In Government We Trust, in turmoil we live - what about civil disobedience?

Abraham Lincoln famously said it in 1858, but Jesus said it almost 2000 years earlier, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” Mark 3.24-25 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 If a house is divided against itself, that house cannot stand."   The wording of Matthew 12.25 and Luke11.17 sounds even more ominous: “Every kingdom divided against itself is headed for destruction,...”

When we reflect on the current social and political situations in America, those words give us cause for great concern. While there have always been different sides to every question, that is not the issue I take up today. It is not even about the positions taken by politicians on opposite sides of those issues that concerns me. Each of us has the right to agree or disagree with policies and how they are carried out, and that’s not the same thing as choosing between liking dogs or preferring cats, (or neither). That’s a question of personal taste, not one of ethics or morality. The choice between political policies, however, involves questions of morality and ethics, judgments between right and wrong, and that, too, depends on the views of each individual. There are good leaders, there are poor leaders. There are decisions that are right and those that are disastrous. That is not what I’m talking about.

I believe there is a more fundamental explanation for the extreme language and actions used to express opposition to the other party’s policies. Despair, frustration, violence, self-harm, and self-exile are only some of the signs of the times. High-pitched rhetoric and name-calling provoke a similar reaction from the other side. I believe there’s an explanation that applies left and right. There are, of course, many factors involved in explaining why these disagreements have reached a fever pitch in our country but think with me for a moment as I offer this explanation from a Biblical point of view. There is a basic truth from the Bible that applies to everyone, no matter which side they’re on.

The core of the problem can be expressed in the phrase, “In Government We Trust”.

Although our currency displays “In God We Trust”, our national motto since 1956, the practical truth is that almost every one of us would be more truthful if we said, “In Government We Trust.” Atheists and agnostics, of course, would never be expected to say they trust in God. But the words and deeds of even those who identify as Bible-believing Christians deny the motto “In God We Trust”. We do not trust in God. The words “one nation under God”  of the pledge of allegiance have no practical meaning. We may be one nation, albeit a divided one, but the expression “under God” is merely pious window dressing of no consequence to us personally.

I think we can safely say that everyone trusts in government, except for anarchists, who advocate for the total lack of authority. The end result of anarchy (no government at all) is a country like Sudan, which is considered the epitome of a failed state. Even radicals, the self-proclaimed “Freedom Fighters” whose cry is, “Don’t trust the government” and who resort to violence to overthrow a government, actually trust in government. They’re not opposing government as an institution, they just don’t trust THE government that is currently in power, the people and the policies they oppose. They are fighting to impose THEIR government in the place of the current one.

What, then, does God’s Word say to us about governments and our relationship with them? How do we who claim to hold to Biblical precepts interact with our government? What does the Bible say?

1) Jesus Himself commanded us to pay taxes levied by the government. Mark 12.17 Then Jesus told them, "Give back to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's. And they were amazed at Him.” One translation says the disciples were completely surprised by Jesus’s answer. The Romans were an occupying force and were feared for their violent measures against opposition. They made crucifixion into a sadistic art, yet Jesus said, “Pay your taxes.”

In Romans 13.1-7, we learn the following:

2) We all must submit to our government. Romans 13.1a “Everyone must submit to the governing authorities.”

3) That, in turn, is based on the fact that the authority of government is an institution ordained by God Himself. Romans 13.1b “there is no authority except from God, and those that exist are instituted by God.”

·     God removes kings (and presidents and prime ministers) and establishes them. Daniel 2.21

·     “This is so the living will know that the Most High is ruler over the kingdom of men. He gives it to anyone He wants and sets the lowliest of men over it.” Daniel 4.17  In the minds of whose who are out of power, the “lowliest of men” are precisely the ones who occupy the government. That’s always the message, isn’t it, no matter who’s in power and who the opposition is? Think what you will about the authorities, God controls who sits at the helm of the ship of state.

4) “For government is God’s servant for your good.” Romans 13.4

5) That verse goes on to say, “But if you do wrong, be afraid, because it does not carry the sword for no reason. For government is God’s servant, an avenger that brings wrath on the one who does wrong." Verse 2 “the one who resists the authority is opposing God’s command, and those who oppose it will bring judgment on themselves. “

The Bible says we are to respect government, not trust in it. What about Civil Disobedience? Is there a point where we disobey the authorities? In Acts 4.19, when Peter and John were ordered by the religious officials to stop talking about Jesus, they put the ball back in the court of the authorities:  “Whether it is right before God to obey you rather than God, you decide” NET. Obedience to God takes precedence over obedience to men, and men (human beings) embody the authority of God-instituted government. It takes spiritual discernment to know when that line is crossed. It takes spiritual wisdom to cross that line properly, trusting in God and not in a spirit of vengeance or with a haughty attitude. One may be protesting the authorities’ policies, but we are still to submit to the consequences resulting from disobeying their orders. The “doing wrong” mentioned in Romans 13.4 means “wrong” as defined by the authorities. They punish what they deem is wrong. Even the only truly innocent Man was crucified unjustly. At that point we must follow Jesus’s example and trust in God as we submit to man, knowing God can deliver us even in a fiery furnace. He’s done that before.

