Ronald Reagan Speech: The 1981 Inaugural Address

YouTube - President Reagan 1981 Inaugural Address

This is the second speech from Ronald Reagan which I'm posting today. I'm thinking of posting a total of four speeches. I'm still trying to determine what the fourth speech will be. In this inaugural address, President Reagan began his speech on the dangers of inflation and how it hasd damaged our economy at the time. He made a powerful statement which is "In our present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem." If one doesn't interpret that statement properly nor understood America during the late 1970's and beforehand, one could think he was saying the federal government doesn't have much of a role in America. He mentioned in his speech there's a role for the federal government. He stated that the federal government didn't create the states, the states created the federal government.

Many liberals in the media lump those in the Tea Party movement as being anti-government or anti-tax. That's not true. There is a proper role and a place for government. Government was created by God. Why? Because man's sinful and he created government to restrain lawlessness. The role of government is to execute justice and punish those that break the law. Another role for the government is to provide for a military to protect our nation and to create a system of highways for transporation purposes. Those are the roles of government. Without the execution of justice in our society along with provision for the common defense, this country would be in anarchy. There is a need for goverment. The problem is government has usurped authority in areas it's not supposed to usurp authority. Government today is trying to usurp the authority of mommy and daddy in the lives of America's children. Also government has taken the place of the average citizen to become a welfare state. There are some Americans in this generation that expect government to provide for its citizenry from the cradle to the grave. There are those that expect government to provide handouts, education, homes, jobs, social security, and the list continues. There used to be a time when Americans believed in the concept of self-reliance and working for your wages. There used to be a time whenever somebody in the neighborhood had a need, everyone in that neighborhood would pitch in and help the needy. Today we have a group of people that expect the federal government to be the provider. Thankfully more and more people are waking up to the fact that the federal government can't provide for everyone's financial needs. A government like that is socialistic and we wind up losing our freedoms when we expect government to take care of our needs.

In Matthew 22:17-21, the Pharisees tried to trick Jesus and asked him was it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar. Jesus told then to render unto Caesar (the government) the things that are Caesar's and to God the things that are God's. We as citizens have a duty when it comes to government. We are to pay taxes, we are to register for the selective service in case they need to call a draft in the time of war, we are to participate in jury duty when called on, etc. We as citizens do have our responsibilities toward government. We are also to obey the laws of the land unless they violate God's laws. God never created government to hold as much power over us like they're trying to do today. However, due to man's carnality and our neglect of certain responsibilities in years past when it comes to helping the poor and husbands providing for their families, the government has usurped that role and tried to provide benefits by taxing the wealthy to give to the poor. Even education is not a responsibility of government; esp. not the federal government. The role of education technically belongs to the parents and the churches. I'm a strong believer in Christian education. God has placed certain spheres of authority in this world: the home, the government, and the church. Each institution has its place in society. Today, government is trying to usurp the role of the family unit. In many of our school systems today, the public schools are teaching children topics such as sex education which should be reserved only for the home. The breakdown of the homes and churches has left a void and the government sadly has assumed that void. Christians and Christian parents need to take back the responsibility God has given to them. It's not the government's place to provide for its citizenry from cradle to grave.