“Be subject to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake: whether to the king as supreme; or unto governors, as sent by Him for vengeance on evil-doers, and for praise to them that do well. For so is the will of God, that by well-doing ye should put to silence the ignorance of foolish men” (1 Peter 2:13-16).

Those words sum up appropriately the ongoing debate with the laws of the land in Arizona and the entirety of America. Only foolish men have no respect for the will of God.

There is a simple solution to illegal immigration: Do not do it, obey the law of the land. Romans 13:1-7 teaches that God expects us to obey the law of the land, with only one exception, as stated by Peter in Acts 5:20, “We must obey God rather than men.”

Illegal immigration, by its very terminology, is against the law! If we violate this or any other law, we are in rebellion to God’s holy will. It is against the law in the USA and many other countries as well.

Many say the law is unjust or unfair. That may be, but it does not give authority to ignore the law.

The next time you read Romans 13, written by the Apostle Paul, remember that Paul was under the law of the Roman Empire during the time of Nero. Many laws of Rome were unjust, unfair, or just blatantly evil. America has such laws today: abortion on demand, state lottery, approval of same-sex marriage (?), the winking at acts of terrorism, et.al. Yet Paul penned that Christians ought to obey the law of Rome as long as that law did not go against the teachings of God.

In the state of Texas, it is against the law to murder another. Let’s say that someone argues it is an unjust or unfair law and then murders you. Should we look the other way or excuse the crime, because your murderer considered the law of the land to be unfair? You respond that such would be ridiculous! You are right. Likewise, to support, endorse and encourage illegal immigration is a clear violation of the Word of God.

Any government can open its borders, close its borders, or limit its borders to whomsoever they will. The Bible does not speak directly to any of these positions. None of these practices is in violation of the clear teaching of the New Testament of Jesus Christ.

What can be done? If it is your conviction that the immigration laws in America are unjust or unfair, then without violating the Scripture you may seek to change the law (i.e., pray to God, pass out petitions, put it to a vote, peacefully protest, etc.). As an American you can seek to change any law that you consider is not right. At the same time, you must do so in such a manner demonstrating that you are in submission to the government that God has given authority over you.

Those seeking to immigrate to any country need to obey the immigration laws of that country. This may be time-consuming and slow, and even aggravating. (Have you ever had to renew your driver’s license?) That does not give anyone the right to simply violate the law. If a Texas trooper pulls you over and you are driving without a license, and you argue that it was too time-consuming, let me know how that goes for you.
Jess Whitlock
Evant