All Authority is from God

In our human understanding, authority is equal to power. Whoever has authority has power. Since we like power, we love when we have authority over others. The sad truth is that we have no authority that was not given to us by God. Let’s face it. We barely have authority over ourselves.

At that time, as Jesus was teaching the people in the temple and preaching the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes with the elders came up and said to Him, “Tell us by what authority you do these things, or who it is that gave you this authority.”  He answered them, “I also will ask you a question; now tell me, was the baptism of John from heaven or from men?”  And they discussed it with one another, saying, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say, ‘Why did you not believe him?’  But if we say, ‘From men,’ all the people will stone us; for they are convinced that John was a prophet.”  So they answered that they did not know whence it was.  And Jesus said to them, “Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

Luke 20.1-8

When Jesus was faced with the question of authority, He turned it on His opponents. The Jewish elites had been given great authority by the Romans over the Jewish people. They understood that authority gave them legitimacy. They were wrong.

They could have used their authority to free Christ from persecution. Instead, they used it to trap Him, so they would be rewarded by Rome. They were afraid of the people because they recognized their false piety. So, Jesus turned their inquiry against them.

When we are faced with the question of faith vs power, as human beings we choose power most of the time. We choose it against others, and we choose it against our own good. The elites had the power to recognize John’s baptism. They used it to condemn themselves.

God has given authority to the Church to forgive sins and to guide us to the Truth. If we trust the authority of the Church, we are in heaven. If we trust our own authority, like Eve did in the Garden, we are in hell.

We must stop looking at authority as power. The authority of God, given to the Church, isn’t about power over us. It is about power to protect us from sin and guide us to the Truth. BUT…we must choose to follow the Church.

If the Scribes and Elders had followed Christ, maybe their lives would have been different. That is our lesson today. Choose the authority that God has given and refuse the authority of the world. Rome can’t save us. Only God can save us, but only if we trust His Church.

When we were baptized into Christ, we were baptized into His Church. It’s about time we start living the truth of our baptism.