Grace Church
257 Kendall Street
Burlington, WI 53105

(262) 763-3021

Human Government: It’s God’s baby Romans 13:1-7 Sermon #2 A government surveyor brought his surveying equipment onto a farm to do some surveying for the federal government. So this government surveyor went up and knocked on the farmhouse door, and asked the farmer for permission to go out into one of his fields and take some readings. This particular farmer hated the government so he refused to give the man permission to take any surveys in any of his fields. He also thought that maybe the government was going to take some of his land for a public project. “I won’t give you permission to go onto my land!” said the farmer.   With that the surveyor produced an official government document that authorized him to do the survey. “I have the authority,” he said, “to enter any field in the entire country to do my work.” Faced with the authority of the federal government, the farmer unwillingly opened the gate and allowed the surveyor to enter one of his fields. But then the farmer went to the far end of that same field and opened another gate, through which one of his fiercest bulls came charging. Seeing this raging, charging bull, the surveyor dropped his equipment and ran for his life. The farmer laughed as he shouted after the fleeing government worker, “Show him that paper, Mister! Show him that paper and show him your authority!”   What’s your attitude toward the government? Many of us have a lot of that farmer in us. I know that I do. Maybe it’s because I’m a child of the sixties or maybe it’s just my depravity, but I can feel my back stiffen when the government tells me what to do…that I had to get Social Security cards for my children when they were born or that I have to get an emissions test for my car or that I have to pay taxes. And sometimes I need a Spirit driven attitude adjustment.   The Apostle Paul presents us with a Christ-honoring worldview and godly attitude toward government. Please turn to Romans 13:1-7 (p. 804). Paul describes the God pleasing way followers of Christ will interact with governmental authorities. What’s amazing and should make us sit up and take notice is that if anyone had a right to be a radical revolutionary type, it was Paul. Here was a man who’d suffered greatly at the hands of governmental authorities. He’d been beaten with whips, thrown into prison and chained, and eventually would be imprisoned in the city of Rome.   Isn’t it strange that Paul said what he did while living under one of the most repressive governments in the history of the world? The debauched government of the 1st century makes ours look like a Sunday school picnic.   John MacArthur notes, “Our Lord was born into a society where political corruption and autocratic rule were common. Merciless tyrants and murderous dictators were everywhere, along with human slavery – the antithesis of democracy. Those were almost unchallenged norms.”   When was the last time you heard something good about government? A poll taken earlier this month found that Congress only has a 14% approval rating and the President’s approval rating is a mere 28%. Those are some of the lowest ratings in nearly forty years. It’s easy to think, “Why do we even need government? All it does is take our money, boss us around and mess things up.” So why do we need government? We need it because our Heavenly Father says that we do. Human Government is God’s baby.   This morning we’re in the 2nd message of our series, Kingdom Principles in a Political World. Our goal today is to help you develop a Biblical worldview of government. Because this is such a huge subject, we’re only going to be able to touch on what God’s Word teaches about government. Hopefully, though we’ll get your spiritual juices flowing and you’ll take your Bible and work through some of these issues for yourself this coming week. If you’re taking notes… 1. Government was created by God. Where’s Waldo? Or where’s Waldo, Wisconsin? I had to look it up on a map. It’s about 20 miles Southwest of Sheboygan. Two weeks ago a group of anarchists from the United States and Canada descended on a strip of private land in Waldo for four days of meetings and workshops on how to disrupt and demonstrate at the upcoming Democratic and Republican national conventions. This group would like to see us free from all government.   A secularist worldview is that governments come into power by force, by heredity or by popular choice. Whether it’s a person born into the royal family, or a general leading a coup toppling the existing government, or a vote by the people, the ways governments come into power from a human perspective are varied. But when our minds are renewed by the Spirit of God, we realize that behind those circumstances is the unseen hand of God.   That doesn’t mean God approves of what a person does to come into power. It does mean though that God permits it to happen…that He’s in control. Ultimately, God will judge those who use evil to gain political power and will certainly hold governments who use their authority wrongly accountable for their actions. Mark it down! No one comes into power without first being given the authority to do so by God himself.   