By
1.
INTRO:
1.1.
In our last study, we looked
at verses 16-23 of chapter 12.
1.1.1. We finished
up our discussion of how the body of Christ should function that occupied the
last half of chapter 12.
1.2.
In our study today, we are going to look at the first
seven verses of chapter 13.
1.2.1. Here, Paul
will tell us what the responsibility is for every Christian of being in
subjection or obedience to the governing authorities who have been placed over
his/her life.
1.2.2. Paul tells
us first of all that it is the Lord who establishes all authority.
1.2.3. Paul will
reveal how that God uses the governing authorities of the land to reward the
righteous and punish the wicked.
1.2.4. Paul will
tell us how that by being obedient to the governing authorities over our lives
we will be able to live a peaceful life and not be unnecessarily hindered from
accomplishing the things that the Lord wants us to do on a daily basis.
2. VS 13:1 - “13:1 Let every person be in
subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from
God, and those which exist are established by God.” -
Paul tells us that every person is supposed to be subject to the
governing authorities over their life
2.1.
When we as God’s people come to the scriptures it is
very important that we have proper heart preparation. Many people read and study the Bible and yet
do not understand it. When we read and
study the scriptures we must be willing to set aside our preconceptions and
prejudices in order for the Lord to speak to us, and many times when we read
the scriptures we do not understand it because we do not do these very things
and we read and study merely out of curiosity rather than a desire to have the
Lord speak to us. It is important to
always read and study the scriptures prayerfully and also to realize that when
it comes to spiritual things that we all really have a lot to learn. This study today covers a topic in which
people tend to have strong opinions.
However, the Bible does speak clearly on the subject matter, and we
really should desire to know God’s mind and will on the topic we will be
looking at from God’s word today.
2.2.
In the scriptures we see that there are three
institutions which the Lord has set up:
The home, the church, and the government.
2.3.
Having given numerous exhortations to the Christian in
regard to his relationships within the church as well as in the world, in
chapter 12 of Romans, Paul begins to discuss the relationship of the believer
to the varying authorities under which he finds himself, especially the
government.
2.4.
It is good in beginning this discussion to think about
the context in which Paul found himself when he penned these words, or what the
government was like in which Paul found himself. The world ruler at this time was Caesar Nero,
who was one of the most mad and despicable people history records. Nero is actually accredited for Paul’s
martyrdom not too many years after his writing of the book of Romans. After executing Paul, Nero went into a full
scale persecution of Christians. He
would take Christians and have pitch poured all over them, then at night he
would light his gardens by burning the Christians on poles.
2.5.
Before considering our responsibility to obey the
governing authorities over our life , it might be good to consider our heritage
as Americans a minute. We were once an
English colony who rebelled against the English primarily because we didn’t
want to pay the taxes
2.6.
Henri David Thoreau did not believe that government
should exist and wrote treatises on the topic of “civil disobedience,” a
subject we will discuss more fully later.
In one such treatise Thoreau stated, I heartily accept the motto,
"That government is best which governs least"; and I should like to
see it acted up to more rapidly and systematically. Carried out, it finally
amounts to this, which also I believe--"That government is best which
governs not at all"; and when men are prepared for it, that will be the
kind of government which the will have.”
His ideas concerning getting rid of government may seem to be good to
some but those anarchist views would never work in this world as long as there
are sinful people who live here. I have
talked with people who lived in countries in
2.7.
The Lord knew that man would need government, and
therefore in Genesis 9, He established government. God has commissioned
government among mankind for the purpose of
keeping order and restraining evil.
Government maintains law and order.
2.8.
Whenever we find in God’s word a law or a principle
that is taught by the Lord prior to the giving of the Mosaic Law we believe
that this law or principle is sort of transcendent of any covenants or
dispensations established by the Lord.
