{"id":45,"date":"2011-08-13T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2011-08-13T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/godonomics\/2010\/05\/godonomics-taxes.html"},"modified":"2011-08-12T09:56:01","modified_gmt":"2011-08-12T13:56:01","slug":"godonomics-taxes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/godonomics\/2011\/08\/godonomics-taxes.html","title":{"rendered":"Government and Taxes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Remember the black knight from Monty Python and the Holy Grail?\u00a0 They cut off his arm… then his other arm… then his leg… and finally his last leg. But, he kept on fighting. That’s what happens to business and industry when we tax them to death. They keep trying to expand, provide jobs, and raise the standard of living for everyone, but it’s tough when you’ve been disarmed with regulation and burdensome taxation.<\/p>\n

So what does God say about taxes? Well, even if we don’t like them, the Bible teaches that Christians should be people under authority and should pay their taxes. We should render to Caesar what is Caesar’s. It may not be popular, but it is in the the Good Book.<\/p>\n

To misquote Porky Pig, “That’s NOT all folks,” in 1 Samuel 8, God’s people want to set up a government like other nations. They want a king with lots of power and lots of influence (big government). God, through Samuel, warns them about the “behavior of a king.” And over and over and over Samuel says, “He will take. He will take a percentage of your income, a percentage of your land, and a percentage of your harvest. What was “Yours” will become “His.” And despite example after example of the loss of liberty, personal prosperity, and property, the people say, “We will have a king over us.” And the king does exactly what God said he would do. He taxes, and he takes. And the whole nation declines because of it. The people choose to exchange liberty for perceived security. But government always takes more than it gives. It’s the nature of mankind’s sinful heart.<\/p>\n

God warns us, but won’t stop us. If we want more government, we must pay our taxes. Just know that government is like that man-eating plant from the Little Shop of Horrors–it is never satisfied. It just grows and grows until everyone is eaten. “Feed me Seymour.”<\/p>\n

For a free 30-minute session of Godonomics, check out: http:\/\/www.godonomics.com\/watch-session-1<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n
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http:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=31UrA29d2I0<\/a><\/p>\n

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Remember the black knight from Monty Python and the Holy Grail?\u00a0 They cut off his arm… then his other arm… then his leg… and finally his last leg. But, he kept on fighting. That’s what happens to business and industry when we tax them to death. 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