"He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth: He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth. Isaiah 53:7-8

The good Christian does not resist arrest, does not swear oaths or testify in court, and does not contest criminal charges laid by the police or government. In other words, the good Christian pleads guilty and is imprisoned, serving their full sentence without parole.

Jesus said, "That's Your Story, so you tell it!"

When Jesus went to trial, He remained silent before his accusers. His only words in reply to the charges against Him are "You have said so" Mark 15:2 or "That's your story, so you tell it. "

Good Christians do not swear oaths, for Jesus says in the Gospel of Matthew: "Swear not at all, neither by heaven, for it is the throne of GOD; nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great king" (Mt. 5:34-36). Furthermore, after forbidding oaths, He teaches man how he should speak in court, saying: "Let what you say be simply 'Yes' or 'No; anything more than this comes from evil" (Mt. 5:37).

That is why good Christians do not swear oaths. Good Christians do not testify either, not even in their own defence - and they certainly won't rat out against others.

All too often opposition is empty of spirituality and plays into the hands of the System. Fighting the System on its own terms guarantees that the winner will follow the same rules. This is contrary to the way of Jesus Christ.

What good Christians believe

"For although we live in the world, we are not carrying on worldly war, for the weapons of our warfare are not the weapons the world uses, but have divine power to destroy strongholds." 2 Corinthians 10:4

Good Christians believe that the only hope for the reformation of criminal offenders is in the redemptive and reconciling power of Christ mediated through the Christian community.

The good Christian seeks to make the criminal justice system more consistent with biblical teaching on justice and righteousness. Believing that crime is first and foremost committed against a victim and not the state, we seek to solicit punishments for non violent offenders that will help reduce the prison population and benefit the victim, society and the offender.

"Kill them all!!" ?

Some people, claiming to "reform" the criminal justice system, feel that the answer is to arrest more people, sentence more people to longer time, deny parole and passes, and if all that fails, execute them. These proposals have no basis in the Sayings and Teachings of Jesus Christ and cannot be found in the New Testament. It would be hard to imagine that if asked, Jesus would say: "Kill them all."

Rather than debating these competing ideals, good Christians should turn to a critical assessment of their political traditions and ideologies in the light of a deeper understanding of the New Testament revelation about justice.

For the good Christian, restitution is recognised as implicit in genuine repentance; but it is not limited by mere legalities, because the Christian standard is not law but love. The Christian question is not "What does the law require?" but "What does love require?"

Paul states this very clearly: Owe no man anything, save to love one another (Rom. 13:8). We are required to transfer the legal process into one of redemption by love, not hateful retribution.

The Courts can be ignorant

Even the courts can be ignorant of Jesus Christ. It is likely that Paul would have rejected litigation against non-Christians, were they in a position to undertake it, is suggested by his beliefs (a) that civic courts are unjust (1 Cor. 6:1), (b) that the better way is to endure than to litigate (6:7), (c) that the judgement of outsiders is to be left to GOD (5:12-13), and (d) that Christians will ultimately judge the world (6:2-3). It would follow that Rom. 12:19a means that one ought not to pursue legal action against outside abusers in court. In other words, if renunciation of legal right is preferable even in the church where justice is achievable (1 Cor. 5:12-13), how much more in relation to hostile outsiders, a situation when which justice is even more elusive.

The good Christian can only judge another human being by their words and actions. Many judges and magistrates do not know whom they serve. They probably believe that the illusion is true and that the reality is false.

We see so many examples daily where the police account of events is completely the opposite of what eye-witness accounts (including video-tape) state or where the police have obtained evidence illegally or through beatings, but the courts frequently forgive the police and imprison the victim.

Opposed to the System

Good Christians are called to provide the strongest form of spiritual opposition to the Powers and Principalities who rule in this present age. We must remember though that even in their fallen state, some institutions and individuals are still able to preserve freedoms and secure justice to a certain degree.

Why Obey the Government?
 

From a Biblical point of view government is one of the means GOD has established to rule His creation through human stewardship. The public official is obliged as a steward and servant to respond in obedience to GOD's universal dominion over the earth.

Government is as important in GOD's self-revelation as family life, farming, worship, and every other aspect of creational life that was made in and through and for Jesus Christ to reveal the glory of GOD (Ps. 93; 94:1-3; 95:3; Isa. 9:6-7; Col. 1:16; Heb. 1:8-14; Rev. 1:5, 8; 19:11-21).

The proper use of public authority or the abuse of that authority clear shows when it comes to the use of force. From the beginning of the biblical witness GOD reveals that the use of force against another human being is wrong (Gen. 9:5-6; Exod. 20:13; 21:12-27).

Governments and the courts are called to look after the general public health and welfare of the whole society, but that does not give them the authority to disrupt or destroy the proper responsibilities that GOD has given to parents, pastors, teachers, employers, and other stewards.

Sometimes government itself uses force in illegally or in ways that do not restrain violence but only encourage it. When it uses the courts to support it, they display irresponsibility and a lack of obedience to GOD's norm of justice. As a citizen of GOD's Kingdom, The good Christian may chose to ignore the courts of men when they ignore GOD. This is not done lightly.

Refuse to cooperate with Evil
 
 

In order to be true to one's conscience and true to GOD, a righteous man has no alternative but to refuse to cooperate with an evil system.