Bible Guys Classics: Romans 13

Show Notes

In this episode of The Bible Guys, Jeff and Chris unpack Romans 13, where Paul addresses how believers should respond to authority.

Jeff and Chris discuss obedience, respect, and how faith influences our actions in society. If you’ve struggled with authority or understanding your role, this episode will offer guidance.

🎧 Listen now and reflect on how faith shapes your response to leadership. #TheDailyBibleGuys #Romans13 #Authority #Obedience #ChristianLiving #BibleStudyPodcast

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Well, Wesley, if you know me, you know that I love to follow rules. I am not a rule breaker. I am a real follower. To the tea, I'm going to lean over, so I don't get light. I'm Wesley. This is Chris, and this is the Daily Bible GUIDs. Well. Hey, the reason why we talked about that is because today we're talking about respect for authority. Right, That's the reason why I talked about the rule. Yes, but we'll get to that in just a minute. But today we're going to get have a little fun with this segment called the Babylon B. Now you know that we love good resources for good news, right, and the Babylon B is of course just satire. Yeah, but I love the segment because as long as you understand the culture, and if you live in church world and you know you grew up in church and all these different kind of things, this is absolutely hilarious. So this is how the headline reads. Scholars theorize Disciples were Chick fil A workers as they distributed food to five thousand in record times. That is the title. So it says this is written in Israel. It says scholars now believe that the Disciples who handed out the food so aptly to the five thousand may have been in fact Chick fil A employees. These guys handled a lunch rush of five thousand people and with just a twelve man crew. Question mark who else could pull that off besides Chick fil A workers. A New Testament scholar Dean Arrington said, that's slinging food with the big boys. Chick fil A has been reportedly done its own study on the Disciples of Actions following Jesus Miracle, hoping to learn their secrets. Did they have one lane or two separate teams? Separate teams for fish and bread, asked the current Chick fil A operator, Jared Higgins. These are things we could learn from now. They didn't have the same saucee that we carry, but it's still quite a feat. Isn't that funny that estimates place the Disciples order to food time at approximately ninety seconds per family union per unit, placing them amongst the fastest in the industry. That's the sort of talent we recruit here at Chick fil A, said mister Higgins. Very few people on this planet are capable of achieving our standards. But the Apostles might have been some of them. Scholars became less sure of their new theory after further evidence emerged that the disciples forgot to say on several occasions, it's my pleasure. That's so fun, isn't it good? Of course, Chick fil a is known for their customer service, right, And I don't know if you guys any of our listeners have Chick fil A's, because a lot of people listening who are out of the United States. But Chick fil A's are incredibly efficient and they're the only ones, aren't they with people who actually they walk to your car and they take your order. They don't wait for you to get to the drive through windows. A personal customer service experience. Yes, yeah, so the time you pull in and you may be in line, and the Chick fil across from our church has on the average about what a forty five minute wait. It's it's packed whenever you go. Yeah, so there's no less than usually would I would say eighty percent of the time there's at least fifty cars or more and people pull through. And the funny thing is if it's only like thirty cars, you're out in like ten minutes. Yeah, like you know, or you know, maybe maybe fifteen or twenty at the maximum. But I've pulled into Arby's before there's only been three cars ahead of me, right, and it's been longer than twenty minutes. Because they were making it fresh just for you, Chris. Whatever I mean, it's been. It's been everywhere. But I'll tell you what Chick fil A is definitely the pride and joy of customer service. I love Chick fil A like more than life itself. Yeah, they've got good customer service. Yeah, although my daughter one day said it would be so nice, you know, it's almost like something's off a little bit. I'll tell you this for thirty seconds. I grew up in Youngstown, Ohio, which is a really rough area, and I remember the day that Chick fil A opened in Youngstown because it took a while for Chickfilate to go north, and when Youngstown finally got one, I actually said to my wife, I said, there is no way that I'm going to hear a Youngstown teenager say it's my pleasure, Like, there is no way. If you know the culture of this area, there's no way. And I remember going there and I remember, you know, waiting for it, and then you know, here's this kid of sixteen. He's like, it's my pleasure, and I was like, miracles do happen? Right? Chick Flake can even convert people from Youngstown, which is amazing. It's really funny. So all right, well listen, let's dive in. We are in Roman chapter thirteen. Paul's talking about respect for authority, hence my joke at the beginning, and Wesley, we're going to read the whole chapter, verses one through fourteen. Here we go thirteen Romans thirteen, Verse one, New Living Translation. Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed thereby God. So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished. For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. What do you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right and they will honor you. The authorities are God's servants sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid or they have the power to punish you. They are God's servants sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong. So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but also to keep a clear conscience. Your taxes too, for these same reasons. For government workers need to be paid. They are serving God, and what they do give to everyone what you owe them, and your taxes in government fees to those who collect them, and give respect and honor to those in authority. Verse eight. Owe nothing to anyone except for your obligation to love one another. If you love your neighbor, you will fulfill the requirements of God's law. For the commandments say you must not commit adultery, you must not murder, you must not steal, you must not covet. These and other such commandments are summed up in this one commandment. Love your neighbor as yourself. Love does no wrong to others, so fulfills the requirements of God's law. This is all the more urgent for you know how late it is. Time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believe. The night is almost gone. The day of salvation will soon be here. So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes and put on the shining armor of right living. Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see. Don't participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness, or in sexual promiscuity and in moral living, or in quarreling in jealousy. Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ, and don't let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires. Yeah, so Paul again is sort of shifting from the first chapters of the Book of Romans about theology. Again, just keep in mind, he's writing to a church in Rome that he is not yet visited. They have heard about him, because everybody's heard of Paul. He's sort of the you know, a person who's carrying the message to the gentiles, and so he's introducing himself. But also he's laying theological ground. And now in Roman chapter twelve, just one chapter ago, he shifted gears to the more practical. Well, this is definitely practical. So he starts off and it really feels like two categories. He's talking about, you know, all about authority, governments, right, obying government and respecting them. And then he sort of shift gears, and he covers the blanket by saying, you know, you were treat them by loving your neighbor as yourself. But then he sort of blankets that with other commandments like, hey, you know, just love everyone and then also understand that you know, salvation is near, don't behave wild parties, don't behavior morally just in general, which is sort of outside the realm of government. Right, So anyway, let's let's talk about this because I think that for a lot of people, especially those who are political right, they're the ones who you know, just love to just on social media, just go forever right on political parties, they're the ones that get really hyped this passage. Yeah, but here's the interesting thing that I think it directly ties into a biblical concept. Isn't it funny how when the people that we like are in power, we're for them, But when there's someone that we feel who is in power that we don't like, oh, that's terrible, that's horrible, it's bad. It's kind of going back a couple of days ago when we were talking about the sin in our own lives. When we sin, Oh, that's it. So it's just a little small sin, that's a little lie. But when Chris does it, oh crucify, I'm that is horrible and terrible. It's just interesting to me politically how it is. When it's your side and power, you overlook the sins and the faults. But when it's the other people that's crucified them, and that goes both ways up down, backwards forwards. Not talking about any particular group, I'm just saying in general, that's a concept. Yes, I'll tell you my whole view of the idea of obeying government and everything else. A government that you don't agree with, government that you think are corrupt, government that you think that you don't believe in, all of it's changed in my mind in a significant way when I understood. I heard a message one time by one of my favorite pastors, and Any Stanley, and he talked about how God uses even the most corrupt of governments to put forth his will in big ways. God's moving the chess pieces both through evil people and good And if you think about that concept, that is not only true for government, that is true for our own lives. Right like God has moved the chess pieces of evil and good people in our own lives to bring about his will. And so in the example that he used was at Christmas time where it