The only miracle of our Lord recorded in all four Gospels is the feeding of the five thousand. Following our Lord’s supernatural filling of the multitude’s hungry stomachs, the miraculously fed crowd attempted to force the miracle working Christ to become their king (John 6:14-15). However, Christ refused their crown, rebuking them for disregarding their souls for their stomachs (John 6:27).
This miracle, found in all four Gospels, shows us that a sure path to an earthly throne is through men’s stomachs. In other words, men will readily surrender their liberty, especially in a time of scarcity, to anyone who can provide for their necessities. As the Apostle Paul warned, fallen man is ever-prone to make his stomach his god, and by doing so imperils his own soul (Philippians 3:19). Don’t forget that the tempter even attempted to tempt Christ by honing in on our Lord’s hunger (Matthew 4:2-4).
Do you remember the counsel of James Carvel to Bill Clinton during the 1992 presidential campaign: “It’s the economy stupid”? The economy (money) is the only thing our Lord ever spoke of as a direct rival to God (Matthew 6:24). It is also, according to Christ, the thing for which many a man forfeits his immortal soul (Matthew 16:26; Mark 8:36). How much more so when it becomes a matter of essential needs for our continuing existence rather than a mere matter of extravagant greeds for our current enjoyment. As Satan asserted before the Almighty, human beings will pay any cost and make any compromise for their own survival (Job 2:4).
Throughout history, economic crisis has repeatedly led to increased government dependency, which always translates into a government’s increased control over its citizenry. Here, we're reminded again of some cunning political counsel. In 2008, Rahm Emanuel counseled Barack Obama: "Never let a good crisis go to waste." Emanuel saw the economic crisis of the time as an opportunity for Obama to seize control over our economy in a way that would be impossible at any other time.
Government dependency in these United States was almost fifty percent prior to the coronavirus pandemic. Since then, thanks to the shutdown of our economy and trillions in stimulus money handed out for the sustenance of our populace, government dependency has skyrocketed into the stratosphere. Never before have so many Americans trusted themselves to Uncle Sam’s tender loving care, with so little trepidation about subsequently finding themselves under his total control.
When you add to economic dependency the ever-growing dependency of the American people on our government as the cure-all for all of our ills, you suddenly realize on this Fourth of July that you no longer live in a land populated by independent Americans, but by Americans who've become government dependents. We're no longer a self-governing people, who demand a government that safeguards our self-determination, but we've become a sheepish people, demanding a caretaker government, which will take such outstanding care of us that we're willing to give it outright control over us. Happy Dependence Day!