The trivial answer is that what the US government says is irrelevant to me because I am British. The more serious answer is that if I choose to visit a foreign country I must abide by its laws while I am resident there. If I am not willing to obey the laws of North Korea, I shouldn't be in the country in the first place.
Fair enough.
Does it? Do you mean that if a person in authority threatened to shoot you if you bored a hole in the ear of one of your slaves or if you made your wife drink 'the water that brings out the truth' that was likely to cause a miscarriage, you would go ahead and risk being shot? You said that you would obey the Bible regardless of the consequences, but you asked me whether I would do something that I believed to be wrong if I was threatened with death for disobedience. What the Bible commands and what is morally right are often two different things. What I am trying to find out is whether you would obey the commands of the Bible even when most people would regard those commands as morally wrong.
Hmmmm.
I don't think this is so hard.
What period am I living at, and what location, and nation?
Am I living more than 3000 years ago? Am I an Israelite? Am I living in the present?
What do you want me to be, and what time period, and what location?
Maybe give me those details. That way I can answer in a more specific way, such that you might understand what I am saying.
I'm trying to show you that you are using unrelated questions. The time, place, and circumstances matter.
Do you understand what I said earlier?
1.
Christians are not commanded by God to keep slaves. They are under the law of Christ.
God allowed and gave certain instructions to a nation living at a time, and in conditions that called for particular circumstances. God tolerated those for a time.
The Israelite who were under theocratic rule (ruled by God) - not human dictatorship, nor democratic, nor any other man-made rule, obeyed God.
Is that clear... I mean, do you understand that?
2.
If God makes any request or command for a Christian, through his anointed - the Messiah, who proved to be Jesus Christ, as a Christian, I take the stand the apostles, or followers of Christ take (Acts 5:29).
Christians have died at the hands of rulers for refusing to break God's laws - both past, and at present.... and they will continue to do so in the future.
Do you understand?
So have your questions been answered?
Let me see if this can help further.
The judges in Israel were given this command...
(Leviticus 20:2) ...
Any man of Israel and any foreigner who resides in Israel who gives any of his offspring to Moʹlech should be put to death without fail. The people of the land should stone him to death.
This was a command from the ruler of the nation of Israel. Simple -
"Put to death... by stoning, anyone who sacrifices his children to a god."
This is not the law of God, to Christians - his people living after the Messiah's removing the handwritten document that consisted of decrees. . . (Colossians 2:14; Ephesians 2:13-15)
Rather, the law that Christians follow - the law of the Christ, includes this...
(Romans 13:1-7)
1 Let every person be in subjection to the superior authorities, for there is no authority except by God; the existing authorities stand placed in their relative positions by God.
2 Therefore, whoever opposes the authority has taken a stand against the arrangement of God; those who have taken a stand against it will bring judgment against themselves. 3 For those rulers are an object of fear, not to the good deed, but to the bad. Do you want to be free of fear of the authority? Keep doing good, and you will have praise from it; 4 for it is God’s minister to you for your good. But if you are doing what is bad, be in fear, for it is not without purpose that it bears the sword. It is God’s minister, an avenger to express wrath against the one practicing what is bad. 5 There is therefore compelling reason for you to be in subjection, not only on account of that wrath but also on account of your conscience. 6 That is why you are also paying taxes; for they are God’s public servants constantly serving this very purpose. 7 Render to all their dues: to the one who calls for the tax, the tax; to the one who calls for the tribute, the tribute; to the one who calls for fear, such fear; to the one who calls for honor, such honor.
So, a Christian, who obeys God's law, is required to obey the law of the land.
God does not require anyone to execute a wrongdoer, since he has left that in the hands of the ruling authorities. Even so, God's law does not require Christians to execute anyone today, because his government is in Jesus' hands, to render future judgment.
However, the law of one land differs from one place to another. Morals differ from one place to another.
For example...
* Religious freedom is not the same for every country. One may be hindered from carrying a Bible, owning a Bible, or even engaging in particular features of worship - like public ministry.
* Conscientious objection is not the same in every nation. One can be imprisoned where they may be subjected to torture and other inhumane treatment for refusing to be drafted into the military.
* Morality is not the same in every nation. Under some tribal rulers in Africa, one may be requested by the chief, to allow one's wife to have sexual intercourse with another man, or several men.
As a Christian nation under God's rule, how should a Christian respond?
This is where the line is drawn.
Since Christians are united wherever they are (when I say Christians, I do not mean Christian, as is understood by society today. See here for an explanation on that.), they do not take part in wars of a physical nature... period; they do not practice, or condone immorality - fornication ( adultery, homosexuality, bestiality...); they do not stop worshiping God - practicing their faith, for any man.
So under such situations, they would face whatever action is taken against them - be it prison, torture, or death... or all three.
This is actually taking place in some land, right this minute.
Jesus said it would happen, so it's nothing Christians are surprised about. John 15, 17
Consider too, that there is currently, no one world government, so if anyone want to tell a Muslim nation, under its own laws, not to execute criminals, or chop of a hand or foot, as a punishment for a crime, then they may as well be prepared to fight that nation. If sanctions don't work, then maybe they might want to prepare their military, and send some soldiers to their death... or they could drop a nuke and wipe out man, woman, and child. They won't have to worry that a nation is not following their morals, and laws.
The fact is, there are nations that do not want anyone telling them how to govern their nation.
That's what it's about, isn't it? Control. Power. Superiority.
Christians are law abiding, peaceful citizens, only carrying out their worship.
As long as they are not taking up weapons, and murdering someone, or carrying out sexual crimes... things of those nature - which Christians don't do, then
anyone that wants to control them, and force them to do things against their conscience - like take up a weapon, to kill, or stop reading and using the Bible, or using their freedom of speech to share with interested persons - are really the criminals, imo.
We won't fight them, nor hate them. God is their judge.
We just obey God.
If this is not clear enough, then I don't know how else to make it clear for you.
