First Peter 2:13-17, Submission to Authority Part 1

okay first peter we're on this morning um oh it's my anniversary today our anniversary congratulations looking at the date so remind me oh 18 18 oh you're a yeah youngster yeah so remind me after class because then i'll forget again and i'll be embarrassed later That's your job this morning, everybody.

So, in the first part of submission to authority, 1 Peter, chapter 2, 13 through 17. And let me get this up. So, I'll read the text. And the text is, starting at 13 in chapter 2 of 1 Peter, submit yourself. Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. For such is the will of God, that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men. Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bond slaves of God. Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king."

This is how verse 17 ends up. So on to On to 13, let me get rid of my hide. The floating panel, there we go. So submit yourselves to the Lord's sake to every human institution. So this in 13, the word submit, we know that as, anyone want to call out what that Greek word is?

Poupomone? hupomone, or how about hupotasso? Okay, all right, okay. So hupotasso, and this, hupotasso is an authoritative arrangement, an ordering, a chain of command, as in the military. And you want to submit yourselves to human institutions and take on the attitude of submitting towards this chain of command. So it's defined as to range oneself in order and authority according to rank, as in the military. That's what it is. So put yourself under the person who's just above you in the chain of command, is what hupotassoing is.

But it's different in the Greek. The tense voice and mood has it this way. It's an imperative, but it's an aorist passive imperative. So does that seem, what I say, oxymoronic to you guys? So being passive, it's an imperative command, but be passive about it. So does that mean sort of do it, you know, lazily?

Yeah, so when we say the, what we're receiving is something then, right? If we're, the subject is you, right, yourselves? Yeah, you yourselves. I think of that as you yourselves as a middle voice, like you're intensely interested in it. And it does have that effect, but it's an heiress.

And what do we usually think of? We usually think of, like in verse 17, love the brethren. Well, that's what we're used to is a present active imperative. In the present, we are to keep on actively loving the brethren. And so that's what we're used to with imperatives. But this eros passive is what Merriman says there, be in the condition of having been subjected to.

And it's a conscious choice of subjecting yourself to something or someone. Can we say it's a mindset? Yeah, exactly, you can. It's good. Maybe it's the fact that the Lord has put us in this position, and the fact that the passive nature of this verb tense or mood is really reflecting the fact that it's God who works in you to ultimately respond to this imperative. Yeah, and I don't think when I taught this last time, I really dealt with this verb tense, but I think it's important because it's different from the others, and it's different for a reason. The issue with Andrew is the fact that the government may not always be just, right? Yeah, right. Many times it's not. only of God. He's the only one that would, you know, tell us to do this, right? Yeah, yeah. Yeah, good point.

In verse 11, from last week, Roger, they cover the abstaining from fleshly lusts. And that's a, abstain is a present middle infinitive, so you're to take a very personal you yourself are to really be involved with the abstaining from fleshly lusts is how that verb comes out. So Merriman calls these lifestyle commands that we're into now, and I think that's good because that sort of defines it. Mindset or lifestyle commands. So you're ordering your life to do these things, to submission.

Andrew? Yeah? Wouldn't this just be a result of consecration? Yeah In a way I'll get to that in a in a bit because I have a thought but it's very close to what you're saying Okay. Yeah that but that's good that's consecration is That's a good point. And I think what I'll have that will match what you're saying there and I'll come back I'll circle back to you there so William Kelly states it this way, be ye those who once for all submitted yourselves So, and that really gets at the heiress tense, who once for all, so you want to put it in your mindset to once for all submit yourself, is how this verb tense reads. And I just say that that heiress, that what he says really hits top dead center on the heiress tense. Or here, how's this, Kenneth Wiest, put yourselves in the attitude of submission to, The exhortation is not merely to obey ordinances, but to create and maintain that attitude of heart which will always lead one to obey them. So you see how everyone's coming at it from different angles, but saying the same thing. It's kind of cool here. And I just thought of putting this in, note that we are not hupakuu, We are not to hupakuo human institutions for the Lord's sake.

And what is the definition for hupakuo? To listen under? Listen under or hearken under, yeah. So, nor are wives in Ephesians chapter 5 to hupakuo under their husbands. And that's to listen, hearken under, incline your ear in the attitude of obedience to, that's hupakua. But we are hupatazoing these governments, the government. And so I asked everyone, I asked myself here, maybe this works, children and slaves, or servants and employees are to hupakuo and believers under the government and wives are to hupataso is sort of how maybe that's an axiom.

