The system of authority God has ordained
Date:June 22, 1948Place:Kuling Mountain Scripture Reading: Rom. 13:1
We have spent the past few days on the subject of God’s authority. We did not follow any order in our discussion. Yesterday we spoke of a few examples in the Old Testament related to rebellion against authority. Today I would like to point out one basic principle of authority. This principle is stated as follows: No authority has its origin apart from God. All authorities are from God and are appointed by God. God has ordained His system of authority in the universe, and more particularly, in this world, for the purpose that this system would manifest His authority. We must realize that every authority within this system is ordained by God and is of God.
God ordaining a system of authority in the universe
Although we have said this before, we will repeat it today. God controls and rules over the entire universe (including the physical world) with authority. He runs the universe according to the principle of authority. If we trace authority in this universe to its highest source, we will find God Himself. As we ascend level after level on the ladder of authority, we reach the peak which is God’s own authority. Yesterday I said that it is rare for a man to receive direct commandments from God. It is rare to find God’s authority directly acting on a person. Most of the time His authority is expressed through those who are charged and commissioned by Him to be deputy authorities. God has ordained certain men, systems, or organizations as His authority. Such deputy authorities are commissioned and ordained by God. Yesterday we also said that a command from a deputy authority deserves as much attention as a direct command from God. All authorities are from God. Therefore, direct authority and deputy (i.e., indirect) authority are equally important. Only the foolish vinedressers demanded the personal appearance of the master. They did not consider the coming of the prophets to be sufficient. Even the son of the master was not good enough for them. This is the reason they killed the prophets one by one. In the end, when the son did come, they did not obey him, but killed him as well. Finally, the master himself had to come to deal with the situation (Matt. 21:33-41). This is the story of the foolish vinedressers. Only a foolish person would say that deputy authority cannot be considered as authority.
God created the universe with His word. He spoke, and it was done. God did not have to resort to any special means; He did not have to depend on any special kind of power. When He said, “Let there be light,” there was light. Once He says something, it is done. This is the basic principle of God’s creation of the universe. After creating all things, God instituted many natural laws to rule over the universe. Every object is ruled by some kind of natural law. On the one hand, God established these natural laws. On the other hand, He upholds all things by the word of His power (Heb. 1:3). Therefore, we can say that God rules the entire universe by His authority. The entire universe is upheld by the operation of natural laws; there is no exception. These natural laws continuously operate. This principle applies not only to the natural realm but also to the supernatural realm (i.e., the spiritual realm). God rules over everything in the spiritual realm with His authority. God created the cherubim, the angels, and the twenty-four elders. There are also the gods spoken of in Psalm 82. They are the deputy authorities appointed by God in the universe. Every authority has his own rank in God’s ordering. Unfortunately, one of the cherubim fell. Lucifer fell because of his ambition to set up his own throne to make himself equal with God. He wanted to overthrow God’s authority and to build up his own authority, but he fell. One-third of the angels followed him as a result of his fall. They became the powers of darkness today. The head of this dark force is the fallen one, Satan.
In His re-creation, God created man on the sixth day and placed him under His authority. Man is different from other creatures. God entrusted man with authority and assigned him to rule over the earth and to dress and keep it. He put the fowls of the air, the fish of the sea, and the beasts and creeping things of the earth under man’s dominion. All living creatures on earth are under man’s authority. God commanded man not to eat of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, because he would die in the day that he ate of it. Whoever ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil would die; this was a fact. This command also signifies authority. It was not a threat of God. (God wanted man to receive the knowledge of good and evil directly from Him. But when man fell, good and evil became something within him.) God forbade man to eat of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. This was a command, and it related to authority. Eve was tempted to eat of the fruit. In her rebellion she took the fruit and ate it. As a result, she committed the sin of rebellion. Paul said in 1 Timothy that Adam came first in God’s creation, and Eve followed. For this reason the woman should submit, but Eve did not submit. She was tempted, and she fell (Gen. 3:12-13). Paul saw authority in the order of creation. In reading Genesis we find that Eve took the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil when she ignored God’s command. She did not ask her husband first. Instead, she stretched out her hand and took the fruit. In reality, when Eve stretched out her hand, she was stretching out her head. Eve’s action signified her rebellion against God’s established institution on this earth; she did not submit to Adam. If a man stretches out his hand without first checking with authority, in reality he is stretching out his own head. Satan tempted Eve to rebel against Adam. Today he is leading the whole world into rebellion.
