“It should always be remembered that the great end of government is human well-being, that law and authority are nothing in themselves, and that all their sacredness arises from the uses which they serve. The machinery of government is valuable only for the work it does; in itself, it has no value.... The most grievous of all imperfections in government is the failure to secure the just and good result.... Injustice and oppression are not made tolerable by being in strict accordance with the law. Nothing is surer, in the end, than the reaction of such wrong to break down the most perfectly constituted government.”—“Moral Philosophy,” by James H. Fairchild, pages 184-186.
God is above all earthly rulers, and His law above all human laws. He made us, and we therefore owe allegiance to Him before any earthly power, potentate, or tribunal. And this is saying nothing in disparagement of civil authority exercised in its rightful domain—civil things.
Individual Accountability
Esther At The Banquet. "We are sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be slain, and to perish." Esther 7:4.
1. What is religion?
“The recognition of God as an object of worship, love, and obedience.”—Webster. Other definitions equally good are: “The duty which we owe to our Creator, and the manner of discharging it.” “Man's personal relation of faith and obedience to God.”
2. In religious things, whom alone did Christ say we should recognize as Father?