The Christian's Responsibility to Civil Government

According to Romans Thirteen

By Rev. D. Earl Cripe

Rom. 13:1 Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.

Rom. 13:2 Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.

Rom. 13:3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same:

Rom. 13:4 For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.

Rom. 13:5 Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake.

Rom. 13:6 For for this cause pay ye tribute also: for they are God's ministers, attending continually upon this very thing.

Rom. 13:7 Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour.

Rom. 13:8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.

Rom. 13:9 For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

Rom. 13:10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.

Rom. 13:11 And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.

Rom. 13:12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.

Rom. 13:13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.

Rom. 13:14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.

God’s Rule In The Natural Kingdom

In this chapter we are discussing the proper attitude and relationship of the faithful, holy, and sanctified Christian to the world and the society around him. Of specific interest here is a correct attitude toward and interaction with authorities. It is important to make it clear that these Scriptures issue no instruction to the Church to acknowledge any inherent ethical, moral good in human government. Nor is there a call to the Church to become involved in the social and political process in the world around us. What the Bible is pointing out is how the Christian must walk if he is to be honorable in his behavior with respect to this society in which he functions.

The King, Eternal, Immortal and Only Wise

The point being made is that God is in ultimate and universal control. God allows and establishes everything that goes on in this world in a way that makes sense to Him, even if it does not make sense to us. He is working all things after the counsel of His own will and according to His own ends and purposes.

The Earthly House

It is true that we are citizens of the heavenly kingdom, that we are pilgrims and strangers in this earth, and that we have no continuing city here.

But it is also true that we are citizens of this society for a temporary time, and, in mortal terms, it is here that we must live and move and have our being. In a very practical sense it is here that we must express our character and testimony before the watching world. As technology and intellectualism have invaded our thinking and our churches, the emphasis upon Christian witnessing has shifted to literal and formulated expressions of the salvation message. Too little emphasis has been placed upon that all-important aspect of testimony that has to do with beliefs being demonstrated by character. That is much involved with our social behavior. This too must come under the scrutiny of Biblical light and is the preponderance of what is left to be discussed in this chapter, both to the individual Christian and the Christian community as a body.

Christian social behavior has been misinterpreted, misunderstood, resented, and ignored too often in Christian teaching. At the heart of this discussion is the rightful position of authority. The issue is how the honorable and faithful Christian is to behave with respect to society and its authority in order to honor God. How is he going to show forth a godly character, and demonstrate the new personality received through faith in Jesus Christ and the assistance of the Holy Ghost in our lives? In this passage, St. Paul is not advocating social reformation nor commenting on movements that should take place on the political scene. The Bible is simply telling us that the Christian must behave himself in a certain way that is prescribed by God in order that his life be holy and set apart. Thus he will be able to function the way he should, and give a good witness and testimony in this earth.

God Put the Sword in Society For Our Good

God established order and authority in society in antiquity. In the world before the Great Flood it was proven that man could not and would not behave himself without the intimidation of laws and authorities. And so God put the sword in society to keep man from destroying himself. It might be possible to argue that this was not necessary if we could prove, from the Biblical point of view, that man is basically good. But the Bible says that just the opposite is true. Man is evil by nature and by choice. This surely must be evident to everyone who takes a candid look at the history of civilizations, and particularly at what is happening in our time.

Sociologists claim that if man could start out pure and innocent, without preconceived notions of right and wrong, and just be permitted to live by his conscience, he would migrate to the position of always doing the right thing. This was tried from Adam to Noah but it did not (because it could not) work. Man is evil from his youth. He goes astray from his mother’s womb. He is shaped in iniquity in the womb before birth. It is a genetic and inherent thing. Therefore God, in order to buy the time and to make it possible for the time-and-history aspect of the process of redemption to unfold, established laws and enforcers. And not only so, but He set up a structure by which an orderly society was to function.

This is what we are told clearly in verse 4. Bear in mind that we are talking about the renewed thinking and proper attitude of the Christian toward the world around him. We are not trying to reconcile Christian thought to non-Christian humanism. Certainly one would get many stubborn and heated arguments from the humanist on this subject. We are not concerned with any of that. We are employed only with projecting the Biblical point of view as to the will of God for His people.

For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.

God’s Avengers

For the purpose of understanding why God has put authorities in society, we may ignore for the moment whether the object of God’s government is a Christian or not. Being a Christian or not being a Christian has nothing to do with the responsibility of that authority that God has put into society and the rules by which the authority is to function. He is put there to protect goodness; to protect life, limb, and property and to preserve the peace. He is given the sword ¾ or in other words, the authority, the agency and the divine mandate ¾ for punishing evildoers. He does not bear this sword in vain. It is for the good, albeit temporal and secular, purposes of God. God’s appointed authority is to execute wrath and to take revenge, from the social point of view, on those who commit lawlessness in the land. This is a social principle. It is not given to the Church and is not within the framework of the Church or the Kingdom of God in this world. It is a thing that falls under the universal Lordship and Kingship of God. Every mortal who lives in this society, whether or not he is a Child of God by spiritual birth, is to be under and subject to that authority.

