Anatomy of a Word - Liberal versus Conservative

I was rather surprised when I looked up the word liberal in a Bible concordance; it was actually there!  That's right, being liberal is a biblical concept.  Too bad those labeled liberals today do not come anywhere close to the biblical term.

The liberal soul shall be made fat: and he that watereth shall be watered also himself. Proverbs 11:25 (KJV)

A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.
Proverbs 11:25 (NIV)

From this verse we see that a liberal person in the Bible is one who is generous in their giving.  Such a person will prosper. 

Whiles by the experiment of this ministration they glorify God for your professed subjection unto the gospel of Christ, and for your liberal distribution unto them, and unto all men; 2 Corinthians 9:13 (KJV)

Translated - Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, men will praise God for the obedience that accompanies your confession of the gospel of Christ, and for your generosity in sharing with them and with everyone else.  2 Corinthians 9:13 (NIV)

There's that word again - generous.  A liberal person is generous in THEIR giving.  Today's "liberals" are generous in giving except they spend all their time giving other peoples money away.  In fact, they use the power of government to force others to be more "generous" in their giving.  Isn't thief a better term for those who take from some to give to others?

I am all for paying taxes and paying my share for the benefits I receive from the government - national defense, police, fire, etc.  I think the politics played with our tax systems is despicable.  That's why I support the FairTax - you can't play politics with a set tax code; if you do, you get fired!

As for being conservative, according to the dictionary they are "disposed to preserve existing conditions, institutions, etc., or to restore traditional ones, and to limit change." Now, I kind of hang around this definition. The worst problem about being conservative is that a conservative can react too slowly to needed change.  As power hungry as the Republican Party became several years ago, I think much of their indecision was due to a lack of urgency - being too conservative.

I think we need to aim to become conservative liberals.  We need to learn how to give generously without being coerced or mandated or forced.  While doing this, we should also learn that giving is not for show. Chew on that for a while.  Let's take back the word liberal, and let's all become more generous!  Let me know your thoughts on this.