Governments Exist Because God Has Ordained It That Way -- Paul's words in Romans 13
Christians should be the best citizens.
Bible Study Ideas and Commentary for Romans 13
Romans 13 has caused more heartburn than any other chapter in the Bible, and it's because readers read it in view of what they don't like about their government. Paul is approaching this topic in terms of legitimate authority legitimately exercised. And even then, the way Paul uses "submit" and "servant" and "good" creates a powerful perspective.
the authorities that exist are instituted by God (13:1)
When We Studied This Passage in 2020
This week's lesson is a duplicate of 2020's. My notes explain why they were so short last time around: we were doing all of the "re-opening" activities, so we were all distracted by a good many things.
[Note that I keep forgetting to include: no AI is used in writing these posts.]
Getting Started: Things to Think About
You're not going to be able to completely avoid politics this week, nor should you, but you want to make sure that any political discussion is in service of learning and applying the things Paul says in this week's passage.
A Time You Were at Odds with Authority
You might have a rebel or a revolutionary in your group, so use this topic only if you can keep things pointed in a biblical direction. We've all been under authorities we really, really didn't like. Maybe it was political (I chuckle remembering when an older friend of mine refused to stand up when Bill Clinton entered the room). Maybe it was a boss or a teacher. What was that conflict, and how was it resolved?
When we last covered this passage, our church was about to "re-open" post-covid. Goodness, wasn't there a lot of arguing about how that should work! And we had a governor who was in favor of churches reopening; imagine life in other states where authorities were not pro-church. It's probably been too long to use that as an illustration to get group members thinking, but I'm sure you can think of others.
Paul is going to offer us some very unpopular Christian directives. What will we think when we're done with this Bible study?
How Do You Pray for Your Government?
Let me remind you of something else Paul wrote:
1 Tim 2:1 First of all, then, I urge that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone, 2 for kings and all those who are in authority, so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. 3 This is good, and it pleases God our Savior, 4 who wants everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
So, how do you do that? What are your prayers for your government officials?
Lord willing, someone in your group has taken these words to heart and can encourage and admonish the rest of your group to do the same.
Current Events Round-up
I know that some Republicans in your group are going to be wringing their hands about the terrible future that they think awaits Christians in America. I'm going to encourage you to knock anyone out of their self-focused pity parties with current stories about what's happening in the rest of the world. If you aren't aware, then it's time to become aware. Things are rough out there. I'll just give you a few examples:
There are plenty of Christians dealing with far more difficult concerns than we face in our rural Georgia setting. So, when you sense your group pushing back against what Paul is telling us to do, point out to them that Paul is also saying this to Christians in, say Russia or China. Think about that.
This Week's Big Idea: Honoring the Government
Let's just get this out of the way. How are Christians supposed to behave when they don't like their government? Paul is obviously going to talk about this in this week's passage, so I don't want to do our lesson before doing the lesson, but we can establish a few useful truths.
Truth: Many Christians Don't Like This Passage
Morris summarizes the attitudes when he notes that "no passage has caused more unhappiness and misery than this one". Strong words! And yet, I believe him.
Truth: American Evangelicals Haven't Always Been Super-Patriotic
We are several generations into the "moral majority" era, so some of you might be surprised to know that American evangelicals have been very critical of our government at different times in our history and wary of being known as "patriotic" (note: I don't think you have time today to dive into the movement known as "Christian nationalism"). One excellent book you might consider is A Cautious Patriotism: The American Churches and the Second World War (1997) by Gerald L. Sittser. There is a long history of debating the line between honoring our government and "giving to Caesar what is God's".
Truth: Paul Does Not Give Exceptions
I can't stress this enough. Paul does not give any reader an "out" for what he says in this passage. Of course, we have to understand what he says, but we need to be clear that these words apply to you and me and every Christian everywhere.
Truth: The Word "Submit" Is a Key
In my opinion, this week's passage is pretty easy, coming down to what Paul means by "submit". The hard part is doing this when your government is terrible.
Truth: There's a Debate Here about Capital Punishment
I'm not sure we'll have time to get into this, but this passage is where many Christians have concluded that governments have the right to exercise capital punishment (I am one of them). But some scholars point out that Paul didn't use the Roman phrase for capital punishment, but rather that the phrase for armed discipline. Personally, I don't think this affects Paul's argument in any way. The government has punitive power. Rome had the power of capital punishment (see: Jesus). Paul was not denying that, nor was he making a value judgment about that.