Much prior to Moses and the Law of Moses, in Genesis 9:6 we read that
God Himself instituted that government should exist, and He based it upon one
unchanging principle, that of capital punishment for the crime of murder, “6 “Whoever
sheds man’s blood, By man his blood shall be shed, For in the image of God He
made man.” Having created man,
having had man fall in the garden, having witnessed the first murder shortly
after man left the garden of Eden, having had the world destroyed by the flood,
God decreed that there was one institution that should be established as a rule
for government, and that was capital punishment. Whenever a government deviates from punishing
with death those who take life, history records that there always results mass
confusion, revolt, and outrage. Capital
punishment is a necessary deterrent to the crime of murder.
2.9.
The week in which I first taught this study a jury had
just found a man named Timothy McVeigh guilty and sentenced him to death for
the most heinous act of domestic terrorism in American history prior to 9/11,
the bombing of a federal building in Oklahoma City, OK. A truck bomb took 168 lives, including 19 children
in a daycare facility. McVeigh committed
this violent act which resulted in the deaths of these people because he
believed that the government of the
In recent years, numerous
anti-government groups have popped up all over the country, and interestingly
most claim a Christian heritage and beliefs as being central to their
cause. When we lived in Montana we came
across the followers of Elizabeth Claire Prophet who belong to the Church
Universal And Triumphant and built an underground compound near Bozeman which
they stock piled full of weapons and ammunition, I believe, in preparation for
a future race war. There was also
another group called the Freeman which had an infamous standoff with the police
for a number of weeks. There were also
other groups. In California, there have
been lots of these groups including the Heaven’s Gate cult who all committed
suicide together thinking that their spirits were going to join up with a
heavenly spaceship that was coming close to the earth to receive them. In
To be honest, I’m sure all of us given a
little bit of time could come up with some reasons we could use to justify
being disobedient and rebellious against any government that has ever existed
upon the earth, including our own U.S.A.
However, what Paul teaches here in chapter 13 of Romans is that the
Christian is called to be in subjection and obedience to the governing
authorities under which he finds himself.
The Christian is to do this even when the government is corrupt and
ungodly itself, which was the case in the government under Caesar Nero in which
Paul found himself. Therefore, all “civil
disobedience” is to be avoided by the Christian.
2.10.
Since government is necessary due to the sinful nature
of man, God has ordained the institution of government, and Paul writes here in
verse 1 that everyone is to be obediently subject to all ‘governing
authorities.’
2.11.
Now in this verse here, we have to realize that Paul
is really referring to all authorities in a Christian’s life since he writes ‘for
there is no authority except from God.’
The authority in government, the authority in the church, the authority
in the home, etc., all authority has been established by God and if man is to
be in his proper God-ordained place, he must subject himself to the authorities
which have been placed over him by God.
2.12.
Not only has God established the principle of ‘authority’
within human society, Paul writes of authorities that ‘those which exist are
established by God’ That is, God
raises up (or allows to be raised up) all those who have the position of
authority on this earth, and in each person’s life, for God Himself establishes
‘all authorities.’ We cannot
understand all of God’s ways, and why some have been raised up in authority
over our lives, however wherever a Christian finds himself he is to be subject
to the authorities which he finds himself under.
2.13.
The prophet Daniel in the Old Testament wrote about
the fact that it is the Lord who raises up all governing authorities in Daniel
2:20-21, “Daniel answered and said: "Blessed be the name of God forever
and ever, For wisdom and might are His.
And He changes the times and the seasons; He removes kings and raises up
kings”. In Daniel 5:21 there's this,
“. . . the Most High God rules in the kingdom of men, and appoints over it
whomever He chooses.”
2.14.
Having said all of these things there is one exception
to subjection to authorities which we find in scripture, and that is that if to
be in subjection to the authorities over a Christian’s life would cause the
Christian to disobey God’s commandments, then the Christian is to obey God
rather than man. We see this principle
worked out throughout the Bible, including :
2.14.1.
