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Culture Documents
By Keith A. Butler
When the Righteous are in Authority Copyright 2001 by Keith A. Butler All rights reserved. Contents and/or cover may not be reproduced in whole or in part in any form without the express written consent of the Publisher.
Table of Contents
Introduction Chapter 1 His Plan, Our Choice Chapter 2 The World Off Track Chapter 3 God's Position on Homosexuality Chapter 4 God-Ordained Responsibilities Chapter 5 Empowered to Prosper Chapter 6 The Christians Sure-Fire Guide About the Author 5 7 13 19 25 29 33 37
Introduction
Look at your family. Look at the block you live on. Look at the city you live in. And finally, look at the world you inhabit. What do you see? Do you see people living happy, productive, and godly lives, or do you see people whose lives are off-trackpeople who are suffering from the consequences of sin? God's plan from the beginning was that the righteous would be in authority in the world he created. But God created the first man, Adam, with the ability to choose, and Adam made a wrong choice. He abdicated his authority when he bowed to Satan, and sin entered the world. In the pages of this book, you'll explore what God's word has to say about the responsibilities of those who call themselves by God's name. You'll see that God's word is the only standard by which to make decisions. And Bishop Butler will show you what God's word says about the sins of abortion and homosexualitysins that the world all-too-easily explains away with phrases like "It's the woman's choice," or "I can't help it; I was born this way." Be inspired to rise to the challenge of taking your God-ordained responsibility to be in authority! Be inspired to study His word to discover what He says
Chapter 1
In Genesis 1:26, God says to Adam: Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. The word dominion in the Hebrew text, rayam, means to rule or to reign. God gave mankind authority to rule over all of the planet and everything in it. God made this world for His man, then God stepped back and let His man rule over it. God must have enjoyed watching Adam reign in the way God himself reigns. God gave Adam choice because God doesn't want anyone to serve Him because He's forcing them to do so. Adam had the choice to sin. God told him not to partake of the tree in the midst of the garden, but because of Satan's deception, Adam bowed to Satan and sinned, and Satan ostensibly became god of this world. We read in II Corinthians 4:3, 4: But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is
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Chapter 2
In Psalms 82:5, it says that all the foundations of the earth are out of course, off-track. God did not design things to be off-track, and when things are offtrack, damage follows. God did not design babies to have babies. Things are off-track when almost one out of every two couples who marry get a divorce. Things are off track when you have to pass through metal detectors to go to school. Things are off-track when teachers have to crawl behind a desk to avoid getting shot by a student. Things are off-track when you have as many police officers in and around the school as you do on the street. God did not design things to be that way. The foundations of the earth are off-track because the gods that he has placed in the earth aren't walking in their authority. Things are off-track when 1.3 million babies are aborted in the United States every year. Let's read Jeremiah 1:4, 5: Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, [and] I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations. When Jeremiah was in the womb, God had already formed, called, and set him apart to be a prophet.
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Chapter 3
Let's look at what Scripture says about homosexuality in Genesis 18:20-22: And the Lord said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous. I will go down now, and see whether they have done altogether according to the cry of it, which is come unto me; and if not, I will know. And the men turned their faces from this and went toward Sodom: but Abraham stood yet before the Lord. Abraham was in covenant with God, and pled for God to save the city, finally saying, "If there are ten righteous in the city, will you destroy it?" He thought there were at least ten righteous in the city. He was wrong. Genesis 19:1-6: And there came two angels to Sodom at even; and Lot sat in the gate of Sodom: and Lot seeing [them] rose up to meet them; and he bowed himself with his face toward the ground; These two angels had the appearance of men. And he said, Behold now, my lords, turn in, I pray you, into your servant's house, and tarry all night, and wash your feet, and ye shall rise up early, and go on your ways. And they said, Nay; but we will abide in the street all night. And he pressed upon them greatly; and they turned in unto him, and entered into his
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God-Ordained Responsibilities
Chapter 4
Psalms 11:1-3: In the LORD put I my trust: how say ye to my soul, Flee [as] a bird to your mountain? For, lo, the wicked bend [their] bow, they make ready their arrow upon the string, that they may privily shoot at the upright in heart. If the foundations be destroyed, what can the righteous do? The wicked are readying their weapons to shoot at those who walk in the light. The foundations are off-track. What can those who are the righteous do about that? Proverbs 21:1 reads: The king's heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water, he turneth it whithersoever he will. He says here that the heart of the king, or the heart of those who are in authority, is in the hands of the Lord and he turns it the way in which he wants it to go. Let me give you another Scripture. Daniel 2:20-21 says: Daniel answered and said, Blessed he the name of God forever and ever: for wisdom and might are his: and he changeth the times and the seasons; he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding. God does everything on earth through those who have authority on earth, and He planned for those in authority to be the righteous. He wants all men to be 25
God-Ordained Responsibilities
acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour. The word kings means all who are in authority: presidents, senators, congressmen, county executives, whomever. Whether or not we have a quiet and peaceable life and whether or not our country is operating on the foundations that God set forth is dependent totally upon the actions of those he placed here with authority. The righteous have to pray. They have to supplicate. But understand that everything in the word of God that requires prayer also requires action. Have you ever started praying for somebody, started interceding for the lost, when the Lord quickened you to speak to them about the word? When you start asking God to do something, God will turn around, look at you, and say, "You're anointed!" Amen. If you don't know that yet, you haven't been listening to the Holy Ghost. Now, turn to Romans 13:1-4: Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? Do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: For 27
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Empowered to Prosper
Chapter 5
Psalms 33:12: Blessed [is] the nation whose God [is] the LORD; [and] the people [whom] he hath chosen for his own inheritance. A nation whose God is the Lord is empowered to prosper. The reason this young countryonly 224 years of ageis the economic, military and political power of the world is because this country's laws were originally based upon the Bible. People came here for the purpose of being able to worship God freely, to give him honor and glory. God has exalted this nation. In fact, God raised up the United States for the purpose of being his engine to preach the gospel to the whole world. The gospel is preached more out of this country than anywhere else on the globe. More missionaries are sent from this country than anywhere else on the globe. More money is spent to preach the word of God to the world here than all of the other nations combined. That's why God has blessed this nation. The body of Christ has been sold a lie concerning separation of church and state. First of all, separation of church and state is not even in the first amendment. The first amendment says, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." It 29
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Empowered to Prosper
that was struck down, our country has continued to suffer morally and spiritually. Why? There was a decision by the righteous to abdicate their authority and let the wicked rule.
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Chapter 6
John 14:15-17: If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; [Even] the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. John 15:26: But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, [even] the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me. John 16:12-13: I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, [that] shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. The word guide in the Greek means he will show you the way. John 17:13-17: And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have my joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them 33
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Please include your prayer requests and comments when you write.
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