Honoring Government's Role in God's Plan

Romans 13:1-14


Honoring Government’s Role in God’s Plan

It’s not very often that any government anywhere is 100% perfect in its role as overseer of the well being and cohesion of the people. Some have been somewhat biblically based in their leadership and laws and others have done what they could to suppress God’s people. When a government is suppressive we can easily become hateful and vengeful because of the wrong ungodly decisions they make. I think Paul was prepping the readers in chapter 12 for what would come in chapter 13. The ruling government during Jesus’ time made the order to have an innocent man flogged, whipped, beaten and then crucified. The ruling government at the time of Paul was at its worst. Nero had made it his personal goal to persecute the Christians and Paul was martyred under Nero’s reign.

Today the rulers have been kind at times and misguided at other times. It’s hard to believe that God has appointed each ruler in his or her position to fulfill His plan for mankind. In the early church the heavy persecution caused a dispersion that launched the gospel out into the world. God in His infinite wisdom is currently using our governmental leaders to bless, judge and prepare people for his ultimate plan.

Our role as believers is to see them as peacemakers of what is evil and where they fall short God will make them accountable. The laws and taxes they put in place we must follow as long as it isn’t contrary to God’s law.

“(19) Show Me the tax money.” So they brought Him a denarius. (20) And He said to them, “Whose image and inscription is this?” (21) They said to Him, “Caesar’s.” And He said to them, “Render therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”” (Matthew 22:19-21)

Paul nor Jesus for that matter ever spoke ill will of the ruling authorities and yet as they made God their number one ruling authority in their lives, they still suffered death under those governments.

“But Peter and John answered and said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge.” (Acts 4:19)

As we submit to government we are called to be the best citizens as possible. We show that by loving others to the maximum degree that we would love ourselves. Jesus had said that the commandment to love your neighbor as yourself, all the law and the prophets hang on. Loving others seems to be a course that is the right thing to do but it is so contrary to what the world does and when we do it we are different then the world. That difference of love is attractive to the world because even though they are insecure about loving they want to be loved.

When we awake from sleep we get up and put on our clothes that prepare us for our daily tasks. In our walk with God we have become awake in our salvation and now we must put on Jesus Christ to face the daily tasks God has placed before us. We must first strip away the sin coverings and put on Jesus and the armor of light alone.

"The rags of sin must come off if we put on the robe of Christ. There must be a taking away of the love of sin, there must be a renouncing of the practices and habits of sin, or else a man cannot be a, Christian. It will be an idle attempt to try and wear religion as a sort of celestial overall over the top of old sins." (Spurgeon)