We hold these truths to be self-evident.

At an early age, every American school child is exposed to the belief that we have an inalienable right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. To expedite that pursuit, our forefathers separated from the British and formed a new government. From the beginning, it was clearly understood that this new government existed to serve the citizens of this nation. After all, it is a government of the people, by the people and for the people. Routinely, we bemoan the fact that our politicians tend to use government to serve themselves and their special interest groups instead of the whole citizen base. But whether our political allegiances lie on the right or left, whether we subscribe to the two big parties or follow a niche ideology, the common thread of American political thought is that the people should define the objective, and government should serve the people. Our presuppositions have been repeated so convincingly, so often, by so many, that few of us take any time to question their validity. However, there is a competing ideology far more ancient than our own, and it is held by far more people. We ignore it because it happens to be the ideology of the nation we rejected. England today is a hybridneither fish nor fowl. There is still a monarch, but the throne has little to do with the governance of the nation. Their Parliament strongly resembles our Congress and the will of the people is taken into account by elected officials at least some of the time. England had no citizens under the classic monarchy before the government was restructured under Oliver Cromwell. The English were subjects of their monarch. This is not a mere matter of semantics. There are 180 degrees of difference between a citizen and a subject. The Nature of Citizenship Citizenship is designed around our rights. Americans left England because they felt their rights were being violated. They formed a government they thought would more fully protect their rights. By our foundation, we claim a self-evident right to have a government that creates an ideal environment for us to pursue our three inalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. At times, the government is to serve us directly by providing infrastructure or services. Other times, the government is to indirectly serve us by maintaining peace, bolstering the economy, or enhancing foreign trade. Regardless of the nuances, we believe we are central to the equation, and government is supposed to serve us. We are rights oriented.

The Nature of Subjects For centuries, the English believed the throne was central to the equation and the subjects were responsible to support the throne. The centrality of responsibilities began at the top. The monarch was to produce an heir to continue the royal family line and govern the nation in such a way that the thrones resources were greater at the end of a reign. The hereditary peers swore fealty to the thronemaking themselves and all their resources available to the king for his agenda. Their castles could be used for protection, their men for soldiers, or their possessions and property burned for heat. Lives and resources could be appropriated by the king for purposes as profound as war, or as trivial as his majestys pleasure. First and foremost, the lord of the castle was to be served. The knights, yeomen and peasants each had their own struggle for economic and social survival, but their responsibility to that lord took precedence over their own wellbeing. At the lowest level, the serf existed solely for his owners wellbeing. There was no concept of the serf as anything else. In a scenario devoid of human corruption (!!!), the English monarch would use the unlimited resources of his subjects to create a better nation. His throne would be enhanced significantly by the prosperity of his subjects. While they may have no personal rights, the subjects lives become markedly better because of their unstinting, selfless devotion to the wellbeing of the throne. In a scenario devoid of human corruption (!!!), our government would make America a place where the endless drive and creativity of its citizens would flourish and grow. The nation would prosper economically, socially and spiritually. While the government has no intrinsic rights, it would become more and more prestigious as the rights of the citizens are honored. In theory, each equation is a win/win proposition. In reality, regardless of whether rights are in the hands of the people or the monarch, we expect those who hold responsibility to serve themselves first, and we expect our resources to be exploited without benefit for the community. Citizens or Subjects? Where do we, as Christians, stand in the government of God? It is the simplest of equations! We cannot be trusted with huge rights. Gods government is a kingdom, there is a monarch, and we are absolutely subjects of the Great King. He and He alone can be trusted with utter absolute rights. He and He alone will be completely upright with all the resources we steward. We are subjects. We have no rights. We have a complete responsibility to serve the Throne. The objective of this season is to bring each of our kingdoms into subjection to the level of dominion we have. We are to promptly present our kingdoms to Him in perfect subordination.
Citizens or Subjects? Article written by Arthur Burk January 14, 2008 Plumbline Newsletter Plumbline Ministries

When all the worlds kingdoms are under His authority, He will joyously present the whole to Almighty God, since He too serves a King. As Americans, we have fashioned our churches after our government. We expect the local churches to serve us well. The pastor and staffs job is to create the perfect environment for us to thrive in our spirits and every other area. When the church does not meet all our perceived rights, we discard that government and seek out another. For too many, their relationship with God centers on their rights. God has a governmental contract with them He is expected to make their lives, at the very least, viable, and, ideally, dynamic. This does not represent Scripture. Our Great King has committed to make His Kingdom the most wonderful place possible, benefitting all of His subjects. That is the big picture vision. But on any given day, all His subjects have a responsibility to Him they are responsible to serve His throne! What would Christianity look like if we were subjects and not citizens? What would our lives look like if we trusted Him to care for us and poured out ourselves to fulfill our responsibilities? Citizens or subjects? There is a big difference! Arthur Burk Jan. 2008

Citizens or Subjects? Article written by Arthur Burk January 14, 2008 Plumbline Newsletter Plumbline Ministries