says, the only reason why Caesar Augustus is even popular is because he's included in the story of Jesus. But if you would rewind two thousand years ago, everybody knew Caesar Augustus's name, and nobody knew who Jesus was. Right, But now Caesar Augustus has not become a footnote in Jesus' story. So out of absolute greed and unfair taxation, Caesar Augustus has a decree that the whole world should have a census for taxes. So, because of his motivation, it accomplished the purposes of the prophets, for Joseph and Mary travel all the way down to Bethlehem from Nazareth for Jesus to be born there to fulfill the prophecies. In other words, it's pretty clear that God is going to use those who are even corrupt and in power to accomplished as will. Another segment of the same message that I heard was how when they came up to Jesus and they said, hey, should we pay taxes or not? And then remember when Jesus says go catch a fish, and he said, you're going to find a coin in that fish's mouth, and whatever coin that it'll be enough to pay your taxes and eye taxes, to go pay them. And he did that, and he says, render, he's whose face is on the coin, but Caesar's. And he says, well, then give to Caesar. What is Caesar's right, And don't worry about it. Now, think about this. All the way through woven and history and woven and biblical history, we absolutely know for a fact that everybody was taxed unjustly. Right. It was the very nature of the tax collectors. You know that that Roman that Rome hired within the Jewish population because Matthew wanted the disciples, he was a tax collector, but he was also a Jew, and he was hired as a henchman from the Romans themselves. And those tax collectors would not only betray their own people just you know, for a job, but they would also betray their own people because they could determine whatever tax they wanted for themselves. So essentially they were making a little profit margin yeah or a lot. Yeah, may have had a rate. They would go and try to collect above that rate and then they had a little profit in there. Right, and even a lot of profit. You remember zach Kius was a tax collector and he said, if I have wronged anybody, I will pay them back. And everybody, you know, it was surprised that Jesus said, I'm going to love you and have dinner in your house and your honored guests and everything else. And so my whole point is this that there is no shortage of evidence that the government was corrupt. The Jewish people lived in oppression, right, and an occupied territory where they where they wanted to be delivered in a military fashion from Jesus from this oppression that they were under. So there is no shortage of unfairness in the first century here. And yet both Jesus multiple times and Paul says submit to the authority, not because the authority deserves it, but because you're somebody says do it is right. He's saying do it is right for you and your character. And when he says do it is right, he's not saying do it is right because the government is right. That's true. So let me read something here that I found in my footnotes. We Love the Life Application Study Bible and this is talking about that. Here's what he says. It says some Christians believe that the state is so corrupt that Christians should have as little to do with it as possible, although they should be good citizens as long as they can do so without compromising their beliefs that they should not work for the government, they should not vote in their elections, and they should not even serve in the military. Number two. Others believe that God has given the state authority in certain areas and the Church authority in others. Christians should be loyal to both and can work for either. They should, not, however, infuse the two. In this view, church and state are concerned with two totally different sphears, the spiritual and the physical, and thus compliment each other but do not work together. Number three. Still, others believe that Christians have responsibility to make the state better. They can do this by politically. They can do this politically by electing Christians or other high principle leaders. They can do this by morally, by serving and an influencing a good society. In this view, church and state ideally should work together for the good of all. And then it says this, and this is really the key to the whole thing. None of these views advocate rebelling against or refusing to obey the government's laws or regulations unless those laws clearly require the believer to violate the moral standards revealed by God. Wherever we find ourselves, we must be responsible citizens as well as responsible Christians. Yeah, I think it's a great summary. Yeah, it's a great summary. Yeah. Again, it goes back to that fact that I was trying to point out of submitting and obeying government, whether you agree with them or not, whether it's the person that you like in power or not, we're required by God to submit to them in accordance with the Holy scriptures. Because again, like you pointed out, God is moving the chess pieces on the table. We don't know how God is moving, who God is moving through in that given moment. So we need to make sure that we're being