SAMPLE VERSES THAT LIMIT GOVERNMENT

Below is a sample of a few verses by topic that Limit Government. If you wish to find other Scriptures for other topics you can find many more by going to one of several topical Bible search engines on the Internet. One such search engine is www.openbible.org. Some of these Bible verses should be self-explanatory as to how they limit government and place boundaries around government. Many commentaries explaining Scripture are also available on the Internet. One recommended commentary is by Matthew Henry, a 17th Century Reformed Bible Scholar.

Our nation should not borrow money.

• Deuteronomy 15:6

  For the LORD thy God blesseth thee as He promised thee; and thou shalt lend unto many nations, but thou shalt not borrow; and thou shalt reign over many nations, but they shall not reign over thee.

  Welcoming immigrants to our nation.

• Leviticus 19:33-34

  And if a stranger sojourn with thee in your land, ye shall not vex him. But the stranger who dwelleth with you shall be unto you as one born among you, and thou shalt love him as thyself, for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.

  Spying on our own citizens:

• 1 Peter 4:15

But let none of you suffer as a murderer, or as a thief, or as an evildoer, or as a busybody in other men’s matters.

I Peter 4:15 tells us not to be a busy body and what is a “busy body” other than a federal government reviewing our emails, monitoring our telephone calls, etc. Our government should not be a busy body. Only bad comes from being a busy body.

Today corporations are being busy bodies and spying on us. They do this through digital research on the things that we buy with our credit cards, the things that we sell, where we live, where we bank, and where we travel, etc. In addition, the cell phone companies

know through geo-positioning applications that are on our cell phone where we are geographically all the times. That is one method that can be used to track criminals. It is okay to track criminals. You obtain a warrant to track a criminal. However, we now have the ability to follow people from place to place throughout their day as long as they have their cell phone with them. We can also find out what they purchased and, if the people they meet have cell phones, we can identify with whom they met. The phone companies keep our text messages and searches on the Internet. The government has been recording and storing our telephone calls in digital form for what it calls national security. It is not difficult to store that data and record your behavior over several days, weeks, months or even years. Could that data then be retrieved? The answer is yes. We are free to move about and purchase what we wish and meet with whomever we wish. Should that be information that the government possesses?

We are sinful creatures and we will do things we should not do. Sometimes we do innocent things that seem bad to others. Freedom carries with it the freedom to sin. Can these sins be used against us in the future? Of course they can. These sinful acts are between the individual and God, not between the individual and the government. The Internal Revenue Service, the FBI, the CIA, local law enforcement and others, if given this information, could use that information to restrict our freedom and more importantly even destroy our personal lives. With an unlimited government there will be no restriction on government intervention in our personal lives. We must add to this, the fact that all of our personal medical histories are now digitized and through a government run healthcare plan are accessible by the government.

Christ calls us to be free. Christ does not call the government to be a busy body.

Spying on other countries and enemies.

• Numbers 13:1-2 & 17-18

And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying, “Send thou men, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel. Of every tribe of their fathers shall ye send a

man, every one a ruler among them.”…. And Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said unto them, “Get you up this way southward, and go up into the mountain. And see the land, what it is, and the people who dwelleth therein, whether they be strong or weak, few or many…..

A right to petition the government.

• Esther 4:11

“All the king’s servants and the people of the king’s provinces do know that whosoever, whether man or woman, shall come unto the king into the inner court who is not called, there is one law of his: to put him to death, except such to whom the king shall hold out the golden scepter, that he may live. But I have not been called to come in unto the king these thirty days.”

The Esther story took place during the Babylonian captivity. It happened at approximately 700 BC. The Babylonians were pagans. Pagan kings placed no limits on their pursuit of approbation. The only limits on the pagan king were the limits he placed on himself. Therefore he could have a rule that said if you enter into his presence without his permission you could be executed at his discretion. He could also change those limits at his discretion. Ancient Israel had non-amendable limits placed upon their king by God. Our founding fathers in creating our Bill of Rights looked at these non-amendable, inalienable, Biblical, Universal Truths to frame our rights.

We are Equal Under the Law

• Acts 10:34-35

Then Peter opened his mouth and said, “In truth I perceive that God is no respecter of persons.”

• For people who are unfamiliar with the Biblical term, respecter of person, it means that God does not favor one person over another. For example, he does not favor the wealthy over the poor or man over woman.

