A lot of people
wonder if the Bible has the answers to their specific questions. No matter what
your question might be, the Bible has an answer for it. The problem is that
many people have been taught bad theology. They may have picked up bits and
pieces from a church or religious school they attended in childhood, but now
they think the Bible is not relevant for what they are going through today.
In fact, there is
not a subject in your life today that the Bible does not address, and that
includes politics. Did you know that the Bible talks about what kind of role
government should play in our lives? Not only that, it also states very clearly
what the citizen’s responsibility should be in response to government.
In I Peter 2 we
see some insight into how we as believers should interact with the world around
us and live so that others will see the Lord Jesus Christ in us. Look at verses
9-12. “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a
peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called
you out of darkness into his marvellous light; Which in time past were not a
people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now
have obtained mercy. Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims,
abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul; Having your
conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as
evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in
the day of visitation.”
Now we come to our
topic for this discussion, in verses 13-20. “Submit yourselves to every
ordinance of man for the Lord's sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme; Or
unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of
evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well. For so is the will of God,
that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men: As
free, and not using your liberty for a cloke of maliciousness, but as the
servants of God. Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the
king. Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear; not only to the good
and gentle, but also to the froward. For this is thankworthy, if a man for
conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully. For what glory is it,
if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it patiently? but if,
when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable
with God.”
The first word of verse 13 is one that we don’t
really like to hear. Much is made of submission with regard to a wife and her
husband, but in reality there are more Bible verses that address a man’s
submission to God than any other relationship. Now we see that thought
transferred to reflect man’s relationship with earthly authority as well.
Before you get upset about the idea of submitting to
a bad government, remember that the Bible was written for all men, not just
those who live in a free society. As bad as things are going in the United
States of America in 2014, our democratic republic is still the best structure
of government you are going to find anywhere on this planet. We could be living
under tyranny right now if not for the grace of God. However, this passage is
also intended for those who do not have the privilege of living as we do.
All authority is given by God, and everyone who
rules over us does so because He ordained it. The Lord has given a great
responsibility to every ruler, as outlined in Rom. 13:1-7.
“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. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God:
and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. 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: 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. Wherefore ye must needs be
subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake. For for this cause
pay ye tribute also: for they are God's ministers, attending continually upon
this very thing. Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is
due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour.”
God has given our rulers certain rules to follow,
but it is important to understand that we are to be submissive to their
authority regardless of whether they obey their rules. This does not mean that
we don’t have the right to speak out in America against bad policies or bad
principles. In fact, we have a duty to stand up for that which is right and
say, “Wait a minute. That’s not what the Bible says.”
One day after visitation we stopped at the home of a
member of our church who was having a yard sale. While we looked around, a big
man (at least six-feet-three) approached me and said, “So you’re a pastor.”
“Yes, sir. I am.”
“Let me ask you a question. Do you preach the Bible
at your church?”
I told him, “Sir, we have no other message but the
Bible. We cannot preach anything else.”
He was skeptical, saying that no one preaches like
they should anymore. I assured him that we preach line-by-line, precept upon
precept.
“Let me ask you another question,” he said. “Do you
preach against sin?”
“Sir, if it is in the scriptures, we preach against
sin. We love sinners, but we don’t shy away from sin.”
I had a feeling this line of questioning was leading
somewhere, and my suspicions were confirmed by his next question: “How do you feel about same-sex marriage?”
As politely as I could (remember, he was much bigger
than me), I told him, “Sir, it doesn’t matter how I feel about it. If God in
His Word has stated whether something is acceptable or unacceptable, I am
required to stand up and preach the Word.”
He seemed surprised. “You mean you actually say that
from the pulpit?”
“If it’s in the Bible, we say it from the pulpit.”
We have a responsibility and a duty to declare what
is right. There are important moral issues of our time that we simply cannot
get away from. We have to take a stand – but we can disagree without becoming
disagreeable people. We still must be in submission to those in authority over
us.
The powers that be are ordained of God. This
is God’s plan. Human government is one of the three institutions that God
ordained; the others are the home (the family) and the local church. Any other
institution, however good it might be, is one that God did not specifically
ordain.
When we are in obedience to human government, we are
in obedience to God. When we are against human government, we are against the
very authority that God ordained.
Ordinances are to be followed. The Bible says
in Rom. 13:3, “For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil.”