To rebel against God’s established institution is to rebel against God’s authority. In earthly institutions those who come afterwards should submit to those who have come before. This is God’s ordained order. Eve destroyed the order of authority. She ate of the fruit which God forbade. This shows that the relationship between God and man was broken. Man overturned God’s authority, and the relationship between God and man was destroyed. Man took the same line as Satan when he overthrew God’s authority. Satan fell because he wanted to make himself equal with God. When Satan tempted Eve to eat of the fruit, he told her that she would be like God if she ate of it. This was a temptation to uplift oneself to God’s stature. It is according to Satan’s principle of overturning God’s authority. Satan wanted to usurp God’s position. But he got into trouble with God’s authority instead. Eve’s sin brought her into conflict with human authority on the one hand and with God’s authority on the other. She ate of the fruit, and Adam ate of it as well. Satan succeeded, and the line of authority between God and man was broken. Man did not check with God or inquire of Him. He contemplated, planned, and acted in himself. He failed to learn to inquire of Him or to act under His authority. Such an act annulled authority.
Authority in government
Although Satan fell, God did not give up the entire universe, because there were still many good and clean angels, and the universe was still under God’s care. Likewise, after Adam and Eve rebelled against God’s authority and the world and mankind fell, God did not give up the world. He still appoints authority in this world and still calls men to maintain and uphold authority. We can find authority in the government and in the family. All the institutions of authority that God has ordained in this world are involved mainly with human relationships, such as the relationships between men and women, between husband and wife, between parents and children, and between servants and masters. Other than these four domestic relationships, there are official relationships of those holding offices outside the family. God has set up systems of authorities in all forms of human relationships.
God has put those whom He has chosen into authority in this world. From the day of creation and for the next 1,656 years, God seemingly did not appoint any authority on this earth. During that time some men rose up by themselves and tried to assume authority on their own. After 1,656 years, that is, after the flood, God instituted government among men. He decreed and said to Noah, “Whoso sheddeth man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed” (Gen. 9:6). Capital punishment was God’s first decree. After the flood God transferred the power of human rule to man himself. Therefore, all officers and governments are appointed by God. Deputy authority in the civil world started in Noah’s time and has been with us until today. Today officers are found in all forms of government. Although many officers and administrators are evil, authority still exists with them. These men may not be godly; they may not believe in God, but they are the deputy authorities and are appointed by God. Although all the kingdoms of the earth are under Satan’s dominion, authority still rests in God’s hand. Entire nations may be under Satan’s influence. In fact, the entire world will be under Satan one day. Yet the principle of authority is still under God’s hand.
Recently I read in the newspaper that England is almost as advanced as Germany and the Soviet Union in its movement towards socialism. It is not a matter of the degree of advancement; in all these countries the advancement is in full swing already. England is still democratic in name, but it is already run by principles which find great kinship to Marx and Engel’s communism. The Lord Jesus testified solemnly to Pilate, saying, “My kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36). God’s kingdom is heavenly and spiritual; it is not of this world. Therefore, none of the nations that exist today are God’s kingdom. However, they still derive their authority from God. No matter what system of government a nation takes, its authority comes from God. The founding of every nation is based on God’s authority. God chose the people of Israel and established them as a nation. The nation of Israel became God’s kingdom. David was its king, and he was appointed by God. God first appointed Saul and then later David. Saul was an evil king, while David was a good king. Yet both the evil king and the good king derived their authority from God. The history of the Old Testament shows us clearly that due to Israel’s continuous rebellion against God’s authority, the king of Babylon came and took all the Israelites away as captives. After Babylon there was Persia. In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, God stirred up his heart, and he made a decree throughout his land. The Bible gives an account of this: “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: All the kingdoms of the earth has Jehovah, the God of heaven, given to me” (2 Chron. 36:23). He said this because God had stirred up his heart. God even called Cyrus “My shepherd” (Isa. 44:28) and His anointed (45:1). The king of Persia was appointed by God. Although Cyrus did not know God at all, his authority was from God.
