Authority in Religion

Authority in Religion

Where does authority in religion come from? Has God left it up to us to decide what we will practice in spiritual matters? Jesus dealt with this very question with the Pharisees when he asked: “The baptism of John, from where did it come? From heaven or from man?” (Matthew 21:25). Jesus was making a point regarding the practice John was preaching; it was by God’s authority that John was preaching and not by his own authority. These same Pharisees had just asked Jesus: “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?”(Matthew 21.24), when they found him preaching in the temple. Jesus’ answer silenced them; it was by God’s authority that Jesus was preaching to the people.

The prophet Jeremiah stated “I know, O LORD, that the way of man is not in himself, that it is not in man who walks to direct his steps” (Jeremiah 10:23). Therefore it is not ours to decide what we will practice in spiritual matters or how we will worship God. Jesus stated: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Matthew 28:18). When Jesus made this statement he proved that everything and everyone was under his authority. God has placed all spiritual matters into Jesus’ hands. This leaves no room for any individual or convention to claim the authority to make spiritual decisions regarding what we will practice. Jesus, possessing all authority, has already done this.

Because Jesus has all authority in heaven and on earth, we must do everything by his authority. The Apostle Paul stated in Colossians 3:17 “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him”. Every aspect of our spiritual lives, every single word we speak and deed we practice, must be done under Jesus’ authority.

As people desiring to please our Heavenly Father we should conclude that Jesus Christ has all authority in spiritual matters. No conventions, counsels, or colleges have the authority to decide what will or will not be practiced in spiritual matters. We are not governed by groups of men and women, voting on spiritual matters, deciding spiritual policies, or making spiritual laws and decrees, but by the authority of Jesus Christ alone. Jesus said to his Apostles in Matthew 28:19-20 “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” Jesus used his authority to command his Apostles to go and preach to the people everything that he had commanded. Every time we study our Bibles, we are hearing the commands of Jesus given to us by the Apostles working under his authority.

Calling Upon God

The Bible teaches that salvation is God’s gift to all those who obey him, “And having been made perfect, he became unto all them that obey him the author of eternal salvation” (Hebrews 5:9). The Bible also teaches that there is only one name by which men and women can be saved, the name of Jesus our Lord, “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved”(Acts 4:12).

God reveals to us through the Scriptures that only those who obey him by seeking salvation in the Name of Jesus are going to be saved. All people must call upon the name of Jesus in order to be saved, “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans 10:13). What does it mean to “call on the name of the Lord”? Does it mean to say “Jesus, Jesus” aloud and God will save us? Could it mean saying “Jesus come into my heart”? Jesus stated, “Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 7:21). Only those who obey the will of God and call upon Jesus’ name will be saved.

The book of Acts shows an example of what it truly means to “call on the name of the Lord”. Saul of Tarsus was traveling to Damascus to persecute Christians in that city. On his way, Jesus appeared to him, causing Saul to fall on his knees in fear, Acts 9:1-8 and 22:6-11. Saul states in Acts 22:10 “What shall I do, Lord”, clearly recognizing and submitting to Jesus as Lord and God. Jesus answered saying “Rise, and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all that is appointed for you to do”. Saul, falling to his knees, believing in Jesus, and recognizing Jesus as Lord, was not saved at this time. In Damascus, a Christian taught Saul the following words that Jesus said were “appointed for him to do”: “And now why do you wait? Rise and be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name”(Acts 22:16). We see from this passage that baptism, which washes away our sins, is how we “call on the name of the Lord.”

Remembering that our obedience is necessary for our salvation (Hebrews 5:9), we understand why Saul of Tarsus, or the Apostle Paul, was baptized for the washing away of his sins. Jesus stated, “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned”(Mark 16:16). The person who believes and is baptized is the one who will be saved. Without baptism, which is how we call upon God, we cannot be saved.

Are you saved? Have you believed in Jesus and been baptized for the washing away of your sins? Please consider fully the Biblical doctrine of baptism and be obedient to Jesus Christ our Lord.

Seeing and Hearing

“And he said, He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Mark 4:9. Jesus spoke in a parable about the word of God and the type of heart that it comes in contact with. In this parable, Jesus describes all conditions of the human heart, from the callused, thorny, and rocky heart to the open and fruitful heart. Jesus desires all people to be open to the truth found in the Bible. Only then can the heart bring forth the type of fruit that Jesus wants.

Jesus said in John 7:17 “If anyone desires to do God's will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority.” It is up to the individual hearing the word of God to either obey or reject it. Jesus claims that any person who truly desires to know God’s will will understand and see whether or not the teachings come from God. Some passages of scripture are hard to understand, and some topics are confusing (2 Peter 3.16). But this is no reason to close our eyes and ears to the truth, as those in Jesus’ day did, Matthew 13:14 “You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive.” It was not impossible for these people to see and hear, but rather that they had chosen not to. Jesus says of his disciples in verse 16 “But blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear.” God wants us to understand, as Paul commands in Ephesians 5:17 “Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” God instructs us to understand, see, and hear, implying that we must put forth the proper effort.

A good illustration of this is found in Acts 17:11 “Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” These people examined every word the Apostle Paul was teaching to make sure that they were hearing the truth. They had no desire just accept Paul’s word as truth, they investigated! They searched! They were nobler because of this.

So how do we obey God’s instruction to see, hear, and understand? Paul says in 2 Timothy 2:15 “Study to show yourself approved unto God, a workman that has no need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” We must study the bible and search the scriptures to see if the things we are hearing truly are the will of God. As people desiring to please our Heavenly Father, we should decide to obey every command God has given to us and only those commands God has given us. We do not need the commands of men in order to see, hear, and understand God’s instructions. The prophet Agur stated in Proverbs 30:5-6 “Every word of God proves true; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. Do not add to his words, lest he rebuke you and you be found a liar.”

The Steadfast Love of the Lord

“The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness,” Lamentations 3:22-23. Truly God has shown men and women what great and marvelous love he has for us. When Solomon wrote the words quoted above he was expressing an enduring truth about God. God loves everyone, and his mercy will never fail. His love and mercy are new each and every morning.

The Apostle John wrote the following about God in John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” From this passage we see that people are so precious to God that he was willing to offer his only son for our sins. Paul further expresses God’s love in Romans 5:8 “But God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” When we were still sinners God was willing to send his son to die upon the cross for our sins. God’s love is simply amazing.

It is God’s love that both sets the standard and truly defines love. John stated in 1 John 4:10 “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” We learn what true love is by looking to God. True love is seen in God because he loved us first, even though we were sinners and living wrongly. This did not stop God’s mercy; he loved us anyway and sent Jesus to the cross for us. It is easy to love someone who loves you in return, as Jesus stated in Luke 6:32 “If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.” God loved us enough that he was willing to send his son to the cross even though we did not love him in return. We owe God our love.

What can we do to show God that we do indeed love him in return? Jesus answers this question in John 14:15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” We show our love for God in return by obeying the commands that Jesus gave to us. Jesus also said in John 15:14 “You are my friends if you do what I command you.” In order to show God that we love him and desire to be his friends, we must decide to obey him in every aspect. Not only do we obey God to show him our love and friendship, but also our obedience is done cheerfully, willingly, and with joy. John said in 1 John 5:3 “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome.” We truly love God when we obey his commandments and realize that his commandments are not a burden, but a blessing!

Not only does obeying God prove our love and friendship for him, it also puts us in a saved condition before him. The Hebrew writer states in Hebrews 5:9 “And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him.” Jesus is our source of “eternal salvation” if we love him enough to obey his commands. John likewise states in 1 John 2:5 “But whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may be sure that we are in him.” The love of God is perfected, or made complete, when we love God enough to keep, or obey, his word. This is the only way that we can know that “we are in him”, when we are obedient to the commands.

I would like to encourage everyone who reads this article to study the bible earnestly and openmindedly in order to learn to obey the commands given to us by God. The Apostle Paul said in 2 Timothy 2:15 “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” By serious study of the word of God we can show ourselves approved by God, a people that are obedient to his commands, and learn to correctly apply the word of God.