Good Government

By Rev. David Petersen

The Small Catechism confesses that daily bread includes good government. Good government is that which provides an environment where its citizens are free to pursue their God-given vocations. Thus are we called to realize that good government comes from God and to receive it with thanksgiving.

The Declaration of Independence also shows that good government comes from God. The authors of the Declaration argue that governments have duties toward those they govern. If they do not carry out those duties, they must be deposed. The signers of the Declaration were not in favor of rebellion against lawful governments. In fact, they worked hard to prove to the world that the American cause was just and that the colonists were forced to revolt for the good of all men. As such, the Declaration is mainly a catalog of tyranny and oppression, of how the government in England failed to carry out or obey the law. Whether or not King George and the parliament were truly guilty of these charges is debated by historians, but that was the claim made by those who wrote the Declaration. Likewise, Christians are free to disagree about whether or not the American revolution was justified. But it should be noted that whether it was or not, the Declaration itself espouses neither anarchy (chaos and no government) nor ochlocarcy (rule by the mob). Liberty in America has never meant citizens had the freedom to do anything they choose or that they had the freedom to rebel. The Declaration and the Constitution both understand that liberty sets all people, rulers and subjects alike, as equals before the law. This is the heritage of freedom in the West and what most of us think of when we speak of a good government.

What liberty is comes more sharply into focus when it is contrasted with tyranny. Consider life under Joseph Stalin or Adolf Hitler. Their people were not free, not because they could not do as they chose but because they had no standing before the law. They could be taken away in the middle of the night and sent to Siberia without a trial or evidence. Their property could be confiscated without excuse. Stalin and Hitler were not accountable to the law, and their subjects had no recourse in it.

Americans often take for granted that police officers serve and protect the public from thieves and criminals. In most places, times, and thought, police officers did not serve the public. They served the government against the people. Their purpose was to protect the government from the people. The fact that we are not afraid of the police is an incredible benefit of freedom. We are not afraid of the police because we have rights under the law.

There is no doubt that political liberty is a great blessing, and the American government easily qualifies for the Catechism’s understanding of good government. It comes from God, and we should receive it with thanksgiving. Indeed, despite the imperfections and historical problems, I remain personally convinced that we enjoy the best government and constitution the world has ever known. It has served more than us. For it is not merely responsible for the great prosperity of the United States, but it has also helped to spread freedom and human rights all over the world.

The Declaration of Independence belongs to that heritage. It is our foundational political document. That alone should give it a place of honor among us. But even if that were not true, it is simply one of the most inspirational pieces ever written. We would all do well to read it frequently for it reminds us of what tyranny is—a government above the law—and what liberty promises—equality before the law and justice.

We do not define God by creation. We do not work backwards from political or secular realities to spiritual truth. The Creator gives definition and body to all things. Nonetheless, the definition and understanding of true political freedom can help us to better understand spiritual freedom, what St. James calls the “law of liberty.” For Christ has freed us from the Law’s condemnation. He has died for us, and there is no one left to accuse us. The devil’s head is crushed, his mouth is shut. The Lord Jesus has answered for all our sins and liberated us from hell’s claims. We are free. But freedom in Christ is not freedom to sin, to do whatever we choose. Whoever commits sin commits lawlessness. Christ came not to destroy the Law but to fulfill it. God has not given us freedom in order that we might break His Law. He gives us freedom in Him that we would stand before the Law without fear. We are not afraid of the Law because we know that God keeps His Word. He is just, and there is no divine double jeopardy. If Christ has paid our debt, met the Law’s demands, and suffered all that hell could dish out, then there is no more. Justice has been satisfied. It cannot ask any more than Jesus has already paid. Our sins are forgiven, and we are declared righteous and holy according to the Law for Jesus’ sake. This is not spiritual anarchy or ochlocracy. It is the truest liberty. God’s holy Law is not a secret policeman that God uses in the way of a tyrant against His people. We are a free people, a royal priesthood, the beloved of the Lord, and God gives His Law to serve and protect us. Thus, whether we are blessed with good government or not, we are free to pursue our primary God-given vocation, that of Christian.

The Law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.

Rev. David Petersen is pastor of Redeemer Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and is also on the Higher Things editorial board. His e-mail address is David.H.Petersen@att.net.

The Fourth Petition

Give us this day our daily bread.

What does this mean? God certainly gives daily bread to everyone without our prayers, even to all evil people, but we pray in this petition that God would lead us to realize this and to receive our daily bread with thanksgiving.

What is meant by daily bread?

Daily bread includes everything that has to do with the support and needs of the body, such as food, drink, clothing, shoes, house, home, land, animals, money, goods, a devout husband or wife, devout children, devout workers, devout and faithful rulers, good government, good weather, peace, health, self control, good reputation, good friends, faithful neighbors, and the like.