obedient to God's word and doing what God. God's word says, He'll take care of the government and all the other you know things out there. We just need to make sure that we are obedient in that regard. Yeah. So it also depends how everybody's wired as well. Like there are a lot of people who have an easier time receiving something like this. You know, Jesus says, yeah, give to Caesar with Caesar, and you know, there are probably people who are wired to say, but it's wrong. Yeah, Like, how can I give to Caesar what is Caesar's when technically mine and he's over taxing us? Yeah? Like like, didn't you hear me, Jesus right, Like, it's wrong. And I'm wired in such a way where that is not okay with me. And then there are other people who are wired sort of like me that say, yeah, I one hundred percent agree it's wrong. But yet at the same time, if God says this is what I'm supposed to behave, I'm just gonna trust God, and especially if it's an evil and corrupt administration, you know. And I'm not sure that I would ever classify any of the United States's administrations as corrupt or evil. But actually that's not true. I think that there's corruption in every administration to some degree, right, Yeah. But I know the point, it's not like we have and you think of the dictators down through history killed millions of their own people or castro so we've never had a person in power quite like that that's what. I was meaning, I'm sort of stepping in it right now. Yeah. Yeah, so I wouldn't I wouldn't necessarily classify them among them. But I do believe that there are a ton of things that I don't agree with. But because I'm wired the way that I am, I have faith and I just believe. Okay, God, I'm going to try that You're going to work your you know, your will in spite of our government, not because of it, right, in spite of who's in the office, not because of him or her. So it's one of those things where faith is going to dictate my actions because I'm just like God, I'm going to do everything I can. So I'm a person that believes, you know, we should vote, and in fact, without voting in our family, if you miss a vote, oh you're in trouble. Right. So I'm going to do what I can. But at the same time, I'm going to just trust God because God has blessed me with the number one spiritual gift of faith. Yeah, so that's the reason why it's easier for me to say, Okay, God, move your chest pieces, do your thing, and I'm just going to trust that You're going to be sovereign in the midst of a broken world that is corrupt. Now, the distinguishing factor here that you've already pointed out, Chris, is that if a decree came down from the government that from this day forward, you know, starting you know today, you can no longer believe in Jesus Christ and can no longer go to church. Now, that's different from what what's being discussed here. If it's contrary to God's word, that's a different story. The Bible isn't saying, comply with that will today you've got to stop believing in g No, that's not what the Bible is saying. Yeah. Yeah, And it's the reason why we still ship Bibles into Afghanistan. Yeah. So, and I remember smuggling bibles, literally smugging Bibles into Cuba. So we're going against the authorities. We're going against the government because we believe that it is going against what we believe is God's word, according to our moral code, according to what is right, you know. So it doesn't if it's going to violate those things, and it's going to ask me to do something that I believe is absolutely biblically wrong, then I will have no hesitation at all of bucking authority because quite honestly, I never have any hesitation bucking authility, which is, you know, so especially if they need to be bucked. Right, So I think that I think that in those cases absolutely. I think it's clear that our allegiance is to God first. Right, But regardless of who's in office, whether we like them don't like them. That's right. It's always God first. The scripture is clear about that. Yeah. And then and then as long as it's not violating God's loss and then yeah, being a member of society. And then Paul goes on and says, you know, I love others like yourself. Don't be corrupt, don't be a bad citizen, don't behave poorly, don't behave ungodly or sinfully, because in this way then you can be a citizen who still supports, you know, the authorities. And he calls them God's servants, and and really what that means is it doesn't mean that they're godly. I don't believe that means that. I believe it means that God's going to use them as his servants in the way that God's going to use them. That's what I believe it, and I've seen that happen in so many people's lives where God used and this is in a little different context, but God used their enemy kind of as their footstool. God used the enemy to elevate and promote them, and God can move. Here's the thing, we don't know. We're not God. We don't know how God's going to move, how he's what he's going to do, and how he's going to do it. That's why we just need to trust God. That's the key there. That's right. Well, listen, I think that's a great place to end. I think we're in our time and so hopefully we will see you tomorrow on the Bible, guys,