• Ephesians 6:9

  And ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening, knowing that your Master also is in Heaven; neither is there respect of persons with Him.

• Colossians 3:25

  But he that doeth wrong shall receive for the wrong which he hath done, and there is no respect of persons.

• 1 Peter 1:17

  And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man’s work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear.

  These verses are used to create the oath of Federal Judges. Each justice or judge of the United States shall take the following oath or affirmation before performing the duties of his office: “I, XXX XXX, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will administer justice without respect to persons, and do equal right to the poor and to the rich, and that I will faithfully and impartially discharge and perform all the duties incumbent upon me as XXX under the Constitution and laws of the United States. So help me God.”

  We are Equal but Not the Same

• Genesis 1:27

  So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them.

  We are equal explanation: In Genesis 1:27 God says he will treat us equally. We are to try to treat others as God treats us. If we are treated equally that limits the government because the government cannot make special exceptions and special laws and special powers to deal with people in an unequal fashion. An example is the Jim Crow laws in the South. Those laws treated black people in a different manner and unequally. That granted to government additional powers it should not have had.

  How should we view Government?

• 1 Timothy 2:1-2

  I exhort therefore, first of all, that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and for all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.

  Everyone pays taxes, not just the wealthy.

  • Matthew 17:24-27

  And when they had come to Capernaum, those who collected the tribute money came to Peter and said, “Doth not your master pay tribute?” He said, “Yes.” And when he had come into the house, Jesus preceded him, saying, “What thinkest thou, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth take custom or tribute? From their ownchildren, or from strangers?” Peter said unto Him, “From strangers.” Jesus said unto him, “Then are the children free. Notwithstanding, lest we should offend them, go thou to the sea and cast a hook, and take up the fish that first cometh up. And when thou hast opened his mouth, thou shalt find a piece of money. That take, and give unto them for Me and thee.”

  Freedom of Religion.

• Matthew 10:14

  And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the dust of your feet.

  Personal Liberty.

• Galatians 5:1

  Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

  Right to Bear Arms.

  • Luke 11:21

  When a strong man armed keepeth his palace, his goods are in peace.

  • Luke 22:36

  Then said He unto them, “But now, he that hath a purse, let him take it and likewise his pack; and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one.”

  Double Jeopardy.

• Nahum 1:9

  What do ye contrive against the LORD? He will make an utter end; affliction shall not rise up the second time.

  Freedom of Speech.

  • Acts 5:26-29

  The Apostles were brought in and made to appear before the Sanhedrin to be questioned by the High Priest. “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.”

  Peter and other apostles replied; “We must obey God rather than human beings!”

  Right to be free on bond prior to trial.

• Numbers 35:12

  And they shall be unto you cities for refuge from the avenger, that the manslayer die not until he stand before the congregation in judgment.

  Socialism and Income Inequality.

• Exodus 20:15

  Thou shalt not steal

• Proverbs 10:4

  He becometh poor that dealeth with a slack hand, but the hand of the diligent maketh rich.

• Proverbs 14:30

  A sound heart is the life of the flesh, but envy is the rottenness of the bones.

  • James 3:14-15

  But if ye have bitter envy and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. Such wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, and devilish.

  In any study on the roots of socialism you will find that the ultimate driving force is jealousy. When somebody has more than someone else it is viewed by some as unfair and ignores the fact that God administers his grace as he sees fit. The Lord also tells us to be thankful for the material wealth we have and to be content with it. We are also given spiritual blessings and must recognize that they are more valuable than gold, silver and precious stones. In addition

  to the forgoing, the commandment that says “Thou shalt not steal” carries with it the absolute law that you have a right to your property.

  Right to Remain Silent

  • Mark 15:3-5

  The chief priests accused him of many things. So again Pilate asked him, “Aren’t you going to answer? See how many things they are accusing you of.” But Jesus still made no reply, and Pilate was amazed.

  Environment

• Genesis 8:22

  While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.

• 2nd Peter 3:10

  But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.

• Genesis 1:26

Then God said, let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.

Environment: We think these verses are self-explanatory. Sometimes the obvious is missed by the reader. Many environmentalists think that man is going to destroy the world by abusing the environment. There are many reasons why this makes no sense. One is the arrogance of the person who believes that man is powerful enough to destroy the world. The second is that God has already said that He is the one that is going to destroy the world. The earth is given by God to man for his use. We certainly should clean up our messes but that does not mean that we should not use what we have. God will at his return destroy this world.