Category: February-1

Diversity

Diversity

By Eric Carlson in February-1 on February 1, 2023

I’ve read many, many articles recently that discuss diversity as a strength in AmericaI want to speak to this as it is false and I’m going to share whyThe term diversity is a noun, it means the state or fact of being diverse; difference; unlikeness: dissimilarSome of the tenant understandings of the term Diversity are okWe are a diverse nation made up of people from many backgrounds and culturesThe etymology of diversity is 14th century Old French diversite, from Latin diversitas, veristas means the whole, so univeritus or university are many made into a whole, Di (latin for more than one) Diversity: quality of being separate, different, oddness, contradiction, disagreement, turned different ways, distinctly dissimilar or unlike The etymology reveals the issues with diversity. 

Proverbs 29:18. Where there is no divine vision people cast of restraint, but blessed is the one who keeps Torah.  

The key here which speaks to Diversity is that without a divine visions people cast of restraint, “Para” in Hebrew, to unbind, to let loose, anarchy, and even death. There must be just one visionMore than one vision is DIVISIONAmerica is a nation of immigrants, a people of diverse background, many cultures, Black, White, Asian, Hispanic, Indigenous people (native Americans) Jew, Gentile, but what makes us a great republic, a great nation isn’t division, its visionFor centuries immigrants arrived in America seeking a better lifeA life with possibilities, a life without restrictions, a life where hopes and dreams may be fulfilled! A life where if a person who worked hard, had initiative, and lived a righteous life could make something of themselvesA life of choices the individual made for themselves, not by Monarchs, Tsars, or Emperors A life of freedom, unrestrained by tyrannical governments, monarchies, Socialism, and communism.   

How did we transition from this “light upon a hill” type of free republic to the polarized, divided, combative, anarchy we experience today which is not only in the government but the people, the citizens themselvesWhat happened to civility, brotherly love, of loving thy neighbor as thyself?  What’s amazing is that there is a direct parallel to what’s occurring in the greater body of Messiah today and in our greater societyDemocracy only works when its citizens choose to obey the LawAmericans in the past followed the rules because they didn’t believe we were just accountable to the nation, but that we were accountable to God as wellAmericas morality and ethics came from the bible that was taught weekly in every town!   

Leviticus 26:3-10.  “‘If you live by my regulations, observe my mitzvot and obey them; 4 then I will provide the rain you need in its season, the land will yield its produce, and the trees in the field will yield their fruit. 5 Your threshing time will extend until the grape harvest, and your grape harvesting will extend until the time for sowing seed. You will eat as much food as you want and live securely in your land. 6 “‘I will give shalom in the land -you will lie down to sleep unafraid of anyone. I will rid the land of wild animals. The sword will not go through your land. 7 You will pursue your enemies, and they will fall before your sword. 8 Five of you will chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand -your enemies will fall before your sword. 9 “‘I will turn toward you, make you productive, increase your numbers and uphold my covenant with you. 10 You will eat all you want from last year’s harvest and throw out what remains of the old to make room for the new

The reward or recompense for obedience and compliance to Adonai and His commands are Shalom, a state of “National Tranquility”, the absence of conflict, peace, prosperity, safety from both the wild beasts of the land and outside foes or enemy forces IF we are Adonai’s people, His loyal servantsOne could argue this is true for Israel when God Himself ruled yet God knew Israel would beg for a human king like the nations around them and they got what they asked forThe same holds true under a secular government as Sha’ul shared as he lived under the Roman occupation and governance of Judea 2,000 years ago: 

Romans 13:1-3.  Everyone is to obey the governing authorities. For there is no authority that is not from God, and the existing authorities have been placed where they are by God. 2 Therefore, whoever resists (anthistemi {anth-is’-tay-mee}: to set one’s self against, to withstand, resist, oppose) f the authorities is resisting what God has instituted; and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers are no terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you like to be unafraid of the person in authority? Then simply do what is good, and you will win his approval; 

Not that many years ago an overwhelming majority of America’s population were believers who regularly attended weekly servicesEvery state had blue laws (The concept was right even if it was a day off-Adonai honored the heart and intent) and every public event started with prayerThe first book Congress authorized to print was the bible for elementary school reading primersOn September 12, 1782, Congress approved printing of the Bible Called ‘The Bible of the Revolution’ it was the first English-language Bible printed in America and the only Bible ever authorized by an act of Congress! Oh how far we’ve come!  

