Exodus chapter 20, as we continue our reading and our preaching through the Ten Commandments, beginning with verse 1. And God spake all these words, saying, I am the Lord thy God, which hath brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down myself to them, nor serve them. For I, the Lord thy God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless to take his name in vain. Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God. In it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day. Wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and hallowed it. honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. Thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor's. Last week we began to look at the fifth commandment, and to refresh your memory, we noted that the ten commandments are the broad general principles, and the case laws and the other laws are the specific examples. excuse me, the specific applications. The mother and father in the fifth commandment were to honor and include not only our biological parents, but anyone in the God-given authority over that, over us, particularly as the catechism more fleshes it out, those who are in authority over us in the church, those who are in authority over us in the civil government, the state, those who are over us in our employment, those who are over us in age, wisdom, and in gifts. We said that loving our neighbor is principally treating him lawfully, as we want him to treat us. And we said that is really the key to civil peace in the world. If everybody followed that victim, we treat people the way we want to be treated, we really would have very few problems in society. Incorrigible disobedience to parents is always accompanied by disobedience to church leaders, teachers, police, bosses, etc. Now, we said the fifth commandment does not have an age exception. It's not just, well, little kids have to obey their parents. In fact, the word obey is not in the commandment. It's involved in honoring, of course, but it's specific. The Lord could have said, obey your parents, and that means as long as you're alive and you have parents, you have to do whatever they say. That's not what the Lord means. When you're an adult, it doesn't mean you have to do everything your parents say. When you're a child, yes. But you are to honor your parents no matter how old you are or how old they are. You are to respect them and provide for them as an adult if they are unable to do so. That's primarily honor. In pagan society we said women have always been property. fit for breeding and doing chores, and literally regarded as property in all cultures except when God gave the Bible. So in biblical society they are honored, we see in the fifth commandment. It doesn't say just honor your father, or does it say honor your father principally and then your mother? It says honor your father and your mother. So there's an inequality there as far as children honoring their parents. Children are to recognize that parents are God's gift to them for their good. And children are to honor their father and mother chiefly by believing in Jesus Christ and by taking care of their parents when they are unable to do so themselves. We said, follow your parents, children, as they follow Christ. Honoring your parents begins with respect. Obedience, it's love in action, not just words, but it's love in action. Show your parents that you love them as a child, particularly as a child living at home, by love in action. And do the things that not only you are expected to do, but do other things as well without being asked. But it all means nothing, as I said, unless you have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior who died to take away your sins. This is the greatest honor you can give to your parents. So the thumbnail sketch of last week, this week I'd like to focus on the fact that civil government rulers are called fathers and mother in the Bible. As I say, civil government rulers are called father and mother in the Bible, and we're to honor them as well. And I certainly, I'm sure you've noticed, but very appropriate on our bulletin this morning. I won't have you necessarily look it up, it's just a short reference, but in 2 Kings 5.13, the Syrian general Naaman was called father by his servants, and yet he was a general. He was over them in rank and in rule. Perhaps most notably, though, if you look at Isaiah chapter 49. This is a very, very important verse in the Bible for eschatological reasons. end time reasons. I haven't found a good explanation of this verse by anyone other than post-millennialists. Isaiah 49-23, this is addressed to the church. Thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people. And they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders. And kings shall be, again addressed to the church, kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers. They shall bow down to thee with their face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet. And thou shalt know that I am the Lord, for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me. This is the kings of the earth and the queens of the earth and the peoples and the nations coming to the church at some point in history. And kings shall be thy nursing fathers and queens thy nursing mothers, actually taking care of the church, protecting it. And we're going to be looking at this in more detail, some this week, but particularly next, Lord willing, next week. You notice I say civil government. But the point of this, by the way, if you've forgotten, is that the fifth commandment, fathers and mothers, goes beyond just biological parents. Here we talk about kings being the fathers of the church, nursing fathers and queens by nursing mothers. You notice I often will say, and as much as I can remember, because I'm a victim of our culture as well, when I talk about the government, What do we think of when we say government? Federal government, maybe state government, sometimes a city council or something like that. We've fallen into that use culturally by using the word, I guess now is as good a time as any to bring it up, what we really mean is civil government when we use it in that sense. and usually the federal government when we say it, it's more biblically accurate to say civil government when that's what we're talking about. Because God has established several governmental