“Every man according as he proposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.”
2 Corinthians 9:7
While watching a movie recently, I saw (repeatedly) a commercial featuring an esteemed church scholar referencing Jesus’ two commandments. His message was that the only thing Jesus required was that we love God and our neighbor. It’s a bit of sound Christian advice that I strongly advocate.
Alluding to James, he added that if we have it in our power to provide healthcare for our neighbor and refuse—how can we say the love of Jesus lives in us? He then went on to urge the Governor of our state to expand Medicare.
It all sounds very good. Our scholar would have us believe that this is not only the right thing to do, but our Christian duty. The tragic flaw in his thinking is found in Paul’s words to the Corinthians cited above. Love, and all the expressions thereof, must be given of a person’s own free will to merit God’s pleasure and to truly be classified as love.
Where is my free will in an edict handed down by the Governor commanding me to pay? Call me a heathen, but it is not in my heart to expand entitlements beyond their already bloated condition. And while it may be in Ms. Ivey’s power to pay people’s healthcare costs, it is certainly not in mine.
Our cleric’s thinking smacks of the modern idea that somehow the government has money of its own to spread around. The truth is the government has no money except that which it takes from its citizens. That the government should rob taxpayers and call it love is the height of idiocy. Obedience may come at the point of a gun, but love does not. But then, it is not enough to obey Big Brother, is it? We must love Big Brother.
This is not to say that I would not help a person in immediate dire straits pay for a doctor. However, coercion is not love, neither is it social justice, it is sanctioned robbery and devoid of the love of Christ.
I’ve been asked many times, “Don’t you think everyone deserves free healthcare?” The unfortunate truth is that it is not a matter of what people deserve. In my opinion, every soul alive should tremble in fear at the thought of getting what they truly deserve.
Comentarios