What Should Government Stay Out Of?

When we talk about government, it is easy to fall into one of two extremes. Some people treat government as if it is the answer to almost every problem in society. Others talk about government as if it is inherently bad and should have almost no role in our lives.

Neither position reflects what Scripture teaches.

The Bible tells us that government is an institution established by God. Romans 13:1 says, “Let everyone submit to the governing authorities, since there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are instituted by God.”

Government has a legitimate purpose and legitimate authority. Christians should respect that authority. However, authority given by God is also authority limited by God.

God did not give government responsibility for everything that happens in society. He also gave responsibilities to individuals, families, and the church. Therefore, when Christians ask, What should government stay out of?, we first need to understand the responsibilities God has assigned to each of them.

God Gave Government a Job

We discussed this earlier in this series when we looked at what God expects government to do.

Romans 13:1–7 gives us one of the clearest descriptions of government’s responsibility. Paul says governing authorities are God’s servants for our good, and he specifically connects their authority with restraining and punishing evil.

Peter describes government similarly:

“Submit to every human authority because of the Lord, whether to the emperor as the supreme authority or to governors as those sent out by him to punish those who do what is evil and to praise those who do what is good.”
— 1 Peter 2:13–14

Government therefore has a God-given responsibility to maintain order, administer justice, and restrain wrongdoing. Scripture does not, however, say government is responsible for every problem in society.

That distinction matters because government possesses something the other institutions do not possess in the same way: coercive authority. Paul describes it as bearing “the sword” in Romans 13:4.

Government can make laws, levy taxes, impose penalties, and ultimately use force to enforce its decisions. Because that authority is significant, we should care about where its boundaries are.

Government Should Not Replace the Family

Long before Romans 13, God established another institution: the family.

Genesis 2 describes God establishing marriage. Throughout Scripture, God repeatedly assigns responsibilities to families that He never assigns to government.

One of the clearest examples is raising children. Moses told Israel:

“Repeat them to your children. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.”
— Deuteronomy 6:7

Notice who receives that responsibility. God didn’t tell Israel’s rulers to make sure children learned His truth. Instead, He placed that responsibility primarily in the home.

We see the same principle in the New Testament. Ephesians 6:4 tells fathers to bring their children up “in the training and instruction of the Lord.”

Parents have a responsibility to teach, discipline, provide for, and raise their children.

Of course, that doesn’t mean government has no responsibility concerning children. If a child is being abused, abandoned, or seriously neglected, government has a legitimate role in protecting that child. Protecting someone from wrongdoing fits the governmental responsibility described in Romans 13.

But protecting a child is different from replacing a parent.

That distinction becomes important when government begins making decisions that properly belong to mothers and fathers.

For that reason, Christians should ask more than whether a particular government policy has a good intention. We should also ask whether government is helping families fulfill their God-given responsibility or gradually assuming that responsibility for them.

Government Should Not Replace the Church

God also established the church and gave it responsibilities of its own.

Jesus told His followers:

“Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you.”
— Matthew 28:19–20

That assignment wasn’t given to Rome. It wasn’t given to kings or governors. It was given to Christ’s followers.

The church is responsible for proclaiming the gospel, making disciples, teaching God’s Word, worshiping together, and caring for people. That last responsibility deserves our attention.

James 1:27 speaks about caring for orphans and widows in their distress. Likewise, Galatians 6:10 tells believers, “as we have opportunity, let us work for the good of all, especially for those who belong to the household of faith.”

Helping people in need is not a modern idea invented by government. It has always been part of God’s expectation for His people.

That doesn’t automatically mean every government assistance program is wrong. Scripture does not give us a list of twenty-first-century programs and tell us which ones Congress should fund. Nevertheless, it does mean Christians shouldn’t automatically assume that every human need becomes government’s responsibility.

Sometimes the better question is uncomfortable:

Where is the church?

If someone needs food, clothing, companionship, counseling, or temporary financial assistance, Christians should not immediately look toward Washington and ask what government is going to do.

We should first look around our churches and ask what we are going to do.

Scripture Gives Us an Order of Responsibility

One of the clearest examples of this principle appears in a passage we don’t often connect with government.

In 1 Timothy 5, Paul gives Timothy instructions about caring for widows. Some women in the church genuinely needed help, and the church was expected to care for them. Yet Paul didn’t simply say, “If someone has a need, the church pays for it.”

