American Rights and Jesus

Americans really get wound up and wrapped up in our demand for our ‘rights’ as outlined by the American founding fathers nowadays. There are so few today in America and even the world at-large that understand that this is not necessarily a biblical concept. It is an American concept that got its ideas from other farther back in time (think Magna Carta, 1215). Rights or natural rights (inalienable rights) are legal, social, or ethical principles of freedom and/or an entitlement; that is, rights are the fundamental normative rules about what is allowed of people or supposedly owed to people according to some legal system, social convention, or ethical theory. This does not mean that all systems afford them and frankly, the Scriptures do not insist that anyone has entitlement to them in this life. Conversely, what we are entitled to is condemnation, punishment and judgment if we do not repent of our sin. Man in effect is ‘entitled’ to nothing. So, what did Jesus have to say about ‘rights’ in His words or what did He display in His actions?

“Higher rights guide our duties, that is, our right to abandon our rights.... Duties are always greater than rights. In the highest sense, rights are truly rights only when they are duties.’’ Sir William Blackstone; Commentaries on the Law of England Book 1: The Rights of Persons

In his writing, Sir William Blackstone the famous English jurist, judge and politician of the 18^th century divides rights into two classes, absolute and relative. Jesus suggested a radically different division; namely, rights which we have no right to yield, and rights we have a right to surrender. Concerning the temple tax, Jesus said to Peter…

When Peter came into the house, Jesus was the first to speak. “What do you think, Simon?” he asked. “From whom do the kings of the earth collect duty and taxes—from their own children or from others?” “From others,” Peter answered. “Then the children are exempt,” Jesus said to him. Matthew 17:25-27

When Peter said, “From strangers,” Jesus said to Peter, “Therefore the sons are free”. Therefore, based on this logic, Jesus did not have to pay the temple tax (as they were children of the Temple/God) but He did and yielded His right to not have to pay and paid anyway. Why? Jesus’ concern was that their behavior would not, “cause them (others) to stumble.” Jesus chose the right to forfeit a ‘right’ and to act as an upright example for others morally and ethically. It was the ‘right’ thing to do because…He could.

The idea of right or authority was prominent in Jesus’ teaching…just not for man. It was for Him. “The Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins” (Matthew 9:6), and He declared solemnly at the end of His earthly mission, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Matt. 28:18). He had authority over all flesh, even before He met and conquered death (John 17:2). Nevertheless, Jesus did not see Himself as one entitled to special privilege. He was the Son of the Father, and the Father made Him master of all human life (John 13:13; Matt. 25:31, 32; 7:21; John 5:22-27).

Jesus did not surrender some of His rights. He could not waive the right of self-direction in His life. “No one takes it from me (His life), but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This command I received from my Father.” (John 10:18; cf. Matt. 8:32, 33). Nor could He lay down His rights to spiritual freedom (John 10:38, 39), His self-declaration as God (John 8:54-59), and His just treatment before a court (John 18:19-23)—Jesus did not surrender these rights. Further, He claimed the right to reign over the will of people (John 7:17; 14:15; 15:14), to give life (John 5:40), and to comfort weary hearts (Matt. 11:28,29).

Nevertheless, Jesus freely surrendered other rights. In His incarnation, Jesus surrendered His divine right to rule with absolute power. Paul wrote in Philippians 2:1-8 that He did not consider equality with God something to grasped. He gave up His right to a comfortable home in heaven where He was worshiped day and night (Luke 9:58). He submitted Himself to ignominy, shame, betrayal, torture and to the shameful death on the cross (Matt. 26:24; 17:22; 20:18; Heb. 12:2). Jesus gave up many rights.

He even willingly surrendered His rights to His enemies (John 18:1-2). He told Pilate that he was mistaken in thinking he had power over Him (John 19:11). Jesus had the right to avoid everything leading up to the crucifixion and to the cross itself, but for the noble glory of redemption He gave up His rights. This, in fact, was the essence of His rights. Scottish author, poet and Christian Congregational minister George Macdonald rightly declared, “…the grandest thing in having rights is that, being your rights, you can give them up.”

There is no sacrifice when there are no rights to surrender. The greatest sacrifice is the self-surrender of rights. If I have no authority to give something up, I cannot waive anything. The Father loved Jesus because He willingly gave over His rights to accomplish His plan of redemption, even when it meant surrendering His right to life (John 10:17)…and so he did.

Likewise possessing rights does not mean we have to exercise them. In fact, some of our rights may be better to surrender. It was once said by Theodore Dwight Woolsey, one of Yale's greatest teachers of Greek before being elevated to the presidency of Yale, “It can never be too often repeated in this age, that duty is higher than freedom; that, when a man has a power or prerogative, the first question to ask is, ‘How and in what spirit is it my duty to use my power or prerogative?’ What law can I lay down for myself so that my powers shall not be a source of evil to me and to others?”

Higher rights guide our duties, that is, our right to abandon our rights. The apostle Paul taught us this in 1 Corinthians 9:4-27. The duty to give up rights to serve others is greater than exercising one’s legitimate rights for selfish means. Duties are always greater than rights. In the highest sense, rights are truly rights only when they are duties. It is in the idea that we see Jesus supreme act of duty being played out in the forfeiture of His right to life by being crucified, buried and rose from the grave in accord with Scripture. By willing giving over His right to life he denied death its finality over man. Thereby He gave man a right and righteousness to live eternally. They only needed to acknowledge and believe that He did it.

To see just how far off track America and American's have gotten in our understanding of our 'rights' we only need to observe the evidence in the media and in our own lives. So few actually practice this in or outside the church. If it was being practiced there would be much more evidence of charitable giving, giving of one’s time to the disenfranchised and larger displays of compassion for the poor. Instead we see rampant homelessness, rampant drug addiction, intense ideological division and a general coldness of heart towards others. That was not Jesus’ attitude towards these types of problems. Our attitudes as a nation are merely a symptom of the ubiquitous diseases consuming America…selfishness and entitlement.