As our greater society loses Godly influence, morality, and brotherly love continues to rapidly decline what will become of the RepublicRemove Adonai and you won’t be able to hire enough policeRemove Adonai and America will soon experience an attack we cant throw off! Ironically, America’s issues and the bible issues are intertwined 

Matthew 24:10.  At that time many will be trapped (skandalizo {skan-dal-id’-zo} (“scandalize”): entrap, trapped, cause to stumble, to put a stumbling block or impediment in the way, upon which another may trip and fall, to offend, to entice to sin, to cause a person to begin to distrust and desert what they ought to trust and obey, to cause to fall away) into betraying and hating each other, 

A trap, a snare, a big scandal causes many to be trapped into a lie, to stumble, to block, impede, to causes a person to distrust and desert what they should be trusting and obeying which results in betraying and hating each otherThis is exactly where we are at in our nation todayAcidic, hateful, vindictive behavior, betraying each other… I want to pause here for a moment and digressJoseph, was sold into slavery by his brothers who then winds up in Egypt and sold to a wealthy man names Potifar whose household became even richer and more blessed with the addition of Joseph who was put in charge of everything in Potifar’s household: 

Genesis 39:7-20.  In time, the day came when his master’s wife took a look at Yosef and said, “Sleep with me!” 8 But he refused, saying to his master’s wife, “Look, because my master has me, he doesn’t know what’s going on in this house. He has put all his possessions in my charge. 9 In this house I am his equal; he hasn’t withheld anything from me except yourself, because you are his wife. How then could I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” 10 But she kept pressing him, day after day. Nevertheless, he didn’t listen to her; he refused to sleep with her or even be with her. 11 However, one day, when he went into the house to do his work, and none of the men living in the house was there indoors, 12 she grabbed him by his robe and said, “Sleep with me!” But he fled, leaving his robe in her hand, and got himself outside. 13 When she saw that he had left his robe in her hand and had escaped, 14 she called the men of her house and said to them, “Look at this! My husband brought in a Hebrew to make fools of us. He came in and wanted to sleep with me, but I yelled out loudly. 15 When he heard me yelling like that, he left his robe with me and ran out.”. 

The wife made a false accusation to her husband Potifar who had Yosef imprisoned! False accusations (scandal) are an ancient and primary tool of HaSatan to destroy character and integrity, polarizing people into betraying and hating each other!  There’s nothing new under the sun! It takes an accusation which leads to a scandal to start the ball rolling, starting toxic rhetoric, gossip, slander, character assassination, polarization, instant fighting, and division.  

The truth is done away with, it no longer matters! What gets people’s attention are those who shout first, who are the loudest, or posts first on some social media site regardless if its truth or not!  We see the same disregard for our constitution, its being treated like the bible.  100 years ago the constitution was a rock solid document for the ages.  Now a new generation is rising up that believes its is no longer unalterable, that it is fluid and must change to reflect our DIVERSITY!  See where this is going!  Either all of God’s word is truth, infallible, and unalterable or none of it is: 

II Timothy 3:16. All Scripture is God-breathed and is valuable for teaching the truth, convicting of sin, correcting faults and training in right living; 

This passage was written almost 350 years before the canonization of the New Testament, the Brit ChadeshaWhat scripture is Sha’ul talking about in this passageThe Torah, The Tanach, the Nevi’im, Prophets, and the Tehillim, the PsalmsNot select parts of it or choosing the parts you agree withDiversity leads to divisionThere has been a systematic attack upon the word of God since Yeshua was on this earthIt was small in the beginning but over time it has gained momentum and increasingly gotten worse.  