Instead, Scripture establishes an order of responsibility:

“But if any widow has children or grandchildren, let them learn to practice godliness toward their own family first and to repay their parents, for this pleases God.”
— 1 Timothy 5:4

A few verses later, the responsibility becomes even clearer:

“If anyone does not provide for his own family, especially for his own household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”
— 1 Timothy 5:8

Finally, verse 16 says that when a believing family member can care for a widow, that person should do so “so that the church will not be burdened, in order that it can help widows in genuine need.”

Do you see the pattern?

There was genuine need. Someone should meet that need. But who was responsible mattered.

Family responsibility came first. As a result, the church had resources available for those who genuinely had no one else to help them.

That principle should influence the way Christians think about society.

Compassion doesn’t eliminate responsibility.

Government Should Not Eliminate Personal Responsibility

Scripture repeatedly connects assistance with responsibility.

Paul told the Thessalonians:

“If anyone isn’t willing to work, he should not eat.”
— 2 Thessalonians 3:10

Notice that Paul said isn’t willing, not isn’t able.

There is an enormous difference between someone who cannot provide for himself and someone who refuses to take responsibility when he is capable of doing so. Christian compassion should recognize that difference.

Ephesians 4:28 gives us an even fuller picture. Paul tells the person who had been stealing to work honestly “so that he has something to share with anyone in need.”

Biblical responsibility isn’t merely, “Take care of yourself.”

It is:

Work. Provide. Become responsible. Then use what God has given you to help someone else.

That’s dramatically different from both selfish individualism and permanent dependency.

Therefore, when government programs are considered, Christians should ask what those programs encourage. Do they help people through genuine hardship while encouraging responsibility? Or do they unintentionally make dependency easier?

Good intentions matter, but so do incentives and results.

Government Cannot Take God’s Place

There is one boundary government can never legitimately cross.

Government is never above God.

Jesus illustrated this when religious leaders attempted to trap Him with a question about paying taxes to Caesar. He responded:

“Give, then, to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s.”
— Matthew 22:21

Jesus recognized Caesar’s legitimate authority, but Caesar didn’t own everything.

We see that boundary clearly in Acts. When authorities ordered Peter and the apostles to stop teaching about Jesus, Peter answered:

“We must obey God rather than people.”
— Acts 5:29

This wasn’t an excuse for Christians to ignore laws they disliked. After all, the same apostles taught believers to submit to governing authorities.

The issue was authority.

Government had crossed from exercising its legitimate responsibility into commanding Christians to disobey God. When that happens, God’s authority comes first.

So, What Should Government Stay Out Of?

Maybe we’ve been asking the question backward.

Instead of starting with a list of government programs we like or dislike, Christians can begin with a biblical question:

Who did God make responsible for this?

Did God give this responsibility to government?

Perhaps He gave it to parents and families.

Maybe He gave it to the church.

Or perhaps He gave it to individuals.

Sometimes responsibilities overlap. Life isn’t always clean enough to fit into four separate boxes. Government may protect a child while a family raises that child. Churches may help families during financial emergencies. Communities may work alongside government during disasters.

However, overlapping responsibilities do not erase primary responsibilities.

That’s why the framework we’ve been using throughout this discussion matters:

Biblical Responsibility → Incentives → Fruit

First, determine who Scripture makes responsible.

Next, ask what a particular policy encourages or discourages.

Finally, look honestly at the fruit it produces.

That approach is much more useful than simply asking whether something sounds compassionate or whether our preferred political party supports it.

Before We Tell Government to Get Out

There is another side of this discussion that Christians cannot ignore.

We can complain that government has become too involved in areas that belong to families, churches, and individuals. But then we need to ask why government stepped into some of those areas in the first place.

Are parents teaching their children?

Are families caring for aging parents?

Are Christians helping neighbors who genuinely need assistance?

Are churches caring for widows, struggling families, and people in their communities?

Are individuals accepting responsibility for the choices they make?

Those questions bring the responsibility much closer to home.

If we want government to do less, we may have to do more.

That brings us right back to the central message of this entire series.

Changing society doesn’t begin in Washington. It begins when Christians accept the responsibilities God has already given us.

So, before we spend all our energy asking what should government stay out of, perhaps we should ask a more personal question:

Have I stepped into what God has told me to do?

Because changing the world still starts at home.

Keep Going with the Start at Home Series

This post is part of Start at Home: Why Your Kitchen Table Matters More Than Washington Ever Will. If you missed an earlier post—or want to follow the series from the beginning—you can find the complete series here:

Read the Start at Home series:
https://www.discipleblueprint.com/startathome

Prefer to listen? We also have companion episodes on the Disciple Blueprint Podcast, available on most major podcast platforms.

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