“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” (Heb. 12:11)
Learning to relate in the right way toward God ordained authority is an important part of spiritual maturity. In fact, you cannot walk in the anointing of God, Who is the head of all and from Whom the oil of anointing flows, if you are not submitted to God and His ordained authority. Because of our sinful, rebellious nature, we do not automatically know how to relate properly to authority. It is something we must be trained in and something for which we will experience much discipline from the Lord throughout our lives.
From the Old Testament we learn that Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because Moses married a non-Israelite. They challenged Moses’ legitimacy as God’s appointed leader and spokesperson. "Has the LORD spoken only through Moses?" they asked. "Hasn’t he also spoken through us?" And the LORD heard this.” (See Num. 12:1-15)
God was angry and suddenly Miriam became leprous. Upon seeing this, Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord! Please do not lay this sin on us, in which we have done foolishly and in which we have sinned.” We are never to talk against God’s appointed leadership. It brings His judgment and discipline (see also Numbers 16:1-50). God does not take lightly those who align themselves with others in rebellion against His leadership. God deals severely with this type offense.
People often argue over minor disagreements, leaving the real issue untouched. Such was the case when Miriam and Aaron came to Moses with a complaint. They represented the priests and the prophets, the two most powerful groups next to Moses. The real issue was their growing jealousy of Moses’ position and influence. Since they could not find fault with the way Moses was leading the people, they chose to criticize his wife. Rather than face the problem squarely by dealing with their envy and pride – their rebellious attitude toward those placed into authority by God - they chose to create a diversion from the real issue.
Discipline means “to exercise.” When a muscle is not utilized, it atrophies or becomes slack and without strength. A disciple or “disciplined one” is one who is teachable, who willfully chooses to sit at the feet of another exchanging their right to another. As you grow in the Lord and put into practice what you have learned, your capacity to understand will also grow. Similarly, if we find ourselves not able to receive from those in leadership, often times it is because we are harboring some unresolved bitterness. Many times this will come out in statements like, “Well, I’m just not getting fed.” What we should realize is that if the Bible is being taught, there is always more to learn and to apply in our lives. The problem may not rest with leadership, but could it be from within ourselves. Our capacity to feast on the deeper knowledge of God ("solid food") is determined by our spiritual growth and willingness to submit to godly authority. Too often we want God’s banquet before we are spiritually capable of digesting it.
Four Responses To Discipline & Authority
1. We can accept it with resignation.
2. We can accept it with self-pity, thinking we really don’t deserve it.
3. We can be angry and resentful toward God.
4. We can accept it gratefully, as the appropriate response we owe a loving Father.
When you are in a disagreement, stop and ask yourself if you are arguing over the real issue or if you have introduced a smoke screen by attacking someone’s character. If you are unjustly criticized, remember that your critics may be afraid to face the real problem. Don’t take this type of criticism personally. Ask God to help you identify the real issue and deal with it.
Submitting To God-Ordained Authority
“Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord.” (Eph. 5:22)
“Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. They keep watch over you as men who must give an account. Obey them so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no advantage to you.” (Heb. 13:17)
The will of God regarding authority is that all believers submit to one another by choice - wives to husbands and also husbands to wives; slaves to masters and also masters to slaves; children to parents and also parents to children; church members and church leadership. This kind of mutual submission preserves order and harmony in the family while it increases love and respect among family members.
Although some people have distorted the Bible’s teaching on submission by giving unlimited authority to husbands, we cannot get around it - the Bible tells us that wives are to submit to their husbands. According to the Bible, the man is the spiritual head of the family, and his wife should acknowledge his leadership. But real spiritual leadership involves service. No man, in Christ or not, can walk in true authority until they have assumed real responsibility. Just as Christ served the disciples, even to the point of washing their feet, so the husband is to serve his wife. No woman in the world would have a problem following and submitting to that kind of service. A wise and Christ-honoring husband will not take advantage of his leadership role, and a wise and Christ-honoring wife will not try to undermine her husband’s leadership. Either approach causes disunity and friction in marriage.
Five Ways You Can Be Victorious As You Submit
“Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority.” (1 Pet. 2:13)
“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” (James 4:7)
1. Submit to God. Yield to his authority and will, commit your life to him and his control, and be willing to follow him.
2. Resist the devil. Don’t allow Satan to entice and tempt you.
3. Wash your hands ... and purify your hearts (that is, lead a pure life). Be cleansed from sin, replacing your desire to sin with your desire to experience God’s purity.
4. Grieve and mourn and wail in sincere sorrow for your sins. Don’t be afraid to express deep heartfelt sorrow for what you have done.
5. Humble yourself before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
How We Should Relate To God-Ordained Authority
1. Receive God-appointed authority, but do not honor them above God or His Word. Know that to do so is idolatry.
2. Practice loyalty to God-appointed leaders in order to enhance their effectiveness on your behalf.
3. Never, ever speak against or take up a cause against God-ordained leaders even if they seem to be wrong. Gossip is never right, never justified, never accepted before God – it is sin. If you have a problem with leadership, it is perfectly ok to humbly address your problems directly with those in leadership. A humble approach would be, “Pastor, I am bothered by such and such. However, I know that I am most likely the one who has not heard the situation correctly. I know how easy it is for me to hear what I want to hear and not hear what God is saying to me. I also do not want this issue to go unresolved and I want nothing but unity in our church. So, I am asking you to help me see what I might be missing. I understand how clever our enemy is and I know you are trying your very best to serve our church. Please help me resolve this situation. I submit to your leadership.” This kind of humble attitude is the foundation for biblical reconciliation and sets the course for unity and peace. Conversely, an arrogant, prideful attitude might look like, “Pastor I heard from one of our members such and such and I feel like you are lying about the situation. This kind of spin on the truth is just not acceptable and me and my family are considering leaving the church. Explain yourself.” This type attitude is filled with accusation, gossip, arrogance, bitterness, anger, and pride. Nothing will be accomplished and God most certainly will intervene.
Pride separates people from God, and He will not tolerate it. We must examine our lives and remember that all true accomplishment comes from our Creator. We have no reason for pride in ourselves.
Does this mean that we are to be blind and deaf toward everything a church leader says or does? No. We are always to remain humbly submitted to one another in the bond of peace and unity. The Bible teaches that discernment is necessary (1 John 4:1); we are personally accountable to God (Romans 14:12; Galatians 6:5), and that we must be mutually submitted to one another (Romans 12:10; Galatians 5:13; Ephesians 5:21; Philippians 2:3,4). God ordained authority must never “lord it over” and must always execute their ministry with care and concern (Romans 12:8; 1 Thessalonians 5:12, 13; 1 Timothy 3:5; 5:17).
Let us purpose to grow in Christ-likeness as we forbear with each other in the love of Jesus.