In the New Testament we find Jews suffering under the hands of the Roman Empire, having lost control of their country. The Israelites were in a situation like ours when we were under the hand of the Japanese. The Jews were ridiculed as men without a country. The Lord was born shortly after the conquest of the Jewish nation. At that time the rulers, like Pontius Pilate, were Gentiles, yet they were still God’s appointed authorities. Once the Pharisees tempted the Lord by asking Him, “Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar, or not?” The Lord answered, “Render then the things that are Caesar’s to Caesar and the things that are God’s to God” (Matt. 22:17, 21). This means that the Lord acknowledged Caesar’s authority. He acknowledged the existence of earthly authorities. If the Lord did not know God, He could very well have become a revolutionary leader. But He never gave Himself to any revolutionary movement. He recognized the authority of human government as coming from God.
The Roman Empire continued from one generation to the next. After Claudius died, Nero came to the throne, and the institution of slavery became much more prevalent. When Paul wrote his Epistles, he told the slaves to obey those over them. He continued the subject of authority. Paul told men during Nero’s time to submit to authority. Others could have accused Paul of being a traitor. Such an accusation might not have been a sweet thing to take, but Paul insisted on submission just the same. In the Old Testament there was Jeremiah. In the New Testament there was Paul. These two men had a most difficult job. God charged Jeremiah to tell the Israelites to surrender to the Chaldeans (Jer. 21:9). He told the king of Judah to bring his neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon and to serve him and his people so that the Jews would live (27:12). In the New Testament Paul had similar words to say. Both of them saw God’s authority. This is the reason they charged men to submit to those in authority and to pay tax where tax was due. In Romans 13:1-3 Paul said, positively, that every person should be subject to those over him, and negatively, that whoever resisted authority opposed God’s ordination. He said that the authorities which exist are ordained by God. Verse 5 says that it is necessary to be subject, and verse 7 says that we should render tax to whom tax is due, custom to whom custom is due, fear to whom fear is due, and honor to whom honor is due. Paul pointed out that God has established authority in government.
Some may not be able to swallow these words. Paul said that rulers are only a terror to evil workers. Some may argue that many rulers are evil and that men are punished even when they perform much good. But the truth is that there is still the pretense of justice even with evil and corrupt rulers. They cannot cast aside their confession and blatantly claim that they are punishing men or executing them for doing good. Even when a ruler rewards evil for good, he has to first accuse the good man and make him evil before he can punish him. In the same way, when he befriends the mob and enlists them in his army, he first has to extol them for their patriotism. He has to ascribe good names to them first and then prove to others that he is rewarding the good and punishing the evil. He may be wrong in his conduct, but at least he has to be right in his principle. God says that all authorities are from Him. He has established the authorities. Although there are evil rulers and evil laws, these men and institutions still stand for God’s authority. The day this world order stops will be the day when all worldly rulers are destroyed and the lawless one appears. It is a good thing that rulers are with us today. A government based on anarchy is one that hastens the coming of Satan’s kingdom. Of course, when Satan comes, the kingdom of God will also have drawn near. Satan is the most lawless one. When this lawless one appears, he will annul God’s principle of authority. Then there will be no divine authority; evil men will be uplifted, and good men will be destroyed. Then men will call evil those who do good and call good those who commit evil. God’s entire principle of authority will be overthrown. This will be the end, and lawlessness will take over completely.
