My grandfather's passing: his work

My grandfather worked on the railroad. The railroad is more than a job, it's a way of life. Recently, he recorded an account of a day he spent on the railroad. So, here he is, in his own words...

My longest work day

June 2, 1939 I was working at the S&C Hoe factory when I got a call from the Santa Fe Railway asking if I would go to the Arizona Division and work. They needed experienced men. Of course I would! The railroad payed $5.75 a day and the Hoe factory, $2 dollars a day. I had to go to Needles a day. The next train for Needles was arriving at 10 AM and I went to the office to check in. Although I was there and available, they couldn't use me as a fireman because I had been off more than six months and had to write the Book of Rules before I could work. OK, and I started, but it takes me three days to write the Book, so I wrote until 5 PM when the office closed till Monday morning. It looked like it will be a long weekend for me.

I went to bed about 9 PM and at 1 AM Saturday morning, I got a call for an engine messenger job at 2 AM. Just time enough to get dressed, get something to eat, and get to the round house to get on the engine that will take the train. An engine messenger rides on a dead engine in a train so whenever the engineer sets the brakes on the train, the engine messenger can keep the brakes off the dead engine. The reason is that all engines have tires on the drivers and, if the tires get too hot, they will come off the wheels and derail the engine. Why a dead engine in the train? They had worked on it at Needles but found the job too big for a round house and needed to get to a shop. The nearest shop was at San Bernardino. All the side rods were off the drivers so the engine could not be moved faster than fifteen miles an hour. We were all coupled up and ready to go by 3 AM. At that time, all train crews were limited to sixteen hours a trip, so the crew out of Needles had to set the dead engine out of the train at Ludlow and make a dash for Barstow.

Engine messengers are not covered by the Book of Rules so are limited by the sixteen hour law and I had to stay with the dead engine until we got to Barstow. The next train going to Barstow picked up the dead engine and we arrived at 10:05 PM, twenty hours and five minutes on duty when I clocked in. and was told to goto the Depot. They were holding a train for me as I was needed in Needles. Since I had made a paid trip on the Santa Fe, I was on their roster and could be used in any service as a fireman. I got on the train and dead headed back to Needles where I was already cleared for a helper to Yampi, Arizona. I got back at 7:30 PM Sunday night, forty hours and thirty minutes on pay.

After a nights sleep I was at the office door at 8 AM to see what was next and I was handed my Book of Rules and told to get on the next freight train going to Bakersfield as I was needed in Bakersfield arriving at 8 PM. I handed in my Book and was assigned to a 11 PM switch job. After about six hours sleep I went to the office to find out when I could write my Book. They said 8 AM to 5 PM five days a week, but I also need to write the Southern Pacific Book of Rules as Santa Fe used some Southern Pacific tracks over Tahachapi Mountains. I wrote both Books and worked until June 25th when I was called back to Los Angeles.

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My grandfather's passing: an inheritance

My nephew has posted a great tribute to my grandfather (his great grandfather) expressing the spiritual inheritance that he received from him. You can read his post here.

David Robison


Technorati Tags: grandfather, death, inheritance, spiritual

My grandfather's passing

Last Wednesday, February 13th, my grandfather passed away. He was 93 years old and had served the Lord for 84 years. A few years ago, my grandmother passed away (you can read my blog posts here). He is now in heaven with her and his Lord and is now receiving the reward for a life well lived. A few months ago, grandpa committed to paper a few stories from his life, one about how he came to know the Lord. I hope his story will be a blessing to my fellow readers. So, here is his story in his own words...

How I met the Lord

I think I should introduce you to my family so you can see my need of help. My parents were married in 1900. My dad was 35 and mom 25. My dad in his growing up years went to school through 4th Reader [what ever that means], and helped on the farm and supplied the wood stoves with plenty of copped wood. However, in his chopping, when he came to a knot in the wood he would chop it out and throw it into his wood pile. It seem that at some time he moved out of the house and was sleeping in a three sided building detached from the house with a fire pit at the open end. He could be inside and the smoke would go outside, and he could read and study by the light of the fire as he had a desire for more schooling and he took courses by mail. Between this time in his life and married life, he seemed to be a free spirit as I had a railroad rule book of his from Leadville Colorado.

