Chapter # 13 Paragraph # 1 Study # 1
August 16, 2020
Humble, Texas
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Thesis:   Paul's focus in his instructions regarding the believer's necessary response to the dictates of human, civil, authorities is upon both "the soul of man" and the issue of "authority".

Introduction:   According to Jesus' declaration in Matthew 10:28, there are few, if any, issues more important to human beings than the destiny of the "soul". Because the issue of the "soul" is the question of "security", "fear" is one half of the "soul's" necessary focus, and Jesus pointedly said that men are not to be fearful of man's ability to "kill the body" because "man" cannot "kill the soul". Instead, Jesus said that men are to "fear" the One Who has the ability "to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna". Additionally, in our current text, Paul emphasizes the need for believers to be in subjection to governing authorities because what is at risk is both "judgment" (13:2) and "wrath" (13:4, 5) because of a rejection of the ordinance of God.

Admittedly, this is a complex issue, made so by the fact that though God has ordained human, civil, authority, He has also ordained that His people make sure that when those "ordained civil authorities" go beyond the "ordination of God" and exercise "authority" to require men to violate Divine Authority, they reject the "excesses" and remain true to the "legitimate" Authority of God. It is even more complex because, in the exercise of human "authorities", there exists a wide range of "authority" with all but one of the civil authorities being in subjection to "lesser authorities". So, the issue is complex and we will see how Paul weaves his teaching in and around the complexities as we go through his words in this text/context.

• I. Beginning At The Beginning.
  • A. Paul's concept of "Soul".
    • 1. Paul only uses the word "soul" (psuche) four times in Romans (the only letter he wrote without the assumptions of previous exposure to the recipients).
      • a. In his first use (2:9) he used it in the phrase "upon every soul of man".
        • 1) This phrase, of itself, makes a distinction between "soul" and "man".
          • a) This is important because of the illegitimate translation of the NASB in 13:1.
            • i. "Person" typically indicates an individual whom Paul said consists of a "spirit", a "soul", and a "body"; all of which need individually developed "sanctification" (1 Thessalonians 5:23).
            • ii. "Person", as a summary term of a complex individual, ignores the fact that Paul is focused upon the "soul of man", rather than the entire "man".
          • b) This is also important because of the focus of the context of Paul's first use: the attitude of a person whose overall characteristic is that he/she is a hypocritical critic.
            • i. When "the soul of man" is fundamentally warped into that of a hypocritical critic, the problem is that such a focus attacks and destroys every relationship it touches, including any so-called "relationship with God".
            • ii. God's reaction to that "attack" is "tribulation and distress" without mitigation because of earlier covenantal considerations.
        • 2) The point is: the realm of "soul" is the realm of "relationships with other souls" so that everything stands or falls on the basis of how "souls" are supposed to relate to other "souls".
      • b. In his second use (11:3), Paul appeals to Elijah's complaint that his adversaries "...are seeking my soul..." (translated, "...are seeking my life..." by the NASB).
        • 1) On the face of it, the translation is tenable (Jezebel had threatened to kill Elijah's body).
        • 2) However, Elijah's complaint was more than simply "...they have killed [the bodies of] Your prophets..."; it included "...they have torn down Your altars...".
        • 3) By including the altars, Elijah is portrayed as primarily focused upon the intention of his enemies: to destroy all worship of Yahweh by the people.
        • 4) This intent to destroy worship, as the real intent, indicates that the enemies would be satisfied if God's prophets would turn apostate and begin to be prophets of the false gods of those enemies.
        • 5) This means that it is not the destruction of the "bodies" of God's prophets that is the objective: it is the relationships of the "souls" with Yahweh that is the actual objective.
        • 6) Thus, even in a text/context where the superficial issue may be "killing the body" the real issue is "killing the soul", which Elijah points out.
      • c. The third use is our current text where the issue is "relating to" civil authorities as they attempt to preserve the cohesion of the culture by holding all who attack that cohesion accountable by means of the death penalty.
      • d. And the last reference (16:4) where Paul says that Prisca and Aquila "...risked their necks..." (a reference to their physical lives) "...for [Paul's] soul...".
        • 1) It is not "neck" for "neck"; it is "neck" for "soul".
        • 2) And, again, this "risk" is heavily "relational" in Love.
    • 2. When all of this is taken together with the fact that Paul's references to "soul" in the rest of his letters do not "fit" well with the idea of "physical life", we conclude that what Paul is dealing with in 13:1 is "every soul" as those whose most fundamental issue is how they "relate" to other souls.
  • B. Paul's next concept: "submission to 'higher authorities' ".
    • 1. The issue is "submission".
      • a. This word is used by Paul in five texts in Romans (8:7; 8:20; 10:3; 13:1; 13:5).
      • b. In every case, the issue is the placement of some entity (the "mind"; all of "creation"; the principle of "righteousness from God by grace"; and, in our current text, those among men who have the "authority" to set, and enforce, an agenda upon others) under the domination of another so that compliance to another's agenda is compelled in a way that disallows one to pursue his/her own.
      • c. The "bottom line" is the generation of "slaves" who are subjected to "masters" so that the "masters" see their agenda being fulfilled.
        • 1) It is a huge mistake for a human being to "kick against the pricks" of "slavery".
        • 2) The Kingdom of The God has its essential descriptive nature as a "kingdom of servants" so that "greatness" in that kingdom resides in the dedication of the "great" to the "service" of others in their need.
    • 2. The "submission" is "to authority".
      • a. This "authority" is described as "superior".
        • 1) This means that there are multiple realms of "authority" within both The Kingdom of The God and the kingdoms of this world.
          • a) There is a certain "authority" given to most human beings.
          • b) But each human being has a "higher" authority under which his/her "authority" is to function.
        • 2) This means, then, that all "lesser" agendas are supposed to be in pursuit of "higher" agendas.
        • 3) And it means that the characteristic of "authority" is supposed to be "for the good of those who are subjected to it".
      • b. This "submission to authority" is an issue that challenges the very root of a person's relationship to God.

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This is article #066.
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