structures. We have the civil government, we have the government of the family, We have the government of the church, so it's a government. Each has its own responsibilities and powers. Now when we use government, when we use the word government to mean civil government, in a sense what we're doing is acknowledging, language is important, we're acknowledging that that's the only one there is. Now the civil government would love to usurp the power of the family government, wouldn't they? And of the church government, and be the only government. Let's not fall into their language trap and just use the word government basically the same way they do. Let's try to remember to use the word civil government. Language is a front in the spiritual war. So, that's just an aside there. We are to honor our father and mother in the civil realm. That is with government officials. Now, the first question I would imagine that occurs to us is, does that mean we are to obey them no matter what they decree? Remember, the Ten Commandments summarize all of God's laws, except ceremonial. They are the broad headings for a variety of specific laws. One place that we find a very telling application of the Fifth Commandment is in the New Testament in Romans chapter 13. So if we could, let's turn to there please. Romans 13 shows us how to apply the fifth commandment to the civil government and its representatives. We'll read chapter 13 verses 1 through 6. Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers, for there is no power but of God. The powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resists the power resists the ordinance of God, and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Will thou then not be afraid of the power? Do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same. For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid. For he beareth not the sword in vain. For he is the minister of God, a revenger, to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil. Wherefore, ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but for conscience' sake. For this cause pay ye tribute also, for they are God's ministers, attenuating continually upon this very thing." Now, when you read this and think about it, it brings up a whole bunch of questions. Is this an absolute commandment? Are we to obey rulers, in this case laws passed by our civil government, Congress, rulings by the Supreme Court, etc., no matter what they are? Are we never to oppose laws like Roe v. Wade on abortion? Or are we never to oppose the Supreme Court ruling banning prayers in public schools? Another question is, does God ordain evil rulers? Are they ministers of God here? The civil rulers are ministers of God. Is Hitler a minister of God? Is resisting evil rulers resisting God? So these are questions we hope to look at today. Now in chapter 13 it says, let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God, the powers that be are ordained of God. Who are these higher powers? Well, he defines it in verse 3. For rulers are not a terror to good works for the evil. So in the context he's talking about rulers, he's talking about civil government. But the Greek word, the way this is stated, let me find it, The context of it means the civil government, as has been given authority, the right to enact and administer laws, it means the civil government... If it meant the civil government could exercise its own will, it would be worded differently, according to the experts I've consulted. And it's a very important distinction. They're called higher powers because they're to be held in high esteem. They have an eminent dignity, a majesty, because they are ordained of God. Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers, for there is no power but of God. The powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resists the power, resists the ordinance of God, and they that resist shall receive themselves damnation. Well, doesn't that seem to say that we're to obey the civil government and its representatives in every case, no exceptions? It would seem to be what it says. Well, let's consider that biblically. The passage, first of all, says that civil government is a divine institution because it originates in the will of God. In John 1.3, all things were made by Him and without Him was not anything made that was made. Colossians 1.17, by Him all things consist. Now, we know that God raises up and puts down rulers. He told Moses in Exodus 9.16, And in very deed for this cause have I raised thee up, Moses, for to show in thee my power, and that my name be declared throughout the earth. And the book of Judges repeatedly declares that the Lord raised up the judges to judge Israel. He raises up many kings. In Jeremiah 50 he says he raises up many kings. In Acts 13.22 the Lord is said to have raised up David to be king of Israel. Many more could be mentioned. Cyprus, the king of Persia, the Lord said he raised him up. Even Pontius Pilate is said to be raised up by God for his purpose. Judas. But does this mean we owe rulers blanket obedience? If we lived under Pontius Pilate and he said, okay, I want you to go out there and scourge and whip Jesus and nail his hands and feet to the cross. Does that mean we say, yes sir, we're going to do that because you're the ruler. And he says in chapter 13, the ordinance of God. The powers that be are ordained of God in verse 1. What does that mean? Was Stalin's government the ordinance of God? Hitler's? Pol Pot's? If so, they all have the right to claim total obedience. And they can say, well, it's in the Bible. You Christians have to obey me. Not that they believe it, but they throw it at us for that. Of course, That is not the correct interpretation. The Lord in this passage is speaking of the moral ordinance of civil government. He's not talking about individuals. He's talking about the establishment of government itself is a divine institution. The Holy Spirit is speaking here of the institution of civil government, not individual rulers. Individual rulers are mentioned for the first time in verse 3. See, we have to distinguish power, the institution of the government, from individual persons who may or may not misuse that power. This doesn't give tyrants any comfort. It doesn't give the Lord's approval to murder, torture, rape, incest. Paul goes on to define, how do we know that? Because he goes on here in 