Churches Under Secular Heads

Maybe you think the above title is some kind of prophecy. It is the present reality. Yes, things could get worse. They can also get better. Will the church pursue a change in legal status?

The majority of today's U.S. churches are legally and organizationally bound to a head other than Christ. Churches that incorporate and establish a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status with the IRS are bound to certain rules that are secular in origin. As a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, I know full well the restrictions, requirements, limitations and administrative obligations of such an organization. Even just an incorporation establishes a legal entity that can be sued and is subject to the civil code of state federal laws. These matters are of great importance, and Christian Lawyer, Jerald Finney has something to say about it.

“When a New Testament church does anything contrary to Scripture which gives even partial claim of sovereignty over that church to the state, that church has committed a wicked act which subjects her to another head, thereby greatly displeasing the Lord. That church has betrayed the Lord” – Jerald Finney, God Betrayed: The Separation of Church and State: The Biblical Principles and the American Application

Finney asserts that contemporary churches have done a wicked act in the sight of God by wilfully submitting to a secular heads, the state and federal governments. That is not to say the church is not accountable to criminal law.

Jerald Finney and Steven Reeves were our guests on the first Political Hope Radio Show aired on July 27, 2008. Join us this Sunday, Nov 23, as we reflect on that show, and add to the discussion of challenges facing the New Testament churches in the U.S.

God Betrayed - Churches Under State Authority

Jerald Finney and Stephen Reeves joined us on air for the first ever Political Hope Radio Show on July 27th, 2008. I am grateful for their contribution to the success of the program, and for the work they have both put into the on-going debate over the First Amendment.

Finney's book chronicles Biblical principles relating to the separation of church and state in the , and the American history and application. Finney asserts that the church and state are separate institutions that should not be under the authority of the other, and that both are "under God".

Finney witnessed the State of Texas shutdown a church operated boys home in 1986, and asserts that the church was right in rejecting a state child care license, and the state was wrong in it closing the boys home for failure to obtain a license. Finney further asserts that the the church is compromises itself when voluntarily submitting to state authority with similar license, incorporation, and 501(c)(3) tax exemptions.

There are many issues that can be discussed here. Please join in the discussion with grace and respect.