Peter Allison's sermon, 'Our Duty of Submission to the King as Supreme,' draws from 1 Peter 2 to explore the Christian responsibility of submission to civil authorities for the glory of God. The sermon identifies submission and suffering as key themes, emphasizing that Christians should submit to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether to the king or governors. This submission, characterized by a glad acknowledgment of authority, willing rendering of honor, obedience, and acceptance of punishment, serves a higher purpose of glorifying God through good conduct. The sermon also addresses the limits of submission, noting that Christians must not obey civil commands that contravene God's laws. Allison stresses discernment in navigating contradictory commands from subordinate authorities, encouraging submission to the supreme law of the land, which, in the context of the sermon, is identified as the state constitution. Throughout, he highlights examples from biblical history, urging patience, prayer, and a Christ-like attitude in suffering and submission, ultimately reflecting God's glory in a complex and often challenging world.

1 Peter chapter 2. I'd like to read beginning at verse 11. 1 Peter 2, 11. At verse 11, verse 2, 11. Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul, having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works which they observe glorify God in the day of visitation.

Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether to the King as supreme or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good for this is the will of God that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men as free yet not using Liberty as a cloak for vice but as bond servants of God Honor all people love the brotherhood fear God honor the king Servants be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle but also to the harsh. For this is commendable if because of conscience toward God one endures grief, suffering wrongfully. For what credit is it if when you are beaten for your faults you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. For To this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that you should follow in His steps.

Who committed no sin, nor was deceit found in His mouth. Who when He was reviled, did not revile in return. When He suffered, he did not threaten, but committed himself to him who judges righteously, who himself bore our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, having died to sin, might live for righteousness by whose stripes you were healed. For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the shepherd and overseer of your souls. Wives, likewise, be submissive to your own husbands, that even if some do not obey the word, they may without a word be won by the conduct of their wives, when they observe your chaste conduct accompanied by fear.

Do not let your adornment be merely outward, arranging the hair, wearing gold, or putting on fine apparel. Rather let it be the hidden person of the heart with the incorruptible beauty of a gentle and a quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God. For in this manner, in former times, the holy women who trusted in God also adorned themselves being submissive to their own husbands, As Sarah obeyed Abraham, calling him Lord, whose daughters you are if you do good and are not afraid with any terror. Husbands likewise dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife as to the weaker vessel and as being heirs together of the grace of life that your prayers may not be hindered. Finally all of you be of one mind having compassion for one another.

Love as brothers. Be tender hearted and courteous not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling but on the contrary blessing knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing. For he who would love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit. Let him turn away from evil and do good. Let him seek peace and pursue it.

For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous and his ears are open to their prayers. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil. Who do evil. May our souls keep His testimonies and love them exceedingly. Heavenly Father, we thank you for your Word.

May you give to us a love of it. May you give to us an understanding of it that transforms us, that transforms the way we live, the way we think the way we act the way we speak We ask Lord for your Holy Spirit To come and open our eyes that we might be whole wonderful things out of your law. In Jesus' name, amen. Well, ordinarily we have, Well, ordinarily we have, in our sermons, service, have gone through books, chapter by chapter, verse by verse. And there's a lot of benefit to that type of structure.

One of which is that it keeps me from riding my own hobby horses. If I am picking a different topic every week to talk about, I'm a human and there are things that are more prominent to me than the other things. I would have a tendency as a human to gravitate to the things that I'm more familiar with, that I feel more comfortable with, or that I think a lot about. And so that can lead to a very lopsided preaching ministry. So we can avoid that by going through a book chapter by chapter.

It also helps to alleviate the concern that I'm preaching at some particular person. If I haven't chosen that text, if that text is simply the next passage that is in our progression through the scriptures, then it's a lot easier to refrain from somebody thinking that I picked that text just because of them. It ensures, When we do that, it helps to ensure that we cover all of the Scriptures, what all the Scripture has to say. So there are many, many reasons for that. That's been over the years, over the, I guess it's been about 14 years now that I have been preaching weekly that has been my My approach to do that, but in these times Here in the last month we have deviated from that on a number of occasions, and I want to do that again this morning to break our study of Proverbs and to look at this passage in Peter dealing with our submission to the King.

Because we're living in a time when things we have only read about before are occurring right in front of us. Things that we read about in history books are now happening in our midst. And it's in times like these that one's true character and beliefs Arise and we can talk the theory When we don't have to act but it's in a time like this when we have to act that our true character and our true beliefs are manifested because we will act according to what we believe. That's the way we are. And It's in times like these that we as Christians have opportunities to shine light in darkness.

