We are told the State cares for us.

That its growing power is an act of mercy. Its rules, for our safety. Its surveillance, for our protection. And its mandates—well, those are just for our own good.

But this is the lie of benevolent power: that unchecked control can exist without corruption. That political authority can expand indefinitely without devouring personal freedom. That Leviathan is a friend, not a tyrant.

Governments rarely seize power by brute force alone. They do it through fear, but often through compassion. Through the soft voice of reason during a crisis. And the people—wanting stability more than liberty—consent.

The Crisis as Opportunity

It’s been said that “never let a crisis go to waste.” Whether it’s a pandemic, a financial collapse, a war, or a social panic, every emergency becomes an excuse to expand the role of the state.

• After 9/11, we got mass surveillance.
• After 2008, we got corporate bailouts and central banking overreach.
• After 2020, we saw lockdowns, vaccine mandates, speech suppression, and the public shaming of dissent.

Each time, the power grab was justified in the name of the common good. And each time, the people handed over more of their autonomy—just to feel safe.

The tactic is as old as Pharaoh and as modern as the CDC. The strategy is always the same: create fear, offer control, and rebrand submission as solidarity.

Freedom Doesn’t Fade. It’s Traded.

History proves that tyranny is not always imposed. It is invited.

What begins as temporary measures “just until the emergency passes” becomes the new norm. Power, once seized, is rarely returned. It calcifies into bureaucracies, entrenches into law, and becomes woven into the expectations of society.

Consider this chilling truth: much of modern tyranny arrives through legislation, not revolution.

It doesn’t storm the gates; it signs the bills.

Benevolence Disguises Idolatry

The danger is not just political. It’s spiritual.

When people stop trusting God, they start trusting government. When they reject God’s moral order, they embrace the State’s manufactured one. When they forsake the Church, they deify the regime.

In doing so, the people commit a quiet idolatry. Not of statues or shrines—but of systems. Bureaucracies become messiahs. Politicians become saviors. And the Leviathan becomes the god who gives and takes away.

The State becomes omnipresent, omnipotent, and omniscient in the public imagination—qualities once reserved for God alone.

But there is only One who has the right to rule the conscience of man. And He does not reside in Washington or Sacramento.

The Biblical Warning

Paul warned the Galatians not to submit again to a yoke of slavery. That warning applies not only to sin, but to any worldly power that seeks to dominate the soul.

Jesus is not indifferent to political tyranny. He faced it in Rome. And Scripture reminds us again and again: God is jealous for our allegiance. He will not share His throne with Caesar.

So when the State promises to protect us, provide for us, and parent us, it is not just offering services. It is demanding worship.

Where This Leads

In Orwell’s 1984, the State did not merely want control of actions. It wanted control of thoughts. Of language, of memory, of love. It is nearly prophetic.

Today, we see the same instincts playing out:

• The Truth redefined as hate.
• Dissent is labeled as misinformation.
• Dependence is celebrated as a virtue.
• Children are conditioned to trust the State over their parents.

What Must Be Recovered

We must recover the idea that freedom is not the gift of the government, but of God.

Here’s the truth: benevolent power by the state is a myth. Government is to serve, not rule.

The State may punish evil and preserve order. But it cannot redeem a man’s soul, raise his children, or shape his moral conscience. That work belongs to God, and to the institutions He ordained—the Church, the family, and the individual heart under His rule. The Lord rules overall.

We were made to live under God—with conscience alive, families strong, churches faithful, and a government restrained. Where that order is lost, so is personal responsibility and liberty.

The danger today is not that tyranny comes with a sword—but that it comes with a smile.

And so we shall always resist its growth.

Because when the Leviathan offers peace, it is always purchased with freedom.

And because we are not the State’s children. We are God’s.