“Without justice what are kingdoms but great bands of robbers? And what is a band of robbers but such a kingdom in miniature? It is a band of men under the rule of a leader, bound together by a pact of friendship, and their booty is divided among them by an agreed rule. Such a blot on society, if it grows, assumes for itself the proud name of kingdom.” — Augustine, City of God
A kingdom of cutthroats will not survive an encounter with the kingdom of Christ. It is Christ or chaos and if you set up a rival kingdom, it will be cut down. After all, you cannot go on cutting throats indefinitely. Eventually you run out of people to pierce. Christ's Kingdom will come and all other kingdoms will go. Their gates cannot hold out against the battering ram of God's goodness and grace.
The lesser kingdoms have been established by Christ as His deacons of wrath. They are to promote the good and punish the evil. They are to uphold justice and ensure peace and quiet for Christian people. God has not deputized the State to be deacons according to their own agendas. They are not to redistribute the bread of a nation based on their own whims. They are to enforce His law by His standards. They are not above the law. They do not have the authority to make laws that contradict His law. They are to govern by His grace and for the good of the governed. If they refuse to appeal to the justice of God, they will insist on the injustice of man.
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