You can think of it that way. So two different words. I was kind of thinking, we haven't got to it yet, but when we get to the wives, it's nice that the wives listen to their husbands. That's kind of a nice thing. It is. But isn't it more important for husbands to listen to their wives and True, I mean, I'm just saying there should be, I don't know, there's more to be said about that topic.

Especially in relation to chores, right? In relation to everything. Or do lists, yeah. Yeah, and I looked that up because I thought that it would be wives hoop-a-cooing, but I looked it up, and I think I'm right when we get to that passage, it's hoop-a-tossing.

You know, Andrew, I think we cut short on this, and put yourselves in that, that's active. Yeah, that's true. I mean, it's not anything we do actively. We're put in a position by God to deal with this. That's true. That's a good point. I would have to actively do this. God says, I'm working in you to do this. Yeah, and that's the whole thing of why your attitude is very important here.

Okay, and the object of this submission is to government, of course, or their designees. Now, submitting ourselves to human institutions for the Lord's sake, what does that preposition mean? And Merriman says because you could say because of the Lord because of his sovereignty is why we're submitting ourselves So getting back to what?

Paula brought up here's here's my he said consecration and I think it's wrapped up to in what Peter covered in he started out the whole letter with in chapter 1 3 through 9 this whole package of salvation assets that he began with, and there they are in green, highlighted in green.

You know, blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy has caused us, and this is important, to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. We have obtained an inheritance, unperishable, undefiled, which is not fading away, reserved in heaven for us. We're protected by the power of God for the salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. And it's just all these great things. The salvation is more precious than gold. And we can rejoice with joy inexpressible and be full of glory.

So that whole package is... kind of the reason why we can constantly create ourselves, as Bola said, or submit ourselves, because we have this asset operating for us. Merriman calls it, these things, divine operating assets, or living the Christian life. And I like that, I like that phrase, divine operating assets. And so, what that, That package in verses 3 through 9 of chapter 1 allows us to be holy, because we're commanded to be holy in chapter 1, verse 15, or conduct ourselves in fear while on earth, verse 17 of chapter 1, or to fervently love the brethren, verse 22 of chapter 1.

And all these commands that Peter gives us And with Peter, he just starts right into the commands, doesn't he? Very quickly in this letter. Whereas Paul would take a chapter of two to give you the doctrine, and Peter just launches right into it. Because He just put chapter 1, 3 through 9, that package, right up front, so perfectly, He can go right into these commands.

Because those are blessings that we have, aren't they? So we're set to submit ourselves to every human institution, whether to as to a king or one as to one in authority. So, in essence, Merriman says it's every human type institution. And maybe think of this movie, whatever form you may find these institutions.

Made me think of this movie. Have you seen that? The Wild Ones. Marlon Brando. And he's in a biker gang. He's a head of a biker gang, and they're going through Fresno, California. A bunch of them wreaking havoc on the town. And one of the biker chicks, one of their team asks him, Brando, and his name is johnnie she says uh... johnnie what are you rebelling against and he goes what do you got so it's like that so what type of institution are we to submit ourselves to and i think we should say well what have you got whatever it is we submit ourselves to it Maybe, but that just made me think of that phrase there. Marlon Brando.

So, God created these institutions, and he started out before the fall of man, if you think about it. Before the fall of man, before the arrival of this nature, he instituted marriage, and that's an institution. So, that's an institution of human authority. And then came family when he had Cain and Abel and Seth Then tribes Noah's sons and then nations Are an institution and from Genesis 10 11 civil law came about 200 years after Noah's death the code of Hammurabi came about you an eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth and And then Moses in the law, in the wilderness, that institution came about then. So yeah, God is in the business of creating human institutions. And so does anyone recall the creation of civil authority in Genesis? What that was? It was that when Moses' father-in-law said, you know, you can't do this all yourself. We need a group of guys, probably. No, that's a good guess.

But before that, it's Genesis 9, 6, when he said, whoever sheds man's blood, by man his blood shall be shed. For in the image of God, he made man. Genesis 9, 6. And so that was the time of Noah. He laid down this law that if anyone kills anybody, then mankind or a group of men are to put, you know, to deal with that civilly and put that murderer to death. So that was kind of the creation of that Genesis 9, 6 of civil authority.

