How to Live Under a Government That Has a Faulty Moral Compass

            To Christians, it seems that our federal government is wading into some strange waters these days. Particularly in the areas of gender and sexuality, our government is increasingly asking us to treat as acceptable certain behaviors that we would deem to be sinful on the basis of the word of God. On these issues, our government’s moral compass seems to be pointing due south as the Bible points us due north.

            It’s interesting to me that some of the occupations that have been on the frontlines of all of this are represented right here in our own congregation. Florists have had to consider whether or not they would make floral arrangements for a same-sex wedding ceremony, and we have a florist right here in our own congregation. Bakers have had to consider whether or not they would bake cakes for such ceremonies, and right here in our own church we have a young lady who bakes cakes. Most recently, educators have been thrust onto the frontlines, and we have several teachers and administrators among us.

            For that reason and others, the question we’re going to discuss today is highly relevant for all of us. How do we live under a government that has a faulty moral compass? More specifically, how do we respond when our government asks us to do things that we may find objectionable?

            Fortunately for us, we find many principles and examples in the Bible of just how to do this, because many characters in Scripture found themselves living under governments that had a faulty moral compass. In the Old Testament, Israel found itself at times under the leadership of Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, and Persia. Every one of those governments had a faulty moral compass. In the New Testament, every character we encounter was in that situation because they were all subjects of the Roman Empire.

So what do we learn from them? How should we respond when our government asks us to do things that we may find objectionable?

1. Look for creative solutions, and suggest them with humility.

            In Daniel 1, we read about Daniel and his friends having just been taken captive from Israel to Babylon. They were placed into a training program that was meant to prepare them to become officials in the government of the Empire. They immediately faced a moral dilemma however, because the diet they were given did not meet the dietary standards of the Law of Moses that the Jewish people were given to follow.

            But Daniel came up with a creative solution for this conflict [READ Dan. 1:8-13]. Daniel’s creative thinking here is a great example for us. In the panic that we often feel when we find ourselves in a moral dilemma, it is easy for us to think that we may only have two choices available. In reality, there could be a third or even a fourth choice that would solve the problem in a way that would not violate our conscience. So when you’re considering how to respond, a little creativity can go a long way.

            Let’s make sure we don’t overlook the fact that when Daniel suggested his creative solution, he did so with great humility. He didn’t resort to a more coercive technique like a hunger strike; rather, he requested permission to try out a certain approach for a certain period of time. And he continued to respect the authority of his superior—he acknowledged that at the end of the ten days, the steward could decide to do as he saw fit.

            So Daniel continued to submit to the governing authorities even as he offered his suggestion. Along with that continued submission comes our second principle.

2. Be willing to accept the consequences of your actions.

            If you cannot obey what you have been asked to do, you should be willing to accept whatever consequences that you may have to face. Daniel set that example when he told the steward that he could do as he pleased after the ten-day trial period was done. His friends also set that example in Daniel 3 when they refused to worship King Nebuchadnezzar’s golden idol. Notice what they said to the king when they were called out for their disobedience [READ Dan. 3:16-18]. They knew full well that God could deliver them if He chose to do so, but if He chose not to, they were willing to face the consequences.

            The apostles set the same example in the Book of Acts when they were arrested for preaching the Gospel. They didn’t fight in order to resist arrest, nor did the other disciples organize an attempted jail break. The Apostle Paul put it simply in Acts 25:11 when he said, “If I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything for which I deserve to die, I do not seek to escape death.”

            So, even if we cannot obey a law that the government has made, we must still obey the government’s authority to enforce the law that it has made. If we choose to disobey that law, then we must be willing to accept the consequences.

3. Understand the role of your conscience and respect it.

            With some of the questions we are facing today, the proper response is debatable. For example, if a bakery receives a cake order for a same-sex wedding, is it wrong for the bakery to fill that order? The answer to that question is not cut-and-dried, so for that reason, mature Christians could disagree over the proper response.

            In these situations, your own conscience will play a large role in your decision—and it should! Your conscience is a God-given part of you that prods you to do what you believe is right. Notice that I did not say it tells you what is right. Your conscience can be misinformed, under-developed, or even dull if you have ignored it for too long.

