Below is the transcript of the phone call that went out from Pastor Dressler the evening of January 9, 2021.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, Pastor Dressler here. It grieves me that I have to send this message, but I must. The recent riots at the capitol building cannot be ignored. We can’t ignore them in Seattle, or in Portland, or anywhere else. St. Paul is very clear about insurrection in his letter to the Romans.  “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, and those who resist will incur judgment. For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, 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. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.” Paul wrote this during a time when Caesar, when the authority, was persecuting Christians! He was keenly aware of how broken authorities can be. He was not an idealist. He knew the hardships of life under deeply flawed rulers. And even then, he did not condone rebellion. Paul recognized that God is the one who establishes authority.

Brothers and sisters, so many in our nation are filled with rage. They are filled with anger and hate and despair. But don’t you succumb to those emotions. Do not despair. Do not be discouraged. Those people who rioted in DC and Portland and Seattle – they were sinning grievously! There can be no question of that. Yet Christ died also for them as He died for me and for you. They riot because they are angry. They are angry because they are afraid. They are afraid because they have put their trust in all the wrong places. As the Psalmist says, “Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation. When his breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish” []. Human leaders are flawed no matter how good their intentions. All systems of government are flawed no matter how carefully constructed. But when the rule of law fails, when governments let us down, we should not be surprised. We should not be filled with angst and fear. We should remain confident because our trust is placed in the only one who truly deserves the title – LORD.

So brothers and sisters, let us join together to pray for our nation. Let us pray for an end to the violence, a restoration of peace and lawfulness, and for good and faithful rulers who lead with integrity and not for the consolidation of their own power, who do not aim at goals that are at cross purposes with the Gospel. And finally friends, let us be a witness. Let us be the Epiphany. WE have not lost hope. WE do not despair because we hope in Christ who died and was raised again. Be a light and support to those who are despairing and share your hope with them.

Let us pray a prayer written by Pastor Lee Hagan, the Missouri district president: “Almighty God, You have given us this good land as our heritage. Grant that we remember Your generosity and constantly do Your will. Bless our land with honest industry, truthful education, and honorable way of life. Save us from violence, discord, and confusion, from pride and arrogance and every evil course of action. Grant that we, who came from many nations with many different languages, may become a united people. Support us in defending our liberties and give those to whom we have entrusted the authority of government the spirit of wisdom, that there may be justice and peace in our land. When times are prosperous, may our hearts be thankful, and in troubled times do not let our trust in You fail; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.