1 Peter 2:13 “Submit yourself to every ordinance of man . . . to the king, as supreme; Or unto governors.”
Matthew 22:21 “Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's.”
Absolutely.
One thing that is clear from God's Word is that HE hates covetousness and lying.
Although the temptation might exist to break and enter into an area (Country or home) to acquire some easy money - there is nothing right about doing this.
Those were the exact scriptures that I would cite as well.
In fact, the illegal aliens are those who God does not honor for breaking the laws of another country to come to a country to get things for which they have not earned by people who have no choice but to pay for their demands.
This is called covetousness! The Illegal Aliens are breaking the commandment not to covet what others have, as well as taking things that do not belong to them (jobs) and using stolen identities that belong to others, "Thou shalt NOT STEAL."
To have any "pastor" of any faith claim that illegal immigrants are those "travelers" among us is hogwash. These people are not traveling through our country to another place, they are "traveling" here to set up camp.
Sorry but such a person who uses "scripture" to berate me or anyone else to allow what is going on under the guise of "faith" or any such nonsense only tells me that that person does NOT know the Bible but rather takes words and phrases out of their context -- thus it is they who preach falsehoods. Shame on them
Yes. Scripture (and Jesus) absolutely taught separation of faith from government. He refused to get involved in the politics of the day, instead speaking to personal faith and responsibility.
There is so much misunderstanding today when people mistakenly try to apply Christ’s words to government, when they were directed at individuals.
I find this passage interesting, written by the final Old Testament prophet, Malachi, who referred to the coming of John the Baptist and the Messiah, which would happen about 400 years after Malachi wrote these words:
(note the final 3 lines)
“Behold, I send My messenger,
And he will prepare the way before Me.
And the Lord, whom you seek,
Will suddenly come to His temple,
Even the Messenger of the covenant,
In whom you delight.
Behold, He is coming,”
Says the LORD of hosts.
“ But who can endure the day of His coming?
And who can stand when He appears?
For He is like a refiner’s fire
And like launderers’ soap.
“He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver;
He will purify the sons of Levi,
And purge them as gold and silver,
That they may offer to the LORD
An offering in righteousness.
“ Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem
Will be pleasant to the LORD,
As in the days of old,
As in former years.
“And I will come near you for judgment;
I will be a swift witness
Against sorcerers,
Against adulterers,
Against perjurers,
Against those who exploit wage earners and widows and orphans,
And against those who turn away an alien—
Because they do not fear Me,”
Says the LORD of hosts.
—Malachi 3:1-5
No use flaming me. I didn’t write it.
Absolutely. We are called on to obey the laws of the land so long as they do not contradict God’s laws.
However, we are also called on to deal with aliens with compassion. I take this to mean that INDIVIDUALLY I treat them with the respect any human deserves. As a church I am attempting to see if we can get a local mission to vaccinate the children of illegals and their parents if they need them. This provides two purposes, it makes our community safer from diseases eradicated decades ago in the US and gives us a chance to minister to them spiritually. Part of that ministering is to remind them that they are to obey the laws of the land.
Testimony of James R. Edwards, Jr., Ph.D.
Adjunct Fellow, Hudson Institute
House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration
May 22, 2007
http://judiciary.house.gov/media/pdfs/Edwards070522.pdf