Day 174, Romans 13
Chapter 12 showed us how each individual’s life reflects Jesus in unique ways (like the rainbow of color when white light shines through a prism). Today, Paul’s focus is broader than the impact of our lives on the individuals around us. How do we bring change to culture and society? It was an important question, because Paul’s readers were experiencing persecution under pagan worldviews, even as they enjoyed the liberty of relationship with God through Jesus.
Here is another way that our 21st Century, western mindset has drifted away from the counsel of scripture. Our cultural impulse would be to campaign for change, rally support for our understanding, point out the error of the pagans, and strive for change by shifting the balance of power.
Paul’s advice is challenging because it is the opposite of what we have been trained to do! “Submit to the authorities” is challenging enough, but the Passion translation usefully adds the word “support” to further underscore the heart of submission this phrase commands. Submission is simply that: to get under someone’s mission and do your best to ensure their success. We are tempted to criticize politicians and those in authority. It is one of the easiest sins to commit. But Paul tells us to submit to them. He doesn’t add “unless” or “except” to give us an escape clause. And he wrote this command about the Roman Empire, which was much more antagonistic to believers than any government we may struggle to accept.
So are we to be weak doormats, without a clear voice or influence in an ungodly culture? Absolutely not. Our light is just as powerful against societal evil as individual unrighteousness.
The second half of this chapter reminds us that the completion of God’s salvation plan is closer now than it has ever been, and that the light of God’s love shining through us is more powerful against the darkness than any human argument. Notice that verse 13 warns against drunkenness, debauchery, sensuality, promiscuity AND being argumentative or jealous, as if those were all poisonous to our new life in Christ (which they are)!
So Paul concludes this chapter by urging us to not waste even a minute on all that - instead be immersed in Jesus, the Anointed One, whose anointing makes us like Him, rather than the world around us.
Have a great day!
Mark.