Andrew G. Stanton - Saturday, March 14, 2026

Few subjects provoke stronger disagreement than taxation.

Governments describe taxation as necessary for maintaining social order. Roads must be built. Courts must operate. Public institutions must be funded.

But from a libertarian perspective, taxation raises a deeper moral question.

If an individual refuses to surrender a portion of his income to the state, what happens?

Eventually force is applied.

Property can be seized.
Accounts can be frozen.
Individuals can be imprisoned.

At its core, taxation is therefore not voluntary.

It is backed by coercion.

This reality leads many libertarians to conclude that much of modern taxation resembles a form of legalized taking — what some bluntly call theft.

Whether one accepts that conclusion or not, the tension between state authority and personal liberty is real.

And it has existed throughout human history.

Ancient empires extracted tribute from conquered peoples.

Kings demanded levies from their subjects.

Bureaucracies expanded as states grew larger and more complex.

The Bible itself records moments when rulers imposed heavy burdens on the people.

For example, the prophet Samuel warned Israel about the consequences of demanding a king.

“He will take the tenth of your grain and of your vineyards…
He will take your male servants and female servants…
and you shall be his slaves.”
— 1 Samuel 8:15–17

Samuel’s warning was remarkably clear.

Human rulers tend to expand their claims over the lives and labor of the people they govern.

Power has a natural tendency to grow.

Against this backdrop, the Sabbath command introduces an extraordinary limitation.

“Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God.”
— Exodus 20:9–10

This command does something radical.

It places a boundary around human labor.

Six days may belong to work, commerce, and economic systems.

But the seventh day belongs to God.

No ruler may claim it.

No economic system may demand it.

No authority may override it.

The Sabbath establishes that human time ultimately does not belong to the state.

It belongs to God.

This principle had profound social implications in ancient Israel.

Even the lowest members of society were protected by Sabbath.

Servants rested.

Foreigners rested.

Even animals rested.

The economic machine stopped.

This interruption communicated something powerful.

Human beings are not merely instruments of production.

Our labor cannot be claimed indefinitely by earthly systems.

Even kings operate under limits established by God.

In the modern world, the expansion of government has blurred many of these boundaries.

Tax codes grow more complex.

Public spending increases.

Entire bureaucratic systems depend on redirecting large portions of human productivity.

From a libertarian perspective, this raises a legitimate concern.

When too much of human labor is claimed by political institutions, the balance between authority and liberty begins to break down.

The Sabbath principle offers a reminder that such limits are necessary.

Even if governments collect taxes.

Even if societies organize large institutions.

There must remain boundaries that protect the dignity and freedom of human life.

Jesus acknowledged the reality of political authority when he said:

“Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”
— Matthew 22:21

But notice that this statement contains two distinct claims.

Some things belong to Caesar.

But other things belong to God.

Sabbath reminds us that human life ultimately belongs in that second category.

No earthly authority owns our time completely.

No institution has the right to consume the entirety of our existence.

One day each week, the system pauses.

The state pauses.

The economy pauses.

The world pauses.

And in that pause we remember something essential.

Our lives do not belong to Caesar.

They belong to God.

Work With Me

If you’re exploring:

• Nostr authentication
• Sovereign identity infrastructure
• AI-assisted workflows
• Local-first containerized systems

I offer a limited number of advisory and implementation sessions for builders, teams, and ministries working in these areas.

Typical engagements include:

• Architecture session (90 minutes) – $500
• Implementation sprint – starting at $2,500
• Ministry / Foundation advisory engagement – $2,500

Early Adopters

I’m also looking for early adopters interested in running Continuum, a local-first publishing and identity system built on Nostr.

There is no cost for early adopters, and I’m happy to personally help with installation and setup.

Even if you’re just curious and want to see how it works, feel free to reach out.

Feedback from early adopters directly influences the direction of the project.

Contact: andrewgstanton@gmail.com
or DM on Nostr:

@9wvc…guvd

You can also support this work as a Continuum Patron ($250).

NOTE: If you directly pay in sats it is automatically 10% off any engagement or purchase.