Posted on 06/20/2018 5:51:23 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
I don't remember the last time a biblical citation generated so many headlines.
Last week, Attorney General Jeff Sessions sought to defend the Trump administration's immigration policies, especially with regard to separating families. At one point, he stated, "I would cite you to the Apostle Paul and his clear and wise command in Romans 13 to obey the laws of the government because God has ordained the government for his purposes."
His citation set off a firestorm of debate in the culture and among Christians.
My purpose today is not to discuss the multitude of ways Romans 13 has been interpreted through history. Rather, it is to consider the larger question: When should Christians obey or disobey the government?
Obeying the state
God's word consistently calls us to obey and support our governing authorities.
Paul urged that "supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for kings and all who are in high positions" (1 Timothy 2:1-2).
His instruction to Christians living in Rome was clear: "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" (Romans 13:1-2).
The apostle then stated that "the authorities are ministers of God" (v. 6) and urged his readers: "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" (v. 7).
Peter added: "Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good" (1 Peter 2:13-14).
It would seem clear, then, that Christians are to submit to the authority of the government, seeing its exercise of power as God's will for us. However, there's more to the story.
Choosing civil disobedience
In Acts 4, Peter and John were ordered to stop preaching the gospel by the Sanhedrin, the highest authority in Judaism. Their response: "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard" (vv. 19-20).
After Peter was arrested again for preaching the gospel, he was again bold in his civil disobedience: "We must obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29). His faithfulness to God led to his martyrdom by Rome. Paul suffered a similar fate: imprisonment (2 Timothy 4:6) and execution.
And so, two apostles who counseled Christians to obey the state were executed because they would not obey the state.
Theirs are not the only such stories in Scripture.
In Daniel 3, the Babylonian king erected a golden image and required all people to worship it. The Jewish exiles Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego testified before the idolatrous king: "We will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up" (v. 18). You know what happened to them.
Three chapters later, Daniel refused to pray to the Persian king and was thrown into the lions' den as a result.
In Letter from a Birmingham Jail, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. noted: "One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws." He agreed with St. Augustine, who claimed that "an unjust law is no law at all."
John R. W. Stott was one of the most respected evangelical theologians of the twentieth century. In his commentary on Romans 13, he asks:
"Granted that the authority of the rulers is derived from God, what happens if they abuse it, if they reverse their God-given duty, commending those who do evil and punishing those who do good? Does the requirement to submit still stand in such a morally perverse situation? No. The principle is clear. We are to submit right up to the point where obedience to the state would entail disobedience to God. But if the state commands what God forbids, or forbids what God commands, then our plain Christian duty is to resist, not to submit, to disobey the state in order to obey God."
Citizens of two countries
You and I are citizens of two countries. We live in a secular nation with secular leaders we are to support and obey. But we also live in a spiritual society with an omnipotent King whose authority is supreme (Psalm 2:10-11).
Jesus taught us to "render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's" (Matthew 22:21).
But when we are forced to choose, we must obey our highest authority.
Peter encouraged us to "show proper respect to everyone." What does this entail? "Love the family of believers, fear God, honor the emperor" (1 Peter 2:17 NIV). We are to love each other, and we are to honor our secular leaders. But we are to fear only God.
On October 3, 1789, President George Washington issued the first formal proclamation of Thanksgiving in the United States. He stated: "It is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor."
Let's do our duty today.
I can think of many rulers who were evil mass murderers who should not be obeyed. I disagree with this and plan to follow what I know is good and never an evil ruler.
I'll avoid Godwin's law by not mentioning Hitler but instead say that all the people who manned the firing squads in Castro's cuba or Stalin's Russia knew better but they did it anyway. They were wrong, they will be judged. They should have shot the bastards ordering them to kill innocent people instead of the innocent people.
I think of the founding of this country where the final authority rests with the people.
That’s why we are armed.
It’s not for no reason.
Jeff Sessions is 100% right. he, of course, would exclude, as do all in Jesus, obedience to man when in direct conflict with God. i realize many will say, “...This is a hard teaching. Who can follow it...”. and then depart.
No, next question.
JoMa
“Jeff Sessions and Romans 13: Should Christians Always Obey the Government?”
I don’t know but Jeff is obeying Rosenfeinstein and Mueller.
“government” occurs 4 times in 4 verses in the KJV.
https://www.blueletterbible.org/search/search.cfm?Criteria=government&t=KJV#s=s_primary_0_1
Isa 9:6
For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.
