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Wasp stings are acidic which means an alkaline pain solution.

Insect bites can be painful. So can stings from many poisonous plants. Now that its summer, its important to have some alternative solutions for stings and bites.

Some of this is because their venom or juice is either highly acidic or highly alkaline. For example, the sting from stinging nettle, ants, and bees is extremely acidic.

Some Quick Solutions In Your Kitchen

So, it makes good sense that you can relieve the pain by quickly applying something alkaline to the sting site. Some commonly available alkaline compounds are bicarbonate of soda (more widely known as baking soda) and soap.

Wasp stings are alkaline, so you’ll need something acidic to counteract their pain. Vinegar is an excellent and safe acid to use as an off-the-grid solutions for stings and bites. If the sting happens when you’re outside enjoying a picnic, head for the pickle juice.

Scorpion stings vary greatly in their seriousness, even within the United States. Some small scorpions in the Southeast U.S. have stings that are only about as serious and painful as a wasp sting. However, some of the larger scorpions in Arizona and down into Mexico can be lethal if they sting you.

If you are stung by one of the dangerous variety, the only cure I’m aware of is the anti-venom available from hospitals. Common sense should dictate that you should head there as fast as possible. This is especially true if the person stung is a child or senior citizen. If it’s one of the nuisance variety, you can experiment a bit if you don’t show any signs of being allergic to the venom.

Warning

Showing symptoms of a dangerous reaction, again, head to the hospital. Since scorpion venom is acidic, you’ll need the alkaline solutions in your”just in case” bag.

One curious thing about scorpion venom. It has a very high acid content which means lots of protons which connect to neurons. This combination dramatically “amps up” the intensity of the messages sent to the brain. So the acid content gives the venom a kind of “push” by forcing ion channels to open wide and “communicate” in a very special way. Basically, the acid kick makes it hurt like heck.

Apple Cider Vinegar and Baking Soda To The Rescue

When I’m uncertain, I mix an acid (vinegar) with something alkaline (baking soda) and hope for the best. Alternatively, you could experiment with small amounts of alkaline and acidic substances in isolation to see which makes the pain worse and which makes it better. Then apply a considerable amount of the one that works.

For simple bites, you can use several things: Fresh lime or lemon juice can be rubbed on the bite. So can raw garlic or even a salt type paste.

You Need To Act Quickly For Best Results

What seems to work very well, if done immediately after the bite or sting, is to soak a small cotton pack with apple cider vinegar and on top of that, sprinkle a small amount of baking soda. The mixture of this acid and base will cause a bubbling reaction immediately on the cotton pad. Take the pad and place it directly over the bite with the baking soda and vinegar against the skin for several minutes.

As I mentioned, this will usually work well for minor stings and bites. However, if you are prone to allergic reactions from insect stings or bites and experience abnormal swelling or difficulty in breathing, it’s best to get medical help as soon as possible.

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New studies show chimpanzee nests are actually cleaner than human beds.

Chimpanzee nests are cleaner because chips are better housekeepers than humans. A scientific study found that the nests chimps build in the jungle are actually cleaner and safer than human beds.

Researchers swabbed 41 chimp nests in Tanzania and tested the samples for parasites. When the samples were tested, more than half of the chipanzee nests were free of insects and other pests. Only 15 of the nests contained insects. Parasites that prey on chimps were found in just four of the nests.

“Human beds are rife with microbes, mites, fungus, and pests like bed bugs in sharp contrast to chimp nests,” New York University biologist Philip Tierno told The Washington Post. In his recent research, Tierno has discovered that mattresses are covered with dead skin and filled with unbelievable amounts of debris including foods particles which draw insects.

Your Bed is Probably Dirtier than a Chimpanzee Nest

Mattresses contain so much debris that they get measurably heavier over time, Tierno said. Nor are mattresses the only part of beds that are covered with microbes.

“The microbes we found on pillowcases are similar in composition to the microbes found on toilet seats,” Holly Menninger of the Bell Museum of Natural History said. Menninger tested bedding during research published in 2013.

Chimpanzee Nests Cleaner Because Chimps Don’t Foul Their Own Nests

Scientists were also surprised by what they did not find in chimp nests – fecal matter, The Washington Post reported. Chimpanzees are apparently smart enough to use an outside bathroom.

To be fair to humans, chimps move more than humans and so build new “chimpanzee nests” more often. People usually sleep in the same bed every night and are often too lazy to change sheets and too cheap to buy a new “microbe-free” mattress when appropriate.

