Nevertheless, I am not preaching this message in some other church; I’m preaching it to you. And still, it is with a bit of trepidation that I deal with this subject. The reason is because I realize that some of you know the issues far better than I do. You have spent ten times, or a hundred times more hours on the subject that I have. But many Christian people who have, have not been studying the Bible so much as they have other things. They may have spent years studying the history of human government. They may have memorized every precept of the U.S. Constitution and base their perspectives on that. The Liberals (who aren’t here) might prefer to think about this issue from the perspective of modern law. I don’t have much education in these areas, and that might put me at a disadvantage. But I do have the Word of God, which is far more important than the Constitution, the Magna Carta, or the Code of Hammurabi.
Paul makes a simple statement here, but one with a powerful impact. The reason that we should all be subject unto the higher powers, is due to two things: “There is no power but of God,” and “the powers that be are ordained of God.” Resistence to those God-ordained powers, is in fact resistance against God.
As you should know, the word “power” in the New Testament could mean at least a couple of different things. But actually, this is a true statement no matter what meaning you give to the word. The power contained in the sun, which the Lord uses to warm the earth, is of God. And the power in the atom, which man is just learning to harvest, is of God. We are tapping the power of the wind and the tides; both of these, the Bible tells us, are of God. And if you want to talk about of an army, or a bullet, or a police force, the statement is still true, even though the army may be alien, the bullet may be shot from a murderer’s gun, and the police may be corrupt. The power that any man has to raise his arm, or even to close his eye-lid, comes from the Lord. So no matter how you want to use the word “power,” ultimately those powers are derived from the Lord. But Paul is using the word “exousia” – power in the sense of “authority.” That is the Greek word used all four times in these first two verses.
Eventually “God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have DOMINION over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.” I hope that you can see that God created human beings, and immediately gave them complete “dominion” or “rule” over all the rest of creation. “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have DOMINION over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.” This dominion over the animal world will later be given some limitations, but there it is nevertheless. For example, we have no right to abuse animals for the sake of our pleasure – God said so. And we are supposed to give our work animals a day off every week – a day of rest. And we are commanded to assist animals that are under heavy burdens. Nevertheless, man has been placed over and above the rest of creation. The authority that man has over these things comes from God. Of course, the idea of evolution is an attack at the very root of this doctrine.
Skipping over a couple of things we move on to another area of God-given authority. The fall of man and the eating of the forbidden fruit is not tradition, fable or mere religious doctrine. It is actual history with huge doctrinal implications stretching out in several directions, one of which deals with this subject of authority. When the six days of creation were finished, Adam was the only human being. The Lord then created a woman to be an helpmeet and blessing to Adam. God made her out of Adam, which we might use to argue that the man has authority over the woman. But then we come to the effects of the fall, making that particular argument moot. Whether it was because of sin or not, doesn’t really matter, God told Eve that her husband was her ruler – God had given authority to Adam over his wife. “Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall RULE over thee.” Some might argue that this verse applies only to Adam and his wife Eve, but there are plenty of scriptures teaching that this is a general principle applicable to all wives. “The husband is the head of the wife” – Ephesians 5:23. I Corinthians 11 – “For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man. Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man.”
In a family situation, the father has been given authority over every other member of that family. We could justly apply what Paul is saying here in Romans to the family – any family – your family. “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.” A couple of weeks ago, we saw that a part of the Mosaic Law declared that if a child rebelled, cursed or hit his father, that child should be put to death – capital punishment. Among the many reasons, is the fact that God has given authority to the father, and rebellion against that authority is also rebellion against the Lord. It is not within the parameters – the purview – of the child to question the authority of his human father any more than it is to question the authority of our Heavenly Father. But what if that human father is wicked, and he is ordering his children to do sinful things? 99 times out of a 100, that is not the reason that children rebel against their parents. They are more likely to rebel against the order to clean their room, do their chores, or go to bed. If Dad or Mom order a child to sin against God, the matter is moved into another dimension, but I’m convinced that this is rather rare.
Does Mother have authority over her children? Just as God has given the father authority over the wife and children, that mother may be given authority over her own children – under the greater authority of the father. Does a child have a responsibility to obey his mother just as he does his father? Absolutely! But what if there is a difference of opinion between the parents? If those parents are the Christians that they are supposed to be, there will be no difference of opinion. The wife is suppose to carry out the authority of her husband. If the children can manipulate the parents against each another, then we are not talking about a Christian home or a home patterned after a Christian fashion. Either the husband is not the authority that he needs to be, or the mother is not as submissive as she should be, and neither is the parent that the children need to have.
