Year 1689 Paul commandment about government went out of fashion in the English speaking World. In Romans 13:1 Paul states that governing authorities have been instituted by God and that no Authority exists that was not instituted by God. In 13:2 he writes whoever resists Authority resists what God has appointed and those who resist will incur judgment. These two verses were important in the development of the theory of the divine right of kings.
Romans 13;1 Let every person be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except from God, and those authorities that exist have been instituted by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists authority resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. NRSVU
Paul intentionally changed Jesus’ commandment
let us see what he says about divorce I quote the passage in full which is
29:11
29 minutes, 11 seconds2E to the married I give this command not I but the Lord that the wife should not separate from her husband but if she
29:20
29 minutes, 20 secondsdoes separate let her remain unmarried or else be reconciled to her husband and that the husband should not divorce his
29:28
29 minutes, 28 secondswife to the rest I say I am not the Lord those the clear distinction to the married I give this command actually it
29:37
29 minutes, 37 secondsisn’t I it’s the Lord to the rest I say I am not the Lord that if any believer has a wife who is an unbeliever and she
29:46
29 minutes, 46 secondsconsents to live with him he should not leave her and if any woman has a husband who is an unbeliever and he consents to
29:53
29 minutes, 53 secondslive with her she should not leave him but if the unbelieving partner separate Ates let it be so in such a case the
30:01
30 minutes, 1 secondbrother or sister is not bound I have a list of 16 vitally
30:09
30 minutes, 9 secondsimportant and compellingly interesting points about this passage I shall mention two of
30:16
30 minutes, 16 secondsthem number one the conditions of Paul’s Ministry to Gentiles non Jews created a
30:24
30 minutes, 24 secondssituation that was not foreseen in the teaching of Jesus namely households that were divided between Believers and
30:31
30 minutes, 31 secondsnon-believers in this changed social circumstance Paul felt able to revise jesus’ own teaching by permitting
30:40
30 minutes, 40 secondsdivorce if an unbelieving partner wished it he consciously and deliberately distinguished his revision of Jesus
30:48
30 minutes, 48 secondscommandment from the Commandment of Jesus itself
Paul’s most enduring Legacy I wish to discuss the complex of thought that is in my view Central to his Theology and especially to his christology it is the theme that I once called participationism; the theme of the Incorporation of the believer into the person of Christ making participation in Christ Central to Paul’s thought is an extremely unprotect position and I was brought up as a sort of protestant the Protestant objection to the centrality of participation ism is summed up in two words mysticism and sacramentalism these two words are called Roman Catholic in circles where this is a denigrating label and you know that the true interpreter of Paul was Luther and the Roman Catholic church is by definition wrong right the Lutheran interpretation of Paul was that righteousness by faith is the controlling Doctrine in his letter letters and that righteousness by faith is the judicial declaration by God that people who have faith in in Christ are righteous even though in real life they are sinners.
