22^nd Sunday after Pentecost at Epiphany on October 12, 2008

Romans 13:1-7 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. 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.

Submission to God’s government

A government surveyor brought his surveying equipment to a farm to do some work for the state and county. He knocked on the farmhouse door and asked the farmer for permission to go into one of his fields to take some readings. The farmer had no hospitality for any state or county officials. He thought that maybe the government was going to take some of his land for a public project. “I will not give you permission to go onto my land!” said the farmer. The surveyor produced an official government document that authorized him to do the survey. He said, “I have the authority to enter any field in the entire country to do my work.” Faced with the authority of the county, state, and federal government the farmer unwillingly opened the gate and allowed the surveyor to enter one of his fields. The farmer then went to the far end of the field and opened another gate. Suddenly a huge, angry bull came charging at the surveyor through the open gate. The surveyor dropped his equipment and began running for his life. The farmer shouted after him, “Show him your paper. Tell him you have authority.”

Don’t we have a lot of that farmer in us? In everything from driving the speed limit to paying our taxes to voting to discussing politics, our sinful nature resists the government’s control and claim on us. However, the apostle Paul presents a different attitude for us. He describes the God-pleasing way followers of Christ will interact with the governing authorities. Instead of rebelling and resisting, he says that we will obey and submit to the government. The Holy Spirit will work through this Word to change our attitude and actions.

God has established the government, whatever government it is. It doesn’t matter whether that government is a a republic, monarcy, or dictatorship; whether it is democratic, communist, or socialist; whether it is a moral society that is friendly to Christianity or it is immoral, corrupt and abusive; God has placed these authorities over His people. We are to submit to them.

God uses these governments to His good and His glory. In order to keep His people safe, God used the nation of Egypt. God later used the hard slavery and the command to kill baby boys by that same Egyptian government to make His Israelite people want to leave Egypt. God used the Babylonian government to carry the Israelites into captivity in order to discipline His chosen people. God placed Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the Babylonian government to prepare His chosen people for leaving Babylon 70 years later. Caesar Augustus threw his weight around by ordering a census to be taken of the entire Roman world, but God used it to move His holy family to Bethlehem to fulfill prophecy. Pontius Pilate made the illegal decision to crucify Jesus Christ, but God used that decision to save humanity from their sins. Emperor Nero poured tar and pitch over Christians and used them as torches to light up his garden parties, yet God used this persecution to spread Christianity all over Europe.

God may use a government that promotes peace in order to freely spread His gospel message. God may use a government that persecutes Christians in order to remind His people there is a better place in heaven.

So whether a government is good or bad, whether our candidate is elected or not, whether we agree with the government or not, we submit to the governing authorities because they have been established by God. When Jesus was on trial before Pontius Pilate He corrected Pilate’s false understanding of government authority. When Pilate said, “Don’t you realize I have power either to free you or to crucify you?” Jesus responded, “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above.” (John 19:11)

One of our biggest challenges to having a submissive attitude to our governing authorities is to understand that they have all been established by God. God will work out His holy plan through good, peaceful, honest, leaders the same way He will carry out His plan through immoral, crooked politicians and wicked, murderous dictators.

Although we may not like everything the government does the fact remains that God uses the authorities he establishes to bless us. Paul also wrote, “And God placed all things under [Christ’s] feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church.” (Ephesians 1:22) Christ is King of all the kings of the earth and Lord of the lords who have authority over people. He uses the governments of the world for the good of his Church.

“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. For he is God’s servant to do you good.”

Paul reminds us to obey the government God has established because God will bring us blessings through them. The initial reaction by the Christians living in Rome, to whom Paul first addressed this letter, may have been, “Blessings?! This is the government that is throwing Christians to the lions!” Your reaction might be, “What do you mean blessings? The government just takes my money and doesn’t do a thing for me!” But take a moment and think about what the American government does for us. It is the government that provides roads, highways, libraries, schools, and universities. Those in authority provide police and fire departments, hospitals, and the military that protects us and keeps us safe. We have freedom to worship and practice our Christian religion. The government ensures free trade and fair business practices. We submit to the governing authorities because God blesses us through them.

The government can also bring punishment to those who don’t obey. “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.” Monetary fines, prisons, and even the death penalty are tools of the government to maintain peace and foster prosperity.

