Daily Thoughts from Romans – Human Government and Christians (13:1-7)

Daily Thoughts from Romans – Human Government and Christians

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.  (Romans 13:1-7 ESV)

The one who presents himself to God as a living sacrifice will therefore submit to God’s ordained authorities.  God established human government essentially after the flood when He imposed the death penalty for murder.  Instead of relatives taking vengeance as they willed the community took vengeance and a court of some sort was required.  So one way God’s vengeance is carried out is through human government.

Other issues are subject to laws and people are chosen to uphold those laws, and Paul says God has given them this role of authority.  So if you want to live without fear, obey them, because they “bear the sword” of punishment for lawbreakers.  We are to treat them with the respect due their office as appointed by God.

Paul states this categorically, but he, along with the rest of the church, was living under a government that was often allowing persecution of Christians, in some cases commanding Christians to acknowledge Caesar as Lord.  The apostles did not obey the Jewish Sanhedrin, God’s appointed authority over Israel, because the Sanhedrin commanded them to disobey God and not speak in the name of Jesus (Acts 4,5).  If any government contradicts God’s law we cannot obey it but must obey God.

But what if the government doesn’t command us to disobey God but allows people to do things that are contrary to God’s law, as in the case of allowing abortions or assisted suicide?  In America we have a way to help shape our governmental policies and we can pursue those.  Other countries have no such options.  We also have the option of persuading those who might avail themselves of these measures not to use them and offering them alternatives.

Taxes are often, if not always, a requirement for government to function in its God-ordained role.  And Christians are expected to pay their taxes.  This is another way of submitting to God’s appointed authorities.  But what if there is taxation without representation?  It is hard to say that the American Revolution violated Paul’s principle and teaching, but it seems that is what happened.  Great Britain was not commanding the colonies to do something contrary to God’s revealed will.  Was the revolution justified?

There has never been a perfect government, due mainly to the sinful power-hungry humans who populate it.  Every government, therefore, hurts innocent people.  If a government becomes inimical or hostile to human life it is necessary to see government as failing to carry out God’s purpose of avenging evil, since it has become evil, and there is justification in bringing it down.  Deitrich Bonhoeffer saw this in Nazi Germany.  He said,

“Silence in the face of evil is itself evil: God will not hold us guiltless. Not to speak is to speak. Not to act is to act.”