13 to define the sort of power he's talking about. If you look again, he's talking about a civil government in verse 3 that is not a terror to good works but to the evil and right after that a praise to them that do well so by the ordinance of God is meant not in every single civil government in every country that's ever existed or ever will exist no matter how evil it is but that government which acts in accord with Paul's definition of a legitimate God-ordained particular civil government. If it meant every single government, Hitler's or whoever else's, it would contradict other passages in the Bible. Let's look at Hosea chapter 8. It will be a hard one for you to find. Hosea comes right after Daniel. Hosea chapter 8 beginning in verse 3. Israel has cast off the thing that is good. The enemy shall pursue him. Now listen to this. They have set up kings, the Lord says, but not by me. They have made princes, and I knew it not, of their silver and their gold, and they made them idols that they may be cut off. They have set up kings, but not by me. Another example is Daniel and John in the New Testament, who frequently call the Roman Empire a beast. terrible and dreadful, having the name of blasphemy. These governments, these civil governments, can't be the ordinance of God in any sense other than disease and natural disasters are the ordinance of God. I think that's an important distinction. The Reverend Benjamin Hoadley said fevers, plagues, fires, and the like. Yet Almighty God not only permits, but requires us to use all prudent methods of resisting and stopping their fury, but is far from expecting that we should lie down and do nothing to save ourselves from perishing in such calamities. So likewise, robbers and cutthroats are God's judgment, but this does not prove that you must submit yourself and your family to be ruined at their pleasure. So again, our inferior civil rulers, if they make use of their power to fall with violence upon their neighbors and attempt to take their lives or the ruin of their families, and yet they may be resisted and their illegal violence repelled by violence. And so lastly, our foreign enemies and invaders, always reckoned among God's judgments and yet there is no necessity, I hope, of tamely submitting ourselves to them and no argument against the lawfulness or honorableness of resisting them. So our passage in Romans 13, which again remember is an application of the fifth commandment, simply means that God has established the institution of civil government and therefore we are to honor it and not become anarchists who want no government at all. We're not to oppose the rightful exercise of civil rule. We're not to attempt to overthrow or undermine it. We're not to oppose and work to abolish biblical civil laws, such as capital punishment. We're not to oppose or attempt to disrupt the administration of legitimate justice. All these would be opposing the ordinance of God. It's tempting to be an anarchist when you see what's going on in the world and in our country. But that would be opposing the ordinance of God. God does set up a civil government structure to govern men in our relations with other men. God has given the civil government, however, a supreme law that they must observe. He's put limits on the civil government. The Bible nowhere teaches that we have to obey civil rulers when they usurp their rightful limits. Resisting the institution of civil government though, resisting the institution, the organization itself, is resisting God. But resisting the biblically unlawful decrees of an enemy of God, who is a ruler, is honoring God. Remember Sadrach, Meshach, and Abednego? Daniel himself? They resisted the laws of the king when the king decreed something that would cause them sin. Our obedience has to be limited to the paramount claims of the law of God. Let's look at Acts, please. Chapter 5. Chapter 5, Acts, verse 26. Then went the captain with the officers and brought them We're talking about the apostles in prison here. Then went the captain with the officers and brought them without violence, for they feared the people, lest they should be stoned. And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest asked them, saying, Did we not straightly command you that you should not teach in this name, the name of Jesus? And behold, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine and intend to bring this man's blood upon us. And Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men. we ought to obey God rather than men. In other words, we respect you, we know you have the power of rule, and we'll do what you tell us to do as long as it doesn't conflict with what God wants us to do. Because in that case we will obey God rather than men. Nobody but an atheist could claim that the laws of man could or should set aside the laws of God. Our allegiance, when they conflict, they have to be with God. For even the higher powers, the civil government, is subject to a higher law. We obey the civil government authorities only as long as we can do so without sinning. I mean, how could it be otherwise? Laws that dishonor God, that persecute the citizenry, what do they do? They destroy society. and they destroy the very ends for which God established the institution of civil government to begin with. Laws, you know, evil rulers, laws that dishonor God, laws that persecute and kill people and torture people, they're destroying the society that God has built. So how can we support those policies when they undermine God's intentions? Nobody would argue that the fifth commandment requires you to obey your father if he tells you to shoot the mailman or shoot your sister. Why would anybody think God wants you to obey a dictator if he tells you to do the same thing? You don't think you're breaking the fifth commandment, do you, if your father tells you to shoot somebody? You say no, because it's against God's law. Why would you say it's okay if a dictator tells you? Reverend Hoadley said, quote, and this may serve to explain yet farther in what sense these higher powers are from God. Namely, as they act agreeably to his will, which is that they should promote the happiness and good of human society, which Paul all along supposes them to do. And consequently, when they do the contrary, they cannot be said to be from God or to act by his authority any more than an inferior magistrate may