This post is part of a series of posts taken from Dr. Wayne Grudem's
Sunday school class at Scottsdale Bible Church. In this class, Dr. Grudem is taking us through his forthcoming book: Politics: According to the Bible. I have created a category link here, which will allow you to scroll through all of the upcoming posts.
In today's class, Dr. Grudem spent a few minutes finishing last week's conversation regarding government and the Old Testament.
Some might ask, "why shouldn't we enforce the "Law" that was given to Moses and the Israelites.
Dr. Grudem states that we should not enforce these Mosaic Laws because:
- Israel was a theocracy ( a system of government where priests rule in the name of God), and therefore not appropriate for our democracy.
- When Christ appeared incarnate, he established a New Covenant with creation, thus making these Old Covenant laws inappropriate for us today.
In considering God's view of civil government under the New Covenant, Dr. Grudem points us to Romans 13:1-7:
Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, 4 for he is God's servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God's wrath on the wrongdoer. 5 Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God's wrath but also for the sake of conscience. 6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. 7 Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.
In a recap of the Bible's whole testimony on the subject of civil government, Dr. Grudem points out:
- Human government was established by God to bring multiple benefits to human society, and this happened at the re-establishment of human society after the flood had destroyed the earth.
- God authorizes government to punish those who do evil, both as a deterrent to further wrongdoing, and in order to carry out God's wrath against evil.
- Government should reward and encourage doing good.
- Government should establish justice, and take special care to defend the weak and helpless.
- Civil government officials serve God in their tasks.
- These tasks that government carries out are "good" in God's sight.
- Without civil government, anarchy soon develops, and the unrestrained evil in human hearts leads to a horrible outpouring of wickedness in human conduct.
- God holds all nations, and the governments of all nations, accountable to him.
- God sovereignly establishes specific rulers over human governments.
There is a great deal for American to contemplate here. The most significant of which is likely the doctrine of God's sovereignty, and his particular appointment of the world's leaders.
Do you believe that God appointed President Obama, or does God merely watch human events from afar? How about Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad? Do you believe God appointed him too?The last thing that Dr. Grudem touched upon is that even in a sinless world, we will have a civil government, as the Bible clearly teaches men will rule cities, and even the angels, in heaven.
Although not in a specific hurry to get there, I am greatly looking forward to the perfect, and holy civil government that we will experience in heaven. I tell my wife all the time that perhaps we might be privileged to be a joint governors in heaven. I love working together with my wife.
Here are notes from the class: Download BiblicalPrinciplesConcerningGovernment
Here is the audio from Dr. Grudem's Sunday school class:
