The Purpose of Authority...
"For
rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of
the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his
approval, for he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be
afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God,
an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer." (Romans 13:3-4,
ESV)
The
fact is we are designed for community. We are born into a small community, our
family. That family lives within a community of families. We are not meant to
live alone; it may be said we cannot survive alone, but even if one does
survive, one cannot thrive alone.
Where
there is community, there must be order. The purpose of authority, then, is to
facilitate order, than communities might thrive and seek after God in peace.
And,
here is an important truth, when a believer is born from above into the Kingdom
of God, they do not cease to exist within a secular community.
It
is a truth to say that society will never flourish where men are allowed to
live any way they wish. For a certainty, a society, or any community of any
size, even the family unit, will be spoiled where sinful man is allowed to
freely engage in every manner of activity that pleases the flesh. Societies
will be ruined where governments allow man to squander his life on himself and
to pursue a wholly self-centered course. Accordingly, God gives authority to
mankind to punish those who do not “do right” and to promote those who operate
properly in a society.
While
there is no doubt Paul sees the execution of punishment by those in authority
as the just wrath of God at work in the realm of man, we do know there are
moments when we “ought to obey God rather than men.” Granted, those moments are
less than we often imagine. For example, even if we deplore the policies of a
leader, there is never an exemption to show honor and respect to that leader.
Though the leader is a mere mortal, the office they hold, and the authority
they wield, whether wise or not on THEIR part was indeed granted on God’s part.
We
walk this tightrope in ungodly societies because it’s what God has laid before
us.
To
be sure, this is complex, but let us wrestle with it nonetheless, that the
principle may become a deep value for us.
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