And so in the context of all that is happening around us, Mass demonstrations. A lot of rhetoric, a lot of debate, not just among Christians, but even civilly throughout our county, throughout our state, throughout our country, that I thought it would be helpful this morning to look at this passage which if you I read a greater Context to to to show that this is a passage Where Peter addresses how are we to live? We are pilgrims and sojourners. How are we to live in this world which may not know God or fear God? How are we to live in a wicked generation?

And there are two themes, I think, that came forward in what Peter gives to us. One is submission and the other is suffering. In submission and in suffering. In submission to authority and in patiently bearing suffering, particularly, primarily, that suffering that comes when we are doing what is right. This Peter says is how we are a witness to the world.

This is how we reflect God's glory. And so I like to look specifically at our submission to the king. And that begins in verse 13. Therefore, therefore. That tells us right away that this therefore, submit, that this submission is for a greater purpose than just maintaining civil order and keeping peace.

Therefore, there's a reason here that we are to submit that points back to that our good works which people observe, that they may glorify God in the day of visitation. Therefore. So in other words, our submission isn't just about making things run well. It isn't just about, well, this is a way things will be better in your life, or this is a way things will be better in the country. It's a much bigger and greater purpose.

Our submission therefore is so that through our good works, Those who speak against us as evildoers may glorify God. The greater purpose in our submission is that God would be glorified through us. Peter has just finished telling us what we are, what we as Christians are. And it's a glorious heritage. He says we are the people of God.

We are a royal priesthood. Royal has to do with kings. Kingly. We are a kingly priesthood. We are a people who have obtained great mercy.

We are God's own special people. The center of His eye. We are all these things so that we might proclaim the praises of Jehovah God who has called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. Now how do we do that? That's what the therefore means.

That's what the therefore is pointing back to. We are pilgrims and sojourners on this earth. How are we to live? How are we to relate to others? And that's the question that Peter then answers over these next two chapters.

And as I said, that answer can be summed up in two words, submission, Submission and suffering. How we handle submission to human authority and suffering for doing good. That is what reflects most brilliantly God's glory back into the darkness out of which we have been called. Our submission here then preaches a sermon. We want it to preach the right message.

Therefore, Remember the purpose of our submission. The purpose of our submission is that we preach a right message, that we reflect God's glory back into this world. Therefore submit. Therefore submit. What is submission?

Therefore, submit. What is submission? Well, I would submit that it's four things. You could have five or ten, but I'm going to have four today. First it's a mission is a glad acknowledgement, a glad acknowledgement of the authority of the civil magistrate.

A glad acknowledgement. He has a noble purpose. It's given here. The purpose is the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do well. One is a magisterial purpose, the other is a ministerial purpose.

The one, in the one he is God's servant, that's what a minister is a servant, he is God's minister to bring God's wrath on those who do evil. He represents God to those who do evil, bringing God's wrath upon them. That is, that He is the one who sets the sentence by which the debt to society is paid. The punishment of the civil Magistrate does not satisfy the wrath of God for our sin, but it does satisfy the debt that we owe to society. So if we steal, the civil magistrate is the one who brings the sentence of restitution, whatever that is.

If there is a murder that is committed, the civil magistrate is the one who brings the sentence of capital punishment, of death. So he has a noble purpose, and so we need to have a glad acknowledgement of that authority. And secondly we need to have a willing rendering of honor. Submission involves a willing rendering of honor. Honor all people, yes.

Love the brotherhood, yes. Fear God, yes. And honor the king. Honor the king. We're to render honor to whom honor is due.

And Peter is saying that honor is due to the king. Then all that we do we need to do, we need to do willingly and joyfully. And so submission then involves a willing rendering of honor to the king. Thirdly, submission means in obedience, in obedience to the commands of the civil magistrate. Fourthly, submission involves an accepting of His punishment.

An accepting of His punishment. He is the minister of God. And We are to then accept His punishment, His sentence, as a servant of God. And so this involves even if we have done well and we are being punished for doing well. Peter's exhortation to us is that we accept that, we suffer that willingly.

