Submitting to Governing Authorities

October 14, 2024

Notes from Scott Sutton's sermon on Sunday, October 13, 2024.

Sermon text: Romans 13:1-7


Verse 13 "Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment." 


1.) Biblical truth leads to Biblical behavior

This is why preaching verse-by-verse is what we think is best. Tim Killer says that it allows God to set the agenda for your church. So here we are, about a month from a pretty significant election... emotions are high... and God, in His agenda for our church, wants us to focus on submitting to governing authorities. 

Now, I am well aware that some of you may bristle at such a notion. Distrust of governing authorities and politicians and legislators seems to be pretty high right now. That is our context. But consider Paul's context. He is writing to a young Christian church under the governing authority of the Roman Empire currently led by Emperor Nero. These governing authorities that he is speaking of would go on to kill him... and many others who would profess the Gospel. And still he puts forth these principles, which have been mentioned previously by him and others, because it is part of what is best for Christian living... these are real Biblical truths that are supposed to lead the real Biblical behavior. 


2.) Christians should be subject to governing authorities.

  • Civil obedience is the general posture of believers... living in such a way as to be subject... allowing governing authorities to do their jobs without getting in the way, knowing that it is always beneficial to have good order in a society. 
  • All authority is from God
  • Resisting will incur judgment

This is the point where many natural objections quickly come to mind... For example... "The wrath of God is toward unrighteousness. What if the government is unrighteous? I am not supposed to be conformed to the world. What if the government is trying to use legislation to conform me to the world? I am called to abhor what is evil. What if the government is evil? What about tyrannical governments like those under the leadership of Hitler, Stalin, and others?" 

  • Instituted by God and approved by God are not the same thing


3 For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, 4 for he 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. 

You'll notice that just having rules isn't always enough to keep good order. That goes all of the way back to the Garden of Eden. After Adam and Eve broke the one rule/law that was in place, what happened? 


"God placed an angel with a flaming sword at the entrance to Eden to guard it from further trespassing by Adam and Eve and their progeny. So the first law enforcement officer who appears in Scripture is an angel, a minister of God, sent from heaven with an instrument of coercion, an instrument of force at his command, to enforce the barring of access into Eden. The first action of government is to use the methods of force to restrain evil." - RC Sproul


Our God is a God of good order, and as part of that good order we not only have laws, but we also have law enforcement... methods of force to restrain evil... and in these verses we find some standards for the governing authorities...


3.) Governing authorities have standards from God

  • They are not a terror to good conduct
  • They are servants of God for our good
  • They carry out God's wrath on wrongdoers

So under this kind of governing, Christians should have a posture of civil obedience. Peter, after referring to God's people as a chosen race and a royal priesthood, says this... "Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, where 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." 


5 Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. 6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. 


In verses 5-6 we see the important consideration of our own conscience. There is a practicality of paying taxes so that authorities (named here as ministers of God) can do their jobs. Paul cares very much about making sure that our behaviors are in fact Biblical, and in step with a clear conscience. What happens when governing authorities resist their standards from God? When they are a terror to good conduct? When they no longer serve God for our good? When they no longer carry out God's wrath on wrongdoers?


4.) Sometimes civil disobedience is the Christian's only option

This was the case for Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

  • When governing authorities forbid what is required by God
  • When governing authorities require what is forbidden by God

Civil disobedience says, "Rather than go against God, I will trust God and receive whatever penalty the ungodly law requires."


7 Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed. 


"This is a clear echo of Jesus’ famous saying: “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s” (Matthew 22:21). Paul surely has in mind this teaching of Jesus, who is clearly saying that the civil magistrate has a limited sphere of authority. Jesus was undercutting a common conception of the state in his era; namely, that the king or emperor was a deity in the pantheon, or so closely allied with the god of the region that the state had a divine authority. Jesus, however, says “yes” to paying Caesar taxes but “no” to paying Caesar worship; that is, “no” to unqualified obedience." – RC Sproul


Trust in God allows us to submit to governing authorities. And trust in God is what keeps us faithful should those governing authorities lead us into temptation and sin. Scripture refers to believers as alien exiles, citizens of heaven, only here for a short time until time melts back into eternity. Our hope is in Jesus, not humans. Our eternal reality should impact every single part of our temporary home here on earth. So when it comes to submitting to governing authorities and voting on who those governing authorities will be, we can cast our vote full of hope because our hope is in God, not man. 



Discipleship Questions:

  1. How do you initially respond to a call to "submit to governing authorities"?
  2. How does trust in God temper your response? 
  3. How do these verses help you during this election season?
  4. Why is it important to know that governing authorities have standards from God?
  5. What happens if governing authorities forbid what God requires or require what God forbids?
  6. Should you ever follow governing authorities into temptation and sin?
  7. How should these verses impact how we pray during this election season?

