Gifts

Capitalism works best in a society where people love their neighbor as themselves, where the State is superfluous because the power of the State remains in the hands of the individual as God intended. The individual, as a natural inhabitant, can only remain free in a state of nature as long as he remains virtuous. Capitalism does not dictate virtue. Greed or charity remain a choice in a free society. Socialism always brings an end to virtue with the empowerment of the State because it is the stumblingblock of Balaam.
“If Virtue & Knowledge are diffused among the People, they will never be enslaved. This will be their great Security” In a republic of noble and virtuous souls there are few affairs of the people that are not taken care of by the people for the people.

Beware of gifts

"Have ye not known? have ye not heard? hath it not been told you from the beginning? have ye not understood from the foundations of the earth?" Isaiah 40:21

There are gifts of God and man.

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Plutarch said “The real destroyers of the liberties of the people is he who spreads among them bounties, donations and benefits.”

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But Proverbs 19:6 tells us the same thing, "Many will intreat the favour of the prince: and every man [is] a friend to him that giveth gifts."

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Polybius said "The masses continue with an appetite for benefits and the habit of receiving them by way of a rule of force and violence. The people, having grown accustomed to feed at the expense of others and to depend for their livelihood on the property of others... institute the rule of violence; and now uniting their forces massacre, banish, and plunder, until they degenerate again into perfect savages and find once more a master and monarch."

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This rule of violence and plunder is the same we hear about in Matthew 11:12 "And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffereth violence, and the violent take it by force." and in Luke 16:16 "The law and the prophets [were] until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth into it." The Repentance associated with the act of Baptism was turning away from these Covetous systems of the Welfare of the World and going back to The Way of Fervent Charity with the Eucharist of Christ.

"He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house; but he that hateth gifts shall live." Proverbs 15:27

The wages of unrighteousness offered by men brings the rights and liberty of man given by God to nothing and their right to judge to confusion.

The gifts of God which set men free come to those who will walk the Way of God.

The Paul the Apostle wrote to a number of Early Christian communities in Galatia, "For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another." Galatians 5:13-15

When Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 8:9 "But take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumblingblock to them that are weak." the word "liberty" is the same word exousia Paul uses in Romans 13.

The same word we see as power in Romans 13 is translated right in Hebrews 13:10 and Revelation 22:14. and also in Revelation 18 concerning the fall of Babylon and the merchants of the earth who are the merchants of men who together with the kings of the earth have committed fornication. Rulers of the world of men not only have sought to take man's endowed dominion from him but have conspired to make all men take the Mark of the Beast which is a badge of servitude that makes them merchandise.

Have we lost that liberty granted by God by neglecting our natural and moral responsibility that is correlative to those God given rights?

Eyes full of adultery

Peter made it clear in 2 Peter 2:3, "And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not."

Peter not only warned us that desiring benefits at the expense of others would make us human resources what he calls merchandise but he warned us in 2 Peter 2:14 about those covetous practices entangling them back in the yoke of bondage and cursing our children:

"Having eyes full of adultery, and that cannot cease from sin; beguiling unstable souls: an heart they have exercised with covetous practices; cursed children:" 2 Peter 2:14

He tells us that the debt of those Divers lust for the benefits of the world at the expense of others would curse our children.

David warned us in Psalms 69:22, "Let their table become a snare before them: and that which should have been for their welfare, let it become a trap."

And Paul reminded us again in Romans 11:9 that "... David saith, Let their table be made a snare, and a trap, and a stumblingblock, and a recompence unto them:"

This stumblingblock was that we would learn to eat at tables set with the bounty of the compelled sacrifices of institutions made by men who called themselves Benefactors that ruled over the people with and exercising authority and is explained in Revelation 2:14 "But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to cast a stumblingblock before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed unto idols, and to commit fornication."

Proverbs 23 warns us about the table of men who exercise authority one over the other "When thou sittest to eat with a ruler, consider diligently what [is] before thee: And put a knife to thy throat, if thou be a man given to appetite. Be not desirous of his dainties: for they are deceitful meat."

If the ruler is your Benefactor he will only give you what he takes from others. To desire the Benefits is to Covet and that will change.

What are these benefits today?

Those benefits include everything from Public Schools to Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) cards which is an electronic system that allows state welfare departments to issue benefits via a magnetically encoded payment card, used in the United States and the United Kingdom like Rome did with their Tesserae of the Beast of Revelation?

Warned

We were told by God in Exodus 20:17 "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s."

Jesus warned us of the evil of covetousness and where it comes from in Mark 7:20-23, "...That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man."

These are the things he called us to repent of in Matthew 4:17 when he first "... began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." and in Mark 1:15 when He said "... The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel." but warned us in Luke 13:3 that "... except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish."