My mom never went to school a day in her life and could not read or write when she got married. Dad taught her after they were married. Mom did not need to be educated. She would get married, have children, and keep house for some lucky man. She stayed home and chopped cotton.

My parents had seven children very well spaced, two to two and a half years apart. I'm number six, and am told, a slow child, not walking till I was almost three. I don't remember any books in the house but the Bible, a doctor's book, and two or three books against Catholicisms. Mom and dad read the Bible every day and on Sunday I was sent to the hotel [the only place open] to get the Sunday Examiner. They read the paper and I read the funnies and the "scandal" section. To my knowledge, I was never taught anything by my parents, they never went to church or talked church. One time my mother took me with her to a night Spirit meeting.

Enough family, how I met the Lord. A summer day during brake at school, I was lying on my back on the lawn at 984 Second Street in San Bernardino when a stairway formed in the sky. I could see figures moving up and down the stairway. I was nine years old and I wondered what it was all about. I knew enough about churches to know they dealt with a man who lived in the sky so I started checking them out. There was a church on H Street about two blocks from us that has Sunday School at 9 AM and church at 10 AM and I could come. It took a couple of weeks before I talked to mom about going and taking Oleva, my younger sister, with me. We liked it and went back for a year until we moved.

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The Word and the whole person: Dt 11:18-21

"You shall therefore impress these words of mine on your heart and on your soul; and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontals on your forehead. You shall teach them to your sons, talking of them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road and when you lie down and when you rise up. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, so that your days and the days of your sons may be multiplied on the land which the Lord swore to your fathers to give them, as long as the heavens remain above the earth." (Deuteronomy 11:18-21)

Reading these verses, I began to wonder what was the difference between impressing God's word on our heart and on our soul? In several places through out the scripture, God speaks of various parts, or facets, of who we are. For example, listen to the scripture Jesus quoted in the Gospel of Mark. "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength." (Mark 12:30) Jesus' mention of the heart, soul, mind, and strength are consistent with this scripture from Deuteronomy when you consider the imagery of "a sign on your hand" (strength) and "as frontals on your forehead" (mind).

Many people have endeavored to categorize the various aspect of the human person and to assign them to divisions of who we are, typically: body, soul, and spirit. While such distinctions may be useful as aids to understand some scriptures and our relationship to them, I am becoming to believe that, from God's perspective, we are not divided people (body, soul, and spirit) but rather whole people who are both body, soul, and spirit. For example, I am a son, a father, and a brother. These are three distinct aspects of who I am. However, you cannot separate any one of them from the others. At all times, I am all three, yet I am one person.

I think care must be taken not to take such imagery from the scriptures and extend them to doctrines that embody distinctions not intended by the scriptures. For example, doctrines that would seek to assign emotions as operating in the realm of the soul, or perhapses to the flesh. Emotions are part of the whole person, they are part of who we are: body, soul, and spirit. I believe that these scriptures do not intend to provide distinct divisions in who we are but rather are meant to convey the totality by which we must love, server, and obey the Lord God.

In the mentioned scripture from Deuteronomy, I believe that what Moses is trying to convey is our total need for the word of God. The word of God must be appropriated and integrated into all of who we are. Every aspect of our lives should, and must, be affected and influenced by God's word. Jesus concurred when He quoted from Deuteronomy, "It is written, 'Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God'" (Matthew 4:4) God's word should form the basis of all that we are and all that we do. It should be central to our lives and our relationships. It is the word of God that gives us life and separates us from the world and, lest we forget, it is the word of God that also saves us.

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. And the Word became flesh , and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:1-2, 14)

David Robison

Technorati Tags: Book of Deuteronomy, Word of God, body, soul, spirit, The Robe, David Robison

A new kind of land: Dt 11:10-12

"For the land, into which you are entering to possess it, is not like the land of Egypt from which you came, where you used to sow your seed and water it with your foot like a vegetable garden. But the land into which you are about to cross to possess it, a land of hills and valleys, drinks water from the rain of heaven, a land for which the Lord your God cares; the eyes of the Lord your God are always on it, from the beginning even to the end of the year." (Deuteronomy 11:10-12)

I believe that this verse prophetically foretold about the difference between a life lived under the law and living under grace. Moses was reminding the people that the land they were about to possess was not like the land they left some forty years earlier. Their former land only brought forth its provisions by the sweat of their brow. They had to work the land for all they were to receive. If they did not work, they did not eat. Day by day they labored to provide for their daily needs. The promised land, however, was a place where God labored for them. They were going to inherit houses, farms, and vineyards which they neither built nor planted. It was a land that God Himself cared for and tended. The blessings of the land were to be theirs, not based upon their own labors, but based upon the riches and grace of the Lord. They were about to receive an abundance for which they had not worked for.