In Acts 4:19-20 the apostles had been forbidden by the
authorities in Jerusalem to preach the gospel of salvation, and yet they have a
pre-eminent command and commission of God which supersedes this earthly law,
one to which they are obedient, “19 But Peter and John answered
and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to give heed to you
rather than to God, you be the judge; 20 for we cannot stop speaking
about what we have seen and heard.””
2.14.2.
We also see this principle worked out in the book of
Genesis where Moses’ parents hid him and saved his life when the pharaoh’s
command was to have all of the Hebrew children killed after birth. Because of conscience Moses’ parents could
not carry out the law and murder their son.
2.15.
We Christians must not delude ourselves into thinking
that we can be faithfully serving God when we are openly disobeying whatever
authorities which He has placed over our lives.
We are not called to join the anti-government forces and buck the system
under which we find ourselves, nor reject all authority over our lives. This is not God’s will for our lives.
2.16.
Some have disobeyed the laws of the land stating that
they were doing so because politicians have made those laws, not God. However, what Paul states here is that when
we are following and obeying the laws of the land that we are doing God’s will,
even though in some cases we might be able to make a case for the unfairness of
a law.
2.17.
So, we as Christians must acknowledge that every
authority that has been placed over our lives has been placed their by God
Himself. The Lord will be pleased with
us if we as a child will take to heart what our parents are asking us to
do when we live in their home and under their authority. He will be pleased if we as a woman obey our
husband’s wishes as unto the Lord.
He will be pleased if we submit to the leaders in the church to
which we find ourselves in. He will be
pleased if we are obedient to the boss whom God has placed over our
lives. He will be pleased if we obey the
laws of the land established by our governing authorities. Only if these authorities over our lives are
trying to make us disobey God’s commands will we be justified if we obey God
instead of man.
2.18.
If you strongly disagree with what someone in
authority over you asks you to do, you should do it anyway as long as in doing
it you will not be disobeying God’s commands.
Besides, in obeying in this way I believe that one day you will come to
understand that God had a purpose for leading you in a direction that you might
disagree with initially.
2.19.
Many people in recent history have refused military
service because of their religious convictions, however no where in scripture
does the Bible teach that in order for a person to be completely committed to
God that he/she cannot be in the military.
2.20.
Likewise, some have refused military service claiming
to be pacifists because of their religious convictions, however even though the
Bible teaches not to commit murder, there is no where in scripture where a
person is condemned for the taking of life during military service.
2.21.
The commitment should be made by each Christian to
seek the Lord about all of the things that he does all throughout the duration
of his life, including to what degree he is to be subject to the governing
authorities placed over him? Where
should you draw the line between obedience to God and obedience to man? We have God’s word as our guide and the Holy
Spirit to lead us into the truth and how it should be applied in our life.
2.22.
Peter in his writings and teachings agreed fully with
the apostle Paul on this subject of subjection to authorities for he wrote the
following in 1 Pet 2:13-17, “Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for
the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, or to governors, as to those
who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those
who do good. For this is the will of
God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish
men; free, yet not using liberty as a
cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God.
Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.”
2.23.
For us as Christians it must not be the case that the
end justifies the means for our lives, for our responsibility is to be holy as
our God is holy, and to walk and live out our life in such a way as pleases the
Lord in all that we do.
2.24.
We Christians must face the fact that our attitude
toward submission to the authorities that God has placed over our lives is an
indicator of our love for and obedience to the Lord.
2.25.
I do however think that if we as Christians have the
opportunity to move to another country and thereby place ourselves under more
favorable governing authorities, that this also is OK for us to do, if we first
prayerfully seek the Lord’s will in this decision.
3. VS 13:2 - “2 Therefore he who resists
authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will
receive condemnation upon themselves.” -
Paul tells us that the one who resists this teaching to be submissive to
the governing authorities placed over our lives has opposed God’s ordinances
3.1.
In this verse, Paul makes it clear that resisting the
authorities whom God has placed over our lives as Christians is to oppose God’s
law (or ordinance).
3.2.
