Identifying Spiritual Authority

[NeitherFirstnorLast]

Good evening Saints,

I have always enjoyed encounters with fellow believers wherever I find them, and one group with whom I've had some exchange on line is a group from the Brethren assemblies. I was on their site today, and saw that they had recently posted a question on Spiritual Authority.

In some recent exchanges on this forum, the issue of spiritual authority has been brought up, and I think these Brothers and Sisters have provided some keen insight into the questions they put forth; and I'd like to post some excerpts here from their Forum (www.simplegathering.com)

1) What is ‘authority’ in terms of our service to Christ / of our communities?
Authority is exercised against the spiritual enemies of the Lord and His flock in prayer – Eph. 6:12 & 18.

...there is a significant difference between "spiritual authority" among believers, and authority within a general community. Part of the difference relates to the kind of leadership that Christ demonstrated and indicated he wanted to see in the church - a leadership in which humble example (washing other people's dirty and weary feet) is central. This is not what is considered good leadership in many ordinary societies. Part of the difference also relates therefore to the role of power. The one thing that has done more damage to my spiritual life and growth has been being regularly caught in the cross-fire of power-struggles in local churches. This has totally destroyed my respect for those involved with the result that I refuse to accept their authority in spiritual or non-spiritual matters.


2) How does one acquire it?
God’s Grace is the basis (of authority) ... Our knowledge of our own weakness and inability, basically humility provides a conduit. “God resists the proud and exalts the humble”. What spiritual authority could anyone carry if being resisted by the Lord? Another quote comes to mind from the end of one of the Lord’s parables I believe – “Having done everything, say I am an unprofitable servant.”
Faith is essential to activate the authority Christ has invested in His people – Having a sense of our own inability – we must then move into faith in the ability of the Lord. A friend I traveled with saw some wonderful things happen in his ministry – he was a very simple man – one of his sayings was “It’s not your ability, it’s your availability;” the thing about my friend Jim was that he really did believe it and simply trusted the Lord to work through him. There was never a meeting with Jim without tangible blessing.

...By preaching the gospel to every creature, as He told us to.

3) How do we recognize it?
There is a Pastor in the church I sometimes attend. But he, in my mind and in relation to me, is not a pastor. I remember being in a church that had no Pastor. But there were several pastors and we as young people knew who they were, because we experienced their genuine care and concern for us. There were also teachers whom we recognized because even those who were not orators "spoke with authority." Their teaching hit home, had real resonance and impact.

So maybe authority is something you recognize but have difficulty defining, and especially defining "how to get it."

(You see it where you find Disciples are being made and baptized and added

4) How can a Christian worker, church or movement lose it?
The authority available to us is not for use in relation to one another – not for pushing the ‘sheep’ around as a egotistical superiors. The shepherd Ps. 23 carried a rod and a staff and David speaks of how the Lord uses such to comfort us. The staff was used to rescue silly wandering sheep – thank God he has one where would we be otherwise. The rod was used to beat off the wild beast.

....Definitely blatant hypocrisy will destroy a person's authority. But not being hypocritical will not guarantee authority, even if it may bring respect.

When a Christian gets into a position of authority over other Christians then they get involved, as Mona says, in power struggles instead of "washing the disciples feet" and "washing the feet of those who are not yet disciples," it is catastrophic to the church. I saw this in my formative years and I saw first-hand the damage it has done.

People got into authority in our meeting who did not have that intrinsic quality of spiritual authority and their lack of spirituality caused chaos in the assembly. They had business acumen, but not spiritual authority. Spiritual authority is hard to describe. Either a person has it or they do not. They can become an overseer without spiritual authority because they have been elevated to that position by like-minded non-spiritual people. It is devastating to the church but it happens.

...(It is lost) By becoming insular, and competitive and grasping for "position" rather than making disciples.

5) What fruit / results might we expect to see where spiritual authority is present?

Spiritual authority, to me, does not mean that you are BOSS and everybody must do what they are told. Spiritual authority comes from my close relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ, then I can be an encouragement to others to "walk by His side in the way, What he says we will do, where He sends we will go, Never fear only trust and obey." Spiritual authority does not mean that I should get as many people to obey me as I can and then I become BOSS. It means that I am to do what our Lord Jesus tells me to do and "encourage" others to follow him and do what he is asking in their lives.