And he gives for us Christ's example. He said Christ has suffered as our example, leaving an example that we should follow in His steps. If you do good and suffer, take it patiently, for this is commendable before God." Now he brings here submission to civil government, so we, and I will say brothers that this is primarily directed to you as fathers and husbands, that you are to be in submission to the King. Now Certainly that includes everybody, but as the head of a home, you are the one who establishes the direction of that home, or you ought to be establishing the direction of that home. And you ought to be the one as the head of the home who is representing your home outside the home.

And so you are primarily responsible for setting this submission to the civil magistrate. It is your example that is most important. Peter then goes on to talk about servants being submissive to their masters. Not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh. He's talking there about that scope of submission.

And then he goes on to speak to wives, specifically, in submitting to their husbands. And so husbands, if you want your wife to submit to you and to understand what you want done and to do it willingly, to render honor willingly, and to gladly acknowledge your authority in the home, then you need to ask, Are you submitting in the same way to the civil magistrate? What kind of example are you setting in your home? Think of and remember as you interact, as you think, what does my submission look like? Is this how I would want my wife to be submitting to me?

Servants submit to masters. Wives to husbands. Men, men especially. Men are especially called to pray. Everybody is to pray, but men especially are called to pray and I think men here are especially called to submit To submit to the civil magistrate to the king Now this Submission then is for the Lord's sake.

Submission is for the Lord's sake, but actually it is, before we get to that phrase, it is a submission to every ordinance. The submission that is called here is a submission that is comprehensive in scope, every ordinance. Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man. That's saying even if we don't agree with him, even if he's wrong, we're called here to submit to every ordinance of man. And submission is not really properly, or submission is not demonstrated until it is rendered where we strongly Disagree.

Submission is not demonstrated until it is rendered in a situation where we do not agree with what we're to do. Where we think it's not wise. Where we think it's maybe even foolish. Where we think they're wrong or mistaken. I mean this is what we ask of our children.

Who are called to submit. This is how our submission ought to be to the civil government. It ought to be to every ordinance. You know, and this phrase that, submit yourself to every ordinance of man, is something that has more and more been in my thinking. Over the years there has been more than one occasion when that has brought conviction to me that my heart, my thoughts, My attitude toward the civil magistrate has not been proper submission.

It has also been something that has preserved me on more than one occasion. From going astray in not submitting, there is protection in submission to authority. So we are called to submit to every ordinance of man. It's a comprehensive submission, but it is rendered here for the Lord's sake. Submission is rendered as our service to the Lord.

You see, it's not based on how honorable the civil magistrate is, how good the King is. It's not based on whether he's a good leader who inspires confidence in himself. It's not based on whether he is a charismatic leader who is able to attract people and motivate them to follow Him. It's not what it's based on. Our submission is to be based on our service to the Lord.

We're to do it for the Lord's sake. Submission to the King is how we serve the Lord. This was the basis, you remember, that Paul appealed to Philemon to accept his servant Anesimus. He said, do it for my sake. He said, do it for my sake.

If he's done anything wrong, put it to my account. The Lord is coming to us and saying that we are to submit for His sake. For His sake. Christ, or the King, rules as earthly representative, as Christ's minister. And our submission to Christ means that we submit to His ministers.

We can't say that Jesus Christ is our Lord if we don't submit to Him and to those whom He sends to rule over us. You remember Jesus told that story of the parable of that vineyard, where the man had a vineyard and he put some people in charge of it, leased it out to them. And then he would send his messengers To collect the rent and they despised his messengers. They abused them and mistreated them In doing that they weren't just mistreating some servant they were mistreating the the owner himself So our submission to civil magistrate is for the Lord's sake. But that also imposes a limit on human authority.

There is no human authority against which there is no appeal. And so the fact that our submission is for the Lord's sake imposes a limitation. We can't disobey the Lord. We can't in the name of obeying the Lord disobey the Lord. Our service, our submission to the king is for the Lord's sake.

It's so that we are obeying the Lord. And so we can't justify disobeying the Lord because we're saying we're obeying the Lord. That would be absurd. And so there is a limit here that is imposed. And We can look to many examples where when the civil magistrate requires us to sin, requires us to break God's law, then we need to not do it.

But we need to not do it in a very respectful way. In a way that still honors the civil magistrate. In a way that communicates our desire to honor him, our willingness to do so, our hope that he would modify his order to bring it into alignment with God's word. We can think of, for example, the resistance of the apostles when they were commanded not to preach. They say, we can't not preach.

We have to obey God rather than men. Stephen accused the council of lawlessness. He brought an accusation against them that they were acting outside of the law of God. Paul fled from the arrest of a civil ruler. David fled from the arrest of wicked civil rulers.

