Well, good morning, saints.
Good morning.
What a joy to begin worshiping the Lord, remembering the Lord for the blood of Jesus. How wonderful, how powerful. What a joy it is. That is the reason we come together on the Lord’s Day.
If you would turn with me to Romans 13. Now, I think some of you already know this: this is the shortest chapter in the Book of Romans. Paul 16—this is the shortest chapter. It may be a relief to some of you: fourteen verses, just fourteen verses.
Now, we will read those verses, because I believe you ought to read the Word. How many times have I said it? Read the Word over and over. And after you have read the Word, read the Word, okay? That is so important.
Let every soul be in subjection to the higher powers:
for there is no power but of God;
and the powers that be are ordained of God.Therefore he that resisteth the power, withstandeth the ordinance of God:
and they that withstand shall receive to themselves judgment.For rulers are not a terror to the good work, but to the evil.
And wouldest thou have no fear of the power?
do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise from the same:
for he is a minister of God to thee for good.
But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid;
for he beareth not the sword in vain:
for he is a minister of God, an avenger for wrath to him that doeth evil.Wherefore ye must needs be in subjection, not only because of the wrath, but also for conscience’ sake.
For this cause ye pay tribute also;
for they are ministers of God’s service, attending continually upon this very thing.
Render to all their dues:
tribute to whom tribute is due;
custom to whom custom;
fear to whom fear;
honor to whom honor.Owe no man anything, save to love one another:
for he that loveth his neighbor hath fulfilled the law.
For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not covet;
and if there be any other commandment, it is summed up in this word, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
Love worketh no ill to his neighbor:
love therefore is the fulfilment of the law.And this, knowing the season, that already it is time for you to awake out of sleep:
for now is salvation nearer to us than when we first believed.
The night is far spent, and the day is at hand:
let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.
Let us walk becomingly, as in the day;
not in revelling and drunkenness,
not in chambering and wantonness,
not in strife and jealousy.
But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ,
and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.
Let us pray.
Lord, we are so grateful You have given Your Word. Your Word is living. Your Word is sharper than any two-edged sword. Your Word is able to penetrate to the deepest parts, even to the joints and marrow, the bones—right to the inner parts—and reveal what is in our hearts.
So we come to You again today, Lord. We do not trust in man. We come to You again, and ask that You would speak—speak clearly. We are not able to do that, but You are.
We believe You have given the Holy Spirit to remind us of everything You said, and He is with us forever. So we are asking that the Holy Spirit would rule over this ministry time for Your glory and for Your praise. We ask all these things in the precious name of our Lord Jesus. Amen.
Well, I think some of you may be familiar with this chapter. Many of you may not like this chapter. A few of you may be confused about this chapter and wonder, “What on earth was Paul talking about?”
It seems to me to be very clear what he is talking about. If we do not understand what he is talking about, we cannot live the Christian life and bear the testimony of Jesus. So we are going to get into it.
It is the most practical thing, you know: being subject to authority. We sometimes do not even like that phrase. But the title I have given this message is “Being Subject to Authority: The Will of God.”
You remember how we started in the practical part of this book, the last section, the third part, in Romans 12. That is where we transition into practical living. We are told to be living sacrifices.
The key verse, I think, in that section is Romans 12:2, where it talks about the good, the acceptable, and the perfect will of God. I believe that phrase captures all of these last chapters, Romans 12 through 16. So that is why we are calling this, “Being Subject to Authority: The Will of God.”
Today, our emphasis will be on our obligations and responsibilities to civil government. You do not like that, do you? You may be getting a little squeamish in your seat.
But I am not going to talk to you about church leadership, being subject to church leadership, because Paul did not talk about that here. He was talking about believers living in this world. Do they understand this principle of authority?
We need, first of all, as children of the Lord Jesus, as children of the Father, as those with our elder Brother, the Lord Jesus, to understand what it means to be subject to authority and why it is such an important testimony in this world.
