Vaccine Passports and Mask Mandates

“But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.”

(Jeremiah 29:7, ESV)

“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. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.”

(1 Peter 2:13–17, ESV)

Today I am filled with a distracting amount of thoughts and feelings in regard to the COVID pandemic we continue to face. The announcement of vaccine passports for non-essential services and the return to a mask mandate for public spaces is proving a real challenge for me to accept (we do not yet know if these will have any impact on how we are functioning as a church). It is causing me to examine where my faith intersects with my daily life and which, if any, portions of this COVID journey counter God or merely offend my personal preferences.

The verses above call me / us to be submissive and prayerfully supportive of all those who oversee us. It is not about whether we agree with them or not. Our focus must be to serve God well by living on this earth and in our community as much like Him as possible.

When we look at the life of Christ, His opinions and ways did not always fit Roman culture or the religiosity of the Jews, but He spoke and moved and related in such loving and truthful ways that people were drawn to Him. He was not harsh or hurtful, He never put anyone down, He spoke with grace and mercy even when He spoke truth hard to receive.

My hope is that we will interact with our leaders with the same grace and love with which Jesus met the Romans or the Pharisees. My hope is that we will find a Godly balance of submission and freedom. My hope is that we will maintain a perspective that balances in what all else is going on in our world with what we are personally facing.