Untitled Sermon (4)

Delegated Authority

UNDERSTANDING & HONORING DELEGATED AUTHORITY

Foundational Text: Matt. 7:28-29(KJV); John 12:49-50 (NLT) I don’t speak on my own authority. The Father who sent me has commanded me what to say & how to say it. 50 And I know his commands lead to eternal life; so I say whatever the Father tells me to say.”

Matt. 28:18-20. Your effectiveness in ministry is rooted in the authority Jesus inherited after His resurrection.

THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ABILITY & AUTHORITY. (Luke 10:19)

Authority is power & the right to use it. While the Greek word dunamis expresses supernatural ability, exousia suggests authorized control over that ability. Out of authority comes: (1) the right to govern (2) the influence to lead (3) the power to make & execute decisions & (4) jurisdiction for your assignment. There are (3) forms of legitimate authority & (1) form of illegitimate authority.

The word Legitimate means that which has “hereditary (inherited) rights" or that which is traceable to an acknowledged source. (Mark 11:27-33)

The word Illegitimate means that which comes thru unlawful or questionable means

The 3 kinds of legitimate authority are:

Divine Authority—GOD’s authority. He is the Source of all power & permission.

Direct authority—given to agents of GOD for the purpose of carrying out His will in the earth (in various areas).

Delegated Authority—derived from the trust of those having direct authority from GOD. (Mark 6:7 NLT)

The 1 form of illegitimate authority is Demanded Authority—gained thru rebellion, deception, or coercion. It’s in no way connected to Divine Authority. It is the kind of authority that Satan uses to bring about confusion, chaos, & division.

BEFORE YOU DELEGATE (Matt. 8:5-13 UNDER authority to be IN authority)

Before a leader addresses the need to delegate, he or she must first consider the awesome, under-used (& sometimes misused) authority he or she has received from GOD. A leader’s authority means:

GOD has chosen to use THAT PERSON for His plans & purposes &

GOD has given THAT PERSON a measure of rule that will save lives in His name (2 Cor. 10:13-15a).

Ex. 4:1-20 explains much of what we need to know about how GOD sees Authority.

Ex. 4:1-5. Moses was concerned that the people GOD was sending him to would doubt his authority.

So, GOD taught him a lesson about power: it’s not what you have in your hand that matters. It’s whether or not you’re willing to obey GOD with it.

From the moment Moses trusted GOD with His rod, the rod became a symbol of GOD’s power. (Ps. 23:4)

Ex. 4:10-14. Moses protested at least 4 times to GOD that the assignment he was being given was beyond his skillset. So, Aaron was chosen as a delegate to carry out the part of the work that Moses was uncomfortable with.

Ex. 4:15-16. GOD instructed Moses in the basics of delegated authority:

Share the vision with the delegate—he must not speak his own words, although he is eloquent. He must speak the words I give to you.

If the delegate submits to the shared vision, he will also share in the presence of GOD upon the visionary.

Ex. 4:16. GOD made it clear that the assignment of those delegated is one of REPRESENTATION (on behalf of)—& NOT SUBSTITUTION (in the place of).

Ex. 4:17-20. After Moses experienced GOD’s validation, he began to refer to his rod as THE Rod of GOD.

Because of this, he didn’t have a problem later on calling it Aaron’s Rod.

When you realize that your authority came from GOD, you won’t fear sharing it with others. (He holds it by the head if you will hold it by the tail).

Ex. 7:8-12. Understanding Aaron's Rod: When you entrust someone with a part of your assignment, you also share the anointing on your life with them.

A part of Aaron’s assignment was to carry Moses’s Rod & use it as if it was his own. But he never forgot it belonged to Moses. He used it as Moses directed.

Num. 17:1-5. Aaron later received his own rod; but it wasn’t until his priestly authority was challenged in Korah’s rebellion did GOD authorize him to put his name on a rod. (Num. 16:8-11).

THE NEED TO DELEGATE—THE JETHRO PRINCIPLE OF LEADERSHIP (Jethro was Moses’ father-in-law. When he came to bring Moses’ wife & 2 sons to him in the wilderness, he saw something that alarmed him.) Ex. 18:13-20.

Ex. 18:13-17. He saw: A leader-centered system that was detrimental to everyone.

He saw Moses on the path to leadership burnout & membership frustration.

Jethro observed that Moses’s approach to leadership was NOT GOOD (not fruitful, productive, beneficial, or able to produce successful results)

Ex. 18:18-20. So, Jethro (whose name means abundance or excellence) explained the danger of the leader-centered approach & clarified Moses’ responsibilities.

You must be clear about: (1) What you are responsible for (2) What GOD is responsible for & (3) What responsibility must be delegated to others.

You can pray for people but you can’t heal them.

You can teach them but GOD has to reveal it to them.

Stop carrying burdens that weren’t meant for you. Cast the care on the Lord.

Ex. 18:21-23. Jethro instructed Moses to search out people to whom he could delegate a portion of his authority. The qualifications were:

Capable [skillful in the area of their appointment]

Honest [places a high value on truthfulness]

God fearing [possesses a high level of God consciousness] &

Hate bribes [not corruptible—not in it for personal gain]

Matt. 25:14-15. The level of delegated authority should never exceed their level of leadership ability (Captains of 1000s, 100s, 50s, & 10s).

Choosing the right representative:

2 Tim. 2:2. Choose faithfulness over ability. It’s easier for GOD to make “the faithful” able than it is for Him to make “the able” faithful.

Acts 6:1-4. Choose people who are: (1) well respected, (2) full of the Spirit & (3) value wisdom.

If you delegate responsibility, you must also delegate the authority to execute it. Here’s a rule to lead by:

Authority without responsibility is a lie. People need to be accountable.

Responsibility without authority is a trick. Titles alone don’t fulfill.