OTHER GOVERNMENTS
The inhabitants of Biblical cities, kingdoms and nations are symbolically identified by their citizenship. These references are about the government that rules them — not to the physical land or the people.
People who are in a New Covenant relationship with God are Israelites who are also called Jews. All others, regardless of the city, kingdom or nation in which they live, are Gentiles. The world of the Gentiles includes everyone who is not within the nation of Israel or the Kingdom of God. Being a Gentile, therefore, is not a matter of birth (i.e.not an ethnic Jew), it is a matter of spiritual citizenship where a Gentile is anyone, including an ethnic Jew, who is not in a New Covenant relationship with God.
The City of Jerusalem, the Nation of Israel and the Kingdom of God is as spiritual places — not actual physical places. With this understanding, it is possible for people in covenant relationship with God to physically live anywhere in the physical world and still be residents of Jerusalem and Israel because they are spiritual citizens of the Kingdom of God. That means that they are citizens of the spiritual place where God is the spiritual authority.
God’s government is established by the fact of the law of God being written on the hearts of his people. This is the New Covenant of which Jesus is the mediator who makes it available to believers. It is not like governments found anywhere else on earth. It is not a corporate legal government established by men. It is a spiritual government established by God for his purposes. He has set out the laws by which the people in his city/nation/kingdom live and he rules his city/nation/kingdom as king who has supreme authority to enforce those laws and guide/direct the city/nation/kingdom as he sees fit to accomplish his purposes.
But, in our daily lives, we live with the reality that God’s government is not the only government in the geographical world or in the spiritual world. There are cities, nations and kingdoms in the geographical world occupied by other peoples and ruled by spiritual authorities other than God. In God’s eyes, all other people, no matter where they physically live, regardless of the nation where they hold their legal citizenship, and regardless of their ethnicity race or color, are citizens of the world. They are not under God’s government and not of his kingdom.
Whereas, God’s people are in the world but not of the world, these people are both “in the world” of religion and “of the world” of religion (i.e. they are worldly/religious).
New Covenant disciples live in the presence of all kinds of religions. But, because they have overcome the influence of those religions, they are no longer susceptible to the influence of those religions. They have been delivered from their worldly religious practices and brought into the Promised Land.
But New Covenant disciples are very much in the minority. They are surrounded by people, including friends and family, remain in slavery and exile in the world of religion in Egypt and Babylon. These citizens of the world are under the legal, spiritual authority of a government other than God’s government. They are not citizens of God’s kingdom.
All other governments are ruled by men who are ultimately ruled by the Devil. In the Bible, these other governmental authorities are symbolically identified as Egypt, Babylon, Canaan, Rome and all the other entities with which Israel contended for survival. This is the great population of peoples and nations that God challenged Israel to invade and conquer, and with whom they should have no relationships. They are also the governments and religious systems about which God warned Israel that it should not do what they do. The things about these governments and peoples that God wants his people to avoid are the religious activities and gods that would steer his people away from worshiping him in spirit and truth.
However, even though these authorities are worldly, God is still in charge. He has established the leaders and governments in those cities, kingdoms and nations to punish people who do wrong or praise those who do right.. That is why it is important for all of God’s people to submit to those authorities.
We see, therefore, that God rules through all religious governments. He rules directly over those who are members of the Kingdom of God and he rules indirectly in all other religious entities — even those that might be considered ungodly. Since we know that no government created by men is perfect, we might wonder why God allows ungodly men to rule as they do in ways that seem to be in opposition to God’s ways and purposes. The answer is given most succinctly in Romans 13:1-9.
1 Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. 2 Therefore he who resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of him who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, 4 for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain; he is the servant of God to execute his wrath on the wrongdoer. 5 Therefore one must be subject, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. 6 For the same reason you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. 7 Pay all of them their dues, taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due. 8 Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. 9 The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery, You shall not kill, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,” and any other commandment, are summed up in this sentence, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
While the truth that religious leaders (i.e., Satans) are the rulers of the world may be unsettling, we should not be unduly concerned because there is in these verses a companion truth that assures us that those who do good (i.e., pay taxes, give respect and honor to whom it is due, love your neighbor as yourself. etc.) have nothing to fear from ungodly government authorities. In fact, the scripture says that only those who do wrong (i.e. fail to fulfill the law) should be afraid because God will use his servants (i.e. those in authority) to discipline wrongdoers. Just as God revealed himself to the nations through Pharaoh and other ungodly authorities, he continues to do that in these modern days. This is an important reminder to remain in a New Covenant relationship so that the law is continuously written on your heart. That is the only way to avoid God’s wrath and keep your conscience clear.