Bearing the sword (read deadly force) is the most awesome responsibilities and authorities in law enforcement. To better understand it in its full context, a person must consult God's Word for guidance. The particular text I am referring to is the Epistle to the Romans by St. Paul. In the Epistle to the Romans, God gives us instructions on our attitudes and actions as they relate to public servants. It is written to the Roman Christians of the First Century CE.
HISTORY: In the first Century CE, in the Roman Empire, it was unlawful to be a Christian. Christianity was looked upon as a sect of Judaism and in the true sense it is. Rather than intending to start a new Religion, Jesus Christ, was leading people to a Spiritual Faith that went deeper that just moral living and religious ceremony. He didn't try to create a NEW LAW by which people could make themselves more pious, but rather, he wanted the Faith to be in the Hearts of the people and have a relationship with them in that connection. To the Jews of that time, this meant a new Religion to replace theirs. To the Romans, it made no difference, they were just Jews one and the same. To better understand the climate and political environment of the time read the Works of Josephus. The main point is, the Roman Empire was a totalitarian rule that crucified many people, mostly Jews and most importantly our Lord. On the other hand, the early Christians were outcasts of their own people (the Jewish people) and suffered the scorn from them as well. Despite all of this, the Lord gives the Roman Christians the following instructions about Governing authorities and their purpose and nature.
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." All governing authorities receive their authority from God by His appointment. "By God" means at the hand of Him. Not that all Governing authorities are doing God's Will in their administration, but their power comes to them by the hand of God. The authority of the Ruler is the issue; Not the actions of the Ruler. In that time the Emperor had the power of punishment and enforcement and he extended this to the soldiers that worked under his authority and received the same through him. Today in the United States, we have a Democratic Republic and we are a society of Law. Law Enforcement officials are given the authority to take away the inalienable rights of the citizens for the time it takes to give them due process to arbitrate guilt or lack of guilt, beyond a reasonable doubt. After that, the government can take the liberty of that person and in some cases their life. That authority has the obligations of the uses of force and even deadly force to secure a person for the safety of our people as a whole. This authority is given divinely but not always utilized in a Godly way. When force is used righteously, and in accordance with the Laws that are set by Legislators, the Officer has acted within the responsibility of the Office and its authority. Misuse of this authority can result in its revocation and the incurrence of punishment by the assigned Governing authorities of that Officer. The guidance of the Holy Spirit, through faith in Christ, will lead the Officer to a righteous discharge of the duties of the Office. Our sin nature can lead us into sins of weakness and human error, but the Holy Spirit will guide us away from the actions that reside in the Natural man's heart. There are many Rulers in the world today that follow the desires of their hearts and feelings instead of the Word of God. Some are deceived in false Religion and desire to conquer and destroy people of different beliefs. The authority to govern their people comes from God, but the desires and actions that stem from them are the result of deception and a following of their sin nature. The authority is still by the hands of God, even when it is not used to carry out His will. It needs to be understood that the dereliction of duty and responsibility is as sinful as the misuse of the authority. The authority of the Office itself is chosen and given by God, regardless of its misuse or disuse by the Official. So the authority needs to be recognized for the giver of the authority and subjected to by the command of the Giver.
ROMANS 13:2 "Therefore, whoever resists the authority resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgement." The resisting of the authority is a cause for God's judgement upon the resistant person(s). How often are Police Officers faced with the task of investigating a crime or incident and met with resistance by a person that was guilty of nothing up until the resistance. I am talking about Laws such as: Failure to obey the officers signal to stop, interfering with the arrest or detention of another, interfering with a public servant, obstruction of justice, evidence tampering and perjury. All of these are all offences against the authority of the Officer and not against him personally. Assault on a Police Officer is an offense against both, but mainly against the Officer personally. All of these crimes will bring judgement on the head of the offender. Sometimes if the Officer needs to protect himself or another, the judgement may come in the form of force that will be immediate consequences for the perpetrator; especially in the instance of deadly force. In the use of Deadly force the judgement may be also Eternal. Other times a lesser use of force will be necessary to bring the offender into custody and the force will be a kind of punishment of the offender that acted in a way to require its use against him. Even though the Law doesn't recognize this as punishment, God has these consequences part of our world to help us learn. The least case scenario, the judgement of criminal conviction and a sentence will be the result. The resistance of the authority will bring judgement on the head of the resister at all different levels of resistance. Whatever the case may be, God warns all people to submit to authorities over them.
