What is the Christian's Relationship to the Government?

In "God's Word for Today" William Snider writes:

New Testament writers were clear in directing Christian citizens to respect and obey governmental authority. (See Rom. 13:1-7; 1 Tim. 2:1, 2; Titus 3:1; and 1 Peter 2:13-17.) With secular governments unappreciative of spiritual values and at times even oppressive, it would be convenient to disregard their authority as anti-God. Paul argued to the contrary. Government is a divinely authorized impediment to anarchy and a divinely appointed agent for the punishment of evildoers to the degree that the ruler “beareth not the sword in vain.” Christians are directed to pray for those in authority over them, and to be submissive to the rule of law. Only in the most extreme cases were they to implement the dictum of Peter: “We ought to obey God rather than men.” Following the example of Christ himself, believers were directed to pay taxes inasmuch as they derived certain privileges from government which they could not provide for themselves. In the New Testament understanding, being a Christian citizen should be grounds for being a better citizen rather than a rebellious one. Likewise, being a Christian should entail a life motivated by love for all.

Source: Studies in Romans: Adult Teacher's Insights, pages 70-71.

2017-02-19T08:00:00+00:00February 19th, 2017|Categories: Lesson Highlights|Tags: |0 Comments

The Christian and Civil Authorities

Lesson 12 - February 19, 2017
Focus Text:  Romans 13:1-14
Central Truth: God has ordained governmental authorities for our good.
Objective: By the end of this lesson my students should be able to identify some obligations a Christian owes government authorities.
Lesson Outline:

  1. The Issue of Inappropriate Resistance (Romans 13:1-4)
  2. The Issue of Rightful Subjection (Romans 13:5-7)
  3. The Issue of Appropriate Obedience (Romans 13:8-14)
2017-02-16T14:30:00+00:00February 16th, 2017|Categories: Weekly Lesson Summaries|Tags: |0 Comments
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