We are going to look at three parts. William has already told me he has his outline, so he is prepared, if nobody else is.
The first part is the largest part of the chapter. It is half of it. So, can I say this? I do not want to start sounding like our president, but it is a big deal. It is a big deal. We need to understand it if we are going to live the Christian life.
The last part is a time of great expectation. We can live in this world and be a living testimony of the Lord Jesus, and also be those with the highest expectation and hope that any people have ever had. We are by far the most blessed people on the face of the earth.
These fourteen verses deal with our responsibility as Christians: to God, to authority, and to the people of this world. We have an obligation to the people of this world—a single obligation. Then there is also the Christian’s expectation while living in this world.
In Romans 13:1-7, there is only one theme. It is very clear. You cannot read this and come up with two or three themes. He talks about authority over and over again, until it makes us all a bit nervous.
Is this how Christians should live in relation to government? Now, I know you are hoping I finish this chapter quickly and move on to the next chapter, but this is quite important. You need to know this as part of your Christian life.
It is often misunderstood. It is often confused. It is somewhat controversial. What does it mean to be submitted to authority? What does that really mean to the believer? This is not written to the world. This was written to the church in Rome. So this is for us.
Here is the point: you must see, first of all, above everything else—and this is the main point—that there is a supreme authority over all. We are living in the world as those under authority.
You remember that centurion who came concerning his sick servant. The Lord was willing to go to his home, and he said, “No, no, no, no. You do not need to go. Just say a word. Just say a word.”
He said, “I am under authority. I tell those under me to go, and they go. I tell them to come, and they come.” This was one who understood authority.
I will never forget the Lord’s reaction. Here was this man—he was not a Jew—and the Lord said, “I have not seen such great faith in all of Israel.” What a statement our beloved Lord made.
So we are those under authority. We need to understand that we are under the supreme authority. But, brothers and sisters, here is the bad news: it does not relieve you from being under the civil authorities that God has allowed.
I think that is the substance of this chapter. Let me read the first part of Romans 13:1 again: “Let every soul be subject to the authorities that are above him.”
Those of you sitting here this morning and thinking, “That does not apply to me, thank God,” Paul began by saying, “Let every soul be subject to the authorities that are above him.” I think that is quite clear.
Newell puts it this way: every soul here means every believer—particularly believers. We should be a testimony that we understand authority, respect it, and honor it.
Every believer must understand the divine—I do not want to use this word, but I have to, with my limited vocabulary—concept of authority. It is not just a concept; it is a reality. It is a reality.
May the Lord help us and lead us into a fuller understanding of what this means, so that we would be the testimony of Jesus in the earth.
You remember when the risen Lord Jesus spoke to His disciples at the end, as recorded in Matthew 28:18. This is the good news, by the way.
He was talking to them about discipling, going, making disciples—not just getting people saved. Brother, I digress; forgive me. Not just getting people saved. How important that is, but getting people discipled to the Lord Jesus.
He said to them, “All authority and power hath been given unto Me in heaven and on earth.” How wonderful.
I am so glad when I look at the authorities of this world—and I could name a few that you despise and probably name a few that I despise—that there is only One who is the ultimate authority. This is Romans 13. That is the One we are under.
I like the way the Amplified puts it a little clearer, I think, with one phrase: “All authority, all power, an absolute rule.” Is that not clear? All power, an absolute rule, in heaven and earth has been given to Me.
Unless we understand this divine authority that is over all, we can never submit to authority. You cannot. This is what the believer must see.
We understand that this absolute divine truth is the only way we can ever be subject to civil authorities. Now, why is that? Let me put it plainly, so you understand it. Even if you do not understand me, you will understand it.
All authority, in a sense, is a direct testimony of the supreme authority. Do you get that? That is so important.
Why does God allow authorities on the earth? Some of them shameful, many of them shameful; some unrighteous; some diabolical. Why does He allow such a thing on the earth?
