottomless pit. Lets dig into those next.
Technorati Tags: Book of Revelation, Biblical Eschatology, Great Tribulation, Biblical Prophecy, The Millennium
Before Your Very Eyes
One of the flaws I find with the pre-millennial view is interpretation that is fantastical, much like a hollywood movie, rather than in keeping with the normal course and flow of world events that we already see going on around us. I suspect that the pre-millennial view is interesting to people because it describes a world that seems so much different than the world they currently live in. Like a good movie, people are drawn to stories that take them out of their current circumstance and into an experience that is mythical, or "above" what they are currently living.
I believe that while the actual texts of the major prophecies of Daniel, Ezekiel, Revelation are written in "fantastical" language, a language of visions and dreams, their interpretation is meant to describe things that we can see just by looking around. As we experience the events of the major prophecies, they will look much like the other common events of life going on around us.
Let me give one good example. Revelation 11 introduces us to the "Two Witnesses":
Revelation 11:4 tells us who these witnesses are; they are the olive trees and the lampstands. Other scriptures reveal how we should interpret these symbols. Romans 11:16-24 shows us that the olive tree is Israel and that the gentiles (a wild olive tree branch) are grafted in. One of God's witnesses on the earth is the olive tree, symbolizing the spiritual descendants of Abraham. The symbol of the lampstand is interpreted in Rev 1:20 where we are told that the "lampstands" are the "churches".
This should be easy to accept for the believer. Who are the ones witnessing on behalf of Christ? The spiritual descendants of Abraham and the churches throughout the world.
So back to my main point - this prophetic image, given to us in Revelation 11, is not talking about some future, almost movie-like event, where 2 super-human Christians terrify the lost by breathing fire. It is instead talking about YOU, and ME, and others from our communities of faith who are actively walking in the power of God to reach the lost that surround us. WE are the witnesses! As the Body of Christ, we DO have the power mentioned in Revelation 11:5. Christ said as a body we would do greater things than He did. This image shows us doing so.
Nearly all of the pictures painted for us through the symbolism found in the major prophecies are "common" - meaning, they find their interpretation in the events of life in a manner that you are already experiencing. Some are in the past, some are yet to come, but it is unfolding all around you. You are living biblical prophecy, you are seeing it, you are participating in it.
I believe that while the actual texts of the major prophecies of Daniel, Ezekiel, Revelation are written in "fantastical" language, a language of visions and dreams, their interpretation is meant to describe things that we can see just by looking around. As we experience the events of the major prophecies, they will look much like the other common events of life going on around us.
Let me give one good example. Revelation 11 introduces us to the "Two Witnesses":
3 And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.”
4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5 And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed. 6 They have the power to shut the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire. 7 And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them
Revelation 11:4 tells us who these witnesses are; they are the olive trees and the lampstands. Other scriptures reveal how we should interpret these symbols. Romans 11:16-24 shows us that the olive tree is Israel and that the gentiles (a wild olive tree branch) are grafted in. One of God's witnesses on the earth is the olive tree, symbolizing the spiritual descendants of Abraham. The symbol of the lampstand is interpreted in Rev 1:20 where we are told that the "lampstands" are the "churches".
This should be easy to accept for the believer. Who are the ones witnessing on behalf of Christ? The spiritual descendants of Abraham and the churches throughout the world.
So back to my main point - this prophetic image, given to us in Revelation 11, is not talking about some future, almost movie-like event, where 2 super-human Christians terrify the lost by breathing fire. It is instead talking about YOU, and ME, and others from our communities of faith who are actively walking in the power of God to reach the lost that surround us. WE are the witnesses! As the Body of Christ, we DO have the power mentioned in Revelation 11:5. Christ said as a body we would do greater things than He did. This image shows us doing so.
Nearly all of the pictures painted for us through the symbolism found in the major prophecies are "common" - meaning, they find their interpretation in the events of life in a manner that you are already experiencing. Some are in the past, some are yet to come, but it is unfolding all around you. You are living biblical prophecy, you are seeing it, you are participating in it.
Bringing Biblical Prophecy Back to Earth
Today the "Pre-millennial" perspective is almost universally accepted framework for biblical prophecy and the study of end-time events. As that perspective has gained momentum with best-selling books, frequent conferences and seminars, and nearly a pop-culture acceptance of its tenants, I have found myself increasingly aware of the Holy Spirit's leadership away from this view.
Everywhere I look in scripture I see a conflict with the Pre-millennial view. It is my plan in the months to come in this blog to explain what I believe the Bible does say about end-time events and to provide an interpretation of biblical prophecy that is consistent with all of scripture, providing a framework for understanding eschatology that correlates comfortably with history, what we see going on around us now, and all Biblical utterances on the topic.
Fear of the Great Tribulation
I want to start by addressing why I suspect it is that Christians have been drawn to the Pre-millennial view. The great tribulation has haunted believers since it was first introduced in the book of Daniel. As Christians, we can take embarrassment, we can handle ridicule, even some suffering is okay. But "Great" and "Tribulation" are pretty scary, and I believe that our fear of this upcoming time has driven the theologians over the last several decades to try to find a belief system that lets them avoid it.
Scripture clearly refutes this hope. Jesus says plainly in Matthew 24:21-22
"For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. 22 And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short."
We, the elect, the saints, those of us alive at that time will experience the great tribulation, but it will be cut short on our behalf. Daniel makes the same point in Daniel 7:21-22 by saying:
"As I looked, this horn made war with the saints and prevailed over them, 22 until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given for the saints of the Most High, and the time came when the saints possessed the kingdom."
So while we'll be there, God cuts the tribulation of that time short with His coming, and in so doing hands us the Kingdom. This is ultimately great news for us, but yes, scary to consider from our current perspective.
In order to begin, I must lay out a general framework for my Biblical interpretation.
Purpose of Biblical Prophecy
The primary purpose of Biblical Prophecy is to give the saints hope by confirming for them their ultimate victory in the midst of the challenges that they are currently enduring or that lay ahead. It's goal is to prepare them for these challenges, and yet provide a basis for faith through them.
The message is: We win! Our faith is not in vain. Yes, there will be trouble, but be of good cheer, our Savior is victorious.
Who's Your Daddy?
While there is incredible detail contained in all the scriptures regarding the unfolding of history, at the center of all of them is one primary question - "who is your Father?" Jesus told the pharisees that they were of their father the devil (John 8:44). To the Christian, we are told that we have been adopted as sons and now call Him "Abba Father", essentially, "Daddy" (Rom 8:15).
God's goal is to save His children. The enemy's goal is to prevent that. The events of human history, both past and future, give each individual human being the opportunity to decide who they will love, listen to, follow, and serve. God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, along with all the heavenly host and the saints, work in love to help each human being make this decision. God's enemy works, through his host of fallen angels and deceived human beings to prevent individuals from coming to know God.
Even now, Christians seek the lost, follow the leadership of the Holy Spirit, and move in the power of the Kingdom to accomplish God's redemptive plan. All around us, we are opposed. Opposed by governments, by the media, by popular culture. All politics, all debates, all controversies, have at their heart the central question: "who do you love, who will you follow, who will you serve?"
The Prophecy's of Psalms, Isaiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, many books in the New Testament, and especially Revelation are saying one thing: "have hope! God will be victorious! Your faith and sacrifice are not in vain! You will be greatly rewarded!"
So with these things in mind. Lets dig in.
So with these things in mind. Lets dig in.
Technorati Tags: Book of Revelation, Biblical Eschatology, Great Tribulation, Biblical Prophecy
Print it out!
I notice quite frequently the little notice on the bottom of the email of well intentioned individuals reminding me not to waste paper by printing the email. This admonishment, along with countless others coming from those who want to do their part to "Save the Planet" are sadly, in almost every case, taking steps to destroy it. Let me see if I can explain.
