God is calling me to submit to authorities
1 Peter 2:13-14
Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human authority: whether to the emperor, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.
Quick Story: A few years back, I ate lunch with Cooper at his school but I got frustrated. The policy in the school is that parents may only sit with their kid at a special parent table away from the other kiddos. I understand the safety precautions that have to be taken, but I felt as though Cooper was being punished by having to sit with me and miss out on time with his friends. He eats with me every night—it is not that special to him. I shared my displeasure with one of the teachers (a co-worker of Carlin’s) and I thought he was being unnecessarily punished.
As you can see, I don’t do great at following authority. I struggle being boxed in. I prefer to follow rules that make sense rather than rules that just happen to exist.
And then I read 1 Peter 2:13-14. Submit to authority.
Take note, what Peter is commanding is much bigger than what I was just bemoaning.
Peter is writing to persecuted people who are being abused, made bankrupt, ignored, and potentially killed by the authorities and he says SUBMIT.
Peter is writing to people who have lost their home, their business, their connection to the outside world because of their faith in Christ and Peter says SUBMIT.
We live in a divided world that fails to submit. I have read that 16.7 BILLION dollars were spent in previous elections because we do not want to submit to the enemy (I mean the other political party). When we lose, we fight. When we fail, we blame others.
As Christians, we must learn that we will not always get our way. There are places to fight for justice, equality, the overlooked, the hurting, but there are also times to submit. To leaders you didn’t vote for. To bosses who are selfish. To company policies that are unnecessarily limiting.
We follow a greater God than this world can offer. This greater God who is in control commands us to submit. So, even when it is hard, may we submit to the authorities that are over us and seek the good of our world in spite of difference of opinion.
