TO SERVE AND TO PROTECT
Romans 13:1 Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. 4 For he is God¡¦s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God¡¦s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. 5 Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience¡¦ sake. 6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for they are God¡¦s ministers attending continually to this very thing. 7 Render therefore to all their due: taxes to whom taxes are due, customs to whom customs, fear to whom fear, honor to whom honor.
INTRODUCTION: ¡§TO PROTECT AND TO SERVE¡¨
Christ jubilee has a long history of collaboration with the Lowell Police Dept: from Supt. Ed Davies to Supt. Ken Lavalee. I served on the Lowell Police Advisory Committee when the city was recognized by the Justice Department for its proactive policing policy. I have a picture taken with Janet Reno the Attorney General of the USA under Bill Clinton when she came to Lowell. Some of our folks are in Citizenship Policing ¡V Bis. Jackson, Sis. Yvonne, Sis. Gessie, etc. So coming together to bridge gap when relationship between law enforcement and some communities are strained is a must. WE must be proactive rather than reactive.
MOTTO OF MOST POLICE DEPTS: ¡§To Protect & Serve¡¨
In February 1955, the Los Angeles Police Department conducted a contest for a motto for the police academy. The winning entry was the motto, "To Protect and to Serve". Most police departments in America have adopted the motto.
Police & Community (Church) meetings should be held at a time like this when the nation remains focused on the issue of police killings and accountability, especially since the shootings of Michael Brown (allegedly stole cigarettes from a convenience store), Eric Garner (selling on the street corner), Ramarley Grahams (had weed in his pocket), Walter Scott (may have been scared by a child support payment or because he didn't have registration for the car he was driving.) These and more have shaken the relationship between police and the people they serve.
ABOUT POLICEMEN
Policing Is A Risky Profession. Per the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, 117 law enforcement officers died in the line of duty in 2014. In 2013, 107 officers were killed. Policemen of all levels are our peacemakers. They stand in the gap to keep the peace, all too often in an ever-increasing world of violence. Having a peaceful society is necessary in order to enable people to worship God. Peacemakers must sometimes enforce the peace by taking troublemakers into custody and/or punishing them. Not only are police peacemakers, but God gives us instructions on our relationship with the police. Titus 3:1 Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good. And when someone does something terribly wrong to us, we are to let the policemen, God¡¦s appointed servants, handle any retribution. Romans 12:19 Do not take revenge. Leave that to the righteous anger of God. Hebrews 13:17 Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over you, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do their duty with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.
Not all policemen are bad ¡V there are a few bad ones. What happens when we place the good and the bad in the same category? We become like Baltimore with recent soaring crime rate: The public outcry against the entire Police Department in the wake of Freddie Gray¡¦s death led to a relaxed Police response. Through 29 days of May 2015, there were 42 homicides and 104 nonfatal shootings; while there were 23 homicides and 39 nonfatal shootings in Baltimore in May 2014. Why are arrests down so sharply? First, some cops fear that criminals have turned more aggressive and confrontational after a year of allegations of police brutality - from the protests in Ferguson to the shooting of two officers in New York to riots across America. Crime rates are up in many major cities nationwide. Second, for other officers, it is fear of being charged than being killed in the line of duty.
SEVERAL THINGS PAUL TEACHES IN THE PASSAGE.
1. God Is Sovereign Over Government & Created It (1-3)
Authority is not bad. Every person alive is under some type of authority and will be until they die. Authority is a God-thing, not man-made. By honoring authority, we honor God. By dishonoring authority, we dishonor God. God uses authority to establish order.
First Of All, Paul teaches that "God is sovereign over government. Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except..." Except what? "...except that which God has established." Now that doesn¡¦t mean God appointed Khadafi & Sadam Hussein & Hitler & Stalin & used them as puppets on His string. But it does mean that God has established the principle that a government is to be in charge of society. God can accomplish His work & His will in all kinds of government. We think that democracy is the best. But note that our Constitution was written assuming that the citizens of this land would be moral, God-fearing people. That¡¦s the only way democracy ¡V it becomes whatever the people are. If the people become pagan & immoral & violent, then the government becomes pagan & immoral & violent. Illustration: You put 5 people on an island, 3 men & 2 women, & the 3 men vote to rape the 2 women, that¡¦s democracy. But that¡¦s democracy at its worst. So democracy has the capability of becoming an evil form of government if the people are evil.
