The Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry Newsletter
&
Bible Study
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Fellow officers,
sheepdogs,
warriors, sp
ouses, supporters and
ALL:
Let me start with a "check in" to see how we're all doing. Please know that I'm praying for you all, especially in these trying times. Please reach out if you need prayer, counsel or just a word of encouragement.
Speaking of our trying times, God has used our current events (the COVID-19 lockdown) to press me to share a fresh Bible study on our role as police officers and Christians in response to our unique American form of government (a representative,
Constitutional Republic
and NOT a "democracy"). Scroll down to
"God, Cops and Government."
Also speaking of the COVID-19 mess, here's last week's newsletter and Bible study (in case you missed it):
A "Code 3" Sense of Urgency.
As always, these newsletters are re-posted for you on our
social media
feeds (
Twitter
,
Facebook
) and (eventually) on our
website
as well.
And finally, just a word to those who are, once again <sigh> upset with me about sharing God's truth about the whole
"blessed are the peacemakers"
(Matt. 5:9)
not being about cops
(it's NOT) thing. While I'm sorry this is upsetting to some, I am COMPELLED by God Himself to speak truth (in love, but TRUTH) here. This is a place of
sound doctrine
and I will NOT depart from it, so help me God!
Let's continue to stay safe on the street (as best we can) but radically bold in Christ!
MC
_____________________
RESOURCES
Please scroll down to the study below -- chock FULL of resources!
PRAYER REQUESTS
Again, where to start!? Praise God, our call is to just pray and then pray some more.
(1) Pray for all those who have been put out of work (with bills to pay and families to feed) in the wake of the COVID-19 restrictions. And of course pray for the sick.
(2) Pray for one another as we work on the front lines of this epidemic. Many of our brethren are ill, and others have passed away after having been infected with this virus (NYPD, LA, NJ, Detroit, Denver and more).
(3) Pray for a Denver officer who is facing termination. God knows the details -- just pray.
(4) Pray that our government leaders will come to their senses (on multiple fronts).
(5) In keeping with last week's message and my oft-mentioned
"Code 3"
sense of urgency, pray that the lost (unsaved) will repent and come to a genuine, life-saving/life-changing personal relationship with God in Christ (no "RIP" unless we pass from this life having first been born again in Christ).
* And many more not shared here...just pray!
UPCOMING EVENTS
(1) Our upcoming
FCPO-Denver
(Chapter 217) meeting (Tuesday,
April 7th,
at 6:30 PM) will be done remotely via Zoom. And so will our
Men of Truth
men's Bible study this Saturday morning.
Email me
for the 411.
*Have a prayer request, event or announcement you would like included here? Need help/prayer?
Email me
!
I also post prayer requests on
my personal Facebook page
("friend" and message me).
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God, Cops and Government
Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.
2
Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.
3
For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval,
4
for he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer.
(Romans 13:1-4)
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This is by no means the first time that I've taught on our ministry's central passage of Scripture. However, God has pressed me to share a fresh Bible study on this topic in light of our current
COVID-19
crisis (a "crisis" on multiple levels). While I could, like so many others, regale you with statistics and facts about this pandemic compared with so many others, I want to instead turn our focus to a right understanding of this passage
(Romans 13:1-4)
in light of our role as cops and the unique nature of our American form of government (again, a
Constitutional, representative Republic
and NOT a "democracy" -- thank God).
Let's first explore the situation that the apostle Paul found himself in when the Holy Spirit had him write the book of Romans (and
Romans 13
in particular).
The emperor of Rome from AD 54 to 68 was Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (Nero). The emperor was -- in a word -- evil, and a literal terror to Christians and anyone else who opposed his wicked worldview and behavior. Among his many sinful acts was the murder of his own mother (and many others), homosexual marriage and so much more. In AD 64 the great Roman fire occurred, with Nero himself being suspected of arson. In his writings, the Roman senator and historian Tacitus recorded, “To get rid of the report [that he had started the fire], Nero fastened the guilt and inflicted the most exquisite tortures on a class hated for their abominations, called Christians by the populace” (
Annals
, XV). And what where these tortures? Among them, he would impale Christians on stakes, cover them in pitch (tar) and light them on fire to serve as "street lights" for his garden! In short, he was a most evil ruler indeed.
Even under the reign of a ruthless and godless emperor, Paul, writing under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, tells his readers to be in submission (not necessarily "obedience" -- there is a difference) to the civil government. Moreover, he states that no authority exists other than that established by God, and that rulers are serving God in their political office.
Peter writes nearly the same thing in one of his two New Testament letters:
“Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men. Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God. Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king”
(
1 Peter 2:13–17
).
So do Paul and Peter mean that Christians are always to obey whatever the government commands, no matter what is asked of them? What about (for example) the arrest of a pastor for violating a church assembly order in the midst of our current corornavirus epidemic? The short answer is "NO" but let's add context:
A Brief Look at the Various Views of Civil Disobedience
There are at least three general positions on the matter of civil disobedience:
(1) The
anarchist
view says that a person can choose to disobey the government whenever he likes and whenever he feels he is personally justified in doing so. Such a stance -- akin to the lawless Antifa movement -- has no biblical support whatsoever, as evidenced in the writings of Paul in
Romans 13
.