Humans can learn a valuable lesson from the chimps. They can change their sheets regularly and use the washing machine more often. Buying a new mattress every two or three years is also an excellent idea.

Simply running a hot-water wash in the washing machine will kill almost all the germs found on human bedding. Changing your sheets every other day, and making sure the water temperature is turned up as hot as possible on your washer will help protect you and your family from most germs.

The truth is, chimpanzees have an important lesson to teach people. Cleanliness and sanitary conditions are possible in any environment without high-tech tools – even in the jungle. Merely changing your bedding with regularity can protect you from all kinds of “bad-bug” germs and parasites. There are also some great off-the-grid ways to get rid bed bugs

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Studies show avocado benefits to be “off the charts” when it comes to healing and fighting off aging. The truth is, this fruit is one of the healthiest foods you can eat.

Avocado benefits are many. In fact, they are one of the healthiest foods you can eat. They are an excellent source of monounsaturated fat, a type of fat your body will burn for energy instead of storing. Avocados also contain loads and loads of absorbable vitamins and antioxidants. These super-fruits have numerous health benefits that might surprise you.

Avocado Benefits: Potassium Rich.

Avocados provide close to 20 essential health-boosting nutrients, including potassium, vitamin E, B vitamins, and folic acid. Potassium plays a critical function in heart health, bone health, digestive function, and muscle density maintenance. Potassium is essential for the proper function of all cells, tissues, and organs in your body.

Despite the fact that it is available in many foods, only 2 percent of adults in the U.S. get the recommended daily amount. This fact is particularly troubling because potassium offsets hypertensive effects of sodium. Imbalance in your sodium-potassium ratio can not only lead to high blood pressure but may also contribute to many other diseases, including heart disease and stroke.

About two and a half avocados provide the daily recommended amount of about 4,700 milligrams (mg) of potassium a day. Additionally, an average avocado contains about 40 mg of magnesium, which is about 10 percent of the recommended daily value.

Avocado Benefits: Healthy Fat Super-Charger.

Because avocados are incredibly rich in healing fatty acids, they assist your body’s ability to absorb certain fat-soluble nutrients from other food sources. One facinating study first published in The Journal of Nutrition noted that eating a whole fresh avocado with an orange-colored tomato sauce significantly enhanced absorption of the various carotenoids. It also converted the carotenoids into a bio-active form of vitamin A.

Avocado Benefits: BIO-Available Vitamin C and Vitamin E. Avocados are one of few foods that contain significant levels of both vitamins C and E and are high in fiber, with about 4.6 grams in half an avocado. So when you eat avocados, you’re providing your body with a wide-spectrum package of nutrition.

Avocado Benefits: Cancer-fighting.

Avocatin B, an amazing type of fat found in avocados, has been found to combat acute myeloid leukemia, a deadly form of cancer. The cancer-fighting fat in avocados was able to shut down the leukemia stem cells while leaving healthy cells unharmed. Avocados are also rich in cancer-fighting carotenoids, which are most plentiful in the dark-green portion of the flesh that’s closest to the skin. Studies also show promising results for prostate cancer.

Avocado Benefits: Weight Loss.

According to a published research study in Nutrition Journal, those who ate half an avocado with their standard lunch reported being 40 percent less hungry three hours after their meal and 28 percent less hungry at the five-hour mark compared to those who did not eat avocado with lunch. The study also pointed out that avocados appear helpful for regulating blood sugar.

Be Certain You Lock-In Your Avocado Benefits:

To preserve the area with the highest concentration of antioxidants, you’ll want to peel the avocado with your hands just like you would a banana. Pretty darn easy.

1. Cut avocado lengthwise around the seed

2. Holding each half of the avicado, twist them in opposite directions to separate them from seed

3. Cut each half lengthwise

4. Next, using a teaspoon or your thumb and index finger, simply peel the skin off each piece

Avocado Benefits: Pesticide Safe. While no crop in the modern world is 100 percent pesticide free, Avocados have been rated as one of the safest commercial crops concerning pesticide application. The fruits thick outer skin protects the inner fruit from large pesticide concentrations.

As readers already know, its important to consider all aspects of healthcare. This is especially true for those who want to stay healthy off-the-grid.

The post Avocado Benefits Most People Should Know But Haven’t Been Told About appeared first on Off The Grid News.

This article first appeared on offthegridnews.com See it here

We should all be concerned about honey bees dying.

