Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God

Tendai Ruben Mbofana

I do not believe that Jehovah God ever created any individual to be
subjugated to another – as we were all made in His image and likeness.

As such, it is our fervent desire to live as free people, able to
enjoy life ‘more abundantly’, as our Lord Christ Jesus promised us –
therefore, there can never be room for tyrants in our lives.

Zimbabweans have another opportunity to rebel against such oppression
using democratic means, in next year’s elections – notwithstanding
that similar previous attempts were scandalously stolen from us, but
that has never deterred a people with a strong conviction in their
inalienable right to freedom and prosperity.

In fact, the term, ‘Rebellion to tyrants is obedience to God’ was
coined by Benjamin Franklin, and Thomas Jefferson at the time of the
United States of America’s (USA) independence from England in 1776 –
after a hard-fought revolution.

This saying had been proposed to be on the USA’s Great Seal, and was
inspired by the biblical Exodus story of the Israelites’ freedom from
slavery in Egypt.

This zeal for freedom by the Americans, and their strong belief that
God led their struggle, was also portrayed in the Latin saying on the
US one dollar bill: ‘Annuit Coeptis’, which means, ‘God has favoured
our undertakings’, or ‘God has prospered.

This desire is taken a step further in their 1776 Declaration of
Independence, that so beautifully captures the desires even
Zimbabweans have for themselves:

‘We hold theseTruths to be self-evident, that all Men (and Women) are
created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain
inelianable rights that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit
of Happiness…whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive to
these Ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or abolish it and
to initiate new Government, laying its Foundation on such Principles,
and organizing its Powers in such Form as to them shall seem most
likely to affect their Safety and Happiness.’

These same values and principles should be at the centre of every
peace, freedom, and prosperity loving Zimbabwean, as this is what God
created us to enjoy.

In fact, He, in so many Bible verses urges us to speak for the
voiceless, to stand up for the oppressed, and to plead the cause of
the poor and needy (Psalm 41:1; Proverbs 31:8,9).

Clearly, Jehovah God is not asking Christians to merely donate goods
to the poor, and just provide shelter, but He wants us to go far
beyond that and stand up against tyrants, and speak up for the
oppressed, poor, and needy.

God Himself used people, such as Moses. Aaron, Joshua, and others to
approach the highest offices in the lands in order to demand justice,
equality, and freedom – thus, it is His expectation of all of us to
still do the same today.

Praying is very powerful, but it is only the beginning, as we are then
expected to act upon it, because faith without works is useless.

As the 2018 elections fast approach, let every one of us unite in a
common goal to mobilise all Zimbabweans to register to vote, as well
as to vote resoundingly against oppression, hunger, homelessness,
joblessness, cashlessness, and all manner of subjugation, and a
de-humanizing livilihood.

Let us also stand firm in the push for genuine electoral reforms – for
truly free and fair elections – in order for all to vote confidently,
without being haunted by the ghost of the 2008 stolen elections.

All tyrants have lost favour with God, for they have disobeyed His
order to lead His people justly and fairly.

As with the biblical King Saul, although they still hold office, their
days are numbered, as Jehovah God has already anointed a ‘David’ to
take over.

As the Reverand Dr. Martin Luther King jr. once said: ‘Oppressed
people can not remain oppressed forever. The yearning for freedom
manifests itself. The Bible tells the thrilling story of how Moses
stood in Pharoah’s court centuries ago and cried “Let my people go”‘.

Such is the spirit that we, the oppressed people of Zimbabwe
desperately need, that whether we are in the urban or rural areas, our
fearlessness and resistance to tyranny should be unambigious.

There can never be again an opportunity as we have now, to stand
together as a people of Zimbabwe, with more than just nationality in
common, but a strong yearning for freedom and prosperity.

* Tendai Ruben Mbofana is a social justice activist, writer, author,
and speaker. He is available should anyone invite him to speak at any
event. Please call +263782283975, or email
tendaiandtinta.mbofana@gmail.com