Truth: The Word "Servant" Is a Red Herring
In what way is government God's "servant"? I get very uncomfortable when people make God responsible for the terrible actions of human governments. But I also acknowledge that God has used wicked human governments to enact His punishment on the world (see: Babylon). We're going to be looking for a line between "God has allowed a wicked government to exist as punishment for sin" and "God has instituted that wicked government as His agent of retribution", and this will depend on how Paul uses the word "servant" here. More on this below.
Truth: "Good" Does Not Have to Mean "the Individual's Personal Good"
In America, most of what we believe about this topic has been shaped by the Declaration of Independence, a truly amazing document that is such a practical look into how we define "good". I strongly encourage you to read this a time or two: Declaration of Independence: A Transcription | National Archives. Permit me to be snarky: Paul wrote first. As we seek to understand what Paul wrote, let's not read into Paul's words.
[Important note related to American Independence: there was a tremendous debate leading up to the Revolutionary War whether the war was biblically just, and it's a worthwhile historical deep dive for another day. Al Mohler summarizes the majority conclusion as this: King George was an illegitimate ruler. Was the American Revolution Justified? - AlbertMohler.com]
Where We Are in Romans
I'll start here: some of those Christians who really don't like this chapter argue that Paul didn't write it -- that it was added later by some kind of stoic philosopher. That's . . . convenient.
Let's remember our context:
Introduction (1:1-15)
Greetings (1:1-7)
Prayer (1:8-15)
Thesis (1:16-17)
The Gospel (1:18-5:21)
True Godliness (6:1-8:39)
The Place of Israel (9:1-11:36)
Christian Living (12:1-15:13)
Our attitude toward God (12:1-2)
Our attitude toward other Christians (12:3-16)
Our attitude toward non-Christians (12:17-21)
Our attitude toward rulers (13:1-7)
Our attitude toward all people (13:8-14)
Liberty, peace, love, and unity (14:1-15:13)
Conclusion, Future Plans, and Greetings (15:14-16:27)
Paul is writing to the church in Rome, the capital of the empire. It makes a lot of sense to me that after he wrote about how Christians should interact with non-Christians that he would specifically speak about the government.
On the one hand, he has a lot of personal experience with Roman law -- he's spent his share of time in Roman prisons, and he's also benefitted from Roman peace (soon enough, he'll be protected by Roman soldiers from a Jewish assassination attempt). So this would be on his mind.
But on the other hand, his experience means that he knows what Rome is worried about, and he wants to keep his Christian brethren as safe as possible. Christians might believe that Jesus is Lord (not Caesar), but they are not insurrectionists or troublemakers. Paul knew that his letter would be confiscated (eventually), and he wanted the authorities to think favorably of these Christians.
Related to this, Paul just specifically said that Christians must leave room for God's judgment; it would also make sense for him to immediately clarify that human governments are allowed to pass judgment (as instruments of God).
Basically, when Paul tells Christians to love all people and not to be conceited, he wants to make it clear that this includes towards government officials. And a letter to Rome seems a wise place to explain this.
Part 1: Submit to the Government (Romans 13:1-7)
Let everyone submit to the governing authorities, since there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are instituted by God. 2 So then, the one who resists the authority is opposing God’s command, and those who oppose it will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Do you want to be unafraid of the one in authority? Do what is good, and you will have its approval. 4 For it is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, because it does not carry the sword for no reason. For it is God’s servant, an avenger that brings wrath on the one who does wrong. 5 Therefore, you must submit, not only because of wrath but also because of your conscience. 6 And for this reason you pay taxes, since the authorities are God’s servants, continually attending to these tasks. 7 Pay your obligations to everyone: taxes to those you owe taxes, tolls to those you owe tolls, respect to those you owe respect, and honor to those you owe honor.
This is a new section; there is no "therefore" or "if then". Thematically, though, there is clear continuity -- in 12:19, Paul specifically instructed Christians "not to take revenge". Human governments, on the other hand, can "take revenge" (i.e., punish people for wrongdoing).
There are two things I would think everyone in your group can agree on:
Any human authority that exists on earth is derived from and subservient to God's authority (see the Great Commission).
Human governments reward "good behavior" and punish "bad behavior".
No one would argue with that, right?
That leaves us with an incredibly difficult question: "when those governments abandon God's definition of "good" and "bad", are they still God's servant?"
