Welcome to Theology Thursday! Theology is the study of God, his relation to the world, and our relation to him. I hope these newsletters help enhance your faith and deepen your love for God and his people, the church.
Today's question:
"Obey the governing authorities," or "Obey God, not men"?
Pastor Brady’s thoughts:
There’s a tension that exists in our New Testament texts and even in our own minds and church culture when it comes to God’s ultimate authority and the more limited but still real authority of various governing bodies.
Not a contradiction, but a tension, because the Bible presents both as having authority, but governments often act in ways that don’t align with our understanding of God’s design or desire. What are Christians to do in those situations?
The Apostle Paul, writing to the church in Rome, tells his readers in what is probably the most notable political text in the New Testament that their faith does not permit them to openly rebel against or subvert their earthly leaders:
Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established (Romans 13:1).
Paul gets even more direct in the verses directly following:
Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 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 you will be commended. For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.
This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor (Romans 13:2-7).
This passage pretty clearly demonstrates that earthly governmental authority is not illegitimate (or, that at least it can be legitimate, even if it is not always). Kings and kingdoms (and representative democracies!) are legitimate and authoritative, because God establishes the institutions, systems, and positions that wield that authority.
Our God is an orderly God, and earthly institutions of power, in theory, help create and protect order rather than chaos.
To say the least, this is often hard for us to swallow. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong…? Really? The opposite sure seems to be the case over and over again. Christians have struggled with what this passage meant for Paul in his context and in more modern contexts basically since these words were written.
At the very least, Paul’s instruction in Romans 13:1-7 doesn’t appear to be absolute, because in Acts 5, the apostles are tussling with the Sadducees (aristocratic, wealthy leaders of a particular sect within Judaism). Peter and the boys were preaching and teaching publicly about Jesus, and the Sadducees threw them in jail for it. But they broke out (or were somehow let out surreptitiously) and kept preaching and teaching.
Then here’s Acts 5:27-29:
The apostles were brought in and made to appear before the Sanhedrin to be questioned by the high priest.
“We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.”
Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings!”
Another way we can know the Romans text presents an expectation but not an absolute law is that the Greek word Paul uses for “submit” is the same word he uses elsewhere in his New Testament letters: “to submit” is used of Christians submitting to spiritual leaders in 1st Corinthians 16:16, all Christians submitting to each other in Ephesians 5:21, prophets submitting to other prophets in 1st Corinthians 14:32, and wives submitting to husbands in Ephesians 5:24.
The vast majority of Bible readers (including scholars and professional interpreters) would not see these instances as providing commands for unquestioning, total obedience 100 percent of the time. “Submission” is often used to describe how Christians should interact with each other and the world, but “obedience” is reserved for how Christians should respond to God.
This is a good time to remind ourselves that any portion of scripture must be read in light of all the rest of scripture. We cannot just take one verse or small handful of verses and say “See, that’s what God says about that.” We have to consider how they compare to other passages, and to God’s revelation through his word as a whole.
How can we know when to say “Obey the governing authorities!” verses “Obey God, not men!”? How can we abide by Romans 13 generally while acknowledging there will be times when we cannot and should not?
Christian author Kaitlyn Schiess provides some insight here:
“Romans 13:1-7 deals with a specific example of the kinds of obligations that a Christian has both within the church and outside it - obligations that prioritize the common good of others above individual rights. Paul is concerned not only with articulating some of the obligations but also with “redrawing” the boundaries of the people of God. Since the people of God are no longer bound by ethnicity or nationality, they must consider what it means to live well in various political arrangements.
Paul would obviously agree that when there is conflict between rulers’ commands and God’s commands, Christians obey God (Acts 4:19; 5:29). “Submitting to earthly authorities” cannot mean anything that would conflict with the full biblical witness. Romans must be read alongside, for example, Revelation’s depiction of Christians refusing to comply with corrupt and abusive power.”