Today we Christians should pay attention to four things with respect to government. First, we should render tax to whom tax is due. Second, we should render custom to whom custom is due. Third, we should render fear to whom fear is due. It is right for us to fear soldiers and policemen. We are those who are under authority. We cannot say that we have nothing to do with policemen since we are good citizens and have not broken any law. Although the policemen may not come after us, we still have to fear them in our heart. Although the nations are now part of Satan’s kingdom, God’s authority is still with them. Therefore, we must still render fear to whom fear is due. Fourth, we should render honor to whom honor is due. We have to respect the rulers. Titus 3:1 says that we should be “subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be ready unto every good work.” This is the proper attitude towards human government.
Authority in the family
God has also ordained authority in the family. God has established proper relationships between husbands and wives, parents and children, and masters and servants. I would like to draw our attention to the two books in the Bible that rank the highest in spirituality — Ephesians and Colossians. Both books have two sections. The first section declares spiritual facts, while the second section discusses practical issues of this life. The first section is positive while the second section is negative. In both Epistles of such high standing, there is reference to authority in the family. Both books speak of the relationships between husbands and wives, fathers and sons, and masters and servants. Ephesians 5 and 6 charge us to know authority in the family. According to the divine ordination for the family, the husband should be the authority, and the wife should submit to him. The wife cannot be the authority. Between father and son, the father is the authority. A son may be more educated than the father, but authority still rests with the parents. God has not made children the authority. In the same way, between master and servant, the master is the authority. A servant has to obey his master in all things. Ephesians 6 and Colossians 3 both speak of servants serving their masters as if serving God. The Bible clearly tells us to obey all forms of authority and to be right in our attitude towards them. Wherever we find husbands and wives, parents and children, masters and servants, we find the presence of God’s authority.
God’s authority in the universe is being carried out through human government. The same authority is also carried out through family relationships. God’s principle of authority has not changed since the creation of the world. Of the sixty-six books of the Bible, Ephesians and Colossians rank the highest in spirituality, but neither of them neglect the importance of upholding God’s authority. These two books do not put authority aside. In reading them I marvel at Paul, who, though erudite in the lofty things of the Spirit, was not negligent of the relationships between husbands and wives, parents and children, and masters and servants. This shows us that from the creation of the world until now, God has not given up on the matter of authority. Paul shows us in Colossians 3 and 4 that God wants believers to uphold His authority in the church and in the family. He speaks similarly in 1 Timothy 6 and Titus 2 and 3. His words to Timothy and Titus are similar. When he wrote to these spiritual sons, he charged them in the same way. It seems as if he was saying, “This is my teaching, and you have to teach the same thing.” Paul charged Timothy and Titus to speak the same thing and not to change his teaching. These four books are very special. While Ephesians and Colossians are on high truths, 1 Timothy and Titus are on the work. On the one hand, Paul spoke on the subject of authority in the highest books on spirituality. On the other hand, he spoke on the same subject in his Epistles related to the work. Towards the end of the apostolic age, we find the same admonition. In his first Epistle Peter said, “Household servants, be subject in all fear to your masters, not only to the good and forbearing but also to the crooked” (2:18). Again he said, “In like manner, wives, be subject to your own husbands, that even if any disobey the word, they will be gained without the word through the manner of life of their wives” (3:1). Ninety percent of husbands who do not accept the Lord reject Him because of disobedience in their wives. The above verses clearly show us that God intends that we uphold authority in all human relationships.
Some may have a problem here. When Paul and Peter wrote their Epistles, the Roman Empire was at the height of its power, and slavery was extremely prevalent. Male and female slaves were sold in open markets. It was a cruel business. Some may ask, “Should we allow such an inhumane institution to remain?” Of course, the church does not support slavery, but Paul exhorted slaves to obey their masters on the one hand, and he charged masters to deal well with their slaves on the other hand. Onesimus was a runaway slave, but Paul told Philemon to treat him well. He had no intention of overturning the institution of slavery. It was not a matter of the merit or evil of the system but a matter of God’s authority. Whether or not the institution of slavery is justified is a different issue altogether. God’s ordination is for slaves to submit to authority. It is better for us to live with a wrong system and uphold God’s authority than to destroy a system and thus destroy God’s authority in the process. On the one hand, we realize the injustice that existed in the society of the time. On the other hand, we realize that with an institution as wrong and inhumane as slavery, God did not give up His authority.
