By What Authority?

                                                                                       Luke 20:1-8                                         
                                       

l. This week's news indicates that Episcopal Church parishes in Northern New Jersey have been asked to study a report that advocates church approval of sexual relationships among unmarried people, including homosexuals . The 15  page report entitled  "Changing patterns of Sexuality and Family Life" will be studied by the parishes for a year. “The report said, "It is our conclusion that by suppressing  our sexuality and by condemning  all sex  relations which occur outside of traditional marriage the church has hereby obstructed a vitally important means for persons to know and celebrate their relatedness to God."    Newark Bishop John Spong has urged an end to the church's opposition to sex outside of marriage and some Episcopalians welcomed the study as a long-overdue recognition  of social reality. But others said church approval of sex outside of marriage goes against divine law and threatens to worsen the  spread of sexually transmitted diseases."
How does a church arrive at this kind of conclusion. By what authority does a group of people advocate something directly contrary to the teachings of its founder?

2. This question of authority is one of the oldest and most important questions.   It is raised in an important way in regard to the experience of Jesus in  Luke's  gospel.

The question is put to Jesus:  “By what authority do you do these things? Jesus answered with a question?  Was the baptism of John from heaven or from men? This raises the real issue in any religious situation. Is this a command of God, or is it merely a tradition commanded by men?
“The questioners knew their dilemma. If they answered that it was from God, when why did not they believe him? If they say, it is from men, then the people would stone  them, for they are convinced that John was a prophet.
The last option involves a matter of cowardice. They were concerned only for their positions. The real issue in life, in church, in ethics is the question:  Has God said?.... “The crowd is not the source of the answer.  We do not stand before a  crowd when this life is over.  We stand in the presence of God. By what authority can a group of people  presume to be Christian and go against the command of God.

3. Settling the issue of authority does many things for us.

I. The issue is the Question of God's authority.
1. Why should  I do anything religious? The only real answer is that God commands it. There may be other reasons related to the matter, but the beginning issue is God's command.
Let‘s look at the Episcopal church statement on sex. We live in a society that has become quite permissive. There are lots of people  indulging in sexuality outside of marriage  and in homosexual ways. Apart from the command of God that his people  not do this, there are other reasons also. Every year hundreds of thousands are born out of wedlock a result of ignoring God's command  . We have children having children and the cycle seems to be continuing unless we come to base our lives on God‘s command.  Additionally, we are currently having  an epidemic that will take the lives of thousands  due to the AIDS  epidemic . These may be good reasons for not violating this command, but we begin with God's command first of all.

2. There is a lot that goes on today that is claimed to be in the authority of God but is not. We have just recently seen in the news that the Pope has issued an encyclical concerning the use of technology in the area of human reproduction. 
One of these is called In Vitro Fertilization. In this technique, eggs are fertilized outside the womb in laboratory vessels and the resulting embryo is implanted in a womb. Since Louise Brown of England became the first test-tube  baby born this way nine years ago, 1992, babies have been born this way.   The Roman church opposes the use of implanted embryos, even if the eggs  were fertilized by the husband‘s sperm.  Pope John Paul  II  denounced this procedure along with other issues and  condemns them as violations   of the rights of man and the laws of God. Even artificial insemination with the husband’s sperm is prohibited.

3. The Pope claims that this is the law of God for Catholics.  By what authority are these issues condemned? It is certainly not possible to come forth with  Scripture and verse for condemning  these techniques. Part of the justification for condemning  these practices is the appeal to natural law. Children should he conceived according to normal family ways rather than by artificial means.

4. There are many issues that float around today concerning what is under God‘s authority. As Christians we come  to the Bible_and  read it as God‘s self-revelation, and we come to the person of Jesus Christ who taught us to act out of love in all our ways.

II. Authority provides ‘power within.

1.  The presence of Jesus conveyed to the people of his day a sense of authority. This was a threat to the system. Jesus spoke with authority and he acted with authority. The primary reason was his awareness of his relationship to God.   There are people who have achieved great things because they were aware of the authority of God for what they were doing. If you are genuinely  convinced that the Great Commission is laid upon your life,  what will it do for your practices, actions, conversations, etc. ?  If  people  begin  with the commandments of God that are related to their lives, and are convinced of the importance of these, what will be the effect.
Recently in a class debate on raising or lowering the age for buying liquor, we talked at the end in terms of evaluating the forum, and questions needing to be raised.  One question was brought up:” what do young people have to go to bars, etc. to have a good time?   What is there in life that demands the use of drinking? The suggestion came out that there is where one meets people, or that is where one goes with one's friends.  They  just drift into drinking. My response from the stand point of reason was this: If you know something is not good for you, you don't allow yourself to get into the position where you are going to be pressured. You have to make this decision long before the pressure begins.