Because He has a living picture through the authorities that are here: that there is, above all, a supreme authority that governs all things. That is Romans 13. That is the secret. That is the key.
God has a very high view of authority. Remember, He said, “All authority and power in heaven and in earth has been given to Me.” He has a high view of authority, and He does not want His children to have a low view of authority, even when it comes to civil authority.
I think this is very clear why Paul wrote this to Rome. Could you imagine those believers being under the domination and terror of Rome, under that great oppressive empire, and coming into terrible persecution?
Here was the message in Romans 13: submit to all authority.
The second part of Romans 13:1 might make you a little more nervous:
For there is no power but of God;
and the powers that be are ordained of God.
Now, this is the point where you should start getting nervous, because you should start thinking, “I know some that I would not put in that category. I could name them if you had fifteen minutes.”
But, brothers and sisters, what did Paul mean? All authority is set up by God. It literally means ordained. You thought only ministers were ordained, if you are of that persuasion. No, no, no, no. Even authority is ordained, because God knows these authorities are a testimony, ultimately, of Who He is.
While we are living on this earth, there has to be authority. If there were not authority, there would be more than there is now: complete, utter chaos and lawlessness.
Authority is instituted by God—or, if you like the not-so-strong word, allowed by God. If it is there, it is there because He hates lawlessness and sin. That is the one explanation. That is why we need to be subject to it.
You know, we live in a wicked world. You know that. I do not have to convince you. We live in a wicked world.
I love what it says in 1 John 5:19. It has both tremendous assurance—and maybe it will add a little bit to our depression as well.
In the tremendous assurance part, it says, “We know that we are of God.” Is that not wonderful? We know.
I will never forget going to the Netherlands. Maury and I are about to go to the Netherlands. I was shocked over there to hear that state church believers in the Netherlands could not have any assurance because it was considered sin. I thought, “Really?” Seriously?
We know we are of God. What supreme assurance. We can always know that.
And then it says—the whole world lies in the evil one, or the wicked one, depending on your version. The whole world. Can you imagine? The whole world lies in the wicked one.
Second Corinthians 4:4 speaks of the god of this world, who has blinded the people of this world. Thankfully, even the writers of the Bible had the little g there. He is just a little god.
The Lord is allowing Satan, it looks like, to rule everything for a season, until His church and His people can mature and cooperate with Him, and ultimately defeat Satan.
The god—little g—of this world. We serve the real God of this world, big G. You know, my grandkids call me “G-Dad,” with a big G. I am nothing like God except in Christ Jesus. But I understand what it means to serve the One who is over all.
God sets the limits on civil authority. He will only let them go so far. He rules over all. He is above all. There are limits.
God sets the limits on Satan. Satan somehow thought he won at the cross, when the Son of God—God Himself—was slain and divine blood flowed out from His side. But he did not win.
We are waiting for his undoing. By the grace of God, we will be part of that undoing. What a wonder that God has chosen man in that way. Thank God.
Let me read a quote. I like this quote because I think it tells us so clearly about this principle of divine authority:
There is a great necessity in our day to emphasize to all Christians this solemn exhortation of the apostle. Lawlessness, contempt for authority, is upon us like a flood.
I do not think any of you would argue with me about that. This lawlessness is the essence of sin—the very essence.
Paul comes in Romans 13:2 to a logical conclusion:
Therefore he that resisteth the power, withstandeth the ordinance of God:
and they that withstand shall receive to themselves judgment.
God wants us on earth to be in submission to these authorities and in absolute obedience to the one supreme authority. That is the clear message.
This, dear brothers and sisters, is for our divine training. Do you understand that we will rule with Christ through the kingdom? Do you understand that we will rule with Christ for all eternity?
If you cannot submit to these nominal authorities that you see, how can you be in submission to God, Whom you do not see?