Who is the evil? It is those who break the law. The role of government is to
establish laws. As Americans we believe that those laws should not infringe
upon our rights as provided by the Constitution, but someone has to decide what
is acceptable and what is not.
I believe that driving 70 miles per hour on the
Sunshine Skyway Bridge is perfectly acceptable, but the presence of law
enforcement vehicles on that bridge serves as a constant reminder that such
driving is not acceptable in the eyes of the law. Apparently the powers that be
consider 40 miles per hour a much better speed, and on a few recent trips
across the bridge I feared I would end up with a personal illustration of my
submission to authority in the form of a ticket. Therefore, I applied the brake
in hopes of not having to meet a St. Petersburg law enforcement officer at that
time.
If every driver did what was right in his or her own
eyes, we would have absolute chaos on the roads – running red lights and stop
signs, speeding and crashing into each other. God ordained government to
establish laws so we would have a level playing field.
Obedience to authority is required. Rom.
13:5-6 says, “Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but
also for conscience sake. For for this cause pay ye tribute also: for they are
God's ministers, attending continually upon this very thing.” Many people
do right simply because they don’t want to get caught doing wrong. I should
desire to do right because I don’t want to displease God. Obedience should not
be out of fear of punishment, but because it is simply the right thing to do.
What would you do if you knew you could get away
with it? That is something all of us should think carefully about. Instead of
considering what we can do without getting caught, we should consider what is
the right thing to do.
We are instructed in verse 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.” We are not only to meet the law, but
to exceed it and obey with respect.
Do you respect those in authority? My kids know that
certain words uttered in our house will lead to a serious, um, discussion. For
instance, I do not tolerate derogatory terms used to identify police officers.
They have changed over the years but they are no less disrespectful than they
ever were.
I am against just about every policy I have seen
from the current presidential administration, but I have an obligation to
respect the office. If you start disrespecting that office, no matter who
is in it, then your children will see a double standard if you protest when
someone disrespects a future president you happen to admire. You can vehemently
disagree with a man or woman in authority on the issues, but you still must the
office that has been ordained by God.
The principle is the same in many other areas. If
the wife disrespects the husband, do not be surprised when the children disrespect
the parents. If the parents do not respect the pastor, do not be surprised when
the children have a problem with the authority of the Word of God.
We can speak the truth with kindness and stand up
for what is right, but no one needs to be a jerk about it. If I tear down
someone in authority, I am really hurting my own position. You should be a
truth-teller but never a mudslinger. Stick to the facts when discussing any
issue.
Recently I read an article that pointed out the
retirement of a high-ranking official in Planned Parenthood who had become
disenchanted with what that organization does and stands for. I have never met
her, but I can promise you she was not won over to the pro-life way of thinking
by people berating her and calling her names. It was the people who prayed for
her and showed her the love of Christ.
You do not win someone by tearing him down. You can
poke holes in a person’s argument without doing personal harm. I can show you
from the Bible why abortion is murder, but every abortionist is a soul that
needs salvation. I can tell a homosexual that his lifestyle is wrong but do it
with the proper disposition so that he respects me as I try to win him to
Christ. When you tear someone down to win an argument, you ultimately lose the
argument along with any chance of ever influencing that person for God.
The first role of government is simple: to punish
evildoers.
Look at 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.”
Consider I Pet. 2:13-14. “Submit yourselves to
every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake: whether it be to the king, as
supreme; Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the
punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well.”
Many people today think that government exists to
support them or educate their children, but God’s purpose for government is to
set things in order. God has shown us what is right and what is wrong, and His
representatives – human government – are to deal with those of us who do wrong.
Several years ago I made a statement from the
pulpit, and I was later rebuked by a man in my church. He did this with
kindness and the proper spirit, but his words have remained with me to this
day. I had made an offhand comment about a child molester, saying that we
should “string him up” if we had the opportunity.
“Pastor, stringing up child molesters is not the responsibility
of the local church,” the man told me. “It is the government’s job to punish
wrongdoing. The role of the church is to win child molesters to Jesus Christ.”
Imagine if someone were sitting in the congregation
while struggling with those evil, hurtful tendencies. If he heard a statement
like the one I made, we could not share Christ with him because he would fear
for his life around us. Of course, I would not literally kill someone like
that, but as my friend pointed out, what I said would not come across that way
to a lost person.
“We should say that, if we come across a child
molester, we will report him immediately to the local authorities for
prosecution,” he told me.
