And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice – the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. Romans 12:1-2
Read Romans 13: 1-10
Do you struggle with authority? The struggle to be submissive to them, respect them and follow their rules.
This past week I was at a teen bible camp. This year we had many changes that we had to do. Some because of our government and some due to new leadership within our district denomination. One rule that was hard on the teens were they couldn’t have their phones the moment they arrived until the time they left. Some groups followed the rule, while others disobeyed the rule, which made it hard for some of the teens. Thank goodness for God’s word. The only explanation that I would give is this: Our group will submit to our director rules out of respect for him. While we are doing this we are being obedient to God’s commands. I wasn’t upset with the teens for their feelings of watching others break the rules while we were enforcing them. I even had my emotions wired up because of this. I understood the frustration in this. It is hard being the rule follower, while others get to do what they want. Look at Romans 13:4-5.
Let’s dig into the first few verses of Romans 13. Who are we to submit to? We are to submit to governing authorities. Who placed people in positions of governmental authority? God. Why did God give authorities? They are God’s servants. Why should we submit to the authorities? So we can avoid punishment and keep a clear conscience. Why should we pay taxes? Because our government workers need to be paid. What should we give to those in authority? We need to give respect and honor to those who are in authority.
What is your initial reaction to these verses? Do you think there are any exceptions to these instructions? If so, what are they?
I do think there is an exception to these instructions. First, we obey God’s commands, if the government goes against God’s commands, we then follow God’s commands first. Read Acts 5:29 and Hebrews 11:23. We can see the unqualified obedience to the state is not Paul’s intent in Romans 13. What are some examples of times when submitting to the government might not be the best option?
Paul was wanting the believers to not get distracted with political things, but to keep spreading the good news. He wanted them to stay focused on Christ. Christians have a responsibility to order their lives around the story of Jesus. We are to live as examples and we must let it be known that our loyalty is owed first and foremost to the true Lord of the world.
We honor the position of authority even when the person holding it isn’t worthy of respect! Parents, teachers, coaches, police officers, or government leaders, we need to speak respectfully and honor the positions they hold. This means by our words, attitude, and tone of voice. This doesn’t mean that we have to agree with everything they say or do.
In today’s society, social media is a place where no respect or love is happening. We need the Holy Spirit to convict us in this area.
Romans 13:8-10 speaks of love. All we owe to each other is love. We need to max out our love for others. As I write this, I am like this is really hard though, there are some really hard people to love! Does anyone else get this???
This is God’s main command, Love others and the law is fulfilled. Love meets God’s requirements. Love can come in many forms. It may look different to each of us. Love can speak painful truths and other times it covers the multitude of sins. This is something I learn at teen camp. In fact, I had to use both these ways to show love to these teens. In fact, they don’t even know what I know, and how the leaders choose to cover them with our love instead of discipline. If you don’t know what love looks like read 1 Corinthians 13:4-7. How is God calling you to love right now? How can you max out your love for others?
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for loving us. Thank you for showing us how to love others as you do. I pray that we will be obedient to you and show respect and love to others.
In Jesus Name
Amen