Honeybees pollinate more than 100 crops, from apples to zucchini. The world has watched honey bees dying in the millions since 2006. Though there have been news reports concerning this crisis fro the last 12 years, a majority of people still aren’t tuned in to the actual scope of the situation. It’s a sophisticated problem, and experts haven’t agreed upon the primary justification for it. Whether it’s Colony Collapse Disorder, other diseases, or possibly two varieties of mites killing entire colonies, even the professionals don’t understand precisely what’s going on.

Honey Bees Dying From Pesticides?

Here’s an astonishing piece of information for you: researchers have found that common pesticides can disrupt bees’ brains. Bees that cannot learn won’t be able to find food. If bees can’t find food, they shall die. It’s as simple as that. An estimated one third of most crops worldwide would disappear if honeybees disappeared. Do you think this couldn’t happen? Probably nobody considered that the passenger pigeon would ever be extinct, but the last one on this planet was shot exactly one hundred years in the past. The thing is, it will happen. But here’s the good news: we can take measures to protect against honey bees dying by taking action immediately. There are plenty of things we can do to aid the honeybee’s chances of survival. Here’s one: you can get started with your own personal hive of honeybees.

Many people still manage their own beehives, although it has come to be increasingly more problematic to try to keep their bees alive and healthy. It pretty much goes without saying that honey is a substance that most people love quite dearly. So many of us utilize it as a precious commodity every day, in one delightful way or another. I’m glad that scientists are studying the problem, understanding that folks are educating themselves about what flowers and plants they can grow to aid the honeybees. It’s great that you can easily find increased fascination nowadays with buying local honey. This focus, in turn, intensifies support for the local beekeepers. All the attention is a great thing in the end. I’ve always taken great enjoyment in rooting for the little guy. So let’s do something about the honey bees dying.

A hive of honeybees throughout the homestead is a useful thing to have at present. Not only do honeybees produce the sweet miracle that is raw honey, they additionally take up a beautiful responsibility in pollinating berry bushes, orchards, flowers, and vegetable gardens, and (this last reason I have come to recognize more and more) they perform it all without much help from us. Bees are astonishing little creatures, and the more I learn about them, the more I’m amazed by them along with the marvelous and astounding God who created them!

Think about this: inside one hive are a large number of worker bees and drones in conjunction with a queen bee. All of them are working together to create a perfect environment for producing honey. At the moment when the moisture content of the honey becomes excellent, the bees seal the cellular structures of liquid honey with wax, and the honey is there for you to harvest it! Awesome!

You can find just a single queen bee in every colony. She lays up to 2,000 eggs on a daily basis, and she may even decide if the eggs will be fertile or infertile. The fertile eggs will turn into worker bees while the infertile eggs produce drones. The worker bees labor tirelessly, but during their lifetimes (about six weeks during summer months) they do a line of specific chores: housekeeper, nursemaid, construction worker, undertaker, guard, and finally forager. It’s not difficult to begin managing a hive of bees in your own backyard, and it will be the perfect way to initiate a first-hand approach in saving the bees!

8 Steps To Take When Starting Your Honeybee Colony

Step #1

Learn about bees. There are some excellent books and blogs about how exactly you can go about keeping bees. Another invaluable method involves learning directly from local beekeepers. They are a benevolent bunch, and you’ll acquire a great deal of information from them.

Step #2

Get your equipment and hive prepared. It’s not cheap to get new hives and equipment, but use caution if you pick up used stuff from a yard sale. Clean up well. It’s crucial you do this to lessen the chance that the bees might catch a fatal disease called foulbrood. Equipment that you’ll need will include a bee veil and/or jacket, leather gloves, a frame lifter, bee brush, pliers, a smoker, and hive tools.

Step #3

Purchase your bees. Order bees during the winter months, as quality places that sell bees will run out. There will only be a certain number of bees to go around! You may very well be able to order packages of bees through local bee shops also. If you don’t know where a local bee shop is, your state university or extension office can advise you.

Step #4

Set your hive up. Once you’ve done due diligence, you’ll understand the best spot to create your hive. Choose carefully, since it will continue to be in your home for a considerable amount of time! It’s not easy (or advisable!) to maneuver a hive once it’s filled with bees.

Step #5

Familiarize the bees with their new home. Make sure that your particular queen is alive and healthy first because a hive without a queen will undoubtedly fail. Your queen goes in first of course. The queen’s 10,000 friends and relations get dumped in next. They inspect her first before getting engaged in their work. It’s an exciting thing to watch.

