"So shall My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It
shall not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire,
and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it,"
(Isaiah 55:11).
The word "authority" in the Hebrew Old Testament is
translated from several different words depending on their context.
We see phrases such as "submit thyself under her hands, (Gen. 16:9).
The word "authority" is used in
Esther 9:29 and is the Hebrew "toqeph." It
means, power, strength, authority. But in the New Testament, however, the word is translated from the Greek "exousia,"
and is found in verses such as John 1:12 where it means authority and
John 5:26 where it means authority.
Authority basically means the power and right to enforce something.
The Christian has the authority to be a child of God (John 1:12).
Jesus has authority to judge (John 5:26). Furthermore, for the
Bible this
authority is the right to declare what is true and not true. This means that the Bible carries the God
ordained and God derived power of proclaiming who God is, who and what
He is not, who Jesus is, what He did on the cross, and what is required
of us to be forgiven of our sins.
The authority of scripture is not derived by its
relationship to the Christian church; that is, the Church does not grant
authority to the Bible. Neither is biblical authority derived by a
consensus where Christians agree that it has authority and then choose
to submit to it. Instead,
the authority of Scripture is derived by the virtue of it being authored
and inspired of God and it has authority over everyone whether they be
Christian or not. Though not everyone submits to God's word now,
they will later when the truths of God's word are made evident on the
Day of Judgment. Because the Bible comes from God, everything it says
is true and authoritative and will come to pass.
Application
Why is this
important? First of all, this means that the Bible has authority
over all areas of the Christian's life. It means that we are to
submit ourselves to God's word and obey it. Of course, this
obedience does not grant us salvation nor does it increase our standing
with God in any way. But, it does mean that we are to submit to
what it says. Therefore, when the Bible says "Do not steal," (Exod. 20:15), we are to submit ourselves to that standard of moral
correctness and not steal, not bear false witness (Exod. 20:16), to honor our
parents (Exod. 20:12), etc.
Second, the scriptures themselves make judgments upon
unbelievers. As is often the case when defending the faith, we
must tell people that the wages of sin is death (Rom. 6:23), that all
have sinned (Rom. 3:23), and that Jesus is the only way to be forgiven
of our sins (John 14:6), and that He is the only way to escape the
judgment of God (Rom. 2:4). But, we are not saying these things in
our own authority, but in the authority of God's word which has stated
these things.
Third, it means that when you speak God's word, you are
speaking authoritatively -- so be careful what you say unless you
misrepresent God.
Fourth, God's word accomplishes what God wants
it to because it has the authority to do so. This means that you
need to study the word, memorize scripture, and tell it to people as is
appropriate. The word of God is powerful and it must be used
during the establishment and defense of the faith. Therefore, when speaking forth the truth of God's word,
be confident that it has the authority to accomplish what God wants it
to.
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