Citizenship Lessons
Opening Prayer
Lord, teach me that revenge is reserved for the authorities and ultimately for the God who has installed them.
Read Romans 13:1–7
Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. 2 Consequently, whoever rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves. 3 For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended. 4 For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 5 Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.
6 This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God’s servants, who give their full time to governing. 7 Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.
New International Version (NIV)
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Reflect
“Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile” (Jer. 29:7).
Chapter 12 ended with encouragement to live at peace with everyone and not to take revenge (Rom. 12:19–21)—following the example of Jesus and deriving from faith in God. God reserves the exclusive right to “avenge” (Rom. 12:19), best understood not as God being vengeful but as being the one who has the right and power to work a higher form of justice. How, when and whether God does this is, of course, entirely up to him, since vengeance is his to mete out as he sees fit.
Understanding this puts the following chapter in perspective. It should not be read as a wholesale endorsement of just any government, however tyrannical or corrupt, even though at the time of writing the Roman empire was ruled by Emperor Nero—not exactly a friend to the Christians. Revelation 13 gives a complementary perspective on how states can become both beastly and blasphemous—but this is not Paul’s concern here. The Christian community in Rome was already at risk, a fragile new movement that was attracting some hostility (within a decade Paul himself would be imprisoned and martyred there). Christians needed to demonstrate that they were not a violent threat to the social order but were good citizens. As they waited for the kingdom of truth and righteousness to be established by Christ, they were commanded to obey the “powers that be” (1, KJV) as provisionally useful in maintaining order and confronting evil. In this way, the powers were serving God and acting as channels of his just wrath (4).
Even an imperfect order is preferable to a chaotic disorder. By virtue of God’s providential rule Christians could see some good even in pagan rulers. Provided that rulers did not usurp the place of God, the believers’ task was to obey them, avoid unlawful activity and simply do what was right (3), while they got on with preaching Christ. Christians should be the best of citizens—while conducting a peaceful revolution.
Apply
“Respectfully subversive.” How do these words sum up what Christians should be?
Closing prayer
Lord, I understand that You have placed governmental authorities for the overall good of society at large. Help me to obey the law at all times.
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