Books

Focus On The Fundamentals Of The Faith

By W. Douglass Harris

The Chain of Divine Authority

This subject is of the utmost importance, because whatever authority one accepts determines what he is religiously. If one accepts human authority, he is what man wants him to be religiously. If one accepts divine authority only, he is what God would have him to be religiously. It is the purpose of this article to show how one may know when he has divine authority for what he is and does in religion, or how God speaks to man today. Nothing less than divine authority will suffice.

Two Kinds of Authority

There are two kinds of authority: primary and delegated. Primary refers to that which is first in position of importance. It is that right which belongs to and naturally resides in the person who exercises it. It is original, absolute, and underived. Delegated authority is the opposite to primary authority. To delegate is defined thusly: “To authorize, send, or appoint as a delegate; to entrust (authority, power, etc.) to a person acting as one’s agent or representative.”

Only God Has Primary Authority

God is our Creator, Preserver, and Benefactor, by reason of which He has the absolute right to command. It is stated in the very first verse of the Bible. It says, “In the beginning God” (Genesis 1:1). In 2 Corinthians 5:18, Paul states that “All things are of God”. The highest authority in the universe is God. His authority rests entirely on His sovereignty. Webster defines a sovereign as, “Above or superior to all others; chief, greatest; supreme”. God possesses the absolute right to command. Someone rightly said, “The ultimate in respect for the authority of God is to accept it, and submit to it because it is God speaking.” By this authority God gives positive commands — commands for which no logical reason is apparent but must be obeyed because God said it.

Delegated Authority

Christ stands nearest to God in authority, but it is delegated authority. Paul says, “God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself” (2 Corinthians 5:19). God now speaks to us by His Son (Hebrews 1:1,2). We shall learn later how the Son speaks to us. We must not disregard any of the links in the chain of divine authority. God delegated authority to Christ (see Matthew 11:27; John 5:26; 17:7,8; Ephesians 1:22,23). Since the Son was as divine as the Father, no mistake could have been made in the transfer of this authority from the Father to the Son. Jesus said, “The word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father’s who sent Me” (John 14:24). And, “All authority hath been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18ASV). Christ exercised this authority personally while on earth (Matthew 9:6), but in order to atone for sin He would have to die, be raised and return to the Father. Other provisions for the transferral and continuity of this authority had to be made. So He selected twelve apostles for training to become His personal representatives after He ascended. But at this point the human element entered into the chain of delegated authority. How were these apostles with their human weaknesses insured against error in speaking for Christ? The answer is in what follows.

Holy Spirit Promised to the Apostles

As protection against error in their teaching and in writing the New Testament, the apostles were promised the Holy Spirit in miraculous power. Read John 14:16,17,26; 16:13, which were promises to the apostles to send them the Holy Spirit and what the Holy Spirit would do for them in making them infallible as they spoke for Christ. The apostles were to speak what the Spirit revealed to them (see Matthew 10:20; John 16:13; 1 Corinthians 2:10-13). Therefore, Christ’s authority was executed through the Spirit guided apostles. In praying to the Father, Jesus said, “I have given unto them (the apostles) the words which Thou gavest Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came out from Thee, and they have believed that Thou didst send Me” (John 17:8). They were given the power to bind and to loose, that is to state the terms or conditions, which when obeyed or rejected, sins would be either forgiven or retained (Matthew 16:19; 18:18; John 20:22,23). They were endowed with miraculous powers to confirm and they were Christ’s personal representatives on earth and to confirm that their message came from God or that it was divine revelation (Mark 16:17-19; Hebrews 2:1-4). Miracles were their credentials that they were ambassadors of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20). This insured them against the possibility of any error or mistakes in the exercise of this authority or in transferring it from Christ to the apostles, or assurance that the chain of authority was not broken.

What the Apostles Said Is in the Word

By the use of their credentials (miracles) their confirmed revelation is what we have preserved in the New Testament. Follow Paul’s description of the chain of divine authority in 2 Corinthians 5:18-20 from God, the source, to the “word of reconciliation”. Note carefully John’s affirmation in 1 John 4:6, “He that heareth us (the apostles), heareth God, and he that heareth us not (the apostles), heareth not God.” Paul said, “Every scripture is inspired of God” (2 Timothy 3:16).

Completeness of the Law Delivered

Various passages in the New Testament affirm the all-sufficiency, completeness, and finality of God’s revelation in the Bible (see 2 Peter 1:3; 2 Timothy 3:16,17; Jude 3). This does not leave any room for creeds, articles of faith, disciplines, and church manuals compiled by men to supplement the Bible. There is no need for further revelation, therefore, no further need for miracles. When perfect revelation was completed, miracles ceased (1 Corinthians 13:8-10). Anyone who claims the power to work miracles today, or that God works miracles through them, is a false teacher. The purpose of miracles was to confirm the word of the apostles, and that word carries its own confirmation. It needs no further confirmation. Those who claim further revelation are, also, false teachers. How could the passages cited above be true if God’s revelation in the Bible is not complete?

How does God speak to man today?

The Bible answer is: through God’s inspired word and only through that word. If you are a member of the church you can read about in the Bible, you have divine authority for so being. If you obeyed the plan of salvation authorized in the Bible, you have divine authority for what you did to become a Christian. If you worship according to the system of worship authorized in the New Testament, you have divine authority for your worship. If you can find the name you wear in religion, and the name of the church you are a member of in the New Testament, you have divine authority for them. If you are a member of a church whose only organization is that of elders, deacons, evangelists, and members in the local church, you are such by divine authority. Dear reader, examine your religion in the light of this article and see if it is divinely authorized. Jesus said, “Every plant which my heavenly Father hath not planted will be rooted up” (Matthew 15:13).