Authority

Have you ever had your authority questioned?

One day, as he was teaching the people in the temple and telling the good news, the chief priests and the scribes came with the elders and said to him, “Tell us, by what authority are you doing these things? Who is it who gave you this authority?” He answered them, “I will also ask you a question, and you tell me: Did the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?” They discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why did you not believe him?’ But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ all the people will stone us; for they are convinced that John was a prophet.” So they answered that they did not know where it came from. Then Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.” - Luke 20:1-8

One of the earliest tests of our ability to command authority comes when Mom says, "Go and call your sister.  Tell her it is time to eat."

The response?

"Who died and left you boss?" she says, when we try to do as we were told.

When it comes to the disciples, the answer would be, "Jesus!  He died and left us in charge of the faith."

Whenever we attempt to direct the actions of others, we can find ourselves challenged.  By what authority are we asking or telling someone to do something?

If you think about it, we let others have authority over us by choice, our whole lives.  We elect people into positions of power to make rules and to judge us.  We go to work for others who get to tell us what to do.  We remain obedient to our parents long after we have grown, and sometimes even after their death.

But lately, people have rebelled against authority.  More and more people have rejected the authority of those they entrusted with power, and so change is coming.

Trust and respect are being challenged, if not thrown out altogether.

So, maybe we should ask ourselves what will take its place.  What will we trust?

If it is still God, then perhaps we should revisit the commandments and the words of Jesus.

More to come...