************ Sermon on Belgic Confession Article 36 ************
Doctrine: Church and State
By: Rev. Adrian Dieleman
This sermon was preached on August 29, 1999
B.C. 36
Romans 13:1-7
"The Church and the State"
Introduction
Should there be prayer and Bible reading in public schools? Must Christians always bear arms for their country? Do Christians against abortion have the right to impose their religious view of life on the entire nation? Can public monies be used to finance Christian education? May Christians try to get stores to close on the Lord's Day because of the fourth commandment? Can Christians, on the basis of the seventh commandment, demand the closure of pornography theaters? Does the church have the right to try and stop professional and organized sports on Sunday?
Your answer to each and everyone of these questions reveal your view of the relationship between the church and the state. This is also the subject of Article 36 of the Belgic Confession of Faith.
I Some Necessary Changes
A In some ways, Article 36 is an embarrassment to the Reformed Churches. For one thing, this article speaks to us from a perspective that nearly everybody – including Reformed believers – now reject. It speaks to us from the perspective of a "sacral society." A sacral society is a society held together by a religion to which all members of that society are committed.
In a sacral society there is no separation of church and state like we have in America. In a sacral society the sword of the state backs up the work of the church. So, for instance, if someone is wrong in doctrine or life, if someone is reckless or lazy in the things of the faith, the magistrate's sword swings into action.
Consider, for a moment, the following examples from history of sacral societies:
Topic: Government
Subtopic: Sacral Society
Index:
Date: 8/1999.101
Title: Examples of Sacral Societies
In 1478 at the request of King Ferdinand V and Queen Isabella I of Spain the Spanish Inquisition was established. This Inquisition was to deal with the problem of Marranos, Jews who through coercion or social pressure had insincerely converted to Christianity; after 1502, it turned its attention to similar converts from Islam, and in the 1520s to persons suspected of being Protestant. The penalties imposed were confiscation of property or life imprisonment. Those found guilty of heresy were handed over to the civil authorities for execution.
In the City of Geneva in 1553, John Calvin ran not only the consistory but, indirectly, the city itself. He drafted the constitution that governed Geneva. And, when Calvin's consistory determined that a man named Servetus was a heretic, Servetus was handed over to the city authorities to be burned at the stake.
In 1562 in the city of Vassy, in France, soldiers of the French king quietly surrounded a building filled with Protestant worshipers. Sixty of the Protestants were slaughtered and two hundred were wounded; no mercy was shown even to women and children. In the three days of fighting that followed, a hundred more Protestants were killed. Torture was common: men were usually burned at the stake; women were buried alive by their fanatic persecutors. In the years that followed, over ten thousand Protestants were killed by the French government.
When the Muslims took control of Iran in 1979 after the overthrow of the Shah, the Muslim religious leaders or Mullahs ran the government. Under their leadership the Iranian government established a dress code for women, forbade the use of alcohol, got rid of Western books and magazines and papers, and imprisoned people who broke any of their thousands of rules.
None of us, I dare say, would ever want to live in a society in which the state is controlled by the religion. But neither would we want to live in a society – like Nazi Germany or the former Communist countries of Eastern Europe – in which religion is controlled by the state. Rather, we prefer to keep religion and state separate.
Aside from the Muslim states there are no sacral societies today. Rather, society today tends to be pluralistic and multicultural – allowing not just many but any faith and religion.
B Reformed believers also find Article 36 of the Confession embarrassing for its treatment of the Anabaptists. First, no sincere believer can agree with its footnote statement that "we detest the Anabaptists and other seditious people." Second, several intolerant and inaccurate charges are leveled against the Anabaptists in that same footnote.
C Because of this – that Article 36 was written from the viewpoint of a sacral society and because of its treatment of the Anabaptists – Article 36 has been changed. You can see a list of the changes on page 1 of your sermon outline ...
II Origin and Purpose of Government
A Article 36 begins its discussion of civil authority at the same place Scripture begins its discussion: that the governing authorities have been instituted by God. In Romans 13 the Apostle Paul can say,
(Rom 13:1) Everyone 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.
Three times the apostle says the governing authorities are "God's servant" (vs 4,6). In other words, God uses kings, queens, prime ministers, dictators, premiers, cabinets, magistrates, judges, generals, police officers, and others to speak and act on His behalf in the area of civil authority. These men and women have civil power and authority from God. "Consequently," says Paul,
(Rom 13:2) ... he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.
Article 36 follows Scripture here. It is not we but our gracious and good God Who "has ordained kings, princes, and civil officers."
Think of what this means. Government does not spring from the sinful domination of the strong over the weak. Nor is it the fruit of a long evolutionary process which roots in man's attempt to establish order. We also have to reject the theory that government derives its place and authority from the consent of the governed. Here we disagree with the American Constitution which implies that government and civil authority arise from "we the people." Government comes from God, is instituted by God, and is given authority by God.
B Why did God establish the state and civil authority? According to Article 36 government has been established "because of the depravity of the human race." Because man is conceived and born in sin there needs to be civil government and authority. If man had not fallen into sin there would be no need for governments in Washington, Moscow, Ottawa, and Sacramento. The United Nations, the World Court, and all Supreme Courts would be unnecessary if sin had not entered this world.