As New Testament scholar Michael Gorman puts it, “Jesus and Caesar cannot both rule the universe.” And yet, it appears Paul, at least (and Jesus in Matthew 22: “So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”) recognizes the jurisdiction of earthly authorities, and expects Christians to respect and follow them whenever possible.
Schiess goes on: “Romans 13:1-7 does not provide a clear application to all Christians in all times and places. Rather, it gives a general exhortation as to the posture Christians should have toward governing authorities.”
When we think about Peter’s response in Acts 5 - “We must obey God rather than human beings!” - we notice two important things:
First, the apostles got in trouble for sharing the gospel. Second, they defied the governing authorities to again share the gospel.
Their noncompliance with the legal authority wasn’t about safety, security, comfort, or rights, and it wasn’t about trepidation or despair about the direction they thought Rome or the world was headed - it was about living faithfully in preaching and teaching the good news about Jesus.
So, here are our guiding principles:
Christian tradition holds that we're to submit to the governing authorities insofar as they do not require us to actively and directly disobey God, and we have to remember that God’s foremost command is to love him and love others. Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37-39).
Obviously, the line between acceptable and unacceptable government behavior is blurry, and not every Christian will draw it in the same place. But no matter how bad we perceive things to get in our country and our world, loving God and neighbor is pretty much never going to look like aggressive rebellion.
Our job is to live for Christ and make much of his name, come what may. That may seem to some like “weak” Christianity, but our model for faithfulness is not armed strongmen trying to execute earthly justice, it’s a savior on a cross on which he had no just reason to be hanging.
Striking back is easy. Turning the other cheek is true strength; it’s true faith. Like in so many other areas, the Kingdom of God seems backwards from the kingdom of this world, but it will all be normal and natural in eternity.
Jesus submitted to the governing authority even though he was innocent and being treated cruelly. So did Paul, who did not stop preaching but went to jail multiple times for it. He didn't resort to violence, and he was eventually martyred. So were probably 10 of the 11 other disciples (not counting Judas). And, as far as we know, they all paid taxes to a Roman government that did things they would have disapproved of (even as it actively persecuted them!).
The bottom line is, our threshold for disagreement, dissatisfaction, and even oppression and persecution by the governing authorities needs to be quite high before we resort to doing anything illegal. And we can only ever choose that path if the governing authorities are preventing faithful living. Furthermore, if we do resolve that illegal activity is necessary, it needs to be for the direct and distinct purpose of sharing the gospel - not a desire to protect our way of life.
There are Christians around the world right now for whom walking this difficult line is a part of everyday consideration. Their ministries, their witness, and even their private profession of faith is under threat. We have the blessing of living in America, where it is not and is unlikely to ever be.
This does not mean things are as we want them or as they should be, but it does mean we need to have some proper perspective about our situation and how good we have it.
The blessing of religious freedom should spur us on to active evangelism and discipleship, and to fervent prayer for our brothers and sisters who do not enjoy the same blessing of freedom.
To know Him and to make Him known!
- Pastor Brady
Have a question for Theology Thursday? Send an email to minierccstaff@gmail.com and we'll respond, or we'll include in a future Theology Thursday Buffet.
Today's question:
"Obey the governing authorities," or "Obey God, not men"?
Pastor Brady’s thoughts:
There’s a tension that exists in our New Testament texts and even in our own minds and church culture when it comes to God’s ultimate authority and the more limited but still real authority of various governing bodies.
Not a contradiction, but a tension, because the Bible presents both as having authority, but governments often act in ways that don’t align with our understanding of God’s design or desire. What are Christians to do in those situations?
The Apostle Paul, writing to the church in Rome, tells his readers in what is probably the most notable political text in the New Testament that their faith does not permit them to openly rebel against or subvert their earthly leaders:
Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established (Romans 13:1).
Paul gets even more direct in the verses directly following:
Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 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 you will be commended. For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.
This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor (Romans 13:2-7).