I’ve often wondered why it is that though we all (Believers-for the most part) read the same bible have so many schisms and divisions within the body of Messiah!  How can someone biblically endorse or justify slavery as it was known in America? Yet hundreds of thousands did.  How can one read the bible and justify the racist, rabidly Anti-Semitic, Anti-black Aryan Church?  Why so many protestant schisms?  There are even Catholic schisms (mostly arguing about who’s in charge) and Judaism schisms (again, mostly about who’s in charge)!  How can we all read the same bible yet experience such diversity in the greater body?  This is actually very dangerous: 

Matthew 12:25.  However, knowing what they were thinking, Yeshua said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not survive. 

Chillingly a nation divided will be brought to ruin, a home or family divided will be brought to ruin.  America faces a grave danger, it is transitioning from a unified nation to a diverse nation where all desire to keep their ethnicity, their previous nations identity while not becoming part of the republicIts elevating self above the nationWe witness the same effect within the greater body of Messiah, individuals elevating self above the greater body! As a Messianic Congregation Yeshua’s words speak directly to us here today2,000 years later not much has changedWe, as Messianic Believers exist at a crossroads, an intersection of, between two communities, two cultures. So many believers have been taught and believe the lie that Torah has been done away with which is exactly what the Deceiver, HaSatan wants you to think and believe

By disregarding, denying, or throwing away an overwhelming portion of the bible we also disregard, deny, and throw away morality, ethics, holiness, purity, and righteousness!  At one time the body of Messiah was THE MORAL VOICE of our nation and society, not anymore!  Because of our diversity (over 2,500 denominations and counting), the body is divisive, dysfunctional, and disunified, rarely influencing society!  Now you begin to profoundly see why HaSatan wants the word removed!  God’s word is HaSatan’s nemesis, its Satan’s Kryptonite, HaSatan’s end.  If Gods infallible word is fallible it can be dispensed or done away with!  How much easier than to also disregard our U.S. Constitution?

These issues parallel each other, and we knowthe source, HaSatan who is the author and father of all lies!  A rapidly growing world view of an ever expanding percentage of the western world is built upon a foundation of lies and willing, willing self-deception! Such as the growing acceptance that gender identity isn’t biological, that it’s determined by how a person feels day by day, hour by hour!  Or that Adonai is done with Israel, that anyone or anything has replaced Israel… on and on and on! HaSatan knows his time is short, so we are experiencing an increase in lies, deceptions, and division worldwide!  Adonai doesn’t want us diversified into separate camps! The Word of God tells us not to live like the crowd (Ephesians 4:17-25). Don’t do what everyone else is doing, don’t live like a non-Jew, don’t live like those who aren’t serving Adonai, whose thinking is void of truth or force, whose thinking is perverse and depraved!  We are not to live like them, be like them, or associate with them. 

We are not to remain diversified, celebrating a separate but equal mentality which estranges us from Adonai, from the fullness of His kingdom So many are shrouded in darkness with corrupted thinking, their thoughts and capacity for spiritual truth shrouded by darkness. Yet society tells us to accept, to receive them and celebrate our diversity! Retaining perverse and depraved thoughts they are disconnected from Adonai, abandoning themselves to sexual depravations, wantonness, and insolence This old nature must be stripped off as we renew, reform, regenerate our minds and spirits When you come to America and become a citizen you’re an American, not African American, Jewish American, Irish American, Japanese America, not Spanish American Espousing diversity destroys unity, destroys patriotism, it elevates SELF over all This is not what Adonai desires in the kingdom of God. When you refuse to change your mind and spirit, when you don’t strip off your old nature and cloth yourself with the new man, new creation! Here is what Adonai desires: 

Psalms 133:1. Song of ascents. By David: Oh, how good, how pleasant it is for brothers to live together in harmony  

This defines how the One New Humanity is to be lived and walked out, how Adonai desires we liveWhen you get married you and your spouse don’t live in separate but equal houses across the street from each other, celebrating your diversityNo, you dwell together, marriage is cohabitation, not divisivenessSo, it is with the One New Humanity in the Kingdom of God and in our greater nation!! Let us be unified, not diversified!