Reclaiming Liberty: A Better Understanding of God-Given Rights

“There is no authority except from God.” That’s what Romans 13:1 says—but understanding how God’s authority works is just as important as acknowledging it.

The recent blog post “God-Given” by The Presidential Prayer Team rightly affirms that our rights come from God, not government. However, it falls into a trap common among well-meaning Christians: an oversimplified theology of the state that blends patriotism with piety and assumes that because rights are God-given, the governments we live under, especially the U.S. federal government, must therefore reflect His will and, perhaps more importantly, His de-facto approval.

But a Christian worldview demands more discernment than that. Romans 13 is often used to justify state authority without acknowledging its limitations or its inherent rebellion against God. The apostle Paul wrote those words during the reign of Nero—hardly a godly ruler—and yet encouraged submission not because the Roman state was righteous, but because Christians should act prudently in a hostile world. The passage is more descriptive and prudential than it is prescriptive and absolute.

We must be careful not to confuse God’s permission of authority with His endorsement of the state’s actions. Yes, all authority exists under God’s sovereign plan—but so did Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, and Caesar. That does not mean their rule was righteous or just. Scripture is filled with examples of God’s people resisting unjust rulers and systems—think of the Hebrew midwives, Daniel, Peter, and Paul himself.

The devotional also claims the Founders integrated biblical morality into our laws, and while some certainly held sincere Christian convictions, we must remember that state power has often been used to suppress, not protect, religious and personal liberty, and none of that is biblical at all. As Benjamin Rush warned, virtue is necessary for liberty—but that virtue is not created by law. True moral reform comes from transformed hearts, not legislative action.

Moreover, the conflation of America’s founding documents with divine authority subtly encourages a kind of civil religion—a merger of Christianity and nationalism that confuses our primary allegiance to Christ with allegiance to the state. The Kingdom of God is not advanced by state power; in fact, it often stands in opposition to it. Jesus explicitly rejected the offer of earthly kingdoms (Matthew 4), affirming instead that His kingdom is “not of this world” (John 18:36).

Christians should pray for state leaders, sure. But we should also be wary of putting our faith in them. Instead of praying for officials to uphold “biblical values” through coercive power, perhaps we should pray for them to limit their power, protect the space for peaceful voluntary interaction, and allow civil society—including the church—to thrive.

God-given rights are real. But that also means they exist prior to and apart from the state. Governments are not the source of our rights, and they should not be given the reverence due only to God. As Christian libertarians, we uphold the dignity of each person made in God’s image, advocate for a free society based on voluntary cooperation, and resist the temptation to sacralize the state.

Let us not confuse the symbols of liberty with liberty itself. The epitome of true freedom is found not in flags or courts or presidents, but in Christ—and it is lived out in the peaceful, responsible use of our God-given freedom.