"Government" vs. "the Government", there's a difference

It’s important here to distinguish between “government” as a divine institution, which is God’s servant, and “THE government” which is the collection of mortal men who make up the governing body at any one time over a certain area. In some cases, they may be the “lowliest” of men (Dan. 4.17). We know from history they may even be evil, but that does not destroy government as God’s provision for the good of society.

Marriage is another divine institution, but any particular marriage may be a disaster. Mankind is prone to sin, fallible in every way, and the constituent parties, the husband and the wife, are fallible and depending on whether they follow God’s plan for marriage or rebel against it, that marriage will be the closest thing to heaven on earth, or it will be a disastrous experience, the closest thing to hell on earth. That does not negate the divine nature of the institution itself.

So, barring extreme cases in which the government authorities specifically countermand God’s commands for us, we are to respect and obey them. But we are never told to trust in THE government. In fact we are never told to trust “IN government” as an institution.

The reality is, that even those who will not trust in THE government, still trust in government, as opposed to trusting in God. They trust in government because they believe that if their party were in power, then things would be better. In some cases, maybe things would be better, but the fatal error is to trust in government and not trust in God.

This battle goes back to the times of Isaiah and Jeremiah, prophets who rebuked Israel for trusting in kings and horses to free them from impending doom. Israel turned to Syria, and later, to Egypt. “Give us horses and chariots,” they pleaded with Egypt.  God replied:

Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and who depend on horses!

They trust in the abundance of chariots and in the large number of horsemen.

They do not look to the Holy One of Israel and they do not seek the LORD’s help.

Isaiah 31.1

But America is a democratic republic, not a theocracy. Israel was to be a theocratic monarchy, but the principle still applies.  Like the Israelites of Isaiah’s day “In Government We Trust” –give us the leaders, the manpower, the means, and we will conquer. What are the indicators that control the attitudes of the citizens? The stock market, with the ups and downs of the Dow Jones, Nasdaq, and the S&P; which way will the prime interest rate go? Monitor the housing market. Watch the GDP, be aware of the sovereign debt. How does the size of our naval fleet compare with that of other countries? Take note of the number of guns and bombs, and troops to implement them. We entrust THE government with the task of getting those things in line, and if they fail, we elect a new government. In countries with a parliamentary form of government, they do just that, sometimes more than once a year. Portugal in the late 70s and early 80s, two or even three elections a year were not uncommon. Here in the US, power can really only shift in Congress every two years and in the White House every four. Those four years can be a long, painful wait for the opposition party.

The Angst and the rage, the despondency and despair, the gloom and doom on the one side; the projections of promise and prosperity, the elation and ecstasy, the almost unbridled glee on the other side at the prospects of having achieved the answer to our problems---the one and the other are both signs that what people ultimately trust in is government. The result is the power struggle to make sure that we get into power THE government we believe in.

It takes government to foster the policies and means to function in the world we live in. But when we lose sight of the global course of history under God and stop trusting Him to get it right, we miss the point. Isaiah opposed the trust in political alliances and in Isaiah. 30.15 he said,

For the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said:

“You will be delivered by returning and resting;

your strength will lie in quiet confidence.

But you are not willing.”

This is not a “be happy, don’t worry” message. There will be no rest until we return to God and find our strength in quiet confidence in Him. Remember Bob Marley’s catchy little ditty that said,

“Don't worry about a thing'

Cause every little thing gonna be alright.”

Actually every little thing’s not gonna be alright, and we should be concerned. While we submit to government and respect the civil authorities, we must be trusting in God now and not in government, the economy, taxes, and foreign policy. Those things are important, but they are not the foundation of our feelings and emotional well-being. The Bible says there will come a government of peace and prosperity as it seeks to control every purchase and every thought. It will be the apex of man’s government without God going back all the way back to the Tower of Babel, headed by Satan himself, executed by the hand of the Antichrist and False Prophet. If you’re trusting in government and not God, you will find it will be a natural transition into the trap of Satan. To avoid that we must walk by faith and not by sight.

In his classic book, The Prophets, Abraham J. Heschel wrote about Isaiah’s losing battle against unbelief:

“Is it realistic to expect that nations would discard their horses and look to the Lord instead? Indeed, it is hard to learn how to live by faith.”

But that’s exactly what God expects of us. “The just shall live by faith.”

In God I Trust.

(The Prophets, Harper Collins Publisher Hardcover Edition, 2023, p. 91)