ROMANS 13:3 "For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Do you wish to have no fear of the authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive its approval." A person that minds their own business and works hard and takes care of their obligations will not be in the suspicion of the police. It is not against the law to be out on a walk in the neighborhood at 3:00 AM. However, those that choose to do it in black clothes, while looking into cars with a flashlight, are going to have to give an account of their actions to the first cop that sees him. If he resists this authority by fight or flight, the consequences of his actions will come his way. If he simply gives a reasonable explanation of his actions, there will be no consequences for his doing what is right. The only reasonable explanation for that behavior I have heard is the guy is a repo man. Whether or not he was out committing crimes or repossessing cars, the authority of the Officer demands an explanation under the suspicious circumstances. The authority to stop and question is the fundamental area of defense attorneys' search for loop holes and mistakes in the investigation. The resistance of the stop may create fruits of the poisonous tree in the evidence but, it won't heal the bumps and abrasions any faster. A reasonable person can see this reality and usually submits knowing he has nothing to hide.
ROMAN'S 13:4 ". . . for it is God's servant for you're good. But if you do wrong, you should be afraid, for the authority does not bear the sword in vain. It is the servant of God to execute wrath on the wrong doer." In this passage, the word for SERVANT in the original Greek text is: diakonos. This is the same word that is translated: helper, minister; deacon. This is a servant that is called by God, not just an employee of the Government. This places the responsibility on the citizen to give honor, respect and submission as long as they are not told to act against God by the Official. It also places a higher responsibility on the holder of that Officer to be honorable and deserving of respect. Failure to be respectable can result in the sin of both parties in this instance. This passage also warns the criminal to be afraid. I look at this as God saying every dog has his day.( A very loose paraphrase.) But for the good citizen, the Officer is to serve and protect for the good of the people and their property. It is a position that is placed for the welfare and safety of the citizens. This word is never translated as "slave." The word for a slave is: doulos from the verb douleos. This is a different kind of a servant and God has other commands that dictate our treatment of people who are slaves. This isn't very relevant to us in a time where trading one's freedom for room and board is not legal. But, some citizens get the wrong impression about what a public servant is. And that is the purpose of this comparison. Some people think that the government is there to fulfill their desires and do what they are told. You can see in this comparison that although "servant" and "slave" can mean the same thing in English, the original Greek shows a difference. The police need to serve the public for their best interest; not necessarily what they want. The wrath spoke about in this passage can be the wrath of God but is not limited to that. When a person is executed by the Government for a Capitol Offense, he is executed upon the accusation of the police, then a trial by people from the peer group, and sentenced by the Judge who is also included in this passage of Scripture. It can include the wrath of those people and of the people as a whole through them as their representatives. Most of all this passage shows how God works through people. He spreads His message of Salvation through Prophets, Pastors, Teachers, Evangelists, and people who bear witness of His Majesty and Salvation through Christ Jesus. God also works through people to accomplish His will; Even in meeting out justice to the wrongdoer.
ROMANS 13:5 "Therefore one must be subject, not only because of wrath but also because of conscience." The way to a clear conscience before God and yourself, is to obey the Laws set by the governing authorities, and submit yourself to the Official that has authority and responsibility over you. Yes, that's right! Even our Chiefs and other ranking Officers.
ROMANS 13:6,7 "For the same reason you should also pay taxes, for the authorities ore God's servants, busy with this very thing. Pay to all what is due them- taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue is due, respect to whom respect is due, honor to whom honor is due." This is an commandment to the citizen to pay his taxes to those who serve in the various ways. To cheat on taxes is to cheat the individuals who receive their living from them. However, in a representative form of Government, the Representatives have the responsibility to not underpay the servants that serve their constituencies.
SUMMARY God cares how the operation of government works and he cares about the individuals to whom he gives His authority to. When you put on the Badge and go to work, try to remember that it is with God's authority that you are acting with; A thing not to be taken lightly. God will guide your steps and keep you in the paths of righteousness if you trust Him as your Lord. If you work as though you are working for the Lord Himself, He will not let you bear the sword in vain. You will have a good career and go home at the end of your shift with a clear conscience and satisfaction that you served the people and God well.