Your puny little mind just can't get around the fact that no one is obligated to obey a command to violate what is clearly laid out in God's law. The passage that you don't understand deals with submitting to legitimate demands of whatever government God has allowed to come to power. Pay your taxes obey the laws of the land, etc but if the ruler asks you to do something like murder your neighbour then we are to obey God and not man. Of course we must then also be willing to suffer the consequence of our actions, whether that be jail time or even death. This is what Daniel and his friends did when he refused to bow down and worship a statue of Nebuchadnezzar under threat of death. This was their response:
Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17 If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. 18 But if not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.”
This is perfectly in line with the passage in Romans that you don't have a clue about. |