Freed to Serve

April 28, 2025
Notes from Scott Sutton's sermon on Sunday, April 27, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 2:11-17 This is the beginning of a section addressing how God's people now function in this world. It begins with aliens and exiles and continues with servants, wives, husbands, and finally, all of you. 1.) Our identity defines our actions. We are sojourners and exiles (temporary, passing through, not at home) We have a heavenly citizenship Actions We abstain from the passions of the flesh Keep conduct among the Gentiles honorable (our conduct is for the benefit of other people) Honorable conduct wins souls… sojourners, exiles, and soul winners “Peter’s point is that believers’ behavior creates a context in which people will listen to God’s word. He is not teaching that ‘good deeds’ in themselves convert unbelievers, but they establish an environment for the Gospel-word to do so.” -Barnett 2.) Our identity defines our expectations (Unbelievers will respond to honorable conduct in 1 of 2 ways) Some will speak evil against us as though we are evildoers Some will see our good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation 3.) Our identity defines our view of authority (Does anyone here ever just want to do whatever you want to do, whenever you want to do it? That’s why laws exist) Be subject to every human institution (for the Lord's sake) This includes governors and emperors (no distinction between good/bad) The will of God... by doing good, we silence the ignorance of foolish people 4.) Our identity defines our view of freedom Don't use freedom as a cover-up for evil We are freed to serve God Honor, Love, and Fear Discipleship Questions: 1.)Why is it so important to understand our identity before talking about our behavior? 2.) How might this reality impact your parenting? For real, what are 3 ways that you can apply that this week? 3.) How is good conduct a form of evangelism? 4.) What do these verses say that we can expect from others? 5.) How can we honor a government that isn't always honorable? Seriously, what are 5 things we should immediately stop doing and 5 things we should immediately start doing? 6.) What are some tangible ways to honor others? Love the brotherhood? Fear God? Honor the Emperor? 7.) Should we fear the Emperor?

Cornerstone

April 22, 2025
Notes from Ky Martin's sermon on Sunday, April 20, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 2:4-10 Everyone must accept or reject Jesus. He is the cornerstone. We choose to accept Him as the foundation of our lives or toss the truth aside. When we come to Jesus… We become part of His People 1 Pe 2:4-5 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. The cornerstone is The New Temple. From this we learn that following Christ entails joining his community, the church…The freelance Christian, who follows Jesus but is too good, too busy, or too self-sufficient for the church, is a walking contradiction. -Daniel M. Doriani We join a royal, holy, priesthood 1 Pet. 2:9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. Because of who Jesus makes us. We receive God’s mercy Fallen man is not simply an imperfect creature who needs improvement: he is a rebel who must lay down his arms….Now repentance is no fun at all. It is something much harder than merely eating humble pie. It means unlearning all the self-conceit and self-will that we have been training ourselves into for thousands of years. It means undergoing a kind of death. Acts 17:30-31 The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, 31 because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.” Discipleship Questions: Why is it impossible to be neutral about Jesus? Why do you believe that Jesus truly is the Son of God? Do you ever have doubts about this? If yes, what are they? According to 1 Peter 2:9, who are we after we come to Christ? Why does Paul say (in 1 Corinthians) that if Christ is not risen, our faith is in vain?

Born Again

April 16, 2025
Notes from Scott Sutton's sermon on Sunday, April 13, 2025. Sermon text: 1 Peter 2:2-3 Why do our souls ache for certainty? We are so eager for certainty that we will look for it in all the wrong places. - Certainty in our Finances [show slide from news] - Certainty in our Jobs [Acts 17:24-27] - Certainty in our Health [Covid] - Certainty in our Abilities [Ecclesiastes 3:11 “God has put eternity into man’s heart, yet so that he cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end.”] “Things that have never happened before are happening every day.” -Morgan Housel In these verses, God gives us what our souls ache for! 1.) You must be born again of imperishable seed - We have all been born of perishable seed o Impure souls o Disobedient to truth o Unloving insincerity toward others o Lack of loving effort o Impure hearts - We are withering grass and falling flowers - The imperishable seed is the living and abiding Word of God o Does not wither o Does not fall o Does not let us down o It remains forever o It MUST BE PREACHED! But still, how can we be certain that we have been born again? 2.) If you are born again, hope will be seen in your relationships When your relationship with God changes, God changes your relationships! - Sincere brotherly love - Love earnestly - Put away… o Malice o Deceit o Hypocrisy o Envy o All Slander 3.) If you are born again, hope will be seen in your appetite for God’s Word - Like newborn infants - Long for the pure spiritual milk Discipleship Questions: 1.) Where are some unhealthy places where you look for certainty? 2.) Why do you do that? 3.) What were some evidences of your perishable seed before you came to Christ? Any of that still lingering that needs to be repented from? 4.) Why does Peter call the Word of God the imperishable seed? 5.) In light of the text, how would you describe being "born again" to a 5-year-old? 6.) How has imperishable hope proven itself in your relationships? OR How might it if you lean into loving others earnestly? 7.) Why does Peter tell us that hope will be seen in our appetite for God's Word?
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