The same contrast can be drawn between a life under the law and a life of grace. John tells us that Moses brought forth God's laws but Jesus His grace. "For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ." (John 1:17) The law taught us that, if we would do all that was contained with in it, we would live by it. The blessings of the law were reserved for those who, by careful observance, faithfully kept all the law. Only by fulfilling the entire law could someone be reckoned righteous before God. Grace, however, reckons us righteous, not because of our own efforts or works, but because of Jesus' efforts and His death on a cross. Under grace, righteousness is given to those who do not work but rather believe. "Now to the one who works, his wage is not credited as a favor, but as what is due. But to the one who does not work , but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is credited as righteousness." (Romans 4:4-5)

When we become a Christian, we move from the kingdom of law to the kingdom of grace. Our righteousness cease to be based upon our own works and is now imputed to us by Christ, based upon His substitutionary death for our sins. We are received as sons, not because we have proved ourselves as worthy bur rather because He has declared us to be worthy. And we enter into a rest, a rest from our own labors, a rest purchased for us by God. "So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His. Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest , so that no one will fall, through following the same example of disobedience." (Hebrews 4:9-11) Thanks be to God for His sabath rest.

David Robison

Technorati Tags: Book of Deuteronomy, Rest, Work, Righteousness, The Robe, David Robison

A Loving God: Dt 10:15-18

"Yet on your fathers did the Lord set His affection to love them, and He chose their descendants after them, even you above all peoples, as it is this day. So circumcise your heart, and stiffen your neck no longer. For the Lord your God is the God of gods and the Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God who does not show partiality nor take a bribe. He executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and shows His love for the alien by giving him food and clothing." (Deuteronomy 10:15-18)

How does one earn the favor and love of God? He can't! The love of God is not earned, it's bestowed. God loved the people of Israel, not because of their righteousness, for they were a rebellious and idolatrous people, not because of their stature and social status, for they were poor shepherds sold into slavery, but He loved then because he desired to. They did not earn His love, rather He chose them for His love.

So it is for us today, we receive His love, not because we are worthy, but because we are chosen; chosen to be the recipients of His matchless love. "I in them and You in Me, that they may be perfected in unity, so that the world may know that You sent Me, and loved them, even as You have loved Me." (John 17:23) As the Father loves the Son, so He has loved us, not because of anything we have done, but simply because He has chosen to love us. It is His desire to lavish His love upon us, and not only us, but His love extends to all. "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life." (John 3:16) God did not love just some, but all, even the whole world. The love of God is not reserved for a select few but is available to all who will receive it. "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God." (John 1:12-13)

How does one response to such an unmerited love? "You shall fear the Lord your God; you shall serve Him and cling to Him, and you shall swear by His name. He is your praise and He is your God, who has done these great and awesome things for you which your eyes have seen." (Deuteronomy 10:20-21) The word that Moses uses to exhort us to "cling" to the Lord is the same word that is used in Genesis 2:24 where God instructs husbands to "leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh." We are to join ourselves
to the Lord as a husband joins himself to his wife. We are to cling to Him and Him alone. Just as a husband cannot cleave to his wife without first separating himself from all other rivals, so we must separate ourselves from this world and all that it has to offer that we may cling fast to the Lord. Let us today chose, as our response to His boundless love for us, to leave behind the world and cling to the Lord.

