Paul in Chapter 13 of Romans, verses 1-7, of the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, claims that all governing authorities are from God and have been instituted by God. Certainly, God has that power, but would He institute evil governments. Would God have instituted the Nazi Party of Hitler that killed millions of God’s Chosen people in gas chambers and death camps? Would God institute the USSR, whose Marxist government insists that there is no God and killed millions of its citizens under the reign of Stalin. Would God institute the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) or the Muslin Theocracies, with all their evil Godless practices? Or could it be that Paul when writing Romans 13:1-7 was misguided or trying to appease the Roman authorities?
Paul says if people resist the governing authorities, they are resisting what God has appointed and will incur judgement. It’s clear the judgement is from God, meaning the resisters will be judged to go to hell. I wonder if America’s Founding Fathers by resisting the Crown of England are now suffering in hell, just as Paul says they should be.
Paul says the government rulers will be a “terror” to the bad people, those who resist the government authorities. That seems to be the case with every dictatorship that was “instituted” by either God or Satan. Don’t you know that Satan loves dictators whose lust for power leads to murder or genocide of those that resist their governmental authority. I say evil dictatorships are instituted by Satan, not by God as Paul claims. If you think that Satan can’t help forming an evil empire, just look to the criminal mafias formed around the globe.
Paul says if you do good, by not resisting, you will have nothing to fear from “him who is in authority” and receive his approval because he is God’s servant for your good. Were Hitler, Stalin or any Communist dictator God’s servant for the peoples good, especially telling you there is no God? Again, Paul warns that if you do wrong, be afraid because the dictator is the servant of God who will use the sword (death penalty) to execute his wrath on you for resisting his rule.
Paul says you must be subject to the rule of the authority to also avoid God’s wrath and for the sake of your conscience. So, you should feel guilty for resisting an evil dictator. I guess the German soldiers in the concentration camps, when they were asked why they murdered so many Jews, they answered with a clear conscience, “I was only following orders.” Evil triumphs when good people do nothing to resist evil and evil government authorities!
Paul goes on to say that because the authorities are “ministers of God” we should pay our taxes, and honor and respect those to whom it is due. Because Paul wrote so much praising Jesus Christ does he get a free pass for writing something that supports, endorses, lauds any-and-all government authorities, including those that disavow God and murder people by the thousands or millions? The Roman Empire was the government authority when Paul wrote Chapter 13 and it was polytheistic and crucifying Christians by the score. It really makes me wonder who the hell really inspired Paul to write this section of Romans 13?
To learn more on how to do good and resist evil, read the Book of James in the Bible or my book, The Bible’s Hidden Treasure: James: The Precious Pearl: John P. Hageman: 9781973692850: Amazon.com: 