Sermon Notes
- Big Idea: The gospel is exemplified not in governmental leaders, but in the conduct of the Christian citizen.
Opening
- Conrad began by asking how many laws, rules and regulations each person had followed just to get to their seat that morning, then listed some of the stranger laws around the world.
- Laws give order to the society we live in. By and large we are to follow them, and most of the time we do not even think about them.
- This message begins a short series in 1 Peter on ordered relationships: government this week, then the workplace, then family and household.
- Back to the beginning: In Genesis 1 God gave one rule, and Adam and Eve broke it, bringing sin, death, shame and brokenness into the world.
- Genesis 9:1–7: After the flood, God repeated "be fruitful and multiply" and said he would require a reckoning for human life. He delegated authority and consequences to human beings, and this set authority into the fabric of life.
- What government is for: Conrad offered a working definition, and said it is "not the end-all be-all": government structures are given by God "to manage a collection of image bearers," encouraging good actions and discouraging bad ones (Romans 13:1; 1 Peter 2:14).
- Thesis: "The gospel is exemplified not in governmental leaders, but in the conduct of the Christian citizen."
- Conrad said he started writing with a different direction in mind, then turned to what the text actually says, which puts the responsibility on us as citizens.
01 · 1 Peter 2:13–15
1. Live Well — verses 13–15
- "Be subject" means to arrange yourself under something else. It applies to every human institution, but Peter's focus here is government.
- You all: The command is plural. Peter writes to exiles scattered across Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, all of them under Rome.
- Two citizenships: "Our citizenship is in heaven" (Philippians 3:20), but we also live in a city, a county, a state and a nation, and we submit to its laws. We live in that tension.
- Governments often fall short of their purpose, and some punish the good and praise the evil. This text is not a prescription for telling the government how to operate. It speaks to Christian citizens.
- For the Lord's sake: We do not submit only for obedience's sake. We submit for the Lord's sake, so that our good conduct puts the gospel on display.
- Two kinds of wrong: Conrad drew on two terms from criminal law.
- Malum in se: Wrong in itself, such as murder or arson (Genesis 9:5–6).
- Malum prohibitum: Wrong because a law forbids it, such as speeding, unpaid taxes, or driving, fishing or hunting without a license. Conrad thought the passage has this kind more in view.
- Where the line is: Keeping the law does not mean going along with what is morally wrong. Conrad said that if abortion is legislated, "I'm not saying we go along with that."
- Render to Caesar: Asked about taxes, Jesus said, "render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's and to God the things that are God's." Conrad said we want to live above the bare minimum.
- Conrad quoted John Piper: "Keeping the speed limit is Christian worship." That holds for rules we disagree with too, and Conrad said the rules we disagree with are, more often than not, a matter of perspective and preference.
02 · 1 Peter 2:16
2. Live Free — verse 16
- What freedom is: "Biblical freedom is the ability to choose to live according to God's will and God's way."
- Peter tells people to live as free. He does not tell the government to make them free. The people of Rome did not have many of the freedoms we enjoy, yet Peter called them free.
- Under Nero: Nero was emperor from AD 54 to 68. He blamed Christians for the great fire in Rome and executed them. Peter himself was crucified under him, and yet he lived as a free man.
- Free to submit: Our idea of freedom is often doing whatever we want. God's word says we are "free to come under something else." Jesus, "the most free person who ever lived," lived under a government and submitted to his Father's will.
- The coming election: With the election three weeks away, on November 3, Conrad noted that Peter, Paul and Jesus had no say in their government, and that it is a privilege that we do. He gave two applications from verse 16:
- As people who are free, we use our freedom to choose God's will and God's way.
- As servants of God, we vote our values, our biblical values, after we prayerfully wrestle, discern and bring Jesus in.
- Conrad did not tell anyone how to vote; he said that is beyond the scope of the message.
- Whose responsibility: Conrad said he gets "grumbly" when he takes responsibility for things that are not his, such as who is in office or which proposition passes. Our responsibility is to live well, live free and live as servants of God. We cast our vote, do what is ours to do, "and we trust God with the results."
- Nero was outside Peter's control. Peter could control his own conduct.
03 · 1 Peter 2:17
3. Live Respectfully — verse 17
- Verse 17 gives four short commands. Conrad gathered all four under one word: respectfully.
- Honor everyone: Honor is not agreement or affirmation. It is seeing people as image bearers, "with respect, dignity, and worth." Conrad paused and asked each person to think of someone they will meet this week who needs more honor from them.
- Love the brotherhood: Conrad described his three sons putting their hands in together and shouting "Woz Boys." We are a family of believers, called not only to honor one another but to give ourselves to one another.
- Fear God: Conrad read A.W. Tozer: "The greatness of God rouses fear within us, but his goodness encourages us not to be afraid of him." God is the only one on Peter's list we are to fear.
- Honor the emperor: The person people feared most was the emperor, especially one like Nero. Peter says not to fear him but to honor him.
Closing
- The passage is "not about the government. It's about the gospel."
- Conrad confessed that he falls short, and said each of us should ask what we can control, what we cannot, and what our responsibility is right now, so that our neighbors, coworkers and family see the gospel at work in our lives.
- Jesus lived well under his government, lived free and lived respectfully. Conrad noted that Jesus also called Herod a fox, and left that tension for us to wrestle with.
- Summary: "Live well, live free, live respectfully."
Scripture quotations marked ESV are from the ESV Bible, © 2001 by Crossway. Text Edition: 2025. Used by permission. Permissions. Prepared for this small group from the October 11, 2026 sermon; questions and applications are editorial study material.