Chuck Baldwin - Romans 13: The True Meaning of Submission

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/146287018X/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&tag=l...

New Romans 13 Book Now Available

Chuck Baldwin
Jul 7, 2011


As I told readers some weeks back, my son, Tim Baldwin, and I have collaborated on a brand new book that deeply analyzes the teaching of Romans chapter 13. This book is an in-depth study of the full teaching of scripture relevant to the subject of submission to civil authority from both the Old and New Testament, and from the writings of Christian philosophers throughout history. At no time in our nation's history was a book of this nature more necessary! The book is entitled Romans 13: The True Meaning of Submission. In fact, my four-part DVD message series on Romans 13 is but a thumbnail sketch of the exhaustive amount of information contained in this book.

The following paragraphs are the introductory paragraphs of a few chapters (without the citations and footnotes).

Chapter 2: 'Higher Powers' Superseded by 'Highest Powers'

HIGHER POWERS NECESSARILY do not equate to the authority of God--Who is the Highest power--but only serve as God's limited agent on earth for a limited purpose. Within that purpose, those "powers that be are ordained of God." That all persons who wield power are ordained of God as His ministers mocks sound rules of construction and interpretation, as well as common sense, and results in treachery. Even God's power alone does not necessitate an internal obligation to submit to His power. Rather, it is His power in conjunction with God's wisdom, power and goodness, which creates an obligation in humans to submit to His authority. So it has been observed, "if to the idea of Creator we join . . . the idea of a being perfectly wise and sovereignly good, who has no desire of exercising his power but for the good and advantage of his creatures; then we have every thing necessary to found a legitimate authority."

Scriptures state the same, "[the people of Israel] bowed themselves with their faces to the ground upon the pavement, and worshipped, and praised the LORD, saying, 'For he is good; for his mercy endureth for ever'." God ordains government in that its function is to serve His purpose of good; just as when God created all there is as recorded in the book of Genesis, He looked at His creation and declared all to be "good." God did not create all there is and declare it to be good, only to subject all of mankind to the strongest tyrant capable of enslaving them. He created "good" for His glory and for man's benefit. His ordinations can be no different. In whatever form the government may be, higher powers are always "under" or "below" God and never possess God's approval when it contradicts the good purposes for which God ordains government.

Chapter 4: That God Commands Unlimited Submission to Unjust Government Contradicts God's Nature

GOD'S WORD REFLECTS His nature: "For I the LORD love judgment, I hate robbery for burnt offering." That God sanctions any persons in government to enforce any acts as His ministers—thus demanding unlimited submission to the same without regard to the standards of God's established justice--contradicts God's nature, God's laws, the prophecies concerning Jesus and His ministry, and the plain reading of Romans 13. God is the author of justice for all nations in every generation: "[God's] judgments are in all the earth"; "his truth endureth to all generations;" and "Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations."

In fact, Scriptures reveal that God's laws of justice were created to last forever, saying, "[God] laid the foundations of the earth, that it should not be removed for ever." And in fact, when God created these laws for mankind, these laws already existed as a part of God's nature. The foundations of God's laws, justice and righteousness cannot be removed by His ministers with His ordination.

Chapter 7: Submission to the 'Higher Powers' Standard May Require New Persons

A GENUINE RECOGNITION OF submission to a God-ordained government may require new higher powers. Replacing bad government with good would be necessary to comport to God's command for submission to government in Romans 13. One's duty to God, self, family and neighbor sometimes requires this. It is this duty that creates obligation, and out of obligation comes power, or ordination. Put differently, "every action, contrary to the ends which God has proposed, is not agreeable to the divine Majesty; and that he approves, on the contrary, those which of themselves are proper to promote his ends." Upon this principle, it has been rightly noted concerning the power of people to replace governors,

"This power [of governors] [the people] can limit, modify or recover at pleasure; for the alienation of such a right is incompatible with the nature of the social body, and contrary to the end of association."

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• Romans 13
• Bible
• Chuck Baldwin
• Ron Paul
• Christian
• Christianity
• Just War
• Submission
• Rebellion
• Tim Baldwin
• New Testament
• Romans
• civil authority
• Government
• Constitution

[reginaDexant]

@FKTHPOPE I trust then you will be voting for DR. PAUL the only Christian. Did you know that Obama was educated by the Jesuits in Indonesia? What about Mormon Mitt? What about the 2 Catholics Newt & Santorum? RON PAUL IS THE ONLY OPTION FOR LIBERTY! Please vote in the primary and find out how to be a delegate.

Don't let the lame stream media discourage you. Ron Paul is the only candidate that truly loves his neighbor & follows the Golden Rule (which he got boo'd for-can you believe it?).RESIST!

[TheGirlnurse]

God Bless you Chuck! Great sermon....makes too much sense. No King but Jesus!

[JSillynutz]

Very eye opening. I am glad to see a pastor who is in tune with today's world and with God and will speak about it. Him and Paul should team up.

[arion45]

Jefferson meant that quote for the government not man. He was speaking of judges.

[arion45]

On every question of construction carry ourselves back to the time when the Constitution was adopted, recollect the spirit manifested in the debates and instead of trying what meaning may be squeezed out of the text or invented against it, conform to the probable one in which it was passed. ... In questions of power, then, let no more be heard of confidence in man, but bind him down from mischief by the chains of the Constitution."

[OldDannyboy12]

...the book of Philemon, why? I would answer for the greater glory of God, Paul gave place to God. Each man should make his own decision knowing he will have to account for his actions and his motivations. I realize a lot of you will be offended by this, but I feel an obligation to speak it. In short I would say the if authorities forbid what God has commanded, or command what God has forbidden, you have an obligation to resist, but aside from that, it's better to suffer a wrong than commit one.

[OldDannyboy12]

Every man should examine his own motives, fearfully knowing that if he acts according to his own will, he will have to answer to God. From Ephesians 6 we know that this a spiritual war, not against flesh and blood. Whenever possible give place to God to repay wicked men. A whole lot of scripture was left out of this teaching, and just enough truth was in it to get someone in trouble. I think we'd all agree that slavery was never God's will, yet Paul sent Onesimus back to his master in the .....

[OldDannyboy12]

While I generally agree with much, (not all) of this teaching I fear it will be misused by those who seek a moral justification for the execution of their own self will. Our motivations should be the greater glory of God, increasing conformity to the image of Jesus the Christ, and the doing of Gods will, not ours. Daniel chapters 3 and 6 give examples of not only justified, but obligatory resistance, which glorified God. However, in 1 Samuel 24:5, David spares Saul who unjustly sought his life.

[kentucky9000]

God is Good. Thank you brother chuck I hear you, I see. !!!

[Jmuking]

implying God is real