The Christian As King

                There is a change blowing in the wind today.  Without going into the details of the history of Christian involvement in government, I’ll just say I have lived in a time when this topic was a non-issue, a time when it became a vocal issue, a time when it was defined as a duty to take a particular stand, and the current trend, though in its infancy, to downplay or deliberately refuse any involvement in politics and government.  Whenever I face change, I ask myself if the new order is biblical, or the old order, or neither? 

                There are three primary passages of scripture addressing the issue of Christians and our responsibilities to governments.  Titus 3:1,2 states we are to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient and ready to do what is good, and to be peaceable and considerate.  I Peter 2:13-15 indicates we are to, for the Lord’s sake, submit ourselves to every authority, whether they are the kings or their representatives.  God’s will is that by doing good we will send a loud message for the kingdom of God.  “Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king” (NIV I Peter 2:17).  The last major passage is Romans 13:1-7, which states we must submit ourselves to the governing authorities, because every earthly power is established by God.  Therefore, rebellion against any human authority is rebellion against God.  The earthly authorities are God’s servants to do us good.  

                These passages need much more examination, but it is not my purpose here to parse each phrase, just to use them to raise another question.  While these passages speak to our responsibilities to the king, what do they say about the king’s responsibilities?  The Romans passage indicates the king has a responsibility to God, since he is the one who established the king in his position of authority.  The king is supposed to be God’s servant.  The rulers, furthermore, are not supposed to punish those who do good, only those who do wrong.  They should not be the kind of rulers who are feared by the Christian who is doing good.  So, the king, God’s servant, is supposed to be actively involved in bringing about God’s will in his realm of authority.  He is to seek out and punish wrongdoers (he doesn’t bear his sword for no reason), and commend those who do what is right.

                So, what if you were king?  Would you have the choice of doing as you please, using your office to further your own comfort?  Would you have the choice of ignoring your subjects, letting them fend for themselves while you live a life of leisure?  Would you have the choice of watching from the sidelines while your appointees, evildoers, robbed and killed, using their offices to execute their own agendas?  Of course you would not have those choices.  You would be God’s servant with the high calling of caring for all those given into your care.

                Well, here’s a shocker.  You are the king!  If you are a citizen of the United States of America, you are the king, or at least one part of the king.  We don’t have a single king.  We have a government “of the people, by the people, and for the people” (A. Lincoln, Gettysburg Address).  We are collectively, the king.  Most of us didn’t ask for it, we were born into it.  God, in his sovereignty, placed us in this country.  Therefore, whether we like it or not, we have the responsibility to carry out the duties of God’s servant, the king.  The president is not the king.  Congress is not the king.  In a democracy, or democratic republic, individual citizens corporately are the king.  If you don’t like this situation, take it up with God.  He is the one who established this government (Romans 13:1). 

                Thinking about not voting this November?  I don’t believe you have that choice.  You are the king.  As the king, according to Paul’s writing in Romans, you have the responsibility to do what you can to protect and provide for all the people in the realm.  None of us have the choice of sitting this one out.  We must make the difficult decisions.  We are the king.  Don’t know how to make the tough choices that must be made?  I’ll have some thoughts in the coming days that may help you make some of those decisions.