Authority of Man?
The false illusion that is the authority of man has thrown off believers since the beginning. I would have a hard time finding a church, religion, or denomination that doesn’t claim some kind of authority. Whether it is Popes, Priests, Rabbis, or Pastors, all religions seem to fall under the same problem. They claim authority over things they have no right to.
But do men have any authority? And if they do, does it exist outside of the power of God? I think Yeshua stated it best when he said give unto Caesar that which is Caesars, and give unto God that which is God’s.
Mat 22:21 They said, Caesar's. Then he said to them, Therefore render to Caesar the things that are Caesar's, and to God the things that are God's.
Although admittedly here, Yeshua is speaking of taxes. But aren’t taxes only claimed through authority?
Is their authority in this world outside of God? I believe the answer is yes, as of now unfortunately. Not that any man has authority over God, but many men have authority in their lands, such as your local criminal court, or the governments of the world. There are defiantly groups we have to submit to in this world outside of our faith.
So how are we to act when submitting to the authority of the world that governs so much of our worldly lives?
I believe this is where reading the Tanach (Old Testament) can really help. Look to all the stories from the different exiles we have. In Genesis chapters’ 39-47 when taken as a salve to Egypt, Joseph submitted to his earthly masters will. The only time that he refused was when his Master’s wife continually tried to get him to lay with her. When he refused, she brought false witness against him, and because of this he was thrown in prison. Yet once again he submitted to his earthly masters will. Once again he was put in charge of the very prison he was forced to live in. Later because of God interpreting dreams through him, he was put in charge of all Egypt. He submitted to his earthly masters, and because of his faithfulness he was able to save his people in the time of great famine.
Daniel is another good example. He was so faithful that he was given great authority in the kingdom of Babylon. The only time he went against the laws of the land was when they went against the Law’s of God. We are given constant examples in our Holy scripture. They teach us to follow the Laws of the Land, to be good, and humble servants. The only time we are told to ignore or go against the authority in the land, is when that authority goes against the Law of God. This is how we must view all authority seemingly held by men.
Yeshua unlike most of us, actually practiced what he preached. Yeshua taught us to submit to civil authority. As long as, it did not go against the Will of God.
The real problem comes when man decides to claim authority over the very Word of God. We have to realize that there is no authority over our faith outside of God. The only time man has authority within our faith, is when he is acting within the Word of God. Man is never the authority. It is always God. It is my belief that the best place to see this in action is in:
Mat 16:18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Mat 16:19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Here we see the Apostle Cephas (Peter) being in full agreement with the Will of God. In this moment he has declared, through revelation from our Father in Heaven, that Yeshua is the promised Messiah. In doing so he is in full accordance of our Fathers Will. Because of this proclamation, which is the key to the kingdom heaven, he is given authority to bind and loose anything in Heaven and Earth. That is huge. Because of this proclamation, many now say, Peter is given all authority. So now whatever Peter says all have to do right?
Yet in the next few verses it states
Mat 16:22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, Far be it from you, Lord This shall never happen to you.
Mat 16:23 But he turned and said to Peter, Get behind me, Satan You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.
In a matter of a few verses’ Cephas (Peter) goes from having all authority to bind and loose whatever he sees fit in Heaven and Earth to being called satan. As soon as this man had one thought outside of the Will of God, he goes from having authority through God, to being called satan.
Man only has authority when they are living within the Will of God. Mans authority, as it pertains to the matters of faith and Spirit, only exists within the Will of God. It is the Will and Word of God, which gives and has authority, not the man his self.
We as disciples of our Messiah are not to seek authority over others we are to seek to be servants of man. We are continually reminded throughout our Bible to be humble
Psa 25:9 He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way.
Psa 76:9 when God arose to establish judgment, to save all the humble of the earth. Selah
Psa 147:6 The LORD lifts up the humble; he casts the wicked to the ground.
Psa 149:4 For the LORD takes pleasure in his people; he adorns the humble with salvation.
Pro 11:2 When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with the humble is wisdom.
We are to in all things humble our selves. We are not even to give ourselves titles.
Mat 23:8 But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers.
Mat 23:9 And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.
Mat 23:10 Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ.
Mat 23:11 The greatest among you shall be your servant.
Mat 23:12 Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.
Yeshua taught us that we are not to give our selves titles. We are to put all titles of authority away. We are not to claim to be teachers for there is but one teacher We are not to be masters for there is but one Master We are not to be rabbis for there is but one Rabbi. Why would we want to follow men who claim authority when Yeshua commanded us to be humble? If they really had authority over men, wouldn’t they know this truth from our Messiah?
Why do we insist on following those who refuse to humble themselves? Why do we follow men with the very titles that Yeshua taught his followers not to take? If we put our faith in men, they will let us down every time, because all men are flawed.
Mat 20:25 But Jesus called them to him and said, You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.
Mat 20:26 It shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,
Mat 20:27 and whoever would be first among you must be your slave,
Mat 20:28 even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.
Mar 10:42 And Jesus called them to him and said to them, You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them.
Mar 10:43 But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant,
Mar 10:44 and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all.
Mar 10:45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.
Man-made LABELS need to be removed from our lives, it is the labels that separate us more than any belief. We start to defend our particular brand of faith after we label it. In most of the time in the midst of this defense we lose sight of the truth, because it just isn’t as important as defending the faith.
Ecc 7:20 Surely there is not a righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.
Rom 3:10 as it is written: None is righteous, no, not one;
There was only one man whoever walked this earth and truly lived without Sin. There is but one true Messiah and his name is Yeshua (Jesus) So why then do so many of us put so much faith in men? We all need to take a step back from the doctrines and theologies of men and spend some time in our Holy Scripture, seeking the Truth that can only be found in our Messiah
The fact is no man can lead you to God. No man can lead you to truth. No man can lead you to salvation. You must seek in order to be found. We as individuals must seek after God in order to find him. We as individuals must seek the truth, in order for it to be given. We as individuals must seek salvation in order for salvation to be found.
Do not believe anything I write because I write it. Put all things to the test. To this day I have not met a perfect man outside of our Messiah. All have sinned, and fallen short. We must stop putting our faith in the hands of flawed men. We must seek our truth through the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Which brings us to the next question?
Do we need men to teach us how to understand scripture?
1Jn 2:27 But the anointing that you received from him abides in you, and you have no need that anyone should teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about everything, and is true, and is no lie--just as it has taught you, abide in him.
Let no man deceive you. Nobody needs the guidance of men to seek and understand scripture. We must put aside our traditions, and commentaries. And seek the Truth of God within the Word of God. There are no short cuts. Sure in walking out the Holy Scriptures on our own we are gonna fail often. We will get many things wrong in the process. But that is what growth is all about. If you read a book about riding a bike it will never compare to actually trying to ride one and falling a few times. It is in getting up that we learn to ride. It is the same with the Truth in our Holy Scripture. We must learn and fall for our selves. It is in fellowship that we help each other grow and get back up. If you learn a great truth from another man, or commentary then you never really learned it yourself. When Simons name was changed to Peter, and he was given so much authority it was from a revelation from God that made this possible. Not by what he had heard from man
As we go forth and test these new ideas in Scripture let us pray that our Father gives us His Spirit of wisdom, understanding, and truth. So we may see and walk as our Messiah walked, and be true disciples in the Name of Yeshua (Jesus). May we pray for eyes to see, ears to hear, and hearts to change for the glory of our Father