Isa 9:7
Of the increase of his government and peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
Isa 22:21
And I will clothe him with thy robe, and strengthen him with thy girdle, and I will commit thy government into his hand: and he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah.
2Pe 2:10
But chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness, and despise government. Presumptuous are they, selfwilled, they are not afraid to speak evil of dignities.
Obey LEGITIMATE authority. This is a compact between citizens for the security of all. When authority begins making things up and serving themselves...the deals off.
Government is by no way read into
https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/rom/13/1/s_1059001
Rom 13:1
¶ Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.
The higher powers spoken of is not government its God !
“CAESAR” occurs 26 times in 20 verses in the KJV.
Luk 20:22
Is it lawful for us to give tribute unto Caesar, or no?
Luk 20:25
And he said unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which be Caesar’s, and unto God the things which be God’s.
https://www.blueletterbible.org/search/search.cfm?Criteria=CAESAR&t=KJV#s=s_primary_0_1
No, I would say he set off a firestorm among morons, keep reading...
Exodus 22:23 ‘Do not spread false reports. Do not help a guilty person by being a malicious witness.
2 ‘Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you give testimony in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd, 3 and do not show favouritism to a poor person in a lawsuit.
4 ‘If you come across your enemy’s ox or donkey wandering off, be sure to return it. 5 If you see the donkey of someone who hates you fallen down under its load, do not leave it there; be sure you help them with it.
6 ‘Do not deny justice to your poor people in their lawsuits. 7 Have nothing to do with a false charge and do not put an innocent or honest person to death, for I will not acquit the guilty.
Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong. When you give testimony in a lawsuit, do not pervert justice by siding with the crowd...
Goodby Jeff, where is Rudy! God bless Rudy!
But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.
What the scriptures are saying is obey the government authorities and laws that God has specifically sanctioned, because those specific authorities and laws have been put in place by God. Obviously that doesn’t apply to every government authority and/or law that exists today. If there’s any confusion regarding what authority is correct, just cross check the policies of those authorities/laws with the bible.
Romans 13 is clearly talking about government. He also says that He is the power that put them in place. They are His servants. Not respecting them is in effect disobedience to God.
This passage speaks of submitting to government authority. It doesn't say to obey every law. If government passes an anti-Christian law, we don't obey it, but we do submit to the government's authority to fine or jail us.
Romans 13:2 - a qualification: "rulers are not a terror to good works . . ." Churches, Christian schools, home schools, Biblical discipline of children, etc., these are examples of good works. From-time-to-time civil government, here in the USA, has acted as a terror to these good works, thinking it knows better.
- another qualification: civil government is a terror to the evil. The Scriptures presume then, that human civil government will act as a terror to sodomites (a Bible word), abortionists, rapists, molesters, thieves, murderers, adulterers, whores, drug pushers, etc., etc., etc.
Verse 3 presumes that if you "do that which is good, . . . thou shalt have praise of [civil government]. Very well then, we can expect an agent of government to come to our door and thank us and tell us what wonderful citizens we are because we home school our children, teach them to love God, raise them to be honest and respectful, and hard workers who will contribute to society. And then civil government will have a page in the newspaper to praise all such citizens by name and photograph. We won't hold our breath.
And then avenge the evil using a SWORD. A sword is not used for tickling people under the chin; it is designed to KILL people (you know, an assault weapon). CAPITAL PUNISHMENT against the evil in society, and not just for murdering some one, is sanctioned by the Bible.
I am not being sarcastic; I believe what I am writing should actually be the case.
Some of the very first people in the USA to get the SWORD should be some of those who see themselves as "higher powers."
“Government is by no way read into
https://www.blueletterbible.org/kjv/rom/13/1/s_1059001
Rom 13:1”
Keep reading
v.3 rulers
v.4 minister of God @ 2
v.6 God’s ministers
v.7 render dues, tribute, custom, fear, and honor
custom is clearly human oriented and you could say due and tribute are since God clearly says obedience, fear, and/or reverence.
I think it clearly means government when taken in context, but your mileage may vary.
Jeff Sessions is, at best, an Institutionalist. (At worst, he is complicit, corrupt, and compromised.)
His loyalty is not first to God, or to the Constitution, or to we The People; it is to the governmental institutions.
That is why he backs them against representative oversight, even though his Oath to the Constitution absolutely requires it of him.
He apparently has been a member of the obscure but powerful Senior Executive Service since 1988. many of the seditionist cabal are as well.
Hmm.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.