Now can we turn please to Esther and chapter 2 please. In the word of the Lord to Esther, chapter 2. And we're going to read from verse 21 down to chapter 3 in verse 6. Esther 2, verse 21. In those days, while Mordecai sat in the king's gate, two of the king's chamberlains, Bigfan and Teresh, of those which kept the door, were off, and sought to lay hand on the king as a heurist. And the thing was known to Mordecai, who told it unto Esther the queen, and Esther certified the Cain thereof in Mordecai's name. And when inquisition was made of the matter, it was found out. Therefore, they were both hanged on a tree, and it was written in the book of the Chronicles before the Cain. After these things did Cain Asihurus promote Haman, the son of Hamadathah the Agathite, and advanced him and set his state above all the princes that were with him. And all the king's servants that were in the king's gate bowed and reverenced Haman, for the king had so commanded concerning him. But Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence. Then the king's servants, which were in the king's gate, said unto Mordecai, Why transgressest thou the king's commandment? Now it came to pass, when they spake daily unto him, and he hearkened not unto them, that he told Haman to see whether Mordecai's matter would stand, for he had told them that he was a Jew. When Haman saw that Mordecai bowed not, nor did him reverence, then was Haman full of wrath." We'll end just there at verse 6. Well, just to say what I said this morning for the benefit of those who weren't here, over the last number of weeks, in the midweek, here in White Abbey and indeed in Tablopatrick, I've been going through a little series on civil government. And it's a six-part series. We did the fifth part this morning, and I'm going to conclude it this evening. So the title is, as it has been all the way through, Towards a Biblical View of the Civil Government. It's my prayer and hope that all of us who have been involved and heard the messages over the last number of weeks will indeed have advanced to a more biblical view of the magistrate. Not the end. There's more to be learned and developed. but certainly we're working towards a fuller understanding of it. So over the last five messages, we've looked at these titles. First week, civil government is of God's design. Second week, we looked at civil government is designed to be under God's rule. The third week, We looked at what it is designed for, what the civil government is designed for. That took two weeks, two messages. And then this morning, we thought about what civil government is not designed for, what God has not made it for, what its limitations are, where its no-go areas are to be found. And so tonight, I want us to think of civil government, citizens designated duty towards them. So in other words, the thing is turning around a little bit, and it's being spoken to us. What is our duty? What has God designed to be our duty towards the civil government? The best of citizens in any state should be regenerate men and regenerate women. None should have the praise from the powers that be more for doing that which is good than the regenerate man or woman. Why is that? Well, there's a number of reasons. But first of all, because we have the word of God to direct us what is our duty towards the self of magistrates. So the Christians should be The best of all citizens should be the same in all different aspects of life. We should be the best husbands, the best wives, the best citizens, the best employers, the best employees, and so on and so on. The Christian should be. It doesn't always work out like that. But we should be the best citizens because we have the word of God and the spirit of God to help us in the different callings of life. So what has God taught us in the word as far as our duty is concerned to our kings and our queens, to our politicians and so forth? Well, the first duty is that we are to pray for them. That probably would have been the first thing that you would have thought of if I had asked the question. Our first duty, according to the scriptures, is to pray for them. Now, we won't get any medal for praying for them, will not be given any titles for praying for them. Oh, but it is fair to say, without exaggeration, that prayer, praying for the magistrate, is the highest service that anyone can do for king or queen or for prince or prime minister. It's the highest of all services. to pray for them. You know the text well, I'm sure. 1 Timothy chapter 2, verse 1 and 2, Paul says, I exert thee therefore that first of all supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings, and for all that are in authority. We're to pray for all men, but especially, says Paul, for kings and them that are in us already. Now, taking note of the context of those verses Paul uses, Paul puts the onus on praying for the civil rulers within the context of the church, within her gathered assemblies, in public prayers, a common feature, a regular feature of public prayers, pulpit prayers, prayers in the midweek should be praying for the government, for our King, Queen and the rest of them. And it's fair to say also that no power is exempt from this instruction to pray for kings. It's pray for kings without distinction. It's to pray for all therein. authority. We're to be no respecter of persons and we're to be no respecter of princes when it comes to prayer. We're to pray for all of our rulers, all of our leaders, the ones that we don't like and the ones who we don't think are fit to be in power. We're to pray for them, for kings and for all in authority without distinction. We're to pray for all That includes kings and princes and prime ministers and the rest of them to the ends of the earth. We're to pray for all rulers, governments, leaders. That's our duty. What are we to pray for