Jesus was a socialist.....wasn't he?
No He was a Monarchist. He is the King you know.
ABSOLUTELY TRUE. Jesus Christ is King, Our King! He is King over all the World, the Universe, the other powers and authorities, etc. I have dealt with people too many times about this misconception. Not saying that anyone here is in that number, but am using the opportunity as it presents itself.
I see that even those who know nothing of the Bible are SURE they know that Jesus and His Church promoted SOCIALISM, and essentially its purest form, COMMUNISM. It was CHARITY that was promoted, and Christian Unity.
As has been said, the new world was settled by many who sought opportunity, or those with other motives. This is true. but the people who financed the trips, and the settlement efforts (sent supply ships, etc.,) had their agenda, and defined the method of governing and commerce as being COMMUNIST. Not that these people would work to help each other so much as to help send profit back to the financiers. It was the Christians at Plymouth that turned that around eventually!
It is clear that a king can mandate that his people act in a charitable manner. EVEN WORLDLY GOVERNMENTS have similar rules. If you are driving in Alaska (maybe other similar localities,) the law MANDATES you aid ANY stranded motorist. That is usually a life or death situation, and there would be so few who pass by, it is a necessity to require that.
In the First Century Church, there was a famine, and it was CHARITY that was offered, not a requirement by law or rules. Peter told Ananias (before Sapphira his wife came in,) that the land was his, and the money was his until he gave it. Why did he lie about it to God?
Acts 5
4 Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.
These people were NOT REQUIRED to donate their land, but people who wished to show a proper unity with God's Church did do that, and the money was used to buy food to feed Christians during a famine. The administration of that became a problem later, and that is when a matter of equality was raised as an issue. That is when the Apostles said to choose 7 men that were to be trusted to handle that, and the Apostles could return to the word of God.
AGAIN, I am not assuming any of you guys are not aware of these things, but there are a lot of people who completely misunderstand what is said in Acts 5. This may help explain it to those.
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