Grace Bible Church Glorifying God by Making Disciples of Jesus Christ

Establishment & Purpose of Government Selected Scriptures God is the creator of the universe, time, the Earth, and man - Genesis 1 God created man in His image to be His regent on Earth carrying out His plans - Genesis 1:28 Adam broke God commands with his descendants become so evil God destroyed them in the flood

Establishment & Purpose of Government Selected Scriptures God forced Noah’s descendants to disburse by confusing their languages - Genesis 10 By Genesis 14, Kingdoms were established and had a protective role for its people Abraham’s descendants through Jacob became a distinct nation with a theocratic government

Establishment & Purpose of Government Selected Scriptures The Mosaic Law is the most comprehensive revelation of God’s will for governments The people rejected the theocracy and demanded a king, but God was already prepared - Deut. 17 Rulers were to put their trust in God instead of seeking power, wealth or pleasure

Establishment & Purpose of Government Selected Scriptures Rulers that are humble, fear the Lord and lead their people in righteousness will be blessed - Deut. 17:18-20; Prov. 11:10 Governments are to promote good and suppress evil - Romans 13:3-4

Establishment & Purpose of Government Selected Scriptures Governments are to: Carry out God’s commands, Protect its citizens from evil, Promote good

Establishment & Purpose of Government Selected Scriptures Governments that do not do these things place themselves at risk of being removed - Daniel 4, 2 Kings Proverbs dealing with government primarily deal with issues of wisdom, righteousness and justice

Types of Government Officials Types of government in scriptures include: patriarchal, kingdoms, theocracy & democracy in theocracy Only the Millennial Kingdom under Messiah is presented as the superior government The weakness of democracy is that it reflects its people - whether good or evil

Types of Government Officials Many specific types of officials are named, but they often overlap The duties of all government officials are to eventually relate to the 3 major functions Carry out God’s commands, Protect its citizens from evil, Promote good

Wisdom Wisdom is crucial for successful government – Prov. 1:2-7; 8:14-16, 32-36 Biblical wisdom is heavenly, not earthly, natural or demonic - see James 3:13-18 Wisdom in the Bible refers not only to human skills and ability, but also to submitting to God’s will

Righteousness / Unrighteous Prov. 14:34 applies to all government: Righteousness exalts a nation, But sin is a disgrace to any people Righteousness brings blessings while sin brings travail & tragedy: Proverbs 28:12, 29:2, 16 A good ruler upholds God’s law and correct sinners: Proverbs 29:27; 4:14-15; 28:4; 19:29

Righteousness / Unrighteous The people groan under a wicked government - Isaiah 5:20-21; Proverbs 24:23-26 Be careful about the source of advice: Proverbs 12:5; 25:4-5; 1:5; 12:15; 16:13; 20:28; 19:21 - Psalm 1 A leader must stand strong & courageous against the wicked - Proverbs 25:26

Justice / Injustice Righteous and evil are mutually exclusive yielding opposite results: Proverbs 21:15, 8:20 Justice is required before worship - Proverbs 21:3; Isaiah 1:10-15; Proverbs 15:8; Micah 6:8 The first level of justice are the laws of the nation – Proverbs 28:5; 13:23

Justice / Injustice Righteousness & justice demand honesty - Proverbs 16:11; 20:10; 22:28 A good ruler establishes justice, an evil ruler oppression – Prov. 29:4; 28:15-16 The justice of a good king is a blessing - Proverbs 20:8; 20:26; 29:14

Justice / Injustice A wicked king can be bribed - Proverbs 17:23, listen to bad advice and increase evil - Proverbs. 29:12 Rulers must be careful about allowing anything to pervert their judgment - Proverbs 31:8-9

Justice / Injustice A judge must suppress false witnesses Proverbs 14:25; 19:5, 28; 24:28-29 A judge’s decisions reflect his own character - good or bad - Proverbs 21:8; 29:7; 18:5; 17:15, 26

Conclusion God is the judge of both men and nations Our only real hope is in declaring the gospel and God granting revival

Grace Bible Church Glorifying God by Making Disciples of Jesus Christ