Paul wants to make certain that we’re clear on this point. Three times he alludes to this fact, “there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted…” (Rom. 13:2-3). If you don’t have a big view of God, you’ll have difficulty believing this. If the God you worship isn’t the awesome, majestic, mysterious, loving, Sovereign of the universe described in Scripture, you’ll have trouble buying into this. It takes an awesome God to do what this verse is telling us that the God of the Bible does. So if you have trouble believing this is true, perhaps it’s because your concept of God is too small. Five hundred years ago Martin Luther said, “God establishes government and gives it the sword to hold wantonness in check, lest violence and other sins proceed without limit.” Human government was God’s idea, not man’s.   God established three institutions: the Home (Gen. 2), the Church (Matt. 16), and the State or government (Gen. 9). In so doing He gave explicit instructions on how all three were to function. Most Christians know a great deal about what God has to say about the home and church, yet know very little about what God says about the state and how we’re to relate to it.   This word “authority” is very broad. It's the Greek word exousia which means “right” or “privilege.” An authority is anyone who has the right to do something. If your job gives you the right to make certain decisions, then when you are on the job, you’re an authority. Seen in another light, an authority is anyone who has the right to make decisions that directly affect your life. In the broadest sense, all of us live in two relationships at the same time. We have authority in certain areas yet we’re under authority in other areas. You may be a husband and thus the head of your home, but at work you’re under the authority of your boss. You may be a teacher and thus the authority in your classroom but you’re under the authority of your principal who is under the authority of the school board. You may work in an office where certain people report to you while at the same time you report to someone over you. You are thus “in authority” and yet “under authority” at the same time.   In Romans 13 Paul is only thinking of human government; rulers, kings and queens, emperors, magistrates, presidents, dictators and potentates of every variety. And please understand a crucial point: Paul is not thinking about any one particular form of human government, such as democracy, aristocracy, oligarchy, monarchy, socialism, communism or even a dictatorship. He’s not saying that only American democracy is ordained by God. Instead Paul is speaking in broad, general terms about all human government anywhere in the world. The institution of government comes from the very hand of God. He birthed it, designed it and put it into power.     In fact, when Paul wrote these words in Romans 13 one of the wickedest rulers in human history was in power in Rome, Nero. He hated Christians, had them rounded up, dipped in tallow, tied to stakes and then burned like candles in his garden. He ordered Rome set on fire and then blamed the Christians, setting off the first wave of official persecution. We've largely forgotten how wicked and pagan ancient Rome really was. Abortion flourished, homosexuality was commonplace and the masses worshipped Caesar as god. Sorcery and black magic abounded. No government in America has ever been as wicked as the government of ancient Rome. Yet Paul, while under Roman rule said all authority comes from God.   This morning believers around the globe are faithfully honoring and serving the Lord under various governmental systems. American Christians typically think that a republic based on democracy is the best because it’s served us so well for some 230 years. But we must understand that our Constitution was written assuming that the citizens of this land would be moral, God-fearing people. That’s the only way democracy works because democracy becomes whatever the people are. If the people are pagan, immoral and violent, then the government is pagan, immoral and violent.   Think about this! Five people are placed on an island; three men and two women. The three men vote to rape the two women. That’s democracy, but it’s democracy at its worst. Democracy has the capability of becoming a diabolical form of government if the people are evil. That’s why we need to be very concerned about America. As we move further and further away from a Judeo-Christian ethic, our culture is devolving. Plato wisely observed, “The penalty that good men pay for not being interested in politics is to be governed by men worse than themselves.” 2. Because God designed government, He has a purpose for it. Our God is a God of purpose and design. He knows what He’s doing and why He does it. Turn to Genesis 9:1-6 (p. 6). God established human government after the Flood. Later, after the nation of Israel was established, Scripture provides clear guidelines for the development of a theocracy in which God was the head of the government. But those guidelines were written for particular circumstances involving a covenant people chosen by God. While they contain principles for us, they’re not directly for us because our modern governments are not the direct inheritors of the promises God made to Israel. While the Bible does not propose nor endorse any specific political system, it does give us a basis for evaluating various political philosophies because it clearly delineates a view of human nature. Every political theory rests on a particular worldview of human nature.   