ACCEPTED(Recognized) CHRISTIAN AUTHORITY-I—1Timothy 1:1-2
In order to fill the shoes of the faithful, one must first recognize his/her authority.
The greeting of the letter is contained in :1-2:
It contains the Writer, Recipient, the Authority by which it is sent, & Blessings.
Paul approached Timothy thru accepted authority.
The faithful Christian accepts God’s authority.
How do the faithful recognize Christian authority?
10 qualifiers of acceptable Christian authority.
1—A qualifier of an accepted Christian authority is...
Recognized FAMILIARITY(:1)
Explanation:(:1)
:1—“Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior & the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope,”
Paul was a man who was birth name was “Saul.” He is first mentioned in Acts 7:58, negatively associated with Stephen.
Stephen—One of the first deacons(Acts 6:1-5, 8, 9)—he was “full of faith & the Holy Spirit” & “full of faith & power, did great wonders & signs among the people.” Acts 6:9-10—“Then there arose some from what is called the Synagogue of the Freedmen (Cyrenians, Alexandrians, & those from Cilicia & Asia), disputing with Stephen. And they were not able to resist the wisdom & the Spirit by which he spoke.”
Thru false witnesses, Stephen was brought before the council of the Sanhedrin to hear his ‘false’ testimony. Even in their midst, “all who sat in the council, looking steadfastly at him, saw his face as the face of an angel.”(Acts 6:15).
Even so, Stephen was killed by means of that council. They stoned him to death with rocks thrown.
More importantly, for our text, it is recorded in Scripture (Acts 7:58, 8:1) that those who stoned Stephen “... laid down their clothes at the feet of a young man named Saul.” & we are plainly told “Now Saul was consenting to his death.”
Thereby Saul was in full support of the council’s actions.
Also “At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; & they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea & Samaria, except the apostles.”(Acts 8:1).
In fact, Saul was so against the testimony of Christians that we are told, “As for Saul, he made havoc of the church, entering every house, & dragging off men & women, committing them to prison.”(Acts 8:3).
Paul did not accept Christians as authoritative. He saw them as blasphemers against his God. His God was the God who had been traditionalized thru silly oral traditions intended to protect believers from transgressing the written revelation of God contained in the OT.
Acts 26:9-11—““Indeed, I myself thought I must do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. This I also did in Jerusalem, & many of the saints I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; & when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them. And I punished them often in every synagogue & compelled them to blaspheme; & being exceedingly enraged against them, I persecuted them even to foreign cities.” However while Saul was engaged in the search & imprisonment of Christians, his life was radically changed.
Acts 9:1-18—“Then Saul, still breathing threats & murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest & asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem. As he journeyed he came near Damascus, & suddenly a light shone around him from heaven. Then he fell to the ground, & heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” So he, trembling & astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise & go into the city, & you will be told what you must do.” And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one. Then Saul arose from the ground, & when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand & brought him into Damascus. And he was three days without sight, & neither ate nor drank. Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus named Ananias; & to him the Lord said in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” So the Lord said to him, “Arise & go to the street called Straight, & inquire at the house of Judas for one called Saul of Tarsus, for behold, he is praying. “And in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in & putting his hand on him, so that he might receive his sight.” Then Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on Your name.” But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, & the children of Israel. For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.” And Ananias went his way & entered the house; & laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight & be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Immediately there fell from his eyes something like scales, & he received his sight at once; & he arose & was baptized.”
After that point: “...Saul spent some days with the disciples at Damascus. Immediately he preached the Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God. Then all who heard were amazed, & said, “Is this not he who destroyed those who called on this name in Jerusalem, & has come here for that purpose, so that he might bring them bound to the chief priests?” But Saul increased all the more in strength, & confounded the Jews who dwelt in Damascus, proving that this Jesus is the Christ.”
Acts 26:14 -20—““And when we all had fallen to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me & saying in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ “So I said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. ‘But rise & stand on your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister & a witness both of the things which you have seen & of the things which I will yet reveal to you. ‘I will deliver you from the Jewish people, as well as from the Gentiles, to whom I now send you, ‘to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, & from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins & an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me.’ “Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, “but declared first to those in Damascus & in Jerusalem, & throughout all the region of Judea, & then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, & do works befitting repentance.”
Gal. 1:13-16—“For you have heard of my former conduct in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God beyond measure & tried to destroy it. And I advanced in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries in my own nation, being more exceedingly zealous for the traditions of my fathers. But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb & called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles...”
Following his conversion, Saul(“desired”) came to be known as “Paul”(Small or little) to reflect his newfound character before the God who had saved him(probably a name he himself chose).
Paul had an itinerant ministry as an evangelist. Paul ministered God’s word in many areas for from a few hours to a few days to upwards of 3 years before traveling to another field.
He maintained contacts with those who were fellow workers in the faith.