In the above example, we are encouraged not to print because it consumes paper, and consuming paper requires the use of trees which must be cut down, thereby stripping the land and destroying the planet. At least that is the logic. Here is the flaw in that logic:
Trees are a crop. Human beings grow them, harvest them, and sell them. There have been times in our history where that crop was harvested from open land not owned by the individuals selling the crop, so the case could be made that the land was being stripped and left barren. That isnt how it works any more. Today the land is owned by individuals who have decided to put that land to work producing trees. It is a business.
As a business, capital is invested to buy land, the tree crop is grown in such a way as to preserve and protect the land so that the capital investment is not lost, and trees are harvested and sold to produce a profit for the owners. The by-product of this business is 1) income for the thousands of people who are involved in the process, and 2) the wood itself, which is used in thousands of ways to make the lives of those who buy it better.
In a free market system people allocate their scarce resources in such a way as to maximize their satisfaction. When people do spend money, they do so because they've decided the the satisfaction they'll receive through that expenditure will be greater than the satisfaction they could have received by spending that money another way.
Markets respond to the above reality by trying to determine a better way to deliver greater satisfaction at lower cost so as to obtain a greater customer base and hence a greater income.
These two factors provide the two sides of the equation that make a free market economy possible. We all live on both sides of this equation. On the one side of the equation we attempt to maximize our income so that we can obtain greater satisfaction in our lives. On the other side we attempt to conserve our expenditures and get the most bang for our buck.
This works!
It produces wonderful products and services in ever greater abundance at ever decreasing costs. As markets solve human problems the world becomes a better place to live. We become healthier, we live longer, and we enjoy our lives more. This is a wonderful thing, a gift from God.
Furthermore, people who have their basic needs met go on to seek improvement in broader areas of their lives, such as in their local environments. Starving people don't care about the environment, they care about eating. Well fed and comfortable people do care about the environment. Inside each of us is a desire for beauty, but we don't seek after that desire until other more basic needs are met (Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs)
Concern for the environment we live in sits at the top of that pyramid. As the free market exchange of free human beings solves the problems of life, more and people move into higher levels of that pyramid.
Freedom leads to prosperity, and prosperity benefits the environment.
The quality of a nation's environment is directly proportional to prosperity of it's citizens. Look at the relative cleanliness of a typical prosperous American City vs a typical city in any poor country. The difference is stark. North Korea is a wasteland, ravaged by communism. South Korea is a prosperous, beautiful country. Look at this image of Haiti vs. the Dominican Republic. On one side there is lush beauty, the other is barren.
Freedom is good for the environment. So is consumption. When we consume the products of our fellow human beings, we are all made better off.
In ignorance, some people, being convinced that a person selling wood is in some way destroying their planet, start trying to manipulate the buyers of that product into consuming less of it. They are trying to prevent others from buying and selling what they want, and add social pressure (and eventually laws) to stop them.
I say ignorance, because the person selling wood is in no way destroying the planet. As a crop those trees would not be there were it not for the wood market. If one human being finds that wood makes his life better, and another can produce an income for himself and others by producing that wood, they are both made better off - at at the same time, as a direct result of their exchange, the land is improved and the crop is increased. The circumstances are improved for the buyer, the seller, the land, and the trees.
So the pressure produced by the ignorant to stop this exchange has a negative effect on every aspect of this reality. The people producing and selling wood see their income reduced, the people using that product to in some way to improve their lives must go without that improvement, the land will no longer be maintained to the degree that it was, and the total number of trees will be reduced. Why take care of the land and plant trees if people aren't buying?
It might seem small, but it isn't. One man's expense is another man's income. Anything that reduces the exchange between them reduces the quality of life for both of them and causes neglect of the tools and resources involved in the process.
Environmentalism doesn't improve the environment as it is currently practiced. Environmentalism is a highjacking of the human desire for a beautiful world and puts that desire to work in the cause of socialism and the accumulation of power in the hands of government. Nothing destroys an environment more thoroughly than excessive government power. Freedom produces prosperity and the forces which result in the improvement of the environment. Powerful governments are by their very nature anti-freedom and consequently they produce poverty and bleak environments.
We all want to live in a beautiful world full of trees, clean air, and clean water. Prosperity produced by the market exchange of free people trying to maximize their quality of life is the most effective way to achieve that end.
So if you find that printing this out in some way improves your life, do it! It will be good for all of us, including the planet.
In the above example, we are encouraged not to print because it consumes paper, and consuming paper requires the use of trees which must be cut down, thereby stripping the land and destroying the planet. At least that is the logic. Here is the flaw in that logic:
Trees are a crop. Human beings grow them, harvest them, and sell them. There have been times in our history where that crop was harvested from open land not owned by the individuals selling the crop, so the case could be made that the land was being stripped and left barren. That isnt how it works any more. Today the land is owned by individuals who have decided to put that land to work producing trees. It is a business.
As a business, capital is invested to buy land, the tree crop is grown in such a way as to preserve and protect the land so that the capital investment is not lost, and trees are harvested and sold to produce a profit for the owners. The by-product of this business is 1) income for the thousands of people who are involved in the process, and 2) the wood itself, which is used in thousands of ways to make the lives of those who buy it better.
In a free market system people allocate their scarce resources in such a way as to maximize their satisfaction. When people do spend money, they do so because they've decided the the satisfaction they'll receive through that expenditure will be greater than the satisfaction they could have received by spending that money another way.
Markets respond to the above reality by trying to determine a better way to deliver greater satisfaction at lower cost so as to obtain a greater customer base and hence a greater income.
These two factors provide the two sides of the equation that make a free market economy possible. We all live on both sides of this equation. On the one side of the equation we attempt to maximize our income so that we can obtain greater satisfaction in our lives. On the other side we attempt to conserve our expenditures and get the most bang for our buck.
This works!
It produces wonderful products and services in ever greater abundance at ever decreasing costs. As markets solve human problems the world becomes a better place to live. We become healthier, we live longer, and we enjoy our lives more. This is a wonderful thing, a gift from God.
Furthermore, people who have their basic needs met go on to seek improvement in broader areas of their lives, such as in their local environments. Starving people don't care about the environment, they care about eating. Well fed and comfortable people do care about the environment. Inside each of us is a desire for beauty, but we don't seek after that desire until other more basic needs are met (Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs)
Concern for the environment we live in sits at the top of that pyramid. As the free market exchange of free human beings solves the problems of life, more and people move into higher levels of that pyramid.
Freedom leads to prosperity, and prosperity benefits the environment.
The quality of a nation's environment is directly proportional to prosperity of it's citizens. Look at the relative cleanliness of a typical prosperous American City vs a typical city in any poor country. The difference is stark. North Korea is a wasteland, ravaged by communism. South Korea is a prosperous, beautiful country. Look at this image of Haiti vs. the Dominican Republic. On one side there is lush beauty, the other is barren.
Freedom is good for the environment. So is consumption. When we consume the products of our fellow human beings, we are all made better off.
In ignorance, some people, being convinced that a person selling wood is in some way destroying their planet, start trying to manipulate the buyers of that product into consuming less of it. They are trying to prevent others from buying and selling what they want, and add social pressure (and eventually laws) to stop them.
I say ignorance, because the person selling wood is in no way destroying the planet. As a crop those trees would not be there were it not for the wood market. If one human being finds that wood makes his life better, and another can produce an income for himself and others by producing that wood, they are both made better off - at at the same time, as a direct result of their exchange, the land is improved and the crop is increased. The circumstances are improved for the buyer, the seller, the land, and the trees.
