“13. Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme; 14. Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well. 15. For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men: 16. As free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the servants of God. 17. Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.”
Put yourself in this situation for a moment. Your driving down the highway! As you come around the bend you see a vehicle on the side of the road facing into traffic. Its not just a car you see, but also the pretty set of lights on top of the vehicle. Uh Ohh!! What is your first reaction? Most citizens will instantly tap the brake pedal because there is a good chance they are driving over the speed limit. He is another question. Do you live your life like that as a Christian? Is the Word of God really the final authority in your life? Another good example would be to those who love to hunt. As you walk out of the woods you see the game warden waiting for you in the parking lot. Instantly, your heart begins to race! You become very nervous! One of the big reasons for this is because you make it a focus in your life that you will do what you think is right rather than what the law says. Do you think God is happy with His own children when they feel like they have to slam on the brake pedal every time they see a light bar, or a turkey hunter that encounters a game warden thinks to himself, “Oh no, what am I going to say”? We would all be wise to not just read the Bible, but also, do what it tells us to do. Notice verse 13 again, “Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake…” The word ordinance means a rule established by authority. There was a time in Ohio when it was unheard of to see a whitetail deer and the turkey population was not even thought about. The reason for this is because there use to be no hunting regulations. Everything was fair game. Though the government may have many flaws, they did a great job establishing some ordinance’s to protect our wildlife resources. Do you believe the Bible? God wants us to be a testimony of Jesus Christ in everything that we do. You will have trouble keeping a right relationship with God if you pick and choose which ordinance’s you want to follow. God is very direct in Verse 13, He says, “for the Lord’s sake.” In the book of Acts, Peter was thrown in jail for preaching. The angel of the Lord released him and gave him direction to go back and continue to preach. The rulers came to him again and condemned him for what he was doing, but Peter responds, “We ought to obey God rather than man.” We have a responsibility to reach this lost and dying world with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Don’t ever allow the government to make you disobey God, but remember that if its not sinful, we need to be servants. Again verse 17 “Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.” So here is the big question. The next time you get checked by the game warden; Will your testimony allow you to witness to him? Or will you be guilty of a game law violation? Game wardens die and go to hell without Jesus Christ just like everyone else in the world. God didn’t save you to live in sin, He saved you to win the lost, including public servants. Make this hunting season be the most honest one you’ve ever had!
Memory Verse Week 4/27/20
“Honour all men, Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king.”
