Read through this. I agree with some of the sarcasm suggested that Paul employed in this letter. What’s ironic is that Paul, in this section, calls us to submit to the governing authorities- yet Jesus died a criminal in the eyes of the law. We submit to the authorities only if it does not violate the true authority- God’s authority. Here is a short excerpt from an author I am beginning to love- In his section on the Notion of Sin: “In other words, our very notion of sin is tainted by our sinfulness…but sin is not always crime, and crime is not always sin…the point is that we must not confuse sin with crime…The values of our society- and indeed, Western civilization- have twisted our understanding of sin at several points. The first of these is its ‘sexualization.’ Although theologians repeatedly tell us that sin is much more than improper sexual activity, in our common parlance ‘sin’ is almost equated with that subject. And yet if we were to read the entire Bible, listing on the one hand the texts that seek to regulate sexual practice and on the other hand those that seek to limit and regulate property rights, we would find that the latter outweigh the former. The God of the Bible is concerned with the misuse of property at least as much as with the misuse of sex. Yet we hear very little in the church about the misuse of property. What we hear is vague, such as the notion of ‘stewardship.’ This selective preaching and teaching is not mere coincidence. Nor is it because sexual sins are more common. It is rather because we have learned to interpret ‘sin,’ like so many other elements in biblical doctrine, in a manner that is less offensive to the powerful.” - Justo L. Gonzalez
I missed the sarcasm for 30 years. It makes much more sense in that light given that Paul was doing good and not directly harming or threatening the rulers (although Christianity was undermining their fear-based hold on hearts and minds). Well done.
Sort of—I'm mainly referring to how Paul says that authorities only pose a threat to those that do bad in verse 4 after having been arrested for sharing the gospel. It even seems likely that Paul was eventually martyed at the hands of Nero for sharing the gospel. I don't think he was necessarily being sarcastic when he spoke about obeying specifically.
Read through this. I agree with some of the sarcasm suggested that Paul employed in this letter. What’s ironic is that Paul, in this section, calls us to submit to the governing authorities- yet Jesus died a criminal in the eyes of the law. We submit to the authorities only if it does not violate the true authority- God’s authority. Here is a short excerpt from an author I am beginning to love- In his section on the Notion of Sin: “In other words, our very notion of sin is tainted by our sinfulness…but sin is not always crime, and crime is not always sin…the point is that we must not confuse sin with crime…The values of our society- and indeed, Western civilization- have twisted our understanding of sin at several points. The first of these is its ‘sexualization.’ Although theologians repeatedly tell us that sin is much more than improper sexual activity, in our common parlance ‘sin’ is almost equated with that subject. And yet if we were to read the entire Bible, listing on the one hand the texts that seek to regulate sexual practice and on the other hand those that seek to limit and regulate property rights, we would find that the latter outweigh the former. The God of the Bible is concerned with the misuse of property at least as much as with the misuse of sex. Yet we hear very little in the church about the misuse of property. What we hear is vague, such as the notion of ‘stewardship.’ This selective preaching and teaching is not mere coincidence. Nor is it because sexual sins are more common. It is rather because we have learned to interpret ‘sin,’ like so many other elements in biblical doctrine, in a manner that is less offensive to the powerful.” - Justo L. Gonzalez
Thanks for sharing! I resonate a lot with the emphasis on care of property and land.
I missed the sarcasm for 30 years. It makes much more sense in that light given that Paul was doing good and not directly harming or threatening the rulers (although Christianity was undermining their fear-based hold on hearts and minds). Well done.
By sarcasm, do you mean the irony that Paul is talking about obeying authority all while getting arrested?
Yo! Thanks for the comment.
Sort of—I'm mainly referring to how Paul says that authorities only pose a threat to those that do bad in verse 4 after having been arrested for sharing the gospel. It even seems likely that Paul was eventually martyed at the hands of Nero for sharing the gospel. I don't think he was necessarily being sarcastic when he spoke about obeying specifically.