Step #6

Now you’ll watch and wait. In the event that the bees are lively and active, you could have the pleasure of enjoying a productive hive of honeybees for quite a while. The colony will provide you with the highest caliber and freshest raw honey you can think of, as well as excellent pollination for your crops and flowers.

Step #7

Provide food for your bees. Employ a sugar water solution for a number of days after forming a hive, especially if it’s at the beginning of the year when there aren’t many flowers yet. When you know that the bees typically are not feeding on the sugar, discontinue feeding them. The bees are foraging for themselves!

Step #8

From time to time, put the bees to good use for yourself. Open your unique hive every week or two to examine the bees’ progress. One thing to watch for is an entirely new brood. If the queen is indeed laying eggs, then you know that she is completely content in her place. If she is happy, then everyone else will be happy too!

Pretty exciting, right? So now you may begin to realize that keeping your own hive of bees is typically a crazy yet worthwhile thing to do. It increases your local bee population, which is a valuable component to the fertility of your garden. Plus, you’re consistently providing a little assistance to the honeybees while in this current critical situation. It can, without a doubt, be a great thing to experience! Lets work together to put an end to honey bees dying.

The post Honey Bees Dying? You Can Help By Starting Your Own Hive appeared first on Off The Grid News.

This article first appeared on offthegridnews.com See it here

Studies show avocado benefits to be “off the charts” when it comes to healing and fighting off aging. The truth is, this fruit is one of the healthiest foods you can eat.

Avocado benefits are many. In fact, they are one of the healthiest foods you can eat. They are an excellent source of monounsaturated fat, a type of fat your body will burn for energy instead of storing. Avocados also contain loads and loads of absorbable vitamins and antioxidants. These super-fruits have numerous health benefits that might surprise you.

Avocado Benefits: Potassium Rich.

Avocados provide close to 20 essential health-boosting nutrients, including potassium, vitamin E, B vitamins, and folic acid. Potassium plays a critical function in heart health, bone health, digestive function, and muscle density maintenance. Potassium is essential for the proper function of all cells, tissues, and organs in your body.

Despite the fact that it is available in many foods, only 2 percent of adults in the U.S. get the recommended daily amount. This fact is particularly troubling because potassium offsets hypertensive effects of sodium. Imbalance in your sodium-potassium ratio can not only lead to high blood pressure but may also contribute to many other diseases, including heart disease and stroke.

About two and a half avocados provide the daily recommended amount of about 4,700 milligrams (mg) of potassium a day. Additionally, an average avocado contains about 40 mg of magnesium, which is about 10 percent of the recommended daily value.

Avocado Benefits: Healthy Fat Super-Charger.

Because avocados are incredibly rich in healing fatty acids, they assist your body’s ability to absorb certain fat-soluble nutrients from other food sources. One facinating study first published in The Journal of Nutrition noted that eating a whole fresh avocado with an orange-colored tomato sauce significantly enhanced absorption of the various carotenoids. It also converted the carotenoids into a bio-active form of vitamin A.

Avocado Benefits: BIO-Available Vitamin C and Vitamin E. Avocados are one of few foods that contain significant levels of both vitamins C and E and are high in fiber, with about 4.6 grams in half an avocado. So when you eat avocados, you’re providing your body with a wide-spectrum package of nutrition.

Avocado Benefits: Cancer-fighting.

Avocatin B, an amazing type of fat found in avocados, has been found to combat acute myeloid leukemia, a deadly form of cancer. The cancer-fighting fat in avocados was able to shut down the leukemia stem cells while leaving healthy cells unharmed. Avocados are also rich in cancer-fighting carotenoids, which are most plentiful in the dark-green portion of the flesh that’s closest to the skin. Studies also show promising results for prostate cancer.

Avocado Benefits: Weight Loss.

According to a published research study in Nutrition Journal, those who ate half an avocado with their standard lunch reported being 40 percent less hungry three hours after their meal and 28 percent less hungry at the five-hour mark compared to those who did not eat avocado with lunch. The study also pointed out that avocados appear helpful for regulating blood sugar.

Be Certain You Lock-In Your Avocado Benefits:

To preserve the area with the highest concentration of antioxidants, you’ll want to peel the avocado with your hands just like you would a banana. Pretty darn easy.

1. Cut avocado lengthwise around the seed

2. Holding each half of the avicado, twist them in opposite directions to separate them from seed

3. Cut each half lengthwise

4. Next, using a teaspoon or your thumb and index finger, simply peel the skin off each piece

Avocado Benefits: Pesticide Safe. While no crop in the modern world is 100 percent pesticide free, Avocados have been rated as one of the safest commercial crops concerning pesticide application. The fruits thick outer skin protects the inner fruit from large pesticide concentrations.

