Each author of the Bible, from Moses to Paul, from Isaiah to John, was a radical in their time. They weren’t simply writing religious texts—they were breaking through a systemic oligarchy, challenging power structures that had calcified into control, corruption, and comfort. The prophets of old—and Christ most of all—were not applauded by the elite. They were feared, resisted, and ultimately silenced by the same kinds of systems we face today.
As Noam Chomsky insightfully declared: “The goal of modern propaganda is not to inform, but to shape perception.” The gatekeepers of every age—Pharisees, kings, emperors, and now bureaucrats, media moguls, and technocrats—aren’t simply protecting people. They are protecting perception, and thus protecting their position.
Gatekeepers and the System of Comfort
The system rewards gatekeepers. These are the teachers, leaders, bureaucrats, and influencers who say what the system wants them to say:
- They are praised for upholding “order.”
- They are rewarded with titles, salaries, and recognition.
- They are protected as long as they don’t challenge the comfort of Babylon.
But Christ warned us about this very deception:
“It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.” —Matthew 19:24
Why? Because the rich man, like the system’s gatekeepers, has more to lose in the eyes of the world. Their comfort becomes their cage. Their wealth becomes their blindness.
Radicals: The Prophets of Awareness
True prophets aren’t radical because they are louder or smarter—they are radical because they see. And they hold up a mirror.
- They disturb the comfort of those who prefer darkness.
- They refuse to serve two masters.
- They speak inconvenient truths that awaken the sleeping and unsettle the entrenched.
As Isaiah warned:
“Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness…” —Isaiah 5:20
This is the age-old reversal. The radicals are demonized. The gatekeepers are sanctified. Truth is distorted. Awareness is resisted.
Why Radicals Are Feared
Society doesn’t fear radicals because they’re dangerous—it fears them because they reveal what people don’t want to see about themselves. The radical’s awareness threatens the illusion. Their vision exposes the lie. And so, the system attacks not their intelligence, but their influence.
“The radical invents the views, but when he has worn them out, the conservative adopts them.” —Mark Twain
Radicals are rarely honored in their own time. They plant seeds, knowing that future generations will eat the fruit—but only after the planter has passed beyond the veil.
Planting Seeds, Not Chasing Applause
“Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds that you plant.” —Robert Louis Stevenson
The true radical is not seeking applause—they are seeking awakening. They drop seeds in the soil of hearts and cultures, knowing that they may never see the bloom. Like Christ, they may be rejected while alive, and revered only after the system that tried to silence them falls apart.
“When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years.” —Mark Twain
We are often blind to the wisdom standing before us—until life, suffering, and time ripen our understanding.
Conclusion: Break the Ceiling, Plant the Seeds
The radicals of scripture and history didn’t break ceilings of power—they broke ceilings of growth. They shattered the illusions of complacent culture and invited people to stretch, to question, to choose a higher path.
In a world that rewards gatekeeping and punishes vision, be the one who plants. Be the one who awakens. Be the one who reflects uncomfortable truths—not to shame, but to heal.
Zion is built by radicals. Babylon is maintained by gatekeepers. Choose your role. And don’t expect a reward—expect resistance. But also expect fruit. In time, the seeds will speak.
