Government as God's servant?

For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. For he is God's minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God's minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. Therefore you must be subject, not only because of wrath but also for conscience' sake.  – Romans 13.3-5

Here is a verse that really adds to the confusion of the Christian and his relationship to the state. It tells us that governments are a terror to evil works. That if we do good we will be praised by the government. The state is God’s minister to us for good. We should be afraid only if we do evil. God gives the state the power of the sword to execute wrath on the evil doer. So, we are to be subject. 

That seems all well and good. And it is government acts the way God wants them to act. 

But the reality is that sometimes government does reward the wicked and punish the good. Sometimes it bears its sword even against God’s people. 

What do we do then? Do we then have license to ignore the injunction to submit? Can we reject or rebel against a government because it doesn't seem to be doing what is supposed to do.  

I would have say that even when that happens we don't have the right to rebel. Remember that the people reading this letter were living in the Roman Empire. They were living under Nero's thumb. Nero was one of the cruelest tyrants who had ever lived. He hated Christians. He set fire to Rome just so he could blame the Chrisitans. 

We still have to obey. We still have to submit. At least as important to obeying out of fear is that we can trust that when we obey we can rest assured that we cna have a clear conscience and then leave the results up to God.