The Consent of the Governed A Biblical Pattern
All students of political philosophy know there is a connection between limited government and the doctrines of checks and balances. No king, or president, or governor has absolute power; the power of all is limited. The power of all ruling institutions is checked and balanced by other institutions and authorities. Herein lies the essence of liberty, on the one hand, and the deconstruction of absolutism, on the other.
These fundamental precepts upon which life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness depend, arise out of ancient traditions. In particular, we are confident that they arise out of Christian and proto-Christian civilisation. The more a nation or civilisation turns away from acknowledging Christ as the King of kings, the more rapidly it will destroy liberty and descend into anarchy or an absolutist tyranny.
The essentials of the doctrine of limited, multiple authorities are found in the constitution of ancient Israel itself. David was God's anointed king-to-be. God had chosen him, anointed him, and called him to be His king over all Israel. David, therefore, had a divine right to rule. But, actually, he did not, as the inspired record makes clear. He had a divine calling, but not a divine right.
For many years after David's divine anointing by the inspired prophet, Samuel he served as an officer in the king's army, at times a fugitive. At other times he was a private citizen. The anointing of David by Samuel carried no authority, until the people acknowledged God's calling of David, and consented to his rule.
The reason undergirding this startling truth is that all kings and political authorities represent God and are His servants, because all power and authority belong to Him. He is Lord of heaven and earth. But this means that the people also belong to God: they are His possession. Kings and all in authority are to protect and serve the people as belonging to God. Therefore, God has granted to the people the right of consent to be governed by one or another.
After many years living as a fugitive, David was finally chosen and accepted as king over his own tribe, Judah. But he only became so when the men of Judah gathered both to chose and accept him as their king. (II Samuel 2: 4). Then, eventually, seven years later all the remaining tribes came to anoint David as their king also. "So all the elders of Israel came to the king at Hebron, and King David made a covenant with them at Hebron before the Lord, and they anointed David king over Israel. David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years. At Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months, and at Jerusalem he reigned over all Israel and Judah thirty-three years." (II Samuel 5: 3-5)
David was anointed and chosen by God in his early or mid-teens. But the government did not rest upon his shoulders for another fifteen to twenty years, until the people, represented by their elders, also chose him, and made covenant with him. Without the choice and consent of the people--through their representatives--there is no office, no rule, no lawful authority.
If a divinely called and supernaturally anointed person such as David cannot enter into his office nor carry rule and authority until he has the consent of the people, how much more is the consent of the governed required in our day?
The doctrines of limited government, of division amongst powers, of checks and balances, and the consent of the governed are appointments of God Himself. For the people and their protection belong to God. The Lord is their shepherd. Any government or any governor who steps forth to disregard such limitations rebels against God and thereby violates his calling.
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