...If we LIVE under the All-Authority of the Risen Lord, we will make disciples.

...the most effective churches I’ve known seem to be ones that include variety in both the leadership and the church as a whole, but only when that variety is used in a constructive way to respect the views of others and learn from one another. There is always a danger of creating cliques of like-minded individuals with whom we feel more comfortable. We should obey those who are our spiritual leaders (Heb 13:17), but that should not be a blind obedience. We should always check things out to see if they are true as the Bereans did and we also need exercise spiritual discernment and wisdom for ourselves. Spiritual authority can be lost through, among others, sinful lifestyle and abusing one’s authority.

Saints, these are samples of some of the answers offered on their forum. Can we offer as much wisdom in our responses to these questions?


In Christ,

NeitherFirstnorLast

[NeitherFirstnorLast]

Speaking of Spiritual Authority....

I believe I upset a brother today. He texted me this morning, as he usually does... but this time I think what he sent came from him, and not from the ministry. What he sent me was this:

"1 Corinthians 14:31 'you can all prophesy' this is one of the clearest verses in the Bible. We may all have different gifts, but we can ALL prophesy. Our progress is slow b/c we do not speak."

I responded to this with:

"Ah, but 1 Corinthians 14:29 says "And as to prophets", indicating this portion is specifically directed to prophets - not to all men.
1 Cor 12:28 "And God has placed some in the Church; first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then works of power, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues." If all were prophets, then each would not be named here - and it would be no spiritual gift to prophesy, but merely a function of our own nature."

This brother remained silent to this the rest of the day, but just now has texted me more.

"Numbers 11:29 read that foot note."
"Also remember 1 Cor 14:24. This is speaking about the church meetings. The note on that is also good."
"1 Cor 14:1-5 Prophesying is not just for prophets it is the function of all the saints. This builds up the body."
"Remember to prophesy is to speak for God and speak forth God."

This brother was born and raised in an LRC home, so anything that challenges Lee's ministry is, I believe, terrifying to him. Lee embodies Spiritual Authority, in his eyes - and hence his desire that I read footnotes for elucidation (when the Scriptures themselves disagree with Lee's interpretation, go back to more of Lee's interpretations for enlightenment!)

I'm going to read what he's referenced, and give him a thoughtful and prayerful response. Do any of you have any suggestions? How have you dealt with dear ones like this?

In Him,

NFNL.

[ZNPaaneah]

Originally Posted by NeitherFirstnorLast

Speaking of Spiritual Authority....

1 Cor 14:26 How is it then, brethren? when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying.

Now is there a verse that says every member needs to "speak". I doubt it, imagine the condemnation if someone had throat cancer or some other problem. What i do think is very clear is that throughout the week every one of us should have experiences of Christ that we would want to share with the Body of Christ. Generally it would be very convenient to share this by speaking, but I suppose you could write a poem, or have a video, or some other way of sharing.

As to the word prophecy, I have always understood this to be similar to a spokesman. Just as the President has a cabinet member whose job is to talk to the Press (most of the time) so the Lord has "prophets" that speak to the nations. In the sense that our speaking as Christians represents the Lord, we all are to some extent "prophets", but that doesn't mean that there are not gifted members whose gift is the gift of prophecy. For example, there are gifted members who are evangelists. Billy Graham is a good example, but does that mean that only those who are gifted evangelists preach the gospel? Aren't all Christians responsible to preach the gospel?

[UntoHim]

NFNL, hope all is well with you and yours. I have kept you and your son in my thoughts and prayers, and I trust so many of us out here have as well.

I think your response to your friend was spot on.

No, prophesying is actually a gift, along with teaching, evangelizing and others. Not all have such gifts, much less the right to "exercise" them in a church gathering.

This all relates somewhat to Witness Lee's teaching regarding "the release of the spirit" (originated by Nee but Lee took to a whole different level). Lee taught that the release of the spirit (a dubious, man-made concept at best) had to be an outward, verbal manifestation such as "calling on the Lord" or "prayreading". He never provided any scriptural proof of this because there is none.

So really you need not do much more then point your friend to the Word of God, or in this case the lack of scriptural evidence for such a teaching or practice.