Thou Shalt Not

So here is a man walking down the road. Suddenly he decides to vault over the fence, run into his neighbor’s field, and steal his horse. An Avenger of Wrath jumps out from behind a tree where he has been hiding, visits upon that man his authority, and brings him into the process which will punish him for this evil deed. That is why God has put that authority there. It does not make any difference if the man who steals the horse is a Christian or if he is not a Christian. He has committed a social crime and therefore the authority that God has put in society is ordained to punish him.

On the other hand, he is the minister of God for good to all who will be law-abiding and who will seek to function in peace and harmony with their neighbors. This is not an arguable proposition, but it is a statement of fact. Law enforcement agencies and political machines may be very corrupt at times. There are many instances and examples that we can find of the abuse of authority. Even so, those who wish to be honest and fair must admit that they would not want to live in a fallen world without police forces, without leaders, without laws, without courts, and without fire departments. We would not live out the week if there were no authorities in society to restrain, intimidate, and punish evildoers. We would fall victim to the rebel, the violent man, the immoral man, and the thief, just as society did in Noah's time. If there were no legislatures to meet and pass laws and try to come to grips with the needs of the passing scene, we would be the worse off for it. Therefore it is clearly true that the powers that be are ministers of God to us for good.

Two Reasons to Respect and Obey Authority

Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake.

There are two counts upon which the faithful Christian person must be subject to the authorities. One is to stay out of trouble with them because they do not bear the sword in vain. God gave them the sword and said, “Use it against the evildoer.” Therefore, Christian or not, if you get crossways with the laws of the land and the authorities, you are going to have wrath executed upon you. “Wrath” in this text does not necessarily mean something violent or mean-spirited. It can mean a consequence as trivial as a $5.00 fine for a parking ticket. So for wrath's sake we need to be subject.

And then, because we know through these divine revelations that this person is a minister of God to us for our good, we need to be subject for conscience sake. Whether we have done any evil or not, how can you and I as faithful Christians philosophically oppose something that God has put here for our good? It would have to trouble our consciences if we did that, and those who oppose the authorities are people of bad consciences. They are in opposition to good, and therefore they are not functioning properly. If they are Christians, their lives are being lived outside the Kingdom of God. They are a hindrance to the process of the propagation of the Gospel whether they know it or not. Of course, everybody makes excuses for themselves: “Well, I had a reason.” But that is beside the point. What tells the tale is that as we do these things that are wrong we move in negative direction with respect to the Kingdom of God and its righteousness. We may think we are keeping our rebellious behavior out of sight, but we cannot seal off all the leaks. The bottom-line effect of a rebellious life is to hinder the Gospel's working through the Church in this world. In order to establish his own self-centered interests and goals, such a person is defaming and hindering the work of Christ in this world. That is what he is doing whether he acknowledges it or not and whether he knows it or not. And so for that reason the Christian must be in subjection to the powers that be.

All Public Dignitaries Are Included

Not only does this have to do with the policeman, the sheriff, the highway patrolman, or the judge, but it also has to do with other agencies in society.

For for this cause pay ye tribute also.

There are many areas of disorderliness and obvious wrong in the Church of Jesus Christ in the world today. One of the most obvious is the attitude of the Christian community in general with respect to paying their taxes and other tributes that are levied against them by the authorities that be. “It is not just and it is not fair.” Complain, complain and moan and cry. And yet this is what the Bible has to say about it. God put that agency there for your good. He is taxing you to pay for something that He put there for your good, and that is no more than right. If there is going to be a fire department to come out when your house catches fire, then you should help to pay for it. If there is going to be a highway patrolman to capture a drunken driver to keep him from running into your car and killing your children on the way home from school, then you should help pay for him. If there is going to be a politician to help make laws, whether you particularly like those laws or not is beside the point. It is good for you. The Bible says he is a minister of God to you for good. Now, if he is going to be there and if God has decreed it and has sent people out to collect your tax money to pay for this agency, then you should do it willingly.

For for this cause pay ye tribute also: for they are God's ministers, attending continually upon this very thing.

Now wait a minute. Let us get this straight. They are God's ministers, attending continually upon this very thing. When the tax collector comes, he is there collecting your taxes because God sent him out to collect them. They are God's ministers, attending continually upon this very thing. Does that mean then that the political process, or law enforcement in the local instance, is all good, righteous, moral, upright in heart, and one in kind and nature with the Kingdom of God? No, it does not mean that at all. It is not necessary that it mean that. We understand the limited nature of mortality and the mission of the Church in this present scene. We believe that God is going to bring it all to a conclusion in the Day of Judgment (but in the mean time He has a process to work out and He knows how to work it out). So then we know that it need not be moral and upright in its nature in order for God to use it for our good. We should be able to see that; and when we do, God intends that we take a submissive attitude and support what He has established.