Okay, on to verse 14. So, submit yourselves to any authority. Oh, yeah. Is there a question? Yes, just one other point. The passive nature of this imperative really reflects the rest of the verse, in my opinion. It says, for the Lord's sake. For the Lord's sake. Who gets the glory for the way we respond? He's put in us a new creation, Christ Jesus, Spirit-led. If this is an identification proof, I'm not sure what else it is. Can God be the glory?

That's what we're all about, right? right yeah short all the time but responding to unrighteous government governors or whatever is a response that brings glory to god yeah and not to be like uh... in the current day and age uh... what's going on with uh... with these young people that democratic socialists and uh... they're not respecting authority at all right uh... there's just uh... Anyway, but I think we'll talk about that more next week, what's going on presently. So verse 14, who is the him that sends the governors or to governors sent by him for the punishment of evildoers? And if I bring in back verse 13 here, submit yourselves to the Lord's sake, to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him. So who is ascending? Is it the governor that's ascending?

No, it's the Lord. Oh, you guys think it's the Lord, huh? Okay. Our God. That's okay, and you're right. Or is it the king? The nearest antecedent to Him is the word King. I take the King way, and you guys take that as the Lord. And Merriman takes that way, too, when listening to his lesson on this.

So that's interesting. The reason why I think it's the one who's sending is the King, who sends the governor or whoever, that person is sending a designee or is signing it. And so, and I just think the Lord is at the, just designs the human type institution at the top. And then, yeah, the people below that can sort of do assignments is how I read it.

Well, Andrew said, don't we have some parallel verses in Romans there? We studied, we talked about the government. And doesn't it say something to the fact that the Lord sent the Yeah, okay, and that could yeah, okay, and I'll we'll look at Romans 30 that's Romans Yeah, so that's yeah, that's good so Maybe next week I'll eat crow and say, oh, you guys are right.

Although the hymn is not capitalized. That's true. So the translators usually capitalize on In many, I don't think the ESV capitalizes personal pronouns. Other translations do, and I don't have any capitalization of him in the other two translations. So even the translators say it's not God. Yeah, and reading in English, Yeah, my mind just attaches the hymn to the king who's assigning governors. But, you know, like Caesar would assign Pontius Pilate over the Judeo-Sumerian, things like that.

But I think either way is good. You can have it both ways, I think. And both ways are kind of correct, aren't they, ultimately? So what's the purpose of these divinely authorized human-type institutions? I like that Merriman phrase, human-type institutions. The purpose of it. Right?

Romans 2, control man's sin nature. Yeah, and it's actually very parallel. The purpose is for the punishment, it says it right there, for the punishment of evildoers. So the purpose is stated right there in the verse, and it's, hey, it's capital punishment. And that's what it is at the forefront according to Genesis 9-6, which we just looked at. And that's the ultimate way.

Yeah. I believe that's why Cain was not killed because there was no authority as a government authority to do that. Yeah, oh, that's a good point. Yeah, I would agree with you. So God did punish Cain, but he did not kill him. Yeah, and what's that verse that says, were there no where there's no law, there's no offense. I think that's Romans, right? Romans. Yeah. So yeah, I would say you're right, Jim, on that. Let's see. Button sticks here. Okay, yeah, so the capital punishment is sort of the purpose of it.

And if you go through Deuteronomy, and you can look at chapter 13, 17, 19, chapter 21, chapter 22, it's all about the exercise of capital punishment. I just looked at those and I was like, wow, there's a lot of stoning going on in there that God authorizes. And it always says, for this reason, so you shall purge the evil from your midst. And God restates that many times in those chapters. because he wanted that evil to be purged from Israel, the Israelite. So one could criticize this by saying this puts us back under law, but I think we have to carefully and rightly divide the word of truth. This is a principle of God.

I'll never forget when I first got to Denver after we moved here, a guy named, I forget his name, but he and I went to defend on a television show capital punishment. And the issue wasn't ultimately whether this was just the rightful response to a heinous crime of murder. but it was justice. And that's a different principle. And the idea is, is this a deterrent to crime? Well, I think it is, but that's not God's reason. It's just punishment for killing another man. So this is not a law in the Old Testament.

This is a principle of God. Yeah, even though it's given us law, right, back then, to Israel, but the principle remains in this age, right? As you said so nicely, Genesis 9-6 states this, doesn't it? Yeah. Genesis is before the law. Yeah, yeah. Exactly, yeah.