Before we get into that, remind your group of Paul's reality: he has been unjustly tortured and imprisoned by Roman authorities multiple times in his ministry, and Rome executed Jesus at the behest of the Jews. Multiple Roman emperors have declared themselves gods, and their peace is maintained by constant threat of execution.
Paul is writing to people in an empire where the definition of "good" and "bad" is already askew of what the Bible says.
Definition: "Submit" (or "Honor") Does Not Mean "Obey"
We've talked about this many times, famously in personal relationships (What a Christian Family Should Look Like -- a study of Colossians 3:18-4:6), but also with respect to governments (Christianity, Citizenship, and Nationalism -- What It Means to Live as Strangers in 1 Peter 2:11-20).
The word "submit" means to make one's self "subordinate to". It does not mean to make one's self servile, and it certainly does not mean "obey". If you understand this, most of what Paul says will make a lot more sense.
Definition: "Instituted" means "Appointed", not "Approved"
This distinction is also very important. We should all agree on this statement: God has ordained that human societies should be led by authorities (governments) for their own good. What is the Law of Moses except a declaration that humans are terrible at governing themselves! Paul is saying that God wants governments to exist. Consequently, those governments that do exist derive their authority directly from God.
Paul has just told his readers that they should desire to live at peace with all people (12:18). Therefore, they should also desire to live in a society where the government makes that peace possible. I.e., they should respect the government's maintaining the peace.
Governments Have the Power of "Judgment"
Obviously, your discussion will take you to the government whose judgments do not align with God's judgments, but that is beside Paul's point here. Governments have been given authority to maintain peace, which means they have been given authority to punish those who act against that government's definition of peace. In other words, if you break the law, you should expect to be punished.
Now, back to the passage.
The "everyone" is important. Paul is not just writing to Christians or Jews; he's writing to everyone who lives in a territory administered by human authority (we're just going to call this a "government" from here on). You should submit to whatever government in charge of the land you're living in.
Based on everywhere else we've seen this word "submit" used in the Bible, what do you think this means?
To streamline discussion, offer three scenarios:
how should Christians view laws that everyone agrees is within the biblical right of that government to enact? (for example, laws against stealing or murder)
how should Christians view laws that they might not like but that they can't say is against the Bible? (for example, what the speed limit or minimum wage is)
how should Christians view laws that clearly-thinking Christians would agree are against the Bible? (for example, forcing people to violate biblical conscience)
I think we get distracted by scenario 2 and end up arguing about what the Bible says about such-and-such. Paul's not talking about that. Paul is talking about legitimate authority legitimately exercised. Can we agree that governments have that "right"?
You don't have to like the speed limit. But setting a speed limit is not government overreach violating your biblical convictions.
Next Discussion: "Good" vs. "Wrong"
Paul says "good conduct" and "do what is good" and "for your good". I mentioned above that Americans tend to interpret this to mean something like "do good things and the government should protect your personal prosperity". Paul does not say that.
It is reasonable to say that Paul expects any government to define "good" in line with the Law of Moses. After all, we studied when Moses said this in Deuteronomy 4:
5 Look, I have taught you statutes and ordinances as the Lord my God has commanded me, so that you may follow them in the land you are entering to possess. 6 Carefully follow them, for this will show your wisdom and understanding in the eyes of the peoples. When they hear about all these statutes, they will say, ‘This great nation is indeed a wise and understanding people.’ 7 For what great nation is there that has a god near to it as the Lord our God is to us whenever we call to him? 8 And what great nation has righteous statutes and ordinances like this entire law I set before you today?
I offered this summary of the law: "The law describes a society in which
the people are respectful of one another,
the poor, the orphan, and the widow are cared for,
the people gather regularly to celebrate God's blessings,
the people emphasize nuclear and extended family,
the people live in harmony with one another,
the people share their truth with the world around them."
Who wouldn't want to live in a society such as that?
So, yes, Paul is thinking of "good" in its Old Testament sense, and he is also thinking of the Roman law code as it aligned with the Old Testament. And we should remember that Roman Law was incredibly robust (Roman law - Wikipedia) with fundamental ideas such as presumption of innocence, right to fair trial, right to personal property, and so on. Many Roman laws were in line with what Paul would have believed to be "legitimate authority legitimately exercised". (Paul's death intersected with the beginning of the persecution laws that would force Christians to consider their "civil disobedience".)
