Resources:
Doctrine of the Lesser Magistrate: https://defytyrants.com/store/book-the-doctrine-of-the-lesser-magistrates/
A Storm A Message A Bottle: https://enemies-within-the-church-film.myshopify.com/products/a-storm-a-message-a-bottle-a-road-map-to-american-redemption-by-rev-cary-k-gordon
5 Steps to Kill a Nation: https://enemies-within-the-church-film.myshopify.com/products/5-steps-to-kill-a-nation-and-how-to-stop-the-bleeding-paperback
A Theology of Medical Freedom: http://drkevinbaird.com/wp/2021/12/20/a-theology-of-medical-freedom-step-1-the-foundation-of-scripture/
Notes:
The Purpose of Government (Gen. 9:6, Rom. 13:1-5, 1Pet. 2:13-14)
In Genesis 9:6 we see the foundation of Government with the establishment of capital punishment. Civil Government was established with the purpose of punishing the wicked adequately and in turn defending the innocent.
Romans 13:1-5 gives the prescription of what civil government must do if Christians are to submit to it. Civil Government must be a terror to evil works and not good, bear the sword righteously, and execute wrath on those who practice evil.
1Peter 2:13-14 is to punish evildoers and praise those who do good.
The Spheres of Government
Civil (Gen. 9:6, Rom. 13:1-5, 1Pet. 2:13-14)
Ecclesiastical (Hebrews 13:7,17; 1Pet. 5:2-4)
Family (Col. 3:20, Eph. 5:22-25, Eph. 6:1-4)
Self (Pro. 25:28, Titus 2:6)
Concerning Unlimited Submission to Government
Positive Examples of Disobedience in Scripture:
Apostles (Acts 5:29)
God is to be obeyed over man
Egyptian Midwives (Ex. 1:15-21)
God blesses those who obey Him out of fear even when that requires directly going against Civil authorities.
People of Israel rejecting Pharaoh’s authority (Ex. 5-14)
Esther (Esther 4:13-16)
Accomplishing God’s will at times requires direct disobedience to laws even when the laws themselves.
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego (Dan. 3)
God’s law is higher than man’s law and God’s people are required to obey it even when it comes with grave consequences.
Daniel (Dan. 6)
Fidelity to God supersedes man’s laws. God’s people are to have ultimate allegiance to God and not man’s laws.
Historical Affirmation of Orthodoxy:
“Every one of the Twelve Disciples who Jesus, God Incarnate, ordained (with the exception of John) were committed to obeying God rather than tyrants, unto their own tortuous deaths by martyrdom.”
“ Therefore , if now the leader or Caesar proceeds to such a height of insanity only in that order of natural knowledge which governs the society of civil life and uprightness, that he abolishes the law concerning marriages and all chastity, and himself sets up a contrary law of roving unclean lusts, to the effect that the wives and daughters of all men are to be prostituted; and if he himself defends and prosecutes the law with force and arms, so that certain death is laid down as the penalty for those resist or fail to conform— in such a case, doubtless, no clear-thinking person would have any hesitation about the divine right and commandment that such a leader or monarch ought to be curbed by everyone in his most wicked attempt, even by the lowest of the lowest Magistrates with whatever power they have.”- Magdeburg Confession
“I will stand content for this present [time] to show that it is lawful to God's prophets, and to preachers of Christ Jesus, to appeal from the sentence and judgment of the visible church to the knowledge of the temporal magistrate, who by God's law is bound to hear their causes, and to defend them from tyranny.”- John Knox
“The king is as much bound by his oath not to infringe the legal rights of the people, as the people are bound to yield subjection to him. From whence it follows that as soon as the prince sets himself above the law, he loses the king in the tyrant. He does, to all intents and purposes, un-king himself.” – Jonathan Mayhew
“They are more properly ‘The Messengers of Satan to buffet us.’ No rulers are properly God’s ministers, but such as are ‘just, ruling in the fear of God.’ When once magistrates act contrary to their office, and the end of their institution when they rob and ruin the public, instead of being guardians of its peace … they immediately cease to be the ordinance and ministers of God, and no more deserve that glorious character than common pirates and highwaymen.” – Jonathan Mayhew