So the pressure produced by the ignorant to stop this exchange has a negative effect on every aspect of this reality. The people producing and selling wood see their income reduced, the people using that product to in some way to improve their lives must go without that improvement, the land will no longer be maintained to the degree that it was, and the total number of trees will be reduced. Why take care of the land and plant trees if people aren't buying?
It might seem small, but it isn't. One man's expense is another man's income. Anything that reduces the exchange between them reduces the quality of life for both of them and causes neglect of the tools and resources involved in the process.
Environmentalism doesn't improve the environment as it is currently practiced. Environmentalism is a highjacking of the human desire for a beautiful world and puts that desire to work in the cause of socialism and the accumulation of power in the hands of government. Nothing destroys an environment more thoroughly than excessive government power. Freedom produces prosperity and the forces which result in the improvement of the environment. Powerful governments are by their very nature anti-freedom and consequently they produce poverty and bleak environments.
We all want to live in a beautiful world full of trees, clean air, and clean water. Prosperity produced by the market exchange of free people trying to maximize their quality of life is the most effective way to achieve that end.
So if you find that printing this out in some way improves your life, do it! It will be good for all of us, including the planet.
Restraining the Beast
The founders of the United States of America had a clear understanding of something that over the years has been largely lost, but that now, under the corrupt leadership of Obama they are rediscovering - government is a beast - and humanity's only hope for happiness on earth is the restraint of that beast.
Revelation chapter 13 describes a Beast as well. The book of Revelation is a picture of God's war against His enemy, Satan, and reveals that every Holy aspect of God has a counterfeit in the work of the enemy.
- God Himself is counterfeited by Satan, represented in the book of Revelation by the Dragon (Rev 12:9)
- The people of God, the Saints, represented throughout the Bible as the Bride of Christ, are counterfeited by those who reject God, and worship the Beast, represented in Revelation by the Prostitute, the woman who rides the Beast (Rev 17:3-4)
- The Holy Spirit is counterfeited in the book of Revelation by The False Prophet. (Rev 13:11-17)
And finally, the Beast is the counterfeit of Christ Himself. Jesus Christ is the Savior of the Christian, the One to whom we look for life, for comfort, for wisdom, for counsel, and for salvation.
So who is Christ's counterfeit? What agency (or "power") on earth serves the "Prostitute" (those who reject Christ) in the same capacity as Jesus Christ serves His Bride?
What power rises up out of the sea, which Rev 17:15 says is the clamoring multitudes of humanity, promising to give them what only God can give, and deceiving them into trading their souls for a crust of bread?
I believe the answer is found by considering what it was that the Founding Fathers were trying to chain. What is it that promises prosperity, promises to save the world, promises to protect you from those who would hurt you, promises to meet all your needs, promises to take care of your health?
What force on earth is nearly irresistible? What agency has the strength of armies, the power to take wealth, the power to limit freedom, the power to accomplish "great things" for it's supporters, and the very power to chose life or death?
To whom do the huddles masses turn? Where is their hope?
What is the nemesis of nearly every business in America? To whom must they pay allegiance? What agency holds the power to shut you down, or lift you into the stratospheres of success? Who is it that must be stroked and padded with lavish gifts by our lobbyists?
At some points in history, it was a King, such as Saul (1 Samuel 8), whom the Israelites believed would keep them safe and provide for them. At other times it was represented by Emperors like Nero of Rome. At other times it was a dominating dictator like Stalin, Khrushchev, or Hitler to whom a nation turned in hopes of victory and worldly success. And at other times, it was a charismatic leader who promised a chicken in every pot, a victory in times of war, a job for every worker, a safety net for the down-and-out, or a doctor at your disposal.
Yes, the Beast of Revelation, whom our Founding Fathers tried to chain and limit, against whom we fight even now on a daily basis and has become a very present threat to our prosperity, our freedom, and our lives is the seductive power of human government.
Revelation reveals that humanity will worship the beast and bow down to it, and surely we do (Rev 13:4).
It grows in response to every crisis. It consumes wealth of this generation and the next. It promises life, but delivers only slavery, fear, and death.
America as founded was a shining city on a hill, a beacon of hope to a dark and brutal world - proof that life on earth could be worth living. It was our faith, our freedom, and the limitation of government power that made it so.
The worst of history's experiences came as a result of power accumulated in the hands of a few. Great human power cannot be director for good, for very long, for the Beast grows within it. At first it looks appealing and we fall for it's seduction, but in the end it utterly destroys.
Will we decide again as a nation to chain the Beast? Will we return to our First Love, to the Creator who does give life, to living by faith and not by sight, and to the Constitution which formed the only chains the world has ever known capable of restraining the Beast?
Revelation chapter 13 describes a Beast as well. The book of Revelation is a picture of God's war against His enemy, Satan, and reveals that every Holy aspect of God has a counterfeit in the work of the enemy.
- God Himself is counterfeited by Satan, represented in the book of Revelation by the Dragon (Rev 12:9)
- The people of God, the Saints, represented throughout the Bible as the Bride of Christ, are counterfeited by those who reject God, and worship the Beast, represented in Revelation by the Prostitute, the woman who rides the Beast (Rev 17:3-4)
- The Holy Spirit is counterfeited in the book of Revelation by The False Prophet. (Rev 13:11-17)
And finally, the Beast is the counterfeit of Christ Himself. Jesus Christ is the Savior of the Christian, the One to whom we look for life, for comfort, for wisdom, for counsel, and for salvation.
So who is Christ's counterfeit? What agency (or "power") on earth serves the "Prostitute" (those who reject Christ) in the same capacity as Jesus Christ serves His Bride?
What power rises up out of the sea, which Rev 17:15 says is the clamoring multitudes of humanity, promising to give them what only God can give, and deceiving them into trading their souls for a crust of bread?
I believe the answer is found by considering what it was that the Founding Fathers were trying to chain. What is it that promises prosperity, promises to save the world, promises to protect you from those who would hurt you, promises to meet all your needs, promises to take care of your health?
What force on earth is nearly irresistible? What agency has the strength of armies, the power to take wealth, the power to limit freedom, the power to accomplish "great things" for it's supporters, and the very power to chose life or death?
To whom do the huddles masses turn? Where is their hope?
What is the nemesis of nearly every business in America? To whom must they pay allegiance? What agency holds the power to shut you down, or lift you into the stratospheres of success? Who is it that must be stroked and padded with lavish gifts by our lobbyists?
At some points in history, it was a King, such as Saul (1 Samuel 8), whom the Israelites believed would keep them safe and provide for them. At other times it was represented by Emperors like Nero of Rome. At other times it was a dominating dictator like Stalin, Khrushchev, or Hitler to whom a nation turned in hopes of victory and worldly success. And at other times, it was a charismatic leader who promised a chicken in every pot, a victory in times of war, a job for every worker, a safety net for the down-and-out, or a doctor at your disposal.
Yes, the Beast of Revelation, whom our Founding Fathers tried to chain and limit, against whom we fight even now on a daily basis and has become a very present threat to our prosperity, our freedom, and our lives is the seductive power of human government.
Revelation reveals that humanity will worship the beast and bow down to it, and surely we do (Rev 13:4).
It grows in response to every crisis. It consumes wealth of this generation and the next. It promises life, but delivers only slavery, fear, and death.
America as founded was a shining city on a hill, a beacon of hope to a dark and brutal world - proof that life on earth could be worth living. It was our faith, our freedom, and the limitation of government power that made it so.
The worst of history's experiences came as a result of power accumulated in the hands of a few. Great human power cannot be director for good, for very long, for the Beast grows within it. At first it looks appealing and we fall for it's seduction, but in the end it utterly destroys.
Will we decide again as a nation to chain the Beast? Will we return to our First Love, to the Creator who does give life, to living by faith and not by sight, and to the Constitution which formed the only chains the world has ever known capable of restraining the Beast?
