Next I will consider Romans 13:1-7, which is perhaps the most explicit statement in the New Testament on the role of government. From where (whom) does civil government get its authority? According to Paul--and, more importantly, the Holy Spirit--all existing authority derives from God and has been established by God. And therefore those who unrighteously resist said authority are resisting God. Paul exhorts obedience to said authority, observing how government, when it does its God-appointed duty, is in fact a minister of God for the promulgation of justice and the restraint of sin.
These can be hard concepts for individualistic Westerners with a strong sense of personal liberty to internalize. We are used to thinking of government as something that infringes upon liberty or makes demands upon us. We may say "No king but King Jesus," but then we usually live as though Jesus is even less of a governing presence than the government we resist.
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