Romans 13--Authority Song

“I fight authority; authority always wins
Well I fight authority; authority always wins
Well, I have been doing it since I was a young kid and I come out grinning
Well, I fight authority; authority is always winning…”

You may remember this John Cougar Mellencamp song from the 1984. If not, you can check out the video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Po47SNloMBg

It is a funny song that we can all resonate with. Somewhere in each of us is something that wants to do our own thing and resist authority. Paul gives us the good news that the law and the authorities are gifts to us from God because they restrain evil—both Evil from others and the evil within. That might not seem too special, but travel to a third world where the authorities can be thoroughly corrupt and compromised and you will see that good authority is a gift from God.

So we are to pay our debt to the authorities for they provide a service under God. We should not allow any debt to roll up to anyone except for one. That is the continuing debt of love.

We all owe a debt of love that we will never be able to pay back. Jesus in his love and grace has credited our account with infinite “cash flow” of love, truth, affection and approval. His command is not that we “pay him back,” but that we “pay him forward” in the way we love others—and therefore truly fulfill the law.

So Christians live under a greater authority and that is the authority of love. It is good when that authority wins.

Posted by Marc

Galatians 3: By Works or By Grace?

Do you feel like a Son of God or a Worker of God? Paul lays out a rather extensive criticism of the Galatians’ current mindset. Apparently they had started living out Old Testament traditions again. I imagine that would be easy to do. Paul targets the heart of the matter right at the beginning of the chapter. The Galatians were using these traditions as good works to win God’s favor.

Many of us are far enough from Old Testament tradition to avoid the specific trap the Galatians fell into. Anyone get the urge to slaughter a lamb to appease God’s wrath towards your family’s sin this morning? I thought not. However, we still fall prey to that same mentality. I constantly battle with making sure when I send time with God that I’m actually spending it with God and not just doing things out of a sense of duty.

I had not been married too long before I discovered the difference between developing a relationship with my wife and spending time around her. Reading a book next to my wife does very little for our marriage. Speaking about what happened in our day and how that affects us does great things for our relationship. My wife needs me to spend time engaged with her, not just around her.

Are you spending time around God doing religious things or spending time with him? Are you acting like a worker or a son? Are you trying to become good enough before you come to God? Read verse 21 again. Life does not come through living out the law. Instead, Paul says that we are God’s children (v. 26). Let’s live like it. Our salvation comes from being God’s children not from our traditions or performances.

Posted by Danny