The Act of Rebellion in Christianity

'For he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer.' Romans 13:4 ESV

The world is wound together by a set of rules. You're only allowed to cross the street on zebra lanes. You shouldn't steal, material or intellectual properties of other people. Killing is a heavy offense in almost every country in the world. Simply put, this system of society works.

The same is true with Christianity. The Christian religion is bound by a set of rules, the most important being the Ten Commandments that God had passed down to Moses. But if we have rules, it only means one thing: there are people who break those rules and rebel against the accepted norm. We have rebels in society. In Christianity, we have rebels, too, and their history stretches all the way back to the beginning of the Bible.

Rebellion first showed itself to Christianity in the Genesis. God told Adam and Eve not to eat the fruit from the Tree of Knowledge while He was gone. But the couple was seduced by the serpent and each took a bite, setting into motion a chain of events that would force God to banish them from His Kingdom to atone for what would become known as Man's original sin.

From that point onwards Adam and Eve had grown conscious, and their offspring rebelled against God in ways that we would inherit to this day.

'An evil man seeks only rebellion, and a cruel messenger will be sent against him.' Proverbs 17:11 ESV

There were times when God would show His love and compassion to His people, and yet these people would in turn look the other way and rebel against God in the Bible.

For example, Egypt had ruled Israel for many years. When Israel was finally released from the tyranny of the Egyptian rule, God commanded miracle after miracle to help save the Israelites from pursuing Egyptian soldiers. In return, when the people were finally safe, they built idols and resorted to idolatry even when God warned them not to in His Ten Commandments. Rebellion had found its way even in God's own chosen people.

The Apostle Paul explained in the New Testament that God does not view idol worship in favorable light. It is demonic worship, one that doesn't have a place in the Christian religion.

As modern Christians, we all have times when we fall down and rebel against God. But we must also remember at all times that God gave Adam and Eve a second chance. He banished them, but He never stopped looking after their needs and safety in their new world outside His Kingdom.

If you find yourself rebelling against God in your life, the first step to redemption is accepting your wrong decisions and praying to God that, next time, you'll do what is right in honor of His name.