Authority
Some time ago I was driving through the city of Chicago, Illinois when I noticed a bumper sticker on the car in front of me. It said:
“Abolish Authority!”
How shocking! Imagine if there were no authority. No laws, no government, no police, no order or discipline of any kind. The Bible says, “For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: For he is the minister of God to thee for good” (Romans 13:3-4).
God has set up various levels of authority for the good and blessing of mankind here on planet Earth. We are responsible to recognize that authority and submit to it in the fear of the Lord, who, of course, is the supreme authority. In fact the only time we are justified in not submitting to earthly authority (which includes authority in the family circle) is when it violates the Lord’s authority and the authority of the Word of God. Then, and only then can we say, “We ought to obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29).