[OBW]

1 Corinthians 14:26-33: What then shall we say, brothers and sisters? When you come together, each of you has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. Everything must be done so that the church may be built up. If anyone speaks in a tongue, two — or at the most three — should speak, one at a time, and someone must interpret. If there is no interpreter, the speaker should keep quiet in the church and speak to himself and to God.

Two or three prophets should speak, and the others should weigh carefully what is said. And if a revelation comes to someone who is sitting down, the first speaker should stop. For you can all prophesy in turn so that everyone may be instructed and encouraged. The spirits of prophets are subject to the control of prophets. For God is not a God of disorder but of peace — as in all the congregations of the Lord’s people.

So how do we read the above? Do we accept Lee's version of "you can all prophesy" or do we confine ourselves to the context? "Two or three prophets should speak." They should not step on each other. And there should be a clear stop by one before another speaks. But these all can speak. But the "these all" is the two or three, not the whole assembly.

And our spirit is subject to us, not the other way around. If we feel so compelled that we explode, and just can't stop, then there is a problem.

I do not disdain what we might call a "testimony meeting" where the floor is open to virtually all for a short time each. But that is not what Paul is discussing in this passage.

[OBW]

Now, back on topic.

I'm not sure that there is such an important need to identify spiritual authority in the way that it has been labeled by Nee and Lee. And even if we back down from that, are we too focused on creating a layer of separation from God when we discuss it in this manner? There is a practical element to elders, deacons, teachers, etc. But when we start to label it as "spiritual authority" are we adding terminology that leads us away from our responsibility? Are we ignoring our charge? Are we trying to second-guess others? (Not suggesting that we take just anything. We surely should be concerned when we see "teachers" who don't stack-up.)

Just a question.

[NeitherFirstnorLast]

Originally Posted by UntoHim

NFNL, hope all is well with you and yours. I have kept you and your son in my thoughts and prayers, and I trust so many of us out here have as well.

I think your response to your friend was spot on.

No, prophesying is actually a gift, along with teaching, evangelizing and others. Not all have such gifts, much less the right to "exercise" them in a church gathering.

This all relates somewhat to Witness Lee's teaching regarding "the release of the spirit" (originated by Nee but Lee took to a whole different level). Lee taught that the release of the spirit (a dubious, man-made concept at best) had to be an outward, verbal manifestation such as "calling on the Lord" or "prayreading". He never provided any scriptural proof of this because there is none.

So really you need not do much more then point your friend to the Word of God, or in this case the lack of scriptural evidence for such a teaching or practice.

Thank you brother, for your thoughts and prayers... and your sharing.

I want to confess that sometimes, I get very very... I don't know if angry is the word, or frustrated, or disgusted, or what it is - with what I see as idolatry in the Local Church. I don't like that negative feeling, and I need to beg forgiveness for it and drop it. I just feel, I don't know - why are so many taken in by it? These are genuine Believers, aren't they? Do they not see the incongruity between what the Word clearly defines as a proper Christian (meek, humble, loving), and what the man who ran the show became?

Sheep don't eat sheep, they're herbivores. When you see a "sheep" attacking and devouring another sheep, you know it isn't a sheep at all - it's a wolf in sheep's clothing.

Lord forgive me. Soften my heart to express Your love, Lord.

Amen

[NeitherFirstnorLast]

Originally Posted by ZNPaaneah

1 Cor 14:26 How is it then, brethren? when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying.

Amen, yes - when we get together, even as we do here on this forum, let us each have a revelation, an interpretation - let us be built up together for edification one of another.... but this isn't prophesying; it's just sharing. Prophesying is a very definite Spiritual Gift which we do not all receive:

1 Corinthians 12:29-30 "Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Are all workers of miracles? Have all the gifts of Healing, do all speak with tongues, do all interpret?" .... the answer of course is, no. They're not.

Originally Posted by ZNPaaneah

As to the word prophecy, I have always understood this to be similar to a spokesman. Just as the President has a cabinet member whose job is to talk to the Press (most of the time) so the Lord has "prophets" that speak to the nations. In the sense that our speaking as Christians represents the Lord, we all are to some extent "prophets"

...Prophecy does not neccessarily mean that we foretell future events - although that is one definition... but to prophesy does mean to speak by the inspiration of God, as lead by the revelation from the Holy Spirit... and that's not the way it's being applied by LSM, with weekly regurgitation from the HWMR and the usual discussion about how it's touched you this week.