You understand the corollary in John’s Gospel: how can you say you love God, Whom you do not see, and hate your brother, whom you do see? There is a contradiction there.
This is divine training. We are willing to bow to authority, knowing it speaks of God Himself. That is one reason.
Look at Romans 13:3:
For rulers are not a terror to the good work, but to the evil.
And wouldest thou have no fear of the power?
do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise from the same.
Oh, I know somebody is going to fight me on that. I can think of some bad examples of authority.
I think of Nebuchadnezzar. You know, God raised up Nebuchadnezzar. Remember Jim’s very good message? It was not to destroy; it was fatherly discipline.
God raised up Nebuchadnezzar, a diabolical man—that evil man who built that huge idol and wanted everyone to bow down to him. He took the Jews captive.
But the overall authority—are you still with me? Only three are snoring; that is all I have heard—the overall authority reigning over all said, “Nebuchadnezzar, I am going to teach you a lesson.”
You come to Daniel 4:17, Daniel 4:26, and Daniel 4:32. The lesson is this: the heavens do rule.
Is that not wonderful? This is the lesson in Romans 13. Even so, the heavens do rule.
God said that He sets up even the basest of men. Well, He was talking to Nebuchadnezzar. I can think of a few more base men around the world, but I will not waste your time.
He uses the most common, the most basic, even the most wrong sometimes—sometimes the most diabolical.
Think of Nero. Paul wrote this letter while living under the domination of Emperor Nero. There could not have been a more diabolical, more demonic man.
You know what he did? He had his own mother killed, and had her womb cut out and shown to him, where he came from. Diabolical man.
Paul is writing this and saying, “Be subject to the authorities.” I think that is pretty amazing.
It is not a matter of whether rulers are righteous or not. It is not a matter of that. It is a matter of authority and order.
Even Nero—I hate to give that man a compliment—you remember the famous idiom, “Nero fiddled while Rome burned.” Some historians are not totally in line and do not agree with that, by the way. But he did allow Rome to burn. Seventy percent of Rome burned, and he built his golden house.
Oh, he loved himself so much. If there was a man who loved himself, it was this diabolical man. But even Nero respected authority.
He showed mercy when he had Paul martyred, because Paul was a Roman citizen. He was under the authority of Rome. Nero respected those who understood authority, even that evil man.
In mercy—you may not think it was much mercy—Paul was beheaded, because it was quick. That was a show of mercy because he was a Roman citizen. It was not what our Lord Jesus experienced: the cruelest death from Rome on that cross.
It was not like Peter, who, according to tradition, was crucified upside down at his own request. Mercy was shown a little bit to Paul because he respected authority.
Let me read to you another quote:
Not a single Christian is exempt from obedience to the state.
Ah, next time you pay your taxes, remember that. Not a single Christian.
Proverbs 21 says, “The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord.” This is where the Lord sets the bounds. This ought to encourage you and me. He sets the limits even with the most diabolical, even with the most evil.
The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the watercourses:
He turneth it whithersoever He will.
Praise the Lord, that is there in Proverbs. It gives us much hope in this current age in which we live.
Romans 13:4 says, “For it is God’s minister to thee for good. But if thou doest evil, fear; for it beareth not the sword in vain.” Again, he says, “For it is God’s minister, an avenger for wrath to him that doeth evil.”
If you look at Romans 13:6, and you like the King James Version, for the third time in these verses he says it is God’s minister—to train us, to teach us what real authority is.
So I think this is very important. We only have two choices. In verse 3, it talks about practicing good. The second choice, in verse 4, is practicing evil. God has put authority there to show us what we must do.
Let me read Romans 13:5:
Wherefore ye must needs be in subjection, not only because of the wrath, but also for conscience’ sake.
There are two motivations. One is the penalty of wrath. If you practice evil, be prepared for the authorities to come down on you.
But the other thing is not just the penalty of wrath. The reason we submit to authority is the pricking of conscience.
