Under God and Government

Jesus, the founder of our faith began it all and was misunderstood, opposed, and nailed to a cross by the Romans at the hand of an angry mob. All of the apostles faced death for their beliefs, except John, who was exiled. In the 60s AD Nero blamed Christians for Rome’s problems and invented cruel ways of torturing Christians. Emperor Decius required citizens to participate in public sacrifices, and when Christians refused to get involved, they were arrested, imprisoned, tortured, and sometimes executed. 3rd & 4th century the persecution culminated under Diocletian who tried to stamp out Christianity from the face of the planet, inventing horrors to terrorize and exterminate Christian.

Some centuries later the Roman Catholic Church replaced Imperial Rome as the dominant power in the Middle Ages and a new kind of persecution broke out against Protestants. John Hus was burnt at the stake for preaching the gospel in the 15th century. The church burnt Hugh Latimer and Nicholas Ridley at the stake for defending the sufficiency of Christ’s sacrifice.

In the 1600 and 1700s, many protestants, fleeing Europe, found their way to America. A refuge for them. America has for centuries been a refuge for Christians. We’re thankful for that. But consider 1 John 5:19: “the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.”Darkness has always had a death grip on our world.

The point in this history lesson is this: Christians have always been and will always be a misunderstood, marginalized, and opposed people. We are pilgrims. This world is not home. How are to live when the powers that be don’t understand us? When they marginalize us? How do we live in a world that’s not our home? Behind enemy lines?

1 Peter 2:13-17. Let’s hear the Word of God together. There are 3 imperatives in this text, and we can use them as our headers to walk through the text: Be subject, Live Free, and Honor All.

#1: Be Subject. “Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the governor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.”

The command here is “Be subject.” The word “hupostasso” - hupo- under, stasso, put yourself. It is to actively set yourself under another. It is a posture of deference, a recognition that they have authority over you. To submit is to place oneself underneath another’s authority.

Submission is woven into creation. It’s also woven into the fabric of our existence in society. Children must submit to parents. Workers submit to their bosses. Slaves submit to masters. Wives submit to their husbands. Church members submit to their elders. All of us submit to God, and here, God, through his Word, tells Christians to submit to every human institution.

There is an ideology at play in our day that is absolutely and diametrically opposed to the Christian worldview. It’s a movement that’s deemed a movement of liberation that is actually dead set on destroying all God-given parameters, anything we must subject ourselves to must be destroyed - only then will we be free. It’s indoctrination. Indoctrinate kids to hate the confines of their gender. Teach men to hate their manhood, teach women hate hate their femininity. Teach mothers to hate having a family, to hate their children. Teach fathers to fear leadership. Teach children to see their parents as imcompetent goons. Teach citizens to hate their governments. It’s an ideology of hate, hell-bent on destruction, that’s parading as liberation.

The ideology is so subtle because it calls itself tolerance, love, equality. What it actually is is a destruction of all the God-given structures, parameters, and institutions. If it’s embraced, gender is distorted, marriage is obliterated, fatherhood and motherhood are archaic and unfashionable, law enforcement is demonized, and anyone who thinks otherwise is labeled intolerant.

As a church, we need to embrace and celebrate God-given order. Here, the order of human institutions. “To every human institution” - from the emperor on down to the governor. Romans 13: says “there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.” Christians, of all people, embrace governing institutions as a gift to man.

The rule of law and government was established in Genesis 9, when God says to Noah’s family, after the flood: “Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.” Prior to the Mosaic Law, God’s policy goes like this: Whoever commits murder should be put to death. This principle becomes the grounds for government. Government is that which protects the innocent and punishes the guilty. This is exactly Paul’s point in Romans 13:4: “For he [the government] is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer.”

Government is from God, it’s a gift, and it’s described as a “deacon,” a servant of society for its good. It has the right to bear the sword and avenge sin. Of course, this is not to say that governments can’t become horrible abusers of power. They most certainly can. Which is why Peter says, “for the Lord’s sake.”

We don’t submit to the government because it’s good or because it’s wise. We submit to the government because that’s what the true King tells us to do. Verse 15: “For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.”

2:12 “Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.”

Our witness is on the line. Christians are not insurrectionists, anarchists. This is why we unequivocally can condemn all rioting, looting, and violence. It is sinful. It is rebellion against God. It is hurtful to fellow man.

