Authority In Religion (No.2)

                                       
                                           Kinds Of Authority

     The word of the living God teaches that there are various kinds of authority.
First, there is inherent authority. Inherent authority is the kind that exists or
resides in a person because of his status or position. God is sovereign and all
authority  inheres  in  him. God  is  all  in  all  and  has  the  privilege to give
orders, to enforce obedience, and to judge all humanity. Paul said there is "one
God and Father of all , who is over all, and through all, and in all." (Eph. 4:6;
ASV) He also said, "For from him and through him and to him are all things.
To him be glory forever. Amen. (Rom. 11:36; ESV) Jesus said the Father
has set things "by his own authority." (Acts 1:7)  John, the apostle, wrote,
"all the angels stood around the throne, and the elders and the four living
creatures, and they fell before the throne on their faces, and worshiped God
saying, 'Amen: blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honor,
and   power,  and   might,  be  to  our  God  for  ever  and  ever . Amen.' " 
(Rev. 7:11-12)

     God declares himself to be "Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the
end." (Rev. 21:6)  Alpha  is  the  first  letter of  the  Greek  alphabet  and
Omega is the  last letter. The phrase "Alpha and Omega" is described as
beginning and end; first and last. It figuratively indicates God's absolute
privileges,  power,  and   authority!   He   exercises   authority  over  the
commencement  and  consummation  of  human  history and  all  creation.
This right inheres in God.

     Second, there is delegated authority. Delegated authority is that which
is assigned or given to another. One who has delegated authority, acts or
speaks in behalf of  the one who entrusted him with the authority. Jesus
said, "The Son can do nothing of his own accord." (John 5:19) He also
said, "I can do nothing of myself...because I do not seek my own will,
but the will of the one who sent me." (John 5:30) He acknowledged that
he did not speak on his "own authority, but of the Father" who sent him.
(John 12:49)  He told his apostles that, "All authority has been given to
me in heaven and on earth." (Mat. 28:18) God the Father placed Jesus
at his right hand, and in doing so he exalted him "far above all rule, and
authority, and power, and dominion." (Eph. 1:20-21) God has placed
all things "under his feet and gave him to be head over all things to the
assembly." (Eph. 1:22-23) God has given Jesus supremacy in all things.
(Colossians 1:18) Jesus exercises delegated authority with respect to his
work of redemption.

     The Holy Spirit also exercises delegated authority. Jesus spoke of
the Spirit's work in the apostles in this way, "But when he, the Spirit of
truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak
on his own authority, but he will speak whatever he hears, and he
will declare to you the things that are to come." (John 16:13) Jesus said
the Father would "send" the Holy Spirit to help the apostles in the
teaching of the truth. (John 14:26) The apostles of Christ also exercised
delegated authority. When Jesus chose them "he gave them authority
over unclean spirits..." (Mat. 10:1) They were ambassadors on behalf
of Christ. (2 Cor. 5:20)

     Third, there is limited authority. When I speak of limited authority,
I am referring to the right or power to act within prescribed boundaries,
or within the purview of  work that has been assigned. For instance, as
stated earlier, Jesus said all authority has been given to him in heaven
and on earth. (Mat. 28:18) It is understood that the Father gave him the
authority. But when we study other pertinent texts, we learn that "all
authority" does not mean that the Father is under the authority of the
Son. Paul said, "For, he put all things in subjection under his feet. But
when he says all things are put in subjection, it is evident that he is
excepted who subjected all things to him." (1 Cor. 15:27)  So, Jesus
has "all authority" to function in his role as Son, as Messiah, as the
Redeemer of mankind, as the great high priest, etc.. Elders have
limited "authority," in that they have the right to lead the congregation
in any direction   that   truth   takes   them,   and   they   may  go no
further. (Acts 20:28-32; 1 Pet. 5:1-3)
                                                                                        RD

Copyright 2011

    

Authority In Religion (No. 1)

                                                   


                                  What Is Authority?

     Authority is important in both the physical and spiritual aspects of life.
It is especially important in the realm of religion. In the absence of authority
anarchy will reign. There will be lawlessness and disorder. This was true
at one point in the history of ancient Israel. "In those days there was no
king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes." (Judges
17:6; 21:25) Those who desire to please the Lord, never want to "do
what is right in their own eyes." They want to know, believe, and do the
will  of  the  Lord, and  in doing so, they must act by his authority. I want
to re-emphasize some of the sacred principles pertaining to authority in
this series of articles. Each generation must be taught all the truth all over
again or apostasy will be the inevitable result. (Judges 2:6-15)

     The English word authority means, "the power or right to give commands,
enforce obedience, take action, or make final decisions; jurisdiction."
(Webster's New World Dictionary, page 94) Therefore, the basic concept 
involves having the power or right to act.

     The idea of authority is also taught in the sacred scriptures. We read in
the Old Testament that Joseph told Pharaoh to "appoint overseers" over the
land of Egypt, who during the seven years of plenty, would "store up grain
under the authority of Pharaoh." (Gen. 41:35; ESV, NIV-2011, NASB)
The ASV chooses to be literal and says, "under the hand of Pharaoh." The
Hebrew word translated "authority" or "hand" is yad and it has a wide range
of meanings. In the Genesis text it means authority, jurisdiction, or command.
There are various ways the Hebrew text connotes the concept of authority.
It may as in this case use a word, or an entire phrase may suffice. In Isaiah
22:21 Yahweh says, Shebna's "authority" (ESV) would be committed to
Eliakim the son of Hilkiah , and on his shoulder would be placed "the key of
the house of David." The ASV uses the word "government" instead of authority.
The Hebrew word translated "authority" or "government" is memshalah. It
refers to dominion, government, rule, and by extension, authority.

