Mike Griggs

In part I, we looked at the difference between the Republican and Democratic parties. We noted that, while they appear to be vastly different, they’re actually quite similar. It’s been said that there isn’t a dime’s worth of difference between the two. I agree. It’s more like a nickel’s worth. Because the two parties are so much alike, the government seems to grow no matter which party is in power. In this article I want to look at another reason why the U.S. government continues to grow. This time I want look at the two major political philosophies that dominate our land: Liberalism (or Progressivism) & Conservatism.

This article will look mainly at Conservatism because it is more vocal about being for smaller government. Indeed, Conservatism has been for smaller government for many generations now. And yet, government still grows. As we will see, Conservatism cannot stop Liberalism/Progressivism, even when it tries.

Let me give you a little background before I continue. My view of Conservatism comes mostly from listening to talk radio. I’ve been listening to guys like Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Michael Savage, Mark Levin, etc. for decades. In fact I still tune in to those shows a few times per week just to hear what’s going on in the world. So, I think I know mainstream Conservatism. But the more I read and study the Bible, the Constitution, and the founding of our nation, the more I see Conservatism as being much closer to Liberalism than most would like to admit. Don’t get me wrong, Conservatism is closer to the Bible and the Constitution than Liberalism, but that’s not saying much. So, here are some reasons why I made a break from Conservatism (at least political Conservatism). Please understand, I’m not breaking from Conservatism in order to become a Liberal. I’m breaking from Conservatism because it is too much like Liberalism!

So, here are some reasons:

1. Conservatives can’t stop the Liberals. This should be obvious to all. Over the decades, the country has gotten more and more liberal. Conservatives say that the USA is a “center-right” country, and yet, it keeps going more liberal. If there are so many Conservatives, and Conservatism is a stronger view then Liberalism, than Conservatives ought to be gaining ground, but they’re not.

2. Conservatives are Liberals, just slower. This may sound far-fetched, but it is true. Liberals want to run into socialism, cultural relativism, etc. Conservatives, on the other hand, want to walk into socialism, cultural relativism, etc. You might not be able to see this without studying history, but Conservatism is simply slower Progressivism. Whenever Liberals take two steps forward in their agenda, the Conservatives protest, and demand that we all take one step back. Study a little history, and you will see that today’s Conservatives would be considered Liberals/Progressives a few generations ago.

3. Conservatives don’t really like the Constitution. Liberals say that the Constitution was written so long ago that it can’t really be adhered to in our modern age. Conservatives say exactly the same thing, I mean exactly. When talking about government surveillance, foreign policy, the military etc., Conservatives say that our founders lived in a different age and didn’t face the same challenges we do. Therefore, they say, we shouldn’t obey the parts of the Constitution that pertain to those things.

4. Conservatism is based on the same foundation as Liberalism. Ideas either come from the word of God, or the depraved mind of man (with maybe a little help from Satan). Do Conservatives ever quote the Bible when it comes to monetary policy, economics, the public schools, crime & punishment, foreign policy, the police, the military, etc.? Conservatives don’t get their views from the Bible, they get them from human reason. That’s the same intellectual foundation as Liberalism.

5. Conservatives want smaller government, not small government. When it comes to certain areas of government, Conservatives do want a big government. When it comes to immigration, foreign policy, the military, the police, and things like that, Conservatives believe that the government needs to be stronger. But didn’t America’s founders believe this too? No. Our founding fathers wanted a far more limited government in these areas than today’s Conservatives.

6. Conservatives end up giving more power to Liberals. Many of the policies that Conservatives favor are used against them when Liberals get into office (like surveillance programs). And yet, Conservatives still foolishly want to give more power to some parts of the government when their guy is in power.

7. Conservatives tend to react, not think. Anytime a Liberal wants a Conservative to do something, all the Liberal has to do is pretend to oppose it. Conservatives usually just oppose the Liberals even when the Liberals accidentally do something Constitutional.

8. Conservatives are Liberal when it comes to culture. Conservatives often appeal to “traditional” values (they won’t say biblical values). But the music they listen to and the movies they love promote some very sinful things. Government grows because of a sinful population (Prov. 28:2). Many Conservatives promote movies and music that contain sinful ideologies, and thus, are unwittingly promoting more tyranny.

