Introduction

(Read Text) One of the most fascinating figures of the 20^th century is Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Sadly, he denied the inspiration of Scripture, salvation by grace alone, and other orthodox doctrines. But Bonhoeffer still had incredible conviction, devotion, and courage.

Bonhoeffer was a rising theological star when Hitler was elected as Germany’s chancellor in 1933. While most his countrymen were quickly swept up in Hitler’s agenda, Bonhoeffer immediately saw through the charade and became an outspoken opponent. Even though he had plenty of opportunities to flee Germany for comfortable jobs all over the world, he was determined to fight for Germany at whatever cost.

Predictably, the Nazis put the clamps down, forbidding him to write or speak. But Bonhoeffer continued teaching and writing, and he became highly involved in the resistance organization Abwehr (ahp-vair).

In 1943, he worked with other members of Abwehr to plan an assassination attempt on Hitler. He was conflicted about participating. He wrote, “Before other men he (the assassin) is justified by dire necessity; before himself he is acquitted by his conscience, but before God he hopes only for grace.” But he persevered. Obviously, the attempt failed. Bonhoeffer and the other conspirators were arrested and later executed.

I imagine most of us (I’m including myself) believe it was right and noble to resist such an evil man. But Bonhoeffer understood the complex ethical dilemma. Afterall, our passage and several others strongly urge us to submit to government as to God. That’s because, as we saw last Sunday, government is a good gift of God. We must embrace God-ordained authorities.

But I left several important questions unanswered. What does submission look like, and when is it right to resist? Did Bonhoeffer disobey this passage, or is there more to the biblical ethic? Today, I hope to answer most of those questions. My basic challenge is this, submit to human authorities under God. Our first allegiance is to God. He is sovereign, not the government. Most of the time, we honor him by obeying the authorities he has put in our lives, but occasionally we must honor him by resisting. I have 3 big questions I want to answer. The 1^st is…

I.  How do we submit?

I know you don’t want me to start here. We’d rather focus on the exceptions than on submission. But I said last week that God is a God of authority, righteousness, and justice, and he has graciously built authority structures into his creation for our good.

Therefore, this entire discussion must begin with God. You must believe that he is in control, that “there is no authority except from God.” And you must believe that he is good. Therefore, you must embrace submission before you will ever be ready to resist an evil authority. So, how does God want us to submit? 1^st…

As to the Lord: This is vital because if we only obey worthy authorities, we will disobey a lot, and chaos will ensue. That includes in your home because you are a fallen husband and parent, and you make a lot of mistakes.

Thankfully, God, not man, is the foundation of submission. Therefore, you must look past the government’s faults and every other authority’s faults and to keep your focus on him (v. 5). Most people believe if I can get away with it, it’s okay. But we are not most people. We are children of God, and God sees even if no one else does. So, submit “for conscience’ sake.”

God is with you even if there are no police on the roads and no cameras in the office. Kids, God is home even when your parents are not. He’s in your classroom when the teacher is out. So, “be in subjection…for conscience’ sake.

(v. 6): This one is hard to stomach. God says that you must pay your taxes because they enable “servants of God” to do the Lord’s work. I doubt that’s ever crossed your mind when you visit irs.gov or the DMV. It probably pains you to even think that way. But God says government officials are doing the Lord’s work when they maintain order, keep us safe, and maintain roads.

So, pay your taxes even when you disagree. And remember you aren’t just obeying the IRS. You are obeying God and honoring him.

The same goes for every other authority (Eph 5:22; 6:1, 4, 5–6, 9). Do you see a theme? All of life is worship, even the mundane parts of submission. So, worship God. Submit as to the Lord. The 2^nd way you must submit is…

Voluntarily: Verse 1 gives the central challenge of the text (v. 1a). Verse 5 repeats the same verb (v. 5a). The verb is hūpotassō. It literally means, “to place or station yourself under.” So, we don’t just obey when the government forces us to obey or to avoid punishment. No, God commands you to place yourself voluntarily or willingly under government authority.

Jesus made the same point when the Jews asked him about paying the poll tax. The Roman occupation of Israel was wrong, and the poll tax was especially demeaning. But Jesus replied, “‘Show Me the coin used for the poll-tax.’And they brought Him a denarius.And He said to them, ‘Whose likeness and inscription is this?’They said to Him, ‘Caesar’s.’ Then He said to them, ‘Then render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s; and to God the things that are God’s’” (Matt 22:19–21). Jesus commands us to voluntarily submit even under difficult circumstances.

Now, I must note that submit is not as strong as obey. We obey God absolutely because he has absolute authority over our lives. But human authorities only exist under God. So, we submit voluntarily under God. I’ll say more about that later.

