The Authority of Family: Authority (Part 9)
Two weeks ago, I presented the Family jurisdiction in a similar pattern with all the other jurisdictions.
I put God as in authority over the Man who was to lead his wife in a Family. However, God, a man and a woman does not constitute a family! It takes children to make a family, at which point the man becomes the father.
Please understand what I am saying here. The man is addressed with the same title used for God. I have tested this observation whenever I find anyone who speaks a different language. So far, I have found that the title of father is used for God as well as the head of the family in every language tested. I believe this indicates that the authority of the family’s father is the greatest authority on earth.
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Authority? What Authority? Authority (Part 8)
Let’s spend a few minutes recapping what has been presented so far.
We know that authority is the ability to empower others and that one has to have it in the first place before one can dispense or delegate it. Our Christian world view puts God as the ultimate source of all rule, authority and power and we know that in the end He abolishes all of that.
I want to spend a few minutes to more fully explain what I believe this means. Again, I need to remind you of my human fallibility and that this is my “latest” understanding of this passage.
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The Distribution of Authority: Authority (Part 7)
Last time we established that authority, true authority, could only be delegated by someone who has the authority to delegate it, and we established that God was the ultimate source of authority.
We also briefly looked at 1 Corinthians 15:24, where God abolishes all rule, and all authority and power. We defined “Rule” as a jurisdiction or kingdom, “Authority” as having the ability to exercise or distribute power, and “Power” as having the ability to exercise authority within a jurisdiction. We also stated that Power was more of a restriction than a license. We will see how this works today.
It is very important to understand that you cannot have one without the others. That is, a rule without authority is nothing and power cannot be exercised within a jurisdiction without authority.
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Rule, Power and Authority: Authority (Part 6)
Continuing with our lessons on authority, I would like to bring your attention to a very interesting passage from the Bible.
I cannot begin to count the number of times I have read 1 Corinthians, where the Apostle Paul is describing what most would see as end time prophesy. This time, I saw something that gave credence to my discovery of the dual nature of authority.
Beginning with verse 1 of Chapter 15, Paul gives a quick synopsis of why Jesus came and what transpired after His resurrection, then goes on to use himself as testimony to the grace of God. After providing evidence for the resurrection, Paul goes on to explain how this is foundational to the faith, then describes the order of events at the end of time.
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What is Authority? Authority (Part 5)
Before embarking on this academic journey, we would be better prepared if we clearly defined a few things so that we can all begin from the same starting point. Let’s take a closer look at a few words.
Authority – the power or right to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience OR a person or organization having power or control in a particular, typically political or administrative, sphere.
Understand that authority is to have power and power is to have authority.
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Facing Uncertainty: Authority (Part 4)
We all seem to be experts in some things while not so much in others. That is, once we discover the truth about a matter, we are confident discussing it, while we tend to stay away from things that might expose our ignorance. I experienced this respecting one particular topic.
Since I have always been a bit of a free spirit, I have occasionally had individuals challenge me respecting my understanding of “authority.” Whenever this happened, I usually deflected because I knew deep down that I lacked knowledge, not of what authority was, but about its legitimate application.
In fact, I usually perceived the motive of the people questioning my understanding of authority with wanting me to “line up” with their view of authority or more disconcertingly, wanting me to subjugate myself to them and/or their “authority.” That is, someone was exercising an authority I was not comfortable with, but I simply could not explain why I felt so.
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