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Obedience to the constituted authorities:
v. 13. Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether it be to the king, as supreme,
v. 14. or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evil-doers, and for the praise of them that do well.
v. 15. For so is the will of God, that with well doing ye may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men;
v. 16. as free, and not using your liberty for a cloak of maliciousness, but as the servants of God.
v. 17. Honor all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.
Here the apostle mentions some specific instances in which his instructions concerning the behavior of the Christians over against the heathen should find their application: Submit yourselves to every human authority for the Lord's sake, whether it be to the emperor, as supreme, or to the governors as deputed by him for the punishing of evil-doers, but for the praise of those that do well. This admonition, the necessity of which must be admitted in our days without question, was badly needed also in the days of the early Church. Not only was the doctrine of spiritual liberty liable to be misinterpreted by superficial Christians, but some of them might be under the impression that the government, being heathen, was none of their concern, and that they owed no allegiance to the emperor. Therefore the apostle plainly states that believers are to submit themselves, are to be subject and obedient to every human authority and institution. Whether men have chosen the democratic or the monarchical form of government makes no difference to the Lord, for by His authority all governments exist, Rom_13:1-2. It makes no difference either, as the apostle indicates, whether all authority is vested in a single man, as in an emperor, or whether this emperor, as the supreme, the preeminent head of the nation, commissions or deputes governors to administer justice in any section of the empire, the authority of the government should be recognized and its existence by divine order acknowledged. That is one of the functions of the government, that it punish such as are wicked, as refuse to keep the peace, as are disobedient to the laws of the country. The people that do well, on the other hand, those that live in conformity with the laws of the land, the government should acknowledge with proper praise, that is, by protecting them and their property against every form of wickedness. Note: It is self-evident that Christians cannot be obedient to the government if the latter tries to extend its authority to spiritual matters, Act_4:19.
The motive for the willing obedience of the Christians is given by the apostle: For so is the will of God, namely, that in well-doing you silence the error of foolish men, as free, and not having your freedom as a cloak of your malice, but as God's servants. The statement just made by the apostle is not his own personal opinion, which the Christians may or may not accept, as they choose, but it is the will of God. The Christians in this way, by cheerful obedience to the constituted authorities, will do more to silence the wrong ideas, the errors which foolish men hold with regard to their status in the state, than by books written in explanation of their tenets. Mark: Also in our days, when the unbelievers are jeering at the otherworldliness of the true Christian religion and boldly declare that Christianity has proved a failure in coping with the special problems of our days, our most effective argument is to do our duty in good works, as citizens and as neighbors, meanwhile changing neither our religion nor the means of grace given to us by God. Christians should remember that they are free, that they are partakers of the wonderful freedom which the Son of God earned for them by His suffering and death. As free children of God we Christians will therefore show that willing submission to which the apostle admonishes. But no true believer will plead freedom from the Law as his excuse for not obeying the government, for not fulfilling the holy will of God in every possible way. He will not, under the pretense of standing fast in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free, become guilty of sins and of various forms of wickedness. That would be a disgraceful abuse of the freedom to which Christ has called us, Gal_5:13. We are in the service of God; this is our highest boast, that we are not serving as unwilling slaves, but as servants, whose greatest delight it is to show the new spiritual life in works which will please our heavenly Father.
As such free men, that serve God in willing obedience, the Christians are glad to hear the apostle in his call: Give honor to all; love the brotherhood; fear God; honor the king. To all their fellow-men the Christians are to give the honor which is due them in whatever position they hold in the state or in society. TO all their brethren in the faith they should show that intimate, intensive love which is proper among children of the same heavenly Father. To God they should give fear and reverence, all other considerations being relegated to the background in view of this demand. To the king or emperor, that is, to the constituted government, they will give the honor which is due according to the Fourth Commandment. Altogether, it is not a mere passive attitude which the Lord here speaks of, but an active exhibition of a state of mind which is bound in loving obedience under the Word of God.