Go back to 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.” That
verse, along with I Pet. 2:14, shows us that government exists to promote
good.
If you read the documents written by the Founding
Fathers, you know that happiness was never guaranteed by government. We are
promised “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
Government is supposed to provide a level playing field. In the early years of
this nation, it was all about having the chance to go out and make something
for yourself. Now it is more about what someone else can do for you, and that
is not what the government’s role is supposed to be. Sadly, we are usually
surprised when we hear a political candidate today talk about personal responsibility.
It shouldn’t be that way.
If you have a problem, it is not the fault of the
Democrats or the Republicans. Likewise, neither of those groups has the answer
that will fix all of your problems. Any government strong enough to give you
everything you want is also strong enough to take everything you have.
Government should be less, not more.
The Founding Fathers had this as their general idea:
“You know how to manage your life better than anyone else, so we are going to
protect you from evil and promote you to do good.”
We are representatives of God no matter where we
are. Remember, the Bible is not written just for Americans who live in the
land of the free and the home of the brave. It is written for Christians in
socialist countries and dictatorships as well.
Doing good is God’s will for us. Read I Pet.
2:15. “For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence
the ignorance of foolish men.” God wants us to do right and to represent
Him in an ungodly world.
Foolish men say ignorant things. According to
Ps. 14:1 and Ps. 53:1, “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.”
When you start from a foundation of a world without God, and you live your life
as if He does not exist, you will say and do some very foolish things along the
way. But as I Pet. 2:15 shows us, your good works will silence such people.
I have freedom in Christ. The best way to
answer a foolish person is not, “I told you so.” It is better to prove by
consistency and longevity that the Bible is the Word of God. Do right, and keep
doing it for a considerable amount of time. When an atheist claims that
“religion” just doesn’t work, your life can be proof that a relationship with
Jesus Christ is the best possible way to live. It has worked for me nearly four
decades. God has given me the kind of stability in life that other people are
searching so desperately for.
The world is looking for reality, which is why
whenever someone who is real steps up, people take notice. A group of
candidates who all look and sound the same will not impress anyone, but when a
person stands up and speaks the truth it makes them say, “Wow.” But the state
of society today is such that many people scoff at common-sense ideas like not
spending more than we make or not killing our babies. By the way, the Muslims
do not kill their babies; it is no wonder they are the fastest-growing religion
in the world. They eventually will take over Europe without firing a shot.
Their sheer numbers will win the battle.
When someone takes a stand for right and speaks the
truth, others see it and it makes sense to them. Liberals and the heathen will
try to destroy that, but people will rally around it because they realize that
if we don’t return to common sense on some things, we are all doomed.
These passages show us that in our relationships
with authority as well as our relationships with each other, it all comes down
to having respect for all people. One of the problems in society today
is that we just don’t treat people well anymore. We read in I Pet. 2:17-18, “Honour
all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the king. Servants, be subject
to your masters with all fear; not only to the good and gentle, but also to the
froward.” Those verses are talking about respect, pure and simple. Sadly,
we have become such a disrespectful society.
A perfect example of this is in customer service,
which has mostly disappeared. One day my wife came home, seven or eight months
pregnant, [was she working at an airline here?] and said a lady has just cussed
her out. I said, “Honey, I would have sent her to Chicago and her bags to
Tijuana for doing that.” People are so rude and hateful today, and God is
pointing out here that we do not have the impact we should have in this world
because we fail to treat people right.
We must show respect in our relationship toward
other cultures. Verse 17 does not say we should honor men of a certain race
or culture. It says, “Honour all men.” Black, white, yellow,
brown – it is nothing but pigment. Every person has a soul.
When I first came to be the pastor of Community
Bible Baptist Church in St. Petersburg, Fla., I was excited about the
opportunity to reach more people in a dense urban area, and the Lord has
allowed us to do that. The variety of cultures in our area is just amazing. I
like that, because there is no white-only section or black-only section in
Heaven; it is just everyone surrounding the throne of God. For this reason, we
must strive to reach every person on the planet with the Gospel. Our church
does not cater to any particular demographic.
A family recently visited the service and one of
them remarked that she wasn’t sure they would be welcome because they are a
poor family.
“No, ma’am,” I said. “We want you to come. We will
help you get here.”
Her eyes widened. “You’ll pick us up?” she said.
“Absolutely. We’ll send a bus by to get you. We’d
love for you to come.”