(2) The
extremist "patriot"
view says that a person should always follow and obey his country (or in our case, our agency's directives or orders), no matter what the command (even if the command is illegal or unethical). As will be shown in a moment, this view also does not have biblical support. Moreover, it is not supported in the history of nations. For example, during the Nuremberg trials, the attorneys for the Nazi war criminals attempted to use the defense that their clients were only following the direct orders of the government and therefore could not be held responsible for their actions. However, one of the judges dismissed their argument with the simple question: “But gentlemen, is there not a law above our laws?” (meaning God's law, of course).
(3) The
biblical
view
(God's position as revealed in the Scriptures) is one of biblical submission, with a Christian (citizen, police officer, soldier, etc.) being allowed to act in civil disobedience to an illegal order or law, and to the government in general if it
commands
evil, such that it requires a Christian to act in a manner contrary to the clear teachings and requirements of God’s Word.
Civil Disobedience in Scripture
In
Exodus 1
, the Egyptian Pharaoh (king) gave the clear command to two
Hebrew midwives
that they were to kill all male Jewish babies. An extreme patriot would have carried out the government’s order, yet the Bible says the midwives disobeyed Pharaoh and
“feared God, and did not do as the king of Egypt had commanded them, but let the boys live”
(v. 17). The Bible goes on to say the midwives lied to Pharaoh about why they were letting the children live; yet even though they lied and disobeyed their government,
“God was good to the midwives, and the people multiplied, and became very mighty. Because the midwives feared God, He established households for them”
(vs. 20-21).
In
Joshua 2
, Rahab directly disobeyed a command from the king of Jericho to produce the Israelite spies who had entered the city to gain intelligence for battle. Instead, she let them down via a rope so they could escape. Even though Rahab had received a clear order from the top government official, she resisted the command and was redeemed from the city’s destruction when Joshua and the Israeli army destroyed it.
Daniel
records a number of civil disobedience examples. The first is found in chapter 3 where Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego refused to bow down to the golden idol in disobedience to King Nebuchadnezzar’s command. The second is in chapter 6 where Daniel defies King Darius’ decree to not pray to anyone other than the king. In both cases, God rescued His people from the death penalty that was imposed, signaling His approval of their actions.
In the New Testament, the book of Acts records the civil disobedience of Peter and John towards the authorities that were in power at the time. After Peter healed a lame man, Peter and John were arrested for preaching about Jesus and put in jail. The religious authorities were determined to stop them from teaching about Jesus; however, Peter said,
“Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you rather than to God, you be the judge; for we cannot stop speaking about what we have seen and heard”
(
Acts 4:19–20
).
Later, the rulers confronted the apostles again and reminded them of their command to not teach about Jesus, but Peter responded,
“We must obey God rather than men”
(
Acts 5:29
).
One last example of civil disobedience (there are many others) is found in the book of
Revelation
where the Antichrist gives a wicked command -- under penalty of death for disobedience -- to worship an image of himself. But God, through the apostle John, states that those who become Christians at the time will disobey the Antichrist and his government and refuse to worship the image
(
Revelation 13:15
)
just as Daniel’s companions violated Nebuchadnezzar’s decree to worship his idol.
So what conclusions can be drawn from the above biblical examples (especially in our American form of government)? The guidelines for Christian civil disobedience can be summed as follows:
(1) Christians should civilly resist a government that
commands
or
compels
evil and should work nonviolently within the laws of the land to change a government that permits evil. For example, our own Supreme Court, in the infamous
Dred Scott decision
in which the Court wickedly ruled
that black slaves were not fully human! And the remedy? The American Civil War and the 13th Amendment abolishing slavery in the United States.
(2) Civil disobedience is permitted when the government’s laws or commands are in direct violation of God’s laws and commands.
(3) In our American form of government, Christians are certainly permitted to work to change laws and install new government leaders (public SERVANTS) by lawful means, including our right to vote.
(4) Christians are commanded to pray for their leaders and for God to intervene in His time to change any ungodly path that they are pursuing:
“First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity”
(
1 Timothy 2:1–2
).
So does this standard apply to us in law enforcement? God's answer, and thus mine, is an emphatic
"YES."
In short, there may well be time (and that time may be now) when Christians and Christian officers will be placed in positions where
Matthew 22:21
--
"...Therefore, render to Ceasar the things that are Ceasar's and to God the things that are God's"
-- is front and center. To wit, to decide whether or not we will follow orders that are contrary to law (our Constitution AND God's) as revealed in His Word. And the possible result of our refusal to enforce or submit to illegal orders and laws? We may very well be placed in positions where -- as Paul and so many others experienced --
"For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain"
(Philippians 1:21)
-- will come to fruition!
Beyond this, understanding history is critical for believers. The Nazi German experience aside (where significant portions of the Christian [??] "church" stood by and did nothing to stop the atrocities), our Founding Fathers struggled mightily in rebelling against the tyranny of the British government in light of
Romans 13:1-4
and related passages. Leading right up to our Declaration of Independence, our government leaders literally begged King George for relief. His response? The working end of a bayonet and even greater tyranny!
