God’s Servant for Good (6)

Then he waited seven days, according to the time set by Samuel. But Samuel did not come to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him. So Saul said, “Bring a burnt offering and peace offerings here to me.” And he offered the burnt offering. 1 Samuel 13.8, 9

A strong leader?
By some accounts Saul was a strong king over Israel. He united a nation that had been riven by civil war. He was able to defeat the Ammonites, a persistent nemesis of Israel, and thereby to renew the nation’s sense of identity and hope. And he routed the Philistines, Moabites, Edomites, and the kings of Zobah.

To his contemporaries, Saul must have seemed very much the right choice for king. He was a strong leader whom none of Israel’s enemies could overcome.

But it’s one thing to be strong against the foes of a nation, and quite another to be a strong king, or a strong government. In Saul’s case, as it turned out, he was not able to provide a strong government for Israel because he was not himself a strong person.

Characteristics of strong government
Nations need strong governments, but strength is not determined by military prowess alone. Saul provides us with several good lessons on what it means to be a strong government.

Strong governments understand the limits of civil government, and they don’t try to do more than what government should do in being a servant of God for the good of the nation. Saul was fearful of losing the devotion of the people, so he overstepped the limits of his role as king and offered sacrifices which only the priest, specifically Samuel, should have offered.

No government is strong which, seeking to retain the devotion of the people, exceeds the limits of its rightful authority. Governments weaken themselves and their nation when they usurp the responsibilities or duties of individuals, families, local communities, or private institutions. Matters such as the education of our children, vocational training, health care, and the regulation of markets and prices have fared as well, if not better, without government intervention and regulation. The state of America’s schools today provides a case study in how government usurpation of parental rights weakens everyone involved.

Government can’t do everything, and most of what a nation requires in order to flourish is the responsibility of agencies other than government. Governments, like Saul, may appear to be bold and helpful when they transgress the limits of their power, but they actually weaken themselves and the nation they serve when they do so.

Weak governments also demand more of their people than is reasonable. The strictures against eating which Saul imposed on his army, as well as his irrational and paranoid demands of those in his inner circle, weakened his ability to rule and drove his nation toward civil war.

Governments which promulgate unjust structures of taxation, make political loyalty the test of public service, and impose increasing regulatory burdens on the population may appear to be strong and controlling, but they are actually weak and unstable, and they weaken the intermediating structures and institutions of society, as well as the civic and political morale of the populace.

A just and loving social order
Strong governments commit to doing only what is required to secure a just and loving social order. They resist the temptation to expand into areas reserved for individuals and social institutions, and they concentrate on enforcing just laws and protecting the liberties of those they serve.

It is ironic that governments which seem to be strong and well-nigh invincible can actually be fragile and ready suddenly to dissolve when the right pressures are brought to bear against their weaknesses.

The government we seek will be strong by resisting the temptation to be or do more than what is required of it, thus curbing political self-interest and allowing other agencies and institutions of society to remain strong and viable themselves.

Next steps: What is your responsibility as a Christian to help ours be a good, selfless, wise, and strong government? Ask a few Christian friends about this. What practical steps might you take together?

T. M. Moore

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This week’s study, God’s Servant for Good, is part 2 of a 5-part series on The King’s Heart, a Biblical view of government and politics, and is available as a free download by clicking here. We cannot understand God’s view of government, or how to function in a political environment apart from faith in King Jesus and His rule. Order T. M.’s book The Kingship of Jesus  to supplement our studies of God and government..

Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.