Dr. Jack Kevorkian died this week of natural causes in a hospital bed after suffering for years with several ailments. I find that interesting since Dr. Kevorkian became famous (or infamous) in the 1990's for not only advocating physician suicide but participating in them. He wanted people to die with dignity, I assume that he believed from his actions that a natural death from disease is dignified,even though he fought against it.
I know what I believe about Physician Assisted Suicide and that really is not the point of this blog. Kevorkian was just a symbol of one of many things wrong with America. Kevorkian did not like a law, so instead of fighting for his position, he took the law in his own hands. In fact he defied authority and broke established law that was not just based in preference but in a moral precedent that has guided civilization for hundreds of years.
Authority in our day is to be defied, not respected. But God has a different standard. He says in 1 Peter 2:13-14, "Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good." Hebrews 13:17 says, "Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account."
These passages do not mean that we are to follow blindly and that we are to never question authority. But it is a reminder that authority is to be respected. That respect for authority is lost in our day. If we are to become who God wants us to be, we need to follow His standards rather than the worlds.
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