David Robison

God Requires: Dt 10:12-13

"Now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require from you, but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways and love Him, and to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the Lord's commandments and His statutes which I am commanding you today for your good?" (Deuteronomy 10:12-13)

In the prophesy of Hosea, God spoke of the "ten thousand precepts of My law." (Hosea 8:12) While God spoke much with the nation of Israel, and laid out for them, in detail, His laws, statutes, and commandments, when you boil them all down, the requirements of God are quite simple. It is possible to focus so intently on the myriad of commandments that we can miss the heart of God that stands behind those commandments. So what is it that God really requires of us? What is it that God desires from us?

Fear: There are two kinds of fear. The first involves terror. For example, there have been times when I have woken up in the middle of the night thinking someone is in the house; this is terror. However, this is not the type of fear God is talking about. The second type of fear is centered in awe. It is not irrational or based on terror, but it is a heath respect and awe for the power of someone or something. For example, when working on an electrical outlet in my house, I am always sure to first turn off the breaker. Its not that I'm terrified of electricity, but I do have a healthy respect for it and the harm it can do if it is mistreated. When I approach God, I do so in an attitude of reverence, honesty, and humility. I am not terrified of Him, but I am keenly aware of the fact that He is God and I am not! He is the Father and I am the child! We should never presume that God is like us, even though he dwells with us, He is still God and we should never become irreverent, presumptuous, or indifferent in His presence.

Walk: Our walk not only speaks about our personal conduct but also our life message. Our walk is the outward expression of our inward faith, motivation, love, and conviction. God's desire is not that we would merely become like Him on the inside, but that the outward expressions of our life would also represent and express Him. It was said of Jesus that He is "the radiance of His [the Father's] glory and the exact representation of His [the Father's] nature." (Hebrews 1:3) Jesus' life expressed God, and so should ours. God is interested in our walk, that is why Paul exhorts us to "walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called." (Ephesians 4:1)

Love: The Hebrew term used here for "love" is not an abstract form of love or mere devotion to an idea or person, but the word used in this passage literally means "affections". God desires that we would have hearts of affection toward Him, that we would desire Him more than the things in this world, more than other people, and even more than our very lives. When we first come to the Lord, we may still find that most of our affections are still attached to this world. So how do we develop hearts of affection towards God? Jesus told us that "no one, having drunk old wine, immediately desires new; for he says, 'The old is better.'" (Luke 5:39 NKJV) New wine is an acquired taste. The way to develop a desire for new wine is to continually taste it until we have lost a taste for the old wine and end up preferring the new. The way we develop a heart for the Lord is to continually enter into His presence until we find ourselves preferring Him over anything and everything this world has to offer.

Serve: God does not desire a service that comes from compulsion and forced duty, rather He desires a service that comes from the heart. Nether is our service to be half hearted, meant to merely fulfill some requirement or to please the expectations of men, rather our service should be with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. With God, it is an all or nothing proposition; we are either in or out, there is no half way. Jesus wrote to the church at Laodicea, chastising them saying, "I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth." (Revelation 3:15-16) Let our lives, and our service, not be cold or even lukewarm, let us be passionately hot for the Lord.

Obey: Jesus, confronting the religious people of the day, asked them, "Why do you call Me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?" (Luke 6:46) Jesus reminded them that what we say is not as important as what we do. We can call Him "Lord" but it is our actions that will betray the truth. God has not only called us to His gospel, but He has also called us to obedience. Paul understood that, as an apostle, his mission was not merely to call people to belief, but also to obedience. Paul says of himself, "we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for His name's sake." (Romans 1:5) We are called to obey, everything else is lawlessness. We can claim to be followers of Christ, but if we fail to obey Him, them we are just deceiving ourselves. We must never forget the exhortation of James, "But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves." (James 1:22 NKJV)

David Robison

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The Temptation of Promotion: Dt 9:12-14

"Then the Lord said to me, 'Arise, go down from here quickly, for your people whom you brought out of Egypt have acted corruptly. They have quickly turned aside from the way which I commanded them; they have made a molten image for themselves.' The Lord spoke further to me, saying, 'I have seen this people, and indeed, it is a stubborn people. Let Me alone, that I may destroy them and blot out their name from under heaven; and I will make of you a nation mightier and greater than they.'" (Deuteronomy 9:12-14)

What an offer! Moses was being offered the chance to go from the shepherd of the people to become the patriarch of a new nation that would inherit the Promised Land. It is not uncommon to have aspirations for greatness or to desire promotion. Even in Christian circles, it can be tempting to strive to clime the "ministry ladder", to push forward for recognition and promotion. Moses was being offered more than he could have ever imagined, to be the head of God's people. So how did Moses respond?

