In His Service: Chapter 5 - Humanism as It Affects the Family

righteousness = justice
justice = righteousness

In this fifth Chapter of RJ Rushdoony's "In His Service" he continues to explain how Humanism destroys God's "Division of Labour" especially in regards to the family. What is "Division of Labour"?

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

Division of labour or specialization is the specialization of cooperative labour in specific, circumscribed tasks and roles, intended to increase the productivity of labour. Historically the growth of a more and more complex division of labour is closely associated with the growth of total output and trade, the rise of capitalism, and of the complexity of industrialization processes.

So, in other words, we don't call a baker when our cow needs a c-section. Likewise we should not call on the state to have power and control over our children, education, property, inheritance, welfare or marriage. These responsibilities, labours, belong to the family.

Scripture divides the labour among three major institutions: family, church, and state. Family is God's basic institution and it is given the responsibility to have power and control over our children, education, property, inheritance, welfare and marriage. Yet, Humanism strives and has largely succeeded in tranfering these powers and controls over to the state. The division of labour is slowly being distroyed and with it a free and godly society. Without a free and godly society there is no justice, no righteousness.

In order to divide the labour. The institution of the family must be understood and established. Marriage must be understood and established. Marriage is a scarament of the family. Rushdoony points out the scripture that ordains man and woman by marriage as one, the woman from the man and the man from the woman. The rise in man's "rights"over women , as in the 18th century, and woman's "rights" over men, as in the 19th and 20th centuries, are ungodly and irresponsible because they "seek power apart from God and over eachother" . He explains the convenantal or the "giveness" of marriage as being the foundation of a godly family and the romantic, pragmatic, mercenary or the "free choice" of marriage as the foundation of a humanistic family.

The godly family works together to establish God's righteousness, justice, in the labour it has been ordained to do:
rearing children
owning family property (a trust from the Lord)
building inheritances (reserving assets for a godly seed to continue the establishment of God's kingdom on earth)
education
welfare

The godly family is the vehicle for the driving force of God's kingdom on earth, the regeneration of the entire creation.

In His Service: Chapter 4 The Battle for Righteousness

The Application of Biblical Law to Secular Society

In R.J. Rushdoony's fourth chapter of In His Service he lists eight points on God's law as it relates to the renewal of all things. Before we look at the eight points a presupposition must be established. The law of God is the standard, the source and the law of justice. Even secular societies know this. Therefore, in order to have justice God's law must be applied to society. Also, in order to live a righteous life God's law must be applied to our daily life. It is important to know that the very law that is to be applied also forbids application by coercion; it is by regeneration, renewal.

Rushdoony lists eight applications of God's law that is done through regeneration unto regeneration. Renewal begets renewal.... First, the government must be under God. It is not under the state and not under the church. It is not under man. Man has been corrupted by the fall and therefore can only corrupt justice. The state and the church have very limited powers under God's law. Power and authority are God's. Government must be under God.

Second, God's law works through economics, the tithe. The tithes should be encouraged and humanistic taxes abolished. (allocation list) Tithes are more efficient than unjust state allocations, subsidies and wealth transfer schemes. Rushdoony points out the economic limits placed on the church and the state; "the sanctuary receives one percent of a man's increase" and "the civil government receives only a half a shekel a year from all males twenty and over." He also goes into further details. This makes the family the basic institution in Scripture.

The family, this is the third point. Treason is an act against the family rather than the state. Everything Rushdoony writes has something in it that stresses how important the family is to God. The laws protect the family. If the courts do not protect the family they are unjust.

The next five points are more straight forward but no less important. Fourth, courts must be just. Fifth, the penalty of restitution must be restored. There is no forgiveness without restitution. Resoration + must be made of the destruction made by sin. Remember, the goal of God's law is the renewal of all things to "very good". Restitution is necessary to bring about holiness. For example:

• To be made for injury to life, limb, or property
  Exodus 21:30-36; Leviticus 24:18
• To be made for theft
  Exodus 22:1-4; Proverbs 6:30,31; Ezekiel 33:15
• To be made for dishonesty
  Leviticus 6:2-5; Numbers 5:7; Job 20:18; Ezekiel 33:15; Luke 19:8

Sixth, the land must have it's Sabbaths. The renewal of all things also includes the earth. Seventh, Our duty is to work for righteousness sake. Riches are good and yet they are not our goal. Be content and not greedy. The LORD gives and takes according to His great plan in the regeneration of the entire creation. Eight, God's law must be enforced in us and through us.

Rushdoony reminds us again that the goal of God's law is the regeneration of all things, God's Kingdom. It is a physical and spiritual reality growing in total holiness unto the LORD. He has made his people co-heirs with Christ.

In His Service: Chapter 2 The Unseen Enemy: Secular Humanism

In this second chapter Rushdoony points out the real enemy is secular humanism and, in Segerberg's words, man's "Modern Verification of His Wisdom and How It Can Help You" is the teaching of the day. Furthermore, even though "humanist can at times believe in God" they don't see Jesus as the Son of God but as a resource for man. This means that each man looks to himself for sovereignty in building society: determining each for himself what is good and evil. It is no wonder that there are so many conflicts and buildings full of laws and regulations. This is the true unseen enemy of liberty. Rushdoony makes four observations of secular humanism:

1. To take any word from God on faith is held to be irrational and bad religion.
2. It premises that it is possible that man's science, given enough time, will overcome all social and physical problems including death.
3. It follows that disobedience to God is the beginning of wisdom.
4. Every man will be his own source of law and morality instead of God's sovereignty.

These give us a clear understanding of salvation and what is necessary action in order to fight this unseen enemy. It is NOT the coercion of man to live by God's law word. It is regeneration. It is the opposite of the four observation Rushdoony laid out in this chapter:

1. Take every word of God on faith and apply it to our lives. Make it our religion.
2. Only Jesus, the Son of God and our atonement, has, is and will overcome all social and physical problems including death.
3. Obedience to God is the beginning of wisdom.
4. See Jesus as the Son of God, our atonement, Lord and Sovereign. "But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." Matt 4:4

Secular Humanism is suicidal. We are warned:
And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. Rev 18:4

William Federer highlights the Roman Empire society before it's fall and it doesn't seem too different from our own:







Rushdoony ends this chapter with the great commission. The LORD requires us to establish His law word in our lives as far as our authority reaches. This means individually spiritually, physically and with our children, in our homes, jobs, businesses and with those under our command, not by coercion but by application on faith. If this is not done then death is our society's end.

R.J. Rushdoony - Spiritual Autism

Dr. R.J. Rushdoony, one of the great scholars of the 20th Century, delivers a prophetic warning to the West.

In this rare, never-seen-before video excerpt - taken from a lecture he gave in Tampa Bay in the early 90's - "Rush" uses autism as a metaphor for a spiritual sickness that has become epidemic: an obsession with self; that whether we are talking about church or politics, people are asking the same thing: "What's in it for me?"

Prescient as always, his warning that this form of autism, if left unchecked, could spell a 200 year dark age for Western Civilization may well be coming true.