This passage pretty clearly demonstrates that earthly governmental authority is not illegitimate (or, that at least it can be legitimate, even if it is not always). Kings and kingdoms (and representative democracies!) are legitimate and authoritative, because God establishes the institutions, systems, and positions that wield that authority.
Our God is an orderly God, and earthly institutions of power, in theory, help create and protect order rather than chaos.
To say the least, this is often hard for us to swallow. For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong…? Really? The opposite sure seems to be the case over and over again. Christians have struggled with what this passage meant for Paul in his context and in more modern contexts basically since these words were written.
At the very least, Paul’s instruction in Romans 13:1-7 doesn’t appear to be absolute, because in Acts 5, the apostles are tussling with the Sadducees (aristocratic, wealthy leaders of a particular sect within Judaism). Peter and the boys were preaching and teaching publicly about Jesus, and the Sadducees threw them in jail for it. But they broke out (or were somehow let out surreptitiously) and kept preaching and teaching.
Then here’s Acts 5:27-29:
The apostles were brought in and made to appear before the Sanhedrin to be questioned by the high priest.
“We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name,” he said. “Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man’s blood.”
Peter and the other apostles replied: “We must obey God rather than human beings!”
Another way we can know the Romans text presents an expectation but not an absolute law is that the Greek word Paul uses for “submit” is the same word he uses elsewhere in his New Testament letters: “to submit” is used of Christians submitting to spiritual leaders in 1st Corinthians 16:16, all Christians submitting to each other in Ephesians 5:21, prophets submitting to other prophets in 1st Corinthians 14:32, and wives submitting to husbands in Ephesians 5:24.
The vast majority of Bible readers (including scholars and professional interpreters) would not see these instances as providing commands for unquestioning, total obedience 100 percent of the time. “Submission” is often used to describe how Christians should interact with each other and the world, but “obedience” is reserved for how Christians should respond to God.
This is a good time to remind ourselves that any portion of scripture must be read in light of all the rest of scripture. We cannot just take one verse or small handful of verses and say “See, that’s what God says about that.” We have to consider how they compare to other passages, and to God’s revelation through his word as a whole.
How can we know when to say “Obey the governing authorities!” verses “Obey God, not men!”? How can we abide by Romans 13 generally while acknowledging there will be times when we cannot and should not?
Christian author Kaitlyn Schiess provides some insight here:
“Romans 13:1-7 deals with a specific example of the kinds of obligations that a Christian has both within the church and outside it - obligations that prioritize the common good of others above individual rights. Paul is concerned not only with articulating some of the obligations but also with “redrawing” the boundaries of the people of God. Since the people of God are no longer bound by ethnicity or nationality, they must consider what it means to live well in various political arrangements.
Paul would obviously agree that when there is conflict between rulers’ commands and God’s commands, Christians obey God (Acts 4:19; 5:29). “Submitting to earthly authorities” cannot mean anything that would conflict with the full biblical witness. Romans must be read alongside, for example, Revelation’s depiction of Christians refusing to comply with corrupt and abusive power.”
As New Testament scholar Michael Gorman puts it, “Jesus and Caesar cannot both rule the universe.” And yet, it appears Paul, at least (and Jesus in Matthew 22: “So give back to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”) recognizes the jurisdiction of earthly authorities, and expects Christians to respect and follow them whenever possible.
Schiess goes on: “Romans 13:1-7 does not provide a clear application to all Christians in all times and places. Rather, it gives a general exhortation as to the posture Christians should have toward governing authorities.”
When we think about Peter’s response in Acts 5 - “We must obey God rather than human beings!” - we notice two important things:
First, the apostles got in trouble for sharing the gospel. Second, they defied the governing authorities to again share the gospel.
Their noncompliance with the legal authority wasn’t about safety, security, comfort, or rights, and it wasn’t about trepidation or despair about the direction they thought Rome or the world was headed - it was about living faithfully in preaching and teaching the good news about Jesus.
