POLYGAMY - (14) POLYGAMY IS ILLEGAL

POLYGAMY - OBJECTIONS, Q & A (14)

POLYGAMY IS ILLEGAL

1Peter 2:13-14 requires us to be submissive to the authority, the government that God has put over us. Should a person practice polygamy when it is illegal to do so under the law? Shouldn't he be punished according to the law? Shouldn't a Christian register his polygamous marriage? In opposing God's commandment in the light of 1Peter 1:13-14, would a polygamous Christian be sent to Hell if he does not repent?

Times and again, I have been confronted with such similar questions as above, especially from people who live in countries where the must-be monogamy mentality rules. It's time that I address it more thoroughly.

I agree that it is right that one should submit to earthly authorities for they carry the task of keeping orderliness and peace over the people it governs, but they do not decide on what is holy and what is not. As a child of God, one must submit intelligently, knowing that the requirements of the law of man may not be the same as that of God's at a particular place or time. Thus we must differentiate and wisely fulfill man made laws that fluctuate with human votes and changing philosophies while we also do not violate God's divine laws that never change. What would you do if man's law conflicts directly with your understanding of God's law? To which do you submit? If you were living in the time of prophet Daniel, would you fall down and worship the golden Image, a law that King Nebuchadnezzar decreed that all men in his kingdom should live by? If you are now in a land where Christianity is prohibited, would you fulfill 1 Pet 2:13-14 by ceasing to be a Christian? Or perhaps like in Nepal, where the preaching of the gospel is prohibited, would you stop sharing the good news? What if Anti-Christ becomes the law of the day? BTW, do you know that 1 Peter was an epistle written to the Jews who were badly persecuted and dispersed throughout the Roman Empire because they violated the Roman Authority at that time? They were torn apart, thrown into lions' dens and burnt as torches. Do you know that the same Apostle Peter was crucified upside down for defying the authorities because of his beliefs that did not agree with theirs?

YET, it is not my purpose for anyone to directly defy the law of the land even on any conflicting issues. I am not called to be a politician and I don't intend to be one. I am a minister of the gospel and I believe that this issue is not to be resolved by human force or might, but by the Spirit of God. Thus, my purpose of writing on Biblical Polygamy is at least 2 fold:

First, as a believer and a minister of the Word, I must expose what I see as religiously erroneous and speak what I discovered, which is also being increasingly discovered by many other ministers around the world, that God is actually not against responsible Biblical Polygamy. It is then up to the people and the government concerned to accommodate what they see as good and just or to change what they see fit. Man's laws are not God's divine laws that cannot be changed. Man's laws can be changed according to what the government or the people see as good or beneficial at a particular point in time. And that was how polygamy finally became outlawed. For that was what they thought, that it was bad for the people, rather what they thought God says. But it was not so in the beginning. The Patriarchs and others practiced it and neither God nor Jesus spoke against it. In the modern times, advanced thinkers like the then Prime Minister of Singapore (still renown for his wisdom and foresight in the world today), now Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew even advocated polygamy as beneficial for dynamic nation building. Had he violated the law of Singapore by giving a suggestion such as this? I think not. Had he violated God's law? There are no scriptures against it. 1 Pet 2:13-14? Certainly not. And as a free citizen, I think I have the right to voice an opinion too. More and more such voices are heard, especially across the Internet. So we see a possibility of a reverse trend in nation building now and I do no more than providing sound scriptural backup for the Authority and the people to make the change if they deem fit.

Second, as concerning the practice of it, I appeal to those who are already involved with other women to be responsible to look after these women and their children and not to forsake and discard them. The undeniable fact is, out there people are getting themselves involved, everyday. And they figured out that as long as the parties are consenting and that their spouses are not fighting it and as long as they do not register it, the law does not seem to be even against it. So you tell me, is it strictly illegal for a man to be having an affair with another woman in his life? As much as I do understand, the law in itself does not arrest 2 consenting adults sleeping together nor jail a man for looking after another needy woman and providing for her children, as long as he does not register or hold a ceremony for more than 1 marriage at a time. Oops, he may end up in jail for being responsible enough to do just that. Oh the law! Sigh?! But for sure, it is undesirable to multiply bitter women and rebellious children. Again Sigh! :( Let me stray off a little, in some countries, same sex marriages are now legalized. Do you subscribe to it in the light of 1Pet 2:13-14? Sigh! Sigh! Have you sinned if you do not agree to it?

Back to our issue, so perhaps, we narrow the issue down to the fact that the law is against the registration and ceremony of another marriage at the same time. Well, many people today cohabit together without registration, and the law does not go around chasing them and putting them into jail as it would to drug abusers. Confused?! Man's law is to keep orderliness and implement the wishes of the people, not necessarily the requirements of God's divine law. Like I say, we must intelligently fulfill man's law and wherever it concurs with God's law, we must not violate it. That's how I understand 1 Pet 2:13-14 and the same applies to the entire Bible.

Finally, as concerning God sending people to Hell, He will do so by judging people according to His Law and not according to man's law that changes from time to time and are sometimes inconsistent with His and often man's law does not measure up to His standard or understanding of holiness. Polygamy was never outlawed in Biblical times and 1 Pet 2:13-14 is very often quoted out of context. :( Oh, you can be sure God does not throw you into Hell just because you violate man's law when you litter or jay walk. :)

Having given my answers, I have a question for Christian who adamantly use 1Peter 2:13-14 as the objection to the practice of some biblical truths that others are convicted of:

Tell me, what would you do if your Christian faith conflicts with the law of the land? Would you compromise and give up Christ or would you stand firm? If you give Him up, you are a man pleaser and God will not know you any more. If you stand firm, you defy the law of the land. You don't have to answer me this question. Because it is not my intention to set Caesar against you or you against Caesar. You just need to answer God yourself. However, many times, I wonder why brethren bring in Caesar's name and pitch it against one another when they are supposed to dwell in the Word and to love and uphold another. I can understand a little how Jesus felt when He was tempted with such questions. Nevertheless, I have always assumed that all such inquirers are sincere, thus to the best I answer them. As for those who are truthful, take heed that it is not by human power nor by human might but by the Spirit and the Word that the work of God is to be done.

Read also my personal statement on polygamy:
http://www.patriarchywebsite.com/polygamy/personal1-personal-statement.htm