The Purpose of Government (2024)

Review

Turn to Romans 13:1-7.

So far in our series, we’ve learned that we need government because man has a sin nature. That’s kind of a different way of looking at it, perhaps, but that is the fundamental reason why the institution exists.

This begs the question, “who authorized government?” Last week we walked through the first nine chapters of the Bible and watched as God slowly delegated more and more authority to mankind.

At first, God gave mankind dominion or authority over all creation. Adam named the animals and he tended to the Garden of Eden, but God reserved authority over mankind for Himself. This changed dramatically in Genesis chapter nine, when God gave mankind the authority to rule over himself. God authorized the use of force to restrain man’s sin nature because man is made in the image of God.

Thus, we concluded that when possible, man should be involved in his own self-government.

Message

Read slowly:

Most people don’t spend much time philosophizing about the purpose of government. If you don’t do that, you’re in good company, but you may have a stronger opinion about it than you first realize. You may not have thought about the purpose of government as deeply as a Plato or an Aristotle once did, but you probably do have some idea of what you think government ought to do. Many of today’s political skirmishes - whether in Congress or at the dinner table - happen because we have different ideas as to how government should serve the people.

People have ideas about what government ought to do. Even more, God has ideas about what government ought to do. Romans chapter thirteen is God’s job description for the ruler. Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul wrote this letter to Christians in the capitol city of Rome and said, “here’s why God gave us government.”

Read Romans 13:1-7.

The purpose of government is like two sides of the same coin. We saw part of it when we considered the sin nature of man, so let’s start there first. Look at the second half of verse four:

Romans 13:4 “for he [the ruler] is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil.”

What is God’s purpose for government?

Next slide here:

Government must restrain the sin nature of mankind - Romans 13:4b.

God has given mankind the authority to setup governments and to establish law and order so that the sin nature that is in each of us is held in check. I could also say it this way: government exists to prevent and stop criminal behavior - something you and I are both capable of.

This requires the use of force because our sin nature doesn’t like to be told what to do. All of this is spelled out in our text.

The ruler is the minister [the servant] of God. The ruler is a revenger [one who carries out a penalty on another, an avenger, a punisher]. He executes wrath [“wrath” does not mean out of control anger. That is a different greek word. “Wrath” here is indignation which arises gradually and then becomes more settled.] The ruler is to bring firm, measured justice on him that does evil.

Joseph Henry Thayer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Being Grimm’s Wilke's Clavis Novi Testamenti (New York: Harper & Brothers., 1889), 293.

This is one of the most basic functions of government, but I fear that it is being neglected in our day. When I hear of murderers and other hardened criminals being permitted to bond out of jail and then disappear into society, that is a government not doing its job. It’s the government’s job to bring justice on those that do evil. It is the government’s responsibility to use force to protect the law abiding citizens, but we’re not consistently seeing that today.

God has given us government so that laws are made and enforced, but let’s be honest: none of us really like laws. We don’t like being told what to do. We don’t like laws that constrain us in any way, but laws are necessary so that we can live in a peaceable society.

Several months ago our kids were given a sandbox and they’ve enjoyed playing in it. At different times I’ve watched them run outside, take the lid off the box, and climb inside. Soon all three are playing away doing their own thing. They’ll grab shovels, rakes, cups, and all kinds of tools to play in the sand.

That sandbox is a perfect illustration of a governed society like ours. You see, our kids are mostly free to play and do whatever they want with the sand, but they have to stay within the walls of the sandbox. They can’t dump the sand outside the sandbox. And they can’t dump the sand on each other’s heads. There are rules that govern their behavior, but within the confines of that box, they can do all kinds of things. The same is true of our society. We live and work and are free to do all kinds of things in our society, but in order for us all to get along, there must be some laws that govern our behavior and that restrict what we can do.

We see this in verse three:

Romans 13:3 (KJV 1900)

3 For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil.

When our elected officials, our law enforcement, and our justice system are operating as intended, they serve to strike fear in the hearts of those doing evil. Thereby, lawbreakers think twice about committing a crime and injuring others.

I’m thankful when our state senators and state representatives pass good laws. And I try to write and tell them. I’m thankful for our law enforcement that does their best to stop drunk driving. I’m thankful for our Customs and Border Patrol that are trying to stop the flow of drugs into our country! And you know what, if an officer pulls me over because I was speeding, I may not be too thrilled at the time but I should be thankful that he is doing his job to keep our roads safe.

Application: This should go without saying, but Christians should be among the very best citizens. As much as possible, they should be the most law-abiding, peaceable citizens of a country.