them? How do we pray for them? Well, since the circumstances of each ruler is going to be different, what's right for one ruler might not necessarily be right for another. on any given date or any different circumstance. So Paul keeps the different aspects of prayer in very general terms. He says about making supplications and prayers and intercessions. And to be honest, it's very hard to make a distinction. I'm sure there is a nuance of distinction between the three of those, but it's not much of a distinction between prayers and supplications. and intercessions. What we're really doing, therefore, is we're asking God to supply the rulers all of their needs, whether it be spiritual needs, whether it be physical needs. We're to pray accordingly. Does this ruler have a spiritual need? Well then, let's pray spiritually. Does it have a physical want? Well then, let's pray physically for them. We're to pray also that God would give them assistance and give them special helps at times of peculiar difficulty or perhaps moment of great importance in the history of the government, in the history of that particular nation. We're to pray for their spiritual aspects, their physical, for assistance, for spiritual helps, special helps. We're to pray all things. for all our rulers. And Paul also tells us that we're not to be unmindful when we're praying for them to give thanks and giving of thanks. We're to give thanks for any benefits that are procured at the hands of our rulers, at the hands of our leaders. Have they done anything that we should be thank worthy of? Well then let's acknowledge it and give thanks to God for it. I'm sure it's true to say that if we were quicker, quicker in praying for our civic leaders than we are in grumbling for them, that they would give us less cause to grumble. I suppose politicians are a wee bit like the weller. We always like to grumble about them. Well, if we were quicker to pray for them, perhaps they'd be a bit brighter, a bit brighter. And I suppose also that we shouldn't dare sound off about our ministers not doing their God-given duty, not doing their God-given duty in their parliaments and their God-given duty in their chambers, if we're not doing our God-given duty in our pulpits and our God-given duty in our closets. We are to pray for them. We are to pray for them at all times and for all the peoples. And when the church does pray for its leaders, its rulers, it will be, as I said a moment ago, it will be the highest service that can be rendered to any magistrate. We're partitioning. We're supplicating the most high God of heaven. on their behalf, the God who has an infinite supply more than they need for their spirit and their physical and their wisdom and their judgments and so forth. We are rendering ever so many times more when we pray for them than thousands and thousands of God save the Queen, which is sung every day in our country. But to pray for them, to pray for them really is something that no amount of national anthems can ever come close to. Prayer is the medium of the reception of God's blessings. So our prayers, therefore, for the ruler will act as the king's physician, the king's general, the king's bodyguard, the king's exchequer, the king's counselor, and the king's bishop. Our prayers can act in all of those different roles in ways that are just far beyond what we can imagine or even begin to think. If only the sovereign, if only our rulers knew all that is won for them by a humble believer on his knees, if he knew what was achieved by the humblest of believers when they're on their knees, That monarch would say, arise, Sir Christian. The good that's done far surpasses anything that can otherwise be done by a mayor. It's a great privilege. It's the highest service. It won't get any titles, but it should do. It should do. So we're down on our knees praying for them. And I suppose you could say we should stay on our knees when we come to the second duty. which the Bible sets forth for our responsibility to our rulers. And that is the duty, not just to pray for them, but our duty to honour their persons. To honour their persons. Whenever I say we're down on our knees for them, we only go down on one bended knee to honour earthly potentates. We go down on two knees to honour God. We do that in prayer. But we only go down on one knee when we're honouring and reverencing the King or the Queen, as the case may be. Two for God, one knee for man, for King. We're to honour their persons. We have this duty of honouring them explicitly stated in that key passage all the way through this little series in Romans chapter 13. In Romans chapter 13, the Apostle Paul rounds off all that he's been saying about temporal government. And he says in verse 7, render therefore to all their dues tribute to whom tribute is due, custom to whom custom Fear to whom fear, honour to whom honour. We're to render to them honour, to the temple of government. The word Jews, therefore render to all their Jews. The word Jews has the idea of paying back, of paying back. It's the idea of settling a debt, rendering your Jews, settling up your debts. And in light of the powers that be, being ordained of God and bearing the sword, as we heard a number of weeks ago, bearing the sword in terms of doing justice in the courts of the land and the laws of the land, and also creating an atmosphere of peace with our security forces and our armies and our borders protected and so forth, citizens have We have something to pay back. We have a due to pay back. We have something to settle up with them as governments bear the sword in those different departments. We are to honour them. Honour to honour is due. Honour is as much that we are to pay to governments as much as we pay our taxes to them. We're to pay our taxes to them. I'm not going to go into that tonight. But we are just as much to