Scotts Random Thought Custom & Usage
Custom and usage are what the bible calls "fruit". Customs and usage is evidence of where we put our "faith" (fidelity) and "worship" (allegiance). When the Christ said, "if you love me keep my commandments." (laws, precepts, ordinances, statutes, etc.) He was saying make your custom and usage my law, my ordinances, my precepts, make my way your way.
Common law, or law common to a people, a society, a nation, state, country, is often defined as the long standing custom and usage of that people.
When I look all around me at the people I live among what do you think their custom and usage reveals about which law makers, judges, mighty ones of authority (EL or Theos: "God/gods") the people truly love?
Can people have two masters (lords)? Can people really serve two gods? Can people put one or more gods in front of, or in the place of, the God of creation, and still expect the God of creation to acknowledge them as "His sheep"? Or is that a violation of the first precept of God's Constitution called the "Ten Commandments"?
How does someone change their custom and usage so their fruit reveals that they actually love a different master/lord and god/mighty one of authority, judge, law maker?
Did colonial Americans change their custom and usage when they came to the American continent? Or did they keep the law of their English god/king, law maker, judge and sovereign master?
If someone is naturalized as a citizen/national of a new civil country. For example, if a Croatian were to expatriate from the Croatian body politic, nation, state, country and legally apply for US nationality, citizenship as a US person, and they follow all the precepts and laws and ordinances and statutes of the United States during their naturalization process, which usually takes many years, seven, but could be reduced if they were to marry a US citizen/national/person, who would teach their foreign spouse the ways of Uncle Sam, would this former Croatian, and new American, US citizen, national, person, after taking their oath of allegiance, having walked through the whole naturalization process now being dead to the laws of Croatia, and born again to the laws of Uncle Sam? Would the former Croatian now be an American, and his custom and usage is now to follow the laws of his new god, new national father, new law giver, sovereign? And would his daily actions, what he prays (applies, or appeals) for to his father who art in D.C., be the fruit that bears testimony to who his god/father/master/lord now is, having died to the father and body politic of Croatia, resurrected and born again to a new father, a new body politic, being a member of a new body of Uncle Sam?
So why do Americans run around claiming to be Christians when their common law, their custom and usage proves that they love Uncle Sam and keep his commandments?
What does someone have to do, according to the Christ's constitution and laws to begin their substantive repentant journey to becoming born again in Christ as their god, lord and king?