Freedom-loving Americans cannot help but bemoan the mounting authoritarianism of both federal and state officials.
As we discovered during the COVID era, however, sometimes Satan infects even our neighbors with the spirit of petty tyranny.
In a clip posted Tuesday to the social media platform X, Pastor Mark Driscoll of Trinity Church in Scottsdale, Arizona, told his congregation that a local government official had asked him to remove a “Jesus Christ ’24” sign from church property — a request to which Driscoll responded with firm defiance.
“We will not comply, but we will multiply,” the pastor wrote in a corresponding post.
Ironically, while preparing a part of his sermon that addressed civil obedience, Driscoll learned that very late in the afternoon on Friday a local government official had emailed the church to complain about the “Jesus Christ ’24” sign.
“This sign does not appear to be a political sign for a current candidate,” the email read. “If the sign does not meet certain requirements, it is subject to removal.”
Driscoll then delivered the first part of his reply to the official.
“I would just humbly submit, if you work for the government, before you go around collecting signs, figure out how to close the border and take care of people before signs,” he said.
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At that point, the pastor showed four pictures of the property around his church littered with political signs.
“As far as I know, it’s still America,” he said.
After a brief history lesson that recalled the founding of Scottsdale in 1888 by a Bible-teaching Christian, Driscoll explained what he meant by “Vote Like Jesus,” the title of his new book.
“As you’re choosing your political leader, make sure you choose your eternal Savior,” the pastor said.
Then came the defiant part of Driscoll’s reply.
“If a lot of people are seeing [the sign], that’s great. We’re gonna keep it up,” he said.
“So, to the lovely government bureaucrats that send emails: We love you, we forgive you, we bless you, we thank you, we will not comply, we will multiply.”
Driscoll then announced that he had asked a sign company to make a similar sign for everyone in the congregation.
The government asked us to take down our Jesus ’24 sign. My response? We will not comply, but we will multiply. pic.twitter.com/uJUpCRuoms
— Pastor Mark Driscoll (@PastorMark) September 17, 2024
Earlier in the sermon, Driscoll indicated that the church had received the email on Friday afternoon at 4:59 and 26 seconds — 34 seconds before the end of the work week.
One hopes, of course, that the email’s timing meant that the local government official felt embarrassed to send it.
More likely, however, a petty local tyrant derived a cheap thrill from trying to bully Driscoll into removing the sign.
When that happens to any of us — that is, when petty tyrants in our own neighborhoods mimic the diabolical authoritarians in federal and state governments — we must do as Driscoll did and refuse to comply.
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