Romans 13:1 (NKJV)
13 Let every soul be subject to the governing
authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities
that exist are appointed by God.
“There is no power but of God. God as the ruler and
governor of the world hath appointed the ordinance of magistracy, so that all
civil power is derived from him as from its original, and he hath by his
providence put the administration into those hands, whatever they are that have
it. By him kings reign, Prov. 8:15. The usurpation of power and the abuse of
power are not of God, for he is not the author of sin; but the power itself is.
As our natural powers, though often abused and made instruments of sin, are
from God's creating power, so civil powers are from God's governing power.”
~Matthew Henry
Joel Belz wrote in World Magazine, 07/22/2006, an article
“Tender Toughness”: The sentence still
jumps out at me from the middle of an editorial in The Wall Street Journal.
It's been half a decade since I read it, but it was one of those electric
expressions that you can't forget: "People want to be lightly
governed," the writer said, "by strong governments."
That's what you've wanted since you were a small child.
You wanted your dad to be big and strong and able to do anything you could
think of—except that, when he dealt with you, it had to be with gentleness and
tenderness. You wanted a policeman on the corner tough enough to handle any
neighborhood bully, but who would also hoist you to his shoulders and help you
find your parents when you got lost in the crowd.
Lots of muscle; lots of restraint. There's an innate
yearning in almost all of us for that rare combination. When evil people rise
up, we want a government with the clout to back them down. Yet we never want
that clout turned on us.
In the final analysis, people want to be lightly governed
by strong governments because that's how God governs. The omnipotent ruler of
the universe is also the one who invites us tenderly: "Come unto me, all
you who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon
you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find
rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
There is a lot to be said about the contrast of God’s use
of power compared to man’s use of power. In our corrupted world man may use
power for either good or evil. We see this in the contrast of nations. Leaders
take power and abuse that power to beat the people into submission. In other
countries leaders use power to establish trust, to make the best use of
resources, and to govern fairly the people for which they are responsible for.
However when we think of God, we think of someone who
loves us dearly. God’s power reins above any and all power, yet God restrains
His power to show love, compassion, mercy and grace. God uses His great power
to protect and still keeps His people safe and secure. We should all desire to
live under God’s rule for He is just, righteous, fair, impartial, loving,
caring, merciful, gracious and most of all mighty. Pray that God would guide
the nations to impart His righteousness and justice to all.
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