pay honor to them. It's our dues. It's what we owe to them. It's not the only debt that's due to them, or the only dues that we have to render for the government. Because there are, as Paul says in the preceding words, we are to render fear. To whom fear is due. We're to give them fear. It's what is fear. Well, fear is the giving of veneration. We're to give them veneration. We're to give them the respect. Veneration and respect and honour. Those are things which are led upon men, upon citizens, to give on to your king or queen or prime minister and politicians. Veneration, respect and honour. It sounds a wee bit like the sort of things that we're to give to God. We're to give God honour. We're to give God fear. We're to show God respect. And God says, yes, then you're to do it to politicians and to rulers. Psalm 82, we sang it this morning. The psalmist said, ye are called gods. The rulers are called gods. And so God allows rulers to borrow his name. And he allows them, therefore, to borrow some of the things which are due to God. God is due honour. We are paid to earthly gods. God is due fear and respect. God allows us, no, God commands us to pay it also to gods on earth, to the prince and to our politicians. It shouldn't surprise us that we're to give them these things. Matthew Poole says, fear is the magistrate's due by reason of his authority. Honor is his due by reason of his dignity. His authority warrants fear. His dignity warrants him being honored by us. And 1 Peter 2, 17 says much the same. He writes to the believers and says that we are to fear God and honour the King. As a matter of fact, the Apostle begins the verse and says what we were to honour all men. Honour all men. And then he says a few moments later, honour the King. Honour the King. And I take that to mean that the civil magistrate is worthy of double honour, double honour from us. He is to be honoured for his person, just simply because he's a man. He deserves honour. We do honour all men. But the prince or the prime minister or the king, he's not just any man. He's a man amongst men. Providence has elevated him. And so in that sense, he is worthy of double honour. We're to honour the king. Yeah, doubly honour him. So bringing together what Peter says and what Paul says in these two texts, it shows that we are to have a disposition towards our rulers involving the right attitude and the right actions. Not just enough to honour them outwardly, we have to do it inwardly as well. Outward actions reflecting inward affections. Ecclesiastes 10.20 writes and says, Curse not the keen. Know not in thy thoughts or not in thy conscience. A right attitude, that's an internal hidden thing coming out by right action. That's the duty that God expects from citizens towards their governor. Matthew Poole puts it, fear notes inward reverence and respect. Honor notes outward reverence and respect. The two things go hand in hand. They go hand in hand. The bowed heart and the bowed knee, they are to work together as we honour our rulers. It's a duty for us. Now, you might be thinking to yourself, does that mean to say that I have to pay respect and veneration and I have to accord honour To all of them? To all of them? Even the wicked ones? Even the profane leaders? Have I to give them honour and respect and veneration? All of them? Well, at one level, the Westminster Confession of Faith, the confession of my own denomination, puts it like this. and says that infidelity, unfaithfulness or difference in religion does not make void the magistrate's just and legal authority. If the magistrate is unfaithful or has a difference in religion, a difference in religion, it doesn't make void his just and legal authority, and therefore does not make void our duty to pay them fear and honour, even to immoral, irreligious rulers. Fear and respect and veneration. To slight the governor is to slight the Lord. They are God's ministers. says Paul, God's ministers attending continually upon this very thing. We're not showing respect, by the way, for the indignity of their characters, for their lifestyle, not at all. But we're showing respect for the dignity of the office. since the office they hold has been ordained of God. God ordains the office of magistrate, and we're showing respect and fear and renovation for the office's sake, and therefore, for conscience's sake, towards God. But having said that, there is another side to it as far as I can ascertain. And that is, well, if we're to have this respect and fear and veneration, even for the ones who are unfaithful and different in religion, what is a just and legal authority? We're to have veneration for just and legal authority, even if there's a difference in religion and so forth. But what is a just and lawful or legal authority? As I understand this, as I understand this, a just and legal authority is not the popular will of the people which makes it so. But the preceptive will of the Lord, if we're to show respect and veneration to a just and lawful or legal authority, what is it that makes it a just and lawful authority? Is it the popular will of the people, so many axes on a piece of paper? Well, as I understand it, it's not that. But it's the preceptive will of the Lord. It's what God says. In other words, God must tell us what is a just government and what is a lawful government. So for a government to be a just government and a lawful government, it has to fall on the line with God's word. as far as magistrate is concerned. What have we seen over the last number of weeks? What are they designed for? They are designed to bear the sword. In the magistrate, in terms of the court system and the laws of the land, they're to bear the sword in terms of being defenders of our borders and so on, security forces. They are to be a terror, not to good works, but to evil. They are to defend the fatherless