(1) It is necessary to discern whether the government in power is composed of believers in God or unbelievers. If they resist God, then they are demons, and should not be obeyed;

(2) National policies and laws must be observed; they must not be violated. If they go against the principles of faith, however, one must not obey them;

(3) All policies and laws of a democratic nation should be obeyed, except for those that make people sin against God and offend Him, which must never be obeyed;

(4) One should exercise discernment regarding all the perverse policies and laws of a dictatorship. See through to their truth and essence.

Bible Verses for Reference:

“He that is not with Me is against Me; and he that gathers not with Me scatters abroad” (Mat 12:30).

“We ought to obey God rather than men” (Act 5:29).

Relevant Words of God:

Who is Satan, who are demons, and who are God’s enemies if not resisters who do not believe in God? Are they not those people who are disobedient to God? Are they not those who claim to have faith, yet who lack truth? Are they not those who merely seek to obtain blessings while being unable to bear witness for God? You still mingle with those demons today and bear conscience and love toward them, but in this case are you not extending good intentions toward Satan? Are you not associating with demons? If people these days are still unable to distinguish between good and evil, and continue to blindly be loving and merciful without any intention of seeking God’s will or being able in any way to harbor God’s intentions as their own, then their endings will be all the more wretched. Anyone who does not believe in the God in the flesh is an enemy of God. If you can bear conscience and love toward an enemy, do you not lack a sense of righteousness? If you are compatible with those which I detest and with which I disagree, and still bear love or personal feelings toward them, then are you not disobedient? Are you not intentionally resisting God? Does such a person possess truth? If people bear conscience toward enemies, love for demons, and mercy for Satan, then are they not intentionally disrupting God’s work? Those people who believe only in Jesus and do not believe in God incarnate during the last days, as well as those who verbally claim to believe in God incarnate but do evil, are all antichrists, without even mentioning those who do not even believe in God. All these people will be objects of destruction.

—The Word, Vol. 1. The Appearance and Work of God. God and Man Will Enter Into Rest Together

Sermon and Fellowship Excerpts for Reference:

How should we approach national laws? This must be discerned according to the truth. Laws are not the truth, they are merely precepts by which countries maintain the stability of the regime. In our faith in God, we must take the words of God as the truth; everything should be based on God’s words. Christians should respect the legitimate laws decreed by national governments, but must absolutely not respect laws that are immoral and unjust or that violate God’s word the truth—particularly those that oppose faith, oppose God, and condemn God. To obey such laws is to betray God and take the side of Satan. For example, to believe in God and worship God is ordained by Heaven and acknowledged by earth, and when suppressed and restricted by national governments, we should be resolute in opposing these wicked laws. Immoral and unjust laws must not be respected, but resolutely opposed.

—Work Arrangements

What approach should we take with state government officials? This must be discerned according to the truth. There are good and bad officials, and there are benevolent and evil ones. We should respect good officials and those who make a real difference for the people. Officials who oppose, condemn, and persecute God are evil demons, and we should loathe and curse them. Today, however, we still live under the evil, dark domain of Satan, so we should be smart—we should act smart, and know what is what. If there are some government officials and staff who are willing to believe in God and accept the true way, then we should preach the gospel to them and bring them before God so that they may attain salvation; this is entirely in accordance with God’s will.

—Work Arrangements

What does the “rule and influence of Satan” refer to? Do different countries’ ruling parties submit to God, or do they submit to Satan? Any that submit to Satan are under the influence of Satan. If you worship a ruling party of Satan, if your obedience to Satan’s ruling party is absolute, and you follow the leaders that belong to Satan, then you are of Satan, you live under Satan’s domain. For example, the great red dragon rules China. If you support the great red dragon, worship the great red dragon, and submit to the great red dragon, and shout “long live” to the great red dragon, then you live under Satan’s domain. No matter which social system you worship or have blind faith in, if you worship, follow, and obey Satan’s ruling parties and politicians, then you are living under Satan’s domain. That is because these politicians belong to Satan, not God; they do not obey and worship God, so in worshiping them you follow and worship Satan. Therefore, if a Christian joins Satan’s ruling party, it means that they worship the influence of Satan, they follow Satan, and their belief in God is false.

—Sermons and Fellowship on Entry Into Life

The policies formulated by the great red dragon are not really for the governance of the country or for the sake of the people. They are wholly in opposition to God and diametrically opposed to the truth, thus revealing the wicked essence of the great red dragon, which is perverse and contrary to Heaven. The great red dragon is nothing but a gang of reactionaries! If you are clear about this, you will know how to treat it. When it hates you, attacks you, and kills you, its essence is that of an evil spirit, and is wicked; when it is good to you, when it does some small favors for you, when it benefits you in various ways, its essence is still that of an evil spirit, and is still wicked. When its essence becomes clear to you, you are no longer constrained by whether it is superficially good or bad to you. To be able to see through to the real essence and true face of the great red dragon, you must not judge it only by its public announcements, but by its actions and their effect. Of principle importance is to look at how it treats God, and all the truths expressed by God, and how it treats those who believe in and follow God—only then will you see through to its ugly face. To have discernment of the great red dragon, you must regard it according to all the truths expressed by God; without an understanding of the truth, this will never be possible.

—Sermons and Fellowship on Entry Into Life