Matthew 2:3-4 (NKJV) When Herod the king heard this, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born.
King Herod the Great was the ruling authority at the time of Jesus’ birth. Threatened by the news brought about by the wise men, about how they had followed a star, and the King of the Jews would be born, he tried to hinder the work of God because he thought that Jesus’ birth would overthrow his kingdom. Likewise, the ruling parties of today’s various nations are afraid that they will be overthrown by the opposition parties’ schemes.
Romans 13:1(NKJV) Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God.
It is God who established the different authorities and governments in this world. God has taught us to be submissive to the ruler of our nation and not to create trouble. In fact, Christians are a blessing to all nations because well-taught believers are law-abiding citizens.
God is a God of order and not chaos. Therefore God’s people should also be people who respect law and order. The above Scripture teaches us to respect the law of the land. Jesus also said to give to Caesar what is due to Caesar and to God what is due to God (Matthew 22:21). Therefore, Christians should not evade tax, disrespect the law of the land, or bring chaos to society. We ought to pay corporate and income taxes to the authorities and tithes to the Lord. We are to work within the system to practise our walk with the Lord, and to make Him known to the lost.
John 18:36 (NKJV) Jesus answered, “My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not from here.”
All that we see and experience is temporal, and God is more interested in the eternal. Because many Jews at the time thought that Jesus would be the earthly king to deliver them from King Herod, Jesus clarified that His Kingdom was not of this world. When Jesus was arrested, He could have commanded six legions of angels to defend him (Matthew 26:53), but He never did because Jesus was not interested in the politics of this world. Therefore, as followers of Jesus, even though we might not understand why God has allowed certain people to be in power, we need to remember that it is the Lord who has placed them in positions of authority and pray for them because we have been taught to submit to authority and not to be troublemakers in the land.
Sermon Series: His Name is Jesus
尊重当地的法律
马太福音 2:3-4 希律王听见了，就心里不安；耶路撒冷全城的人也都不安。他就召齐了祭司长和民间的文士，问他们说：“基督当生在何处？”
希律王是耶稣降生时的统治者。当智者追随星象带来犹太人的王将要降生这一消息，让希律王受到威胁。他试图拦阻上帝的工作，因为他认为耶稣的降生将推翻他的王国。同样的，当今许多国家的执政党也都害怕被反对他们的党派使用计谋推翻他们。
罗马书 13:1 在上有权柄的，人人当顺服他；因为没有权柄不是出于神的，凡掌权的都是 神所命的。
上帝在这个世上设立了不同的权柄和政府。上帝教导我们要顺服万国的统治者，不要制造麻烦。事实上，基督徒是所有国家的祝福，因为受过良好教导的信徒都是守法的公民。
上帝是位有秩序的上帝，而不是混乱的上帝。因此上帝的子民也应该尊重法律和秩序。以上的经文教导我们要尊重当地的法律。耶稣也说过要把凯撒应得的给凯撒，把上帝应得的给上帝（约翰福音22:21）。因此，基督徒不应该逃税、不应该不尊重当地的法律、也不应该给社会带来混乱。我们应当向当局缴纳公司税和所得税，并将什一奉献给主。我们要在当地的体系内工作，实践与主同行，并让迷失之人认识祂。
约翰福音 18：36 耶稣回答说：“我的国不属这世界；我的国若属这世界，我的臣仆必要争战，使我不至于被交给犹太人；只是我的国不属这世界。”
我们所看到的、所经历的都是暂时的，而上帝更关心永恒。因为许多那时的犹太人认为，耶稣将是他们在地上的王，将把他们从希律政权中解救出来。耶稣明确指出，衪的国不属于这世界。当耶稣被抓捕，衪本可以命六个营的天使军团来保护衪（马太福音26:53）。衪却没有这么做，因为耶稣对这世界上的任何政治都不感兴趣。因此，作为耶稣的追随者，即使我们可能不理解上帝为什么允许一些人掌权。但是我们要记住，是上帝把这些人放在了掌权的位置上，基督徒应该为掌权者祷告。因为基督徒被教导要顺服权柄，而不是成为当地的的麻烦制造者。
讲章系列：祂的名字是耶稣！
Image Source: pixabay.com