She went on to say that her family had nothing to
offer, and their situation was pretty messy. But I told her I didn’t care; they
would be welcome in our church.
We don’t
check your tax return or your background when you come visit us. We just say,
“Come on in.” I long for the day when our choir is a hodgepodge of races and
cultures. I love to hear a friend of mine from another church say something
like, “We had 17 nations represented Sunday morning.” What a thrilling thing to
be able to say.
Our relationships toward the church and our
fellow believers are also vital. We have to get along if we are going to do
anything for God. How can we say that we love God and love sinners when we
don’t even like each other? If you don’t care about your fellow church members,
you won’t care about lost people. If you tear down your pastor, you will
certainly tear down your friends. If you are unkind to people you will spend
eternity with, I’d hate to see how you would treat someone who is on his way to
Hell.
Of course, we cannot underestimate our relationship toward
our Creator. Verse 17 commands us to fear God. Prov. 1:7 says, “The fear
of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and
instruction.” Your attitude toward God is the most important attitude of
all. If you do not have a reverence toward Him, you have nothing upon which to
build the rest of your life.
When these relationships are addressed properly, we
can have a right relationship as citizens and toward those in authority.
I can disagree with various elected people in
government without disrespecting any of their offices. Likewise, I can speak
out about a candidate’s positions and still respect the candidate.
In the fall of 2011 a pastor in Texas, during a
conversation about Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, said that
Romney’s religion of Mormonism was “a cult.” That pastor was immediately by
people who said, “You can’t say that!”
My response is: Yes, I can! Any religion that says
Jesus Christ is a created god is a false religion. Any religion that says
Christ was once a man but later became a god is a false religion. I can
consider Romney a good and moral man and I can agree with some of his policies,
but Mormonism is cultic and apostate, and as such it is to be what I Cor. 16:22
calls “Anathema Maranatha” – to be accursed until Jesus comes. I do not
hate Romney as he is probably a better candidate than some of the others out
there, but I cannot accept a spiritual philosophy that rejects Jesus Christ.
If a candidate’s position goes against the Bible, I
will not hate the candidate, but I will certainly oppose that position. I can
respect someone and still disagree. The reason many people have a problem with
this is that they cannot take criticism, but they view every disagreement as a
personal attack. As a pastor I am frequently called upon to point out something
that is wrong in the lives of my congregation, but I still love my congregation
as much as I ever did. The world cannot comprehend this, so they accuse us of
hating homosexuals and abortionists. In fact, we love them and want to see them
come to Christ; we simply do not tolerate or condone their behavior.
Everyone cannot be right. If something is right,
then something else has to be wrong. Thus, you must ask yourself if you are
basing what is right in your life upon anything other than the Word of God.
Our relationship toward our coworkers is
addressed in I Pet. 2:17-18 using the terms “servants” and “masters.”
It is inevitable that situations will arise to test your attitudes toward your
bosses as well as those who work under your authority. You may say, “I’m going
to be nice to those who are nice to me.” The Bible instructs you to also be
nice to those who do you wrong, because you are a representative of God.
If you are only kind to people who are kind to you,
then you are not much of a Christian. Lost people can do that. When you respond
well to those who would mistreat you, it sets the bar higher and is a far
better testimony.
Look at I Pet. 2:19-20. “For this is thankworthy,
if a man for conscience toward God endure grief, suffering wrongfully. For what
glory is it, if, when ye be buffeted for your faults, ye shall take it
patiently? but if, when ye do well, and suffer for it, ye take it patiently,
this is acceptable with God.”
Some people consider it a badge of honor to
withstand a rebuke. Well, if you deserved the rebuke, you only did what was
expected. The hard thing is to be rebuked when you did nothing wrong, and your
flesh tells you to tear the other person apart. You reaction to that will show
what kind of Christian you are.
It is easy for all of us to agree that our country
is in a mess and blame all of the politicians for it. But God says in His Word
that judgment should begin in His house. The problem is not with the people who
were voted in, but rather the people who did the voting. We have a
representative form of government, so these politicians are the ones chosen to
represent us. That would place the responsibility squarely on the backs of
God’s people, who have not yet reached those other voters with the truth of the
Gospel. Some of us have trouble doing that because our lives are not what they
should be and we do not have the respect of our coworkers and others in our
community.
America’s leadership is simply a reflection of
America. Before we can fix America, we have to fix ourselves and our churches.
If we do that, we can influence our nation for the cause of Christ.
