|
Lectionary
22 TRINITY: 19 – 25 OCT. 2008
THEME: CHRISTIAN
CITIZENSHIP
READING: ROMANS 13: 1 – 7
When
we consider Christian citizenship, it is invaluable to keep in
mind that governments of any nation are ordained by God from
whom alone they receive their power and authority. They are
entitled to gather taxes from all citizenry. They must be
trusted and obeyed as we trust and obey God, the King of kings
and Lord of lords. They bear the sword to execute judgment on
the wrongdoers. Therefore, every person must be subject, to
them as long as their ways reflect the principles consonant
with the kingdom of God and strive to fulfill God’s intent for
His people.
A failure to understand the difference between
submission and obedience has caused some people to obey others
even in matters of sin. Submission without obeying an ungodly
command is possible as exemplified in the ministry of the
Apostle Peter. Although he made some striking statements in
1Peter 2:13-14, he refused to obey the chief priests when they
arrested and commanded him to not speak or teach anymore in
the name of Jesus (Acts 4:18-19). When Peter and other
apostles were arrested again, the Jews scorned them saying,
“We gave you strict order not to teach in this name…” (Acts
5:28). But Peter responded and said, “We must obey God rather
than any human authority” (Acts 5:29). This is the bottom
line: as Christians, we never obey any one if that would cause
us to disobey God. Remember that submission is an attitude,
not an action. But it will express itself through actions. The
example of Peter and other apostles is clear: they did not
obey the Jewish government official’s ungodly command, but
they did not rebel against it (Acts 5:41-42; Rom.12:14). In
Africa, we have not observed this understanding. Our
submission and obedience to governing authorities have been
almost blinded. We have ruined our own lives by blind
obedience even when we are faced with the most difficult
adversities such as poverty, diseases, epidemics, and
political and social tyranny. We have taken queue among those
who adore corruption; we have allowed our leaders to hoard the
wealth of our countries for themselves while millions go
hungry because they work without getting their due salary.
Paul is calling us to the conduct that reflects the kingdom
mentality, which honors and glorifies God. We should not
conform to the systems established by ungodly authorities that
cause us to disobey God. Instead, let us be transformed by the
renewing of our mind (Rom.12:2).
Submitted by Rev.
Prof. Kasonga wa Kasonga
PRAYER
Look Lord upon the
Christian people of the continent of Africa; as we are called
by your name, so may we walk worthy of our profession so that
those around us may be influenced by our conduct and give
glory to
PRAY FOR:
Zambia (National Day – October
24)
READINGS FOR THE WEEK
Isaiah 58: 6 – 12; Mark
12: 13 – 17; Acts 4: 12 – 21; James 4: 1 – 12; Daniel 3:8 –
18; Daniel 6:10 – 17 | |
|