Trade Deficits are Meaningless
I decided to buy Crash 2.0 the other day to see what the author had to say about possible investment strategies during what I believe will be a very challenging few upcoming years in the US. Our government is on a deliberate path of self-destruction and their efforts are succeeding. I do not believe our economy will be able to withstand the consequences of deficit spending, an unstable dollar, and hi taxes. These next few years are going to suck for the average American, especially the ones dependent on employers for their security.
I expected to find in Crash 2.0 some good advice about how to invest, and maybe the author's advice investment advice is good, but the advice was immediately suspect to me because his concern for the economy was based on his alarm for the "trade deficit".
He is not alone in his concern. Everywhere I look I see fear about the looming trade deficit and how all this spending overseas will seal our doom.
This fear is completely misplaced. Completely. There is nothing to fear from trade deficits. Nothing. Let me try to convince you.
When an individual buys something, he does so because he has determined that his life is better off with the purchase than it is with the money he'll be using to buy it. When we buy things our lives and circumstances are improved. Buying a car makes it possible to drive to work, buying a computer makes it possible to email, work, shop, and do research. Buying a tool makes it possible to do things you couldn't do without that tool. These things make us more productive and better off.
You may think this not to be the case when considering what other people buy, but these are personal choices, it doesn't matter what you think, it matters what the buyer thinks.
If a person chooses to buy something made in China, both he and the person in China say thank you at the conclusion of the transaction. They both walk away happy. It is irrelevant that the individual now has less cash, he has weighed his options and decided he is better off spending the money. Furthermore, though he might have a personal trade deficit with the Chinese individual, he doesn't care, he isn't depending on the Chinese person for income, just for the product that he wanted. The individual has a source of income independent of the Chinese merchant.
What is true for the individual is also true for the group. If ten people individually buy something from China, they have all decided that they are better off and that their lives are improved by the purchase. If it is true for 10 it's true for millions. Millions of people buy things from China and each person doing so has decided that their life is better off as a result.
So yes, we run a trade deficit, but our wealth has increased because we now own the things that make us more happy, effective, and prosperous.
I expected to find in Crash 2.0 some good advice about how to invest, and maybe the author's advice investment advice is good, but the advice was immediately suspect to me because his concern for the economy was based on his alarm for the "trade deficit".
He is not alone in his concern. Everywhere I look I see fear about the looming trade deficit and how all this spending overseas will seal our doom.
This fear is completely misplaced. Completely. There is nothing to fear from trade deficits. Nothing. Let me try to convince you.
When an individual buys something, he does so because he has determined that his life is better off with the purchase than it is with the money he'll be using to buy it. When we buy things our lives and circumstances are improved. Buying a car makes it possible to drive to work, buying a computer makes it possible to email, work, shop, and do research. Buying a tool makes it possible to do things you couldn't do without that tool. These things make us more productive and better off.
You may think this not to be the case when considering what other people buy, but these are personal choices, it doesn't matter what you think, it matters what the buyer thinks.
If a person chooses to buy something made in China, both he and the person in China say thank you at the conclusion of the transaction. They both walk away happy. It is irrelevant that the individual now has less cash, he has weighed his options and decided he is better off spending the money. Furthermore, though he might have a personal trade deficit with the Chinese individual, he doesn't care, he isn't depending on the Chinese person for income, just for the product that he wanted. The individual has a source of income independent of the Chinese merchant.
What is true for the individual is also true for the group. If ten people individually buy something from China, they have all decided that they are better off and that their lives are improved by the purchase. If it is true for 10 it's true for millions. Millions of people buy things from China and each person doing so has decided that their life is better off as a result.
So yes, we run a trade deficit, but our wealth has increased because we now own the things that make us more happy, effective, and prosperous.
It's Not About Immigration!
I'm tired of hearing republicans address the democrats on the basis of what the democrats are saying about the Arizona immigration debate. The democrats put forth positions on this debate on the grounds of fairness or human rights or whatever. It's all hogwash - and the republicans should be saying so.
The democrats aren't worried about fairness. They could care less about human rights. The democrats care about one this in this debate: positioning themselves in such a way as to secure the illegal immigrant vote. The democrats are simply making a stink about an innocuous law to make the point plainly to the illegal immigrants that "democrats are on your side" and republicans are racist.
I think the best strategy for dealing with this is to plainly state this truth. This debate is not about the law in Arizona, it's not about solving the immigration issue, its not about what is best for America. Its about the democrat's lust for power. Republicans should be saying so.
While it is never stated publicly, here is the goal of the left when it comes to immigration:
1) Take advantage of the fact that America is a country that many people want to come to in their search for freedom and a better life.
2) Offer the wealth of Americans to the illegal immigrant in the form of welfare, food stamps, health care, etc. to get those unprincipled individuals from all over the world who want something for nothing to come here.
3) Make it very difficult for high quality people from around the world to come here. Make it easy for the unprincipled and uneducated illegal immigrants to come here.
3) Make it easy for the illegal immigrant to vote.
4) Position yourself as the party of the "little guy" and "little illegal immigrant guy" in order to secure their vote.
The left is using this debate as an opportunity to rally their base and solidly position themselves as for the illegal immigrant. Combine that "political energy" with the policies of making it easy for illegal immigrants to vote and that is a combination that is hard to beat at the polls.
The right needs to stop debating the merits of this law. Its obviously a good law given the fact that federal laws stating the same exact thing are not enforced. We need to be making it plain to the American people at every opportunity what the left is up to.
The timing of this is not an accident. The Arizona law is merely is a convenient mechanism for accomplishing their purposes prior to the November 2010 elections - so don't be fooled, their concern is not about immigration, its about winning. And like EVERYTHING ELSE the left does, if not stopped, it will result in the destruction of America - the last great hope for mankind in the world.
The democrats aren't worried about fairness. They could care less about human rights. The democrats care about one this in this debate: positioning themselves in such a way as to secure the illegal immigrant vote. The democrats are simply making a stink about an innocuous law to make the point plainly to the illegal immigrants that "democrats are on your side" and republicans are racist.
I think the best strategy for dealing with this is to plainly state this truth. This debate is not about the law in Arizona, it's not about solving the immigration issue, its not about what is best for America. Its about the democrat's lust for power. Republicans should be saying so.
While it is never stated publicly, here is the goal of the left when it comes to immigration:
1) Take advantage of the fact that America is a country that many people want to come to in their search for freedom and a better life.
2) Offer the wealth of Americans to the illegal immigrant in the form of welfare, food stamps, health care, etc. to get those unprincipled individuals from all over the world who want something for nothing to come here.
3) Make it very difficult for high quality people from around the world to come here. Make it easy for the unprincipled and uneducated illegal immigrants to come here.
3) Make it easy for the illegal immigrant to vote.
4) Position yourself as the party of the "little guy" and "little illegal immigrant guy" in order to secure their vote.
The left is using this debate as an opportunity to rally their base and solidly position themselves as for the illegal immigrant. Combine that "political energy" with the policies of making it easy for illegal immigrants to vote and that is a combination that is hard to beat at the polls.
The right needs to stop debating the merits of this law. Its obviously a good law given the fact that federal laws stating the same exact thing are not enforced. We need to be making it plain to the American people at every opportunity what the left is up to.
The timing of this is not an accident. The Arizona law is merely is a convenient mechanism for accomplishing their purposes prior to the November 2010 elections - so don't be fooled, their concern is not about immigration, its about winning. And like EVERYTHING ELSE the left does, if not stopped, it will result in the destruction of America - the last great hope for mankind in the world.
Pride, Envy, and Hatred of the Rich
The left's politics in many ways can be characterized by the hatred of the rich. Instead of celebrating the people that have successfully solved the problems of the world and gotten rich from that, they seek to vilify them, take their riches from them, and prevent others from ever following in their footsteps.