Further, Paul writes that opposing the authorities
under which a Christian finds himself will cause him to ‘receive
condemnation,’ which in this case means that the person will find himself
in trouble with the law. In most
circumstances it is not God’s will for the Christian to break the laws of the
land.
3.3.
It is God’s will that we as Christians should not have
to suffer unnecessarily. God knows that
resisting the governing authorities over us will only cause unnecessary
suffering for us. For this reason, in 1
Tim. 2:1-2 Paul urges us as saints that we are to offer prayers regularly for
the authorities over us, “2:1 First of all, then, I urge that entreaties and
prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, 2 for kings
and all who are in authority, in order that we may lead a tranquil and quiet
life in all godliness and dignity.”
3.4.
I once worked with a guy in the
3.5.
We as Christians need to realize that our hope should
never be in this political party or in that one. The hope that we ought to have is not in a
political system, but in the Lord Himself.
What
3.6.
Running for political office as a Christian can be a
good thing for those called to do this as they believe that God can use them to
make a difference and create and uphold legislation in accordance with God’s
will.
4. VS 13:3 - “3 For rulers are not a cause of
fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority?
Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same;” - Paul tells us that rulers should not be a
cause of fear for good behavior only for bad behavior
4.1.
In this verse, Paul exhorts the Christians to do good
in the law’s eyes for in doing so they will not have to fear the repercussions
of disobeying the law.
4.2.
It is much better for Christians to be law-abiding
citizens, and for that reason to be praised by the governing authorities, than
it is to be disobedient to the law and suffer the government’s punishment for
doing wrong.
4.3.
Its really simple, if you don’t want to get into
trouble with the law, do not break the laws of the land. If you want to stay out of jail, you should
subject yourself to the governing authorities over your life.
5. VS
13:4-5 - “4 for it is a
minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it
does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger
who brings wrath upon the one who practices evil. 5 Wherefore it is necessary
to be in subjection, not only because of wrath, but also for conscience‘ sake.” - Paul tells us that the governing authorities
are to be a minister of God to us for the good that we do as well as the bad
that we do
5.1.
The government under which a Christian finds himself
is a ‘minister of God’ to him, as it is intended by God for the good of
His people. Because God’s Word states
that the government is a ‘minister’ to the people, many countries have
the custom of calling those who hold public offices ‘ministers’ of this
or of that function of the government.
5.2.
The ‘sword’ mentioned in this verse refers to
capital punishment since in Paul’s day people were primarily executed for
crimes by being beheaded with a sword.
5.3.
The governing authorities are described in verse 4 as
‘an avenger who brings wrath upon the one who practices evil.’ In the Old Testament, the “avenger of
death” was the blood relative who would hunt down one who murdered a
relative in order to put him to death.
So, this is then the second reference in verse 4 to capital punishment.
5.4.
Paul writes in verse 5 that for ‘conscience sake,’
the Christian is to be in subjection to the governing authorities over him.
5.5.
Those who hold government offices and are government
representatives have an obligation to view their position as being
God-ordained, and therefore they should be very careful to responsibly look out
for the welfare of their state as well as to represent the concerns which the
Lord would have them represent. They
should be prayerful and view their position as being one in which they are
working righteousness before God on behalf of the people.
5.6.
We Christians must not only be obediently subject to
those who are in authority over us, we must also give them proper respect since
the Lord says that He has appointed them over us for our good. Even though you may not respect the person
himself, if you are to have a good conscience before God, you must give him
respect because of respect for the office which he holds.
5.7.
Governing officials should also have respect for the
office in which they hold and seek to honor and glorify God by their actions,
especially as their lives can make such a difference in this world.
6. VS
13:6-7 - “6 For because of
this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to
this very thing. 7 Render to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due;
custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor.” - Paul tells us to pay taxes to whom taxes are
due, custom to whom custom is due, fear to whom fear is due, and honor to whom
honor is due
6.1.
In these verses, Paul outlines some of the practical
aspects of subjection which a Christian must heed to the authorities placed
over him in government :
6.1.1. First, a
Christian is to ‘pay taxes.’
