Conscience

Romans 13:1-7 (NLT)

“Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished. For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you. The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong. So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but also to keep a clear conscience.

“Pay your taxes, too, for these same reasons. For government workers need to be paid. They are serving God in what they do. Give to everyone what you owe them: Pay your taxes and government fees to those who collect them, and give respect and honor to those who are in authority.”

                                  

Why is it so necessary to honor our authorities? It is necessary because we are called by God honor the human authority that He has put in place. It’s a question of God’s sovereignty. If we truly believe that God is sovereign, then we realize that nothing that happens, no one who is elected, is not first approved by God. Now it doesn’t mean that all those in authority are godly people. We don’t have to look too far to know that this is the case. But if we believe in God’s sovereignty, then we must also believe that He has placed in those positions, those who are in authority over us.

With that said, we must honor them, not only to avoid being punished, but to keep our consciences clear. If we stand up for what is right, and we are punished for it, so be it…our conscience is clear when we honor authority.

A great example of this is in the third chapter of Daniel where the three Hebrew children, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah (better known to us by their Babylonian names, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego) were summoned before King Nebuchadnezzar when they refused to bow down to the king’s image of gold. Their first allegiance was to God, and they would not disobey Him by bowing before an idol. But when they were brought before the king, they were respectful of him. They didn’t defy him with threats, but they did tell him that their God was greater, and even if their lives were forfeit, they would still honor God over him.

We must respond like they did, and be willing to accept any consequences that may come our way for stating our position. We may lose friends or position or reputation, but we must always do what is right for the sake of our conscience.

So think about that today, and God bless you!

Comment on what you feel it is “out of bounds” for the government to ask of the citizenry, and what you would do if it came down to it.

Honoring Authority

This week, I thought it might be good for us to look at some of the things that the Bible has to say about honoring our authorities. With Tax Day looming on the horizon, some of us may have a hard time looking at our government with the respect that we ought, so let’s see what God has to say about government, and what it means to us who follow Christ.

The first thing I want us to see is that God ordains the governments that are in existence.

Romans 13:1-7 (NLT)

“Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished. For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you. The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong. So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but also to keep a clear conscience.

“Pay your taxes, too, for these same reasons. For government workers need to be paid. They are serving God in what they do. Give to everyone what you owe them: Pay your taxes and government fees to those who collect them, and give respect and honor to those who are in authority.”

There is quite a lot to unpack here, so let’s just jump right in. The first thing that we see here is that God is the one who puts people into places of authority. He is the one who gives us our Mayors, our Aldermen, our President, our Congressmen. While we may not see eye-to-eye with all of these people, it is true that God is the one who has placed them in their positions of authority and as such, they must be respected.

Now that doesn’t mean that we just accept what they say and do as gospel and do not stand up when we see them acting in ways that are contrary to the good of the people. These people are just human beings who are fallible and make mistakes. But we must always “disagree” in a way that is “agreeable”…meaning with respect for the position that they are in.

We must also do the right things to keep from being afraid from those in authority. Some would say that if the authority is corrupt, it deserves to be disobeyed. But I also believe that most governments (at least those in America) are not corrupt to the point of wanting to see people persecuted for no reason. I do believe that a time is coming in America when those of us who are Christ-followers might see that kind of persecution, but if and when that comes, then we’ll talk more.

But for now, we must submit to authority. We must do what they ask and not rebel. We must respectfully disagree when the opportunity arises, and we must always respect the opinions of others who may disagree with us. All of this will help make us better citizens.

More on this tomorrow, but for now, think about these things, and God bless you!

Comment below on ways that you feel you can be respectful of the government even when they make poor decisions.