This is one of the sad side effects of envy. Both envy and pride are listed among the 7 deadly sins and both result from an unhealthy comparison of the self to others. Pride looks at others and says, "I'm better than they are." Envy builds on the work of pride, by looking at the success of others and says, "Given that I'm better than they are, they must be doing something wrong, or there is some fundamental problem in the world, if they can have so much while I have so little."
These two sins serve to distract an individual from a focus on his own bad choices, negative patterns of thought, and laziness, and results in the condemnation of the successful as evil, greedy, and exploitative of the poor. Hatred then, is the natural consequence of regularly seeing those who you deem as lower than you rise above you in wealth, status, and success.
Again, hatred is the spiritual consequence of the sins of pride and envy - and the left is consumed by it. And hatred, sadly, destroys all that it comes in contact with - including the individual who does the hating. It causes its possessors to take actions that destroy not only the lives of the people they hate, but the political systems and institutions that provided for the success of those they hate, even when those institutions are the very ones saving their own lives.
The left's pride, envy, and resulting hatred drive them to hate America, see its institutions as fundementally unfair and corrupt, and causes them to take action to destroy its foundations and replace them with systems that redistribute wealth and shackle those who seek to earn it. The person who hates cannot allow for the freedom of those they hate. That is why populism derived from anger towards the wealthy also drives a nation toward despotism and socialism. The populace hands power to the individuals or groups that promise to destroy the freedom of others to succeed. Hence, statism and socialism. Marxism is based on advancing the cause of the proletariat against the bourgeois, whom they hate for their success.
Hatred is at the root of liberalism - at the root of all human conflict. Love values freedom, both for the self, and for others. It declares a trust in God, in freedom, and in others - that as others pursue their own good, we will be okay - moreover, we'll be better off. Hatred says, "I can't trust God, I can't trust freedom, I can't trust others." It motivates an individual to take from others their freedom in a self-destructive attempt to protect one's interests.
It is the ultimate lie propagated from the devil himself declared first in the Garden of Eden. Cast out of heaven for his own pride, envy and hatred of God, he deceived the first humans by convincing them that God could not be trusted. It was a lie then, it is a lie now. We can trust God, we can trust freedom, we can trust others.
Just in case you have been tempted into agreeing with the hatred of the successful, I want to shine some truth on the subject of the rich so that you can break agreement with such thoughts and have the freedom that comes with it.
1) When the rich succeed, they do so by solving the problems of those who buy from them. The customer is better off than prior to the transaction. Both the rich man and his customer walk away better off than they would have been without the transaction. A poor man may be resentful of the fact that he must pay a rich man for, lets say, ten gallons of gas, but that ten gallons of gas will permit the poor man to get to work, to the grocery store, home, etc. The poor man would have been much worse off if a government official had prevented his "exploitation." The same is true for all free market transactions. My life is made immeasurably better by the options I have to buy a computer, a phone, fuel for my car, a home, entertainment, clothing, energy for heat and cooling, and food. Each of these is provided by "the rich." If you prevent others from getting rich by solving these problems then you prevent them from solving these problems.
2) When the rich build their companies, they put the rest of us to work. One person can do very little on their own. Real success comes from working with others. The rich have learned how to surround themselves with teams of people who are succeeding in their own right by virtue of their relationship with the rich. Not everyone has the vision to start a company or the temperament to manage its many facets - but their skills and strengths can be put to work by others - and both prosper as a result. The rich may have an idea for how to solve a human problem, and generate profits through that effort - but it takes the ingenuity, the labor, and the time of the people that work with him to bring that solution to the market. Both the employer and the employee are benefited by the arrangement.
3) When the rich consume, other businesses prosper. When the rich spend the money they've made, they provide income to the companies from which they buy. Rich people might buy cars, houses, airplanes, yachts, etc - but doing so employs the millions of people who serve in those industries. Vilifying the spending of the rich only hurts the people who make the products that they buy. The rich weren't hurt that much when the government put a luxury tax on yachts, the people who make them were. The rich aren't hurt that much when government tells them not to fly on private jets, but the people who fly them, who build them, who maintain them, who service them are hurt badly. The rich aren't hurt that much when everyone else complains about their visits to luxury hotels and resorts - but the people who work in those locations sure are when the rich decide to stay home instead.
3) When the rich save their money, they do so by placing it into investments that provide the capital other people need to bring their ideas to the market. The wealth accumulated by the rich does productive work in almost every capacity in which the rich choose to employ it. His incentive to save his money in some vehicle that produces returns is proof that others are benefited by that investment. A return is the evidence of value as measured by someone else. Those who pay a return on that investment are using that accumulated wealth to pursue other efforts that they believe will satisfy a market and produce profit.
4) When the rich give away their money, the charities that receive those funds and the communities they serve benefit. While this is probably characterized by most people as the highest good that the rich can do with their money, I believe it probably brings the least good to society as a whole. It is in this arena that much good can be done, but the most harm can be caused as well. Markets reveal true human need - both in the willingness of those with the need to spend money to solve their problems and in the solutions to those problems generated by that money. Charities ideally seek to meet the needs of those who by misfortune in some form do not have the money to meet those needs on their own. I contend that in most cases, these misfortunes would be greatly minimized in a political system that defended freedom and liberty.
In sum:
This is one of the sad side effects of envy. Both envy and pride are listed among the 7 deadly sins and both result from an unhealthy comparison of the self to others. Pride looks at others and says, "I'm better than they are." Envy builds on the work of pride, by looking at the success of others and says, "Given that I'm better than they are, they must be doing something wrong, or there is some fundamental problem in the world, if they can have so much while I have so little."
These two sins serve to distract an individual from a focus on his own bad choices, negative patterns of thought, and laziness, and results in the condemnation of the successful as evil, greedy, and exploitative of the poor. Hatred then, is the natural consequence of regularly seeing those who you deem as lower than you rise above you in wealth, status, and success.
Again, hatred is the spiritual consequence of the sins of pride and envy - and the left is consumed by it. And hatred, sadly, destroys all that it comes in contact with - including the individual who does the hating. It causes its possessors to take actions that destroy not only the lives of the people they hate, but the political systems and institutions that provided for the success of those they hate, even when those institutions are the very ones saving their own lives.
The left's pride, envy, and resulting hatred drive them to hate America, see its institutions as fundementally unfair and corrupt, and causes them to take action to destroy its foundations and replace them with systems that redistribute wealth and shackle those who seek to earn it. The person who hates cannot allow for the freedom of those they hate. That is why populism derived from anger towards the wealthy also drives a nation toward despotism and socialism. The populace hands power to the individuals or groups that promise to destroy the freedom of others to succeed. Hence, statism and socialism. Marxism is based on advancing the cause of the proletariat against the bourgeois, whom they hate for their success.
Hatred is at the root of liberalism - at the root of all human conflict. Love values freedom, both for the self, and for others. It declares a trust in God, in freedom, and in others - that as others pursue their own good, we will be okay - moreover, we'll be better off. Hatred says, "I can't trust God, I can't trust freedom, I can't trust others." It motivates an individual to take from others their freedom in a self-destructive attempt to protect one's interests.
It is the ultimate lie propagated from the devil himself declared first in the Garden of Eden. Cast out of heaven for his own pride, envy and hatred of God, he deceived the first humans by convincing them that God could not be trusted. It was a lie then, it is a lie now. We can trust God, we can trust freedom, we can trust others.
Just in case you have been tempted into agreeing with the hatred of the successful, I want to shine some truth on the subject of the rich so that you can break agreement with such thoughts and have the freedom that comes with it.