So here, in agreement with you there, Bob, Merriman says vengeance is the goal, not therapeutic rehabilitation. Or you could say vengeance or punishment. And here's Romans 13 for but if you do what is evil be afraid for it does not that's the Human institution does not bear the sword for nothing for it is a minister of God an Avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil so A human government is a minister of God whose purpose is to avenge and to bring wrath on those who practice evil. And I think I said last, when I did this lesson during COVID, I think the last time, I said, yeah, that the government is to terrorize evildoers.

But you know, that's not, as Roger points out, that's not happening. And it's almost as if because it's not happening, it's just becoming more and more frequent because people realize there is no justice for this. So they can do whatever they want and it gets worse And it's worldwide, it's not just here. It's lawlessness. Yeah, it's totally lawlessness. Because there is no justice.

Yeah. And hold that thought too, Margaret, for next week, because I actually am going to get through all of 13 through 17 today. And then you're going to be like, well, what are we going to study next week? Because we're done with all the verses. And instead of having a day off, which you could have next week, I thought we'd talk about kind of the current condition of things and bring in, I want to bring in Merriman's study in the that government is also to protect our conscience. He has a good little book on that. So we'll look at that.

The good news is that authorities can also issue praise for those who do write, and that's some good news. The bad news is capital punishment, but if you do write, you can have praise for it. Macaulay, well states here, the word such, for such is the will of God. The word such points back to the word submit in verse 13. He says this is important because it shows that submission does not rest in the good character of the authority, as we all know, but in the will of God. The submission is to be accompanied with doing right. This means that submission is not sole and slavish obedience, but act of good works.

So, the purpose of doing right and these good works is the silencing of the ignorance of foolish men, in verse 15. So the objective is to muzzle the mouths of unbelievers, or Christ rejecters, ones who are agnosia. Agnosia is ignorant, ones who are ignorant, without knowledge. And so a lot of commentators say that that's the pre-salvation life. for anyone, for any life that does not yet know God, or agnosia, without knowledge.

And then that ties right into verse 12 that we covered last week. Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing which they slander you as evildoers, They may, because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation. And I think, Bob, you just stated that previously. Previously, the purpose is that glorification of God when that believer is being worked on by the Holy Spirit.

Because of his unbelief so our good behavior and and submission to government will Will be a ministry to them So in verse 16 act as free men and do not use but do not use your freedom as a covering for evil But use it as bond slaves of God So act as free men I think that Peter sounds like a founding father here, doesn't he?

Something that the founding fathers would say. In fact, in Federalist 42 Madison gives this American sentiment on being free. This is that the free inhabitants of these states paupers vagabonds and fugitives from justice accepted So he's sick. He's taking those guys out shall be entitled to all privileges and immunities of free citizens and these several states and the people of each state shall in every other enjoy the privileges of trade and commerce and to that I say amen yeah I really think this reminds us of our studies in Galatians.

But all that aside, I love what Christ said here. I know this is not epistles-based, but when I give you liberty, you will be given liberty freely indeed. And the question is, how do you interpret that liberty? And because the Lord himself said it, the liberty is to live a life free of sin, right? So that's a liberty we have as believers.

Or in fact, when you're under the flesh, you're always counting good things to yourself. But God, in the new creations we are in Christ Jesus, allows this liberty not to be used as a cloak for vice, but to God's glory. Because we've given now in our position that our condition can live according to being free from sin. Now, we don't live there often, unfortunately. We all fall short of this, but I love the liberty that Christ describes.

Yeah. Yes. Good point. Good point. Bob's serving sin, right? Yeah. So, when you read it, you think of our liberties in the United States here. However, to your point, Bob, What he's talking about as we as bond slaves are in reality to act as free down here on earth, our temporary home, because we've been purchased with a precious blood of Christ. Ephesians 1 7 Hebrews 9 12 and and Bought with a price I should say bought and not brought with a price 1st Corinthians 620 1st Corinthians 723 1st Peter 1 18 and 19 were bought with a price to be bonded to Christ and unbound from sin and that's the sin nature and slavery to men Slavery to men is brought out in first Corinthians 7 23 or Slavery to the flesh and slavery to the world because we have Christ did all that on the cross So we were we were slaves to all that and now we're made free and with that freedom We can use that freedom for what you just said to glorify God.

