Devotion 9.6.23

Romans 13

"Let everyone be subject 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, whoever 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 you will be commended. 4 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. 5 Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience."

So much to think about and potentially write, but it is important to keep it simple. God's people follow God. In 1 Samuel 8, God says what He really thinks about government when Israel, via its elders, states it wants a king to follow:

"6 But when they (the elders) said, “Give us a king to lead us,” this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the Lord. 7 And the Lord told him: “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. 8 As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. 9 Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights.”

Luther's comments on Romans 13, "Although worldly government doesn't make people righteous before God, nevertheless it is instituted in order to accomplish at least this much, that the good may have outward peace and the bad may not be able to do evil...."

We know governments instituted by men are fallible because of our sinful nature, and we know that all governments fail to fulfill Luther's observations on this passage. Bad people do bad things and good people (in earthly terms) may be harmed by bad people. Yet Paul commands us to pay honor to them (v 8) and refers to them as "ministers of God" (v 7).

This is a hard pill to swallow in our culture where freedom and rights are foundational to who we are (to refer to ourselves as being subject to government). In fact, the argument may be to resist that kind of mindset, so our prayer is to respect our leaders, to pray for them, and to hope for the best in them. We ask for wisdom and discernment when, as citizens, we get involved in our government as citizens in a republic, to learn about those issues that we believe may impact us, and to express ourselves in that context. We also ask God to give us the wisdom to follow the rule of law and to express from a position of love and respect when we disagree.