1) When the rich succeed, they do so by solving the problems of those who buy from them. The customer is better off than prior to the transaction. Both the rich man and his customer walk away better off than they would have been without the transaction. A poor man may be resentful of the fact that he must pay a rich man for, lets say, ten gallons of gas, but that ten gallons of gas will permit the poor man to get to work, to the grocery store, home, etc. The poor man would have been much worse off if a government official had prevented his "exploitation." The same is true for all free market transactions. My life is made immeasurably better by the options I have to buy a computer, a phone, fuel for my car, a home, entertainment, clothing, energy for heat and cooling, and food. Each of these is provided by "the rich." If you prevent others from getting rich by solving these problems then you prevent them from solving these problems.
2) When the rich build their companies, they put the rest of us to work. One person can do very little on their own. Real success comes from working with others. The rich have learned how to surround themselves with teams of people who are succeeding in their own right by virtue of their relationship with the rich. Not everyone has the vision to start a company or the temperament to manage its many facets - but their skills and strengths can be put to work by others - and both prosper as a result. The rich may have an idea for how to solve a human problem, and generate profits through that effort - but it takes the ingenuity, the labor, and the time of the people that work with him to bring that solution to the market. Both the employer and the employee are benefited by the arrangement.
3) When the rich consume, other businesses prosper. When the rich spend the money they've made, they provide income to the companies from which they buy. Rich people might buy cars, houses, airplanes, yachts, etc - but doing so employs the millions of people who serve in those industries. Vilifying the spending of the rich only hurts the people who make the products that they buy. The rich weren't hurt that much when the government put a luxury tax on yachts, the people who make them were. The rich aren't hurt that much when government tells them not to fly on private jets, but the people who fly them, who build them, who maintain them, who service them are hurt badly. The rich aren't hurt that much when everyone else complains about their visits to luxury hotels and resorts - but the people who work in those locations sure are when the rich decide to stay home instead.
3) When the rich save their money, they do so by placing it into investments that provide the capital other people need to bring their ideas to the market. The wealth accumulated by the rich does productive work in almost every capacity in which the rich choose to employ it. His incentive to save his money in some vehicle that produces returns is proof that others are benefited by that investment. A return is the evidence of value as measured by someone else. Those who pay a return on that investment are using that accumulated wealth to pursue other efforts that they believe will satisfy a market and produce profit.
4) When the rich give away their money, the charities that receive those funds and the communities they serve benefit. While this is probably characterized by most people as the highest good that the rich can do with their money, I believe it probably brings the least good to society as a whole. It is in this arena that much good can be done, but the most harm can be caused as well. Markets reveal true human need - both in the willingness of those with the need to spend money to solve their problems and in the solutions to those problems generated by that money. Charities ideally seek to meet the needs of those who by misfortune in some form do not have the money to meet those needs on their own. I contend that in most cases, these misfortunes would be greatly minimized in a political system that defended freedom and liberty.
In sum:
When the rich succeed, the rest of us benefit.The truth is - we should be celebrating the rich and the political and economic freedoms that allowed for them. If they succeeded, we can too; moreover, their success is a testimony to how much good they have done for the rest of us. The attempt to limit their success only limits their ability to bring good to others. Normal economic cycles are the free market's response to error and the correction of those errors. Larger economic downturns are the consequence of larger errors. I believe that the severe economic downturns we've seen several times in this century are the consequence of the freedom limiting policies advanced by those filled with pride, envy, and hatred. The real solution to the world's economic problems is freedom - and freedom advances when a nation's people trust. It retreats when they are filled with pride, envy and hatred.
When the rich build their companies, the rest of us benefit.
When the rich spend their money, the rest of us benefit.
When the rich save their money, the rest of us benefit.
When the rich give away their money, the rest of us benefit.
Give Us A King! (Faith in Government)
In the time of Samuel the prophet, the people of Israel wanted a king like the nations that surrounded them (1 Sam 8). Samuel was utterly dismayed by this development. The people of Israel had no ruler, yet were prosperous. They had no king, yet were thriving in the promised land. God Himself was their King and led the people of Israel through His revelation to the prophets. Yet, this wasn't enough for them. The people of Israel still felt the uncertainties of life and were deceived into thinking that if they had a king like the surrounding nations, then maybe they wouldn't feel so insecure.
When Samuel inquired of God about this request, God responded by saying that it wasn't Samuel that was being rejected, but God. He instructed Samuel to first warn the Israelites about the dangers of having a king. Here was the warning given by Samuel (1 Sam 8):
When Samuel inquired of God about this request, God responded by saying that it wasn't Samuel that was being rejected, but God. He instructed Samuel to first warn the Israelites about the dangers of having a king. Here was the warning given by Samuel (1 Sam 8):
vs 10 Samuel told all the words of the LORD to the people who were asking him for a king. 11 He said, "This is what the king who will reign over you will do: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. 12 Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. 13 He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. 14 He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. 15 He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. 16 Your menservants and maidservants and the best of your cattle and donkeys he will take for his own use. 17 He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. 18 When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, and the LORD will not answer you in that day." 19 But the people refused to listen to Samuel. "No!" they said. "We want a king over us. 20 Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles."Simply put, God was warning them that when you request a powerful human government (in any form) to "go before you and fight your battles" that your wealth and your freedom will be consumed by that government and the security sought will ultimately not be found. In the end you will have nothing but the insecurity you were hoping to remedy.
However, God does not force people to trust Him, so He instructed Samuel to go to the tribe of Benjamin and select Saul as king over Israel. They got their King, and the Bible tells the sad story of the history of Israel under those kings.
I see many parallels to the request of Israel and the shift of the balance of power in the United States today. As a people/culture drift away from faith in God, they look elsewhere to find security. Humanity has always been bedeviled by the illusion of the physical. Israel rejected Christ because He spoke of a spiritual Kingdom - they wanted a physical one. We are beset by a desire to see with our eyes, touch with our hands, and hear with our ears the entity that we entrust with our lives. How often did ancient people make useless idols rather than trust in God? It has been a perpetual problem for humanity.
People are no different today, but rather than idols, they look to strong governments to provide for them. Unfortunately, the same warning given by God to Samuel holds true today. When you ask for a physical solution to a spiritual problem, your "solution" will consume all your wealth, take away your freedom, and leave you with nothing but misery. Mankind has never found a way around this problem.
Socialism, the generic term for the system that attempts to provide for people through strong government and central planning, fails time and time again. The ideas that comprise socialism have incredible staying power because of the same issue within the human heart - a desire to trust in something physical that you can see and understand.
The founding of the United States of America is a study in people attempting to escape the ultimate insecurity of life under kings. People suffering under the hand of oppressive governments realized that security wasn't found by the hand of a powerful king. They came to the conclusion that the proper role of government is to preserve liberty, not provide security (in the sense of money, a home, a job, etc). The United States of America was founded to establish this principle of limited government and quickly became the greatest nation on earth because of it.
There is a role for government - to protect our freedom. The constitution lays it out beautifully. Those who seek from Government what they should be seeking from God are not only going to destroy themselves, they will destroy this nation in the process.
One Aspect of the Financial Crisis
I've attached a great article below that shows just one aspect of the government meddling that caused the current financial crisis. In a nutshell, when someone can't pay their mortgage, the bank forecloses on the house - this prevents the bank from losing all their money and allows the person living in the house to move on to a place to live that they can afford. Not much is lost by the home owner, especially these days, because not much was put down. Essentially, they paid "rent" while they lived there - in the form of their mortgage to the bank and the small amount of money they put down.
When government; however, prevents the bank from quickly foreclosing on the house and instead wants to protect the "innocent" homeowner (who isn't paying his bills), the bank cannot put the house back onto the market and recoup its losses. This keeps the banks money tied up in houses that it can't unload.
