THIS is the age of monopolies. Most of these monopolies are originated, engineered, and controlled by a small group of men, who organize and manipulate them for self-interest. The “public good” is the plea when men seek to launch such enterprises; but when once they are launched, the suffering public often learns that they were in reality launched for the personal benefit of a few men.
Catching this characteristic spirit of modernism, churches and religious societies are confederating for the “public good.” Their slogan is the same as that of other monopolies; but a careful analysis reveals the fact that they are confederating for the purpose of control of their fellow men through a religious monopoly.
Satan is the great originator of self-serving confederation movements. The first one was started in heaven. See Ezekiel 28. Under the usual cry of the “good” of the subjects of the kingdom of God, it was brought forward in Eden. Gen. 3: 1-5. Its real purpose is revealed in the prophecy of Isaiah: “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High.” Isa. 14: 12-14.
Wrecked the Lives of Angels
The object of the first great confederacy was monopoly control of the kingdom of God. It was launched in the interests of Satan, its leader. That movement wrecked the pure lives of angels, and cast Satan and all his followers out of heaven. “And there was war in heaven: Michael and His angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.” Rev. 12: 7-10.
It was an antichristian movement. It presupposed that Christ was incapable of running the government of the kingdom of God on a right basis; that the exalted position Satan should occupy was disregarded, and a confederacy was required to establish it on a proper basis. Its foundation was laid in unbelief in the power, wisdom, and goodness of God. Turning from dependence upon that power for the control of the kingdom of God, it sought to control Christ’s kingdom by creature confederacy and force. But it failed. It ended in ruin to those engaging in the undertaking.
The kingdom of God still exists, with Christ in control, even though these mightiest of heavenly beings confederated to control it. They lost it, and were cast as “profane” out of the kingdom.
Would Crown Christ King by Force
A modern movement, based on the same unbelief in the capability of Christ to care for the interests of His kingdom, is again sweeping over the earth. It began in a religion-by-force movement in 1863, under the auspices of the National Reform Association, which was organized January 27, 1864, with the avowed object to “indicate that this is a Christian nation, and place all the Christian laws, institutions, and usages of our government on an undeniable legal basis in the fundamental law of the land.” (Article 2, National Reform constitution.)
Inspired by the spirit of this movement, the late Miss Frances Willard, president of the Woman’s Christian Temperance Union, said:
“The Woman’s Christian Temperance Union, local, state, national, and world-wide, has one vital, organic thought, one all-absorbing purpose, one undying enthusiasm, and that is that Christ shall be this world’s king. . . . The kingdom of Christ must enter the realm of law through the gateway of politics.”—President’s annual address, in convention, Nashville, 1887.
This sounds beautiful to a professed Christian, inexperienced and uninformed in the results of enforced religion. It is the very same issue over which the Jews accused and the Romans executed Christ upon Calvary. They had a law; and by that law, they said, He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God. (John 19: 7.)
Christ’s unqualified denunciation of all attempts to enthrone Him as this world’s king through religio-political confederation movements is given in His emphatic statement, “My kingdom is not of this world.” The movement to establish the kingdom of Christ in this world by force and worldly methods is here most emphatically repudiated by Christ. It is positively antichristian.
Develops Fawning Hypocrites
The more recent movements that have developed for the purpose of establishing religion by force are:
The Federation of Churches.
The Church Peace Union.
The League to Enforce Peace.
The World-Court League.
The World Conference on Faith and Order.
Religious legislation in Congress.
All these movements are seeking the one end of control by force in affairs of religion, which can, in the very nature of things, but defeat the purpose of true religious faith.
Christ’s declaration is, “He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.” Faith is voluntary. To enforce it is impossible. To attempt to do so is to develop a horde of fawning hypocrites instead of a body of children of faith. The history of the fourth century and onward is an illustration of the results of religious legislation. The Bible was chained to the desks of the clergy, and the people had it doled out to them in the way best suited to the ends to be accomplished by the clergy. Faith was persecuted, and hypocrisy honored.
Confederate Only to Be Broken
But these very confederation movements are signs that the end of the world and the time for the establishment of the kingdom of Christ are at hand. Isa. 8: 17. In predicting their coming just before the second advent of Christ, the prophet Isaiah warned the world against them in the following forceful utterance: “For the Lord spake thus to me with a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying, Say ye not, A confederacy, to all them to whom this people shall say, A confederacy; neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid.” Isa. 8: 11, 12.
There is no mistaking this Heaven-sent warning against such last-day confederacies. They will come with great pomp, and denunciation of those who walk in the ways of God’s word. They have confederated because they fear that God’s work is imperiled, and that unless they confederate and denounce and persecute opposers of their views, it will fail. But their words and denunciations are not approved of God, and will not stand. “Associate yourselves, O ye people, and ye shall be broken in pieces; and give ear, all ye of far countries: gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces. Take counsel together, and it shall come to naught; speak the word, and it shall not stand: for God is with us.” Isa. 8: 9, 10.
Then follows the rallying call to all children of faith: “That I should not walk in the way of this people, . . . neither fear ye their fear, nor be afraid. Sanctify the Lord662of hosts Himself; and let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread.” Isa. 8: 11-13.
Couldn't Meet the Competition
This fear that God is unable to care for His work unaided by religious legislation is the basis of all the religious legislation that has ever cursed the world. Egypt of old thought they owned Israel, body and soul. They feared that their gods could not withstand the competition of another system of religion, so they attempted, by national control of religious convictions, to compel Israel to worship according to their creed. God in His displeasure sent an ultimatum to Pharaoh. He demanded, “Let My people go, that they may serve Me,” or I will visit Egypt with mighty judgments.
Egypt refused to grant freedom of religious worship, and the ten plagues upon Egypt followed. Every plague was a challenge to Egyptian divinities to assert their power in support of their creed in the face of God’s judgments. That nation, humiliated and confounded under the mighty judgments of God, was at last glad to release Israel to freedom of worship, and leave the control of God’s work and people to Himself.
Beginning in the fourth century, a church confederacy obtained religious control by civil enactments. The most unchristian intolerance and persecution resulted, until, through the Reformation movement, men of faith arose, who believed that God was capable of the religious control of His people, and the supremacy of that system of ecclesiasticism was broken, and the world was again liberated, that men might exercise, unmolested, their God-given right of individual liberty to worship God.
The Reformation movement was based upon the declaration of Christ: “And if any man hear My words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejecteth Me, and receiveth not My words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken,7the same shall judge him in the last day.” John 12: 47, 48.
The Christianizing of Politics
A modern federation movement, embracing, in principle, all that Jehovah condemned in Egypt, and all that the fourth century federation movement embraced, has been inaugurated. Its object is very clearly stated in an official program of the Christian Citizenship convention, June 29 to July 6, 1913, as follows:
“The object and inspiration of all effort is the establishment of the kingdom of God. . . . In the application and realization of these principles, there are some definite lines of action which are vital. Our work in behalf of the Christianization of the political and social order must move along four lines: education, agitation, legislation, and law enforcement. . . . This conference should consider the various subjects that are vital to the welfare of the people, and should adopt such measures as are to be promoted by education, agitation, legislation, and law enforcement.”
To establish the kingdom of God by political legislation is the real purpose of the entire federation movement. It is Satan’s mighty attempt to fulfill the prophecies relating to the establishment of the kingdom of God by Christ at His second advent. When the real restoration of that kingdom takes place, Christ will sit upon the throne of His glory. Before Him will be gathered all nations; and He, not confederacies of man, will restore the kingdom of God. Matt. 25: 31.