But for now, God is commanding you to trust his sovereign will. He put your authorities in place. You trust and obey him by voluntarily submitting to them. Don’t grate under authority. Don’t sneak behind their backs. And don’t be the kid who says, “I’m obeying on the outside but not on the inside.” Trust God and voluntarily submit. The 3^rd way you must submit is…

Practically (vv. 6–7): I imagine the Romans bristled against this just as much as you may. The Roman government was corrupt and unjust. A few years prior, Claudius Caesar had banished all the Jews from Rome for several years. We are almost certain that he did so based on conflict surrounding Jesus and the gospel. So, imagine how traumatic it must have been for the Jewish Christians to be driven from their homes.

And the Caesars were not famous for tax cuts. Instead, the historian Tacitus, says that around the same time Paul wrote Romans, there was major unrest in Rome over heavy taxation. People were angry, on the verge of rioting.

But Paul commanded the Romans to stay out of it. Pay your taxes and your customs. Customs referred to taxes on goods and services. It would be like sales tax, tolls, and levies. You may not like them, but God says to pay them.

But the last two items, “fear” and “honor” are probably the most difficult when you don’t like an authority. Kids say, “I’m obeying on the outside but not on the inside.” You do what you have to, but you don’t like it, and you don’t like the guy making you.

To be clear, God is not saying you should love every leader or ignore their evils. Take a look sometime at how Revelation describes Antichrist’s government or at how the prophets condemn Assyria, Babylon, and many of Israel’s kings.

But the same God who condemns Nebuchadnezzar also says, “The Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind, and bestows it on whom He wishesand sets over it the lowliest of men” (Dan 4:17). The evilest ruler is still appointed by God. God put Joe Biden, Gavin Newsome, and every other ruler in power. Even if they are not worthy of respect, God is. Therefore, God commands you to honor them.

That doesn’t mean you can’t campaign for their removal or call out their evil. The prophets did. But there’s a line you cannot cross. For example, in the last 8 years it has become quite common and acceptable even among some Christian groups to use foul language or thinly veiled covers for foul language against politicians. You see the flags and the memes everywhere. God says it is wrong. Political offices demand respect.

We must always behave like we really believe in a sovereign, holy, and wise God. Yes, we should stand for righteousness and call out evil but we are not a people of fear and anxiety. We are people of faith. We trust God, and we must stand on principles.

So, “be in subjection to the governing authorities” as unto God. Trust him. Obey the law. Be respectful. Show the world the transforming power of the gospel and of radical faith in him. But as I’ve said, there’s also a limit to submission. But identifying that line can be hard. The 2^nd major question is…

II.  When do we resist?

This is a massive subject, beyond our scope for today, but I have 7 questions to help you think through this issue. 1^st…

Would I disobey God by submitting? Peter stated the matter bluntly when the Sanhedrin commanded him to stop preaching the gospel. “We must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29). So did Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, “Let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up” (Dan 3:18).

No human authority is above God. Where Scripture is clear, you must obey God at any cost. A 2^nd closely related question is…

Does neighbor love demand disobedience? The clearest biblical example of this is in Exodus 1. Pharoah commanded the midwives to kill every Hebrew infant boy. They refused to obey. Murder is wicked, and God commands us to defend the weak and love our neighbor. It is never right to be an agent of injustice and cruelty.

As such, people who protected Jews during the Holocaust were right to do so, and the German soldiers who were just following orders were wrong. Christians must love life and defend the weak. I doubt there’s any controversy about my first two questions. But most issues get murky very quickly. A 3^rd question to consider is…

Is this a necessary fight? “When they came to Capernaum, those who collected the two-drachma tax came to Peter and said, ‘Does your teacher not pay the two-drachma tax?’ He said, ‘Yes.’ And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, ‘What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect customs or poll-tax, from their sons or from strangers?’ When Peter said, ‘From strangers,’ Jesus said to him, ‘Then the sons are exempt. However, so that we do not offend them, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a shekel. Take that and give it to them for you and Me’” (Matt 17:24–27).

This story is about the temple tax, not Roman taxes. Since Jesus is God’s Son, he simply points out that technically he is exempt from this tax. But it wasn’t a hill worth dying on. So, Jesus paid the tax.

Yes, the government and other authorities have a lot of stupid rules. But you don’t need to die on every hill. So, if the DMV said you must put on a mask to enter in 2020, you may think that was dumb. But is it a necessary fight? So, how do you discern what is and is not a necessary fight?

Am I declaring God’s sovereignty or my autonomy? Daniel 6 gives a fascinating example of disobedience. King Darius outlawed all prayer to any for 30 days. Daniel could have easily talked himself into obeying the decree. God never mandated a certain amount of prayer. Maybe he’d be okay with a 30-day hold. He certainly didn’t mandate public prayer. Maybe Daniel could pray secretly in his closet.

But Daniel knew people were watching and that if he stopped his regular pattern, they would view it as compromise. So, Daniel didn’t just continue praying; he protested the decree. He opened his window and made a statement so that all would know that God is sovereign, not Darius.

God approved, and he approves when we boldly declare his sovereignty. For example, missionaries must take the gospel everywhere. It doesn’t matter what the law says. Jesus owns those lands, not their governments.

