Rights Responsibilities and Humility

 The following is a small collection of some of the short essays that I wrote on various topics in College.  I hope you enjoy.  Perhaps they will instigate some rambling thoughts about important issues.

Rights, Responsibility, and Humility

1. What are Rights? Rights are freedoms that are owed to a person.

2. What is freedom? Freedom is the ability to do what is right. Freedom is not the ability to do whatever you want, that is anarchy. Freedom is the ability to do what you should. When you live in that place, you will never be bound. When you live in the place of doing all you should, you will never be bound by man or addiction.

3. From where do rights and freedoms originate? Freedom and rights originate from the High God, the Creator. They proceed from the truth that God expects us to do right. Since the very beginning, He has provided the ability for us to fulfill His will. He wants us to do right, so He gives us the space to do right. With that responsibility comes that right. It is sin that takes away freedom and chains us in slavery. It makes us so that we cannot serve God as we should. This is what happened in the Garden of Eden.

4. What is the purpose in granting rights? The purpose in granting rights is to furnish the individual with the ability to do his God-given responsibility when the need arises. When those who were dedicated to God’s service in Europe and Britain were denied the ability to serve God as they needed to, they moved. They eventually came to a new land where they could recognize God given rights. They saw that certain rights are God given and inalienable. The right to worship God in whatever way God demands. We were guaranteed the freedom of religion, the right to worship God in the way we believe He wants us to. We were guaranteed this right so that when our responsibility called, we could act to fulfill the needs of conscience. We were given by God the right to have and bear arms. This right stems out of the God given right to defend ourselves. God gives us this right so that if we ever need to protect our family, we would be able to act.

5. What can suspend the rights of an individual?

     a. Sin can suspend the rights of an individual. God has said, “If a man sheds a man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed.” A person violates his own rights by sinning. All sin must be punished. In order for one to be punished, a person’s freedoms must be suspended. And thus his rights, which are dependent on freedoms, must be suspended also.

     b. Necessity can suspend rights. A family has the right to congregate and celebrate on their property as they will. They have the right to not be interrupted. Then their party is interrupted by intruders and the family is removed with force from the premises. Now, the fire workers who see the flames in the top floor of this house could argue that law gives them the right to order the family out. But they do not argue rights. They act because they have a responsibility to do some things.

           i. They are responsible to protect this family and their physical beings.

          ii. The firemen must protect their property to prevent as much possible damage from to this house.

          iii. They are responsible to the community, to prevent the fire from spreading to other properties.

So, the rights of this family are suspended by necessity. Your rights may be suspended by others or by self, because of your need or the need of others.

If you are angry when your rights are suspended for necessity, or if you are loath to give up your rights for the necessity or good of another, then you are rejecting humility. You are embracing pride. You are saying, “My rights are more important than your need.”

So, Humility is giving up your rights for the need of others.

 This life to the World’s intellectual person is a wry satire.

This life to the World’s emotional person is a painful tragedy.

This life to the World’s willful person is a mountain of insurmountable tasks.

This life to the World’s social person is a trail of broken lives and relationships.

With little hope of change.

This world to God’s intellectual is a satire with a solution.

This world to God’s emotional person is trials but with triumph.

This world to God’s willful person is a road with unending tasks but with instructions.

This world to God’s social person is a multitude of broken hearts but with love and healing.

With certain hope of absolute change to perfection.

By Andrew Grosjean

 The graded school system is a societal sacred cow. We have been doing it this way for so long that we rarely think about whether it is the best way. It has been the air that we breath for so long, we do not even remember that it has not always been this way.

Smaller schools today are more like what education was like in early America. You had everyone that was going to school in the same class room regardless of ages. This is similar to the way that education was (and still is around the world) done in home education. In home education, all the children learn together. Sometimes even the parents learn with them. This more primitive way of teaching children may be more valuable than we classify it.

The graded school system has lifted up individuals out of certain groups, rather than lifting up individuals out of certain groups, rather than lifting up those that truly excel in comparison to the whole system. The difference is that people look at how they compare to others at their same level of maturity rather than giving true role models of greater maturity that should be modeled after. When you excel those of your same age, you have achieved and then stagnate under the graded system. But under the other system, you never are finished because there is always a greater example to model yourself after. You still have goal posts and mile markers for achievement.

We should consider using this system for our children during the formative years. For it will better prepare them for adulthood, where they will be compared to the whole rather than just those of same maturity level.

by Andrew Grosjean1995

www.pastorandrew.ws

 What if the lad that gave his lunch to the Lord because he thought that Jesus needed it?  He gave his five loaves and two small fishes to the Great Fisher of men.  Perhaps he thought was Jesus was hungry.

So, in our lives, many times we think that our good and righteous deed are for God's need.  We think our gifts are for Him.  But more often, Jesus asks for our gifts so that He can meet, not his own need.  He wants to meet the need of the multitude.  And His care is not for the multitude only, but for us as well.  That boy gave up all that he had.  Because he id, he received back all that he wanted to eat.  For when God asks for a person to give all he has, He remembers that person.  He always gives a multi-fold blessing. 

So, give God your all.  He will be faithful to give you what you need here and also to keep that which you have committed to Him against that day.

by Andrew Grosjean 1995

www.pastorandrew.ws