Australian Christians face increasing challenges in balancing our obligations to civil authority and God’s word. The question of when to obey God rather than government has become one of the most significant issues confronting the modern church. What the government does is one thing; how the church responds is another. We must tread carefully, courageously, and biblically, remembering that it is in the Christian DNA to follow in Jesus’ footsteps. Taking up the cross must at least include a willingness to suffer under the hand of an unjust government, laws, or abuses of those laws, as we seek the salvation and good of others and live for God’s glory. If Jesus was willing to die, we must at least be willing to go to jail.
A contemporary challenge: Prayer, sexuality, and gender
One law, and particularly our government’s interpretation of that law, provides a very important watershed moment for many in Sydney Diocese. On April 4, 2025, the Conversion Practices Ban Act 2024 came into effect in NSW. Christian leaders had been aware of the bill for more than a year, but when we saw the advice on the government’s Anti-Discrimination NSW website, many were deeply disturbed:
The Conversion Practices Ban Act 2024 does not prohibit prayer. However, praying with or over a particular person in an attempt to try to change or suppress that person’s sexuality or gender is unlawful. It is unlawful even if that person has asked you to pray for them to be able to change or suppress their sexuality or gender identity.
This governmental body’s advice was updated in July 2025. While appearing to be a marginal improvement, it is essentially the same advice:
The Conversion Practices Ban Act 2024 does not prohibit prayer. However, praying with or over a particular person in an attempt to try to change or suppress that person’s sexuality or gender is unlawful. It is not unlawful for a person to seek counsel or guidance from within their faith. Counsel and guidance, including prayer, can still be given as long as it is not an attempt to change or suppress the person’s sexuality or gender identity.
A certain kind of prayer is now publicly deemed “unlawful”, regardless of whether that person asked for it or not. If a six-year-old girl thinks she is a boy, or if a 60-year-old man thinks he is a woman, and that person comes to you and asks you to pray with them so that they will be happy in their biological sex, this would be unlawful according to both versions of the advice. This would apply to all: parents, friends, youth leaders, or ministry workers.
While these situations do not occur very often, does the bureaucratic government really have authority to control our prayer lives? Surely, we believe that we can ask anything in Jesus’ name and that God can give peace and healing to those who are confused. We especially believe that we can pray with, and for, a brother or sister who seeks out this kind of prayer. I have prayed this kind of prayer in the past, and if the right circumstances arose, would do so again. If a friend asked you to pray with them that they would be comfortable in their own biological sex, how could you not pray with them? Are we meant to be afraid now?
We want people to know Jesus Christ, to have their lives transformed by him, expressing both gentleness and grace at the same time as truth and a call for obedience. Every Christian needs a saviour, and we learn to follow him as Lord. We will see some transformation this side of heaven. We await even more. We say the lines, “that is what some of you were,” at the same time as “but we have not yet reached the goal.” Surely any Christian claiming the name of Jesus and with a scintilla of love in their heart would pray for the holiness and wholeness of any Christian who comes to us. The government can forbid us to pray with people, especially when they come to us, but can we obey such a law?
Orders of magnitude more upsetting than what the government forbids is how churches have forsaken our commitment to God’s word. Jesus said the words: “Father, forgive them for they don’t know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). He said these words about the soldiers who crucified him, not the religious leaders who should have known better.
A cautionary warning: Melbourne Anglicans’ policy response
Have Sydney Anglicans capitulated in the face of this kind of directive? Only time will tell. Our first reactions were to oppose the law, but our settled response hasn’t had enough time. Perhaps our 2025 Synod might be instrumental, one way or the other.
Melbourne Anglicans’ response over the last few years provides us with a very salutary warning. A similar law was introduced in Victoria more than two years ago, and how the church hierarchy responded is truly awful. Vision Christian Media reported in April 2025:
Melbourne Anglicans face a dilemma. They must decide whether to obey state laws or the teachings of the Bible. Their diocese demands that members sign a Code of Conduct that among many other rules, agrees not to seek to change or suppress a child’s gender — as dictated by Victoria’s conversion laws under the Change Or Suppression (Conversion) Practises Prohibition Act 2021. Those who don’t sign the Code are banned from serving in the church or attending synods.
The Anglican Diocese of Melbourne’s Code of Conduct for Child Safety and Wellbeing is their requirement for all volunteers and church leaders to sign. Interestingly, at the bottom of every page of the document are the words, “Making the Word of God fully known.”
Elizabeth Kendal, a former Melbourne Anglican and religious liberty spokesperson, explained:
“Article 6 has a long list of about 30 prohibited activities. When you get right down to 6.2 (y), you’ll find that you will not engage in any conduct to change or suppress a child’s gender identity or sexual orientation.”
“It does tell you that the referring legislation is the Victorian state government’s Conversion Prohibition Act. So there can be no confusion what it’s talking about.”
“I just immediately saw it and said, well, I can’t sign that.”