Just make sure you’re declaring his sovereignty, not your autonomy. God is not glorified when you protest every dumb rule. When your attitude is, “No one is going to tell me what to do,” you don’t honor him; you dishonor him. Boldly offend when God’s sovereignty is at stake; otherwise, don’t be difficult and rebellious. A closely related question is…

Am I advancing God’s purpose or my own? 1 Peter was written for a group of churches under heavy, unjust persecution. If anyone had a right to be done with authority, it was them. But Peter repeatedly urges them to value their testimony over their personal rights. He says, “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution…For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men.Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God (1 Pet 2:13–16). Their Christian witness must come first. The gospel matters far more than your personal rights.

Later Peter warns, “Keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame.For it is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong” (1 Pet 3:16–17).

So, before you disobey, ask whose purpose are you advancing? Is this about God, or is it about me? Will this draw people to the gospel or distract from it.

That’s not to say you never take a political stand that is not about the gospel. We should value our freedoms and stand for righteousness and justice. All that goes back to loving your neighbor well. But make sure that you approach every issue with a heavenly mindset, not an earthly one. Are you honoring God’s purpose or your own?

Is the government usurping authority where it has none? God has given parents the responsibility to raise children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord, and he commanded the church to make disciples. He did not give the government these responsibilities. We are not obligated to obey when the government wrongly tries to assert authority here.

Yes, there are boundaries. The government is responsible to protect life, and they often know how to do that better than you do. They should arrest you if you abuse your kids. And I believe it was right for churches to temporarily honor COVID restrictions when there were genuine efforts to protect life. But the government has no authority over how we worship. They couldn’t tell us not to sing. And they can’t tell you to withhold discipline from your kids or not to teach biblical sexuality. God didn’t give them that authority.

Am I clinging to the foolishness of the cross or a myth of respectability? Consider Jesus. He didn’t walk around looking for a fight. But he was solely focused on the Father’s will. If he broke a custom or had to dodge an authority to obey the Father’s will, that was okay. He didn’t stress over every little offense. He said, “Do not think that I came to bring peace on the earth; I did not come to bring peace, but a sword” (Matt 10:34).

I bring this up because I’ve spent most of the last two weeks confronting the person who wants a fight. But I also must be clear that nice and compliant is not always best. You can be so focused on not offending that you hide the gospel under a basket. But an unbelieving world will never respect the gospel.

This week, Heidi and I watched a documentary on John Chau. In 2018 he gave his life trying to take the gospel to a protected island near India. He was sincere, he wasn’t trying to colonize, and he only wanted to love the people and preach the gospel. But NG painted him as an arrogant, radicalized fool who wanted to pollute this pure tribe with his western ways.

The only thing offensive about John Chau was his zeal for the gospel and that was enough. So, don’t be a jerk, but don’t buy the myth of respectability. Focus on honoring the Lord, making his glory known, and standing for truth. If that brings you into conflict, so be it. Be a fool for the cross. Your conviction will do far more than clinging to respectability ever will.

Yes, there is a time to resist authority. When that time comes, be bold and be strong. But remember that your default should be submission, not rebellion. Be thoughtful. Be wise. Make sure you are guided by God’s priorities, not your own. But let’s suppose, you must resist. I’d like to briefly answer one more question.

III.  How should you resist?

Righteously: We’ve talked about this. You don’t have to change the world, but you do have to obey the Lord. If you feel the need to resort to ungodly behavior to resist an authority, if you must win at any cost, you have begun to believe that you are sovereign, not God. Remember that as election season picks up. God will determine who gets elected not you. Fight for righteousness, justice, and truth, but never compromise your faith.

Peacefully: Yes, there’s a limit to that. You don’t have a conversation with someone trying to kidnap your child. But I bring this up because in our culture protesting is increasingly synonymous with rioting. But Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego didn’t riot; they just stood quietly. Daniel simply opened his window and prayed. They took a bold stand without compromising their convictions.

You can stand for truth without slander and lies. Again, Peter said make sure that if you are going to suffer, “Suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong” (1 Pet 3:17).

Wisely: Jesus told his disciples, “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves; so be shrewd as serpents and innocent as doves” (Matt 10:16). As our culture becomes more hostile to Christianity, we’ll need to heed this challenge more and more. Don’t be a fool. Don’t invite hostility where it is unnecessary. Choose your battles carefully. But once you make your choice, stand by the grace of God.

Conclusion

In sum, God is calling you to submit to human authorities under God. Aren’t you thankful that a sovereign, wise, and good God rules over all? It’s a scary world. Without God, it’s terrifying and overwhelming. But God is there, and he is in control. Jesus won the victory on the cross. He’s coming again to bring peace on earth, good will toward men. He will “Make his blessing known far as the curse is found.” So, you don’t have to live in fear, and you don’t have to carry the weight of the world. By the power of the gospel, you can be different from the world around you. You can trust God. You can be holy. You can make an impact for eternity until Christ returns.