God and Government
Romans Series
CCCAG September 26th, 2020
Scripture- Romans 13
I'm going to be honest with you.
Out of all the scriptures in Romans, this is the one that I wanted an excuse to avoid because it’s the scripture that everyone will have a strong opinion about, and even more so, strong emotions about, particularly in the climate we are in as a nation right now.
Maybe not here in our church, but those on listening to the podcast.
On the surface Romans 13: 1 through 7 seemed to be very plainly written. We will of course read them in a moment, but to summarize, it says to be good citizens of whatever nation you live in, obeying its laws, keeping your head down, and being a law abiding and productive citizen
Paul doesn't give a lot of equivocation here or a list of exceptions to the rule.
But what happens when the government turns against its citizens and begins to do things that are in conflict with our faith?
When is it right to rebel against a human government that God ordains?
That's going to be the challenge that we face today as we study God's word.
Since this might be a little contentious ,I want to ensure 2 principles for us before I begin-
1. Are we a church family? Do we really believe that? I ask this question because families might disagree at times, even passionately and loudly, but in the end, they are still family and we chose to share life together. At the end of today’s message, we will take a few moments for discussion. Even if you disagree with me or someone else’s opinion remember- we are still family and love one another.
2. The bible interprets the bible. When we see a strong proclamation like this, we look at the entirety of the bible to see its application throughout biblical and to a smaller extent, church history. That will lead us to several examples we will briefly look at today.
So let’s dig in.
Rom 13:1-5
Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2 Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you. 4 For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 5 Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience.
Prayer
I want to make a quick point here and I've said this many times before -the way the Bible is laid out that the chapter and verse markings are not inspired of God.
The Holy Spirit did not tell the authors things like chapter 3 verse 16 for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son.
2 Peter 1:21 For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
The chapter and verse markings as they stand today were added though out the middle ages by both Roman Catholic and Protestant theologians to make it easier for people to find specific thoughts and for study.
They are indispensable to us today. Imagine me standing up on Sunday morning and saying, “Turn in your bibles to that part in Roman’s where Paul talks about being submissive to authority…you know, about 65% into the book. I’ll wait.”
The one problem with chapter/verse markings is that they were not always placed well. Very often, they separate trains of thought and separate subordinate ideas away from the central ideas.
This is the case in Romans chapter 13. Romans 13, particularly the first several verses are a continuation of the central thought of Romans 12 that we studied last week-
Rom 12:1-2
Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God — this is your spiritual act of worship. 2 Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Why does this matter?
Because this concept in chapter 13 about submission to earthly authority is an outworking of the idea of being a living sacrifice.
That’s the heart that we are to have in applying these verses in Romans 13.
I said last week that our spiritual act of worship is to live according to the Spirit God gave us. That makes us very different than everyone else around us who lives according to their earthly and fleshly desires doesn’t it?
If we live according to the spirit, being submissive to authorities will be easy.
A few principles we see in Romans 13-
1. Human government is ordained by God. Ideally, governments are organized for the welfare of the population. America’s government is a constitutional representative republic. In America, the preamble to our Constitution says
“We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this constitution for the United States of America.”
Our founding fathers were wise in creating a document that defined a system of government that limited governments power to these specific categories.
Obviously, we have seen some serious abuses of this in our lifetimes, and we will talk about it in a moment.
The principle that God is trying to let us know here is that part of our spiritual act of worship is to be obedient to the government.
We do that for two reasons- to be a good witness. Christians should be the best citizens in any nation, even when that nation isn’t always doing the right thing.
An example of this-
In Jeremiah chapter 29, the people of Israel and Judah have been brutally conquered, forced out of their homes and taken 700 miles away to Babylon. Babylon is ruled by a king who thinks he is a god. It is pagan, it is evil in many ways, but yet God gives these survivors and exiles this instruction-
This is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says to all the exiles who were carried away from Jerusalem to Babylon: “Build houses and settle down. Plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters. Take wives for your sons and give your daughters in marriage, so that they too may have sons and daughters. Multiply there; do not decrease. Seek the prosperity of the city to which I have sent you as exiles. Pray to the LORD on its behalf, for if it prospers, you too will prosper.”
