I have found myself becoming increasingly uncomfortable in the past few months.  Decisions are being made in our local, state, and federal government putting Christians in compromising positions.  Many are being made to choose between their biblically held beliefs and, in some cases, their livelihood.  The latest story dominating headlines is a woman named Kim Davis.  Rather than issue a marriage license to a gay couple, as ordered by the court systems, she chose to go to jail.  It’s my understanding she was also given the choice to resign her position.  Instead she chose a jail stay.  I’m not impressed by her stance and here’s why.  Romans 13:1-2 specifically states, “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities; for there is no authority except from God, and those authorities that exist have been instituted by God.  Therefore whoever resists authority resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.”  We know through scripture we serve a God of order, justice, and the punishment of evil.  Do I think Ms. Davis should have issued the marriage license?  I proclaim a resounding—NO!  Doing so would have gone against the word of God.  But the word also tells us we are to obey the laws of the land.  Is that my Final Answer on this subject?  Nope.  Acts 5:27-29 reminds us of a stipulation to the aforementioned scripture.  Here we find Peter and the other apostles standing trial before the Sanhedrin.  They had been told by the government officials not to teach in the name of Jesus.  Their reply was, “We must obey God rather than men!”  From this we learn we are expected to obey the laws of the land unless they contradict the law of God.  There’s still another ‘BUT’ in there.  BUT-when we disobey the laws of the land we must be ready to deal with the consequences.  This too is illustrated in Acts 5:40-42 as we find Peter and John rejoicing in their suffering for Christ.

What’s your point, Brian?  Glad you asked.  Conservative media outlets and some Christians are touting Ms. Davis as modern-day martyr for the faith.  I boldly proclaim to this woman – make no mistake, you are not a martyr.  Far from it.  As Christians we must stand up for what we believe lest we lose our “saltiness” [Matt 5:13].  This woman is not a hero.  In my summation she simply did what I would expect any Christian to do.  Though, her jail time could have been avoided if she had resigned her position.  This may not be a popular opinion but her self-imposed jail sentence makes her look like a bit of a hypocrite.  As Christians we must take the Bible in its entirety.  We can’t pick and choose what parts we will follow and which we will not.  I understand her stance and support her choice not to issue the license.  In this instance, thankfully, the judge provided her a way out without violating her beliefs.  She purposefully chose not to take it.  Men and women of the faith are being martyred daily—meaning—they are actually losing their lives for choosing not to renounce Christ.  THAT is a martyr.  We are not there in the United States—yet.  But I have no doubt it’s coming.  We have already experienced glimpses of it.  Living a Christian life is going to become increasingly harder.  We are all just dead men/women walking and, oddly, I take pride in that fact.  My life is not my own and hasn’t been since I asked Christ to become my Savior.  It’s time we take a page from Jesus’ playbook.  Consider this—even as He was hanging on the cross He exclaimed, “…Father forgive them for they know not what they are doing.” [Luke 23:34]  Even as He was approaching death His heart was still crying out for the lost.  The world will continue to change and we Christians probably won’t like it.  But the fact remains our hearts cry MUST be for the lost.

Final thoughts and remarks:  As Christians we are called to obey the laws of the land.  But not at the expense of disobeying God’s law.  We must be prepared to lose all we hold dear in order to further the kingdom.  Turning the other cheek will become harder and harder but we must, “….choose this day whom [we] will serve..”  It’s imperative we know all the facts of a matter before we decide to jump on a bandwagon.  If our actions are going to bring reproach to the kingdom then we must stray from doing such.  What are YOUR thoughts?  I’d love to hear from you.  Leave me a comment below—but please be respectful of others opinions.  I’m not looking to open this forum as a debate on current events.