"I fell down before the Lord, as at the first, forty days and nights; I neither ate bread nor drank water, because of all your sin which you had committed in doing what was evil in the sight of the Lord to provoke Him to anger. For I was afraid of the anger and hot displeasure with which the LORD was wrathful against you in order to destroy you, but the Lord listened to me that time also." (Deuteronomy 9:18-19)

And again, when the children of Israel failed to obey God's command to enter the Promised Land, and God was set to destroy them, Moses again interceded,

"I prayed to the Lord and said, 'O Lord God, do not destroy Your people, even Your inheritance, whom You have redeemed through Your greatness, whom You have brought out of Egypt with a mighty hand. Remember Your servants, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; do not look at the stubbornness of this people or at their wickedness or their sin. Otherwise the land from which You brought us may say, "Because the Lord was not able to bring them into the land which He had promised them and because He hated them He has brought them out to slay them in the wilderness." Yet they are Your people, even Your inheritance, whom You have brought out by Your great power and Your outstretched arm.'" (Deuteronomy 9:26-29)

When Moses was offered the opportunity for promotion, he chose rather to remain in his current condition; to be a servant of the people, to be their shepherd. Moses accepted his limitations and calling and was content with the role God had assigned to him. He did need a promotion to "feel" successful or important. He was God's servant, and in being a faithful servant, he was important to God, and that was all that mattered.

It is easy to look at others and desire to be like them; to be prominent, noticed, and prised, but true success and satisfaction is found when we come to understand and accept God's will for our own lives. When we cease to strive and desire to be like someone else and rejoice in who God has made us, then we will be truly happy. Being who we are meant to be is of greater value than being someone important. Moses understood this. He understood the role God had called him to and he was content in that. Let us not look at others and judge ourselves, rather, let us be thankful for who God has made us and let us set our aim to be all of who we are called to be to the glory of God.

David Robison

Technorati Tags: Book of Deuteronomy, Promised Land, Temptation, The Robe, David Robison

We are no different then them: Dt 9:4-6

"Do not say in your heart when the Lord your God has driven them out before you, 'Because of my righteousness the Lord has brought me in to possess this land,' but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord is dispossessing them before you. It is not for your righteousness or for the uprightness of your heart that you are going to possess their land, but it is because of the wickedness of these nations that the Lord your God is driving them out before you, in order to confirm the oath which the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Know, then, it is not because of your righteousness that the Lord your God is giving you this good land to possess, for you are a stubborn people." (Deuteronomy 9:4-6)

Several years ago, while living in Las Vegas, I lead a weekly Bible study at our local jail. As you can imagine, the jail at Las Vegas is an interesting place. While leading the study I met a young man who shared his story with me. He was a Christian but began to drift away from the Lord. He began drinking and his life began to snowballed out of control. Finally, one night while drunk, he molesting his daughter and was arrested. In one night he lost his family and his freedom. What struck me most from his story was that the the entire journey of his fall took only six months; six months from starting to drink to laying in a jail. As I listened to his story, the one thought that kept running through my mind was, "there but for the grace of God go I." It reminded me of what Paul cautioned the Corinthians, "Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed that he does not fall." (1 Corintheans 10:12)

In this scripture from Deuteronomy, Moses was warning the Israelites not to think too highly of themselves. It is so easy to interpret the blessings and victories in God as being rewards and evidence of our righteousness before God. However, these things are not evidence of our righteousness but rather they testify to the righteousness of God. We must not allow our position in God to cause us to think that we are better than others; better than the lost and dying of this world. The truth is that God loves us, not because we are righteous, but because we are His. "He came to His own , and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God." (John 1:11-12)

We are no different than those in the world. We are stiff necked sinners who have been saved by grace; a salvation not of our own but of Him who died for our sins. In this there is great news for the world, "If God can save me, he can save anyone." God loves us, not because of what we have done, but because of who we are. "It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life." (1 Tim 1:15-16)

