Caesars, Empires, saviors and salvation's...

“When the people find that they can vote themselves money, that will herald the end of the republic.” -Benjamin Franklin

The below quote is described as the "Tytler’s Cycle" and though slightly formulaic to me, does resemble a similar pattern found in the bible in regards to the cyclical nature of Israel experience with good and bad kings. I question the statement that 200 years is applicable to most civilizations...200 years is peanuts when it comes to most civilizations, now maybe it relates to governments, possibly.

"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves money from the public treasure. From that moment on the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most money from the public treasury, with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world's great civilizations has been two hundred years. These nations have progressed through the following sequence: from bondage to spiritual faith, from spiritual faith to great courage, from courage to liberty, from liberty to abundance, from abundance to selfishness, from selfishness to complacency from complacency to apathy, from apathy to dependency, from dependency back to bondage." -Supposedly attributed to Alexander Tyler but it's questionable and probably unreliable.

I think that we are prone to look to Caesars and Empires for our saviors & salvation today. Like the Jews in Acts 18, we scramble to Rome or other government's Judgment Seats to solve our problems or to try to enforce our religious agenda's or values. We desperately need leaders in Government that can reflect the wisdom of the Roman Proconsul Gallio, who knew that there needs to be a sharp division between matters of religion and consciences and the legislation and sword of Government. When religion weds The judgment Seat of government and faith...the sword is not to far behind....and I think it's economics that unbuckle the sheath.

Just some ruminations from my sermon this morning on Acts 18.