In a previous post, we established that law enforcement exists because sin exists. The state bears the sword as a concession to a fallen world. Order requires restraint. Law requires enforcement.

One of the most dangerous confusions in political theology is the assumption that because God authorizes civil authority, He sanctifies every exercise of that authority. Scripture does not support this conclusion. In fact, it resists it.

The state may be ordained. Its force may be authorized. But its agents remain fallen.

Authorization Is Not Moral Transformation

Romans 13 affirms that governing authorities are instituted by God and that they “bear the sword” against wrongdoing. That statement grants legitimacy to the office and its function. However, it does not grant moral perfection to the person who holds the office.

Throughout Scripture, God uses rulers—many of them pagan, many morally compromised—to accomplish His purposes. Cyrus is called God’s instrument. Nebuchadnezzar is described as a servant used for judgment. Yet neither was righteous in heart. Divine use did not equal divine approval of their character.

This distinction matters.

When a law enforcement officer acts within lawful authority to restrain violence, that action may be justified. It may even be necessary. But it does not transform the agent into a redeeming instrument.

Force can be legitimate without being sanctified.

The Sword Is a Burden, Not a Badge of Moral Superiority

The sword is given not as a reward, but as a weight. It places the agent in a position where decisions have grave consequences. Bodies may be restrained and removed. In extreme cases, life may be taken.

That gravity does not make the act inherently evil. But it makes it morally serious.

The biblical vision of authority is sober. Kings are warned. Judges are cautioned. Shepherds are judged more strictly. The possession of power increases accountability; it does not reduce it.

For this reason, Christians should resist rhetoric that portrays law enforcement as either pure heroes or systemic villains. Both narratives crush reality. The sword is neither a halo nor a curse. The sword is an instrument entrusted to flawed men and women in a disordered world.

Force as Last Resort, Not First Instinct

The state’s authorization to use force does not grant license for excess. Scripture consistently ties authority to justice and proportionality. The Christian tradition has long recognized that force must be:

• directed toward the restraint of evil,
• proportionate to the threat,
• and exercised under law rather than personal impulse.

Where those conditions fail, abuse emerges. And abuse must be named for what it is: sin committed under the order of authority.

But we must be careful not to invert the logic. The existence of abuse does not negate the legitimacy of force itself. It reveals the corruption of the human heart, which affects every institution—including the church.

The answer to the sinful use of force is accountability and reform, not the abolition of law enforcement agencies.

The Moral Tension for Christian Agents

For Christians who serve in law enforcement, this distinction creates tension.

They are called, as believers, to love their enemies and to reflect Christ’s character. Yet in their office, they may be required to arrest, restrain, or even use force against those who resist lawful authority.

The Christian agent must remember that obedience to lawful authority does not erase personal accountability before God. Each action must be measured not only by departmental policy but especially by conscience formed under Scripture.

A Necessary Guardrail

Law enforcement exists because sin exists. But law enforcement does not remove sin—neither in society nor in the officer.

This guardrail matters in our cultural moment. We can neither defend every action of authority nor condemn every action. Both approaches abandon civil order.

Until Christ returns, coercive authority will remain part of human society. But it will remain provisional, limited, and morally weighty.