Right, I don't disagree. with you there.

100%

I'm more referring to this.

Clearly Paul was doing good and the church under persecution was doing good and yet he writes "Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval". When we do not receive the approval of the state it doesn't mean we are doing wrong. Or when we do good, it doesn't mean the state will always approve of it. If this were true it surely would not apply to Hitler. And we know Jesus did good works and yet the governments of the Romans and the Jews killed him.

That's what I mean. So we should submit to authority but sometimes we can't if we are to do what is good. Daniel is a great example of this. Jesus is a great example of this. The book of Acts is full of examples.

The way some use Romans 13 is so broad that it boarders on absurdity. I have heard it used to defend the war in Iraq. Which, ironically would a government overthrowing a government... so how does that work with this application of the passage.

To me what makes the most sense is that in Romans 12 Paul describes what Christians should be about. "Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them." I don't think anyone reading Paul's letter would think, of course! The Romans are good and doing God's work after reading chapter 12 (I know there were no chapters in the original letter). But they would understand that our response needs to be one of loving our friends and our enemies and realizing that Jesus Kingdom is not of this world. I see the thread through the New Testament of Jesus and His church overthrowing the hearts of men, not the governments of men.

This is why I believe that while I know taxation is theft, it is not my primary concern. My primary concern is the souls of men. Not my dollars. Though, there is nothing wrong with peacefully opposing certain practices of the state or even opposing it altogether in favor of a different form of governance. After all, we do not have the same form of governance they had in the time of Paul and in another 2000s years we likely will not have our current form. The principles still remain.