Government Largesse, the Rule of Law, and the Biblical "Governing Authority"

For those who claim Christ that feel drawn to government largesse or a particular social program that they feel their faith mandates, I offer the following expose that I think is crucial for the Christ claimer to grasp.

Our nation is governed under a Constitutional Republic....NOT a Democratic Republic. This is not semantics, there is a big difference between the two. The latter is a set up for mob rule. The former is designed to place and keep men under the Rule of Law. In most other nations around the world, the Romans 13 / 1 Peter 2 governing authority is a human that has been placed into office. Not so in our country. If you claim Christ, it is imperative that you understand this in light of Romans 13/1 Peter 2. The "governing authority" and "human institution" in the United States of America is NOT any person inside the three branches of our government. Because of the United States Constitution....in our nation the Romans 13 / 1 Peter 2 governing authority is the Rule of Law....the United States Constitution.

That Constitution confers very limited and specific powers to the federal government. Just over 230 years have passed since Philadelphia Convention scribe, Jacob Shallus put quill to parchment. Those years have taken their on the physical properties of the animal skin that holds the ink from Mr. Shallus’ pen, but sadly, a heavier and much more dangerous toll has been inflicted upon what is still today our primary governing document. The toll inflicted by ignorance and wickedness among those governed by it, is threatening our Republic at breakneck pace unlike no other time in history.

I often see well-meaning Christ claimers advocating some trendy social “right” or program that modern believers think is a right everyone must have in order to achieve some sort of perceived need for “equality” …. or to be blunt…to arrive at some notion of utopia amongst the citizenry. A notion which by the way is a completely unbiblical idea.

Permit me to explain a little bit more in depth about this. To do that, we have to start with some basic facts about our Constitution. We are a nation of laws…the United States Constitution sets forth the Rule of Law for our nation. It establishes the parameters under which our federal government can operate, no more, no less. By its very nature, the United States Constitution or Federal Constitution as it is sometimes referred to, is a document of limited powers (ceded up by the states in order to create a limited central government) and a list of "enumerated" individual rights to be retained by all the citizenry.

The framers of the document set forth the premise in Article VI that the United States Constitution is the Supreme Law of the land. From this fact comes the principle that the United States Constitution is the Rule of Law. Article VI states that there is no higher law, the United States Constitution is supreme to all federal law. Consequently, all federal law enacted must be enacted “pursuant” to the Constitution. This means that federal law cannot contravene (violate) the Constitution. Article VI also states that the United States Constitution is supreme above all state Constitutions and state laws. I mention this to remind us that there is NO law, NO office, and NO individual office holder that is above the United States Constitution. Indeed, all Federal Office holders swear an oath to the United States Constitution.

The United States Constitution IS the Romans 13/1 Peter 2 biblical governing authority for those that claim Christ!

Law Above Men...or The Desires of Men

The idea that "we need to have this social program or that social program”, while it may sound moralistic and high minded…reveals very deep lack of understanding of the United States Constitution and how our government works. Our founders set up a system unlike no other in history...we respect law above men. The founders came from a worldview where subjects were required to respect men (a King) above law (Rex Lex), so they implicitly and intentionally set up a system from a biblical worldview wherein we respect law above men (Lex Rex). The United States Constitution is the highest law of the land, again, that’s why officials take an oath to it. Therefore, you are required...and as a Christian...it is your duty to respect the highest man-made Law (Constitution) above any man or above any desire you might have to provide government largesse (social programs) to the masses, no matter how well intentioned you might be. That means that as a Christian, you must respect the limited powers conferred upon the federal government. You don’t get to have some program i.e. "Universal Healthcare” simply because you have some sense of the need for “justice” or service to your fellow human being.

If you claim Christ, you are called to obey the Romans 13/1 Peter 2"governing authority" over your well-intentioned desire to provide government largesse. You don’t get to advocate for violating the rule of law (limited federal power) out of your own sense of social equality or justice.