Finally, it is vital that we understand that our government is NOT a monarchy! In our representative, Constitutional Republic,
WE
(the American people)
ARE the government!
Our lawfully elected and appointed representatives work for US. As police officers, we are under oath to uphold the Constitution as we protect the public and serve as a
lawful
"terror against evil."
Friends, we are on a very slippery slope when it comes to complying with the various rules and regulations placed up on us in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. Accordingly, I can't encourage you all enough to pray, reach out to our leadership and implore them to change direction before it is too late (I fear we will never fully recover from the fallout of these directives), and then be spiritually ready to take a biblical stand.
RESOURCES
* Thanks first to my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and then to fellow officer/chaplain Jim Bontrager, Pastor/Chaplain Jeff Carr, our friends at Got Questions Ministries and others who served as resources for this study.
"...it's our duty to render to Caesar what is Caesar's. But let's be even more sure that we do the greater duty—to faithfully render to God what is God's."
AMEN!
____________________
KNOW GOD?
(1) Do you hold to an utterly false hope that you can "earn" or otherwise "badge" your way into heaven and escape hell because you consider yourself to be a "
good
" cop or a "good" person (the "I'm good" mess)? That you can be "good" enough without knowing Christ as Lord and Savior? That mere "belief" is enough to "save" you? That you somehow "deserve" heaven because of your so-called "good" service in law enforcement? Take the
Good Person Test
and see how you do!
(2) Jesus' first recorded words in His earthly adult ministry included,
"Repent and believe in the Good News,
" --
Mark 1:15.
To
repent
is a "180" -- a complete,
radical
change of mind and heart as it relates to our sin (as God defines it). To "believe" (
pisteuo
in the original Greek) as Jesus intends it here is to wholeheartedly trust and
surrender
your life to Him in faith in the same way we have "faith" that our body armor will do its job against the rounds it is intended to stop; that a well-maintained weapon will function properly when used in against criminals intent on destroying us or others; or that our parachute will open when it is supposed to on a combat jump (we stake our very lives on it)! For more, see
What does it mean to believe in Jesus?
(3) This same concept of "
believe
" (the saving kind) is further revealed in
John 3:1-21
where Jesus says, "
... you must be born again
." Again, note our Lord's emphasis on the word "
must
" (not "may" or "should" or even "someday"): this is ultimately the life-saving AND life-changing personal relationship (and NOT "religion") with Jesus Christ that I stress here every week (see
What does it mean to be a born again Christian
? [hint -- there is no other kind]).
(5) Need more? Then check out this powerful, short video message that also comes to us from
Travis Yates
:
Cops and Salvation
(6) Have you now said "yes" to Jesus as Lord and Savior but are wondering what to do next? The "now what" is also an important part in dealing with the issues that can lead to suicide and sin in general. Click on,
Now what?
MC
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ABOUT US
The
Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
is
a national, FCPO-affiliated, non-denominational,
evangelical
Christian outreach to our own in law enforcement. These newsletters and profession-focused Bible studies are part of this effort and past editions can be found on our website and social media feeds. Our desire is (1) to be used of God to
WIN
the lost in our profession to a saving faith in Christ; (2) to
DISCIPLE
the Christian officer; (3)
SEND
out discipled (trained) officers to "repeat" 1 and 2; (4) to
SUPPORT
police marriages; (5) to transform our God-ordained profession by infusing it with all-in Christian officers; and (6) to
IMPACT
(reduce) police suicides and PTS with the
Cure
found in Christ Jesus alone. In keeping with these 6 points, please feel free to adapt these messages for your own individual or group use and
share
them with others.
The
Fellowship of Christian Peace Officers
(FCPO-USA)
exists to provide biblical support ("backup"), accountability and
iron sharpens iron
fellowship for Christian officers first in the U.S. and throughout the world as well. Our Denver-area FCPO chapter (
FCPO Chapter #217
) is a
Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
affiliate. Locally, we meet approximately twice a month in the south Denver-Metro suburb of Highlands Ranch for profession-focused, sound (uncompromising) Bible study, prayer and servant-warrior fellowship (and spouses are both welcome and encouraged to attend with their LEO).
Contact me
for complete details.
The
Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
and FCPO-Metro Denver (
Chapter 217
) are led by veteran Police Officer, Chaplain and Evangelist Michael "MC" Williams
.
MC is an active (32-years and counting) sworn police officer/investigator and sought-after instructor and speaker at churches (including the popular
Centurion Church Security Seminar
), retreats and both police and civilian training conferences and seminars around the country. Contact MC via
email
for details on how to book him for your event.
Finally, we covet your prayer and financial support for this vital ministry outreach. Reference the latter, you can give in two ways:
(1) Send a check to the address posted below.
or
(2) Go the the
FCPO giving page
and designate "
FCPO #217
" or the "Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry."
* All donations are tax-deductible.
The Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry
, P.O. Box 630854, Littleton, CO 80163 |
Email Address
| (720) 371-1022 |
Website
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