6.1.1.1. There have
been many people in recent years who have refused to ‘pay income taxes’
to the American government because they felt the money was unjustly being
required of them, or because they disagreed about where the government would
use their tax money. However, ‘tax’
money in Paul’s day was likewise used for very evil purposes, and yet Paul
writes that a Christian is to ‘pay taxes.’ Therefore, the argument some make for not
paying taxes is not valid.
6.1.1.2. Jesus taught
that His followers were to pay taxes to their governing authorities when a spy
from the Pharisees tried to catch him in a saying by asking him a question
about paying taxes in Luke 20:, “21 And they questioned Him, saying,
“Teacher, we know that You speak and teach correctly, and You are not partial
to any, but teach the way of God in truth. 22 “Is it lawful for us to pay taxes
to Caesar, or not?” 23 But He detected their trickery and said to them, 24
“Show Me a denarius. Whose likeness and inscription does it have?” And they
said, “Caesar’s.” 25 And He said to them, “Then render to Caesar the things
that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.””
6.1.1.3. We
Christians must never think that because we are God’s people we are special and
therefore it is OK if we cheat on our taxes, or refuse to pay them.
6.1.2. Second, a
Christian is to render ‘custom’ to the governing authorities over
him.
6.1.2.1. The ‘custom’
referred to by Paul is thought to be a sales tax that was exacted in Paul’s
day. Paul writes that a Christian is not
to withhold this tax from the government.
6.1.3. Third, a
Christian is to render reverential ‘fear’ (which is expected to be
given) to governing authorities over him.
6.1.3.1. A governing
authority, because of his God-given office, must be treated by a Christian with
reverential respect.
6.1.3.2. We
Christians must never think that because we are God’s people that we are to
show respect only to God, or only to God and the authority structures that He
has established in the church. The
Christian is called to give proper respect, honor, and reverence also to the
governing authorities over him since it is the Lord who has placed them over
him for his own good and protection.
6.1.3.3. An example
from Paul’s own life of showing proper respect and honor for the office of
authority placed over his life by God is found in Acts 22:30-23:5 when Paul was
arrested in Jerusalem and brought before the chief priests for questioning, “30
But on the next day, wishing to know for certain why he had been
accused by the Jews, he released him and ordered the chief priests and all the
Council to assemble, and brought Paul down and set him before them. 1 Paul,
looking intently at the Council, said, “Brethren, I have lived my life with a
perfectly good conscience before God up to this day.” 2 The high
priest Ananias commanded those standing beside him to strike him on the mouth. 3
Then Paul said to him, “God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall!
Do you sit to try me according to the Law, and in violation of the Law order me
to be struck?” 4 But the bystanders said, “Do you revile God’s high
priest?” 5 And Paul said, “I was not aware, brethren, that he was
high priest; for it is written, ‘You
shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’”” What Paul said to the high priest about
God striking Ananias actually proved to be prophetic. Less than two years after this incident, King
Agrippa deposed Ananias from the high priesthood, and then in 66 AD, during the
beginning of the Jewish war under the procuratorship
of Florus, history records that Ananias had his house
burned down and was stabbed to death by the daggers of the Sicarii.
6.1.4. Fourth, a
Christian is to render ‘honor’ to the governing authorities over
him.
6.1.4.1. A Christian
is to ‘honor’ the authorities placed over him since he acknowledges that
God has placed this person over his life.
7. CONCLUSIONS
:
7.1.
Lets make a commitment to honor, obey, and pay proper
respect to all of the authorities that the Lord has placed over our lives :
7.1.1. Children to
your parents.
7.1.2. Wives to
your husbands.
7.1.3. Men and
women to your bosses on earth.
7.1.4. Men, women
and children to the authorities in the church.
7.1.5. Men, women
and children to our governing authorities by obeying the laws of the land, that
is, unless to obey those laws would cause you to directly rebel against a
commandment or commission given to you by the Lord.