Romans 13:1-7: Submitting to Government?

How do Christians deal with the tension created by their presence in a society in which the need to preserve their integrity as individuals and to be faithful to their understanding of the lordship of Christ may conflict with the demands of that society?

In Romans 13 Paul focuses on the tension between the individual and society at large in terms of the problem of civil obedience or disobedience. The question which is raised concerns the individual's responsibility toward the social order, insofar as that social order is regulated by laws that are upheld and enforced by government authorities.

Individual Christian responsibility has often been compromised on the basis of a one-sided use of biblical injunctions. Thus Romans 13 and 1 Peter 2:13-14 are often cited as proof that the state always demands and deserves our total and unquestioning obedience. But Revelation 13 and 18 are neglected. The former pictures the state as a beast opposed to God's purposes; the latter speaks of the downfall of any nation that becomes a modern Babylon, corrupted by wealth, materialism and injustice.

Some Christians are quick to condemn any person who upsets or threatens to upset social norms and regulations. But those same Christians tend to disregard Acts 17:6-7, where the apostles are described as "men who have turned the world upside down" and who "are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus" (RSV).

The Gospel accounts also make clear that Jesus did not accept all legal and governing authorities as ultimate dispensers of God's will. Wherever he went, he bucked the system, upset the status quo and challenged the authorities' claim to the right and the truth. And in the context of a life of discipleship, countless martyrs have given their lives because they resisted the decrees of the authorities.

Thus a serious look at the scriptural material will prevent us from viewing the demands of society and its rulers with uncritical acceptance and automatic approval. Are there conditions when the demands of the social order must be resisted and the worth of the individual as a responsible being before God must be affirmed and defended?

If we cannot give uncritical and unquestioning allegiance to the demands of society and its governing authorities, we must also be careful not to go to the other extreme, that of concluding that government is inevitably an evil institution which should be resisted, disobeyed, distrusted or ignored. For we are instructed to honor and pray for those in authority. The Bible makes clear that government has a positive role to play in God's plans for human community. According to the New Testament, all authority is ultimately under the rule and judgment of Christ.

In light of this double perspective, how are we to understand Romans 13, which seems to come down on one side of this double perspective? First, we need to read Romans 13 more carefully than it has often been read. Second, we need to read these admonitions in light of the context of Paul's missionary activity, which took place in a world in which Roman law and rule had created relative peace and order, conducive to the rapid spread of the gospel.

Let us carefully follow, in outline form, Paul's argument:

Statement: "Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities" (Rom 13:1).

Hypothetical Question: Why?

Answer: Because all authority exists ultimately by God's design, including the authority of the state (Rom 13:1).

Conclusion: Therefore, to resist the authorities is to resist God's intent (Rom 13:2).

Hypothetical Question: But what is God's intent?

Answer: It is God's intent that through his "servants" (governing authorities) evil acts are punished (Rom 13:4); bad works are restrained through fear of punishment (Rom 13:3); and the good is promoted and encouraged (Rom 13:3).

In summary, Paul's argument is this: It is God's intent that human life in the context of community will be life in harmony and peace and order (see Rom 12:10, 18). Since life in community becomes chaotic and anarchistic without the presence of regulatory laws enforced by authorities, the presence of these are part of God's overall intent for human existence. Therefore, insofar as the state and its rulers exercise their authority in keeping with God's intent, they act as God's ministers for the common good of society.

If, however, the authority of the state runs counter to this divine intent, then that authority should not be understood as God-given. In fact, it becomes quite clear from Revelation 13 and 18, as well as other places in the New Testament, that the state which persecutes Christians, which dispenses injustice instead of justice, which supports moral decay, which tramples on the weak and powerless, has been usurped by demonic powers and forces diametrically opposed to God's intents and purposes.

The passage that follows Paul's discussion about the relationship between the individual and the demands of the social order (Rom 13:8-10) is very instructive for a proper understanding of that relationship. Most commentators feel that Paul has completed the considerations about obedience to the state and is now speaking about morality and ethics in general. It seems to me, however, that such an understanding of the thrust of the argument overlooks Paul's specific intent at this point.

Indeed, the admonitions concerning love for others (Rom 13:8-10) are not a departure from the previous topic but are rather a climax of the entire discussion. Romans 13:8 picks up very pointedly from Romans 13:7. There the argument for obedience to the state and for responsible existence within the social order is driven home in terms of specific things that we owe: taxes, respect, honor. But beyond these specifics, Paul goes on to argue (Romans 13:8-9) that what we really owe is to love others even as we love ourselves.

According to Paul's Jewish heritage, government authorities are intended to be guardians of the commandments which make community life possible. The commandments "do not kill," "do not steal," "do not commit adultery" and so forth, if violated, lead to the destruction and fragmentation of community. Since the law is summed up in the command "You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Rom 13:9 RSV), the loving of one's fellow human beings--not doing any wrong to them--"is the fulfilling of the law" (Rom 13:10 RSV). It is responsibility for both the protection and the enforcing of this law which is given to human authorities by God's design.

What if, in our expression of love to our fellow human beings, we run smack into the laws of the society in which we live? What if the rulers act in opposition to their intended purpose as stated in Romans 13:3? What if they become "a terror for those who do right"? What if the demands of the social order require us to be molded into a lifestyle that is contrary to the implicit and explicit demands of the gospel?

There are no pat answers to these questions. Anyone who suggests easy solutions or indeed the Christian response fails to take seriously the complexities of the world in which we find ourselves. Nonetheless, we must be sensitive to the issues raised by these questions and must respond in keeping with our understanding of the call of Christ. And that call is decisively a call to be there for others in love. If we fail at this point, even the most carefully woven cloth of orthodox belief and pious practice will finally become nothing but a tattered rag.