What is not clear is what "good" the government should work toward. Again, Americans interpret that to mean "for our personal prosperity -- life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness". Paul does not say that. Paul could be speaking of the "good of the people" at large. Or by "good" he could mean "peaceful lives" that doesn't necessarily include personal prosperity. (Remember: Paul is writing to a group that included many slaves; they did not have personal prosperity.) Or he could mean "creating a society in which people are encouraged to do good things" -- legislated morality (which would indirectly benefit Christians). We don't know for sure.
What we do know is that "wrong" means "against the enacted laws". That's simple.
How Are Governments "God's Servants"?
This has caused a lot of heartburn. I think there's a simple solution: read Habakkuk. Everyone is God's servant, whether they want to be or not. Nothing happens on earth outside of God's strict plan for the end of human history. Humans, like the immoral Chaldeans in Habakkuk's day, are capable of incredible cruelty and destruction. But the moment we believe that any of that happened outside of God's control, we believe that God is not truly sovereign over the earth. He is sovereign. And thus that means that governments are God's servants.
But if they're immoral, how are they serving God? Two answers:
Remember that Paul is speaking about the legitimate government. He is writing to Christians in the capital of the Roman empire where no one questions the legitimacy of the government. In other words, Paul isn't answering that question here.
Even immoral governments "keep the peace". The Chaldeans (Habakkuk's context means Nebuchadnezzar) had a still-praised empire that was well-organized with a clear law code, just one that Jews found barbaric.
God is not causing that government to be immoral, but God is using their immorality toward His good ends. (In Habakkuk's context, God's "good" end means severely punishing the Jews for their disobedience and idolatry. That's why we have to be careful about the definition of "good".)
What Paul does not say is a separate topic.
Aside: What Paul Does Not Say
This is so important that I'm going to quote Morris at length:
But it must be borne in mind that Paul is writing in general terms to meet the need of the Romans and not legislating for every conceivable situation in which the Christian might find himself. He does not face, let alone resolve, the problem of when it is right to rebel against unjust tyranny (it has well been remarked that the first-century Romans had no experience of a successful revolt), or what to do when there are rival claimants to the crown or conflicts between civil and religious authorities. He does not distinguish between legitimate and usurped authority, nor go into the question of when a successful rebel may be held to have become the legitimate ruler. He does not speak of the situation in which the state asks the citizen to do something against the law of God. . . . He does not say what the Christian should do when the state fails in its duty. He is not trying to cover every situation. His concern is authority, however it has come to be possessed.
Does that make sense? Paul is writing to people living in a state where there is a clearly-defined government.
The things Paul does not say is a longer list than you might realize.
What Jesus Said about Government
I hope you remember that Jesus was ambushed on this topic, and humans universally realize the genius of His response in Matt 22:
15 Then the Pharisees went and plotted how to trap him by what he said. 16 So they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know that you are truthful and teach truthfully the way of God. You don’t care what anyone thinks nor do you show partiality. 17 Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not?” 18 Perceiving their malicious intent, Jesus said, “Why are you testing me, hypocrites? 19 Show me the coin used for the tax.” They brought him a denarius. 20 “Whose image and inscription is this?” he asked them. 21 “Caesar’s,” they said to him. Then he said to them, “Give, then, to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” 22 When they heard this, they were amazed. So they left him and went away.
Obviously, this is where Paul is getting his teachings. He realized the heart of Jesus' rebuke: governments exist because God wants governments to exist; therefore, humans living under those governments should respect them.
Remember that "money" is a human construct, and "coinage" exists at the will of a government. As we know, "money" only has value as a government is able to make it have value. (Doesn't that explain the entire world economy right now?) The people's money only has the value the government says it has, and thus the government has legitimate authority to charge people taxes related to the value of that money.
If the government charges you taxes, pay your taxes. The question of whether or not a government is charging too much in taxes is beyond Paul's argument.
Jesus says, “Give, then, to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” Don't give to Caesar what belongs to God, but do give to Caesar what is his. Paul fleshes that out: "taxes to those you owe taxes, tolls to those you owe tolls, respect to those you owe respect, and honor to those you owe honor."
Governments have the right to charge taxes and tolls.
Government officials, as instituted by God, have the right to respect and honor.
It is a separate topic how respectable or honorable that official is. (That's why I believe my friend was in the wrong for refusing to stand when the sitting president entered the room. You don't have to like the man to respect that he is the elected president.)
Yes, there comes a point when Christians must disobey their government. But that is not what Paul is talking about here.