C What are the duties of the governing authorities? The first duty is that God wants laws and policies set up so that "human lawlessness may be restrained." Here we see that government is called to uphold the second table of the law. It is to recognize the authority of parents over their children, it is to preserve life and prevent murder, it is to uphold the marriage relationship, it is to protect property, and it is to require truth at all times. Along this line, we have to be thankful our government stands opposed to theft, false advertisement, and most murder. At the same time, however, we have the right to be dismayed that our government does allow murder and condones adultery and homosexuality as well as the break up of the marriage relationship.
The second duty of the civil authorities is to make sure everything is "conducted in good order among human beings." You see, God wants His world to reflect Himself. God is a God of order. At the time of Creation He brought order out of disorder and organization out of chaos. He has established civil authority so that man and society are orderly. Believers as well as unbelievers needs this supervisory, regulatory, and disciplinary power of the civil authorities for without government and authority everything would be chaos and madness. Paul's lofty goal is "that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness" (1 Tim 2:2).
To this end, it is government that processes every kind of license imaginable:
marriage license
fishing & hunting license
gun license and registration
car license and registration
driver's license
license to haul hazardous waste
bus driver's license
building permit
business license
and the list goes on and on ...
All of this, together with thousands of laws and hundreds of agencies, have been put in place by the government to make sure everything is "conducted in good order among human beings."
The third duty of government is "to contribute to the advancement of a society that is pleasing to God." It is the job of government to promote justice. I think here of the words of the psalmist addressed to those who are rulers:
(Ps 82:2-4) "How long will you defend the unjust and show partiality to the wicked? (3) Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed. (4) Rescue the weak and needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.
D In order for the civil authorities to accomplish these duties and responsibilities they must have authority and power. For this reason Article 36, based upon Romans 13, says that God "has placed the sword in the hands of the government, to punish evil people and protect the good."
The governing authorities have the right and even the duty to punish criminals with a punishment that fits their crime. They have the right to maintain a police force, jails, crime laboratories, and even a means to carry out executions. And, to protect the state from those who would attack from without, the civil authorities have the right to maintain armed forces and weapon systems.
III Citizen's Duties
A Article 36 of the Belgic Confession deals not only with the duties of the governing authorities but also with the duties of citizens. Quoting from the Apostle Paul, Article 36 tells believers that their most general duty as citizens is that they "must be subject to the government."
Let me remind you, for a moment, of the historical circumstances leading to the writing of the Belgic Confession of Faith. It was written in 1561 by Guido de Brès, a preacher of the Reformed churches of the Netherlands, who died a martyr to the faith in 1567. At the time the Confession was being written the Protestants of the Netherlands were exposed to the most terrible persecution by the Roman Catholic government. The Belgic Confession of Faith was written to protest this cruel oppression, and to prove to the Roman Catholic government that the Reformers were not rebels. In fact, in 1562 a copy of the Confession was sent to King Philip II of Spain together with a cover letter in which the Reformers declared that they were ready to obey the government in all lawful things. Imagine that: the Reformers were willing to be subject to a government that persecuted and even killed them.
B It is the duty of citizens to subject themselves to the governing authorities. Specifically, this means four things.
In subjecting ourselves to the governing authorities our first duty is to "pay taxes." In our Scripture reading the Apostle Paul says,
(Rom 13:7) Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.
We all pay approximately 50% of our total income to the government in various kinds of taxes because every time we make a purchase we pay tax and 30% of every pay check goes to one tax or another. Yet, we shouldn't complain about this. And, we shouldn't lie and cheat when it comes to taxes either. Don't forget that government needs money to do the work God has called it to do. It costs money to restrain human lawlessness. It costs money to enforce laws and policies. It costs money to promote justice.
Many people think we shouldn't pay our taxes because the government wastes so many of our tax dollars. In spite of that, we still need to pay our taxes as Christian citizens.
In subjecting ourselves to the governing authorities our second duty is to show them "honor and respect." As the Apostle Paul puts it in Romans 13:
(Rom 13:7) Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor.
Respect and honor are due the civil authorities because they represent God's rule on earth and are appointed by God to their office. Even if a ruler is greedy, lazy, and dumb he is still deserving of honor and respect for the sake of his office. Even if we disagree – even vehemently – with the policies of a ruler we are to still show honor and respect for the sake of his office.
In subjecting ourselves to the governing authorities our third duty is to "obey them in all things that are not in conflict with God's Word." We are to obey our rulers, even if their laws and regulations seem to us to be dumb or silly. The only exception to this is if there is a conflict between the demand of our heavenly Ruler and the demand of our earthly rulers. Then "we must obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29). Because of this exception, Christians refuse to fight in an unjust war, pastors participated in plots to kill Hitler, priests and ministers in the former U.S.S.R. conducted illegal worship services, and whites and blacks in South Africa openly broke racial laws before apartheid was ended.
I mentioned earlier the letter the Reformers wrote to King Philip II of Spain. In that letter they stated they were ready to obey the government in all lawful things, but instead of denying the truth expressed in the Confession of Faith they would rather "offer their back to stripes, their tongues to knives, their mouths to gags, and their whole bodies to the fire." In other words, they would obey the government only when it was not in conflict with the Word of God.
In subjecting ourselves to the governing authorities our fourth duty is to pray for them "that the Lord may be willing to lead them in all their ways." Says the Apostle Paul:
(1Tim 2:1-2) I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone-- (2) for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.
Conclusion
As I mentioned previously, the Confession of Faith was wrong in detesting the Anabaptists. It is right, however, in condemning the position of those who reject all higher powers and authorities. For those who reject rulers reject the God Who has instituted and appointed the rulers. Consequently,
(Rom 13:2) ... he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.