Honor the King

"13Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, 14or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right. 15For it is God's will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men. 16Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God. 17Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king."
--1 Peter 2:13-17

Tim Keller notes the opposite worldviews of the average news reporter and the Christian. The news reporter thinks that religion is ultimately about politics. When news reporters interview Christians, they think that ultimately what matters is who the Christian is going to vote for. But we know that ultimately politics is about religion. What undergird all political thought are worldviews and not the other way around. This is why the world ultimately won't be changed through political action. Real change will result in political change--indeed politics will in many ways be the means through which change takes place. But it is just that, a means.

So Peter tells us to submit to political authority because as Christians we are in fact above it. The power of the Gospel is so great that it doesn't have to fight for its own survival. It works at an entirely different level at which politics can neither operate nor interfere with. Our doing good will silence foolish men--even those in power. Joseph served diligently for Potiphar and in Pharoah's court. He did not need to fight for himself, it became clear to all that he was operating on a different level. The source of his strength was not simply more powerful, it was from a completely different world.