be said to act by a prince's authority while he is acting directly contrary to the will of the prince. In other words, rulers are ordained by God, but when they act against God's will, when they act immorally, he says it's the same thing as though if you had a prince who had appointed somebody to rule over someplace, and the prince said, I want you to do things, And the guy didn't, he did the opposite things. You can't say that he's acting in accordance with the prince's will. Same with God and a ruler. They are breaking God's will when they act that way. So, if we deny that a Christian's duty, if we deny that a Christian's duty is to disobey a law, when to obey it would cause him to commit sin, then we're saying that man's law is higher than God's law. And basically that God himself is subject to the will of man. Only tyrants believe that. And they share the same fate as Herod, if you look over in Acts 12. Acts 12, 21. What happened to Herod? And upon a set day Herod, arrayed in royal apparel, sat upon his throne, and made an oration unto them, to the people. And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man. What's the next verse? Immediately the angel of the Lord smote him because he gave not God the glory and he was eaten of worms and gave up the ghost. It's been recently discovered by some forensic archaeologists that it's very likely that Herod had a particular disease and I've talked about this before but I don't recall the name of the disease that caused his flesh, while he was still living, to basically get gangrenous and putrefy. And he was, they said, eaten by worms is a good way to describe his death. That's basically what happened to Herod. That's what it says in scripture. That's what happened to him. Because why? Because he accepted this praise, oh this is the voice of a God, and he said, yeah, you're right, I'm a God. And immediately the angel of the Lord smote him. The Lord says of rulers in Isaiah 10.1, woe unto them, woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees. Woe unto rulers that decree unrighteous decrees. Now admittedly no civil government has ever been perfect, ever will be perfect as long as it's run by men. So how do we distinguish the true God-given legitimate authority. Well, a starting point is that such a civil government will openly acknowledge the kingship of the Lord Jesus Christ and seek to rule by his lawward. Notice what the scriptural definition back in Romans 13, notice what the scriptural definition of a legitimate ruler is. There are half a dozen points here. In verse 3, for rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Also in verse 3, do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same. The same refers back to the civil rulers. If you do good, he'll praise you. And in verse 4, for he is the minister of God to thee for good. Also in verse four, for he beareth not the sword in vain, for he is the minister of God, repeated, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil. So how is Ruler defined? Well, I find six characteristics there. One, he's not a terror to good. Number two, he's a terror to evil. Number three, he praises the good. Number four, he's a minister of God to his people for good. Positive sanctions. Number five, he's a minister of God to the evil in that he imposes negative sanctions. And six, he bears not the sword in vain. He is given the power to punish evil and is expected to use it. He's called a minister, by the way, or minister means servant, appointed by God to carry out his will in the civil realm. We don't think much about civil government officials being called ministers. Think about it. They do in Canada, they do in Europe under the parliamentary system. Minister of Finance, Minister of Defense, the Prime Minister. It's ancient language. It harkens back to when people understood that the civil rulers were a minister of God. It comes right out of Romans 13. Specifically though, a minister, a civil minister, is to minister to his people for good and punish the evil. Now, for good, to use the powers of his office for the good of the citizens and to restrain and punish evil in society. A ruler who doesn't do that is not ruling biblically. A ruler who doesn't do that is not ruling biblically. This doesn't give us license, though, to disobey him. That's important. It doesn't give us, well, he's not ruling by the Christian, he's not a Christian, so I can just ignore whatever he says. No. Remember, the apostles lived under a much worse civil government than we do. They lived under the Roman Empire. A thoroughly pagan state. Yet they obeyed the rulers, except when they demanded that the apostles do something clearly against scripture. Well, we began with the fifth commandment as the general principle. And we've seen how many passages of scripture, notably Romans 13, explain what the fifth commandment means in application to civil government. Our duties to civil rulers, their duties to us. I hope you have a better understanding now than perhaps when you came in regarding when resistance to civil rulers is lawful and when it's not. But there's another very important question. We don't have time to deal with it today. The question is, what are the duties of the civil ruler? It says, okay, we've sort of answered that question, but we haven't been specific. We said he's to, well, let me not paraphrase it, not to be a terror to good works, but to the evil. Do that which is good, and if you do what is good, you shall have praise of the same. He is the minister of God to thee for good. So I'd like to focus on, what does that mean? the minister of God to thee for good. Most people, I would say, most Christians I've talked to say, well the role of the civil governor, the civil ruler, whoever he is, is to restrain evil. Now, a lot of liberal Christians will say, well he's to do good because that means he would have big welfare programs, social welfare programs, and doing good means taking money from the taxpayers and giving it to poor people. That's what your liberal faith believes. But really, biblically, what does it mean to do good? What has God ordained him to do? Well, the Lord willing, we'll see what scripture says about that next week. You might be thinking about that and maybe doing some Bible study yourself as to what is the Bible defined by good? And how can we translate that into the commands of Romans 13? Let's pray.