“When any office commands that which is contrary to the word of God, those who hold that office abrogate their authority and they are not to be obeyed. And that includes the state.” – Francis Schaeffer
“Unnecessary legislation is invalid legislation. Unnecessary government is tyranny.” – Charles Finney
“For I think a law that is not just, is not actually a law.”-Augustine
On the other hand laws may be unjust in two ways: first, by being contrary to human good, through being opposed to the things mentioned above—either in respect of the end, as when an authority imposes on his subjects burdensome laws, conducive, not to the common good, but rather to his own cupidity or vainglory—or in respect of the author, as when a man makes a law that goes beyond the power committed to him—or in respect of the form, as when burdens are imposed unequally on the community, although with a view to the common good. The like are acts of violence rather than laws; because, as Augustine says (De Lib. Arb. i, 5), "a law that is not just, seems to be no law at all… Secondly, laws may be unjust through being opposed to the Divine good: such are the laws of tyrants inducing to idolatry, or to anything else contrary to the Divine law: and laws of this kind must nowise be observed, because, as stated in Acts 5:29, "we ought to obey God rather than man."- Thomas Aquinas
“For earthly princes lay aside their power when they rise up against God, and are unworthy to be reckoned among the number of mankind. We ought, rather, to spit upon their heads than to obey them.” -John Calvin
“Loyal shoulders should sustain the power of the ruler so long as it is exercised in subjection to God and follows His ordinances; but if it resists and opposes the divine commandments, and wishes to make me share in its war against God, then with unrestrained voice, I answer back that God must be preferred before any man on earth.”- John of Salisbury
“Suppose there was a law passed in Washington D.C. that said you cannot go to church and if you do you will be fined and if you repeat the offense you will be jailed. We would know where we stood and we could stand up and put our chins high and say if God helps me I will never come under that decree, I’ll go to church when I please and I’ll pray to God as I want. My fathers founded this nation, dedicated to the proposition that every man should worship God according to the dictates of his own heart. However, that is not what is happening; the devil is too much of a strategist to treat us like that. He is busy brainwashing us and conditioning us little by little and feeding his ideas into the church. As the ideas of the ungodly enter the church the counsel of God goes out.” -AW Tozer
A Religious exemption to not defile your conscience even with a health concern (Dan. 1:5-17)
The King gave a portion to eat (Dan. 1:5)
Daniel’s conscience would be defiled so with sincere belief he purposed not to take the portion given to him (Dan. 1:8)
There was a health concern over Daniel’s choice (Dan. 1:10)
Daniel’s decision could have endangered others (Dan. 1:10)
God not only allowed but honored Daniel’s decision (Dan. 1:15-17)
Conclusion: It is and has been the orthodox position of Christians to recognize that God created four great governments — Civil, Ecclesiastical, Family, and Self — We recognize that these governments all have a limited scope. We believe that each of these governments should be obeyed to the fullest extent when they are within in their designated scope and that Christians should be exemplary in their behavior concerning all four governments. We also believe that a Christian has no responsibility to obey any government outside of the scope that has been designated by God.
Concerning vaccines, we sincerely believe and hold that vaccines are a matter of individual conscience and it is outside of the scope of Civil Government or any corporation to force any vaccine or injection upon an individual. We also recognize that some vaccines may be created with unethical means by exploiting the life of the pre-born through the use of human diploid cells. For this reason, we declare that it would be a violation of conscience and religious liberty for any government official, agency, or corporation to require or force a vaccination without permitting an exemption for those whose conscience is hindered in any way by the vaccine or injection including the COVID-19 vaccine in any of its forms.
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