Believers are to obey the government. Why should they do this? Because all governments have been placed in power by God. He allows all governments and leaders to function under his sovereign will. Government is ideally in place to protect and serve its citizens. When governments distort or betray this function, those who run them will answer to God. They are under God’s constraint and under his final judgment (Psalm 2; Daniel 4:34-35).Rulers are in their position only because God has placed them there (Proverbs 21:1). All earthly governments are temporary—only Christ’s reign will be eternal. To rebel against them is to rebel against their God-given authority. In practice, the responsibilities and opportunities of the politically powerful and the politically powerless will differ.
Believers are called not only to submit to authorities, but also to support them by paying taxes (Matthew 22:21; Mark 12:17). Christians are not exempt from fulfilling the expectations of any government.
If we owe something, we should pay the debt. We are to be responsible to make payments and not borrow beyond our ability to pay. But speaking of a different kind of debt, Paul reminds us that we should never/will never finish paying our debt of love for others.
Christians must obey the law of love, which supersedes both religious and civil laws. It is easy to excuse our indifference to others merely because we have no legal obligation to help them, and even to justify harming them if our actions are technically legal! But Jesus does not leave loopholes in the law of love. Whenever love demands it, we are to go beyond human legal requirements and imitate the God of love.
Paul wants believers to realize their constant need to show love, especially considering the time—Christ’s return is near. Time is running out so we need to make every minute count for right living.
To put on the armor of light means to be decent and true in everything we do, so that everyone can approve of our behavior. The world is still in darkness, but we are to behave decently, in a way that will stand up to examination. For believers, the surrounding darkness is no excuse for indecent behavior.
So how do we clothe ourselves “with the armor of right living”? How can we “be decent and true”? The answer: We let the Lord Jesus Christ take control of us. This is deliberate, conscious acceptance of the lordship of Christ, so all our desires and actions are under his control. Letting him have control means avoiding indulging our evil desires.
SO WHAT? (what will I do with what I have read today?)
There is so much practical truth here in this passage. We owe a debt of love to everyone. We will never finish paying off that debt. Time is short - we must make the most of everyday - every minute. We need to live right, do right, treat others rightly.
The truth though that stands out brightest for me this morning is the idea that when I rebel against the authority that God has instituted, I rebel against God Himself. My sense is that the person with a rebellion problem has the biggest problem of all.
If we struggle with our parents or boss or teacher or coach or whatever authority God has put in our life, our struggle is really with God and His authority in our life. We don't want to submit to authority because we don't want to submit to God and his plan and purposes for our lives.
How does this play out? We leave churches, quit teams, leave jobs, switch classes, run away from our marriages and families and obligations - whatever we have to do escape the authority of God. Why? PRIDE. We want to be in control. We want to call the shots. We want to be God.
Oh Lord, teach me to be humble. Teach me to embrace your leadership in my life. Teach me to accept your edicts and truth. More of you and less of me today.
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