     The New Testament also contains the concept of authority. Jesus taught as
one having authority. (Mat. 21:29) The chief priests and elders of the people
questioned the authority of Jesus. (Mat. 21:23-27) A centurion told Jesus
that he was a man "set under authority." (Luke 7:8) Jesus said that all authority
had been given to him. (Mat. 28:18) The Greek word translated authority in
all these instances is exousia. It means power, right, authority. Exousia can
connote a state of control over something, freedom of choice (Jno. 10:18);
potential or resource to command, control, or govern, capability, might, power
(Mat. 9:8); the right to control or command, authority, absolute power, warrant
(Mark 6:7); power exercised by rulers or others in high position by virtue of their
office, ruling power, official power (Luke 20:20); bearer of ruling authority...
officials, government (Rom. 13:1,2,3) ; and the sphere in which power is
exercised, domain (Col. 1:13). (cf. A Greek-English Lexicon Of The New
Testament And Other Early Christian Literature, Third Edition, BDAG,
pages 352-353)

     The idea of authority is also conveyed by the use of phrases in the New
Testament. Paul said that God "seated him (Christ) at his right hand in the
heavenly regions, far above all rule, and authority, and power, and dominion."
God "put all things in subjection under his feet, and gave him to be head
over all  things..."  (Eph. 1:20-22)  Paul  is  writing  about  the  supreme
authority  that  has been granted to our blessed Lord Jesus. Paul  told  the
brothers and sisters in Colossae, "And whatever you do, in word or in deed,
do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through
him." (Colossians 3:17) When a person does everything "in the name of the
Lord Jesus, he does it by the authority of the Lord Jesus. He acts by divine
warrant or right! Christians are followers of Christ, and as such they come
under the authority of the Lord. Everything the believer does or says ought to
be in harmony with the lordship of Jesus. Therefore, the entire life of the
believer is placed under obedience to the Lord Jesus Christ.
                                                                                                         RD
 Copyright 2011
     

The "One" Body

     Paul, the Lord's apostle, said "There is one body" in his masterful letter
to the Ephesians. (Eph. 4:4) Most  of  the denominational  world  agrees
in general terms with Paul's words.  As a matter of fact, I do not recall ever
having discussed Paul's statement with a denominationalist who disagreed
with it. The reason is, most people who are in sectarian churches believe
the  "one body"  is   the  universal  body  of  Christ  that  consists  of  all
denominations.They believe that the spiritual body of Christ is made up
of Methodist, Baptist, Lutheran, Episcopal, Roman Catholic, Presbyterian,
Pentecostal, and all other denominational churches. Can this belief be
sustained by the sacred scriptures?

     First, Paul himself plainly identifies the "one body" of (Eph. 4:4). In the
same letter he says, "And he put all things in subjection under his feet, and
gave him to be head over all things to the congregation, which is his body,
the fulness of him that fills all in all." (Eph. 1:22-23) What is commonly called
the church (that is assembly, congregation, or group of the saved) is the one
body. So, when Paul says that there is "one body," the meaning is there is one
church or congregation of saved people! The Lord's congregation does not
consist of churches, it is made up of individual members. Therefore, we do
not read of "congregations of the church of Christ" in the New Covenant.
We do read that "the congregations of Christ greet you." (Rom. 16:16) The
reference is to local congregations that are independent and autonomous.
There is no hood of churches. We read of a "brotherhood" not a "churchhood."
(1 Pet. 2:17)

     Another point for us to consider is, Paul said, "There is one body." He
did not say there are two, three, a hundred, or a thousand bodies. He said
there is one body. One is one more than zero and one less than two, hence
it is singular! The apostle has already identified the "body" as the "congregation"
or "church," so when he says there is one body, he is saying there is one
church or congregation of saved people. There was a time when the Lord's
disciples believed and taught this important truth. Now, there are some who
are determined to appear peaceful to the denominational world and they
rarely   preach  sermons or teach  Bible  classes  devoted  to  discussing
this fundamental doctrine. I believe with all my heart that the New Testament
teaches there is only one body, which is the church or congregation of Christ,
that Jesus is its head, and that no other religious body is acceptable to the
great God of heaven. (Matthew 16:18; Eph. 5:23-27; Col. 1:18,24, et.al)

     Second, we can also be certain that the "one body" does not consist of
any denominations because no denominations existed when Paul wrote
those words. If  you  believe  they  did  exist, what passage in the New
Testament identifies them? Which passage implies that they are authorized
to exist? No denominations existed for several centuries after the apostolic
age! They were all started by human beings; they are perpetuated by
human beings, and they will partake of the same judgment that the schemes
and doctrines of men will receive on the last great day of human history!
(Matthew 7:21-23; 15:13-14)

     There was "one body" when the apostles lived, and there is "one body"
now. Denominations are not part of the one body now, they never have been
part of that for which Jesus Christ died, and they never will be part of the
one body of Christ.
                                                                                               RD

Copyright 2011