by jimwalton » Sun Apr 06, 2014 1:52 pm
That's really a great question, and it gets into pretty tricky business, because many laws are unjust and are there to favor the rich and powerful. We all know that one of the primary uses of political power is to give oneself and one's allies an advantage, and to create mechanisms to keep the power you have and get more of it, not to mention keep the money you have and get more of it. When it comes right down to it, there is a lot of evil in human government, even in the best-case scenarios.
When Paul was writing Romans 13, Nero was in power in Rome. The Roman government considered itself not just "useful as an extension of God's rule of justice," but divine in and of itself. The State was corrupt, weak, abusive, and extraordinarily powerful. Nevertheless, Paul supports the idea of willing, rational duty. A believer really can't subscribe to the immoral edicts of a corrupt government, but sometimes in the practicality of matters, no one can fight against everything. In some places we comply, and in others we defy, as our conscience leads us. Sometimes a law makes something illegal, such as marijuana use, and then a week later it's legal. So is it not a sin to smoke it, then, where it was a "sin" a week earlier? In a sense, no, because it's not against the law anymore. That, however, doesn't make it a wise choice or even a moral one, because the government can't necessarily be counted on to always make the moral choice in the formation of laws. So Christians have to way all moral choices (including obeying the laws or not) under the overarching standards of God's character and the morality that is based in his nature. Sometimes, also, Christians are going to disagree about such things (Rom. 13.8-15.13), and sometimes those disagreements are to be expected and tolerated. So is it a sin where it's illegal and not a sin where it's legal? Perhaps, but not necessarily, because many factors must be weighed to make a moral and godly decisions. It's rarely an issue of simple black-and-white.
Remember also that the "introductory" statement of Romans 13 is found in the last verse of Romans 12: "Don't be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." Often principles of attitude and behavior are more useful than lists of rules, so that Christians can rationally think things through, seek the Spirit that is in them, read the Word, pray, and make the wisest choice possible.
That's really a great question, and it gets into pretty tricky business, because many laws are unjust and are there to favor the rich and powerful. We all know that one of the primary uses of political power is to give oneself and one's allies an advantage, and to create mechanisms to keep the power you have and get more of it, not to mention keep the money you have and get more of it. When it comes right down to it, there is a lot of evil in human government, even in the best-case scenarios.
When Paul was writing Romans 13, Nero was in power in Rome. The Roman government considered itself not just "useful as an extension of God's rule of justice," but divine in and of itself. The State was corrupt, weak, abusive, and extraordinarily powerful. Nevertheless, Paul supports the idea of willing, rational duty. A believer really can't subscribe to the immoral edicts of a corrupt government, but sometimes in the practicality of matters, no one can fight against everything. In some places we comply, and in others we defy, as our conscience leads us. Sometimes a law makes something illegal, such as marijuana use, and then a week later it's legal. So is it not a sin to smoke it, then, where it was a "sin" a week earlier? In a sense, no, because it's not against the law anymore. That, however, doesn't make it a wise choice or even a moral one, because the government can't necessarily be counted on to always make the moral choice in the formation of laws. So Christians have to way all moral choices (including obeying the laws or not) under the overarching standards of God's character and the morality that is based in his nature. Sometimes, also, Christians are going to disagree about such things (Rom. 13.8-15.13), and sometimes those disagreements are to be expected and tolerated. So is it a sin where it's illegal and not a sin where it's legal? Perhaps, but not necessarily, because many factors must be weighed to make a moral and godly decisions. It's rarely an issue of simple black-and-white.
Remember also that the "introductory" statement of Romans 13 is found in the last verse of Romans 12: "Don't be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." Often principles of attitude and behavior are more useful than lists of rules, so that Christians can rationally think things through, seek the Spirit that is in them, read the Word, pray, and make the wisest choice possible.