Now we come to another area of God-given authority, which really separates the men from the boys, or perhaps I should say, the Christians from the hypocrites. “For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body” – Ephesians 5:23. Even though it is not like the Roman Catholics, or the Presbyterians or Anglicans, there has been an authority put into the church of the Lord Jesus Christ. Obviously, the Head of the church is the Lord Jesus – He is the Great Shepherd. But under the Lord, there are human shepherds – pastors – to whom have the Lord has passed on the carrying-out of His authority. I say this as kindly as I can and yet as firmly as I can: As members of the Lord’s church, you are obligated to heed, believe, implement and obey what I say as your pastor and as God’s Bible expositor in this church. The Lord has commanded me not to be a “lord over God’s heritage,” but to try to lead by example. And yet on the other hand, you need to hear and heed what God has said to you: “Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.”
When Paul was talking to the pastors of the church of Ephesus he said, “Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.” God has placed over His churches “overseers” – “bishops,” and it is your God-given duty to follow that man’s leadership. Again, Paul could have said, “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.”
A moment ago, I referred to the words of Peter. Let me give you that verse again and the preceding verse as well. They are words directed first to me, and then to you. Pastor “feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the OVERSIGHT thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; Neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples to the flock.” – I Peter 5:2-3. If you want to argue that “oversight” is not the same thing as “authority” you had better have some scriptures to present to the Lord, when you stand before the Bema Judgment Seat.
Notice that Paul didn’t speak of the people in office, but rather of the power or office itself. I saw that some commentators made a big deal out of that, while others minimized it. I think that it means that God has established government for the safety and security of society, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that the ruler which He has anointed is godly or good. The Lord has established government, and in some places that means a king, while in other places there is a president. Some countries have a congress, others have parliaments and others have dictatorships. And still, “let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.”
I believe, based upon what I read in the scripture, that God ordained that our country have the kind of government that we have today. That means that we have an electoral system, and elections every few years. And I believe that we are obligated to give honor to the office of president, even if our votes didn’t number more than other people’s votes, and if we don’t like the man who holds that office. I believe that we have every right to do our best to vote unworthy men out of their offices, but I do not believe that we have the right to act contrary to the laws which God has ordained that we live under, just because we don’t like the current president, governor, mayor or senator. I cannot conceive of a worse king than Nero, except perhaps the Pharaoh of Moses’ day. But I don’t find Paul, Peter, John or any other Apostle advocating the overthrow of Caesar. The higher powers to which Paul refers in this chapter were very often horrible, terrible, immoral, wicked, hedonistic wretches, but his command to us was Christian “submission.”
Now let’s refer back to Pharaoh. We’ve looked at Exodus 9 recently, but please return, and let’s begin reading from verse 13. “And the LORD said unto Moses, Rise up early in the morning, and stand before Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus saith the LORD God of the Hebrews, Let my people go, that they may serve me. For I will at this time send all my plagues upon thine heart, and upon thy servants, and upon thy people; that thou mayest know that there is none like me in all the earth. For now I will stretch out my hand, that I may smite thee and thy people with pestilence; and thou shalt be cut off from the earth. And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, for to shew in thee my power; and that my name may be declared throughout all the earth.” Notice again that the Lord was demanding that Pharaoh release Israel – proving that God considered Himself to be Pharaoh’s rightful LORD and King. Secondly, notice that God specifically says that He raised up that man – that He established that man’s government and throne. Perhaps in Egyptian society, to be Pharaoh was an inherited position, nevertheless, God put that man on that throne. And in our society, the president is chosen by the electoral college, but still it is the will of God which puts that man in the White House. Something which is not specifically said in regard to Pharaoh, includes his removal by the Lord. The children of Israel, and the children of God, do not need to overly worry about the king who lords himself over them, because there is a King who is higher still. God has the power to protect His saints, and He has power and authority to remove the wicked, no matter what office he might hold. I believe that it is our primary task to focus on the Lord, and to pray for the king. While at the same time – “as much as lieth in you, live peaceable with all men.”
“There is NO power but of God” – Praise God!