Good morning my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
Have you ever found yourself in a situation which is referred to as “being stuck between a rock and a hard place”? Specifically, have you found yourself expected, or instructed by an authority over you, to do something that is contrary to your personal ethics or morals or even contrary to God’s Word? What did you do in that situation?
These days we are spending time with the apostle Peter as he is writing his first letter to Christians scattered all across the Roman Empire in the first century. The Roman Empire Caesar was Nero who reigned from 54-68ad and increasingly through those years Nero became more and more ‘anti-Christian”. Persecution of Christians increased regularly, to the point that an Empire wide ethnic cleansing took place near the end of his reign resulting in the horrific torture and death of thousands of Christians.
Daily Christians found themselves stuck between trying to live God honoring lives while challenged to obey a wicked, evil, anti-God government and military which seemed intent on destroying the Christian movement by threatening and killing the Christians. Perhaps you find yourself in a similar situation, depending on where you live in our world in 2023?
Let’s join Peter again as he rolls out his parchments to write some very important words for Christians living in times and places where God’s standards, principles and laws put a Christian in conflict with the laws, principles and standards of those in authority over them. Do you feel that today? That conflict could happen in the place of employment where a boss demands that employees do something contrary to God honoring living or God honoring ethics; or the classroom where a teacher demands the student agree with something contrary to God’s truth; or in health care where a government law demands that a medical professional do something contrary to God’s truth or morality. Or it can happen when governments pass laws, all types of laws, which seem opposed to Christians living God honoring lives or even Christians gathering to worship God. Do you recognize this happening around our world in 2023?Peter is writing… 1 Peter 2:13: “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority, whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, or to governors who are sent by the emperor to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. For it is God’s will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil, live as God’s people. Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of Christ followers, fear God, honor the emperor.” Now that is quite a statement and we need to look closely, for it affects how you and I live every day in every society of the world.
First, I see these words call us to be honorable, law-abiding citizens no matter what country or city we live in. On the surface, I’m sure we all agree a peaceful society is established when its citizens live honorably according to the code of ethics in that society. However, there is a fundamental issue that must be seen clearly in these words of Peter. The issue is the standard of TRUTH and MORALITY. Notice Peter’s words: “…governors who are sent by the emperor to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.“ That presumes a truthful, God honoring standard of what is ‘do wrong’ and what is ‘do right’! In Isaiah 45:19 God says: “I the LORD speak the TRUTH, I declare what is RIGHT.” That is clear, isn’t it? God alone defines the ultimate TRUTH standard and God alone defines the ultimate MORAL right and wrong standard for the human race and planet earth and our universe! Why? Because God created the human race and designed how we should live, and God created planet earth and our universe and set it all into motion according to His design!
Whenever a human law or statement is put into effect which is contrary to God’s TRUTH or God’s MORALITY the author of that law, and those who attempt to enforce it, have placed themselves above God and in direct opposition to God Himself, and they will stand accountable before God for that action!
Now ponder that a moment my friends! That powerful truth is found throughout God’s Word but here’s one of my favorite, very clear statements on this: Hebrews 4:13 “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of God to whom we must give account.” And Hebrews 9:27 “It is appointed unto man to live one life and after this to face God’s judgement.” So, my friends, is anything unclear about those statements of God?
The challenge for us, who seek to live our lives in honor and obedience to God’s TRUTH and God’s MORALITY is: what do we do when demands are placed upon us which are contrary to God’s TRUTH or God’s MORALITY? The answer is that we always live in alignment with God’s higher standard, even if that puts us into conflict with human laws or ethics or morals. I offer you two specific examples from Scripture…
First, Daniel who was an advisor to the Emperor of the Babylonian kingdom, King Nebuchadnezzar, the most powerful man on earth. Nebuchadnezzar issued an edict that prayer should not be offered to anything or anyone other than himself, the supreme emperor. The threat was death by being thrown into the den of lions if this law was broken. Daniel was a man who faithfully prayed to Almighty God daily. God’s standard was clear: “You shall have no other gods before Me.” (Ex. 20:3) “You shall not bow down or worship any other god…” (Ex. 20:4) What should Daniel do, stop praying to God or pray in solitude and privacy? Daniel sustained his commitment to honor God and Daniel disobeyed the human law which had been established in opposition to God. Daniel prayed three times daily, to Almighty God, as was his custom, in his customary place. Daniel had broken the law of the land and was thrown to the lions. Daniel writes with his own hand how God rescued him from those lions in Daniel 6!
Peter faced a similar situation as recorded in Acts 4 when he and the disciples were commanded to NOT speak at all about Jesus and His resurrection. Peter’s response was: “We cannot obey you and disobey God. We must not be silent, for we must speak of what we have seen and heard.” (Acts 4:19,20) The result? Peter and the disciples were flogged, beaten horrifically for their refusal to obey the demand of those human authorities! And Peter’s response to the flogging? “The authorities had them flogged…. The apostles left rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name of Jesus.” (Acts 5:40,41)
Do you see with both Daniel and Peter, they felt compelled to live according to the higher law of God! Why? Because at the end of time, when we all stand accountable before God, every person, including those in leadership who make laws or give commands to their subordinates, will stand in accountability before God and His standard of Truth and His standard of Morality!
Now ponder that my friends! Today, God is calling us to live God honoring lives by living in respect of all human authority over us and being obedient to the instructions and expectations of those authorities… AS LONG AS those human authorities do not demand that we oppose God or God’s Truth or God’s Morality in our obedience to them!
As long as human authorities are submissive to God’s authority, we Christians, followers of Jesus Christ, can live in simultaneous obedience to both human and God authority. But the moment the human authority turns rebellious against God’s authority, then we must stand firm in our submission to God’s authority even if that puts us into rebellion against human authority over us.
Sometimes that will bring us into human punishment, but even then, we remember that we live our lives for the honor of God, and we live always in full alignment with HIS truth and HIS morality, looking forward to the day we live in HIS presence for eternity where and when there will be no evil and everyone will bow before Jesus! (Phil. 2:9-11) And here’s a song to help us celebrate this courage, my friends!
Today’s Scripture is 1 Peter 2:13-17.
Choose below to read or listen.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
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Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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