Nov. 13, 2007 - The Authority of Scripture - Part 1

Posted in The Authority of Scripture

  The Authority of Scripture

Intro:

 A.                 Let’s take a look at Matt. 21:23-27. 

1.                  This is something that is very simple, and yet so very importantCit makes all the difference in the world when it comes to pleasing God. 

2.                  It says, AAnd when He had come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came to Him as He was teaching, and said, >By what authority are You doing these things, and who gave You this authority?=  And Jesus answered and said to them, >I will ask you one thing too, which if you tell Me, I will also tell you by what authority I do these things.  The baptism of John was from what source, from heaven or from men?=  And they began reasoning among themselves, saying, >If we say, >From heaven,= He will say to us, >Then why did you not believe him?=  But if we say, >From men,= we fear the multitude; for they all hold John to be a prophet.=  And answering Jesus, they said, >We do not know.=  He also said to them, >Neither will I tell you by what authority I do these things.'"

3.                  The chief priests and elders came to Jesus and asked, ABy what authority are you doing these things, and who gave You this authority?@  Jesus then turned it around and asked them the question, AThe baptism of John was from what source, from heaven or from man?@  You see, the chief priests and elders clearly understood that you must have authority from heaven. 

4.                  This is a good question for us to ask ourselves from time to time:  ABy what authority am I doing what I=m doing?@  Heaven or manCthat=s all there is; the plan of God, or the plan of men.  So how do we know?  That is the question.  

B.                 AAuthority@ is defined as Athe right to rule or command; the power to give instructions that others are expected to obey.@  In every realm and relationship, there would be mass confusion if a common standard of authority was not recognized. 

1.                  If I asked everyone in the audience, AHow long is this line?@  There would be several different opinions and guesses out there.  Out of all the different answers I might get, how many are right?  How many true answers can there be?  How can we all agree?  We must have a standard of authority. 

2.                  The scales in the marketplace, the measuring tapes on the work site, the traffic laws on the road, the time kept on our clocks and watchesCthere has always been the recognized need for authority, in everything from civil and criminal disputes to the ball field.  If we disagree on the length, or weight, or distance, or meaning of anything, we establish what standard of authority we are going to use and then we appeal to the standard.  The world would be a terrible place to live if there were no standards of authority.  The result would be anarchy, turmoil, and chaos.

C.                 Religion is no exception, although it is sometimes thought to be the exception.  There must be a standard of authority.  You see, the world is filled with people who engage in activities that they believe are authorized by and pleasing to God, and yet, many of them contradict each other. 

1.                  It has been said, AThe church began in Israel as a fellowship.  It went to Greece and became a philosophy.  It went to Rome and became an institution.  It went to Europe and became a culture.  It went to America and became an enterprise.@  But some say it this way: A...It went to Rome and became an institution.  It went to Europe and became a plurality of institutions.  It went to America and became a chaos of sects and denominations.@

2.                  As we look at Christendom in America, we see all these different religious groups split up every which way you can possibly imagineCbelieving, teaching, and practicing about everything you can possibly imagine.

3.                  From what I=ve read, in 1936 the US Census Bureau counted 256 Christian denominations, and after that they quit counting.  Today though, it has been estimated that there are somewhere between 3,000 and 30,000 (depending on how you want to count them).  That=s over 3,000 distinct, separate, and apart denominations out there with their different names, teachings, and practices.

D.                 Now it is impossible to maintain unity unless we agree upon the same standard of authorityCwhich we obviously do not.  There are clearly other reasons as well, but I believe this is the main one: If you have a different starting place, you will most likely come to a different conclusion.  When you talk with people who claim to be Christians today and ask them how they know they are saved, why they do what they do, and the authority behind it, you will often get different answers. 

E.                  It=s some of these that I want us to examine todayCthese standards that people commonly turn to when faced with questions about why they believe and practice the things they do in religion.  You, of course, know what I believe and teach is the standard of authority, and we=ll be basing our examination on that.

 I.               False Standards of Authority.

A.                 The Old Testament.

1.                  It is common for people to resort to the Old Testament to provide authority for a certain practice, especially when they can't find authority for it in the teachings of Christ and His apostles.  For example, the burning of incense, keeping the Sabbath, and so forth.  Many people try a syncretism of the Old and New Covenants; they create their own customized blend of religion by mixing the Old and New Testaments to suit their personal taste.

2.                  But the Law of Moses was designed to be temporaryCto fulfill a specific purpose.

a.                   Jeremiah made it clear that there was going to be a new covenant.  In Jeremiah 31:31 he said, A>Behold, days are coming,= declared the Lord, >when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah...=@ He then went on to explain some of the differences in this new covenant, which are clearly seen in the New Testament of Jesus Christ (cf. Heb. 8:7-13).

b.                  In Galatians 3:23-25, Paul (in speaking of the Law of Moses) said, ABut before faith came, we were kept in custody under the law, being shut up to the faith which was later to be revealed.  Therefore the Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ, that we may be justified by faith.  But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor.@

c.                   The Hebrew writer spoke of the Old Testament (the Old Covenant) as a shadow and says that Jesus is the mediator of a new and better covenant, and clearly tells us, AHe takes away the first in order to establish the second@ (Heb. 10:9).

3.                  Now this is not to say the Old Testament is not of value to Christians. 

a.                   The Old Testament is a priceless source of information.  In fact, it would be difficult to understand the New Testament without the Old Testament. 

b.                  Rom. 15:4 and 1 Cor. 10:11 both say that it was Awritten for our instruction,@ but we are not to use it as the authority for how we worship and live as Christians.

c.                   The New Testament Christians in the first century had a problem with this from time to time as the Judaizers would come in with their teachings.  And that=s why Paul told the Colossians, ATherefore let no one act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or new moon or a Sabbath dayCthings which are a mere shadow of what is to come; but the substance belongs to Christ@ (Col. 2:16-17).

4.                  Many people get uncomfortable when you tell them we are no longer under the Ten Commandments.

a.                   ADoes that mean we are free to practice everything the Ten Commandments forbid?@  No, today we are under the law of Christ (1 Cor. 9:21) and His law includes nine of the Ten Commandments.

b.                  Think about the different sets of laws that have been in force in America.  The British ruled America from 1620 until July 4, 1776, when the Americans began to rule themselves.  The British laws did not allow stealing and murder, and the laws of the United States do not allow stealing and murder.  Now, when we abstain from stealing and murder, is it because we are under the authority of England or the United States?  Even though both forbid those same acts, we still recognize that we are under a different set of laws.  The fact that there are similarities does not mean that American citizens can combine the two or pick and choose to suit their own personal taste.  American citizens do not live according to British law or any previous law of America, but according to the latest and existing recognized law.

5.                  The same is true for God=s people when it comes to the Old and New Covenants.  The Old Testament is not to be the standard of authority for Christians.

B.                 Dreams or Visions.

1.                  There are those who believe that dreams or visions constitute an objective standard which should be recognized.  ASome time ago, I had a dream or a vision of an angel telling me this or that.@

2.                  My question is:  What about the people who have claimed that they killed their children because they had a dream or visions from God telling them to do it?  I=m sure you can think of more than one occasion when that has happened, or something similar to it.

Nov. 14, 2007 - Untitled Comment