Paul was let down from a basket, meaning he had the cooperation of the church in Damascus. Peter escapes from prison by the hand of God, an angel. God sent an angel to break him out of jail. Paul made a demand of the civil magistrates in Philippi that they come down and release him themselves because they had abused their authority. Abraham went to war against kings.

There were Hebrews 11 speaks of people who subdued kingdoms. Or in 1 Samuel 14, the people refused to carry out the king's order in his rash vow to execute Jonathan, they refused. The soldiers that came to, that the king specifically, The king specifically sent to arrest Elisha, you remember Elisha called down fire from heaven on them and destroyed them. Another time Elisha, that was time, Elisha had the king's messenger arrested, who was coming unjustly. The priest resisted Isaiah when he was acting contrary to the law of God.

Moses executed the Egyptian as a sign from God. Moses was the son of Pharaoh. He had a civil authority. He avenged a wrongdoing. So there is a limit here.

But that limit is when the civil magistrate would require us to do something that God has specifically forbidden. So submission then is not, as we saw, doesn't mean agreement. To submit doesn't mean that we are agreeing. It doesn't mean passivity. It doesn't mean, and this is a temptation, well, if we don't agree we just become passive.

We don't think about what we're supposed to do and do it in an understanding way. We don't look at, well, what is the purpose of what I am supposed to do and how can I do it well, but we rather just become passive? We do the minimum amount. We don't say anything. It doesn't mean silence either.

And it doesn't mean not seeking to influence. If we think the civil magistrate is not being wise, then we should speak about that in a respectful way. We should appeal. We are submitting to the civil magistrate when We follow the process of appeal, when we come to them and when we speak to them, and communicate with them why we can't do what we're doing, or why we can't do what they have called us to do. So submission does not mean passivity, it doesn't mean silence, it doesn't mean not seeking to influence.

What it means is that when we've tried all those things, then we willingly render the obedience. Now there's another word here that I would like to point out as well, another principle here. And that is that we are to submit to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether to the king as supreme or to governors." The king as supreme or to governors. In saying that we are to submit to every ordinance for the Lord's sake, whether to the king as supreme or to governors sent by him, Scripture is recognizing that there is a hierarchy in civil government. The king is supreme and we must submit to him.

Under the king then are these governors that are sent by the king for the punishment of those who do evil and the praise of those who do well. So my understanding of this passage is that if the governors who are subordinate to the king, that this passage is saying that we submit to the king as supreme and or and we also submit to the governors that he sends. And the text is saying we need to submit to every ordinance, whether it's the king or the governors that he sends. That means we submit to the king and we submit to the governors that he sends. But what if the But the king is supreme and the governors then are sent by him.

And so what happens if the governor who is sent by the king commands something that is contrary to what the king commands? I think this text is recognizing that this is a hierarchy. We submit to the King as supreme and to the governors that he sends. But what if these subordinate governors command us contrary to what the King has commanded. Then what do we do?

Well, I believe that we need to recognize the hierarchy here, that Peter says, we submit to the King as supreme. So then in that case, We should submit to the King and not the governors who are commanding contrary to the King. We need to obey the King as supreme. However, let's say what the governor is commanding that's contrary to the king, it's not a sin. We might comply with it for wrath's sake, or we might comply with it for wisdom's sake while we appeal to the king.

In other words, there needs to be great discretion and discernment that we don't unnecessarily provoke the wrath of the king or the governor. So if the government, subordinate authority is commanding us contrary to the supreme authority, but it's not requiring us to sin, then we can obey them while we appeal. But I don't believe we are morally required to do that, because we are to submit to the King as supreme. And if his subordinates are many contrary to that, Peter says, we submit to the King as supreme. So the question then that we need to ask ourselves in our situation today is what is the King's law that we must submit to as supreme?

This is the first command of Scripture. But then we also have to ask what are the additional duties that God requires of us that may extend beyond the civil laws? There are often many more duties in loving our brethren than what is covered in the scope of civil law. Remember, loving our brethren, Romans 13 says, encompasses the whole of God's law. That All of God's law is summed up in this to love to love our brother and So there may be more, you know love the law the duty of love may May require us to do more to do something the civil government isn't requiring us to do.

See, that's called self-government. That's being governed by Christ when He rules in our hearts. Then we are willing to do what's right, even when it goes above and beyond what the civil magistrate is telling us to do. And so we need to keep these two things in mind. What is the king's law to which we submit as supreme?