I could go on and on, but you get the picture. Again, let me be clear, Conservatism is a little closer to the Bible than Liberalism. I can agree with some of what is said by those on talk radio. But, I’ve come to understand that Conservatism is powerless to stop the decline of our nation and the growth of government. I know I’ve been somewhat vague on some of these points, but if you will tuck these points away in your mind, and study the Bible and Constitution for yourself, I believe you will see that Conservatism is not all that it pretends to be. The Bible has the answers to our problems, not Rush Limbaugh.

In Part III of this article, we will look at the only antidote to an overgrown government: the Bible.

Most Bible-believing Christians believe that the government (particularly the federal government) has gotten way too big. They’re right. The civil government in the U.S. is too big, and it seems to be getting bigger. Of course, there are certain examples that we could look at concerning some aspects of government shrinking. But those examples are few and far between, and the overall trend over the years is that the government gets bigger. Unfortunately, there is no sign of it shrinking much anytime soon. Yes, I know our current president has done some things to cut the size of government, but he has also grown some aspects of the government as well (not just the military).

What then is the cause of our out-of-control government? Many causes could be cited, like God’s sovereign plan, a sinful population, an uninformed electorate, etc. All of these are causes of our problem, but for now I’d like to focus on the realm of politics.

First, it must be noted that our two-party system is one major cause of government growth. One Constitutional expert, Dr. Edwin Viera, Jr., once said that there is really only one political party in Washington. That political party just has two faces: a Republican face and a Democratic one. He’s right. It has also been said that there is not a dime’s worth of difference between the two parties. There may be a nickel’s worth of difference, but not a dime’s.

If you were to measure the voting records of our Senators and Representatives against the Constitution, the average Democrat violates the Constitution about 75% of the time. The average Republican violates the Constitution about 40% of the time. So, the Republicans are doing slightly better than the Democrats, but they still violate the Constitution nearly half the time! But the voting record only tells half of the story.

Politicians are not dumb (contrary to popular belief). They know that some people are watching how they vote. But that’s okay, there are other ways for Republicans to advance the Democrats’ agenda (remember: there’s only one party in Washington). Politicians have ways of getting around voting. One very popular way is to use the Supreme Court to make rulings that have the effect of creating laws that no politician wants to be on record voting for. This is how abortion & homosexual marriage became “law.” Of course, Supreme Court rulings are not really law, but everyone seems to go along with it, so why stop now?

Something you should always remember is that it was Republican-appointed Justices that gave us Roe vs. Wade. That’s right, it was Republicans who made abortion “legal.” But it doesn’t stop there. Three hundred Republicans sent a letter (an amicus brief) to the Supreme Court asking them to rule in favor of homosexual marriage! If you don’t believe me, look it up.

So, again, they are basically the same. They act like they hate each other, but behind closed doors, they are in basic agreement. The Democrats all voted to go into Iraq (and to stay there) and then acted like they were opposed to the war. Republicans acted outraged with Barack Obama’s immigration policies, but they voted to give him the ability to enforce those policies. They acted outraged with Obama’s TSA frisking airline passengers, but he was only doing what the Republican sponsored legislation allowed him to do. Democrats say they’re against a wall/fence on the Mexican border. What you may not know is that Obama and Hillary Clinton both voted for the border fence. Democrats are opposed to it now, but that’s only because they don’t want President Trump getting credit for it. Most of the time, they say one thing to their supporters, and then do the opposite in real life.

I used to wonder how some of my brothers & sisters in Christ could vote for Democrats who seemed to despise everything that those Christians stood for. Then I realized that I too had been duped. I was voting for Republicans who said one thing and then did another. Sure, they would throw me a bone now and then to keep me voting for them. But even when they were in power, nothing significant happened. The downward trend continued. It’s time we all woke up.

By now you may think that I have a defeatist attitude toward politics, or that I’m just out to point fingers. Not at all. I still vote, and I still believe we Christians should be involved in the political arena. I just believe that we should be dedicated to our Lord, and not to a corrupt political party (remember, there’s only one party).

Good, godly politicians are rare, but they do exist. When you find one, support them. Maybe they’ll have a “D” or an “R” after their name, or maybe they’ll be from a third party. You are accountable to God for how you vote. Don’t vote for a bad candidate just because they are a Republican or Democrat. When voters vote for bad candidates, the only winner is big government. Why does government keep getting bigger? One reason is because we ask (vote) for it.

In part II of this article, we will look at the two main political philosophies in America, commonly called liberalism & conservatism. While one is better than the other, neither is biblical, and both have a tendency to grow government.