SATAN’S ASSAULT ON THE GOVERNMENT FRONT (Part Two)

By Bob Myhan

onvinced by Satan that God did not have her best interests at heart, Eve not only ate of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, but "also gave to her husband with her, and he ate” (Gen. 3:1-6). The eating clearly was not the ideal will of God, but it was the permissive will of God. He al­lowed it [by giving man the ability to choose wrong over right, to begin with] although He certainly did not approve of it.

ain murdered his brother, Abel (Gen. 4:1-8). "And why did he murder him? Because his own works were evil and his brother's righteous" (1 John 3:12). God certainly did not approve of Cain's crime, but He “permitted” it, in that He did not in­tervene to prevent it. The vast majority of the human race later became so wicked that "the Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. So the Lord said, 'I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them.' But Noah found grace in the eyes of the Lord" (Gen. 6:5.9). Obviously, except for the family of faithful Noah, the whole world had rejected God. God had “per­mitted” it to occur, though He unquestionably did not approve of it!

hose who still have trouble accepting the concept that God permits acts without authorizing them should consider the case of Satan as he tried to induce Job to denounce God. Satan was permitted by God to use Job's three "friends,” but that does not mean God authorized them to act as Satan's ministers. God ordained that Job be tested, but it was Satan who both initiated the test and actually tested him.

od's purpose in allowing Job to be tested was good, while Satan's purpose in testing Job was evil. "You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by the Lord—that the Lord is very compas­sionate and merciful" (James 5:11). Obviously, "the end intended by the Lord" was not "the end intended" by the devil. God permitted, but did not initiate the tests; nor did He choose the means thereof, although He limited the devil in the latter’s choice of means.

hey should, also, consider the fact that "all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose" (Rom. 9:28). Though God does not cause "all things," He has ordained that "all things" will ultimately benefit those who sustain a proper attitude and relationship toward Him. He nei­ther caused nor authorized Joseph's older brothers to sell him to the slave merchants. But He overruled their evil intentions, and used their evil actions to bring about a positive result—the preservation of the family of Jacob (Gen. 45:4-8; 50:19-20).

od neither caused, nor approved, the actions of those who nailed Jesus to the cross, but it was in keeping with His "determined counsel and foreknowledge" (Acts 2:22,23). And He ordained it for the salvation of mankind.

hus God demands obedience but He does not prevent disobedience. He commands the disobedient to repent, and He will punish the impenitent eternally. Therefore, as important as it is to obey civil authorities, obeying God is essential. And when submission to man's laws would cause us to violate God's laws, "we ought to obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29). If we meet the demands of men and, as a result, fail to meet the demands of God, we will have sinned against God.

esus said, "And I say, to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!" (Luke 12:4,5).

nowing this, the devil will use our relationship and responsibility to civil government in his attempts to devour us. Paul wrote, "But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ" (2 Cor. 11:3). The word translated “crafti­ness" is literally "all working,” and means that Satan will stoop to anything and stop at nothing to corrupt our minds.

ut how does Satan take advantage of our relationship and responsibility to civil government in his attempts to devour us? There are three branches of government: legislative (lawmaking), executive (law enforcing) and judicial (law interpreting). Satan influences those in each branch of government, in seeking to accomplish his evil purposes. He sways legislators ­to create ungodly laws [laws that are not in the best spiritual interests of the people], He influences executives to enforce these ungodly laws, and He influences jurists to interpret ungodly laws as constitutional and godly laws as unconstitutional.

ut aren't these attacks on individuals? Yes, but they affect everyone who lives within the area that is being governed by the laws in question. By means of these laws, and the prospect of being punished—or at least penalized—for noncompliance, citizens are under pressure to obey man, rather than God. Some are even penalized for complying with God's laws. For example, take the so-called "marriage penalty." Mar­ried couples are taxed more heavily than unmarried couples that cohabit. Consider, also, the difficulty, in some states, of obtaining a divorce for fornication, not to mention the ease of obtaining a “no-fault” divorce.

lso, those who work for government agencies are pressured into compromising Biblical principles. Those who work in licensing bureaus, for example, may be obliged to issue marriage licenses to people who are not eligible for a scriptural marriage, due to an unscriptural divorce on the part of one or both of the parties applying for the license. Judges are under pressure to grant divorces in cases where there has been no for­nication, or where fornication is not the reason for which the divorce is being sought. One judge, in Alabama, came under fire [and was removed from the bench] for merely posting the Ten Commandments outside his courtroom [One wonders if opposition would not cease if they were called "The Ten Suggestions."].

he judicial decision that prayer and Bible study in school are unconstitutional is another example of Satan's influence in government. Still another is the legalization of the wholesale slaughter of unborn human infants. It is no wonder that euthanasia is in the process of being decriminalized, if not legalized.

uring the first century, Satan used civil government to persecute Christians. While "persecu­tion" is probably too strong a word to describe our present treatment by the government, it is all too obvious that our deep-seated convictions are certainly being less and less tolerated by law makers, law enforcers and law interpreters, thanks the adverse influence of Satan. But "we must obey God, rather than man" (Acts 5:29). &