The first principle is summarized in this- be a good citizen of wherever God calls you to live.
2nd principle in Romans 13-
Obey authority. This concept is the flashpoint of most of the conflict we have seen this year.
Let me tell you of a recent interaction I had with the police. A little embarrassing, but I’ll be transparent.
As most of you know I do a lot of driving between, Marshfield, WI Rapids for school and Black River Falls for work. Very often I see a state patrol or county sheriff pulled in somewhere pointing a laser at passing cars to ensure people are obeying the speed limit. I usually set my cruise so I don’t have to worry about it, and I can smile and wave at them as I pass them.
I have no fear of them because I’m in obedience to the law.
However, a few weeks ago, I was leaving Marshfield around 11pm, and it was raining hard out, and cruise control isn’t an option as it can make you hydroplane and lose control of your car so I was driving without it. The rain was starting to let up a little, and as I headed down a winding hill in Clark County, at the bottom of the hill was a Clark County Sherriff. I looked down at my speedometer, and it said “70”. My heart skipped a few beats, and I looked in my rearview mirror to watch his lights came on, and sure enough he was pulling me over. I quicky pulled over the right. Got out my license, my concealed carry license because I had my pistol on, and logged into my insurance on my phone and kept my hands on the wheel. He came to the window and asked to see my license and registration. I was very polite- yes sir, no sir. HE asked me if I had any weapons, I told him pistol on my right hip under my shirt. He said, “That’s fine, if yours stays in your holster, mine will stay in my holster”
That sounds great sir.
He came back with a warning ticket- no fine and thanked me for being so cooperative, respectful, and calm during the stop- he said that is now the exception and everyone gives him a lot of grief. We chatted for a few minutes, and he let me go on my way.
This is a true story that happened a few weeks ago. Now lets change a few things.
I’m driving and doing 70 in a 55-mph zone at midnight on Hwy 10 in the middle of nowhere. Deputy pulls me over; I jump out of my car with a pistol or other weapon plainly visible and yell profanities at the officer and refuse his lawful orders.
What would happen?
Someone else would be standing before you today. And rightfully so.
3 For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you. 4 For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer.
In the midst of this incredibly polarizing time, we have completely lost this principle. As much as I agree that police need as much training as we can possibly give them, I think we need to retrain our citizens today to respect that badge.
By the way, do you know where the idea of a badge came from?
It’s from the middle ages. Kings would appoint the best men in the kingdom to be knights. A knight’s job was to protect the villagers and to promote the king’s justice. The badge represents the shield that a knight would carry.
The oath of a knight was made famous in a major Hollywood movie. They quoted it as-
Be without fear in the face of your enemies.
Be strong and upright, that God may love thee
Speak the truth always, even if it leads to your death.
Safeguard the helpless and do no wrong.
That is your oath.
At the conclusion of speaking that oath in front of a group of knights, the senior knight would strike them with an armored hand across the mouth- splitting their lip wide open and creating a scar so whenever they saw it, they would remember their oath.
They are the precursors to modern law enforcement. That is what the shield is supposed to represent.
They are worthy of our respect and we should honor those who perform their jobs well. Are their bad officers- yep, I have met several in my career- bullies with a badge. But they are the minority and never last long on the job.
That’s just law enforcement. What about the rest of government?
They should be in your prayers.
I know many who would rather have their eyes gouged out then pray for Donald Trump, and others who would rather crawl naked through broken glass then pray for Nancy Pelosi or Joe Biden.
But if that is true, you have fallen victim to the spirit of this age.
While it is true these examples have their glaring faults, they are human beings, bearers of God’s image, people who where on Jesus Christ’s mind when He hung on that cross to die for their sins.
And therefore, are worthy of our prayers that God would get ahold of them, and change their lives.
