Separation of Church and State?
Q: Shouldn't God's law over-ride secular law?
A: More than a dozen Bible passages say that it's not an either-or situation; that they can co-exist in harmony.
1 Corinthians 10:29
For why should my liberty be subject to the judgment of someone else’s conscience?
2. 1 Peter 2:13-14
For the Lord’s sake accept the authority of every human institution, whether of the emperor as supreme, or of governors, as sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to praise those who do right.
3. Romans 13:1-2
Let every person be subject to the governing authorities; for there is no authority except from God, and those authorities that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists authority resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.
4. Titus 3:1
Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good.
5. Hebrews 13:17
Obey your leaders and submit to them ...
6. Romans 13:6-7
For the same reason you also pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, busy with this very thing. Pay to all what is due them -- taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, honor to whom honor is due.
7. Matthew 22:15-21
Then the Pharisees went and plotted to entrap him [Jesus] in what he said. So they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God in accordance with truth, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality. Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?” But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why are you putting me to the test, you hypocrites? Show me the coin used for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. Then he said to them, “Whose head is this, and whose title?” They answered, “The emperor’s.” Then he said to them, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”
8. Acts 18:12-16
But when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews made a united attack on Paul and brought him before the tribunal. They said, “This man is persuading people to worship God in ways that are contrary to the law.” Just as Paul was about to speak, Gallio said to the Jews, “If it were a matter of crime or serious villainy, I would be justified in accepting the complaint of you Jews; but since it is a matter of questions about words and flames and your own law, see to it yourselves; I do not wish to be a judge of these matters.” And he dismissed them from the tribunal.
Paul was in danger of being murdered by the religious authorities who didn’t approve of him. But he was spared because of the separation of church and state in the Roman Empire.
9. Acts 25:15, 18-20
[Festus says] “When I was in Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me about him [Paul] and asked for a sentence against him. ... When the accusers stood up, they did not charge him with any of the crimes that I was expecting. Instead they had certain points of disagreement with him about their own religion and about a certain Jesus, who had died, but whom Paul asserted to be alive. Since I was at a loss how to investigate these questions, I asked whether he wished to go to Jerusalem and be tried there on these charges.”
10. Acts 26:30-31
Then the king got up, and with him the governor and Bernice and those who had been seated with them; and as they were leaving, they said to one another, “This man [Paul] is doing nothing to deserve death or imprisonment.”
The book of Acts, especially chapters 18 to 26, describes Paul’s attempts to spread the Christian Gospel, and the church officials’ attempts to silence him. Several times, the separation of church and state saves Paul’s life. The spread of Christianity may not have been possible without it.
What about people who disapprove of what other people do?
11. Matthew 7:1-2
“Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. For with the judgment you make you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get.”
12. Matthew 25:40
[Jesus says] . . . ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’
To see the list of 80 Bible passages that promise eternal mercy and condemn those who condemn others, check out 'Sinners and sin' from the home menu.
What about those who ignore the commandments against judging others, and say they're doing God's work?
13. Hebrews 4:12
Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
14. James 1:26
If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless.
15. Matthew 7:21-23
[Jesus says] "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. On that day many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?' Then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers.'