Respect for Authority Part 1: The Order of Authority
I've been pondering this topic lately and it's something I've struggled with most of my adult life. I know I'm supposed to respect authority in my life. I'm to respect my parents, my teachers, my employers, law enforcement, legislators, governors and presidents. We've been told this our whole lives and those in authority over us were right to do so. My main question is, to what end? Clearly there are times where we do not follow the requests of those in authority. For example, if they request that you do something blatantly illegal. What about the case of a teacher molesting or grooming a student? Obviously, we would allow a child in that situation to disobey their teacher. The more important and historically significant example is the case for the Declaration of Independence itself. This was blatant disrespect of King George III's authority and also illegal under British law. If I am to be consistent in my belief system, I must understand how I can believe that both of these things are true: (1) It is my duty to respect those in authority over me and (2) The Declaration of Independence and the Revolutionary War that followed were just reactions to King George III's tyranny. This is precisely the quandary that many of the founders and colonists found themselves tethered to for decades leading up to the Declaration of Independence. Jefferson's main task in writing the document was to convince those still on the fence about the issue. Was our cause just?
This is an issue that had been discussed even centuries before during the protestant reformation in Europe. Martin Luther[1], a minister typically referred to as the father of the 16th century Protestant Reformation, and Jean Calvin[2], a French theologian typically credited with influencing the founding principles of the Unites States of America, wrote essays on this topic in 1523 and 1536, respectively. Luther's book was titled On Secular Authority and Calvin's titled On Civil Government. I suggest everyone read these books. I found a copy where both are combined into one book with a thorough introduction on the two texts[3]. Basically, they come from the perspective that there are two sets of authority: God's authority and government's authority. Both need to be respected, but God is in authority over both; therefore, when Princes and Magistrates make laws or declarations that require you to deny, reject, or disobey God, you have the right and duty to rebel. To make this point more clearly, I have separated these into two parts: The Order of Authority and How are Christians to live?
Two Governments On Earth: Secular And Spiritual
Let us begin by separating the two forms of government or authority. Both Luther and Calvin have come to the same conclusion on this fact. Both men have different terms, but I prefer to list them the way Luther does for simplification: Spiritual government and Secular government.
"And so God has ordained the two governments, the spiritual [government] which fashions true Christians and just persons through the Holy Spirit under Christ, and the secular government which holds the Unchristian and wicked in check and forces them to keep the peace outwardly and be still, like it or not." - Martin Luther
Luther defines the differences between the purposes for the two governments. The spiritual government rules over the hearts of men and judges their souls; the secular government rules over the people in their domain and keeps order and civility amongst the wicked. They judge a man's actions because they do not have the knowledge or capacity to judge a man's heart. Calvin agrees on the separation of powers,
"We have established that there are two governments to which mankind is subject, . . .the first of these, which rules over the soul or the inner man, and concerns itself with eternal life . . . the second, whose province is the establishment of a merely civil and external justice, a justice in conduct." - Jean Calvin
It is right and good that we keep these powers separate. We must always keep that in mind when we deal with secular governments. Secular government is instituted to control the actions of men so that the righteous are protected from the wicked. They keep the peace on earth by punishing the wicked and rewarding good behavior with freedom of movement.
"But anyone who knows how to distinguish between body and soul, between this present transitory life and the eternal life to come, will not find it difficult to understand that the spiritual kingdom of Christ and civil government are things far removed from one another." - Jean Calvin
"Therefore care must be taken to keep these two governments distinct, and both must be allowed to continue [their work], the one to make [people] just, the other to create outward peace and prevent evil-doing." - Martin Luther
Neither can rule the world alone. They must both exist in order to have a functioning relationship between God and His creation and between men and his neighbor. Jesus also states this very fact, that power is separated into two categories when asked if it is right to pay taxes.
"Give to the Emperor the things that are the Emperor's and to God the things that are God's." - Matthew 22:21
Here Jesus isn't just making the obvious statement to get out from under the pressure of the Sanhedrin. He was making a more nuanced statement about power in general. It's one of those verses we take for granted. Jesus is clearly stating that the people are to respect the secular authority (Caesar) as well as the spiritual authority. They both have their place and they both should be recognized for the value that they offer the people.
Always remember, God is in ultimate, supreme authority over all people and all governments. God could rule over the earth and judge men on their actions in real time, if He so chooses, but East of Eden God will leave us to our own demise and intervene where He sees fit. This is where God's sovereignty and Man's free will collide. God wants each individual to choose Him over the world, so He sets us free to do so. But He uses those He appoints, Princes and Magistrates, to rule in His stead over His people. Once a new heaven and a new earth are formed, we no longer will have a need for secular government, since Christ will then rule.
God Holds Authority Over Both
"2 Timothy 4:4: 'Everything created by God is good, and not to be rejected by the faithful and those who recognize the truth.' And you must count not only food and drink, clothes and shoes, but also power and subordination, protection and punishment, as things created by God." - Martin Luther
If God appoints those to a position of power, it must be intended for good in the end. Those who recognize the truth are Christian and righteous men. We shall not reject the authority granted by God to our earthly masters.
