6 Values That Guide Us

Fearlessness

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
Psalm 23:4

We value fearless faith in God. “Do not be afraid” is the most frequent command in the Bible. God is good and in control. So we don’t make decisions about masks based on fear.

Unity

[W]alk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
Ephesians 4:1-3

We are united by our shared calling to trust and follow Jesus together as a church (Ephesians 4:4-6). Our differing perspectives on masks do not divide us. We are eager to maintain our unity. That’s why we walk in humility, gentleness, and patience toward one another. We bear with one another in love, even when we disagree about things like masks.

Service

Nevertheless, we have made no use of any of these rights…For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them.
1 Corinthians 9:15a, 19

Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.
Philippians 2:3-4

We value serving others more than we value our rights. Paul set aside his rights as an apostle, his rights regarding food and drink, his right to get married, and his right to get paid for his ministry work to better serve others. We value serving people more than our rights related to masks.

Because we value service, we don’t only think about our own interests regarding masks. We think about others’ interests too. And we count others’ interests more significantly in our decision making than our own.

Words

A soft answer turns away wrath,
but a harsh word stirs up anger.
Proverbs 15:1

We value wise word choices because we recognize the power of words to encourage or scare, unite or divide, serve or insult. That’s why we use soft answers about sensitive topics like masks rather than harsh words that stir up anger.

Submission

Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed…
Romans 13:1-2a

Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to the 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

We value submission to governing authorities because we recognize that God is sovereign over them. To submit to governing authorities is to submit to God. To resist them is to resist Him. That’s why we submit to mask mandates.

Disobedience

“We must obey God rather than men.”
Acts 5:29

We value God’s authority above every other authority. When lesser authorities command us to do something God has commanded us not to do, or to stop doing something God has commanded us to do, we will disobey those lesser authorities.

Because God has not commanded us to go mask-less, we submit to mask mandates. But we are ready to disobey if our government mandates anything that contradicts God’s word, like no longer preaching the gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ.