August 31, 2020
God's Government
Romans 13
Mandy Figel
Central Truth
God is sovereign over all governing authorities. Proverbs 21:1 says, "The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD; he turns it wherever he will." When we trust that our God is in control, we are able to walk in love toward others instead of being controlled or paralyzed by fear of the future.
Key Verse | Romans 13:1-2
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
Submission to the Authorities
1 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. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, 4 for he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer. 5 Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God's wrath but also for the sake of conscience. 6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. 7 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.
Fulfilling the Law Through Love
8 Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. 9 For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
11 Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. 12 The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13 Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.
Dive Deeper | Romans 13
This passage is timely as the United States grows more politically divided with the upcoming presidential election. Often, it can be easy to hope in a political party and to despair when it seems like the wrong person is elected to office. But Romans 13 reminds us of a few essential truths that inform our actions as we live first as citizens of heaven rather than citizens of the United States (Philippians 3:20).
First, God is sovereign over every government official in every country all around the world. Daniel 2:21 says. "[H]e removes kings and sets up kings." God knows beforehand who will occupy each position, and He is able to redirect their actions, no matter what they claim as their intended party platform.
Second, God can use the most wicked kings or presidents to accomplish His purposes. While there are plenty of evil rulers that exhibit this (think Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, and Nero), my favorite example is King Cyrus, who ruled the Persian empire during the sixth century BC. God's chosen people (the Israelites) had been captured and taken into exile and were under King Cyrus' authority. Things were looking bleak for the Israelites, but God softened the heart of Cyrus to allow them to return to Jerusalem to rebuild God's temple (2 Chronicles 36:22-23). And not only that, but Cyrus funded the rebuilding project out of his own wealth (Ezra 1:4-11, 6:4-5). Why would a conquering king allow a captured people to return home? There is no logical reason other than the Lord directed his steps. Cyrus' actions also fulfilled a prophecy that had been spoken 150 years before. WOW! GotQuestions.org has a great article on the life of Cyrus with additional Scripture references. I'd encourage you to check it out!
Third, as Christians, we know the end of the story, which allows us to walk in confidence that things will turn out for good. In case you need a refresher on the book of Revelation, here's the spoiler: God wins over Satan and defeats suffering, death, and evil forever!
Discussion Questions
1. How do the three truths discussed above, along with the rest of Romans 13, inform our actions in relation to governing authorities? I've come up with a few thoughts below. See if you can think of your own as well!
- We do not need to be afraid of the future (2 Timothy 1:7). While it's great to keep up with the news cycle and to speak out against wrongdoing and injustice, we don't need to feel helpless, hopeless, or fearful, no matter the circumstance.
- We should act in love (Romans 13:10), even toward those we consider to be our enemies (Matthew 5:44). This means praying for and showing kindness to all types of people, even if they hold different views.
- We should not gratify the desires of our flesh (Romans 13:14). In the context of political authorities, this might include resisting the temptation to post disrespectful or divisive comments on social media or to speak slanderously to our family/friends about political opponents.
2. Are you tempted to be afraid or angry when you consider the current political climate? Find two or three passages in Scripture that help you to entrust your fears or distresses to God. Consider memorizing one of the passages so you're able to remember it when you need it most.
3. How can you move toward love for the governing authorities? A great starting place is to pray for the officials that tend to make you the most frustrated (1 Timothy 2:1-2). Pray that they would come to know the sovereign God of Creation as their Lord and that they would act in ways that honor Him.