In Timothy, it talks about those with a seared conscience. I hope you do not have a seared conscience. You know what that means? Seared with a hot iron—so hard, so burnt, so corrupted that you cannot distinguish between what is right and what is wrong.
But the pricking of conscience—the Holy Spirit speaks to us and says, “Submit.” That is what we must do.
I want to tell you some good news. This submission is limited. This submission is not absolute obedience.
If you think Paul was talking about absolute obedience, you would be wrong. Absolute obedience is to God alone. Submission is to the civil authorities.
Let me give you an illustration, because you might stay with me and not sleep the whole time if I do it.
Do you remember when Peter and John went to the temple? Do you remember the lame beggar who had been there forty years? What a long time to be begging for coins just to make it through the next day or the next week. That was his only hope.
It was at the hour of prayer, and Peter and John went up. He thought, “Here is a juicy target. I can get a coin for the day.”
Peter said:
Silver and gold have I none;
but what I have, that give I thee.
In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.
That day, that beggar—forty years begging—met the ultimate authority and was forever changed. So changed that five thousand were added to the assembly that day, more than at Pentecost. Five thousand.
The Jews were so upset with Peter and John that they took them into custody. They were going to threaten them and stop them. This was the beginning of the persecution of the church.
They threatened them. You know the story; we have been reading Acts, right? In Acts 5, they said, “What can we do? A notable miracle has been done among us. We do not want to make the people upset.”
So they decided, “We will threaten them and tell them not to speak anymore or teach anymore in the name of Jesus,” that all-powerful name.
Before they released them, out of the bigness of their hearts, they said, “Just do not do this one thing. Do not speak anymore, and do not teach anymore, in the name of Jesus.”
Can you imagine if Peter and John had submitted? Can you imagine if they had completely obeyed?
I love to read that story because they did not call them, as it does elsewhere in the Bible, “You whitewashed wall.” Oh, I wish it had been my opportunity. I would not have hesitated.
They said, “You judge. Is it righteous that we should obey you, or obey God? What do you think?”
They said, “We cannot stop speaking and teaching of the things we have seen and heard.”
Do you understand the difference? They submitted. They submitted to authority. They did not revile authority. Yet they obeyed God.
That is the one thing I want you to remember today. This is your guide for life as a Christian with regard to civil authority: submit, be respectful, be law-abiding.
I happen to think Christians will be the best citizens of anybody. Who is laughing? Who is laughing?
But you never obey if it goes against what God has said. You cannot obey it. You cannot give in to it. You cannot.
The church’s mission would have been ruined at that moment, but it was not ruined because these two apostles understood the ultimate authority: to obey Him and submit to the other.
This is the limit set on civil authority for us. There is one thing you cannot violate. You cannot violate it. If it costs you your life as a martyr, you cannot violate it. This is what God has told you to do.
Suppose you were thrown in prison—and that may happen in the not-too-distant future—and you were held in captivity by the authorities of this world. They said to you, “Deny the name of the Lord Jesus.” Would you do it?
You cannot do it. “If you deny Me before men, I will deny you before the Father.” This is the secret, the limit.
Thank God there is a limit on our obligations with regard to civil authorities.
Look at Romans 13:7. This is where people really get nervous:
Render to all their dues:
tribute to whom tribute is due;
custom to whom custom;
fear to whom fear;
honor to whom honor.
Now, I particularly do not like this part, because tribute means taxes. I think almost every commentary agrees on that.
I was self-employed, and I had to pay a lot of taxes. I remember fussing about paying taxes quarterly. Every time, there were still so many taxes. “This is terrible.”
One of my partners always complained. He was the most boisterous of all the partners about paying taxes. He said to the president, Pete Dunbar, “I hate paying taxes.”
Pete was not a believer, but he said, “Well, Mr. Vaughn, if you did not make the money, you would not have to pay the taxes.” That solved it for me. I thought there was much wisdom.
