Governed by the Godless
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· 13 views"Governed by the Godless" "Reflecting Christ in an Unchristian Context" "Working for the Welfare of the Culture"
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Welcome
Good Morning, New Hope! It is great to be back with you this morning. I hope all of you are well. So much has happened since I was with you last. There was Christmas. There was New Years. There was an insurrection. And there was an inauguration. Some of you may be rejoicing this week, while others of you may be mourning. Either way, I want to be sensitive to the fact the socio-political climate of our culture has brought many to a boiling point. My aim this morning is not to offend, but to speak the truth in love.
Our text this morning talks about submitting to the government, but its primary focus is on our submission to God. Throughout this epistle, Peter encourages his readers to live as sojourners and exiles. He’s writing to a people out of place, outcasts within 1st century Roman empire. As followers of Christ, they suffered both shame and slander, enduring persecution that would only intensify under Emperor Nero. After the great fire of Rome, it was this same Nero who is said to have blamed Christians for the fire and, in turn, captured them, bound them, and set them afire, to serve as human torches in the imperial garden. All that would come. Until then, the persecution that Peter’s readers faced was more verbal than physical. This is why we read in 1 Peter 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.”
As we see throughout this letter, Peter’s primary concern was not that his readers would “take back” the empire for Christ, but that they would glorify God by seeking the welfare of others, even as they suffered.
There’s so much to be learned from the book of 1 Peter. Within our text this morning, in 1 Peter 2:13-17, my aim is to show you how to reflect Christ in an unchristian culture, and how to glorify God when governed by the godless. In our text this morning, Peter encourages us to glorify God by seeking the welfare of others, even if it means unjust suffering.
Our text this morning is 1 Peter 2:13-17. Please join us for the reading of God’s Word.
Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good. For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God. Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.
Prayer
Exposition
Our text this morning begins with a command that might make some of you cringe. In the opening verses, Peter tells us,
Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.
At face value, this should be a relatively easy command to follow. Peter is telling his readers subject themselves to every human, governmental authority they might find themselves under, whether that be to Caesar or local magistrates. If Peter were talking to us today, he would say, “Submit to the Lynchburg City Government. Submit to the Virginia State Government. And Submit to the U. S. Federal government.”
Why? Because, at any level, government is instituted to bring a measure of law, rather than lawlessness, and order, rather than disorder. Generally speaking, government is a good thing. To have a government is better than to have anarchy. Who would feel at peace if his neighbor could abuse without arrest, kill without without consequence, or rob without retribution? Your freedom would be overtaken by terror. Indeed, government is a good thing.
Peter reminds us of one of government’s essential roles: “to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good.” Similarly, Paul writes in Romans 13 that the one in authority “is God’s servant for your good,” that he has been “appointed by God,” and is a “minister of God.” And so, we are told to submit to every governmental authority, whether it be to the President of our country, the Governor of our state, or the police within our community.
Now, certainly there are objections that roll like thunder. In fact, I shared this passage on social media just the other week and it didn’t take but 3 minutes for someone to feel triggered. In a reply since removed, this person objected, “I’m thankful that the Apostles, Bonhoeffer, and the founding fathers for that matter, did not view this text with so much narrow-minded dogmatism.”
This person was pointing to the fact that there are some occasions that may require civil disobedience, possibly even rebellion. For example, the Bible looks favorably on the Hebrew midwives who disregarded Pharaoh’s command to kill every son born to the Hebrews.
What if the government perverts justice? What if the government’s laws go against the law of God? Peter wasn’t naive of the government’s potential for injustice. He saw plenty of injustice in his own day. He watched as Christ was handed over to be crucified. He was in Jerusalem when Stephen was stoned and James was killed by the sword. He himself had been wrongly imprisoned. He wasn’t naive to government injustice, because he himself had experienced government injustice. Nevertheless, he tells us to submit to government authority.
We could easily develop a biblical argument for civil disobedience. We could comb through the Scriptures, to see whether there are any circumstances in which rebelling against authority is God-honoring. But we won’t find a basis for either in this text. In telling his readers to submit to government authority, knowing the injustice they faced from fellow citizens as well as government officials, Peter shows that he is more concerned with protecting Christian witness than he is with protecting a Christian’s liberty.
How will you respond when your rights are trampled and when you wrongly suffer? The remainder of our text is aimed at how we should respond.
As we continue in verse 15, Peter reveals the reason for our submission to authority. The text reads,
For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people.
Peter commands us to submit to governmental authority. Why? Because submission to governmental authority is in line with God’s will. Similarly, notice that Peter says “Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution.” Peter reveals our primary motivation for submission is not simply to be a good citizen, but to glorify God.
How so? Peter tells us that as we do good, we will put to silence the ignorance of foolish people. It’s important to note that Peter here is not condemning those who simply do not know Christ or do not understand the gospel. There’s a difference between being ignorant (the greek word ἀγνωσία is used here) and being foolish. For Peter, it’s ok to not know something, but it’s foolish to speak out ignorance.
Peter has in mind those who were speaking against Christians, accusing them of evil, as we read in 1 Peter 2:12. As he urged there, he again encourages us to do good. What exactly does Peter mean, when the tells us to “do good?” We have to understand here that doing good is not merely obeying the laws and directives of the government. To do good means that you do more than what’s expected of you, that you seek the welfare of others. For Peter, to do good means to act in a way that blesses others, with the possibility that you might “win” them over by your behavior. Nevertheless, if their slander does not stop as they see our good works on earth, it will certainly stop when they stand before God in judgment.