In other relationships
In addition to the family, we have male-female relationships. The Bible shows that both men and women have a proper place. God ordains that there be order and authority between male and female. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 11 that God is the head of Christ, and the man is the head of the woman (v. 3). Between the sexes God has established authority. Paul said that every woman praying or prophesying with her head uncovered disgraces her head (v. 5). He also said that women are not permitted to speak in the churches (14:34). In 1 Timothy 2 he forbade women from teaching (v. 12). Yet today many women are teaching. It seems that the tendency for women to preach has been present from the beginning. God charges women to come under authority. Between men and women, the former stand for authority, while the latter stand for obedience.
In the spiritual realm
We have seen God’s authority manifested in various institutions — first, in human government, second, in the family, and third, in ordinary relationships. There is a fourth place where His authority is ordained — in the supernatural world, the universe. It seems as if we are conducting a Bible study this morning. The above four considerations show us clearly what authority is. The best example of submission to authority in the Bible can be found in the account of Michael’s dispute with the devil over Moses’ body as recorded in Jude 9. Michael was one of the cherubim. He was an angel who was given dominion over everything. God made him one of the archangels; yet at one time, he was Satan’s subordinate. It was Michael’s specific responsibility to contend for God’s interest, but he was once a subject of Satan. He disputed with Satan over Moses’ body. When Moses died, God probably entrusted his body to Michael for burial. According to the principle of 2 Corinthians 5, Moses must have resurrected on the Mount of Transfiguration. Michael probably was moving Moses’ body to that mountain when Satan stopped him and argued with him. Michael was in a difficult position. He had God’s order to bring Moses’ body to the Mount of Transfiguration, yet Satan, who was once over him, would not let him do it. In reading Jude 9, we find that Michael “did not dare to bring a reviling judgment against him but said, The Lord rebuke you.” Michael could not rebuke Satan himself. He could only say, “The Lord rebuke you,” because the Lord’s authority was higher than that of Satan. This is a pattern of how we should submit to authority.
Michael did not dare to rebuke Satan because Satan was above him in God’s original ordination, not because he was afraid or powerless. Here is a lesson for Christians to learn; we should learn from Michael’s submission. He only said, “The Lord rebuke you.” He invoked a higher authority to rebuke Satan. He dared not rebuke Satan directly because he did not want to upset the order in the divine authority. If our eyes are blind to the way God upholds His authority, nothing more can be said. But if our eyes are opened to this matter, we will realize that God will sacrifice anything but His authority. Unlike Michael, we are the new creation, and we do not have to be under Satan. God has never entrusted man to Satan, but we still should learn the principle of submission from Michael. Michael would not rebuke Satan. He only said, “The Lord rebuke you.” Those who have this kind of attitude know God’s authority. The book of Jude teaches us to submit to God’s authority in this kind of way.
Meeting authority in the systems established by God
Every one of us has to touch authority. Otherwise, we run into problems. If a man touches authority, all of his problems will go away. When we realize that all systems of authority are established by God, we have nothing more to say. Some people do not want to submit to their masters, their parents, or their brothers and sisters. Some wives do not want to submit to their husbands. Some people excuse their disobedience by saying that their masters are too poor or that their husbands or brothers are not worthy of their submission. Some children, who have graduated from universities, think that their parents are too old-fashioned. They think they know more than their parents. This becomes an excuse for not obeying their parents. Many people have problems with other men. If we look around, we will find that many people are asking these questions. Everyone who has not touched authority has these kinds of problems. Some wives despise their husbands; they even fight with their husbands. Some children disobey their parents and argue with them. Some servants ignore or argue with their masters when they cannot submit to them. Some ignore the law when they face corrupt officers or unjust legislation. But whether or not our husband, our parents, or our representatives in the government are evil is none of our business. If we have touched authority, we will not criticize them. The whole issue rests on whether or not we have touched authority. Once we have touched authority, these problems are no longer problems. If a person sees only men, he cannot be of any use to the Lord. We have to realize that the systems of authority established among human society are established and ordained by God. Once we touch God and His authority, all problems go away.