2. There Are 2 Reasons For Government.
ƒæ To Do Good. Vs. 4 says, "For he is God¡¦s servant to do you good." The government is supposed to serve the people. So we pay our taxes & the government builds highways & provides services that we cannot provide for ourselves.
ƒæ To Restrain Evil. That same verse 4 says, "He is God¡¦s servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer." Government is supposed to make sure that evil does not rule the land. Every time you hear a siren or see red lights behind you, what do you do? You look at the speedometer to see if you¡¦re driving within the speed limit. "Is my seat belt fastened? Do I have my insurance? Is my inspection up to date? Is my state license sticker current?" If all the answers are "Yes," then you breathe a sigh of relief. But if you have broken the law, then you are afraid because the government can punish you for your disobedience of the law. In every society, government is there to restrain evil.
3. Government Officials Are To Be Servants Of God (4-5)
The passage says government officials are to be servants of God. Three times it says that they are God¡¦s servants. If you¡¦re a public official, if you¡¦re a teacher or policeman, if you¡¦re in the military, whatever your job might be, realize that you¡¦re there to be God¡¦s servant. You are to serve God in whatever job you have.
There is a principle in Deuteronomy 28:1-6 & repeated in that same chapter. "If a nation obeys God it will be blessed. If it disobeys God it will be cursed." A historian wrote: "Of the 22 civilizations I have studied, 19 of them fell, not because of external forces, but because of internal moral decay." They died from within. America started by recognizing that we have a Creator & because of Him we have the rights that we enjoy in this country. Jamestown, one of the very first settlements, built a church building in the center of the community. The church became the hub around which everything revolved. The earliest colleges, Yale & Harvard, were established to train preachers. If you go to the Congressional building in Washington, D.C., you¡¦ll discover scripture verses all over its walls. If you take out your coins & read them you¡¦ll discover the words, "In God we trust." And Congress still opens its sessions in prayer. So government officials are God¡¦s servants to people.
4. Christians Must Submit To Governing Authorities (5-7).
This passage also teaches that: "Christians are to be submissive to the governing authorities." "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities." As Christians, we are to be in submission to the government even though we may not agree with it. Now there is one exception to the rule ¡V when the law of the land conflicts with the Law of God. Then, as Christians, we are to obey the Law of God & not the law of this land.
ľ Daniel (Daniel 6) told that he could not pray - that was the law of the land. The Law of God said, "You are to pray." Daniel went ahead & prayed and disobeyed the law of the land.
ľ Peter & James (Acts 4) were told not to teach or preach at all in the name of Jesus - that was the law of the land. But they disobeyed the law of the land & obeyed the Law of God.
ƒæ Egyptian Midwives (Exodus 1:17) ¡§The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live.¡¨
5. You Can Submit To Imperfect Authority.
Parents and police should do their best to Discipline. They may misuse their authority. Ephesians 4 Fathers should not make their children angry by the way they treat them. Rather, bring them up with the discipline and instruction approved by the Lord. If you mistreat them and they react, you are partly to blame. This is the same with the police and government. We must speak out where injustice prevails. But we cannot throw the whole basket of fruit away because one is bad. We take the one out.
PRACTICAL WAYS TO HONOR AUTHORITY
1. Realize that government officials are ¡§Public Servants.¡¨
2. Many do a good job and are really out to serve.
3. But few of them are a disgrace and bad apples.
4. Don¡¦t withdraw from government, support it. Make it better.
5. Submit / respect them cheerfully (1 Peter 2:13-17).
6. Serve them the way that you have been gifted to serve.
7. Challenge them respectfully (Matthew 18:15).
8. Pray over the alleged offense and get God¡¦s perspective.
9. Listen to their & other counsel, if any, and pray about it.
10. Stay away from personal opinions and stick to policies.
11. Give them double honor (1 Timothy 5:17-18).
12. Pray for them unceasingly (1 Timothy 2:1).
PRAYER: Safety, smooth relationship, good judgment, law-abiding.
