THE LONG SEARCH FOR THE IDEAL!

Every generation has pursued the dream of a utopian society. The inspirational force leading to the inception of philosophical ideas, social infrastructures and even religions has been the desire for the perfect world. This is the central theme in man’s search for the ideal. Fiji is no exception.

In the recent past we have been exposed to a revolution that has come up with answers to all our problems once and for all. It would eradicate fear, poverty, hatred and other social ills and create a pain free world of peace, love, joy and harmony for all the inhabitants. The pursuit continues…

The concept called “ideology” was developed out of this search and desire for the idyllic world. Ideology is basically the formulation of ideas and thoughts that have been developed, tested and retested over time and can also be defined as philosophies or ways of thinking. Some of these philosophies have become the foundation of theories and ideologies that have in turn been the creators of systems of governing communities, societies, cities, nations and even the world. Jesus addressed the Jews in His day and said in John 8:31-32, “If ye abide in My Words, ye are My disciples. And ye shall know the Truth, and the Truth shall make you free.” But Truth taken to the extreme becomes error and this error has led to the formation of ideologies of injustice, destruction, oppression, poverty, depression and social terror.

Over the ages, many labels have emerged, submerged then reemerged from these “erred” ways of thinking. Some labels are very familiar to us today: imperialism, socialism, communism, dictatorship, humanism, deism, democracy, monarchy and communal living. Many of these have been the result of numerous social experiments of the past.

And it seems no matter how hard we have tried to recreate our world this utopia has been further from our grasp. It seems previous attempts in 1987 and 2000 have only given rise to the ideology of “individual freedom” to carry out anything and everything we are capable of doing to make it “better”. Those events have inscribed in this fragile generation a coup culture that strives in the concept of “self-determination” and “a just society” as “the democratic ideal” and though democracy is the most civil form of national government, even this has not manifested the utopia we all dream of. This may sound pessimistic but our nation has been, still is and always will be plagued with inequality, racism, prejudice, injustice, corruption, jealousy, suspicion, competition, abuse, neglect and of course the ever widening gap between the “haves” and “have-nots”. II Timothy 3:1-9 is clear that we are living in prophetic times and we are prisoners of our own pursuit of the perfect world. Our current situation has not only magnified these insecurities but also accelerated our demise.

So what is this word government or governance? Government is about order, influence, administration, distribution, protection, maintenance, accountability, responsibility and productivity. In principle, government is the person, group or organization that executes the functions of governing. How? By exercising authority and jurisdiction over territory and a citizenry. The Bible records the first account of an established Government known to man in the Book of Genesis by the command and mandate of God to Adam and incorporates the need to order, work, oversee, guard and protect.

The Bible however is the most misunderstood book on the planet, by those who do not read it and by many who do. The Bible is simply about a King, a Kingdom and a Royal Family of children. It was never intended to be a religious book! Its story and message are about the desire of a King to extend his Kingdom through his Royal Family. It is about government and governing.

In the western world the roots of government reach back to the days of the Greeks. In Greek, government (kubernites) literally means to steer, to pilot, or to act as a rudder. Without government and law there is chaos. So, government is the power given or derived for the purpose of making and enforcing laws for a certain territory. Governing incorporates the concepts of both power and authority. The two are very distinct from each other and we must understand them fully in order to appreciate the proper context of government. Both must be in balance for government to be successful.

Authority has to do with responsibility. Power has to do with ability. Authority has to do with empowerment; power focuses on exercising authority. Authority gives power its legality. Power without legitimate authority is dictatorship and eventually results in abuse, oppression and destruction. Authority gives power its rights.

Authority is the key to successful government. If a ruling power does not have authority it cannot govern. The authority to govern is given either by way of a popular vote or by way of natural authority. Today’s governments get their authority from people either through a process of choice or by seizing authority through force and our young nation has experienced the latter a tad too many times.

When authority is appropriated by way of force it is not inherent authority. The only government on the earth that represents inherent authority is a monarchy. A king has the power and can give it to whomever he chooses. All other governments are formed by casting a vote or by launching a revolution. Essentially all human governments are substitutions for the ideal no matter how good these governments might be. The quintessential utopia we seek eludes us again!

The question to ponder is: if democracy is the ideal form of governing, why has it failed? Let’s inspect its origins. Democracy has its roots in the writings of the Greeks and is viewed by many people (even those in western religions) as the perfect government. Although Plato called it the “fairest of constitutions” he also saw weaknesses in democracy that would lead to its downfall. The rule of the people, for the people, by the people is a fine idea. But the roots of western democracy reveal that it was a reaction and rebellion against a divine choice or feudal system of governing called a kingdom.

In reality, Fiji has also fallen victim to this rebellion and has rejected Gods original design of Kingdom principles and adopted the Greek ideas and refined them to accommodate her ulterior aspirations. Fiji has never understood the potential power of a king and his kingdom because she was exposed to corrupt kings. The problem was that we chose to leave out the King of Kings from the equation. “Except the Lord build the house; they labor in vain that build it. Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waiteth but in vain.” Psalms 127:1. In the absence of the perfect King and ideal Kingdom Government concept, the concept of democracy is the best form of earthly government invented by man to protect him from his own defective nature and selfish character. And we have time and again taken advantage of this. Despite being the best form of government it is still inundated with flaws. The very foundation and major principle of democracy, power and authority by majority vote, is the underpinning problem.

This defect is critical because even though it gives power to the majority of the people, it also places morality, values and standards for law at the mercy of this majority. All this does is legitimize the majority’s values, desires, beliefs, aspirations and preferences. The problem is that the majority vote can be the wrong vote. How many times have we seen that happen in our lifetime? It follows then that if democracy is in the people, then “we the people” become the supreme ruler of our lives and ultimate destiny. We have become our own god! No matter how educated we are, we can only lead ourselves as far as we go ourselves. If the ancient Hebrew scribe said that there is nothing new under the sun, then history has repeated the truth that man left to himself makes a poor god. Democracy without God therefore is man’s worship and elevation of himself and his own intelligence. What a disaster!

God is not subject to our politics nor can He be. He has created His own political system and governmental structure that is far superior to all forms of earthly government. In Him there is no difference between government and spirituality. The very assignment given to Adam in the Garden was a political assignment given to a spirit being living in a flesh body. If this is so in the original biblical mandate then there should be no such thing as “separation of church and state”. There is no biblical foundation that the church must stay out of politics! We are all political and religious! There can be no separation between a man and his belief system!

The pursuit of utopia is a universal truth but the difference is the means and methods we execute to find what has eluded us. This pursuit is not a choice but has become a necessity; it has become a personal vendetta for some as well as a corporate retaliation for others. I challenge you with this line of thought: if thirst implies the need for water, hunger implies the need for food, tiredness the need for rest, does bad governance necessitate a military conquest?

Dis bE YoUr HomIe
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