Saturday, November 15, 2008
Pastor Brian Cook

The most High ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it to whomsoever he will, and setteth up over it the basest of men.” Daniel 4:17

The election of Barak Obama to the highest position in the land has created an opportunity for Christians to look at the theology of God’s role in civil government and to apply the necessary biblical principles regarding our relationship to the governing authorities.
Even though I personally am very unhappy with the outcome of election 2008, as a Christian, I must filter what has happened in light of God’s Word and His sovereignty. The Bible makes it very clear that no man is given any authority apart from what God has allowed. When Jesus Christ stood before the Roman governor, Pontius Pilate, Jesus told Pilate that the only power that Pilate had was the power that was given to him from above (John 19:11).

Ultimately, God is the One Who places men in positions of authority and He is the One Who removes them from power as well. So, the natural question is: “Would God place an ungodly man in a position of authority over His people?” The answer: He has done it many times!

If we were to look at the Bible we would see many examples of ungodly men placed in power and with the benefit of hindsight we can know why God allowed those men to rise to those positions of power. In Romans 9:17 we are told why God raised up the hard-hearted, unbelieving, tyrannical Pharaoh to his place of power. God said that it was through that ungodly ruler that He would show His power and His name would be known.

The examples of the placement of ungodly rulers over God’s people are numerous in the Bible. Ezra said that God rose up the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar to conquer and to rule over the Israelites (Ezra 5:12). We know that God even spoke through the Prophet Isaiah regarding the Persian King Cyrus who would eventually release the Jews from their captivity. In Isaiah 44:28 God said of King Cyrus, “He is my shepherd, and shall perform all my pleasure:”

It can be hard for us to understand how God could ever call a pagan king “My shepherd”, but He can because God is sovereign over all rulers and all authorities who all ultimately will bend to His sovereignty. Romans 13:1 says “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.”

The Bible teaches us that God is the ultimate authority behind all human authorities. Now, it must be clearly understood that God is not responsible for the evil those men may commit, because the Bible makes it clear that God has established and has limited civil government to function two ways. They are to punish those who do evil and to protect those who do well (Romans 13:3-4). In fact, in Romans 13:4 the Apostle Paul says that the governing authorities are God’s “minister” or servant in accomplishing that end.

Having said that, we must also understand that sometimes God allows people the freedom in making choices regarding the election of their leaders. This may seem like a contradiction to some, but the truth is that God in His sovereignty has chosen to allow us to make decisions that will affect our own future and yet His sovereignty is not threatened in the least. He cannot be threatened by our free will because God is omniscient. That means that He knows all things. Not only does He know all things that will happen, but He even knows all things that could happen.  Scripture says that God works “all things after the counsel of his own will”’ (Eph. 1:11) not the will of man.

It is clear from the Bible that God is involved in national politics. One only needs to read Jeremiah chapters 18-21 to discern this truth. In Jeremiah’s day, and in our own day, we can see that a nation’s leader typically reflects the values and morals of the people. The reason why God allowed the Israelites to be conquered and ruled by an ungodly and a wicked man is because they themselves had become an ungodly and wicked people.

So, when a nation finds itself desiring a leader that reflects their ungodly values and wicked morals it should be of no surprise to anyone if God gives those people exactly what they desire as a form of judgment. It is only when a sinful people desires to change their ways will they also desire a change in their leaders.

So, what is a proper response for the Christian regarding the election of a man who most likely will not uphold biblical values and morals? We must do our best to submit to, respect and obey him as long as we are not required to violate God’s Word in doing so. The Bible never teaches our unlimited submission to a civil government because that submission belongs to God alone (Acts 5:27-29).

The election of Barak Obama to the presidency of the United States of America will prove to be a balancing act for many biblical Christians. Even so, we must strive to balance our obedience and our dissension by using the Word of God to affect our words and our attitudes.

Let us not forget God’s promise to His people in 2 Chronicles 7:14:  “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” This repentance must begin with the Church which bears the name of Jesus Christ.