Authority
“Jesus entered the temple courts, and, while he was teaching, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to him. ‘By what authority are you doing these things?’ they asked. ‘And who gave you this authority?’”
Today’s Text: Matthew 21:23-32 (Living Life Daily Devotional)
The Jewish authorities were challenging Jesus, who was acting and teaching in the temple courts from a position of authority. It’s sort of like a religious personality (Francis Chan, say) coming into GCC on a Sunday and starting to turn over tables in our cafe and preaching in the hallways.
To be clear, I am not comparing Jesus with Francis Chan! But Francis Chan’s messages do tend to be challenging and maybe even disruptive.
But, it’s not quite like that, either, because the temple was a public space for the most part. There was the court of the Gentiles where everyone could go, the court of Women, the court of Israel (for men), and the court of the priests. Jesus had every right to be there as a faithful Jew. But Jesus also that the ultimate right to be there as the Son of God!
GCC is a private organization in that we get to say who can be in our building and what they can do there. Of course, our mission happens to be inclusive of people and not usually exclusive. Even so, I think many people misunderstand the private nature of churches, in general.
One time, there were three random people who came into our chapel, as if they owned it, with the intention of praying. And I asked, “Who are you, and what are you doing here?” And when they told me what they were intending to do, I kindly asked them to leave. This was not their church, and we have no idea who they were and what they were going to pray for. They could have been Satanists for all we knew. And I was astonished that they were offended that I asked them to leave. But I invited them to come on Sunday and worship with us. They didn’t.
Anyway, the issue for the Jewish authorities was that, in their minds, Jesus did not have any authority to act and teach in the way that He was in the temple. They saw themselves as the authority over the temple, not Jesus. But they were gravely mistaken. In Jesus’s eyes, they had no authority, because they walked in disobedience to God.
In the same way, we must understand that Jesus is the head of every church (Ephesians 4:15). And no one has any authority in a church, unless they, first of all, walk in obedience to Christ. In other words, any authority given to any human being from human beings is meaningless unless it is the mission of that church and those human beings to walk in obedience to Christ.
But if it is the genuine intention of church authorities to be under-shepherds of Christ and to follow Him in obedience, then their spiritual authority comes from Christ, and the people ought to follow, as they would follow Christ.
It is really hard for pastors to talk about this issue in this day and age, because at least some people, and maybe many, would receive such teaching as being spiritually abusive. That may be why I have never heard any sermon ever on Hebrews 13:17 -
Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account. Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you.
And if any community does not have a culture of healthy obedience, it can become difficult to lead that community in a biblical way. Because church leaders are called to lead with gentleness (1 Timothy 3:3; 6:11; 2 Timothy 2:25; Titus 3:2). But if a community is not generally obedient, a pastor might feel the need to resort to passive-aggressiveness or other kinds of manipulation. It becomes a vicious cycle, benefitting no one and grieving the Lord.
By the grace of God and through the work of the Holy Spirit, Canvas has come a long, long way. But no church is perfect, and we still have room to grow in this area too. All we need to do is to stick to the basics, keeping the main thing the main thing: Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and Him crucified for the forgiveness of our sins, resurrected for the hope of eternal life, and returning to inspire the mission of the church.
Father, You are God. All things are in Your hands. All authority is in Your hands. All authority has been given to Christ. We confess our own disobedient hearts. Thank You for being patient with me and patient with us. But make us see the benefit and beauty and goodness of obedience. In Jesus’s name. Amen.