Now that you know why you should submit to God’s governing authorities, Paul tells you how to submit to them, “This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.” The attitude Paul sets out here is much different from that of the farmer who sent his bull after the surveyor. This Christ-like attitude and God-pleasing actions can only be produced in us through the work of the Holy Spirit as we meet our obligations to our governing authorities.

You may have noticed that the long-standing currency motto “In God We Trust” is no longer a prominent feature on certain U.S. currency. Some news reports indicate that a percentage of the new Presidential U.S. coins have mistakenly been printed without the motto on their edge at all! Does this mean that the government of the United States is failing God by not encouraging people to trust in him?

Many say yes. The Bible says no. When you read Romans 13, you discover that it isn’t any earthly government’s job to teach the Bible, promote the worship of God, or evangelize lost souls. That’s our job as Christians! As a matter of fact, we prefer that earthly governments leave the teachings of God alone. Leave the commandments off the courthouses. Leave prayer out of public schools. Leave “In God We Trust” off U.S. currency.

To put it simply – earthly governments are not the best teachers of heavenly truth. Leave that to Christians who trust in God and His Word. Let’s not make the government into a church. The government works with law, not gospel. As the government is made up of people, so the church is made up of believers.

Let churches take up, even more, the cause of teaching the Bible, promoting the worship of God, and evangelizing lost souls. Let Christians live as upright citizens, encouraging and praying for their government to fulfill its God-given duty of keeping peace and order in society.

Someone has well said that the scandal of our time is the bad citizenship of good people. It is totally inconceivable that God would have ordained human government (in Romans 13) and then told His people to stay out of it.

God desires for us to become involved in the government. We need to speak out. We dare not be silent. We need to sound a warning. The main purpose of the Christian Church is to preach the Gospel, but God’s people cannot remain silent about evils and sins in society. It is Satan’s strategy to keep good people silent in evil times. When you study your Bible, you notice that Nathan spoke to King David about David’s adultery, Elijah addressed King Ahab about Ahab’s idolatry, Daniel was a close advisor to King Nebuchadnezzar, Moses challenged Pharaoh, and John the Baptist confronted King Herod.

Therefore we will speak out about legalized abortion, same sex marriages, no-fault divorces, overburdening tax laws, the proliferation of gambling, the increase of violence in our downtowns, and much more. These aren’t political issues. All of these issues have their roots in biblical values. We need to speak up about what is absolutely right and absolutely wrong. We need to speak up without stutter or stammer.

As Christians we have the unique opportunity of being a bright light in politics. Be politically active. Run for office. Support your candidate. Vote. Put up signs in your front yard. Talk to your co-workers and family members about the issues. The price of apathy is the loss of liberty. If we lose our liberty, how can we so freely proclaim Christ’s gospel?

When we speak to our governing authorities or speak out against something we see in our society, we need to be very careful that we keep God’s fourth commandment of not dishonoring those whom God has placed in authority over us, but honor, serve and obey them, and give them love and respect. It is very easy to get caught up in the rhetoric of the radio talk shows, the Saturday Night Live skits, and the late night comedians. Paul reminds us, “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.”

We don’t trust the government. We trust in our God who established the government.

We pin too much onto the changes that one person can bring as president or congressperson or senator or governor. Do we really believe that one candidate can lower taxes, provide affordable healthcare, fix the economy, end our dependence on foreign oil, keep us safe from terrorism and so much more? I hate to burst your bubble, but neither candidate for president will be able to accomplish this. Even one of our former presidents understood this: “Trust me, government asks that we concentrate our hopes and dreams on one man, that we trust him to do what’s best for us. My view of government places trust not in one person or one party, but in those values that transcend persons and parties.” – Ronald Reagan

Your taxes may be high and your 401K may be going down, but God reminds you in these tough economic times that you have treasures stored up in heaven. Your candidate may not be the next president (and the person who is elected may quite frankly scare you to pieces), but Jesus reminds you that He is the King of kings, the Lord of lords and the Pilot of presidents. You may have remained silent about the proliferation of evils that our government allows or even promotes, but Jesus reminds you to stand up for His gospel and truth in this mighty conflict. Your house may be losing value, but your eternal home has everlasting value. Food may be getting more expensive, but the Bread and Water of Life are free. Our government may not be perfect, but God’s governance of His government is perfect.

God ordains earthly governments as His servants, to keep peace and order in society so that Christians can share Him through their lives of goodness and conversations about Jesus. Thank God for our United States government and the freedoms we enjoy. Submit to God by submitting to His governing authorities. Amen.