Galatians 5.1, it is for freedom that Christ set us free. Therefore, keep standing firm and do not be again subject to the yoke of slavery. And that says it right on the nose there. How are you are to use our? freedom as Christ to Be a bond to be a to submit and to do these things for the government gives us that ability And does anyone recall that and we state this often but the New Testament definition of freedom is that We say it all the time here at O'Holly Hills. Freedom is a change. A change of masters, right? A change of masters. Yeah. So you're under one master or you're under another master. And we were under the mastery of all those things, the world, the flesh, the devil, our sin nature. our minds all that stuff and we We were bought with a price but by Christ death on the cross by his blood and now we have a new master.

That's that's that's Christ himself So we are thus free to submit ourselves to earthly authorities as Christ himself did And I have two examples of that, two examples of how Jesus Christ, the creator and sustainer of the universe, subjected Himself to authorities.

And here's, I won't read this whole thing, but Luke 2, 43, where he as a boy, he stayed behind in Jerusalem. His parents were unaware of it, but they supposed that he was with them in the caravan going back up to Nazareth, but he stayed behind teaching in the synagogue. So they found him, and he said to his mother, his mother said, son, why have you treated us this way? Behold, your father and I have been anxiously looking for you. And so he ends with, Christ as a young boy went down with them and came to Nazareth, and he continued to be in subjection to them. And his mother treasured all these things in her heart. So that's him subjecting himself to the authority of his parents. So he did it. He also did it here.

He told Pilate, Pilate said to him, why do you speak to me? Do you not know that I have the authority to release you and I have the authority to crucify you? Then Jesus answered you would have no authority over me unless it had been given to you from above For this reason he who delivered me To you has the greater sin. So there's Christ saying I understand I'm under your authority, but you have no authority except that it was given to you from God Okay, verse 17, we'll wrap up here. Verse 17, honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the King.

What kind of verse is this, I asked myself. I wanted to know what these statements, they have a name, and I couldn't quite put my finger on it. So I went to, I asked AI, Brock. What are these things? Because I thought they were axioms. So I wanted to know, to give you the definition.

We know that they're true. We should all do these things. And these commands are short, pithy, and memorable. That's true. And they transmit truth. That's characteristic of all these things. So what they're best described as, as maxims, maxims, or proverbial maxims, or maxims. And they fit that definition perfectly. And so Grok gave me the, Grok really gives you the nice detail. It's kind of cool.

The Latin term is maxima propositio, the greatest proposition. So these are the greatest propositions. These are maxima propositios. These maxim employed in modern times is honesty is the best policy. Look before you leap. Actions speak louder than words. Those are maxims. Would one be cleanliness, godliness is next to cleanliness. That would be good. That's law-based, isn't it, though? But that's one. It's nice and clean. Yeah. The purpose of a maxim is easy remembrance and practical application. That's the aim. I do use AI to give me the grammatical sort of structure of things and things like that, or the fact, what is the constitution of Canada? You know, so I don't... God is UI, ultimately. Yeah, but not like doctrine.

So, honor all people. That's an heiress again, active imperative. It's active instead of passive. We started out in verse 13 with a passive imperative, with that submit to authorities. So the heiress is, again, be, how Wiest would say it, I have that in this little box, be ye one who once for all honors all people.

And these are all different, and I thought it's interesting that the voice tense and mood are different in these maxims. So love the brotherhood, that's a present active imperative. So that's, we are to keep on actively loving the brotherhood. Fear God, does anyone have any guesses of what that would be in voice tense and mood, the grammar of that? Have you been cured? No. No? How about a middle? He puts a middle. Yeah, that's what I thought. Middle sounded good.

It's for your benefit you fear God. Yeah, for your benefit, and you want to be actively, personally involved in fearing God. And honor the king, that's a present active imperative. And it's interesting that honor the king is present active command, whereas honor all people is aorist active. So it's really interesting to think about these things vis-a-vis what we're talking about, this attitude of heart and things like that. And so the definition of honor is to fix a high value on, to venerate and revere.

So there you go. There's a lesson, so I've covered all the verses, and next week we'll look at some other things of submitting to government. But I wanna leave you with... Maximum? Well, yes. Remember this week, that a stitch in time The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. Yeah, that's one too, because that transmits truth, and maxims transmit truth, and it's short and pithy and memorable, just like the definition there, so great. Well, I'll close here.

Our Heavenly Father, we thank you for this study, and we thank you that you've instituted Divinely governments and we we thank you that we have a very good one here in the United States And we thank you for our blessings in that matter and we pray these things in Christ's name amen