He warned the ministers that systems of Corban like the one they created for their social welfare made the word of God to none effect.

Jesus told us not to look to Benefactors who exercise authority one over the other.

He told us not to pray to Fathers of the earth, but only our Father who is in Heaven.

He told us to keep the commandments including the one about not coveting anything that is our neighbors if we want Eternal life. And when 1 John 2 talked about the "propitiation for our sins", he reminded us that "... hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked."

Real Christians would not desire the benefits of men who call themselves Benefactors nor pray to the Fathers of the earth like Modern Christians do. They would be led to gather together in a living Network that provided a Daily ministration of Charity for one another according to the Perfect law of liberty. They would strive to keep His commandments by being Doers of His word in a Living Network of Love.

Israel in the Bondage of Egypt were literally employed by the Pharaoh who provided free bread like the Romans in the form of Public Welfare which was Public religion. They had to pay their tale of bricks to the Pharaoh but learn to glean in the field at night to obtain their benefits. This is why God hardened the heart of the Pharaoh during the plagues so they could learn The Way of God. So it was not enough to stop taking the benefits, but they needed to learn to provide them by faith, hope and charity through a system of Corban that made the word of God to effect.

Jesus said nothing different to the early Church. When he said give to Caesar what is Caesar and to God what is God's he was saying pay your tale of bricks. He even warned to be friends with the unrighteous Mammon explaining that it would fail. Those who cheat one master you will likely cheat the next.

We are in bondage because of Covetous Practices and Slothfulness. We are devoured because we or our natural parents took bites out of one another in these Covetous Practices which made us a Surety for debt in an unrighteous Mammon... We must Repent and seek the Kingdom of God and His Righteousness.

Where and what is true Christian fellowship?

Where and what is the true Eucharist of Christ?

Where and what is the Living Network of the faithful?

Where and what is the Communion of Saints?

Where and how do the people practice Pure Religion?

Where and who are the people that attend to the Weightier matters?

There are lots of gifts mentioned in the Bible. Are they good or bad and should we always take a gift?

Proverbs 15:27 He that is greedy of gain troubleth his own house; but he that hateth gifts <04979> shall live.

Here we are told that if we hate gift we should live. The word is a Hebrew word mattanahwhich is almost always translated "gift".

The first time it is used is in Genesis 25:6 "But unto the sons of the concubines, which Abraham had, Abraham gave gifts <mattanah>, and sent them away from Isaac his son, while he yet lived, eastward, unto the east country."

These gifts are like benefits that are given to someone to help and support them rather than just please them. The word mattanah with a letter Hey on the end is from the word mattan which only appears 5 times in the Bible. These gifts seem to be something extra often to earn the favor or appreciation of someone.

The word mattanah in Exodus 28:38 includes "holy gifts" or consecrated items given to Aaron that are always on his mind. Aaron performed a certain role of judgement in society and was said to bear the "iniquity" of these gifts. That word for "iniquity" may also refer to the " consequence of" or burden that comes with the responsibility for something.

We see the word mattanah listed with freewill offerings and vows and offerings at festivals as an additional gift in Leviticus 23:38<Rf>Leviticus 23:38 Beside the sabbaths of the LORD, and beside your gifts <04979>, and beside all your vows, and beside all your freewill offerings, which ye give unto the LORD.</Ref>

In Numbers 18:6 the Levites are identified as a gift from God in order to provide the "service of the tabernacle of the congregation".

Offerings were like gifts to support these priests that provided that "service... of the congregation"

These heave offerings which in Hebrew is tᵉruwmah TavReshVavMemHey from the word ruwm ReshVavMemwere nothing more than your contribution in support of a voluntary government.

Normally the word mattanah is a good thing concerned with sharing and giving but as we see in Proverbs 15:27 not "hating" gifts an shorten our life that we might not live. A gift can even destroy the hear according to Ecclesiastes 7:7

And Ezekiel 20:26 tells us that the people can be polluted in their gifts.

According to Ezekiel 20:31 this happens when you make "your sons to pass through the fire". Passing through the fire is a metaphor for offering your sons as a gift. It does not just mean burning them on an altar but turning them over to be the servants of idols which is also mentioned in Ezekiel 20:39

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Ezekiel 46:16 Thus saith the Lord GOD; If the prince give a gift <04979> unto any of his sons, the inheritance thereof shall be his sons’; it shall be their possession by inheritance. Ezekiel 46:17 But if he give a gift <04979> of his inheritance to one of his servants, then it shall be his to the year of liberty; after it shall return to the prince: but his inheritance shall be his sons’ for them.

There is another word for gift found in the Bible which is shachad ShemChadDeleth