Submission - The Authority of Ministry.

Understanding Authority:

Matthew 8:5-13 5 And when Jesus was entered into Capernaum, there came unto him a centurion, beseeching him, 6 And saying, Lord, my servant lieth at home sick of the palsy, grievously tormented. 7 And Jesus saith unto him, I will come and heal him. 8 The centurion answered and said, Lord, I am not worthy that thou shouldest come under my roof: but speak the word only, and my servant shall be healed. 9 For I am a man under authority, having soldiers under me: and I say to this man, Go, and he goeth; and to another, Come, and he cometh; and to my servant, Do this, and he doeth it. 10 When Jesus heard it, he marvelled, and said to them that followed, Verily I say unto you, I have not found so great faith, no, not in Israel. 11 And I say unto you, That many shall come from the east and west, and shall sit down with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of heaven. 12 But the children of the kingdom shall be cast out into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 13 And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour.

When you are in authority you will understand submission in a greater way.

Without fail, every one of us enjoys certain aspects of power. We all enjoy the ability to command. In other words, authority is something that we all like.

You have probably thought: “If I was boss, this is how it would be. . .”

We are all enamored with the title and position, but are we concerned about the steps necessary to get there?

This chapter deals with another pre-requisite to establishing a powerful ministry.

Definition of submit: To yield or surrender (oneself) to the will or authority of another. American Heritage Dictionary

We are an independent society. In layman’s terms, we don’t like to be told what to do (even young ministers).

We want to be in control. We want to be king. This is the reason why many have rejected the call to salvation and others have rejected the call to ministry.

They do not want to align their wills to God’s Will.

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God has a chain of command. There will be authority figures in your ministry throughout your life.

Romans 14:7-8 For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself. For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.

No person is an island. No person is a single entity.

We all come under the command of someone else.

The world’s philosophy is: take care of number one, even if you have to walk on people to do it. The Christian’s philosophy is (or ought to be): submit to God’s authority, be a servant, and expect to be occasionally walked on by others. Page 60-61.

God has you in a position of submission for a reason. I’m afraid that we fail to learn much b/c we are too busy trying to rebel against every ordinance we don’t agree with and grab as much power as we can.

Everything doesn’t have to be explained to you. Sometimes, you need to trust Jesus and others who are in authority over you to do what’s best. Your responsibility is not to get a reason why every time! Your responsibility is to do what you are told.

This doesn’t imply that we are stupid or naïve. Instead, it implies that we trust Him completely to take care of us and that we are willing to do whatever He asks.

Submission is a voluntary surrender to authority and is motivated by love and not fear. Page 61.

Why the emphasis? Your understanding of submission is vital to your ministry.

If you refuse to come under the authority of leaders God has placed in your life presently, then you are illustrating that you are not ready to be in authority yourself!

NOTE: Often those who have the greatest ambition for power, authority, and position are the most disqualified for they refuse to come under the rule of those God has currently placed over them.

Those who aspire to be “camp meeting” preachers will probably never preach one, for they refuse to come under their pastor’s authority.

Dad’s saying: Too big for their own britches.

In my opinion, the #1 thing that God is looking for concerning authority is one’s own willingness to submit to authority.

You will never be a good leader unless you have learned to follow!

The people who refuse to submit to God’s authority will never really discover who they are and what God wants them to do. Page 61.

*You do not have a choice as to who He places in authority over you.

Sometimes, authority figures may have totally different methods/ personalities than you prefer.

However, just b/c you don’t always agree with how they do something doesn’t excuse you from submitting!

When the world’s philosophy of leadership starts to infect the church, abuse of authority is the result. Page 61.

If people are submitted to the Lord, they’ll have no problem submitting to one another in the fear of God. Page 60.

The world’s philosophy is: take care of number one, even if you have to walk on people to do it. The Christian’s philosophy is (or ought to be): submit to God’s authority, be a servant, and expect to be occasionally walked on by others. Page 60-61.

The young artist develops his or her talent by submitting to authority, listening, watching, and learning. Successful athletes yield to the skill and wisdom of their coaches and do what they’re told. The godly Christian submits to the authority of Jesus Christ and the spiritual leaders of the church and seeks to build the church by being a servant. 61.

“. . .the concerned shepherd/soldier knows that the first step toward victory is his own submission to the Lord and to His people.” Page 62.

As always, it is easier to point the finger at others and diagnose the problem.

God’s ministers must recognize a personal responsibility to submit. Sometimes, problems may arise b/c YOU are not properly surrendering your will to God’s will OR you may be failing to prefer someone.

It cannot be “your way or the highway.”

“In matters of leadership, gentleness is not weakness; it’s power under control, power directed toward healing people and not harming them.” Page 62.

REMEMBER: Aspire to a ministry that helps and not hurts people.

Often, the hardest thing to do will be to give up the way that you prefer to do something in order to prefer someone else.

PARAGRAPH on pg. 61.

Submit to God’s laws and they work for you; oppose them and they work against you. -63.

Recognize that there are laws of ministry that you cannot change. So, instead of wasting energy and precious time, conform and submit!

Ministers who submit to the lordship of Jesus Christ will discover authority in their submission. -63.

You will also find that it is easier to submit to human authority figures when you are fully submitted to Christ.

“Meekness (humility; resignation; submission to the divine will, without murmuring or peevishness)” and “gentleness (Softness of manners; mildness of temper; sweetness of disposition)” are words not found in the vocabularies of most secular management experts today, or, for that matter, in the vocabularies of too many of God’s servants; but they are found in the Bible. Page 63.

We seek to do what Jesus would do, the way Jesus would do it, so that He alone gets the glory. Doing so isn’t always easy, but it is necessary; it isn’t always comfortable, but it is Christlike. Page 64.

Sometimes, you may have to grit your teeth and keep your mouth shut, but submission is essential nonetheless.

To be an example to the believer by obeying God’s will and serving God’s people is one of the highest honors possible in this life-65.

We abdicate neither our position nor our authority when we serve others-68.

Often, we are afraid that we will relinquish our “image” of authority if we actually humble ourselves and submit to the wishes of an “underling.”

However, the true test of authority lies in one’s ability to prefer the opinion of someone else and do things their way.

. . .we must first prove that we know how to submit and serve, and then we can be trusted with authority. If we haven’t learned how to submit to authority, how can we ever hope to exercise authority to the glory of God?-68.

Conclusion:

In way of closing this chapter, let us summarize submission by considering its implications:

1. Humility is required-proud people will find it impossible to submit for they must have things their way.

2. Obedience is necessary-you must give up your way and follow God’s way or others that are in authority over you.

3. Accountability is essential-your decisions are governed by God, His Word, authority figures, (and to some degree) those you are in authority over.

There’s a difference between exercising authority and being authoritarian, between commanding and demanding. Blessed are those leaders who know that Jesus Christ is Lord and they are second in command. - 70