“I mean what if a 12-year-old girl tells me that they’re going to socially transition and they don’t want to be called Mary anymore, they want to be called Kevin, and then they’re going to start on puberty blockers and testosterone.”
“There’s no way known I can affirm that child and assist them in their transition.”
“That’s what the state government requires and that is now what the Anglican Diocese of Melbourne is complying with.”1
Essentially, the Melbourne Anglicans have enshrined in their ministry requirements that even though God’s word says 2+2=4, if the government says, no, 2+2=5, then all their own ministry workers would have to line up with the government on this one. Trans ideology must be upheld by all church workers. What the government has done in Victoria is to leave their own sphere of civil authority and tell the church what to think.
The saddest thing about the Melbourne story is that as of the time I’m writing this article, there are not many leaders who have publicly refused to sign this Code of Conduct. Perhaps I have missed something, but I can only find examples of a handful of retired ministers and godly lay members who have taken a public stand. Radical trans ideology is now the official state religion of Victoria and, according to what they have written in their policy, also the official religious position of the Anglican Diocese of Melbourne.
While it’s completely outrageous for the government to create laws which tell us what we can and cannot pray or what we can say to people about God’s word, it is even more scandalous for church leaders to fall into line with them. But this is not new and should not surprise us. Let’s leave this one example behind and think more about the principles.
Are there dishonourable laws?
Most laws are good and are completely in line with what’s right and fair, or they’re just different ways of structuring things, and we’ve got to give up our preferences and submit to them. If you are a Christian and you don’t like paying for a fishing licence or you don’t like the building codes, tough—you do what the government says. You don’t say that it’s just a government body pushing codes, licences and even speed limits. It is the government, whether it is elected, judicial or bureaucratic. God’s word commands us to obey the governments over us (Rom 13:1–7). We’re called to be the best citizens, make that our aim, and respect the rulers and leaders that God has appointed over us.
The default setting for us all is that all state and federal laws should be obeyed. As an Anglican minister, I made a promise before God according to the Ordinal that said, “Will you maintain and promote to the best of your ability the quietness, peace, and love of all Christian people, especially among those committed to your care?” And I said, “I will; the Lord be my helper.”
But before God, I also made a promise: “Will you be ready to drive away false and strange doctrines that are contrary to the word of God?” And to this end, both publicly and privately, warn and encourage all within your care, both the sick and the well, as often as the occasion demands. “I will; the Lord be my helper.” And so we must gently teach the truths of the word of God against all false claims. We seek peace and love in God.
Even though most laws are good or neutral for Christians, church history is painted with occasions when dishonourable laws were in effect. We should remember the Christian DNA of courage.
- In the 3rd century, Christians were commanded to pour out libations to honour the emperor. It was just words with a bit of wine or oil. Many—not all—Christians took this as a deadly serious issue. They would not regard the emperor as divine. They would not dishonour God.
- In 16th century England, the Bible in our own language was illegal. Christians like William Tyndale broke that law. He was garrotted by the King’s men because he served the King of kings.
- In the USA during the 20th century, there were Jim Crow laws that enforced racial segregation of churches. Some Christians broke those laws. They were courageous.
- Even in the late 20th century, communist countries were closed to the gospel. There would probably be hundreds of Sydney Anglicans who were involved in breaking the law by smuggling Bibles. These men and women are heroes in our midst.
- Even now in countries like Pakistan and Iran, there are laws against sharing the gospel of Jesus. In fact, one in four countries in the world do not allow people to convert to Christianity. All authority in heaven and on earth was given to Jesus Christ. He told his disciples to go and make disciples of all nations (Matt 28:18–19). Jesus was not given ¾ of authority to make disciples of only ¾ of the nations. In some of those countries, the gospel has been growing, because Christians have obeyed Jesus first.
There are some dishonourable laws, especially for Christians, that forbid what God has allowed or command what God has forbidden. There are some laws that might be well-intentioned but get weaponised against Christians.
The New Testament answer: We continue following Jesus
We follow Jesus with honour. We see this throughout the Bible:
Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as God’s slaves. Show proper respect to everyone, love the family of believers, fear God, honour the emperor. (1 Pet 2:16–17)
Peter, who wrote this, would later be killed by the emperor, probably because the emperor thought he disobeyed him. Is this a contradiction? Not at all. We honour those over us. We live as free citizens of heaven. Since we belong to God, we freely give honour to our leaders. We use their titles, respect their positions, and obey them whenever we can.
In all circumstances, the impulse is always the same: we always, always obey. The Christian disposition is not disobedience, but obedience. While sometimes we use the shorthand of disobeying the authorities, it is more correct to say that we always obey God. Like courage and taking up the cross, obedience to God is our Christian DNA.
