How should Christians navigate obedience to governmental authorities?

Jeffrey D. Johnson challenges the notion that Christians should follow any state directive unless it explicitly contradicts Scripture. He argues that believers are called to obey the state only within its legitimate sphere of authority. This principle is akin to the jurisdiction we have over our families, where we may offer advice to others, but lack the authority to impose it. Similarly, the state should not overreach its bounds, especially in areas where it lacks divine sanction.

Johnson warns against the state's tendency to assume a god-like role, demanding total allegiance and control over individuals' lives. This elevation of the state to a place of ultimate authority is akin to paganism, where the government becomes a false deity. While Christians are called to respect civil authorities, this does not extend to surrendering God-given rights over personal conscience and family protection. Believers must discern when state demands infringe upon these divinely ordained rights.

Acts 5:29 (NKJV): "But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: 'We ought to obey God rather than men.'"

I've heard this statement, which I don't agree with, like, whatever the state says to do as long as it's explicitly against scriptures, then we do it. I don't hold that. I say whatever the state tells us to do within their sovereign sphere, we do. That's not against scriptures or violates the sphere in which they have. Like I have a sphere of jurisdiction over my family and I might tell your family or you who have your own children, I might say, you need to do this to your kids, for your kids.

And what I'm telling you to do is actually not sinful. So you can't, but I still don't have the right. I don't have the right to tell you how to rule your family over issues that are not my authority. So you can take my advice, you can leave my advice, but you don't have to submit to my advice because I don't have authority over your family. Well, the state doesn't have authority over a lot of these things that they want to take authority because the problem with the state is they don't believe in God.

They put themselves in the place of God and so the state has become a religion. And they want to have total surveillance. They want to have total submission. And they want to say, jump, we jump. They want to tell us to take this to do that.

This is them, this is the state, this is paganism where the state becomes God, it becomes a religion. It's a paganistic religion. And so yes, we submit to authorities, we civil authorities, local and national, but we do so without giving up the rights that God has given us over our personal self, preservation of soul and spirit, and the rights that God's given us to protect our family. So I'm going to protect my family from the state if the state is going to hurt or violate the freedoms of the conscience, the protection of my children.