He befriended apostles & churches with their pastors & elders.
He helped organize, shepherd & strengthen the flock of God in various places. Paul’s ministry encompassed present-day Israel, Syria, Lebanon, Turkey, Cyprus, Greece, Crete, & Italy.
As a result, Paul & his crew were imprisoned on many occasions, thru which many of his letters were written(Ephesians, Colossians, Philippians, Philemon).
Paul was arrested by the unbelieving Jews(whom he used to represent) in the temple at Jerusalem(Acts 21-24). Due to political red tape, he ‘appealed to Ceasar’ & was eventually taken to Rome to testify before the Emperor.
During the voyage the ship encountered a storm in which Paul, the Roman soldiers & prisoners aboard became shipwrecked on the island of Malta(off the coast of Sicily)(Acts 27-28). There Paul healed the father of a leading citizen whereby “...when this was done, the rest of those on the island who had diseases also came & were healed.”
Argumentation:
Acts 19:11-20—“Now God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul, so that even handkerchiefs or aprons were brought from his body to the sick, & the diseases left them & the evil spirits went out of them. Then some of the itinerant Jewish exorcists took it upon themselves to call the name of the Lord Jesus over those who had evil spirits, saying, “We exorcise you by the Jesus whom Paul preaches.” Also there were seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, who did so. And the evil spirit answered & said, “Jesus I know, & Paul I know; but who are you?” Then the man in whom the evil spirit was leaped on them, overpowered them, & prevailed against them, so that they fled out of that house naked & wounded. This became known both to all Jews & Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; & fear fell on them all, & the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. And many who had believed came confessing & telling their deeds. Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together & burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, & it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver. So the word of the Lord grew mightily & prevailed.”
1Tim. 1:12-15—“And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry, although I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, & an insolent man; but I obtained mercy because I did it ignorantly in unbelief. And the grace of our Lord was exceedingly abundant, with faith & love which are in Christ Jesus. This is a faithful saying & worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief.”
Jn. 1:35-42—“Again, the next day, John stood with two of his disciples. And looking at Jesus as He walked, he said, “Behold the Lamb of God!” The two disciples heard him speak, & they followed Jesus. Then Jesus turned, & seeing them following, said to them, “What do you seek?” They said to Him, “Rabbi” (which is to say, when translated, Teacher), “where are You staying?” He said to them, “Come & see.” They came & saw where He was staying, & remained with Him that day (now it was about the tenth hour). One of the two who heard John speak, & followed Him, was Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother. He first found his own brother Simon, & said to him, “We have found the Messiah” (which is translated, the Christ). And he brought him to Jesus. Now when Jesus looked at him, He said, “You are Simon the son of Jonah. You shall be called Cephas” (which is translated, A Stone).”
Illustration:
When you work with various building contractors, you learn who can be trusted & who cannot/You observe patterns of good work & poor work/Recognized FAMILIARITY
When you take your car for repairs over a period of time, you know who can be trusted & who cannot/Recognized FAMILIARITY
Application:
?Your FAMILIARITY with Paul qualify him as an accepted Christian authority?
?What FAMILIARITY holds Christian Authority for you?
?Who & What have you Accepted as a Christian authority?
2—A qualifier of an accepted Christian authority is...
Recognized APOSTLESHIP(:1)
Explanation: (:1)
:1—“Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, by the commandment of God our Savior & the Lord Jesus Christ, our hope,”
Paul is known to be “an apostle.” That is, he is specifically sent from a person or body to perform a(many) specific task(s).
Paul personally witnessed the Lord Jesus Christ thru his Damascus Road experience.
Apostles were those who 1)Witnessed the living Christ, 2)were Witnesses of His words, deeds & resurrection, & 3)were Commissioned by Him.
Apostles set the norms of Christian doctrine orally thru revelation of Christ.
Acts 1:15-26—“And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples (altogether the number of names was about a hundred & twenty), & said, “Men & brethren, this Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke before by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus; “for he was numbered with us & obtained a part in this ministry.” (Now this man purchased a field with the wages of iniquity; & falling headlong, he burst open in the middle & all his entrails gushed out. And it became known to all those dwelling in Jerusalem; so that field is called in their own language, Akel Dama, that is, Field of Blood.) “For it is written in the book of Psalms: ‘Let his dwelling place be desolate, And let no one live in it’; &, ‘Let another take his office.’ “Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in & out among us, “beginning from the baptism of John to that day when He was taken up from us, one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection.” And they proposed two: Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, & Matthias. And they prayed & said, “You, O Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which of these two You have chosen “to take part in this ministry & apostleship from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.” And they cast their lots, & the lot fell on Matthias. And he was numbered with the eleven apostles.”
Paul could speak in tongues but minimalized it for love & prophecy’s sake(1Cor. 12-14).