Yesterday we quoted some examples from the Old Testament to illustrate the matter of rebellion. Even though Moses was wrong when he married the Cushite woman, his sister and brother should not have reviled him rashly because he was God’s deputy authority. A deputy authority may be wrong, but it is not our business to criticize him. Our business is to submit to authority. Whether or not masters, husbands, parents, and those in authority have a problem in themselves is not our concern. We need to know only one thing: If we do not submit to them, we have a problem. A person who tries to confront God’s deputy authority always runs into problems. We may think that our master or our husband is not as good as we are. This thought exists because we have touched these people only. When we only touch people, we encounter problems. But if we touch authority, we will not have a problem. Some servants only touch their masters. Some children only touch their parents. Some only touch their brothers and sisters. These ones do not have a way to go on because they are only touching men; they have not touched authority and are not willing to yield. A person is useless if he continues to criticize the government, those in authority, parents, superiors, or elders in the church. All of his spiritual power will leak away. He is taking the way of Satan and acting according to his principle.
Maintaining the divine system of authority
Since the beginning of the world, God has been ruling and upholding the entire universe with His authority. Both man’s fall and the fall of the universe had their source in rebellion. Rebellion has thrown off authority. If we do not deal with this basic issue, we will be useless no matter where we go. We will be unable to work in any place. We cannot preach the gospel of Christ and perform God’s work or service while taking Satan’s way and maintaining his principle. Once we touch and apprehend God’s authority, we will know that God created and maintains the universe by His authority. He has placed His system of authority in everything. We have to uphold the system God has ordained. We have to learn to submit to men and not to touch authority in a light way. In all these relationships we have to learn to know authority and practice obedience. We have to know that there are lords and masters in everything; we cannot assume to be the master as soon as we touch something. We have to learn obedience through many situations. One finds authority in the hospital. As soon as he works in a hospital, he has to obey the authority in the hospital. There is even authority in a restaurant. Some serve as managers, and we have to learn to obey them. If we touch authority in a genuine way, we will find authority wherever we go. In obeying the authority of earthly institutions, we are actually obeying God because all authorities are from God. We have to see that every authority is from God. Only a rebellious and proud man is blind to authority; only he will not submit to God’s deputy authority. If we cannot submit to His deputy authority, or if we say that we do not sense God’s authority on earth today, we are not qualified to touch God’s work; we cannot work for the Lord.
During the past three days, I have stressed authority. I feel that my utterance is still short. Within myself I know what authority is. Brothers and sisters, we have to ask for mercy to see authority. Our inner being has to be so fine that we will feel what Michael felt when he faced Satan’s authority. The church on earth bears the testimony of submission. If the church does not submit, what will it be like? We have to learn to obey when placed under all kinds of circumstances and systems. We should never consider one who rebels and offends authority as a hero. A rebellious person is never a hero. If all the sons of God would stand on the ground of submission, the activities of the lawless ones would be suppressed. Second Thessalonians says that the mystery of lawlessness is now operating, but there is one who is now restraining (2:7). Who is this restraining one? He is not a nominal Christian or a rebellious Christian. Our obedience is what prevents the mystery of Satan’s lawlessness from operating. This is a fundamental issue. If this issue is not resolved, no work can follow, because we will still be Satan’s men. May the Lord be merciful to us so that we see God’s authority in all human institutions.