The Legitimate Spheres of Government
THERE are two legitimate universal spheres of government in this earth in its present condition which are ordained of God; namely, secular and ecclesiastical, or civil and spiritual. The civil power is designed to restrain evil, to prevent incivility, to guard the equal rights of each and all. For this purpose "the powers that be are ordained of God." Whether that government be a monarchy or a republic, an autocracy or a democracy, in the sphere above indicated its existence is necessary. But with religion civil government has no right to meddle. It may not come in between man and the object of his worship, whether that object be the great and ineffable Jehovah or the idol of wood or clay. In other words, God has not ordained civil government to usurp His place or to assume to exercise His authority. Whether the ruler be Christian or pagan, whatever be the religious belief of ninety-nine hundredths of the people, he or they have no right to crystallize these beliefs into civil law, or to attempt to impose them upon a single soul. In the spiritual sphere of government every individual soul is answerable alone to God. Those of the one faith form the church of God, organized not to tyrannize or lord it over men's consciences, but to be of better service for fallen humanity and helpful to one another. The officers in that government are not to be "lords over God's heritage," but to be "ensamples to the flock." If a man wishes to consent to be dominated over by a tyrannical hierarchy, he has the privilege, but neither he nor the hierarchy may consent for others. The spiritual, or ecclesiastical sphere of government has no right to meddle with politics, to induce or compel rulers to place in civil statute laws the dogmas or beliefs of the church. On the above basis these spheres of government could exist indefinitely without trouble. Under such conditions true religion has always flourished, and has ever had indirectly an uplifting influence on the unconverted and the state. But it does not please the perverter of all good to see each sphere of government held to its own purpose. It is his object to pervert and thereby destroy, charging the evil to the government of God. Satan has therefore labored to pervert both by uniting them, and in this he has succeeded remarkably. He is the deceiver of the whole world. The union of religion with the civil power brings confusion to both church and state, and inevitably proves the ruin of both. It gave rise to the great Babylonian system of church-and-state governments, and has perpetuated the system in various forms ever since. The United States of America, the greatest and last of the nations, for a century stood aloof from the desolating scourge, and would none of it; but of late she is quaffing the poisonous cup of the Babylonian harlot, and is rapidly succumbing to its deadly influence. The sure symptoms are manifest in the demand for religious legislation on the part of ecclesiastical bodies, and accession to this demand on the part of time-serving politicians. The results have been, are, and will be in increasing ratio, religious persecution and utter ruin of both church and state.