Tribute. Custom is fees. Oh, I do not like driving to New York. There are all these fees. And now, what is it? What is that tunnel with an H? The Hudson Tunnel? What is the name of that thing?
Holland. Holland Tunnel. You are from New York. Well, there you go in there. I think now it is like fourteen dollars. I just wince when I go through it. “Oh no, I really have to pay that?”
More than that? Okay. Linda is the bookkeeper, so she knows.
Well, you get the point. Honor. Fear. These are things we need to give the authorities.
I will tell you the story. I think it is a great story in the Bible. The Lord Jesus—the scribes and Pharisees thought they had Him. They came to the Lord and said, “Do we have to pay taxes to Caesar?”
They hated it. They hated it more than I hated it.
The Lord Jesus said—this is a beautiful, beautiful thing—“Hand Me a coin.” They handed Him a denarius. He took the coin, the Lord Jesus, the supreme authority, and looked at it.
He said, “Whose image is this?” They said, “Caesar’s.” “Whose superscription is this?” That means name, by the way. “Caesar’s.”
Then He said the thing that settles this whole issue of civil authority and supreme authority. I think He handed them back their coin; He did not keep it.
Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s;
and unto God the things that are God’s.
This solves it, dear brothers and sisters. This is a perfect explanation.
Let us go to point two: love fulfills the law. There is another obligation. I do not want you to think lightly of this obligation. This is the second obligation Paul talks about.
Look at Romans 13:8:
Owe no man anything, save to love one another:
for he that loveth his neighbor hath fulfilled the law.
There is one thing, as Christians—remember, this is written to Christians—there is one thing we owe mankind, the people of this world: we are to love the people of this world.
I know that might not be easy. But Christ came. He loved us. He so loved us that He laid down His life.
John 3:16 says God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, and He laid down His life. Now, do you not think we should love the world? Because we are living in the world.
This is our second obligation: owe no man anything, but to love one another. To love. This is what we are to do.
This is the whole of the law fulfilled in this single phrase.
I think it is a shame. We ruin our testimony as believers sometimes when we defraud the world, just like we are part of the world, and refuse to pay what we owe.
I think that is a terrible testimony. It is a twofold thing: pay what you owe, because the testimony of heaven is involved here.
The second thing is, “Love as I love.” It is not your love; it is agape love. When you do that, things can happen.
I remember a brother by the name of John Hopkins and his wife, Lou Ann. Does that name ring a bell to any of you old—? I see the ancient people all raising their hands.
They were dear brother and sister from Delmarva. John was a very successful businessman. I remember, as a young guy just in business, talking to him. I was impressed. They stayed in our home.
John Hopkins fell into hard times in his HVAC business—heating, ventilation, air conditioning, for you unlearned. He fell into hard times and deep debt.
John could have easily just taken bankruptcy, forgotten everybody, and said, “That is your problem now.” The world would have applauded him as a good businessman. He refused.
He started liquidating things. He had been so successful at one time that they bought a pretty good-sized sailboat. I have never owned a sailboat. I do not want a sailboat.
They even got rid of their home and lived on a sailboat the rest of their life. He paid every debt.
It was a testimony to the world of who the people of God are.
The main thing is this: owe no man anything, unless to love one another. This is not our love. This is agape love.
Now you are seeing two things. One is complete obedience to the absolute authority. That is an obligation. There is also an obligation to the civil authorities in the world.
Second, there is an obligation to man. If they are going to be saved and hear the gospel, and if there is any hope for mankind, we are that lifeline of hope. We are it.
Somebody got upset with me and left.
Do you understand that? “Save to love one another.” I think this is so very important.
This twofold thing we have going here—to God, to authority, to mankind—is from the law. It is talking about the fulfillment of the law.
Do you remember the law was on two tablets of stone? The first four of the Ten Commandments were our obligations to God. The last six of the Ten Commandments, on the second tablet, are our obligations to man.