“There are some people whose lives have been totally changed by this intense commitment. Let me tell you about Phoebe Palmer who was born in New York in 1807 (d.1874). She was raised a Methodist and the turning point came in her life on July 26,1837 when at 9p.m. she experienced "entire sanctification." Three of her children had died in infancy. As she grieved over her loss, Phoebe Palmer became convinced that God add taken them because she had loved them too much and because  she was spending too much time on them. She resolved to resign everything she held dear to God, promising that she would never murmur at any step of obedience he required. She also resolved that the time she would have spent with her children would henceforth be dedicated to the Lord’s service. She thought of her commitment as the "living sacrifice God required and became convinced that God had accepted her offering. She then realized that what had happened to her was the entire sanctification which her Methodist heritage had taught her to expect. The remaining   37 years of her life would see the implications of that evening worked out as she devoted herself entirely to God. She began her career as a theologian by penning religious verses,  then branched out to write articles and books. She got her start as a revivalist by filling in for her husband at a class-meeting and eventually crossed the continent and the Atlantic to preach the good news. She started speaking at a woman’s prayer meeting and went on to produce a full-scale defense of women's ministries.  From distributing tracts in poor neighborhoods, she moved on to the establishment of one of the nation’s   first Settlement houses.  During this time she also managed to bear and raised three other children who all went into professional Christian service.
'The question is raised “ where did  she get all the energy to do these thlngs?   Mrs.  Palmer  taught that "holiness is power". She believed that just as  the Holy  Spirit had  empowered  disciples  after Pentecost, so every  Christian  who received  the  Spirit in entire sanctification would be empowered.
On another level, Mrs. Palmer knew the Scriptural  promise that her labor in the Lord  was not in vain. Because she was convinced she was entirely  sanctified, she believed everything she did was a "labor in the Lord." Thus she was encouraged   to attempt great things for  God, knowing that in an ultimate sense she could never fail    Armed with such confidence  she did not grow weary in well doing.

III. Authority relates to power with men.

1. There are  people who speak with authority and abuse it for themselves. This week there was a letter from the Surgeon General giving a rebuttal to a spokesman from the Tobacco Institute. This spokesman claimed that the Surgeon General report was in conflict with another famous report and that the link between smoking and cancer was not proven.
The charge was rebutted by Koop and the person involved in the research group. The point made by Koop was that all the research--50,000--independent studies--link cancer and smoking.
Only the Tobacco Institute argues otherwise, for obvious reasons. My point is that people do speak authoritatively for personal gain.  This is true in the area of religion.  The example of Oral Roberts comes to mind very quickly.

2. There is a good use of power and authority with men. Where there is a genuine seriousness about issues, where there is no personal gain to be had, where what is proposed seems for the good of people, then there is a great possibility of influencing men.
“Let me tell you another example from Phoebe Palmer‘s life. Mrs. Palmer was zealous to visit every home in her assigned district. She went in one afternoon from cellar to garret in several homes and gave tracts to fifty families. During these visits Mrs. Palmer would not only give tracts, she would also try to speak to people about their spiritual states. Some rebuffed her attempts, but others listened. After talking with people about their souls,  Phoebe's next step was to invite them to church. To make sure they got there, she would often return to their homes and collect them just before meeting time. Then they would all go to church together.
Once she visited a family lodged in a basement. The father was sleeping off the effects of the previous night's binge, and the eleven year old son sat listless in the corner. The mother was God-fearing, but had been unable to interest her son in Sunday School. Seeing that the boy needed clothes, Phoebe promise to get him a coat if he would  go to church. The boy brightened  at the prospect, and before she left, he seemed quite elated  with the idea of attending  Sabbath-school."

One  20 year old widow  wanted  to go to Church, but was reluctant to go because time in church was time away from her work. This young widow was attempting to support her three babies and an invalid mother on her earnings  as a cobbler.  Because she was paid by the piece, each moment that she would work meant more food for her family. Phoebe calculated how much money the woman could earn in the time it would take her to go to church, and then paid  the widow that amount to go to church with her,"

2. With this kind of attitude, there was authority, respect, and acceptance of her work. She had authority with people because she was doing God’s bidding

3.   The big question for us is:  Are we doing the Lord’s work now?

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