and the poor. They are to deliver the poor and needy out of the hands of the wicked. Now, those are the things that God has specially designed for our civil rulers. And so long as the civil rulers are carrying out those functions, even if they carry them out imperfectly, which they do because we all are imperfect, but even if they're bearing the sword, and being a terror to evil works, and defending the poor and the fatherless, and delivering the poor and needy out of the hand of the wicked. So long as they're doing those things which God has set for them, their authority is a just and lawful authority. So despite any unfaithfulness on their part, and despite difference in religion, they are to be paid respect and reverence and veneration and honour from our hearts and from our minds and from our hands. Because Paul in Romans chapter 13 says, Render therefore to all their dues fear to whom fear, honour to whom honour. But that verse, that passage, that command is set in the context of just not any ruler. It's not just any ruler, in other words. But specifically those, who Paul says, who are the minister of God to thee for good. Who are we to pay fear to and honor to? To the minister who does what he's called to do by God, and who is the minister of God to thee for good. In 1 Peter chapter 2, Peter speaks about having submission and honor. And he sets it within the framework of those that are sent by God for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of them that do well. Only insofar as the temporal power carries out those righteous requirements can he therefore be described as being just and a lawful authority. And if he is, and he carries all these out, however imperfectly, well then he is to be given the honour, the veneration as are due to him. were to pay him these things. But it would be dishonest. It would be dishonest to pay a ruler honour, who's not due honour, inasmuch as he brings God's ordained office into disrepute. We wouldn't give a minister of religion any respect or any veneration As a matter of fact, we would say that a minister of the gospel, that he has no just and no lawful authority to be in the pulpit, to be called a minister, if he doesn't preach the gospel, if he doesn't visit the sick, if he doesn't observe the sacraments, just because he has the letters R-E-V before his name. If he doesn't do what he's called to do, even though he's been elected by the people, That minister doesn't deserve to be honoured, to be respected, to be given veneration. He isn't doing any of those things which God set for him. And it's the same on the other side of the coin. We shouldn't be paying honour or fear to a minister of the government who isn't a praise to good works. who isn't a terror to evil works, who isn't a defender of the poor and the fatherless, who doesn't deliver the poor and needy. Just because he has the letters MLA or MP after his name, and just because he was elected by the people, if he's not doing what God has told him to do, set forth for him to do, it would be dishonest to honour him. and give him due honour to honour his due? Is he due it? Is he due fear? Is he due ravenous? Paul says it's to whom it's due. Who's a worker of good. Let us obey Christ's injunction to render the Caesar the things that are Caesar's. But if Caesar doesn't act as Caesar should act, and all he has going for him is the name, will he really do any honour, any respect, any fear when he's dishonoured the office which God has put him into for good and for righteousness? To honour such a ruler would be as unseemly as putting a jewel of gold in a swaying snout. You can't think of a more bad mix than a gold ring and a pig snout to honour a man or a woman who doesn't carry any of the things that God has designed for them. It would be just so unsightly, so unsightly. Now I'm not going to apply these principles to you as far as our own leaders and rulers in Belfast. Stormont and in Westminster and in Brussels. You have to work out the principles yourself, as far as who you respect and honour and venerate. But the principles are the ones that weigh each of them up. But we are to give them. Christians are, having said all this, we are always, we are always to submit to the lawful commands of any kind of government, of good government and of evil government, of just and lawful government and unjust and unlawful government. We are to submit to the lawful, lawful commands of every kind of government, but only the lawful commands. As Paul says, we ought to obey God rather than men. When there comes a time when the rubber hits the road, and what God commands, and what men command, even to the point of death, we always ought to obey God. We're always to obey the lawful commands of any government, good or bad. But the moment they ask us to do anything that God tells us we shouldn't do or should do, well then that's where the rubber hits the road, and we obey God. But generally speaking, we are to be subject unto the higher powers. Peter says, Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man, whether it be to the king as supreme, or unto governors as unto them that are sent by him. And even this act of submission, even when it's done to evil rulers, even when it's done to rulers who have gone so far away from what God has designed for them and could be called unjust and unlawful government, even when we submit to what they tell us to do, it's not because we're obeying them directly per se. But because very often, indirectly, they will be commanding things, they will be asking us to do things which are in harmony with the word of God, which are in agreement with the law of God. By default, they will ask us to do things which the Bible says are right and proper. And so even on lawful, unjust governments, we can obey the commands. Our obedience, therefore, is for the world's sake. Our