As I mentioned earlier, Peter’s primary concern is not the protection of our rights, but the protection of our witness. He knows slander will come. He knows we will endure injustice. But he also knows that how we respond in the face of slander and injustice has the potential to put Christ on display. All that Peter writes within this broad section of the epistle - specifically 1 Peter 2:13-3:17, is focused on how we conduct ourselves as we suffer unjustly. It’s in this context, we read
but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,
Peter tells us to submit to the government, to seek the welfare of others, even as we suffer, so that others might see our good deeds and recognize that our hope is firmly in Christ.
In verse 16, Peter takes occasion to remind his readers of their identity.
They have been set free- that is, ransomed from the futile ways inherited from their forefathers, as he writes in 1:18. In purifying their souls by obedience to the truth, they are able to “put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander,” as he writes in 2:1. Peter tells them that they have been set free from the “passions of the flesh, which wage war against the soul.”
Here, Peter contrasts the foolish people who trap themselves by their ignorance, with those who have found freedom in Christ. He’s referring to a freedom from the flesh. A freedom from the compulsion to sin. Specifically, he’s referring to their freedom from retaliation. We see this modeled clearly several veses later:
For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.
Peter was writing to a people who had suffered wrongly, at the hands of both their fellow citizens and their government. The injustice they endured surely must have tempted some toward seeking retribution. Knowing this, it was important for Peter to remind them that they had been set free from the flesh, set free from the compulsion to sin, and set free from the need to retaliate.
He tells them not to use their freedom as a cover-up (literally, a veil) for evil, but to live as God’s servants. As people who had been set free from sin, Peter was pressing his readers to prove it. Our freedom from sin in Christ is not mere pretense, but rather it is our reality. We have been set free from sin and, as it says in Romans 6:18
and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.
Peter reveals that we have been set free from sin, so that we might be free to serve God.
Calvin concludes, “Those are free who serve God. It is obvious, hence, to conclude, that we obtain liberty, in order that we may more promptly and more readily render obedience to God; for it is no other than a freedom from sin; and dominion is taken away from sin, that men may become obedient to righteousness.
Peter concludes this section with four imperatives in verse 17:
Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor.
It’s interesting to note how Peter orders these commands. The first two deal with societal relationships, where as the last two deal with relationships with authority.
Peter first tells his readers to honor everyone. The command to honor everyone would have been a radical thought, given his readers were being slandered by everyone. Nevertheless, they were to, as Christians, treat others with dignity and respect, due to no other fact than that they were made in the image of God.
Secondly, Peter tells them to love the brotherhood. In the midst of suffering, loving one another within the family of God was not merely recommended, but was essential. Some would have been tempted to forsake the faith, simply because it was easier than suffering for doing good. Others endured so much opposition from the community that, if they did not receive love from other believers, they wold not have experienced any love at all. Peter contrasts honoring everyone with loving the brotherhood to direct the priority of one’s affection toward the body of Christ.
Thirdly, Peter tells them to fear God. Here, he transitions his focus from societal relationships to their relationships with authority. In telling his readers to “fear God,” Peter wasn’t saying that they should be terrified of God, but that they should look to God with the utmost reverence, knowing that he judges their deeds impartially.
Lastly, Peter tells them to honor the emperor. This is certainly a step down from “fear,” and is likely a slight to the imperial cult. Nevertheless, Peter instructs his readers to treat the emperor with honor, as they reserve their ultimate reverence for God. Their devotion to God, however, did not preclude their submission to the Emperor; rather, as we have seen, it requires it.
Application
In 1 Peter 2:13-17, we’re encouraged to glorify God by seeking the welfare of others within our society, even if it means unjust suffering. What do we do with a message like this? Let me give you 3 points of application.
First, we must submit to governmental authorities, insofar as obedience to them means obedience to God. We must recognize that our submission to the government is for the general benefit of society. Paying taxes, for example, helps fund things like education, infrastructure, and the military. Unfortunately, we don’t have a direct say over how the government uses our tax money. Surely, congress does spend our taxes wastefully and, in some cases, immorally. Nevertheless, no government would be able to function without taxation. Therefore, we abide by the general rule, “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” (Mark 12:17).
But what if the government commands you to do something directly that violates what God has commanded? If you believe that the government has commanded you to do something that violates the law of God, know that your ultimate devotion belongs to God. If the command violates God’s law, you ought to disobey. But do so peacefully, all the while knowing and accepting the fact that your civil disobedience may not go without consequence.
Tom Schreiner writes, “Peter did not envision Christians submitting to government regardless of the circumstances, even if ruling authorities prescribe what is evil. The ultimate loyalty of Christians is to God, not Caesar. They are liberated from fearing Caesar, and hence they do not feel compelled to do whatever he says. Believers are God’s servants first, and thereby they have a criterion by which to assess the dictates of government.”
Secondly, seek the welfare of others. This, I believe lies at the heart of Peter’s appeal. You’re not just to do what is lawful, but to do that which serves as a blessing to others. We, as Christians, need to be proactive in looking for opportunities to be a blessing to the community we live in. I often wonder how much of what the government does is because of the fact that the church has failed in this area. where is our witness.
Lastly, if you find yourself at odds against the socio-political culture, I’d encourage you to pray. As a Christian, your enemies are not those who are seated across the political aisle. The Bible says, “We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” Again, the Bible says, “In their case, the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” Our fight is not against flesh and blood, but against the forces that shutter the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ.
Prayer