Christians ought to be great citizens. We abide by the laws. We subject ourselves to it. And our hope is that, as model citizens, we live honorable lives that glorify God.

#2 Live Free. After telling us to be subject to government, he gives us a second imperative: “Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover up for evil, but living as servants of God.”

What does that mean? Why does he slide that in after telling us to be subject to the government? Here’s what I think he’s getting at: We’re to submit to the government, but not to be slaves of the government. We’re to put ourselves under it, but not we’re ultimately not serving it. Government is not our master. God is. We’re free.

We freely, voluntarily subject ourselves to it because we’re subjecting ourselves to Jesus.

“Not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil” - I think he’s thinking of people who might say, “I’m Christ’s servant, I don’t need to obey you...I’m free!” No government ultimately rules you - that’s freedom - but don’t allow that to make you think you’re able to do evil things. We are free from the tyranny of any government because we serve a greater master, Jesus.

“But living as servants of God.” You’ve got to see something here: True freedom is service.

I mentioned earlier that there’s an ideology that’s dead set on destroying what they see as social constructs - gender, marriage, traditional roles, masculinity, femininity. The reason they do that is because they see escaping these boundaries as the pathway to freedom.

Now look here. Freedom is not the absence of limitations. Freedom is not unhindered self-expression. “Live as people who are free...as slaves of God.” True freedom is not the absence of limitations, it’s the presence of the right ones. Let me give you two examples. Imagine a fish that wants to be free from water. Water is so oppressive! It’s holding us back! We’re going to go on land! Well, what happens? The fish destroys itself.

Or imagine a train. Train tracks are so restrictive! So limiting! The train wants freedom from the oppressive construct of the train track. What happens if you give the train its “freedom”? It destroys itself and destroys others.

Freedom is not the rejection of all restrictions, but an embrace of the right ones. True freedom is living as a slave of God. True freedom is, in our submission to God, submitting to government. It is living within the God-given parameters, and delighting in it.

God created us for him. Our sin is an offense to him, and it's fundamentally destructive. Sin is also enslaving. True freedom is found in the gospel. Jesus came, lived, died, and rose so that those who place their faith in him can be forgiven and set free to live for him. If you haven’t

#3 Honor, Love, and Fear The third imperative is found in the last verse. It’s actually a string of imperatives. “Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.”

1st, there’s the general command. “Honor everyone.” The word for honor here is used to describe a sum of money; that is, it is used to describe value. To honor everyone is to treat them as if they’re valuable, as if they matter, as if they’re worthy. Life matters. People matter. “Honor every single person.”

In the first century, sometimes slaves were viewed as non-persons deserving of no dignity. Peter instructs Christians to think differently: honor everyone. How relevant is this today? Christians need to honor everyone - regardless of their race or their role or their rank.

We are particularly tempted to dishonor people who disagree with us! Honor them!

2nd,: love the brotherhood. We are to honor everyone, but there’s a unique and special “agape” love that we are to have with fellow brothers and sisters. There’s a unity we have with all humanity because we’re made from the same God, share his image, and descend from the same man, Adam. But there’s a unique and special unity that Christians share - we’ve been born again by the Spirit of God, we’ve been adopted as sons and daughters into God’s household. You and I were destined for hell. And then we were saved by grace. And then we were united in the Spirit. Two actual Christians who are on polar opposites on the political spectrum have more in common with one another than a Christian and non-Christian who are political allies. We have a deep, deep unity.

3rd: Fear God. This is the motive for everything we do. To fear him is to trust him in all circumstances, no matter how difficult. It means to worship and revere him as the Supreme One over the Universe. It is to know that he is holy and has called you to walk in holiness.

4th: Honor the emperor. Christians are to look at those in authority over them and value them. Apparently, this needed to be said. More than simply “honor everyone,” specifically, “the emperor.” The original readers of this would have said, “Nero? Really?” Yes, honor him.

This is hard to hear. This might have been hard for readers to swallow. There are unjust authorities over me. I am oppressed. My life is being threatened. And you want me to honor those in authority over me? Yes.

What if they’re unjust? What if they track me down and kill me? Verse 18: “Servants, be subject to your masters with all respect, not only to the good and gentle but also to the unjust. For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrow while suffering unjustly.”

We are a pilgrim people. Have you thought about the implications of that? Nothing in this life will feel at home. And yet, while we’re here, God has called us to be subject to human institutions, for the glory of God and the good of our fellow man.