obedience is for the Lord's sake. Our obedience is for conscience sake, not for the unlawful, the unjust governor's sake. By obeying an unjust, unlawful government, it doesn't legitimize the illegitimate. We're doing it for conscience sake, because it's in harmony with God's Word. Now, one last question, and we're concluded. And that is, whether those who suffer for persecution, for the sake of their religion, can they defend themselves against tyrants? If the king or the Prime Minister, or whoever it may be, were to turn round and to begin to persecute Christians for their religious beliefs. Is it lawful? Is it allowed by God's Word to defend themselves against tyrants? The question is not, can we take up arms to convert the king and his citizens to Christ and to Christianity? That's not the question, because that's an easy question to answer. It's only the arm of the Lord. It's only the sword of the Spirit can convert the king and convert his citizens to Jesus Christ. That's not the question. We're asking the question about defence. Defence. Are we able to defend lawfully our persons and our properties against tyrants? Well, as far as the Sixth Commandment is concerned, included in the duties of the Sixth Commandment, thou shalt not kill. Some of the implications of that connected to that sixth commandment are to preserve the life of ourselves and preserve the life of others. That's an application of thou shalt not kill. Protecting our own lives, preserving our own lives and the lives of others. The eighth commandment, thou shalt not steal. One of the applications or byproducts of that is that we are to endeavor to preserve the outward estate of ourselves and the outward estates of others. So that being the case, if we are allowed by the law of God to preserve our own lives or the lives of others, or the properties of ourselves or the properties of others, Well then, if that's the case, therefore, defensive measures can lawfully be permitted against persecuting princes. Whenever the prince turns and unjustly attempts to take away life, our life, or the life of those around us, or our property, or the property of those around us, it is lawful We believe to defend ourselves according to the Sixth and the Eighth Commandments. Now, some of the Covenanters, in my own tradition, whenever the king became a tyrant in their days, some of them reasoned with the Stuart kings. We try to reason with them about all of this. We heard some of that this morning from Andrew Melville. Some of them tried to reason their way through. Some of them went into exile, into the continent, onto the continent to Holland and to Switzerland and so forth, to escape it, to get away from it. The vast majority of Covenanters and Scottish people, the vast majority of them just bore patiently. They just bore patiently. But hundreds, hundreds of them, thousands even, As a very last resort, and it must always be a very last resort, they took up arms to defend themselves. Not to go on the offensive, but to defend themselves. Now, if you know a wee bit of our history, some of them went, they got a wee bit, they stepped over themselves and there was roguish elements within those Covenanters in the 17th century, and they went on the offensive and were too aggressive. And we distance ourselves from that way of going. But, but, as a very last resort, some of them did do, and it was right, and proper, and continues to be, that we may defend ourselves and our persons and properties. Why would we not be? I mean, if it's lawful and just to defend your persons and your family and your property against a foreign power, as a matter of fact, it's expected of you. It's your duty. Well, then why not against a native power who's acting like a foreigner to his Christian best citizens? Why would you not? If it's your duty in one case to defend against a foreign aggressor, why not a native aggressor who's acting like a foreigner to his good people? So it's my conviction and the conviction of our church that it's lawful and just. But why are we going to end this series talking about wars and rumours of wars? when there is, according to the prophet, a prince of peace, a prince of peace, and of whose government the increase in peace thereof, there shall be nowhere upon the throne of David and upon his kingdom to order it and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth and even forever. The seed of the Lord of Hosts, the prophet said, will perform it. As a matter of fact, 2,000 years ago, the seed of the Lord of Hosts has performed it and is performing it. And the question is to you tonight, are you in Christ's kingdom? Jesus said, ye must be born again. He said that if any man is now born again, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. None of us are born naturally into the kingdom of God. We need to be translated from the kingdom of darkness, from the kingdom of Satan, from the kingdom of sin, from the reign of sin. We need to be translated from that kingdom. into the kingdom of God, dear son. And how does that happen? When a man or woman is born again of the Spirit of the Lord, and they convert, and they repent of their sins, and they flee to Christ, and they kiss the Christ, they kiss the Son, and subject themselves to that. Who is your king? Is it Christ? Or is it Satan? There's only three kingdoms in the world. There's only two kings in the world. At the end of the day, when it's all boiled down, which kingdom are you in? Have you been born again? Have you been converted? Have you been delivered from the power and the kingdom of darkness and brought into the kingdom of Christ? It's a kingdom of righteousness and of peace and of joy. It's an everlasting kingdom. And Christians can pray, thy kingdom come, anticipating the day when the kingdom shall be consummated, and we will go to be with our King forever and ever. Amen.