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Attorneys
Run the World
Dear Friends,
 One
evening a friend of ours received some startling information on how attorneys
view the world. Lance was having dinner atop the Seattle Space Needle with a
group of lawyers. Lance was soon to graduate with honors from law school. One of
the attorneys put his arm around Lance and led him over to the window. From
their high perch, they looked down on the city below. The attorney pointed out
corporation after corporation headquartered in various skyscrapers. "We
lawyers control all that power and the glory of them," he said. "Maybe
someday the meek shall inherit the earth, but until then, we're running
things."
Lance left the
meeting horrified. He had just started reading the New Testament and the
attorney's smug words haunted him. To Lance, the attorney appeared like the
devil who tempted Jesus in Matthew, Chapter 4. Lance's ideals were shattered
that night. He dropped out of law school and began the most important pursuit of
all - seeking the Kingdom of Heaven.
The One Behind the Scenes
When a dispute
arises between you and your neighbor, who is first in line to solve it? Who is
the one you turn to? Usually, it is an attorney. Yes, every time anyone has a
matter they need to settle, they run to an attorney. They are afraid they might
make a "legal mistake," so they do everything right as
prescribed by their attorney.
It's awesome
when you realize that attorneys have their hand in every major decision. We
think the CEO heads a corporation. But his power is limited. There's always a
lawyer behind the scenes advising him on what he can or cannot do.
It's the same
way with secular government. I was very interested in finding out how the county
commissioners operate. I was told they are the gods of the county. They are the
ones that determine what is going to happen within their territory. When I
attended a meeting of the Marion County Commissioners, I saw all the
Commissioners seated at a large table. At the end of the table sat the County
Attorney. As each item on the agenda was discussed, the Commissioners asked the
Attorney for her legal position on the matter. It is not the elected county
commissioners and other officials who are making the decisions. It is the
attorneys.
Do you realize
that behind every bureaucrat, mayor, governor and president is an attorney
giving them advice? Attorneys are everywhere. Maybe the attorneys that were
having dinner in the space needle were right. Attorneys are running the
world.
The world needs
somebody to run things. And it looks like the world uses attorneys as mediators
to go before their gods. And who are their gods?
It turns out
that the one they call "judge," the one who wears the black robe, is
also known as "god." He is feared and obeyed by inmates, jailers,
jurors, plaintiffs and defendants. I remember one time when I was in Marion
County jail, I refused to go before their court. One of the jail guards
reprimanded me saying, "While you are here in this world, Judge Mills is
god!" I told him that this person might be his god, but Jesus Christ
is my God.
There's
something else we learned about those black-robed gods. Almost 100 percent of
them are attorneys. The same is true with the lawmakers. Almost all of them are
attorneys, too.
One Mediator
We know that the
whole world looks to attorneys to intervene in their behalf. But this is not
true in the Kingdom of Heaven. Who is going to help us when we get into trouble?
Who is our mediator? Let's look at the Scripture. "My little children,
these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate
with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our
sins: and not for our's only, but also for the sins of the whole world" (1
John 2:1,2)
I wonder if
Jesus Christ can be our lawyer? Scripture says, He is "an advocate with the
Father." In England, lawyers are called "advocates." An advocate
is a person who pleads another's cause, specifically a lawyer. In Jesus Christ
we have an advocate who will take our case. I tried this once in court. They did
not say I had sinned against God Almighty. They accused me of sinning against them.
Then they wanted to know if I had a lawyer.
"Yes, I
do," I replied.
"What is
his name?"
"Jesus
Christ."
"Oh, Jesus
Christ can't practice in this court."
"Oh, He
can't?"
"No. He is
not a member of the bar association."
"You mean
Jesus Christ has to be a member of the bar association in order to
practice?"
"Yes, that
is correct. Besides, He is not around. He has been dead for almost 2,000
years."
"Excuse,
me, haven't you read your history books? Jesus Christ was raised from the dead.
He is a living Advocate and He is the one who is going to represent
me."
"I'm sorry.
We cannot have Him."
The reason the
court did not want Jesus Christ is because He was not an officer of their court.