This government policy causes two things to happen:
Halting foreclosures is bad economic policy and one important aspect of this crisis. We must get the government out of this industry! These bad policies distort the market in ways that encourage people to make irresponsible choices. Check out the following article.
-----------------------------------------------
The Libertarian: Greed, Or Incentives?
Richard Epstein 09.23.08, 12:01 AM ET
It had been my devout wish to write a set of disinterested columns about labor markets to illustrate the power of the presumption against state regulation of voluntary agreements. But the financial meltdown of the past week has rudely interrupted my plan to pillory the minimum wage.
Instead, I shall turn on a dime to address two connected questions: How did we get to that sorry state where great institutions topple, and what should be done?
On both questions, our bipartisan consensus is holding true to form. In a system that is chock-full of heavy regulation, they instantly blame the current collapse on the excesses of the free market, for which a still heavier dose of regulation supplies some supposed cure. That indictment contains few particulars. It typically rests on a populist broadside whose centerpiece is greed on Wall Street, but never on Main Street--where there are more voters.
This prior is all wrong. Greed is a constant of human nature. Financial meltdowns are not a constant of economic political life. It takes, therefore, an understanding of the overall incentive structure to explain why selfish economic behavior produces great progress on some occasions and financial ruination on others.
On this question, your stalwart libertarian is persona non grata in respectable company. If voluntary markets normally align private incentives with social welfare, then always look first for a government intervention that knocks those incentives off line. It’s not hard to find some culprits.
One bad move has government legislators and courts intervening to slow down mortgage foreclosures because it is socially unacceptable for people to lose their homes. Unpleasant yes, but unacceptable no. Start with this assumption: Individual tenants can be evicted at the termination of their lease. Only the ardent defenders of rent control (which has ruined New York City real estate markets) find this outcome is unacceptable. Everyone else rolls with the punches.
So what is the difference between the evicted tenant and the foreclosed owner? Only this: The owner has put a down payment on the house. But so what? Foreclosed homeowners typically made only small down payments, or even none at all. Treat their mortgage payments as lease payments, and bump up their amount a bit by dividing the down payment over the number of months before foreclosure. Not much of a financial difference between the tenant and the owner.
Yet once regulators slow down foreclosures, other potential homeowners are denied opportunities to purchase housing they can afford. The housing stock cannot recirculate. Banks that acquired this mortgage paper see their portfolios nosedive. That dicey paper, as William Isaac noted in last week’s Wall Street Journal, drives the entire economy over the edge by strict government regulations that require all financial institutions to “mark-to-market” the various instruments in their portfolio.
Unfortunately, there is no working market to mark this paper down to. To meet their bond covenants and their capital requirements, these firms have to sell their paper at distress prices that don’t reflect the upbeat fact that the anticipated income streams from this paper might well keep the firm afloat.
One bad regulatory turn leads to another, and lo, the bailouts come thick and fast. At the nth hour, wise heads often rightly conclude that some desperate measure has to be taken to prevent the financial disintegration brought on by, well, prior government regulation. Those bailouts, of course, come from the hides of taxpayers who borrowed prudently. The entire system subsidizes destructive behavior, which means that we will get more destructive behavior in the future. We might as well sell flood insurance at bargain prices in Galveston, Texas, and New Orleans.
The moral of this story is that bad regulation metastasizes. Short term heroics are no substitute for dispassionate deregulation, which won’t happen so long as our political leaders are fixated on greed. Taking steps to prevent financial meltdowns is more likely to hasten their unwelcome arrival, so says the libertarian.
Richard Epstein writes a weekly column for Forbes.com. He is a senior fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution and a professor of law at the University of Chicago.
When government; however, prevents the bank from quickly foreclosing on the house and instead wants to protect the "innocent" homeowner (who isn't paying his bills), the bank cannot put the house back onto the market and recoup its losses. This keeps the banks money tied up in houses that it can't unload.
This government policy causes two things to happen:
- Banks can no longer afford to lend - that is why we have a "credit crisis". If banks can't secure the loan with the value of the home, they have greatly increased risk in making the loan. (Unless it is government backed, which fanny and freddy provided, which is why there was "irresponsible" lending.)
- People have no incentive to pay their mortgage. If they get to keep the house when they decide not to pay, there is no reason (other than character and integrity) to pay their mortgage. Sure, many will pay in this scenerio, but many will not. Hence, irresponsible borrowers ride on the efforts of the responsible borrowers.
Halting foreclosures is bad economic policy and one important aspect of this crisis. We must get the government out of this industry! These bad policies distort the market in ways that encourage people to make irresponsible choices. Check out the following article.
-----------------------------------------------
The Libertarian: Greed, Or Incentives?
Richard Epstein 09.23.08, 12:01 AM ET
It had been my devout wish to write a set of disinterested columns about labor markets to illustrate the power of the presumption against state regulation of voluntary agreements. But the financial meltdown of the past week has rudely interrupted my plan to pillory the minimum wage.
Instead, I shall turn on a dime to address two connected questions: How did we get to that sorry state where great institutions topple, and what should be done?
On both questions, our bipartisan consensus is holding true to form. In a system that is chock-full of heavy regulation, they instantly blame the current collapse on the excesses of the free market, for which a still heavier dose of regulation supplies some supposed cure. That indictment contains few particulars. It typically rests on a populist broadside whose centerpiece is greed on Wall Street, but never on Main Street--where there are more voters.
This prior is all wrong. Greed is a constant of human nature. Financial meltdowns are not a constant of economic political life. It takes, therefore, an understanding of the overall incentive structure to explain why selfish economic behavior produces great progress on some occasions and financial ruination on others.
On this question, your stalwart libertarian is persona non grata in respectable company. If voluntary markets normally align private incentives with social welfare, then always look first for a government intervention that knocks those incentives off line. It’s not hard to find some culprits.
One bad move has government legislators and courts intervening to slow down mortgage foreclosures because it is socially unacceptable for people to lose their homes. Unpleasant yes, but unacceptable no. Start with this assumption: Individual tenants can be evicted at the termination of their lease. Only the ardent defenders of rent control (which has ruined New York City real estate markets) find this outcome is unacceptable. Everyone else rolls with the punches.
So what is the difference between the evicted tenant and the foreclosed owner? Only this: The owner has put a down payment on the house. But so what? Foreclosed homeowners typically made only small down payments, or even none at all. Treat their mortgage payments as lease payments, and bump up their amount a bit by dividing the down payment over the number of months before foreclosure. Not much of a financial difference between the tenant and the owner.
Yet once regulators slow down foreclosures, other potential homeowners are denied opportunities to purchase housing they can afford. The housing stock cannot recirculate. Banks that acquired this mortgage paper see their portfolios nosedive. That dicey paper, as William Isaac noted in last week’s Wall Street Journal, drives the entire economy over the edge by strict government regulations that require all financial institutions to “mark-to-market” the various instruments in their portfolio.
Unfortunately, there is no working market to mark this paper down to. To meet their bond covenants and their capital requirements, these firms have to sell their paper at distress prices that don’t reflect the upbeat fact that the anticipated income streams from this paper might well keep the firm afloat.
One bad regulatory turn leads to another, and lo, the bailouts come thick and fast. At the nth hour, wise heads often rightly conclude that some desperate measure has to be taken to prevent the financial disintegration brought on by, well, prior government regulation. Those bailouts, of course, come from the hides of taxpayers who borrowed prudently. The entire system subsidizes destructive behavior, which means that we will get more destructive behavior in the future. We might as well sell flood insurance at bargain prices in Galveston, Texas, and New Orleans.
The moral of this story is that bad regulation metastasizes. Short term heroics are no substitute for dispassionate deregulation, which won’t happen so long as our political leaders are fixated on greed. Taking steps to prevent financial meltdowns is more likely to hasten their unwelcome arrival, so says the libertarian.