When Jesus told his disciples they would take up the cross and follow him, we think of it as a symbol of suffering and humiliation, and yes, we remember it as a symbol of dying and living for God. But we must not forget the cross was the symbol of Roman state power crushing those who stood in its way. To take up your cross is saying, “I will cop the worst that anyone can offer,” even if it’s the emperor. And as Christians, we are willing to face hardship and suffer for Christ. It’s not “pick up your grenades and follow me” and “Let’s lob grenades at unbelievers”. No. Pick up your cross. The way of Christian conquest is by radical obedience to God, and radical commitment. The more Christians put obeying God above personal safety, the more Christlike his people will be, and the more society will be impacted for Jesus.
In the long run, we will be a blessing to our country by obeying God. Jesus blessed the world when it killed him. The early Christians who stood against pagan worship ended up seeing many onlookers saved. Tyndale, who disobeyed the laws of England, ended up blessing the country by printing the Bible in a language they could understand. Those in our churches who have smuggled Bibles into communist countries ended up blessing those countries. In the long run, costly obedience to God will bless others.
When there are unjust and dishonourable laws, what’s the best way to respond? Focus less on the government but focus more on God. I often see Christian organisations working really hard at appealing to the government to change their law, but I see them doing absolutely nothing about making a commitment to disobey the government if they need to. We’re good at the one side, but we’re not good at the other side—saying, “I’m going to obey God regardless.”
When the law mentioned previously came into place in NSW, many Sydney Anglican ministers rushed to become experts at what the law said. I got a bit carried away myself. As much as there is a time and a place for understanding the laws of the land, it is much more important that we be experts in what the word of God has always said. The answer is simple: We just keep following Jesus. It’s the same advice you’d give to the early Christians, William Tyndale, and the sister in Iran.
A Christian who takes a costly stand and obeys God is not a B-grade Christian. If they do it for his sake, they are more like Jesus than the rest of us. The “heroes of the faith” are not just those in Hebrews 11. In the previous chapter, average Christians were just as, if not more heroic than the patriarchs:
Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you endured in a great conflict full of suffering. Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. You suffered along with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. (Heb 10:32–34)
They stood with each other. We should follow their example. Instead of merely thinking, “What will I leave my kids for their future?” we ourselves should be willing to joyfully accept the confiscation of our $2 million family homes. They were not the losers, but cosmic winners. Christian organisations that are obsessed with insurance and forget the insurance of the life to come will never count the cost and follow Jesus. In a city that worships real estate, are we willing to risk it all to gain everything in Christ Jesus?
The answer is simple: We follow Jesus, obeying God in every situation, come what may, for the good of other people and for his glory.
An Old Testament example for our current situation: We pray as we did before
Loved by King Darius, hated by the civil service, Daniel’s continued his devotion to God in his captive land. The satraps pushed a law on the king that for the next 30 days, anyone who prays to anyone except the king will be thrown into a lion’s den. Daniel prays. He’s thrown into the den. God saves him, and the king pronounces a decree that people should worship Daniel’s God. There’s a beautiful end to the story. As was mentioned before, costly obedience to God by one individual resulted in good for the people of God and even for those who came to know him. But it’s what Daniel does in just one verse, verse 10, that I think is so important for us today:
Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before. (Dan 6:10)
When did Daniel pray? As soon as he heard the law had been passed. He didn’t investigate the law. He didn’t work out the loopholes. He did not go and meet up with the king and satraps and argue for freedom of religion. He prayed as he had done before. He didn’t wait for the perfect time to make a stand. He just went on with his prayers.
Sometimes we think there will be an amazing opportunity. If someone says you can’t speak on that topic, speak on it soon. The longer you leave it, the more you self-censor.
Daniel didn’t pray in secret. If he opened the window before, he’d do it again. He didn’t stop using God’s name and make it ambiguous, like he could be praying to the king. He prayed to God as he had before. He prayed three times before. He continued to do that especially after he heard about the law.
This is the simple model for us. He didn’t organise a prayer march. I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with that. But he didn’t get all the other people together and say, “Let’s storm the capital city. Let’s storm the satraps.” He just quietly went about his business and prayed as he did before. He didn’t turn the prayer into a protest. And why? Because he didn’t think that the highest authority was the government. The person you petition is the person you think has the authority. Daniel thought God had the authority, not the king.
The kingdom of God doesn’t grow by changing the government or fine-tuning laws. The kingdom of God grows, in part, by Christians obeying God and continuing to be faithful to him come what may. In fact, the kingdom of God could grow conceivably more at times when the laws encroach against what God’s word says and dozens and hundreds of Christians stand up for it. Is now that time?
If the government says you can’t pray, the answer is simple: Keep praying as you always have. If the government says you can’t call people to trust and obey what God’s word says about sexuality, keep doing what God’s word says. And hopefully, by the time this article is being read, Melbourne Anglicans will have changed their policies and Sydney Anglicans will be even more willing to lose everything and gain even more.
This article was originally published in the ACR’s Synod 2025 Journal. The article is modified from a sermon given by Andrew Barry at Menai Anglican Church on Sunday 27 April 2025.
- As quoted in this article by Vision Christian Media. ↩︎