And besides, Jesus Christ would not plead before their false gods. Jesus would
not plead before a black-robed judge. No way! Jesus would plead before the
Heavenly Father, where our plea should really be. Because you see, we have not
sinned. And even if we did sin, even if we did stumble, Jesus Christ will still
plead our cause.
Jesus is
different from the attorneys. This particular Advocate, this Jesus, does
something special. He forgives. By His grace, and His grace alone, we are
forgiven.
If I have
sinned, I deserve punishment. I should pay the full penalty of the law. But with
Jesus, the Advocate before the Father, He allows me to go free to try again, to
be perfected in Him.
According to the
Scripture, there is only one Mediator "For there is one God, and one
mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; Who gave himself a ransom
for all, to be testified in due time" (1 Timothy 2:5-6).
Lawyers Won't Save Us
 Let's
make a comparison between the attorneys and Christ. I have asked a number of
attorneys if they were willing to die for me. I could not find a single one who
would lay his life down for me. But Jesus did. I could not find one attorney who
would go to jail for me in case I lost. None of them would take my punishment.
But Jesus did.
"For
scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some
would even dare to die. But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we
were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his
blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him" (Romans 5:7-9).
Now what
attorney in history has received the atonement for us? I don't know any. Jesus
is the only One throughout all history. Why are we even considering one of their
attorneys? Not a one of them comes close to doing what Jesus Christ has done
for us. They bind heavy burdens that are grievous to bear. But if we come to
Christ, His burdens are light (Matthew 11:28-30). If we forgive those who have
wronged us, as Christ has forgiven us, then we have no need for the attorney
system of "man-judging-man."
What
relationship are we to have with lawyers? Did Jesus say, "If you sin, go
get yourself a lawyer"? No. Jesus never promoted the use of a lawyer as a
mediator. In fact, He denounces them angrily at Luke 11:39-54 and Matthew
23:13-33.
The attorneys
are working to shut up the Kingdom of Heaven against us with their oppressive
burdens. But if we simply take the light burden of Christ, then we don't need
lawyers any more.
Let us put on
the Lord Jesus Christ and make Him our only Advocate. Jesus Christ is the
Light. He is the Way. He is the door. For the LORD is our defense; and the Holy
One of Israel is our king (Psalm 89:18).
Lawyers
law.yers (l<147> yers) n. l. children of hell, serpents,
generation of vipers 2. blind guides, fools, hypocrites 3. children
of them which killed the prophets 4. whited sepulchers.
Christian lawyer Same as hot ice.
The definition
above includes some of the biting words Jesus used to describe these
"experts in the law." There are six direct references to lawyers in
the Gospels of Matthew and Luke. All these references portray lawyers in a
negative light. They are shown tempting the Lord (Matthew 22:35, Luke
10:25), justifying themselves (Luke 10:29), rejecting the purpose of
God for themselves (Luke 7:30), loading men with burdens grievous to be
borne (Luke 11:45,46), and taking away the key of knowledge (Luke
11:52). Jesus rebukes them soundly with the Seven Woes (Matthew Chapter
23 and Luke 11:37-54).
Whenever we are
dragged before their tribunals, the question of counsel must be resolved. The
court is eager to have us accept a state-appointed lawyer to act in our behalf.
Lawyers are very cunning. They may attempt to deceive us into thinking they are
working on the side of truth and righteousness. Jesus said lawyers outwardly
appear righteous unto men, but within are full of hypocrisy and iniquity (Matthew
23:28). Because of our desire to save our lives and our lack of expertise in
matters of law, it may be very tempting to accept the court's offer. But woe
unto the one who takes the counsel of a lawyer. Jesus said, "He who is not
with me is against me" (Matthew 12:30). Lawyers openly show they are
against Christ's principles by returning evil for evil and encouraging vengeance
rather than forgiveness. Jesus said of lawyers, "How can ye escape the
damnation of hell?" (Matthew 23:33)
This booklet is a
comprehensive listing of Licensed Bar Attorneys who are also born-again
Christians.
As you page
through the Directory, you will notice that all the pages are intentionally left
blank. The reason: a Christian lawyer is an oxymoron. It is the same as hot ice.
At the end of
the Directory, we have reprinted the above "Lawyers"
article.
Order the program, Only One Mediator (T9841),
and receive a free copy of the directory.
To listen online, or place an order,
click here
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