God’s Word describes two core elements of human nature and this viewpoint is essential in judging governmental systems. 1. Because humans are created in the image of God (Gen. 1:26–27), they are able to exercise judgment and rationality. 2. However, humans are also sinful, fallen creatures (Gen. 3). Human sinfulness (Rom. 3:23) created the need to control evil and sinful human behavior through civil government.   Many theologians suggest that the only reason we have government is to control sinful behavior because of the Fall. There’s every indication though that government would have existed even if we lived in a sinless world. For example, there seems to be some structuring of authority in the Garden (Gen. 1–2). Scripture speaks of the angelic host as being organized into levels of authority and function. In the creation God ordained government as the means by which human beings and angelic hosts are ruled. The rest of the created order (animals, insects, etc) is governed by instinct (Prov. 30:24–28) and God’s providence. Insect colonies may show a level of order but it’s because of a genetically controlled instinct. Human beings though are created in the image of God and thus are responsible to the commands of God. We’re created by a God of order (1 Cor. 14:33) and thus we also seek order through governmental structures.   A Christian view of government then differs significantly from views proposed by secular political theorists. The basis for civil government is rooted in our created nature. We’re rational and volitional beings. We’re not animals and did not evolve. We’re image-bearers of God and thus we have the power of choice. A Biblical view of human nature requires a governmental system that acknowledges human responsibility. But while the source of civil government is rooted in human responsibility, the need for government derives from the necessity of controlling human depravity. God specifically ordained civil government to restrain evil (Gen. 9). As believers, we must reject any political philosophy that ignores human sinfulness. Man is not basically good. The milk of human kindness is sour.   In Genesis 9 God ordained human government because of human rebellion, human transgression and human lawlessness. It was ordained for the good of society and to keep violent, rebellious people in check. If there were no human government, the situation in the world today would be like the one described in the last verse of the book of Judges (21:25) where it says, "in those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit."   Apart from human government lawlessness would run rampant. Don’t believe me? Look at what happened in the former Yugoslavia, which we know better now as the Balkans today after the Dictator, Josep Tito, died.   Apart from human government sinful man seeks to do as he pleases with the survival of the fittest being the ruling principle! God, in His infinite wisdom, ordained human government. The reason then for civil obedience is because God has given us government for our good — to keep evil in check and to maintain an orderly society.   As Christians, we must reject utopian political philosophies. They’re based on inaccurate views of human nature. The Bible teaches believers become new creatures (2 Cor. 5:17) through spiritual conversion, but that does not mean that the effects of sin are completely overcome in this life. Scripture also teaches we’ll continue to live in a world tainted by sin. Since civil government is necessary and divinely ordained by God (Rom. 13:1-7), it’s ultimately under God’s control. It’s been given three political responsibilities: the sword of justice (to punish criminals), the sword of order (to thwart rebellion) and the sword of war (to defend the state).   In Romans 13:4 Paul says that government “does not bear the sword for nothing.” Mark it down. The essential element of government is force. That goes against the grain of contemporary human reasoning. We’re taught not to “force” our children but rather to give them options and reward them. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve been told, “We don’t want to force our children to go to church…we’re letting them choose for themselves.” Typically, I respond to that with, “Do you also give them that same type of choice with school or going to the dentist?” The essential element of government is force.   The general function then of human government, as instituted by God, may be said to be fourfold: to protect, punish, promote and provide.   The Function of Protection: The moment Adam sinned it was obvious that civilizations would need some form of restraint and rule to protect citizens from themselves. An example of this function is seen in Acts 21:27-37, where Roman soldiers step in and save Paul from being murdered by his own enraged countrymen in Jerusalem.   