And then what additional duties does scripture require of us so that we can be beyond the civil law, so that we can love our brethren, so that we can be obedient to God. Well, in our government, the state constitutions are the supreme law of the land. It's the state constitutions that grant authority and duties to the federal government. And where those duties have been delegated to the federal government, the states submit to the federal government but in everything else that has not been submitted or delegated to the federal government then in our system of government and you know if you live in a different country from the United States and you may have a very different system of government. And the law, the supreme law of your land may be different than what it is in our land.

To the people that Peter was writing to, Nero was the king and his word was the supreme law of the land. But we're not living in the Roman Empire, we're living in the United States. And so the supreme law in our land, as I understand it, is the state constitution. And where they have delegated authority to the federal government, then as a state we submit in those areas. But where they haven't, then the state constitution and the state is supreme.

And so the state governors, the legislatures, and the judges hold authority as God's ministers under the Constitution. See, in our land, in the wisdom of the people that established the government in this country 400 years ago. The power of the civil magistrate, of the king, is not held in any one person. It's split into three sections. And so the state governors, the state legislatures, and the state judges hold authority then under the Constitution.

This is evidenced in the oaths that all civil magistrates take to support and defend the Constitution. To take an oath of loyalty to something is to declare your submission to it. And to every governor, legislature, or judge in our land takes an oath of loyalty to the Constitution. In our state it says that I, wherever it is, officer, I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the duties of the office, whether it's governor, legislator, or judge, of the state of Texas, and will to the best of my ability preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States and of this state, so help me God." See, the governor is recognizing when he takes that oath that he is sent by the, He is under the supreme law of our land. He's stating his submission to it.

He states that publicly before all the people. He is somebody who is commissioned, whose authority comes, flows from our Constitution. And he is in submission to it. It means he has to obey the Constitution. And so the application of this passage, as Peter says it here, we submit to the King as Supreme in our government means that we must submit to the constitution of the state in which we live as supreme, the constitution of Texas, and to those lesser magistrates, the governors, legislatures, and judges established by the constitution for the punishment of those who do evil and the praise of those who do well.

And so today, when we are deciding what we ought to do, what does God require of us? Require of us. We can divide these cases, I think, into two broad categories. One case two broad categories. The is the civil one case would be the civil magistrate is forbidding or requiring an action.

And you can look at your handout there. The civil magistrate case one the civil magistrate is requiring or forbidding an action. If that action doesn't require us to sin Then we must obey. That's Peter's command, we must obey. If it requires us to sin, then we must disobey, only to the extent necessary to avoid transgressing God's law.

We can't exercise the power of the sword, we can't break valid laws. And even in our heart, we need to unwillingly, if you will, not follow, not obey the sinful command. We need to do it with the desire that we want to submit, not not lethal that we have an opportunity that we don't have to submit. There's a big difference. There's a big difference.

But now what if a subordinate magistrate gives us a command that is contrary to the supreme law? But It doesn't require us to sin. What is our obligation there? It's contrary to the supreme law. We're to submit to the king as supreme.

So I don't believe That we must obey in that situation. Because we need to obey the king as supreme. And when a subordinate, somebody subordinate to the king gives us a contrary command to the king, then I don't believe that we are obligated to obey. However, yielding obedience in those circumstances is often wise. It's often wise.

It's often wise. We might submit in those circumstances out of a duty not to unnecessarily provoke the wrath of the king. The Bible says that he who does that isn't wise. The Proverbs says that in a couple of places. We provoke the wrath of the king to our own hurt.

And we're not wise to do that unnecessarily. So it might be wise in that circumstance to submit. We don't want to let our good be evil spoken of. We want to be willing to field our rights so as not to give offense to others. We might submit so that our life is not wasted by pursuits of lesser importance.

You see, those are all different reasons. Those are all other reasons why we might submit in that circumstance. We're not submitting because there's a moral obligation to do that, to submit, to obey. Because the command is contrary to the supreme law. And we're to submit to the King as supreme.

Now, case two is the civil magistrate allows, if you're talking about the executive or judicial branch, or they authorize, in the case of the legislative branch, they authorize something. Now if that constitutes a sin, well we can preach, we can pray, we can fast, we can plead, we can lobby, we can minister and serve, but we can't wield the sword, we can't break righteous laws, and we can't participate in that action that is allowed Because that would be a sin now what if it's if it's simply contrary if to the supreme law then There are many many Too many things too many different factors that need to be considered to give a simple and clean answer. But I would comment that this hierarchy here establishes king as supreme and governors. And so what happens when the supreme law, human authority, is wrong? Then the civil, then the lesser magistrates that are spoken of here that come from the king, well, if it's going to, they have an authority as well.