"Those in power do not bear the sword in vain. For power is the handmaiden of God, his avenger for your good against him that does evil" - Romans 13:4
"How the secular Sword and law are to be employed according to God's will is thus clear and certain enough: to punish the wicked and protect the just." - Martin Luther
Therefore, all earthly power is appointed by God. Yes, you read that correctly. The Bible doesn't specify between good rulers and bad rulers; it actually does the opposite. Remember that God hardened the heart of Pharaoh towards Moses and God gave the Israelites over to Babylon. Many a time, His own people were oppressed by a ruler, it was God's will that this be done. Why, so that He could deliver them and so the world may know the power of our God. I understand this is a difficult topic for Christians and Non-Christians to grasp, but we must understand that God is good. Everything that God does is good. If God allows us to suffer, we should count it as good for us to suffer. God doesn't see death as a problem. He views our death as a departure from a life void of His presence to a life in fellowship with Him. Remember, those of us who were baptized in the Holy Spirit, are already considered dead. Yes, if what the Bible says is true about where power comes from, God even appointed the likes of Hitler and Mao to rule over parts of His creation. Not that evil will be done on earth, but that good may come from it. Luther writes about his own rulers at the time.
"For God Almighty has driven our princes mad: they really think they can command their subjects whatever they like and do with them as they please. And their subjects are just as deluded, and believe (wrongly) that they must obey them in all things." - Martin Luther
Luther rejected the unjust laws handed down by corrupt rulers in his day. He called them out for what they were and led a reformation movement within the Church. He lays the foundation for the responsibilities of Princes and Magistrates.
Separation Of Powers
So let us recap what we have learned so far. God rules above all and appoints Princes and Magistrates to rule over the people on earth. The role of the Princes and Magistrates is to punish the wicked and protect the just. They do so with the sword and the law. The law are rules, to which the people agree, are just in protecting the righteous among us and the sword is the instrument used to punish the wicked actions of men. However, the role of Princes and Magistrates only pertain to the body or to matters between neighbors.
"Secular government has laws that extend no further than the body, goods and outward, earthly matters. But where the soul is concerned, God neither can nor will allow anyone but himself to rule. And so where secular authority takes it upon itself to legislate for the soul, it trespasses on [what belongs to] God's government, and merely seduces and ruins souls." - Martin Luther
"For in many hearts a concern for what is right and just grows cold unless honours are assigned to virtue; and the depravity of the wicked cannot be checked except by severity and the knowledge that they will be punished." - Jean Calvin
God limits the freedoms of secular government. They cannot rule over matters of the heart, for they have no capacity to understand the matters of the heart. They only have the freedoms that God and thus the people allow them to enforce. Secular government must do it's best to assess the guilt of a man, but if sufficient evidence is not found, they must give the man back his freedom.
"When [secular government] is given too much freedom of action, the harm that results is unbearable and horrifying, but to have it confined within too narrow a compass is also harmful. In the one case there is too much punishment, in the other too little. But it is more tolerable to err on the side of the latter: it is always better that a villain should live then that a just man should be killed." - Martin Luther
Luther makes the case for proper secular government; that they must keep the well-being of the people paramount. If we are to take action against an accused person, we better be sure they deserve that punishment.
Trespasses Of Secular Authority
For the role of the people, if God ordains Princes and Magistrates power to rule in His place on earth, the people must subject themselves to their authority. However, this also means that Princes and Magistrates have a God-given calling to do what is right and just in His eyes towards His people. They have an eternal responsibility to protect the just and punish the wicked.
"For if [magistrates] are guilty of some dereliction of duty, they not only wrong the people by the crimes they commit against them, but God [himself], whose sacred judgments they defile." - Jean Calvin
Woe to those Princes and Magistrates that abrogate their power and oppress God's people. If God is just, justice will come down upon them. When God removes the authority from bad princes, He may do so in many different ways. We've seen princes die of sickness, killed by assassins, overthrown by other princes, or dethroned by the people. In free societies with Republics or Democracies, these bad princes can be overthrown by peaceful means, such as elections. If Princes and Magistrates make laws or edits that require you to defy God's law, you have a responsibility to defy those unjust laws.
"If they command anything against [his will], it must be as nothing to us. And in this instance we must ignore all that dignity that magistrates possess." - Jean Calvin
"For sometimes he raises up avengers from amongst his servants, designated and commanded by him to punish the tyranny of vicious men and to deliver the oppressed from their wretched calamities; at other times he turns the frenzy of men who intended something quite different to the same end." - Jean Calvin
Calvin refers to those that overthrow wicked princes as avengers. These avengers could be one person or a large group, but they are always earthly beings that are sent to deliver the oppressed from tyrannical rulers. Sometimes, it is as simple as electing a new governor, but other times, it resolves after a bloody war. We can't be afraid to use any means necessary to overthrow a tyrant, as long as he is a tyrant. If we allow tyrants to rule, how many more people will suffer at their hands? We must also be warry of using the term tyrant for mistakes made in leadership or a difference of opinion.
"I freely admit that no form of government is better than that in which liberty and the right degree of restraint are reconciled, [a government] rightly ordered so as to be durable." - Jean Calvin
When there is no other recourse, such as in the case of America's founding, it was the right of the people to abolish the oppressive government and set up a new government. One that properly reconciles personal liberty and the right degree of restraint. In the second part, How are Christians to live?, I will detail the role of Christians to secular authority which will explain these points further. However, it is clear in these texts and so many others, that God rules over all, He appoints Princes and Magistrates to rule over His people, and it is the role of the people to subject themselves to the just rulings of earthly masters as long as those earthly masters don't rule in matters belonging to God.
Hillerbrand, Hans J.. "Martin Luther". Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Feb. 2021, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Martin-Luther. Accessed 22 July 2021.
Bouwsma, William J.. "John Calvin". Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 Jul. 2021, https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Calvin. Accessed 22 July 2021.
Hopel, Harro. Luther and Calvin on Secular Authority. Cambridge University Press, 2013.