The Function of Punishment: Paul and Peter both bring this out. Paul writes that duly appointed human officials are to be regarded as God’s servants to “bear the sword,” that is, to impose punishment upon criminals (vv. 3, 4). Peter tells us that governors are “sent by [God] for the punishment of evildoers” (1 Pet 2:13, 14).   The Function of Promotion: Human government is to promote the general welfare of the community where its laws are in effect. Paul commands us to pray for human leaders “that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty” (1 Tim 2:1, 2).   The Function of Provision: A continual theme of Scripture is God’s loving care and the use by God of the family, the church and the government in providing for the disenfranchised. Exodus 23:6 “Do not deny justice to your poor people in their lawsuits.” The nation of Israel was commanded to leave a portion of their fields and vineyards unharvested for the poor to pick and eat. They were not to pick a field twice so that the poor could find food. They were to give special care to widows and orphans. Jesus continually demonstrated compassion toward the diseased and disabled. James 1:27 commands us, “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress.” Yet this provision was not a free handout. Widows and orphans were to work, taking personal responsibility to harvest the food themselves. They too had responsibility. What God designed isn’t welfare, it’s workfare.     Modern man though has made government responsible for various programs God never intended government to be responsible for, and we’re all paying the bill for it. One reason we’re overtaxed today and have an insatiably growing government is that we have deified government. Instead of depending on God, we depend on government. We’ve made government responsible to take care of us from cradle to grave. But since government produces no goods, it can only redistribute what it takes from others.   For example (and what I’m going to say is going to shock some of you), it’s not the government’s responsibility to educate children. That’s a parental responsibility (Deut. 6:6-7). Today though we expect schools to teach our children about morality, responsibility, parenting, life skills, sex education, etc., all in a system which seeks to be completely secular.   The provision and care for widows, the elderly and infirm is first the family’s responsibility…then the local church’s, not the governments. “If a widow has children or grandchildren, these should learn first of all to put their religion into practice by caring for their own family and so repaying their parents and grandparents, for this is pleasing to God” (1 Tim. 5:4).   And government provides these programs by force. Going back to our sword metaphor, government interference always means either violent action or the threat of such action. The funds that a government spends for its programs are levied by taxation, and taxes are paid because the taxpayers are afraid of offering resistance to the tax gatherers. 3. Since government was created by God, ultimately it is responsible to God. This is true whether or not the state exists in an age of spiritual depth or spiritual dearth. Remember God ordained the existing powers. While that means that the state has certain divinely ordained authority over us, it also means that the state is under God's authority and cannot justly or safely disregard His law or its divinely given function.If God is gone, if His authority is not recognized, then there’s nothing left but the whims or cruelty of corrupt but powerful men.   Let me be more specific. Without God in the picture, there is no rein on Caesar and Caesar needs a rein! In America our Founding Fathers recognized this and developed a system of checks and balances by which one branch of government limits another. We recognize the need for checks and balances on the secular level because we know by experience that those in power are untrustworthy without accountability. God though is the ultimate checks and balances and the final authority for mankind. 4. Believers have responsibility to government. Mark Twain, who had an opinion on nearly everything said that a citizen could not be a Christian and a patriot at the same time. He argued that Christian citizen is an oxymoron—two irreconcilable loyalties. Twain was wrong but being both a conscientious citizen and a faithful Christian is often hard. As believers, we have dual and separate citizenships. We’re Christians first and then Americans but it’s all too easy to forget our dual citizenship. Since God ordained government, Christian citizens have a number of obligations toward it. Because of time constraints we’re just going to touch on them.    a) Christians should submit to the government and cooperate with it whenever possible. Romans 13:1 is very clear, “Let every person be in subjection to the governing authorities.” But when government oversteps its jurisdiction and commands or tries to force its citizens to disobey God, then we must obey God and disobey the government (Acts 5:29).   b) Christians should honor government leaders when possible. 