So, here are our guiding principles:
Christian tradition holds that we're to submit to the governing authorities insofar as they do not require us to actively and directly disobey God, and we have to remember that God’s foremost command is to love him and love others. Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37-39).
Obviously, the line between acceptable and unacceptable government behavior is blurry, and not every Christian will draw it in the same place. But no matter how bad we perceive things to get in our country and our world, loving God and neighbor is pretty much never going to look like aggressive rebellion.
Our job is to live for Christ and make much of his name, come what may. That may seem to some like “weak” Christianity, but our model for faithfulness is not armed strongmen trying to execute earthly justice, it’s a savior on a cross on which he had no just reason to be hanging.
Striking back is easy. Turning the other cheek is true strength; it’s true faith. Like in so many other areas, the Kingdom of God seems backwards from the kingdom of this world, but it will all be normal and natural in eternity.
Jesus submitted to the governing authority even though he was innocent and being treated cruelly. So did Paul, who did not stop preaching but went to jail multiple times for it. He didn't resort to violence, and he was eventually martyred. So were probably 10 of the 11 other disciples (not counting Judas). And, as far as we know, they all paid taxes to a Roman government that did things they would have disapproved of (even as it actively persecuted them!).
The bottom line is, our threshold for disagreement, dissatisfaction, and even oppression and persecution by the governing authorities needs to be quite high before we resort to doing anything illegal. And we can only ever choose that path if the governing authorities are preventing faithful living. Furthermore, if we do resolve that illegal activity is necessary, it needs to be for the direct and distinct purpose of sharing the gospel - not a desire to protect our way of life.
There are Christians around the world right now for whom walking this difficult line is a part of everyday consideration. Their ministries, their witness, and even their private profession of faith is under threat. We have the blessing of living in America, where it is not and is unlikely to ever be.
This does not mean things are as we want them or as they should be, but it does mean we need to have some proper perspective about our situation and how good we have it.
The blessing of religious freedom should spur us on to active evangelism and discipleship, and to fervent prayer for our brothers and sisters who do not enjoy the same blessing of freedom.
To know Him and to make Him known!
- Pastor Brady
Have a question for Theology Thursday? Send an email to minierccstaff@gmail.com and we'll respond, or we'll include in a future Theology Thursday Buffet.
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Theology Thursday: What is the purpose of Scripture?Teaching Tuesday: What Are We Doing Here? - God's BlessingTheology Thursday: Son of God, Son of ManTeaching Tuesday: What Are We Doing Here? - God's Blessing CopyTheology Thursday: Buffet 2Teaching Tuesday: What Are We Doing Here? - Alive in ChristTheology Thursday: Murder is wrong, but...Teaching Tuesday: What Are We Doing Here? - Unity in Christ
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Teaching Tuesday: 2 JohnTheology Thursday: Eternal SecurityTeaching Tuesday: 3rd JohnTheology Thursday: Cultural ChristianityTeaching Tuesday: RevelationTheology Thursday: God's RegretTeaching Tuesday: Remember Who You AreTheology Thursday: Romans 13 vs Acts 5Teaching Tuesday: Before You VoteTheology Thursday: Guidelines for Christian Voters
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Teaching Tuesday: 150th AnniversaryTheology Thursday: Translation of ScriptureTeaching Tuesday: Be the Church - Everyday EvangelismTheology Thursday: The Whore of BabylonTeaching Tuesday: Be the Church - Preach the Word, Hear the WordTheology Thursday: A Relationship With GodTeaching Tuesday: Be the Church - What a Difference a Meal Makes
December
Teaching Tuesday: Be the Church - WashedTheology Thursday: Why was Jesus baptized?Teaching Tuesday: This is Christmas - ServiceTheology Thursday: God can save whomever he wants?Teaching Tuesday: This is Christmas - LoveTheology Thursday: My Favorite Christmas StoryTeaching Tuesday: This is Christmas - King David's King