We have both in this life, and we need to understand that. That is the secret.
I remember the parable of the Good Samaritan. We are not going to read it; we do not have time. It is Luke 10:25-37, if you want to write that down.
You remember what happened. The Lord told this parable. A man was beaten nearly to death and left to die on the road.
You remember particularly how the priest and the Levite came. I think it was the Sadducee who came. They walked on the other side—how convenient—and ignored this person in his condition.
Surely he would have died. He was robbed, beaten, and left for dead. That is what the world is. They are left for dead.
But then a Samaritan came. Do you think that is strange? Those two leaders of the Jews went the other way, and the Samaritan came up to that man and poured in oil and wine.
He put him on his own donkey, took him to the innkeeper, and said, “Take care of him, and I will pay the whole account.”
Do you know? This is what the Lord Jesus did for you and me. He came. He raised us up from certain death—real death, spiritual death.
He poured in oil and wine. He dressed us, revived us, and now He will make every provision we need. And He paid it all.
The Lord turned to the Sadducee, I think, who was asking the question, and said, “Who do you think was this man’s neighbor? Who do you think?”
I think they became tongue-tied. They did not know what to say.
Well, this is “save to love one another.” Romans 13:9 says:
Thou shalt not commit adultery,
Thou shalt not kill,
Thou shalt not steal,
Thou shalt not covet;
and if there be any other commandment,
it is summed up in this word, namely,
Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
The Lord was talking about who is the neighbor. This was not that little children’s show we used to hear about, “Who is the neighbor?” We are to be neighbors—real neighbors.
We have an obligation. Do you take that obligation to mankind seriously?
What if God had walked on the other side when you were dying? What if He had not sent someone to you? What if He had crossed to the other sidewalk and said, “Let him die?”
Thank God He sent someone to you. He sent someone to me, and we were changed forever.
Love fulfills the whole law. That is the point. It is not our love; it is His love. We cannot do it. We will fail.
But we need to ask the Lord, in our obligation to mankind, to give us a divine love for the lost, so that we would owe no man anything but to love one another. That is the main thing.
Let us finish with the last point: a time of great expectation. I think we can finish this pretty quickly.
The last four verses, Romans 13:11-14, deal with how you and I are going to live in this world. It is not a comfortable place. I think you know that by now. It is the present evil age.
How are we going to live in this world? Romans 13:11 says:
And this, knowing the season, that already it is time for you to awake out of sleep:
for now is salvation nearer to us than when we first believed.
You know, the old King James Version says, “Now it is high time.” Do you New Yorkers know what that means, Lynn? We say that all the time here.
Our salvation is nearer than it has ever been. We need to be the people of great expectation, awaiting the appearing of our God and Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
We have a living hope. You know that—1 Peter 1:3. And Titus says we have a blessed hope, the hope of the glorious appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are people who are in expectation.
Expectation. Great expectation.
Remember high school English? I think they wanted us to read Charles Dickens’s Great Expectations. What is that? It is five hundred to six hundred pages. I want to admit to you, I never read it.
I had one of those Cliff Notes. It saved me for the last day, with its black-and-red little book, and I acted like I knew what I was talking about.
Dear brothers and sisters, we need to be the people of the greatest expectation.
We are like that boy in that book, Pip: a poor orphan—no life, no future, no hope, nothing for us. He lived in that orphanage with hardly enough food to eat.
Then a man came along and adopted him, a man of stature, character, and means. When he was adopted, Pip was gradually turned into a man of character.
That is the Christian life. I did not read the five hundred to six hundred pages, but that much I remember.
We should be this people of great expectation.
We should be people who have this living hope, this blessed hope. This is the way we live on the earth.
You remember the Lord said, when you hear these things coming upon the earth—these awful things; awful things are coming, brothers and sisters—the world’s hearts will faint, and they will die in fear.
But we are a people of great expectation. We do not live in such fear. We live in hope.