            So your conscience is not an infallible guide to what is right and wrong, but nevertheless, we should respect the role that God means for it to play in our lives. In Romans 14, Paul wrote to the believers in Rome about a difference of opinion that they had about their freedom to eat certain foods or drink certain drinks. At the end of the chapter, Paul states that it is actually a sin for you to violate your own conscience on a disputed matter like this [READ Rom. 14:20-23].

            The principle that Paul lays out here is that it is a sin for you to do something if you are not convinced that that act is acceptable to God. Even if another believer feels free to do that act, you must not do it unless you are fully convinced in your own mind. God gave you your conscience for an important reason, and you should respect the role that God intends for it to play in your life.

Now, because of the possibility of disagreement among Christians on some of these questions comes our next principle.

4. Extend grace to Christians who choose a response that differs from yours

            Since the proper response to some of these situations is debatable, we should not fight with or reject those who choose a response that is different from our own. As we face increasing pressure and even opposition from outside of the church, we need more than ever to seek increased unity within the church.

            Some of our Christian brothers and sisters have faced crushing fines and the loss of income for following the dictates of their conscience. If that happened in our own midst, it would be terrible for us to turn away from fellow Christians simply because we might have chosen a different response to that debatable matter.

            Paul deals with this principle as well in Romans 14. In verses 10-12, he writes [READ Rom. 14:10-12]. We can certainly discuss these matters with tact and love, and we can even try to persuade one another to see the matter in a different light if we think it’s necessary, but let us not condemn each other or reject each other if we cannot come to a unanimous opinion about these situations.

5. Use legal means of resistance first, and do so with great care and wisdom

            Choosing to break a law should never be a decision that we rush into. If we have some legal ways of resolving the situation, we would be wise to consider those first. For example, if you find yourself in a dilemma like this in your workplace, you may have some resources through your union or you may have a provision in your contract about arbitration that would allow you to get a third party involved in the matter.

            In our country, we do also have the option of taking the matter to court if we feel that our legal rights have been violated. So for example, if you were wrongfully terminated from your job because you took a stand on your conscience, you could take that matter to court. That is a decision that still requires a lot of care and wisdom, and in the end you may decide that it is not worth the time and the expense that would be required for you to take that step.

            So, if we do have some legal avenues of resolving the situation, we should consider all of them first before choosing to break a law. And since our study today has grown out of our study of 1 Peter, we should remember Peter’s reminder in 1 Peter 2:11 that we are sojourners and exiles in this world. If we find our rights not being fully respected in a place that isn’t our real homeland, we shouldn’t be surprised, nor should we allow fighting for our rights to become our highest passion and goal.

            We are followers of Jesus Christ – our highest passion and goal must always be to fulfill the Great Commission by making disciples of all the nations. If we choose to defend our rights in court, we must not do so only for the desire to hang on to all of our personal property or to keep America a comfortable place for Christians to live. Those are merely nice fringe benefits in life – they are not our highest passion and goal.

6. Think in advance about what your "line" is in the context of your own life

            Where is the line that you simply could not cross? At what point would you have to say, “I cannot go any further with what I’m being asked to do!” Now, each of us may face different situations because of our occupations or other personal factors. No one is ever going to ask me to bake a cake for their wedding, so I don’t really have to think about a situation like that except perhaps to be ready with some advice and counsel for someone who might ask me about it.

            But I am a pastor, so what if the government started to give me more regulations about what I could and could not say from the pulpit? The government already tells me that I cannot endorse a political candidate from the pulpit, and I’m fine with that because frankly, I have more important things to talk about than Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton! But what if they started to give me more regulations about my preaching? Where would I draw the line?

            In the context of your own life, it’s important to think about this question in advance, because when the pressure is on it is far too easy to just cave into it if you don’t have your convictions firmly in mind beforehand. Now of course, it is very difficult to predict some of the situations that we may have to face. I’m sure we can’t anticipate all of them, but with a biblical worldview established in our minds and with principles like these that we’ve discussed today, we can be prepared to chart a course that will be faithful to God even when those in authority over us are not.