JEFF TURNER
Romans 13 instructs believers to submit to governing authorities, pray for their leaders, and pay required taxes, raising an important question about whether disobedience to government is ever justified for a Christian. The exception arises only when government commands believers to do something God explicitly forbids, or forbids believers from doing something God explicitly commands. Outside of that specific intersection, believers are called to obey and submit to governing authority, even when disagreeing strongly with particular policies or decisions made by that government.
Disliking how tax dollars get spent, or opposing certain government positions on moral issues, does not itself justify disobedience or rebellion. Believers can certainly use whatever legitimate influence they have to oppose policies they find objectionable, but submission remains the default posture unless government directly demands sin. This is because government, despite its flaws, functions as an institution established by God specifically to restrain evil and reward good behaviour, providing the order necessary to prevent society from collapsing into lawlessness.
Submit to every human authority because of the Lord, whether to the emperor as the supreme authority or to governors as those sent out by him to punish those who do what is evil and to praise those who do what is good.
1 Peter 2:13-14
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