The Bible (NLV): New Liberal Version

By Ronald Lee

God is the arbitrator of good from evil, truth, and error, but when someone we like disagrees with the Bible, we often side with them. How many policies are introduced by a political party that is in direct conflict with God's word yet we somehow justify it? "Am I now seeking the approval of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ." -- Galatians 1:10 The primary goal of most Socialist Governments is to replace God with government and that is absolutely not pleasing to God.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ronald Lee
• Release date: Nov 10, 2020
• ISBN: 9781913969905

Book preview

Dedication

To Shirley Smith, (Sunshine) for always being in my corner in spite of my failings.

Acknowledgment

I would like to acknowledge, with sincere appreciation, the love and support that Shirley has given me in becoming a published author. When others chose to believe the worst about me, she was able to see the truth and edify my soul rather than tear it down.

About the Author

Born in Miami Florida, the seventh son and the fourteenth of fifteen children. A person of many interests, but my passions lie in God and country.

Seemingly a living contradiction with art, science, religion, and politics being some of my favorite topics. In the late 1980s, I came into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and from that point on, I was set on a course to get to know Him better. During that journey, I learned about the Grace of God and the finality of the cross.

I believe that the world would be a much better place if the truth was much more prevalent. People are always claiming the world needs more love not hate but how do you have love without truth.

If I could do one thing with my remaining time on earth, it would be to give the world a clear understanding of the New Covenant between God and man, and their role in it.

Foreword

FAITH!

People have the tendency of complicating things that should be simple. The question is, do you believe God or not!

If you believe God is omniscient, omnipotent, and omnipresent then there is no reason not to believe the Bible. Yet when it comes to political leaders, we assign them more credence than we do the Word of God.

God is the arbitrator of good from evil, truth, and error, but when someone we like disagrees with the Bible, we often side with them. How many policies are introduced by a political party that is in direct conflict with God's word yet we somehow justify it?

Am I now seeking the approval of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ. -- Galatians 1:10

The primary goal of most Socialist Governments is to replace God with government and that is absolutely not pleasing to God.

Contents

Dedication

Acknowledgment

About the Author

Foreword

Chapter 1- Socialism Is Not Christianity

Chapter 2- 1 John

Chapter 3- 1 Peter

Chapter 4- 1 Thessalonians

Chapter 5- 1 Timothy

Chapter 6- 2 Peter

Chapter 7- 2 John

Chapter 8- 2 Thessalonians

Chapter 9- 2 Timothy

Chapter 10- 3 John

Chapter 11- Coloss ians

Chapter 12- Galatians

Chapter 13- James

Chapter 14- Jude

Chapter 15- Philemon

Chapter 16- Philippians

Chapter 17- Titus

Bibliography

Page Left Blank Intentionally

Chapter 1

Socialism Is Not Christianity

Democracy and socialism have nothing in common but one word, equality. But notice the difference: while democracy seeks equality in liberty, socialism seeks equality in restraint and servitude.

– Alexis de Tocqueville

What Is Socialism?

Whether or not you are into politics, you must have heard the term socialism at some point in your life. Especially in this technological era, where information is just a click away, we often get to hear about socialists and their boastful claims. If you have ever read the history of socialism, you must be well aware of how it leads to misery and destitution. Before discussing anything further about the destruction of this so-called system, let's first understand what actually socialism is.

In literal terms, socialism signifies any political or economic theory that says the community, rather than individuals, should own and manage the property and natural resources.

The term socialism has been applied to very different economic and political systems throughout history, including utopianism, anarchism, Soviet communism, and social democracy. These systems vary widely in structure, but they share an opposition to an unrestricted market economy and the belief that public ownership of the means of production and making money will lead to a better distribution of wealth and a more egalitarian society.

Due to its practical challenges and poor track record, socialism is sometimes referred to as a utopian or post-scarcity system, although modern supporters of socialism believe it could work if only properly implemented. They argue socialism creates equality and provides security.

Socialism is based on the ideals that production should be done for the well-being of society, rather than for-profit; there should be an equitable distribution of wealth and material resources among all people; competitive buying and selling in the market should be banned; and there should be free access to goods and services for all. Or, as an old socialist slogan describes it, from each according to ability, to each according to need. Socialism developed in opposition to individualism and capitalism during the late 18th and 19th centuries in western European countries. The most famous early socialist thinkers were Robert Owen, Henri de Saint-Simon, Karl Marx, and Vladimir Lenin. It was mainly Lenin who explained the ideas of earlier socialists and helped bring socialist planning to the national level after the 1917 Bolshevik Revolution in Russia.

The attempt to form a comprehensive socialist system in many parts of the world over the last one hundred years has been one of the most brutal and sadistic incidents in human history.

