Authority (8) - Poltical

Romans 13 has been twisted to make the claim that God has delegated to human governments the authority to make laws and force people to obey them. The claim is made that God assigned this delegated authority to bring order to a sinful world, but this claim is not true. God has already given his laws to the world, so he has no reason to give human governments the authority to make laws. His law was given to maintain order in society (1 Tim 1:8-9), so there is no need for human political power to establish order.

Paul did not tell the Romans that God has delegated authority to the state. He was simply telling them to take their legal disputes to the excellent judges that will emerge in every community.

Before Jesus ascended into heaven, he claimed all authority for himself.

All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me (Matt 28:18).

This authority is total and comprehensive, so no one can have authority on earth unless Jesus has delegated it to them. He did not delegate authority for making laws to human governments. He did not give kings, prime ministers, politicians and parliaments the authority to enforce their ordinances and regulations.

All human political powers are imposters and cheats who have usurped authority that belongs to Jesus. They are deceivers and power-seekers seizing control of people that God wants to be free. God will never force people to be good, so he will never give political powers the authority to force people to be good. Claims that God has delegated authority to the state are a fraudulent attempt to legitimise stolen authority.

A political institution can only exercise authority, if people have delegated their authority to it. If that authority has not been freely delegated by everyone under its control, it has been stolen. People have become so accustomed to stolen authority that they have forgotten what they have lost.

Democracy is dangerous deception, because it pretends to be delegated authority. Politicians talk about “social contract”, as if everyone has delegated absolute authority over their lives to the political realm, but they never ask what authority has been delegated to then. Democratic leaders decide what their authority will be, and once they have taken it, they never give it back. They will pass authority to a different political party after an election, but they will never give it back to the people from which it was stolen. Democracy is illegitimate and deceptive, because it pretends that stolen authority has been freely given.