Counsel #7 — Faith, Citizenship, And Trust In God

Picture: Counsel #7 — Faith, Citizenship, And Trust In GodCSI 120.1

Scripture is clear about abiding by civic law as good citizens (except when civic law contradicts God’s law). Although we abide by laws beneficial to keeping the peace, our hope does not lie in a country’s ruling system.^{[169]https://www.adventisteducators.org/2021/02/making-good-citizen/} The meaning of “In God We Trust,” the official motto of the United States since 1956, implies that the political and economic prosperity of the nation is ultimately in God’s hands.^{[170]https://study.com/learn/lesson/in-god-we-trust-history-purpose-money.html#:~:text=Originally%20used%20on%20coins%20during,with%20controversy%20over%20the%20decades.}CSI 120.2

"Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God." Romans 13:1 NIVCSI 120.3

“The greatest want of the world is the want of men—men who will not be bought or sold, men who in their inmost souls are true and honest, men who do not fear to call sin by its right name, men whose conscience is as true to duty as the needle to the pole, men who will stand for the right though the heavens fall.” Ellen White in Education, p.57CSI 120.4

Reflect: In what ways can we strike a balance between being good citizens, respecting and obeying the laws of the land, while also recognizing that our ultimate trust and hope lie in God rather than in human political systems?CSI 120.5