Rejecting Human Authority
There is a time for civil disobedience. My first exposure to and understanding of the phrase was back in the 1960s (yes, I was old enough then to be aware of current events) when Martin Luther King led civil rights marches. He wrote about it, saying, “I became convinced that noncooperation with evil is as much a moral obligation as is cooperation with good” and said, “One has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws.” King was defending natural or divine law, codified in the Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights…”
As I gained knowledge of the scriptures, it became clear that civil disobedience was biblical. It was demonstrated by stories like that of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, who faced the fiery furnace for refusing the king’s order to bow to the golden image, an act of idolatry. It is also seen in Daniel’s refusal to stop praying to the true God after being prohibited by governing authorities. It was an act of civil disobedience in Acts 4 for Peter and John to refuse to stop preaching publicly about Jesus when ordered to keep quiet. We see their conclusion in Acts 5:29: “We must obey God rather than men.”
Under the right circumstances, civil disobedience is right, righteous, noble and biblical. Now the practical question for today is this: Does our current situation here in California, a governor who has once again decreed the closing of church doors for worship services during a pandemic, rise to the level of a need for civil disobedience? To know, it is important to follow the biblical patterns.
The Bible teaches clearly that government is an institution created by God. It is part of God’s prescription for order in the world. We are to submit to governing authorities. That includes bad government. Peter writes, “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority” (1 Peter 2:13). And in Peter’s case, we’re talking bad government! It didn’t get much worse than serving under Caesar. As far as is possible, we are to be good citizens, obeying the laws.
Civil disobedience is not the first line of attack when bad laws or leaders need to go. In our country, we have a system we can use to replace them. We should work as believers as much as we can to make a difference within the system and the opportunities we have. It means getting involved. Many Christians don’t even bother to vote! We should be aware, interested and involved in the process. That may even mean more Christians running for office!
If the law demands we do something that is in direct opposition to biblical teaching, something biblically immoral, or calling for denial of our faith and worship, we must not obey. When it comes to a choice, a clear choice between man’s law and God’s law, God’s law wins. It is at that point that the human aspect of the authority God has put in place must be rejected.
The problem comes in the interpretation of what is “God’s law” and what is not. When the governor says we must temporarily suspend in-person gatherings for worship, is that automatically a violation of our biblical mandate? Does it compare to the incidents listed above when others disobeyed authorities? Let’s see.
We see those in scripture refusing to submit to authorities who prohibit worship of the true God and demand worship of a false god. This is not that. We still have the freedom to worship, albeit in a way never dreamed of by biblical writers. We see the godly in scripture refusing to submit to authorities who prohibit praying to the true God. That has not happened with us. Again, it is a matter of context and venue for the sake of not transmitting the virus. We see those in scripture refusing to submit to authorities who prohibit speaking publicly about Jesus. We still freely preach the Gospel, no prohibition there.
We should be careful to follow biblical mandates, not emotion. It is important to submit to those in authority to the degree they do not require the violation of biblical, moral standards. And we need to be aware of our witness to a watching world. Are we showing them agape, or something different? If those things become impossible, or no longer apply, then godly civil disobedience is called for, right and necessary.
“But Peter and John answered and said to them, ‘Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.’”
─Acts 4:19–20