1 Peter 2:17 tells us to “honor the king.” The reason I add, “if possible,” is that there are times when a government leader deserves censure, not honor. Jesus called Herod a fox (Luke 13:32) and John the Baptist denounced him publicly for his immorality. But usually we should grant honor to those in authority, even if we disagree strongly with their views or behavior.   c) Christians should pay their required taxes. In Romans 13:7 Paul states that we must pay “tax to whom tax is due.” It’s not good stewardship to pay more tax than you owe, so it’s right to take advantage of legitimate tax deductions, such as charitable contributions. But it’s wrong to knowingly cheat on our taxes, just because “everyone else is doing it.”   d) Christians should pray for government leaders. Paul urged Timothy to direct the churches to pray “for kings and all who are in authority” (1 Tim. 2:1, 2). The aim of such prayers is “that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.” We also should pray for the conversion and moral courage of our leaders.   e) Christians should evangelize and disciple government leaders when opportunities arise. Whenever Paul stood before governmental authorities, he used the opportunity to preach the gospel. He witnessed to governors and their spouses. He led many in Caesar’s household to faith in Christ. Believers who hold public office and discharge their duties with integrity can have widespread influence for Christ.   f) Christians should respectfully confront government leaders who are unrighteous. Daniel appealed to Nebuchadnezzar to turn from his sins and to do what was right. He strongly confronted Belshazzar for his spiritual and moral negligence. John the Baptist exposed Herod’s sin of taking his brother’s wife. God’s spokesmen reminded these leaders that they would one day give an account to God for their evil deeds unless they repented.   Those who want to silence the church from speaking out on moral issues have carried the argument for the separation of church and state to ridiculous extremes. While government should not establish a religion or State Church, that doesn’t mean Christian citizens should not speak out on moral issues that threaten the well-being of our society. God has called us to be salt and light (Matt. 5:13-16) and to be His witnesses in this evil world. Sometimes that witness involves confronting sin before we share the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ.   g) Christians should be involved in government in accordance with their gifts and calling. Each believer has different gifts and callings from God. We must each seek His wisdom and direction as to how and where He wants us to serve Him. We have Biblical examples of those like Joseph, Nehemiah and Esther who served in high positions in pagan governments. In our democratic form of government our minimum responsibility as Christian citizens is that we vote for candidates and speak out on issues that will best further Christian principles in our land. Some may be called to greater involvement. But to do nothing when God has given us the right to vote and the freedom to be involved seems to me to be irresponsible. Conclusion: Many years ago a woman came up to Adlai Stephenson, an unsuccessful candidate for president. She said, "Mr. Stephenson, you have the vote of every thinking American." And Adlai Stephenson said, "Madame, that's not enough. I need a majority."   Statistics indicate that many of us are not thoughtful and informed citizens. Less than 50% of Americans can identify the Bill of Rights, and less than 10% of can name their two US senators, their Representative in the House, their State Senator or their State Representative.   As Christians, we must be informed, we must move past angry sound bytes and study the positions, policy statements and values of our candidates…and then we need to vote. People have fought and died for our right to vote, yet, since 1920, less than 50% of eligible Americans voters have even bothered going to the polls to vote for president.   God created government. It’s His baby. We honor Him when we have a Biblical worldview of government. As we end today, let me give you three necessities to take home.   First, we must fix in our minds that God is truly sovereign in human affairs, including affairs of state. He really is in control.   Second, we must know the Bible and Its teachings. The reason for this is that one may be willing to do the right thing and yet not know what the right thing is, since the issues are not always black and white but gray. We can respond to such situations properly only when we know what God’s Word teaches.   Third, we must be willing to surrender everything, even life itself, if that is necessary. Nothing is achieved by those who refuse to sacrifice. Our self-indulgent age desperately needs to learn that. But it will not learn it from the state which sacrifices nothing. As a spiritual or moral force the state is destitute. The world can learn sacrifice only from Christians, who have learned it from their Lord.   Human Government is God’s baby. Let’s determine to respond to government in a way that honors our heavenly citizenship and King Jesus.