Richard Epstein writes a weekly column for Forbes.com. He is a senior fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution and a professor of law at the University of Chicago.
Is Conservation Good for Us?
For years now we've been hearing an ever growing chorus about the need for conservation. Lately the cry for recycling, using less plastic, less water, less fuel, etc. is deafening. As the volume has increased, I have grown more and more uncomfortable with this whole idea of conservation. Something just didn't seem right about it.
Whenever "everyone" is saying something I start looking for the angle. I've come firmly to the conclusion over the years that the politically correct position always has a fallacy at its core. Political correctness is a technique used to pressure people into doing something they wouldn't do on their own or isn't in their best interest. So I've been searching for that fallacy in politically correct conservationism. Here is what I've realized.
At the core of the conservation argument is the idea that mankind harms the earth by the consumption necessary in everyday living. I have long been aware of the left's belief that humanity is a parasite on the earth. In their opinion, if it wasn't for mankind, the earth would be a beautiful, pristine place. You can see this premise on display in the History Channel's recent production "Life After People" or the National Geographic Channel's "Human Footprint."
There are two aspects this position. One, that we are raping the earth by harvesting natural resources and that two, we pollute the earth when we consume them. I contend that both premises are flawed.
Resources are product of humanity, not the earth. Sure, resources come from the earth, but they are useless to us until someone converts them to a useful form. Oil was an annoyance to land owners until a human being discovered it could be used for fuel and learned how to convert it into that useful form.
This is why the "population alarmists" have it all backwards. We need more people, not less. Humanity is the world's greatest resource. The greatest threat future western nation’s face is declining populations. None of them are reproducing and are no longer having children at replacement rates.
So why conserve oil? Oil has completely changed the quality of life for millions! It has done so in every way conceivable. Every aspect of our lives is better because of what the energy in oil is able to do for us. Here is the only reason I know of to conserve oil: you want to reduce the amount of money you spend on it. For me it is a purely financial decision. As far as I'm concerned, if you have decided that consuming energy is more valuable than the money in your pocket - then you must have determined that it will improve your life or the world around you to some degree more than the money was worth. Because consuming energy has a cost - it's use must have a tangible benefit to people or else they would save the money and use it for other purposes.
The critic of my position will no doubt say that people should use less because of the resulting pollution. (The other half of the "humans are destroying the earth" premise). I believe this premise is flawed as well. Pollution is not a product of consumption; it is a product of poverty. Prosperous, free people want to live in clean environments and they will pressure polluters using any means available (product boycotts, government action, picketing, etc) to clean up their act. Compare the environment in any free, prosperous country to any socialistic, non-free country. Athletes don't even want to compete in china due to the dirty air. Poor people care about eating - prosperous people care about everything else. PC Conservationism, if it had its way, would ultimately do more damage to the environment by spreading poverty.
When we decide to conserve, we're actually saying that we will deprive another human being the opportunity to provide us with that service or product. I don't think anyone wants the public to be pressured into not to buying their product. I don't want people to conserve when it comes to the services I provide. The price and your budget will force you to conserve appropriately. If you can afford something and have determined that your life would be better off if you had it/used it, then buy it - don't let the PC police deprive you and the seller of the benefit of the exchange.
PC conservationism shames people into avoiding consuming, which really just means, stop putting your fellow man to work. Furthermore, it demonizes the people and companies that transform the world from a wild and savage place into a comfortable and enjoyable place to be.
The beauty of the free market and freedom in general is that even the laziest man is required to serve his fellowman in order to provide for his basic needs. Our hunger drives us to serve our fellowman, and the needs of our fellowman that we are able to meet with our skills, energy, and resources provide the income that satisfies our hunger.
But if you have served your fellow man, made your money, then you should feel free to use that money in whatever way you see fit. I personally give a set percentage away, save a set percentage for the future, then use the rest to provide for my family's needs and bring pleasure to our lives. The consumption I engage in at that level is healthy and right. It puts people to work providing the services that I consume.
I am not going to be guilted by the PC Conservation Police to use some resource less than my finances allow based on their belief that I'm destroying the world.
Whenever "everyone" is saying something I start looking for the angle. I've come firmly to the conclusion over the years that the politically correct position always has a fallacy at its core. Political correctness is a technique used to pressure people into doing something they wouldn't do on their own or isn't in their best interest. So I've been searching for that fallacy in politically correct conservationism. Here is what I've realized.
At the core of the conservation argument is the idea that mankind harms the earth by the consumption necessary in everyday living. I have long been aware of the left's belief that humanity is a parasite on the earth. In their opinion, if it wasn't for mankind, the earth would be a beautiful, pristine place. You can see this premise on display in the History Channel's recent production "Life After People" or the National Geographic Channel's "Human Footprint."
There are two aspects this position. One, that we are raping the earth by harvesting natural resources and that two, we pollute the earth when we consume them. I contend that both premises are flawed.
Resources are product of humanity, not the earth. Sure, resources come from the earth, but they are useless to us until someone converts them to a useful form. Oil was an annoyance to land owners until a human being discovered it could be used for fuel and learned how to convert it into that useful form.
This is why the "population alarmists" have it all backwards. We need more people, not less. Humanity is the world's greatest resource. The greatest threat future western nation’s face is declining populations. None of them are reproducing and are no longer having children at replacement rates.
So why conserve oil? Oil has completely changed the quality of life for millions! It has done so in every way conceivable. Every aspect of our lives is better because of what the energy in oil is able to do for us. Here is the only reason I know of to conserve oil: you want to reduce the amount of money you spend on it. For me it is a purely financial decision. As far as I'm concerned, if you have decided that consuming energy is more valuable than the money in your pocket - then you must have determined that it will improve your life or the world around you to some degree more than the money was worth. Because consuming energy has a cost - it's use must have a tangible benefit to people or else they would save the money and use it for other purposes.
The critic of my position will no doubt say that people should use less because of the resulting pollution. (The other half of the "humans are destroying the earth" premise). I believe this premise is flawed as well. Pollution is not a product of consumption; it is a product of poverty. Prosperous, free people want to live in clean environments and they will pressure polluters using any means available (product boycotts, government action, picketing, etc) to clean up their act. Compare the environment in any free, prosperous country to any socialistic, non-free country. Athletes don't even want to compete in china due to the dirty air. Poor people care about eating - prosperous people care about everything else. PC Conservationism, if it had its way, would ultimately do more damage to the environment by spreading poverty.
When we decide to conserve, we're actually saying that we will deprive another human being the opportunity to provide us with that service or product. I don't think anyone wants the public to be pressured into not to buying their product. I don't want people to conserve when it comes to the services I provide. The price and your budget will force you to conserve appropriately. If you can afford something and have determined that your life would be better off if you had it/used it, then buy it - don't let the PC police deprive you and the seller of the benefit of the exchange.
PC conservationism shames people into avoiding consuming, which really just means, stop putting your fellow man to work. Furthermore, it demonizes the people and companies that transform the world from a wild and savage place into a comfortable and enjoyable place to be.
The beauty of the free market and freedom in general is that even the laziest man is required to serve his fellowman in order to provide for his basic needs. Our hunger drives us to serve our fellowman, and the needs of our fellowman that we are able to meet with our skills, energy, and resources provide the income that satisfies our hunger.
But if you have served your fellow man, made your money, then you should feel free to use that money in whatever way you see fit. I personally give a set percentage away, save a set percentage for the future, then use the rest to provide for my family's needs and bring pleasure to our lives. The consumption I engage in at that level is healthy and right. It puts people to work providing the services that I consume.
I am not going to be guilted by the PC Conservation Police to use some resource less than my finances allow based on their belief that I'm destroying the world.
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