Governmental leaders, God’s servants, are to be obeyed and respected
Trusting politicians to defend the Christian faith is like trusting Caesar to get the early Christians really good seats at the arena...
Caesar always knew how to handle an insurrection; but he was befuddled by a church that continued to pray for him even as he sent them to their martyrdom – Michael Horton (The Gospel Driven Life)
Within the context, namely a letter written to a group (or groups) of people committed to a new Messiah who are living in the capital of the Empire. Jewish Christians, recently returned to the Empire’s capital (after having been exiled by Emperor Claudius) against becoming involved in any {95} Palestinian-Jewish nationalist fervor.
The State Be Served – Romans 13:1-10
For various reasons, today some are saying, We have lost respect for top governmental officials. Because some have been involved in various scandals. Some do their best to cheat the state of taxes. Many Americans have lost confidence and trust in the government’s credibility. On the other hand, Paul teaches that the state is to be served because it is of God, send by God for the good order of society and its authority comes from God. There is a sense of responsibility Christians have to the state. How must this be discharged?
Paul begins this section with a command. A divine directive. “Each must be subject to the governing authorities.” v.1 To resist the state is to resist God. To obey governmental officials is to obey God. Paul is on the side of law and order. This could lead to blind obedience as was experienced in Nazism.
When Paul wrote these words, the state was not persecuting Christians…yet. It would be the Roman Emperor Claudius who expelled all the Jews from Rome. Acts 18:2 According to the Roman historian Tacitus, this was because the Jews were always fighting about ‘Christos’ – a reference to the ongoing conflict between Jewish Christians (such as Paul, Aquila and Priscilla) and traditional Orthodox Jews.
Claudius was followed
by his 17-year-old stepson Nero in 54AD. Paul appealed to the Emperor Nero in
57AD (see Acts 25:11) and was subsequently acquitted after a hearing before the
emperor in c.62AD. [1]
Nero later became a brutal psychopath, blaming Christians for the Great Fire of
Rome in 64AD and sending many of them to their death in the amphitheater. Both
Paul and Peter were executed by Nero shortly after the outbreak of the
Romano-Jewish War in 66AD, when anti-Jewish frenzy was at its height.
It is assumed that governmental officials are trustworthy ministers of justice for all. According to this view, the state is an order of God’s creation. It is God’s way of executing justice and restraining evil. This, government officials are ministers of God carrying out justice in society by punishing evildoers. This gives Christians a new insight into their attitude and response to government and its laws. To disobey the laws of the state is to disobey God who will bring judgment upon offenders. Imagine the change in the crime rate if this truth would be accepted by the majority in modern society. If and when a government is corrupt and persecutes people, it is because evil powers have taken over and must be resisted.
The Christian can serve the state.
1.
By showing respect of
governmental officials as ministers of God. Vv. 2, 7
A.
Whether they know it
or not they are God’s servants chosen by Him.
B.
To keep order and a
rule of law.
2.
Pay your taxes. V. 6
A.
Pay what is you owe.
B.
Render what you are
able.
1.
Taxes
2.
Revenue
3.
Honor
4.
Respect
3.
Obey the laws out of
love – Vv. 8-10
A.
For conscience’s sake
– V. 5
B.
Love motivates
obedience. Love: V. 8 – According to Paul we are to be free of all debt except
the debt of love. If this were practiced, what would happen to our economy
which is based largely on debt – personal, corporate, and federal? The one
thing we have over our fellowman is love, for love is the performance of the
law. If you truly love your fellowman, you will not hurt him, steal from him,
lie to him or covet what he has. If we truly loved God, we would willingly obey
God’s laws. Love is the answer to our delinquency, crime and moral corruption.
The big problem is, where can we get such love? How can we get people to love
each other? We must first experience God’s love for us before we can truly love
each other.
Luther’s Seal © Ed Riojas
[1]
From Barns notes – “The name Augustus Σεβαστός Sebastos properly denotes
"what is venerable, or worthy of honor and reverence." It was first
applied to Caesar Octavianus, who was the Roman emperor in the time when our
Saviour was born, and who is usually nailed Augustus Caesar. But the title
continued to be used of his successors in office, as denoting the veneration or
reverence which was due to the rank of emperor.
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