Romans 13:1-10

Living in Mercy and Faithful Obedience

Proper 18A

September 7, 2014

At the time Paul wrote this letter, Nero publicized his rule as the dawn of a golden age. Yet, privately, there were rumors that his mother had poisoned Claudius, her husband and uncle, to secure the throne for her son. Nero himself joked about the poisoning, saying that Claudius became a god by eating a mushroom. A poisoned mushroom.  While there were suspicions of assassination and conspiracy and a fearful use of power, Nero pictured himself early on as one who promoted peace.  What the public heard about Nero is that he was a peaceful man, but privately what poeple whispered about him revealed their darkest fears.

Imagine the difficulty this posed for Christians. How do you relate to the civil authorities when publicly they say one thing and privately do another? How do you obey, as a Christian, when it seems like the rulers you are asked to obey are obscured by propaganda so you never know the truth? The question is as relevant for Christians today as it was for Christians in Rome. In many countries around the world, this is a struggle that Christians have to face. Unfortunately, our is become more and more like ancient pagan Rome.

Look at our political landscape and the struggles of Christians. Some refuse to have anything to do with politics. They withdraw from the political world, from the responsibilities that they have as citizens, because politics are corrupt and they don’t want anything to do with that world. Others want to use the political realm to create a Christian nation. Turning away from God’s gift of the church, where God gathers His people through the proclamation of the gospel, they turn to the nation, wanting the nation to take the place of the church, proclaiming the gospel from political offices and enforcing God’s word through the power of the sword.

The apostle Paul, however, offers another way. Paul knows of two kingdoms, two ways in which God is at work in the world. Earlier in the letter, Paul has recognized God’s gift of the church. The church is the means whereby God proclaims salvation to the world, that good news that the kingdom of God is here in Jesus. This is not earthly kingdom, but a heavenly one, an eternal one. Through the Gospel, God has called you into that kingdom and, though this world and Satan himself should fight against it, the gates of hell itself will not prevail. When you walk through the valley of the shadow of death, this Jesus is with you. Through Him, you live. In Him, you die. And by Him, you will be raised to eternal life.

But this does not mean that God simply deals with you spiritually. Often times, God works through even those who reject Him, using His established earthly authorities to maintain peace in the world.  As a Christian, one looks to such authorities not for a proclamation of the gospel but for an enactment of God’s good rule in the world.

Paul could have spoken like any other propagandist. He could have argued for obedience to earthly rulers because of their character, because they showed mercy, or because they had sheathed the sword. But Paul anchors Christian obedience not on something as temporary and fleeting as the person in office or the laws of the state. No, Paul anchors obedience on God. “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” (v. 1).  All authority comes from God, to whom ultimate obedience is due. Present authorities are masks of God, offices that God has established in His rule of the world.  This is part of what the 4th Commandment is about, “Honor your father and your mother.” Our relationship to these authorities, however, is not based on their person but on God’s work. Within their offices, we see the power of God, establishing order for all people in the world. They have been given the power to restrain evil and promote good. Sometimes they use it wisely. Other times not. But that does not diminish their office, or the fact that their authority stems from God.

So what are we to do?  We are blessed to live in a country where we can freely gather to receive God’s gifts and worship Him.  We obey the governing authorities, unless they contradict God’s Word.  We give due honor to those in authority over us, whether it be parents, teachers, employers, or government. Not blindly. Not stupidly. But, as Paul says, faithfully, as we seek to do good, to avoid evil, and to honor these rulers as “ministers of God” (v. 6).  And through our service, we bear witness to the One who rules over all.

This is one of the main reasons for having a Lutheran school and a daycare like we have. It is to help guide children, by God’s Word, to be good citizens of our country and good citizens of God’s kingdom.  There is no better thing for a church to do than this, for we are simply bringing the Gospel to our community. Of directing people to the cross of Christ, where meaning and purpose and direction are made clear, and most importantly, the only place where our sins are forgiven, eternal life is created and sustained, and salvation is delivered through Word and Sacrament.

Therefore, as Christians, we trust in God’s mercy for our salvation and we live in faithful obedience to civil authorities, knowing that they have been instituted by God. And in all things, we look to the rule of God in Christ Jesus, by whose death and resurrection, has authority of your death, and of your resurrection by the power than enables Him to subdue all things to Himself. Amen.