That’s the principle- be obedient to the authority God has placed in your life.
That’s true in the home
That’s true in this community
That’s true at work or school
That’s true in church
That’s true in our nation.
Paul sums up this idea in verse 6 and 7
6 This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who give their full time to governing. 7 Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.
That’s the principle we are to live by to honor God as living sacrifices.
But what happens when that authority turns on the citizens it’s supposed to protect?
I. Exceptions to this rule
Remember in the beginning that I said that the Bible interprets the Bible.
In other words when we struggle with the meaning behind any verse or section of scripture in trying to apply it to our modern world we have to look back at where it was applied in other times.
I had a friend that was so focused on this verse that he believed that America should surrender to Great Britain and repent from our rebellion in 1776.
If you were to take this scripture at face value and apply it strictly to every single situation, he would be absolutely correct.
I don't think that's what the Holy Spirit had in mind when he inspired Paul to write this.
The Holy Spirit was giving us a general principle on how we as citizens of a kingdom that is both here and yet to come can live peaceably with worldly secular government- in order that our Kingdom citizenship might shine a light for Jesus and bring many people into the Kingdom of God.
I believe that this is the number one reason Paul place this in the book of Romans.
Keep in mind who Paul is writing to and the time he is writing in-
He is writing to Christians in Rome where a man named Nero is emperor. Nero is throwing Christians into The Colosseum to be torn apart by wild animals or killed by gladiators.
Emperor Nero dips Christians in hot oil and then impales them on large spikes to set them on fire to light his garden at night.
He is by no means a godly man. In fact, Nero rose to power by convincing his mother to poison his father and then he kills his mom.
This was the person in ultimate human authority during much of Paul’s ministry. Paul still said be submissive, be salt and light where you can, and live peaceably with your neighbors.
But there does come a time when rebellion against government is warranted.
I wish I could give you a set criteria of when that is, but it’s very dependent on the situation.
I'm going to give you one very famous example from modern history.
How many people know the name Dietrich Bonhoeffer?
Dietrich Bon hoffer was a Lutheran pastor who live in Germany in 1930s and 40s, who witnessed firsthand the rise of Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany.
He was one of the first Christian leaders in his nation who spiritually discerned who Adolf Hitler really was.
Immediately after Hitler was elected to be chancellor of Germany, Bonhoeffer gave a radio address where he, as one of the most well-known and prominent pastors in his nation, warned the German people about falling into the cult of worshipping the man people were calling “the Fuhrer” (Fear- ‘er).
Hitler immediately forced the German church to elect new leadership that supported him in an effort to silence Pastor Bonhoeffer. That just made Pastor Bonhoeffer more strident and eventually he was arrested and sent to prison, and then later died in a concentration camp after he was named as a co-conspirator to an assassination attempt against Hitler.
Don’t answer this yet, but, in the light of Romans 13, did Dietrich Bonhoeffer do the right thing?
There are also a quite a few biblical examples of people rightly rebelling against secular authorities-
1. Egypt- midwives hiding Hebrew babies
2. Moses against Pharaoh.
3. Jehu wiping out King Ahab’s entire family
4. Jehoiada hiding Joash from the queen
5. Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refusing to worship the image of Gold
6. Daniel still praying to God
7. The disciples disobeying Hebrew leadership and refusing to stop preaching about the risen Christ.
That’s just a few of the dozens of examples within biblical history of people refusing to bow to evil.
Now let’s apply this to today’s America where we all live.
How many people have heard the name of John McArthur?
John MacArthur is one of the best bible teachers of our generation and is the pastor of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California.
I'm not sure how many of you keep up with the news but California Governor Newsome, by executive order, has closed all churches for months now.
Pastor McArthur is having services in defiance of that order and is facing threats of criminal prosecution and major jail time and huge fines as is the members of his church for meeting.
He is one of the few pastors in California standing up to this illegal order.
We need to pray for them.
(moved to a time of local issues that challenge this idea)
I will open it up for Questions-
Discussion
Closing prayer
