Delegated Authority: God’s Delegated Authority to Us
Delegated Authority • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 10 viewsIntroduction to God's delegated authority
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This is sermon is an introduction to the Authority of God & what authority He gives to His disciples & children.
Authority is a blessing a responsibility and a tool.
What good is having authority if we don’t know we have it and, as a result, we never use it?
Is it possible that a proper understanding of authority is crucial to the righteousness peace and joy that we experience in life?
The Kingdom of God is a Kingdom and not a democracy - therefore we might need to live differently as a part of God’s Kingdom rather than we have in a democratic society (like America).
I’m going ask every one of us to lower our defensive walls built by culture and in response to bad experiences with authority & lean in to this Biblical teaching on authority.
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
19 Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall by any means hurt you.
Words are important & mean something.
The correct and accurate meaning of words is so important because it unlocks understanding.
Authority= Exousia (Gr.)
1849. ἐξουσία ĕxŏusia, ex-oo-see´-ah; from 1832 (in the sense of ability); privilege, i.e. (subj.) force, capacity, competency, freedom, or (obj.) mastery (concr. magistrate, superhuman, potentate, token of control), delegated influence:—
1832. ἔξεστι ĕxĕsti, ex´-es-tee; third pers. sing. pres. indic. of a comp. of 1537 and 1510; so also
ἐξόν ĕxŏn, ex-on´; neut. pres. part. of the same (with or without some form of 1510 expressed); impers. it is right (through the fig. idea of being out in public):—
1537. ἐκ ĕk, ek; or
ἐξ ĕx, ex; a prim. prep. denoting origin (the point whence motion or action proceeds), from, out (of place, time or cause; lit. or fig.; direct or remote):—
1510. εἰμί ĕimi, i-mee´; first pers. sing. pres. indic.; a prol. form of a prim. and defective verb; I exist (used only when emphatic):—
The authority that God has flows from the very fact that from the beginning He existed & is the source-point of origin for everything.
13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, because He could swear by no one greater, He swore by Himself,
In the beginning God!
In the middle…God! At the end…God!
All Authority is God-given:
All Authority is God-given:
1 Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves.
appointed = G5021 - arranged in an orderly manner
All authority that exists on Earth is God-given & God-created and God-ordered.
What about bad, brutal, unGodly, harsh leaders?
What about bad, brutal, unGodly, harsh leaders?
I suggest reading John Bevere’s book- “Under Cover” for thorough and solid Biblical insight on this topic of authority.
Some short answers to big questions:
Yes, according to the Bible, the authority that bad, brutal, unGodly, and harsh leaders wield is from God Himself - the source of all authority.
Just like all hammers out there might be made by Estwing, but how they are wielded makes all the difference.
People have free will and can choose to misuse God-given authority to suit unGodly desires.
God can & will use harsh, brutal, & even unGodly leaders for our good. (Romans 8:28)
This statement is not an excuse to be a hard and brutal leader, but to eliminate the unBiblical thought that God would not allow you to be placed under terrible leaders -
God will address things in you in hard situations that will not be addressed in the easy situations.
Hard seasons & situations are a test to yield to and not something to run from or avoid.
We submit to God by submitting to authorities - as long as they are not causing us to violate the commandments of God Himself.
Something not popular to preach in churches today:
Something not popular to preach in churches today:
It has become popular in the Modern Western church to take a stance that any pastor that wields any authority is controlling, unGodly, unBiblical and should not be tolerated, but resisted.
6 “For I am the Lord, I do not change; Therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob. 7 Yet from the days of your fathers You have gone away from My ordinances And have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,” Says the Lord of hosts. “But you said, ‘In what way shall we return?’
Is it possible that the devil has twisted something that God meant for your blessing and convinced us that it is a bad thing?
Portraying God’s commandments as negatives in our life has been the Devil’s strategy from the beginning of mankind (Genesis 3:4–5)
We should not be ignorant of our enemy’s (the devil) schemes and strategies. (2 Corinthians 2:11)
Don’t listen to the devil, He doesn’t want you blessed.
Listen to Jesus, He literally gave His life for you to live the abundant life (John 10:10)!
God has delegated to pastors a Biblically-defined scope of authority.
To resist the God-given & Biblical authority of the pastor is to resist God’s own authority & ordinances. (Romans 13:2)
The only reason we should resist the authority the pastor wields is when he/she is in violation of Godly morals or ethics, or the clearly-written commandments of God in the Bible.
If necessary, we should resist with humility in our heart and simply because we are submitting to the Word of God, not just because we are determined to be rebellious to authority.
Don’t let the pastor just be the pastor of the church you attend, invite the Pastor to be YOUR pastor & give them real, Biblical authority in your life.
Just One Thing:
Just One Thing:
All authority is from God-Himself - Submit to it, embrace it and reap the benefits of it.
Discussion Questions:
Discussion Questions:
Where is the best place you’ve been for taking walks?
What has been your traditional view and response to authority in your life? Dig a little deeper and think about where that response has developed and come from.
Please read Romans 13:1-2 and share what this passage means to you and how you feel and respond to it.
Share your thoughts about the devil’s strategy to discredit and pervert God’s intention for authority. Share how you see that this strategy may have affected your life.
