“So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light,” – Romans 13:12

This week’s “Tuesday Morning with Paul” found our church men’s Bible Study reading Romans 13. It’s the chapter that often proves controversial when there is good reason to hold government to account.

So we started out our conversation by reminding ourselves of a number of things:

• First – there’s little we love more than finding a scripture we believe we can use to bash others over the heads!
• Paul is writing this to people who are in a tough spot. He is not concerned with regime change, he simply wants Christians to be a positive presence in whatever society they inhabit.
• This scripture was held up by the German church in the 1930’s to justify its silence in face of Hitler’s escalating abuses and thirst for power.
• Remember what happened in North America 250 years ago! How did we respond to “the governing authorities” representing King George? How did we like Romans 13 then?

So, having said things such as, “if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants” (v 4), Paul goes on to talk about the central message of the gospel. “Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law” (v 8).

“Love does no harm to a neighbor,” Paul points out in verse 10. Throughout all four gospel narratives, Jesus spends a lot of time instructing us as to who our neighbor is – and it’s safe to say that we do not get to pick and choose.

Regardless, a lot of us find ourselves excluding all sorts of people from our neighbor list, and we also tend to go into “battle mode” at the drop of a hat.

Well Paul, very much channeling Jesus, is quite comfortable with the concept of Christians donning some armor and going on the offensive. But we need to listen to how: “So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light” (v 12), he writes.

I like that. The Armor of Light. So filled up with love and with the light of God that it spills out, gets all over us, and gets all over those around us – and all over the place.

Jim Winslow pointed out that Paul was familiar with both sides of the coin. As a Pharisee, as Saul, he had taken armed police and literally dragged people out of their homes and into the streets as an agent of oppression. Now, as Paul, he is often beaten, arrested, and thrown into prison without charge or first checking his legal status.

So our response? Our responsibility? Live as God’s children saturated with light and love. When people see us coming, what do they see?

“Clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ” (v 14). Now that will do nicely – DEREK