Two discussions you can have:
how are Christians supposed to "feel" about government officials they personally don't like, or laws they personally don't agree with?
how can Christians know the line between "I don't like that" and "this government demands my disobedience"?
Part 2: Be a Redemptive Citizen (Romans 13:8-10)
8 Do not owe anyone anything, except to love one another, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. 9 The commandments, Do not commit adultery; do not murder; do not steal; do not covet; and any other commandment, are summed up by this commandment: Love your neighbor as yourself. 10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor. Love, therefore, is the fulfillment of the law.
I think the rest of this passage is pretty straightforward, so I'm going to keep my notes short.
Do you want to know what a good citizen looks like? It looks like a good Christian.
Paul thinks this is really simple.
And it's a brilliant image. Don't owe anyone anything . . . except love. That's not because you haven't loved them enough already -- it's because there is no end to love. We can never say, "I've loved that person enough."
Here's your discussion: how does "love" make you a "better citizen"?
Aside: Knowing Better Than Your Government
I hope you've caught on to Paul's subtext -- Christians should make the best citizens because Christians truly know what is best for people. If Christians are at odds with the government, it had better be because they believe the government is not making its society the best it can be, nor treating its people the way God wants them treated.
Part 3: Live Urgently (Romans 13:11-14)
11 Besides this, since you know the time, it is already the hour for you to wake up from sleep, because now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. 12 The night is nearly over, and the day is near; so let us discard the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13 Let us walk with decency, as in the daytime: not in carousing and drunkenness; not in sexual impurity and promiscuity; not in quarreling and jealousy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh to gratify its desires.
This might seem out of place in a discussion about citizenship, but I think it makes complete sense.
Christians could spend their time and energy fussing about their rights and putting themselves first, or they could realize that time is short and the devil will use their selfishness to distract them from what's really important.
At FBC, I recently preached a message about Paul's use of "urgency" -- I wonder how many of y'all remember it?
And David (FBC pastor) is preaching about the armor of God from Ephesians 6 this Sunday after Sunday School, so I don't want us to take too much time on something David will shortly fill in.
[For everybody else, here is our last study on the armor of God: Cosmic Battles of Good vs. Evil Are Real (You're In One -- Ephesians 6:10-20)]
In context, Paul is saying this: "yes, you're supposed to live peaceably as a good citizen, but that doesn't mean you get to roll along with your immoral culture; instead, you should redouble your efforts to shine the light of Christ to everyone around you!"
Put it to your group this way: say that God announced that Jesus was coming back on December 23. What would you do during the next month?
I'm sure that some of your group would talk about making some important phone calls and personal visits. But some will also say things like "I guess I won't go Christmas shopping" or "not gonna worry about paying the power bill". Those are the attitudes Paul is combating.
I believe that Paul believed that Jesus was coming back soon, as in count-on-one-hand soon. I'm sure that filtered into his teachings. Some young Christians interpreted that to mean that "planning for tomorrow" didn't matter. Why work? Why care about your reputation? Why keep your house in order?
To Paul, "urgency" means the opposite -- if you think Jesus is coming back soon, you should care all the more what He finds you doing when He returns. Jesus Himself said this (What Did Jesus Say about the End of the World? Matthew 24:36-51).
Believing that our time is short should not lead us to slack off but to double down. Again: "Matthew 24:46 Blessed is that servant whom the master finds doing his job when he comes."
[Note: don't spend your time today talking about this "Matthew 25" crowd or whether they've taken the right lessons from Jesus' warnings.]
In other words, Paul is simply re-summarizing everything he's said to this point.
Why might Paul single out carousing and drunkenness and sexual impurity? Because they were common in Rome. For your group, you could substitute any vice that's socially prevalent where you are.
Paul's final image -- "put on the Lord" -- is incredibly powerful. Remember that Paul's audience didn't exactly have a closet full of clothes. They didn't have many changes of clothes at all! Paul isn't talking about "treating Jesus like an outfit" -- this was a big deal. This was fully identifying with Jesus in every way ("let Jesus Himself be your armor").
Remember how we said that if we thought of behavior as a scale from "evil" to "good" that Christians should be pegged fully to the good? This is that same scale, except it's the world vs. Jesus. We should be fully aligned with Jesus, leaving no place for the world's morals or behavior.
Paul would acknowledge that that gets difficult when you live in an immoral society, but we should never use "difficult" as an excuse or crutch not to try.
What challenges are you facing living where you live? What are you going to do about that, and what can your Bible study group do to help you?
Just two more weeks in Romans!
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