He said, when you hear these things coming, when you see these things coming, “Look up. Lift up your head, for your salvation draweth nigh.”
Our salvation is nearer than when we believed in the beginning. Can I instill in you some hope?
Will you promise me at least for a month that you will wake up in the morning and say to the Lord, “Lord, my salvation is nearer than it was yesterday”? Do it for a month. This is great expectation.
It is like G. M. P. Barbara—she was hoping, you remember that story? She was hoping that, when she turned the next corner walking down the street, she would see her beloved Lord. What expectation.
That is what I think we need. May the Lord bring us into that.
There are a few things Paul ends with. I will read Romans 13:12 first:
The night is far spent, and the day is at hand:
let us therefore cast off the works of darkness,
and let us put on the armor of light.
Time is almost up. The sand in the glass, the grains have almost all poured out. The night is far spent, and the day is near.
Let us walk becomingly, as in the day;
not in revelling and drunkenness,
not in chambering and wantonness,
not in strife and jealousy.
Brothers, these are three exhortations. How can you survive this present evil age? “Let us” is an exhortation, and there are three of them.
First, let us cast away the works of darkness. We can do this by the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit. He who walks in the Spirit will not sin as long as he is walking in the Spirit.
What an exhortation. Let us walk becomingly. This means appropriately—not appropriately for the world. You can fool the world.
But this “becomingly” is because there is One, the ultimate authority, who is beholding your walk. You can only do this by the life that is in you, never by your own.
Third, let us put on the armor of light. You know, the whole armor of God, the panoply of God.
Pay attention to these three exhortations when you read this. These are things we cannot do, but this One who has all authority has given us power beyond anything we can imagine, so that we can do these practical things and be a living testimony in the world.
At last, Paul tells us the final thing. Romans 13:14:
But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ,
and make not provision for the flesh,
to fulfil the lusts thereof.
Is that not beautiful? Paul says, “Put on the Lord Jesus Christ,” in Romans, in Galatians, and in Colossians. Again, it is a big deal.
It is only as Christ lives in us. Sorry—last week we heard about the exchange life. I remember the first time I heard it, the first time I read Galatians 2:20.
With great relief, knowing how up and down my Christian life was, I read, “But Christ liveth in me.”
Put on the Lord Jesus Christ as your source of life. Put on the Lord Jesus Christ as that new man—as that new man.
Let Him be your power and your source. That was the final thing Paul wanted these ones to know. How do you walk in great expectation? Put on the Lord Jesus Christ.
Put Him on. You were baptized into Christ. You were identified with Christ. You are in Christ, and Christ is in you, the hope of glory.
When you put on Christ every day—get up, you know, I know you are used to dressing once in a while. I dress up, and we dress and put on appropriate clothing.
I made a mistake Saturday and went to the grocery store in my bedroom slippers. I was so ashamed. I called Linda. I was turned around. I said, “Maybe no one will notice.”
Put on the only thing that is appropriate: put on Christ. Then you will be able to walk in this world.
Then you will be a testimony—a living testimony—of the Lord Jesus Christ.
People will see one who is under authority. People will see one who loves the world, the unlovely world.
People will see ones who have such a high hope that they will begin to say to you, “What is this that is in you? What is this hope? Can I have some of it? Would you share some of it with me?”
This is what Peter meant when he said, “Give an explanation of the hope that is in you.”
Well, this is the little bit of understanding I have about Romans 13.
Lord, we just come to You and ask You to help us. Help us every day to live under Your authority alone, and yet submit to the authorities, to be trained to one day rule and reign with Christ.
Lord, help us to love the lost in the world and bring that material into the church for the building of Your eternal home, so that You will have an eternal companion, Your bride.
Lord, teach us to be a people with great expectation—not like the world, in fear, constant fear—but living in hope.
Let us, above everything else, put on the Lord Jesus Christ. That is the only answer.
We ask all these things in the name of Jesus. Amen.