Pilgrims and Strangers Must Obey the Law Too

There is no conflict in this Scripture between the fundamental Christian Gospel and the social responsibilities of the Christian. The tax collector is God's minister. God did send him out. He is doing what he was designed to do. He is attending continually to this very thing.

If the society in which we live has come up with the idea that we owe this or that tax, God's attitude is, “Then you owe it, so pay it.”

Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour.

You may say that there is a superior court judge that you do not like and you do not think he should be on the bench drawing public money. Well, the Bible says that is beside the point. If he is in a position that comes up for vote and you do not like the way he performs, vote against him. But in the meantime you give him honor, and you give him respect because there is no power but God's. He would not be sitting on that bench if God did not put him there, and He wants His people to know this. You had better respect that person and give him honor because his position deserves it. If you do not, you are going to pay the cost — so are your people, and so is the Church of Jesus Christ in her mission in this world.

No Child of God Has Ever Lived In A Righteous Society

When Jesus was here in person, He came into one of the most corrupt and hypocritical religious systems in the history of the world. The system of the Pharisees was so corrupt and so hypocritical that Jesus called them hidden graves that men fall into, whited sepulchers, blind fools, hypocrites, blind leaders of the blind, and other very biting and graphic descriptions. Yet Jesus said to His disciples, “These Pharisees sit in Moses' seat and therefore, even though you cannot respect their behavior, respect them for their position.” Do not get crossways with God. Do not destroy your own character because they are evil. They have a position that is divinely established, and God allows them to sit in that seat. Maybe you do not understand that. It does not matter. There they are and you give them the respect for which their position calls. Pay no attention to their personal, individual character.

For Our Good

I was talking with my mother one night not long before she died. We were looking at the news and all of the immorality and graft and the other kinds of things that were going on. It was obviously troubling mother. Finally she said, “Well you know, after all, we have it pretty good in this country. We can go and come as we please. We can go to whatever church we want. We can go out to dinner. We sit here in our warm house and out of the rain, and nobody comes along and bothers us. Perhaps we complain too much.” As was always the case so far as I can remember, mother was right. We get to complaining about all the things that are wrong; and they are wrong; and if our complaint is objective and in the interest of trying to work out the Kingdom of God, then that is acceptable. But if it is just a complaint — “Woe is me. Poor old me. The way people are doing me” — then we should stop and consider. With all that is going on in our society that is inferior, we still have it better today than probably ninety percent of the people in the history of the world have ever had it.

The authorities are ministers to us for good. It is not the Kingdom of God at work. Still, the political process, the lawmakers, the sheriffs, the policemen, the highway patrolmen, the courts, the firemen, the local board of supervisors, and others are the ones who have created this society in which we can function so well. We buy houses and cars and reclining chairs to sit in and clothes to wear and all these other things. We would not be nearly as well off as we are if these agencies did not exist. That is the point the Apostle makes here. So God says to His children, “Do these things that I command you to do, and stop complaining about it. Quit being a rebel and resisting and ruining your character by opposing things that God has established for your good. God wants the Church to do these things, and to do them graciously as unto the Lord, because in the final analysis it is He who has allowed it and established it. That is the way it is.

Our Debt and Our Duty Is To God

This is what St. Paul goes on to point up in verse 8, a verse, I might add, which is much misunderstood and mistaught:

Owe no man any thing but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the Law .

What is this saying? Does it mean not to buy anything on credit? That may not be bad advice in many instances. You can get yourself into some very difficult situations by owing too much money. I am not upholding the thought of being in debt. But that is not really what this verse is talking about at all. The point is quite a different one: do all of these things for God's sake. There is no power but God's. God has established the system in which we live and the agencies and authorities that work for our mortal good. God is the one who makes His rain to fall and His sun to shine. The corrupt person holding office does not deserve your personal loyalty, but God does. There is no power but God's; the powers that be are ordained of God. He is God's minister waiting continually on this very thing. He is a minister of God to you for good. Therefore, owe it to God to be subject. Do not see yourself as having any debt to men. We are not talking about being indebted to men. We are not talking about obeying men because they deserve our submission on moral grounds. We are talking about obeying these powers because God has established them and it is His will for us to do it that way.

As far as owing any allegiance to man for things received, we have no obligation in that regard. We are not to see ourselves as having any other debt to the world. “Every good and precious gift comes down from above, from the Father of Lights, in whom there is no variableness nor shadow of turning.” It is not a matter of owing this world, or this country anything for the privilege of living here and enjoying all of these things. If Satan were in control and it were up to the world, the Christian would not receive anything but the back of the hand and a rat-infested prison. It is God who is in control and provides. We owe it to God.

But there is something that we do owe to the world. We have a debt, and we are called upon to repay it — and that is to love them. How then, in the interests of living an obedient and sanctified and holy and separated life, are we to behave with respect to this debt of love toward the world. The rest of chapter thirteen establishes the doctrine governing this matter.