As readers already know, its important to consider all aspects of healthcare. This is especially true for those who want to stay healthy off-the-grid.

The post Avocado Benefits Most People Should Know But Haven’t Been Told About appeared first on Off The Grid News.

This article first appeared on offthegridnews.com See it here

At the sound of the true name, the powers of the god
stood ready to perform the invoker’s bidding.
—Kurt Seligmann, Magic, Supernaturalism, and Religion (1948)

Biblical Worldview: Exorcism in Jesus’ Name

When a biblical worldview is lost, the state moves to replace god.

Biblical worldview comes alive in the Book of Acts, we immediately learn of some itinerant exorcists who had seen the apostle Paul cast out demons. Paul had banished the evil spirits “in the name of Jesus.” These wannabe exorcists saw and appreciated the effectiveness of Paul’s approach to exorcism. They wanted a piece of the action and decided to imitate his methods. So when they came upon a demon-possessed man, they spoke to the demon “in Jesus’ name.” They said, “We adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preaches.”

The demon, speaking through the host body, said, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know. But who are you?” At that point the demon-possessed man proceeded with a big-league beat down of the rookies. They fled from the man’s house, wounded and naked.

Biblical Worldview: Magic and the True Name

These exorcists had a magical view of exorcism. They believed that there was an ontological connection between all things in the physical universe, and the way to harness the “power of the connection” was through the strategic use of cosmic name-dropping. This is a common theme in magic and magic-based religions. The children of Israel who received God’s law at Sinai were certainly familiar with this belief because it was part and parcel of the Egyptian religion they just left.

According to Egyptian mythology, the first god, Khepri (one manifestation of the divine sun), created himself from nothing by uttering his own name. The goddess Isis gained the power of the sun god Ra by tricking him into revealing his true name to her. The Egyptians believed that the essence of a thing was to be found in its name. To know the true name of a thing was to have power over it. To know the true name of a god was to have power over him. In Magic, Supernaturalism, and Religion, Kurt Seligmann writes:

In the magic incantations of the Egyptians, not only the name but every spoken word had its supernatural effect. Nothing could come into being before its name had been uttered. Not before the mind had projected its idea upon the outside world could a thing have true existence. “The world,” the hieroglyphics tell us, creates all things: everything that we love and hate, the totality of being. Nothing is before it has been uttered in a clear voice.” To accomplish its full effect, the word must be spoken correctly (39).

In fact, the exact pronunciation of the word was a huge deal. Intonation and rhythm were crucial in the practice of magic and required intense study and preparation. “Success depended on the exact delivery of the formula.”

God’s Word versus Man’s Word

Scripture says that God called the world into existence by His word (Ps. 33:6, 9). On each of the six days of creation, God created, shaped, or filled His world by speaking His word (Gen. 1). God’s word expressed and accomplished His will. God’s word is powerful. It never returns to Him void and always accomplishes His purposes (Isa. 55:11). But here’s the thing: The power is never in the words or phonetic sounds, but in God Himself.

Man’s word is not creative. Man doesn’t share the mind of God. Man can repeat God’s words, but He speaks them as the image of God and as a creature in covenant with God. Man’s repetitions of God’s word may have covenantal significance and status, but they have no magical power. In other words, man may use God’s words in a way that God has authorized with the expectation that God will fulfill whatever promises or threats He has expressed in those words.

Biblical Worldview: The Name of God

In Scripture a name represents identity, character, and authority. God’s name tells us who He is. In the Old Testament, God names Himself “I am” (Jehovah or Yahweh), the self-existent, covenant-keeping God. But He also calls Himself Adonai, our Lord, and El Shaddai, God Almighty. He is El Olam and El Elyon, God Everlasting and God Most High. He is the LORD of Hosts, Jehovah Sabaoth, and the LORD our Righteousness, Jehovah Tsidkenu. He is Elohim, the powerful One who made the world.

In the New Testament, God reveals Himself more clearly as Trinity. He is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Three divine Persons, but only one God (Matt. 28:19). In His incarnation, the Son of God took the name Jesus (Yeshua), “Jehovah saves” (Matt. 1:21). Paul tells us that this divine name is above all names (Phil. 2:10; cf. Eph. 1:21). Jesus bears the title Messiah or the Christ, “the Anointed One,” because God has anointed Him to be the Prophet, King, and Priest of man’s redemption. Jesus is Lord, Redeemer, and Savior. He is the divine Logos, the eternal Word of the Father (John 1:1). He is King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev. 19:6). He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6). He is the Lamb of God, slain from the foundation of the earth (Rev. 13:8). He is Immanuel, God with us (Matt. 1:23).