When a modern church considers some in their headship as ‘apostles’ my prayer is that they do not put themselves on a par with the 12 & Paul! Prayerfully they are merely using the term in the general sense of delegation by God to specific ministry—As in a ‘call’.to pastoral ministry.
“Apostle”—apostolov—A delegate, messenger. one sent forth with orders. A term inclusive of Barnabas, Timothy & Silvanus. Strong—A delegate; specially, An ambassador of the Gospel; officially A commissioner of Christ ["apostle"] (with miraculous powers).
“Jesus”—Ihsouv—Jesus = “YaHWeH is salvation”
Of Hebrew origin ewvy Yeshu’wa. Strong—Jesus (i.e. Jehoshua).
Mat. 1:21—““And she will bring forth a Son, & you shall call His name JESUS, for He will save His people from their sins.””
“Christ”—Cristov—Christ = “anointed.” Strong—Anointed, i.e. the Messiah, an epithet of Jesus.
Argumentation:
2Cor. 12:2-12—“I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago--whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows--such a one was caught up to the third heaven. And I know such a man--whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows-- how he was caught up into Paradise & heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter. Of such a one I will boast; yet of myself I will not boast, except in my infirmities. For though I might desire to boast, I will not be a fool; for I will speak the truth. But I refrain, lest anyone should think of me above what he sees me to be or hears from me. And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong. I have become a fool in boasting; you have compelled me. For I ought to have been commended by you; for in nothing was I behind the most eminent apostles, though I am nothing. Truly the signs of an apostle were accomplished among you with all perseverance, in signs & wonders & mighty deeds.”
1Cor. 15:3-11—“For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, & that He was buried, & that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures, & that He was seen by Cephas, then by the twelve. After that He was seen by over five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain to the present, but some have fallen asleep. After that He was seen by James, then by all the apostles. Then last of all He was seen by me also, as by one born out of due time. For I am the least of the apostles, who am not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, & His grace toward me was not in vain; but I labored more abundantly than they all, yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me. Therefore, whether it was I or they, so we preach & so you believed.”
Eph. 3:1-12—“For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles-- if indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given to me for you, how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written already, by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ), which in other ages was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed by the Spirit to His holy apostles & prophets: that the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, of the same body, & partakers of His promise in Christ through the gospel, of which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effective working of His power. To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, & to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities & powers in the heavenly places, according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, in whom we have boldness & access with confidence through faith in Him.”
2Cor. 13:2-10—“I have told you before, & foretell as if I were present the second time, & now being absent I write to those who have sinned before, & to all the rest, that if I come again I will not spare-- since you seek a proof of Christ speaking in me, who is not weak toward you, but mighty in you. For though He was crucified in weakness, yet He lives by the power of God. For we also are weak in Him, but we shall live with Him by the power of God toward you. Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?--unless indeed you are disqualified. But I trust that you will know that we are not disqualified. Now I pray to God that you do no evil, not that we should appear approved, but that you should do what is honorable, though we may seem disqualified. For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth. For we are glad when we are weak & you are strong. And this also we pray, that you may be made complete. Therefore I write these things being absent, lest being present I should use sharpness, according to the authority which the Lord has given me for edification & not for destruction.”
2Cor. 10:1-7—“Now I, Paul, myself am pleading with you by the meekness & gentleness of Christ--who in presence am lowly among you, but being absent am bold toward you. But I beg you that when I am present I may not be bold with that confidence by which I intend to be bold against some, who think of us as if we walked according to the flesh. For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, casting down arguments & every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, & being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled. Do you look at things according to the outward appearance? If anyone is convinced in himself that he is Christ’s, let him again consider this in himself, that just as he is Christ’s, even so we are Christ’s.”
1Cor. 4:18-21—“Now some are puffed up, as though I were not coming to you. But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord wills, & I will know, not the word of those who are puffed up, but the power. For the kingdom of God is not in word but in power. What do you want? Shall I come to you with a rod, or in love & a spirit of gentleness?”
If a modern pastor were to come to an erring church & enforce God’s will upon them with proofs from the Bible & biblical practice, they would no doubt, put him out on the street!
Illustration:
Southern Association of Colleges & Schools accreditation(VA & KY to TX)/Team members enforce the will of the whole/Gory details of disobedience become digitized, compiled & published/Recognized APOSTLESHIP
Application:
? Paul’s APOSTLESHIP qualify him as an accepted Christian authority?
?What APOSTLESHIP holds Christian Authority for you?
?Who & What have you Accepted as a Christian authority?
CONCLUSION:
Action:
A qualifier of an accepted Christian authority is...
1. Recognized FAMILIARITY(:1)
2. Recognized APOSTLESHIP(:1)
Presented 08/28/1022am to:
Needmore Baptist Church
1620 Mt. Vernon Rd.
Woodleaf, NC 27054
