Indianapolis Baptist Temple.

Cutting Muster

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:1 Peter 5:8

      Indianapolis Baptist Temple was seized by the federal government. The federal government has forgiven billions of dollars in debt for foreigners who oppose the US and corporations with IRS tax trouble but IBT, one of the few Churches in America which tried to disentangle itself from the state corporate control, was invaded and destroyed.

      For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. 2 Peter 2:20

My intent gives a name to my act.
Intentio mea imponit nomen operi meo.Hob. 123.

      Indianapolis Baptist Temple's intent to be a free Church under God and not Caesar was clear but Federal Judge Sarah Baker, the IRS, the apathy and if not the guilt of corporate Churches in America were determined to destroying IBT.

      Why?

      The intent of those who war against IBT is all too clear.
Intentit imponit nomen operi.

      IBT workers originally paid all the taxes owed the government. When those individual persons were audited the IRS refunded the money that had been paid to the IRS and said the Church should have paid it.

      Note the government received its money. Caesar was paid. But this is not about money or taxes. It is about control.

      The total taxes were about $200,000. All paid, all refunded.

      Now, through the magic of interest and penalties the IRS had jacked up the amount that they claimed the Church owed them. They had this money in hand but sent it back and created fines for failing to pay it which eventually with interest amounted to over 6 million dollars.

      I know this situation at IBT. I have been to the Church and spoken with Rev. Dixon.

      A number of years ago this Church discovered the controlling nature of contracting with the government for benefits in a corporate status established by the government as opposed to the Status of the Church established by Jesus Christ.

      Jesus created the Church. He appointed it, established it. Even the legal definition of Church establishes that it is one form of government established by Christ.

     If any Church incorporates to the state that church will be recognized by that state as a privileged corporation and any prior incorporation is as if it never happened.

     The Church is the "body of Christ", the corpus of Christ (Corpus Christi). A corporation of the State is a part of the corpus of the State. A Church cannot be the corpus of the kingdom of God through the appointment of Christ and be the corpus or corporation of the State too. That is the law and the State and Christ agree on this.

      Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. Galatians 5:1

      IBT began to extricate themselves from this contractual relationship and began to follow closer to the teachings of Christ which put them farther from the graces of the modern day pharisitical christian churches and of course the Federal government.
      All the taxes owed the government were paid by those who worked at the Church who were obliged to pay them and had Federal Employee Identification Numbers.
      The IRS sent back the money.
      The IRS then charged the Church with failure to withhold the money they had just sent back.
      The Church could no longer withhold taxes because it did not believe it should use a Federal Employer Identification Number unless they are a state controlled church.
      They won't give them the number because they are not incorporated by the state.
      They are seeking to be the Body of Christ.
      They desire to be a Church established by Christ according to Bible and even the definition in Black's Law Dictionary.

      If they obtain corporate status as a 501c3 Church they will waive their 1st Amendment right to the exception in 508c1 of the US Codes.

[See the mandatory exception clause.]
The Body of Christ Vs. The Body of the State

      The state (e.g. Federal Government) wanted to squeeze the Church in a catch 22.

      The Church is claiming to be a "First Century Church" established by Jesus Christ.

      Some think that the federal government through the courts is saying that the Church established by Jesus Christ must collect taxes for Caesar, register, and become incorporated to the state. Nothing could be farther from the truth.

      Judge Sarah Baker is not saying that a "First Century Church" owes these taxes. She is saying that "IBT's claim to being a first century Church does not cut muster."

      Technically and unfortunately, the state has a point.

      The Muster Rolls is a way that the British Admiralty used to determine the origin of a ship. Not by the flag alone or the status of the Captain but by the country of the majority of the members of the crew. The Judge told them that their argument "did not cut Muster".

      If the British boarded a ship flying a French flag and they were at war with Spain but not France they might require to see the 'muster rolls', that is to say the list of the members of the ship, the officers and the crew .

      If the list were mostly Spaniards they would assume that the ship was Spanish and seize it accordingly.

      This is what has happened, at least in part, to IBT. They are saying that they are a First Century Church but 60 of their members/crew are claiming to have Federal Employee Identification Numbersas members of the US government. They have sworn to this under penalty of perjury.

      The Federal Government recognizes a Church that meets the definition of the CHURCH established by Jesus. But they would not recognize the right of IBT to return to that status once it incorporated to the state and became a wealthy property owner.

      Despite all this and the mistakes made by IBT earlier in its history I believe it was struggling to get right with the LORD and His Kingdom on earth.

      IBT could have avoided all this by following several simple steps in the dissolution of the old and the reformation of a new Church in Christ. They also could have had the people with SSNs paid through a third party agency. They were learning and took some bad advice when good advice was available.

Their problem was at least lack of knowledge not criminal intent.

      This is an important issue and if people would learn from this hard lesson, which IBT has demonstrated at great cost, then their struggle and sacrifice would not be in vain.

      IBT was blind and now they see but they did not understand the whole truth of the nature of the Church.

      I encourage everyone to take a new look at what the Church is. It is not what I say it is or what IBT says it is or Judge Baker says it is. The Church is what Christ says it is.

      In the last 2000 years the church has gone through many changes but if it will not remain true to the precepts of Christ then it no longer is the Church. If we are to receive Christ's protection through the Holy Spirit we must repent and return to the ways of the First Century Church.

      There are many other aspects of the Church besides the membership and status of its crew that we must learn to understand these differences. The status of minister is very important and Jesus gave very particular instructions concerning them.

      We must learn and follow the instruction of Christ and be his appointed body working for and preaching the kingdom of Heaven at hand.

Peace be on your house

Gregory

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