David Robison

Technorati Tags: Book of Deuteronomy, sinners, love of God, The Robe, David Robison

The Politics of Wealth: Dt 8:18

"But you shall remember the Lord your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth, that He may confirm His covenant which He swore to your fathers, as it is this day." (Deuteronomy 8:18)

In my country, we live in a politically charged environment where the differences between the various socioeconomic groups of our population are exploited for political ends. It is not uncommon to hear talk about the "two Americas, the haves and the have nots." There is also much debate over the tax brackets with some politicians complaining about "tax breaks for the rich" and wanting to increase the taxes on the wealthy in this country. I suppose it is to be expected that issues involving money would be easy fodder for politicizations, but what does the Bible have to say about wealth? And how should civil government apply biblical truths about wealth and apply them to policy decisions? This scripture teaches us several things about wealth.

1. Wealth is the provision of God. In a now famous speech, Congressmen Richard Gephardt referred to those who were wealthy and high achievers as "winners in life's lottery", yet this scripture clearly teaches that wealth does not happen by chance. There is no "life's lottery" where some just happen to win and gain wealth while others continually "purchase" tickets and never win anything. It is God who gives people the ability to make wealth, not chance or fate.
2. Wealth is not evil. While not everyone who becomes wealthy does so by ethical means, and not every wealthy person uses their wealth for noble causes, this does not mean that wealth is evil. Wealth is the provision of God and therefore not intrinsically evil. It is not wrong to be wealthy just as it is not wrong to be poor.
3. Wealth is not automatic. This scripture teaches us that God gives us the ability to gain wealth and not wealth itself. Just because someone has the ability to gain wealth does not mean that they will become wealthy. It takes personal effort, diligence, and perseverance to put those abilities to work to produce wealth. Sometimes, poverty is not the result of lack of ability but lack of effort.
4. Wealth is not equal. It is a reasonable interpretation of this scripture that God does not necessarily give the same ability to gain wealth to all people, nor is it reasonable to believe that all people will use the abilities given to them by God with the same effort and effectiveness. We should not expect or seek a social system where everyone is equal in terms of wealth and riches. God proportions to us our abilities, talents, and giftings as He choses, therefore we should not expect everyone to be equal or for life to be equatable.
   
5. Wealth is created. Wealth involves investing raw ability and talent into enterprises that can produce wealth. The process of creating wealth should involve the production and delivery of products and services that are valued by others. Contrast this with gambling. In gambling wealth is exchanged, depending on luck, instinct, and sometimes trickery, rather than being created.
   

So what should be a government's position and policy on wealth and the wealthy? Here are some of my thoughts based on this scripture.

• It is not the government's job to guarantee wealth. Wealth is the provision of God not the government. The government should never establish themselves as the providers of the people. In a recent presidential debate, someone asked the presidential candidates what they would do to help them to "find a job?" The candidates should have responded by saying, "Nothing!" Wealth is our responsibility, to use what God has given us, not the governments.
• Government should not attempt to equalize wealth. God does not guarantee that wealth will or should be equal, and neither should the government. Unfortunately, in my country, the income tax system had become largely a system for the redistribution of wealth. The rich are taxed and their wealth given to others in the form of various social programs. It is not the government's job to make equal what God has not.
  
• Government should not attempt to neutralize personal responsibility in creating wealth. Programs like welfare and the minimum wage serve only to reward people with "wealth" with out regard to personal effort. Welfare provides income without, in many cases, requiring the recipient to work, or even seek work. The minimum wage provides a minimum level of income without regard to a person's work ethic, their productivity, or their value to their employer. In these cases, a person's income level is decided by the government and not by their God given abilities and the effectiveness to which they use them.
  
• Government should not foster the gaining of wealth through gambling. As I stated above, gambling is a means to gain wealth that does not provide for the actual creation or production of wealth. Whether gambling should be allowed in the private sector is debatable, but I firmly believe that it is wrong, immoral, and improper for governments to sponsor and promote gambling. It may provide revenues to the government, but it promotes an activity that I believe is contrary to the scriptures.
  

David Robison

Technorati Tags: Book of Deuteronomy, Foundations of Governance, wealth, politics, government, taxes, The Robe, David Robison