And if the law, the supreme law would require them to sin then they need to disobey that law so that they do not sin as civil magistrates and Or if there is a law that is given that is contrary to the supreme law, a lesser civil magistrate can utilize his authority to stop what's going on. We have a number of instances in history where that has been done. These were the principles on which the war against England was carried out in the late 18th century. 18th century. The 18th century government did not claim that England was causing them to sin.

That wasn't the basis of the war for independence. They claimed that the King was acting contrary to the supreme law of the land under which the constitutions and the charters under which they were constituted as civic bodies. And they were arguing that the English parliament had no jurisdiction to pass laws for another country. See in their view what was happening, and I believe it's a correct view of what was happening, and there were even examples of articles in the English newspapers that acknowledge that acknowledge this to be so that what in their view what was happening would be like New York passing a law attacks on Texas and then using their National Guard and State Police Force to enforce it. See, we would recognize they have no jurisdiction, no authority to do that.

And so these abuses were all documented county by county so that the basis of this action was public and well documented. The Fairfax Resolves have received disproportionate recognition due to the prominence of the men in Fairfax County, but the same thing is going on in many numerous countless other counties in the United States. Now this is not a popular position among evangelical Christians today. Some of them have rejected or do not accept this principle here of the king as supreme and lesser governments. And John MacArthur is someone who takes this view, who believes that the war with England was a rebellion.

He says, over the past several centuries people have mistakenly linked democracy and political freedom to Christianity. That's why many contemporary evangelicals believe the American Revolution was completely justified, both politically and scripturally. They follow the arguments of the Declaration of Independence, which declares that life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are divinely endowed rights. Therefore, those believers say such rights are part of a Christian worldview worth attaining and defending at all costs, including military insurrection at times. But such a position, he said, is contrary to the clear teaching and commands of Romans 13, 1-7.

The United States was born out of a violation of New Testament principles, and any blessings God has bestowed on America have come in spite of that disobedience by the founding fathers." Well, you want to know My view on the war for independence, you can look at the, or not the war for independence, but our constitution, you can look at an earlier sermon a few weeks ago on God's covenant lawsuit, We discussed that. But I believe that in this particular case, in the war that preceded that Constitution, these people who believe that that was a war of rebellion have misunderstood the history and the Bible. We are to submit to the law as supreme and if in our government the king the the governor is under the supreme law of the land and It is proper for us to require him to submit to the supreme law of the land. He's taken an oath to do that. And it's not rebellion to submit to the supreme law of the land and require the lesser governments to do so as well.

Now, there is really a great warning here though. I think far too many people, especially today as I see, as I look around at what's being said, far too many people rush to resist when patience and waiting on the Lord are far better. So in applying these principles, I want to emphasize that we need to wait. We need to pray and to wait on the Lord where we don't have authority to act. Don't say, I will recompense evil.

Proverbs says, wait for the Lord and he will save you. Cease from anger, forsake wrath, Do not fret, it only causes harm. For evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait on the Lord, they shall inherit the earth. Secondly, remember that arousing the wrath of the king unnecessarily is not wise. Proverbs 16, 14, and 22.

And thirdly, we need to be prepared to yield our rights, to yield our rights to avoid giving offense to people. We need to be prepared to yield our rights where that is in the best interest of what is peaceful. Jesus Christ is the King of Kings. And all of this earthly submission, whether it's kings, whether it's masters, whether it's husbands, whether it's parents, this is all temporary. These governments will one day pass away.

Jesus Christ is the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. In the heavenly kingdom of which we are citizens, all of these governments pass away. Our earthly submission is an indispensable component of our submission to Christ. It's temporary, but also Remember that Christ is our example. Christ's submission to unjust authority and to suffering is our example.

He suffered for us, leaving us an example that we should follow in His steps. May He give us His Spirit to do so in a wise and discerning way. Almighty Heavenly Father, we thank you for your word that is sufficient for everything that we need to know that we might live uprightly in this present evil age. We ask, Lord, for wisdom to rightly apply your scriptures. We ask most of all that our lives might brilliantly reflect your glory, that they might be a reflection of Christ's example in suffering and in submission.

Ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.