Romans 13; Psalm 23 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. ² Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves. ³ For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same; ⁴ for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil. ⁵ Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of wrath, but also for conscience’ sake. ⁶ For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing. ⁷ Render to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor.

⁸ Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. ⁹ For this, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” ¹⁰ Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

¹¹ Do this, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we believed. ¹² The night is almost gone, and the day is near. Therefore let us lay aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. ¹³ Let us behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and sensuality, not in strife and jealousy. ¹⁴ But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.

Psalm 23

The Lord is my shepherd,
I shall not want.
² He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside quiet waters.
³ He restores my soul;
He guides me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

⁴ Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil, for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
⁵ You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You have anointed my head with oil;
My cup overflows.
⁶ Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life,
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

In today’s text it says:  Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon themselves.    There are many people today who think that the freedoms our government promises them, allow them to choose to only be subject to the laws they agree with. From the Christian standpoint it is certainly true that not everything that is legal is right or good. Some things imposed by the government may not even seem fair and certainly some things that are legal with man, are not right in God’s sight. We need to remember though that Paul wrote these words of instruction when he himself was under the authority and rule of the Roman government, a strict and oppressive, even ruthless government. Yet in today’s text he says:   Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same; for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing.    It may not always be 100% true, but for the most part, Paul’s logic is sound and applies today, at least in most governments. All that is necessary, to avoid getting in trouble with the law, is to obey it. Agreement is not required, only compliance.  

Rather than rebelling against the government as many think it is right to do, in 2 Timothy 2:1-3 Paul suggests another solution for Christians.    I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior.    Rather than criticizing and being in rebellion against the government, we should pray for those in authority. First and foremost it is important that we pray for them and not against them. Whatever their politics, they are human beings, created in the image of God. It is His desire that they would come to know and believe in Jesus and the redemption of the cross. There are hundreds or thousands of laws which we might disagree with. The chances that we can overturn every one of them are slight, no matter how much we protest and complain. If though we will take our plea to God, seeking mercy and grace upon the hearts of those in authority, the Holy Spirit can change circumstances by the convicting power of grace. Our nation is polarized on almost every political issue. Rather than we as Christians railing against the things we disagree with, we should proclaim the good that we know. We should declare and proclaim the gospel. Jesus says:   “You are the salt of the earth;but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.Nor do theylight a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.Let your light so shine before men,that they may see your good works andglorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:13-16) Our light, the light of Christ in us, is what we should use to combat what we disagree with.

We are to be in subjection to authority. But we should not be dependent on it. The psalmist, in today’s text, gives us the answer to how we are to conduct ourselves. He says:   The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul; He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; My cup overflows. Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.     We are to be subject and obedient to the ruling authorities of this world. But we are first and foremost citizens and residents of the kingdom of heaven, even as we are here on earth. We are to be subject and obedient to the authorities of earth, but first and foremost we are to be subject and obedient to God and Christ. If the Lord is our shepherd, our guide, the one on whom we wholly depend, then nothing and no one, not even the government should cause us to fear. The psalmist says:  In God I have put my trust, I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me? (Psalm 56:11)  If we have been restored by the redeeming work of the cross, even death is merely a shadow. It holds no power over us. If we will walk with the Lord, seeking first His kingdom and righteousness, regardless of what the world does to us or demands of us, like the psalmist we can say:  Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.   

Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ; precious Holy Spirit; I am wholly dependent, obedient and subject to You and to Your will. As I walk in this world, may I be obedient to the authority You have allowed and established, for Your glory. May I be an agent of change, where it is necessary, by shining Your light; not through rebellion. I do pray for all those who are in authority. I ask first and foremost that they would come to know and trust in Your love, Your mercy and grace; that they would believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior. I pray that You would change the hearts of people, so that we would truly see the answer to the prayer of Jesus. That Your kingdom would come and Your will would be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Regardless though of what the circumstances of earth would bring:  The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.  Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.    Amen.