In Caesar’s Grip was like the “crystal bullet (of enlightenment) between the eyes”. Of course! It is so plain! Incorporated churches have ignored Jesus’ warnings, even if only through ignorance. Nevertheless, the consequences pointed out in the Bible have come forth.

Here is what I learned from this book:
When a church incorporates it becomes a ‘creature’ of the state. Having created the incorporated church, the State governs them via corporate law and public policy, grants and revokes privileges, burdens them, restricts them, penalizes them, and can dissolve them.

• When incorporated, the church has two masters; the Bible and now the State that controls the church via corporate law and public policy.

• The incorporated church has ignored Jesus’ warnings in Luke 16:13 & Matthew 6:24 about the impossibility of serving two masters and the consequences thereof.

• If that weren’t enough, now the church must go to the IRS on hands and knees, begging to be a tax exempt 501(c)3 religious organization. Money is paid, and typically scribes are hired to complete this process. Now beholden to the IRS for its tax exempt status, the IRS dictates to the 501(c)3 church, (See Page 3 of the IRS Tax Guide for Churches and Religious Organizations) that:

“No substantial part of its [the churches] activity may be attempting to influence legislation.”

“The organization [church] may not intervene in political campaigns”

At this point the church has taken on a third master, the IRS, who also has some commands for the church!

Well, guess what? Influencing legislation and getting Christians into public service are exactly the peaceful means by which the church might influence and become salt and light to society at large. So essentially the IRS has said to the church: “You must become irrelevant to society at large.” Lack of influence = Irrelevance = loss of savioriness = loss of ability to preserve = Roe vs. Wade

Jesus also explained what would happen when Christians as Salt, lost their savioriness:

“If the salt loses it savor, . . . it is good for nothing but to be cast out and trodden under foot of men.” What is, being “trodden under foot of men”, if not the definition of tyranny?

To summarize: The church cannot serve two masters especially when Christ tells them to be salt and preserve society and the IRS tells them to stay out of the political arena and become irrelevant – which they have done. Having obeyed the IRS rather than the Bible, they have become irrelevant, savorless salt, good for nothing but tyranny – which they have allowed to come upon them and the rest of the country by their inaction. The church in America had the power to hold the government accountable to a higher law that prevented corruption. It has forfeited its power by disobeying the direct commands and warnings of Jesus.

Consequently, the civil powers are well on their way to corruption, tyranny and enthroning themselves as the highest authority – above God and above the will of the people themselves. The civil authorities have become masters rather than servants.

The solution is straightforward although not simple. (Anything that involves pride on the one hand, and disentanglement from government bureaucracies on the other, will not be simple.) Mr. Kershaw has helped churches for more than a decade in this process.

1. Get churches out from under the suppression of the State and IRS – Unlicense them, free them. Make them sovereign so they can protect freedom for all, as obtained at the founding of this country – we are not talking “theocracy”. This will also bring them back under the protection of the first amendment of the constitution. As non-profit corporations they are not protected by the first amendment.

2. Get Christian congregations back into the marketplace of ideas and the peaceful political processes that have gotten so corrupt without their presence. These processes were set up by predominantly Christian founders to alleviate the necessity of shedding blood in the turnover of public servants!

Mr. Kershaw has answered my question – in spades – using the Bible, using the history of corporations and the American church, using his in-depth following of case law in this area, and finally by using his experience from hands-on work with hundreds of churches trying to become unlicensed. The depth of research and originality of perspective is astounding. I learned through his look at the history of the church in our country that it was not always so meek and timid. In fact, Americans owe their freedom to the Biblical political philosophy of freedom which was propounded from the pulpit to the enlightenment of the founding era citizenry.

But that was a different church. Today’s church could be salty, could preserve freedom, could help inject salty Christians into the political system to preserve against corruption – if it would take to heart Jesus’ warnings and commands and jettison its voluntarily chosen, new masters, the State and the IRS.

Kershaw is thoroughly involved in the solution to the problem. His organization, Heal Our Land Ministries, has a DVD set called National Unlicensed Church Conference that goes into detail on the right way to become an unlicensed free church.

His writing is concise and his observations are piercing. Take for example the simple observation – so obvious once it is pointed out: Consider that incorporated churches that have ‘employees’ rather than ‘ministry workers’ have become tax collectors (publicans) for the State! They collect payroll and withholding taxes for the State and IRS. This revelation shocked me because it is hidden in plain sight. It is so obvious, so accepted, and such a strong clue that something is terribly wrong with the church-state relationship – yet church members are oblivious to it. Where in the Bible has Jesus even hinted that His Church, His Body on earth, His Bride, should collect taxes for the civil government? Is this also not being unequally yoked?

Kershaw’s love for the Church is apparent from his in depth and always charitable reasoning about how to approach church leadership with this issue. He does not want to make this issue divisive, but merely get churches to understand the freedom and power they have in the Bible and Constitution when they don’t voluntarily give away their rights and sovereignty.

The whole book is filled with revelations and implications that need to be thought about and considered. I couldn’t read more than about10 pages a day because of the density of intriguing and revealing concepts that I wanted to enjoy mulling over before taking in more.

I highly recommend this book to anyone, who like myself, is perplexed and disheartened about what is happening in our country. And to anyone who wonders why the church seems so anemic and pitiful in its role as salt – a preservative, a healing agent, and an irritant. It seems clear, that turning this country from corruption, from decadence, from tyranny onto the long road back to freedom starts with someone like yourself, humbly and respectfully bringing to the attention of even just one incorporated church that they have chosen a second master whom they must obey – instead of Jesus. If they will but give up this second master, and his perks, they will find great freedom to bring glory to God. You won’t get a better education for this task than by reading In Caesar’s’ Grip.