Godly Disobedience

Coronavirus lockdowns have forced many places to close or change how they do business. For two months now, I haven’t been able to get a haircut, hang out at coffee shops, or attend most church services in person. Nevertheless, there are Christians who are quick to preach about “obeying the laws of the land” (Romans 13:1-6, Titus 3:1-2). I agree with that to a point. For example, no one should violate the speed limit except for policemen catching criminals and first responders trying to save lives.

Sometimes civil disobedience is necessary when a law contradicts the higher laws of God. These individuals in the Bible wouldn’t have fulfilled their divine destinies had they followed every man-made ordinance…

• The Hebrew midwives were ordered to throw newborn boys into the Nile River (Exodus 1:16). One mother hid her son for three months and then sent him floating down the river. Moses eventually led the Israelites out of captivity. 
• Esther went against protocol by appearing before King Ahasuerus even though it could have cost her life. Her actions prevented the Jews from being killed.
• Daniel and his three friends Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego refused to worship the king of Babylon and instead prayed to the true God. All of their lives were supernaturally spared.
• The early apostles were commanded not to preach in the name of Jesus. Peter responded in Acts 5:29, “We ought to obey God rather than men.”

Yesterday I exchanged emails with a fellow American who claimed we aren’t living in times of persecution. Baloney! For the past few years, Christian business owners refusing to support homosexual events have been harassed and fined. Lately we’ve had governors and mayors issuing threats against pastors and churchgoers just for having worship services. This goes against the First Amendment of the Constitution, which is the highest law of the land.

God hates rebellion but He is also against cowards tolerating godlessness. 500 years ago, a German priest named Martin Luther opposed corruption by the Roman Catholic Church that resulted in religious freedom for multitudes of people. This same country later allowed an Austrian named Adolf Hitler to gradually take away personal freedoms. Think that can’t happen here in the United States? Bad things happen when good people do nothing. 

A future law people should not obey is taking the mark of the beast. As A. W. Tozer once said, “To be right with God has often meant to be in trouble with men.”

But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge.” - Acts 4:19

The Six-Day War...50 Years Later

Tomorrow will be the golden anniversary of a noteworthy event relating to end-time prophecy. On June 5th, 1967, Israel launched attacks on six neighboring countries that amassed troops near their borders threatening invasion. The war ended just five days later. Despite being heavily outnumbered, Israel routed her enemies and possessed additional territory including the eastern half of Jerusalem. For the first time in 2,000 years, the entire city was in Jewish hands.

Since the Six-Day War, Israel has given up some of her territory in hopes of lasting peace with her neighbors. Shortly after the Gaza Strip was turned over to the Palestinians in 2005, rockets from there were fired upon Jewish settlements. The PLO’s charter still calls for the destruction of Israel.

This past week, President Donald Trump delayed his promise in moving the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, the eternal capital of the Jewish people. According to a White House statement, this was done “to maximize the chances of successfully negotiating a deal between Israel and the Palestinians.” Well-meaning politicians need to wake up to the fact you cannot negotiate with terrorists.

There will be a temporary peace in the Middle East when the Antichrist oversees the signing of a seven-year treaty (Daniel 9:27). Ultimately, war will cease in this region once the Lord Jesus Christ returns to see up His Millennial reign upon the earth. 

Are you ready for His return?

“And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.” - Zechariah 12:3

Supernatural Speeding

Christians are living epistles according to 2 Corinthians 3:3. Non-Christians carefully observe the actions of professing believers to see if they are “walking the walk” as well as “talking the talk.” One thing that leaves a bad witness is when God’s people don’t obey traffic laws. Imagine what an unbeliever thinks when he sees a Christian speeding with a “What Would Jesus Do” bumper sticker on the back of his car.

I’ve met a few Christians who tried justifying their need to speed but still found themselves in trouble. One morning I rode with a pastor who was running behind schedule and drove well over the posted speed limit on our way to his church. Despite having a radar detector in his car, this pastor got pulled over. Since I was from out of state, the patrolman searched my luggage to make sure I wasn’t transporting drugs. Fortunately for the pastor, all he got was a warning ticket. In spite of this, we arrived at his church much later than had he obeyed the speed limit in the first place.

There was another incident when a friend of mine went past the speed limit while driving me to the airport. When I suggested he slow down, my friend claimed speeding would help him avoid flying rocks. A rock hit and cracked his windshield just before we exited the freeway.

Then there was the time a man asked me to use his car to drive a female friend of his to work. When I showed up at this woman’s house, she insisted on driving since she knew the way to her workplace. Once we got on the freeway, she started going 80 miles per hour in a 55 mph zone. I politely asked her to slow down. She replied, “I don’t want to lose the job God gave me.” I reminded her what the Bible says about obeying the laws of the land (Romans 13:1-2). She got more defensive and so I quietly prayed in the Spirit. This woman was forced to slow down due to heavy traffic and still arrived late for work.  

Daniel 12:3 says that in the last days, “many shall run to and fro.” In today’s society, multitudes are constantly rushing to go somewhere. While street evangelizing, many people I approach won’t stop to talk with me because they claim to be in a hurry.

Christians don’t have to live under that kind of pressure. God can translate us if He needs us to be somewhere when we cannot be on time by natural means. Personally I know at least two people who experienced translations while driving. In 1992, a former girlfriend testified how God supernaturally got her to church one night faster than the 15 minutes it normally took to get there. When she left her house, the clock in her car read “6:25.” When she arrived at the church, her clock read “6:31.” She got to the church in six minutes without speeding.

Another friend of mine who was on staff at Calvary Campground emailed me a testimony of her being translated. One morning she drove 90 miles from Ashland, Virginia to Washington, DC where she was scheduled to speak at a church. She was running late and had to drive slower than the posted speed limit due to heavy traffic on Interstate 95. While driving through Northern Virginia, God suddenly moved her forward several miles and got her to the church on time.

Don’t let the busyness of this world prompt you to break the speed limit or do other foolish things that can create additional problems. Trust in the Lord and He will always help you be in the right place at the right time.

“The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD, and He delights in his way.” – Psalm 37:23