The Third Commandment that God delivered to Israel from Mt. Sinai tells us to always have reverence for God’s name. We are not to take His name “in vain,” in an empty, foolish, or cavalier manner. Rather, we are to use His names and titles with respect and seriousness. The man who liberally punctuates his speech with “God” and “Lord” is using the divine name in a vain, irreverent manner. This, according to the Bible is sin, and God holds such behavior accountable. But the Third Commandment has a much deeper and broader scope than this.

Biblical Worldview: “In Jesus’ Name”

God has given His people a sort of power of attorney. He has given us the privilege of speaking and acting in the name of Jesus. This is a covenantal privilege, not a magical one. To act in Jesus’ name means that we act with the authority He has given us and not on our own authority, and that we act within the limits of our authorization, whatever those limits may be. We act as His agent, in His stead, to His credit, and for His benefit. His subjects are to receive us on those terms, and He will call to account those who don’t. Of course, we’re not to use this privileged status to enrich, empower, or amuse ourselves. Nor may we dictate the exact manner in which God will carry out His will and promises through us or for us. We are creatures, not gods. Servants, not magicians.

God has ordained quite a few uses of Jesus’ name. We pray in Jesus’ name. We teach and baptize and bless in Jesus’ name. In His name we excommunicate as well as restore. In each case, we are acting for Him. We must do all these things biblically, or we take God’s name in vain. But when we use His name lawfully, we may rightly expect Him to perform His will in response to, or in connection with, our words and actions. Speaking specifically of church discipline, Jesus said, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Matt. 18:20). That is, He stands with His own to ratify and enforce their actions when those actions are in harmony with His word. To return to the case of the would-be exorcists, these folks apparently had no commission from Jesus to cast out demons as Paul did. His commands to evil spirits were effective. Theirs weren’t and led to the beat-down.

Biblical Worldview: Oaths and Covenants

The implications of the Third Commandment for the political and social spheres are profound. Our basic social institutions—church, State, and family—are all covenantal, since each rests upon a self-maledictory oath sworn in God’s name. We “promise to submit in the Lord to the government of this church.” We swear “to tell the truth” or “to uphold and defend the Constitution.” We vow, “‘til death do us part.” But when we rebel in an ungodly way at church, defy the civil courts, commit treason, or break our marriage vows, we also take God’s name in vain. And the Third Commandment tells us that God will not hold us guiltless when we do. God will actively judge those who break their oaths and vows. He brings judgment within history (Ps. 58:11) and at the end of history (Matt. 12:36). His timing, though, will always be on His own terms.

Biblical Worldview: The Covenant State versus the Sorcerer State

In Scripture, the State is a covenant institution ordained by God and subject to His laws. Paul calls the civil ruler “the minister of God” (Rom. 13:1-7). As a minister, the civil ruler exercises delegated power. That power is neither plenary nor omnipotent. The scope of that power is civil justice and national defense, nothing more.

The pagan world, however, has always seen the State as the point of continuity between the human and the “divine.” The “divine” may be a formal deity, humanity in the abstract, or the evolving universe. In any case, the State is seen as the agent and incarnation of deity. The State therefore speaks magically and with sovereign power. What the State declares must be. Fiat currency, fiat security, fiat social change—the State need but speak the word and the reality appears. Of course no secular society admits its religious commitment to magic. It never recognizes images as idols or meaningless slogans as magical incantations. But no amount of rational criticism or prophetic denouncement will shake the faith of the True Believer in the all powerful State. The State is ultimate and solves all problems by proclaiming the word. Just believe. “So shall it be written … so shall it be done.”

Consequences of the loss of a biblical worldview

When a society no longer reverences the name of God and no longer fears His judgment and wrath, its people feel free to violate their oaths and break their vows. Commitment at any level evaporates. Covenants, constitutions, and contracts become pointless pieces of paper. The ties that bind men and women together are blurred, bent, and broken. Convenience and expediency govern all. Interestingly, these same people, the covenant benders and breakers, always look to the State as a source of magical salvation from all of life’s problems. Worse, they offer up their very souls to the devil to get quick, something-for-nothing salvation, as all true magicians must.

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