What Should Be The Christian's View Of Government?

Many Malaysian Christians are not comfortable having anything to do with politics of the country - going to the extent of not even voting during elections. The reasons for this behaviour is usually along the lines of (1) Almighty God is in total control, therefore the present form of government is His will, (2) we are an insignificant minority, so we've got to be careful not to step on toes lest we lose what freedoms we have, (3) are you so sure that "your side" is "God's side" as well, or is it just a case of "your will" and not "God's will"? (4) politics is such a dirty business I want to have nothing to do with it at all.

There's more but these are the main ones.

The latest controversy regarding the usage of "Allah" has started me thinking a little deeper about how I should approach the politics of this country as a Christian. The Bible does not prescribe any form of Christian government. Neither is there any reports of any Christian governments being formed.

So what should be a Christian's view of government be? The following verses tell us:

ROMANS Chapter 13:1-6

Submission to the Authorities

¹Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.

²Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.

³For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and he will commend you.

⁴For he is God's servant to do you good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer.

⁵Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also because of conscience.

⁶This is also why you pay taxes, for the authorities are God's servants, who give their full time to governing.

⁷Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.

It's interesting to note that Romans 13:1-7 was written by Paul during the time of Roman government rule. The Roman government had recently put Jesus Christ to death by crucifixion. Furthermore, the Roman government was known for the viciousness of it's soldiers and Christians were being cruelly and relentlessly persecuted. On top of that, Rome was ruled by an Emperor who was worshipped as a god, which goes against the Christian belief that "for us there is but one God, the Father" (1 Corinthians 8:5-6).

In spite of all this, the Apostle Paul teaches Christians to submit to government because "the authorities that exist have been established by God". In other words, we submit to our government authorities because we recognise that God is the highest authority over all things and He has delegated some of His authority to the present government to represent His justice on earth (He is God's servant, an agent of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer-Romans 13:4).

But is EVERYTHING that the government does a reflection of God's justice? Do Christians have to submit to EVERYTHING that the government says and does? What if the present government clearly violates God's standards of justice? Where do Christians draw the line?