Some historians have estimated that as many as 200 million people may have died as part of the dream of creating a collectivist Paradise on Earth. Making a better new world was taken to mean the termination, liquidation, and mass murder of all those that the revolutionary socialist leaders declared to be class enemies, including their families and children. Whether implemented by a community or a single strongman, socialism is a poverty generator, an attack on human dignity, and a destroyer of individual rights. As Mark J. Perry in his article Why Socialism Failed wrote,

Socialism is the Big Lie of the twentieth century. While it promised prosperity, equality, and security, it delivered poverty, misery, and tyranny. Equality was achieved only in the sense that everyone was equal in his or her misery.

Why Socialism Always Failed

Socialism is a failed idea. Over the past hundred years, there have been more than two dozen attempts to build a socialist society. It has been tried in the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, Albania, Poland, Vietnam, Bulgaria, Romania, Czechoslovakia, North Korea, Hungary, China, East Germany, Cuba, Tanzania, Laos, South Yemen, Somalia, the Congo, Ethiopia, Cambodia, Mozambique, Angola, Nicaragua, and Venezuela, among others—not counting the very short-lived ones. All of these attempts have ended in varying degrees of failure. In socialist countries today, there are a few bureaucrats who control and use the power of the state. They redistribute and regulate wealth and decide on taxation for the people. Thus, in reality, people do not have control over wealth. This limits people’s political freedom and reverses the overall concept.

Demands Higher Taxes

Socialism is economically inefficient. One of the biggest reasons for its failure is that it demands high progressive taxes. Entrepreneurs may feel that if the government is taking a high percentage of their profits, they would prefer not to take the risk or work abroad. Business owners are not intrigued to open new startups because even after paying higher taxes, they don’t have control over their wealth. The Economist states,

Ms. Ocasio-Cortez has floated a tax rate of 70% on the highest incomes, but one plausible estimate puts the extra revenue at just $12bn, or 0.3% of the total tax take.

Doesn’t Eradicate Poverty

Socialism might redistribute some of the wealth of the richest members of society to the poor. However, it does not eliminate poverty as a whole. The overall growth of the economy suffers significantly. If there is not enough wealth, then distribution can be hampered.

Puts an Overall Negative Influence on Standard of Living

Socialists may entice people by claiming that it improves the standard of living. However, in reality, the situation is the opposite. Instead of improving the living standards for all, socialism actually lowers the income of the richest to reduce the divide and make them fall close to the income levels of the poorest.

Increases Incompetence

As socialism provides the poorest with higher levels of income via social security payments, it discourages them from working hard, if at all. It also develops a negative feeling in the minds of hard-working fellows, as they gain no extra incentives for working hard. Adding to their anguish, idle people get paid the same as they do. This negatively impacts productivity, and thus, affecting economic growth.

How Contemporary Socialists Deceive People

Following the failure of socialist central planning in the Soviet Union and Maoist China during the 20th century, many modern socialists adjusted to a high regulatory and redistributive system sometimes referred to as market socialism or democratic socialism.

However, this is a mere deception to cover the destruction caused by socialism. Since the year 2018, socialism has been somehow on the rise in America. The new socialists say it’s different this time. They have a new name and everything: Democratic Socialism. Socialists worldwide have largely moved on to a different emphasis: the welfare state. Democratic socialists believe that both the economy and society should be run democratically—to meet public needs, and not to make profits for a few. To create a more just society, many structures of the government and economy must be radically transformed through greater economic and social democracy so that ordinary Americans can participate in the many decisions that affect their lives.

Sounds quite intriguing, doesn’t it? However, it’s still based on the same old, failed redistributionist doctrines. The second-most famous Democratic Socialist in America right now, after kingmaker Democratic Socialist Bernie Sanders, is New York City congressional candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

The young socialist tries her best to sell the idea. According to her, It’s the basic belief that in a moral and wealthy America, no person should be too poor to live in this country. Democratic Socialists certainly go out of their way to disassociate themselves from the Soviet failure. However, the Young Democratic Socialists of America's website devotes a whole section to why the Soviet Union collapsed. They claim that democratic socialism is different, yet their ideas aren't much different from those that formed the basis for that failed state. As the conventional socialism model focused merely on needs instead of abilities, the so-called new and better model also does the same.

The YDSA website even acknowledges that some industries will have to come under government control: While the large concentrations of capital in industries such as energy and steel may necessitate some form of state ownership, many consumer-goods industries might be best run as cooperatives.

Moreover, to make their ideology look even more realistic, they don't even hesitate to relate it to Jesus and Christianity. Consider the example of Kelley Rose, who is a 36-year-old democratic socialist. Rose co-founded the DSA's North Central West Virginia chapter. In her interview with National Public Radio, she said, I might be the only one in our little chapter that is a Christian, and it all just fits so perfectly together for me, things that I've always thought anyway along with my values morally and religiously. Possibly my mother would want to debate me on this, but if anyone was ever a socialist, it was Jesus.

Rose’s misappropriation of Jesus as a socialist spokesman highlights how important it is for Christians to teach that socialism and Christianity are incompatible.

In Acts 4:32-35, Luke told us that, in the early Church, "all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any