This purpose of government is one of the fundamental responsibilities of our government. Today in America, government is involved in many things. I would say it’s involved in way too many things. It’s doing far more than it was ever designed to do. We Americans can and will debate what government ought to do. We can and will debate to what degree it should be involved in our lives, but before we get into the fine print on those subjects, let’s hold our government to this biblical standard. Before our government gets involved in much else, let’s first make sure our government is adequately doing its job of bearing the sword and restraining the sin nature.

Application: so during this election season, if all you hear a political candidate talk about is what they want to give you, watch out. The government’s primary responsibility is not to provide for you; it is to protect you from lawbreakers. It is to restrain the sin nature of mankind.

The ruler must bear the sword. The sword is a symbol of force, and if we’re honest with ourselves, there’s something about that thought that we really don’t like.

Baptist preacher John Leland wrote:

What is the law without the sword? Let a criminal be found guilty by the jury, and condemned by the judge: let it be known by the criminal that the court cannot use the sword to execute the decision, and he would laugh at the sentence. The ministers of God (magistrates) bear not the sword in vain. It is by force and arms that the penal laws are executed. Government, without the sword, is but a cypher [or, nothing], and if the sword is not to be used, all is but a bubble — the powers that are ordained of God are vain. - Leland, The Writings of the Late Elder John Leland, 457

Laws are worth no more than the paper they are written on if they are wholly reliant on the good graces of the people. Laws are upheld only by deterrence. We don’t like the silent threat of force, but we live in a fallen world. The use of force is the only language that evil understands.

Application: As believers, we must be clear in our minds about something: that government and law is necessary for our good. God authorized the use of force to stop evil. If our elected officials are not willing to stand by that principle, then they don’t need to be in office. It is our responsibility to discern whether our elected officials are fulfilling their biblical job description or not.

There is another side to this purpose of government, however. What is God’s purpose for government?

First, government must restrain the sin nature of mankind, secondly…

Next slide here:

Government must protect natural rights - Romans 13:4a.

No doubt, you are well acquainted with these words from our Declaration of Independence:

“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

You may be familiar with these words, but have you ever wondered exactly how these words reconcile with Scripture? The Founders claimed that Creator God made all human beings equal with each other. They claimed that God gave us certain rights - but can we prove that from the Bible?

Before we can get back to our text, I know there’s a question in your mind: what are natural rights? The Founders talked about this, but like the word “trinity” the term “natural rights” is not found in the Bible.

Next slide here, read slowly:

A natural right is a right that is natural to our existence. A natural right is a part of who God created us to be.

The biblical case for this is found in Genesis 1:26-27.

Genesis 1:26–27 (KJV 1900)

And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

Next slide here:

Genesis 1:27 KJV 1900

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

Man was made in the image of God with a freewill. This was the argument that John Locke and that Sir William Blackstone used to defend natural rights in their essays that they wrote and that our Founders read. I don’t have enough time to expand this argument further, but I want you to know, this verse is the biblical basis for natural rights. We don’t have rights before God, but each human being has the right to life, to liberty, and to pursue happiness, which meant to work and earn a living. It’s our government’s job to honor and to protect those rights.

Read Romans 13:4.

The ruler is a minister, or literally, a servant, to the people for good. “Minister” is the same Greek word - διάκονος - that is translated as “deacon” elsewhere in the New Testament. The government official - whether he is an elected politician or an unelected bureaucrat - must serve the people. He is the minister of God to you for good. That’s a broad mandate, no doubt, but it most certainly includes honoring and protecting the rights that are a natural part of who God has made us to be.

This is the God-given purpose of government: to restrain the sin nature and to protect natural rights. It’s like two sides of the same coin. When government does what it is supposed to do, our sin nature will be held back, and our God-given natural rights will be protected. Both parts must be applied, or a society will degenerate into either anarchy or tyranny.

Application: Christian, there’s your standard. That’s the biblical purpose of government. Now it is your responsibility to hold it to that standard.

Go vote your biblical values. Get a sample ballot for your area and learn about the people who will be on that ballot. Vote as best as you can for the people who will most closely line up with these values. If you’re not registered to vote, I will be glad to help you do that. You can still register before the April primary.

Go get informed on what your government is doing. In today’s world, you probably can’t keep up with all of it. Our government is way too big for that. But with a little work, you can keep up with what your elected officials are doing on the local, state, and federal levels. Get their email newsletters. I can show you how to do that.

Our government was founded on the principle of citizen engagement. It was founded on the principle of self-government. The only way it will return to those roots is if we get involved and take it there.

With each passing year, our government is drifting away from these values on which it was founded. Don’t think that it will improve by Christians sitting on the sidelines. Don’t think that it is hopeless. Don’t think that it is worthless. If persecution comes, so be it, but God does not want us to be fatalists. So long as we can have the freedom to preach the Gospel, may we do our part to uphold that freedom. Indeed, restraining the sin nature and honoring our God-given freedom is the very purpose of government.