Many of us are familiar with what Faith is, and I am sure we have heard of authority several times. But for the sake of this teaching, we will be observing a definition of authority that will guide and help us to understand what the authority of our faith is and what it is supposed to produce for us.
Authority is the power or right to give orders, make decisions and enforce obedience. So authority is not just in giving orders, I must be able to make decisions and enforce obedience. Other definitions of authority is that “Authority is said to be the right to exercise power” and “Authority is said to be the moral or legal right to control and it is also said to be the right to exercise power.” For the sake of our discussion, we will be highlighting the particular definition I gave first. Authority means “the power or right.” You will see that the other definitions we also gave emphasized authority as being “a right”. “The power or right to give orders, make decisions and enforce obedience”. We will be looking at the 3 anchors that authority is being described, in this definition.
The first one we will be looking at is, “the power and right to give orders”: You cannot say you have authority when you cannot give orders. You can’t exercise power. You can’t exercise control. Another word that is synonymous to the word authority is “dominion”. Dominate. To control. To rule. To command. To have jurisdiction. We could say authority also mean “rule, control, jurisdiction, dominion” and you will see that these words are different but they all have similar meanings. You cannot say you have authority when you cannot give an order.
For example, the President of the Federal republic of Nigeria cannot say he has authority if he cannot command the armed forces. For instance, he is the president but he cannot command the armed forces. Does he have authority? No! so they call the President both the President and the commander in chief of the armed forces making us understand his authority and that is why when we look through scriptures, Jesus was not just Jesus Christ, there were so many things that described Him as one that has authority.
The second part of it says Authority is “the power and the right to give orders.” So it is not only having the power but also having the right to give orders. We talk about legitimacy. It is not just that you have power because you are carrying AK47 you also have the right, you have the legitimacy to carry out or to do that thing. And not just have “the ability or the right to give orders.” You also have “the power or the right to make decisions.” So you don’t have authority until you have the power or the right to make decisions. What does it mean? That means you can make something happen. If I say I have decided to go to Lagos, that means I have thought within myself and I have the power and the authority to make being in Lagos happen. So we have the power and the right to make decisions when we have authority. It is not just that we have the power and the right to make orders, you also have the power and the right to make decisions.
Now the third part of it, “you have the power and the right to enforce obedience.” The President commands the armed forces and he makes a decision that he wants Boko haram to be fought to finish in Borno and he has asked the military commanders to move their headquarters to Maiduguri. If they don’t go to Maiduguri, has he enforced obedience? He has given orders and He has a made a decision but has he enforced obedience? No! That means his authority is still questionable. So until we have the power and the right to give orders, until we have the power and the right to make decisions, until we have the power and the right to enforce obedience, our authority is not fully entrenched.
We will be moving further by looking at Hebrews chapter 11 verse 1-11, We took our time to explain what authority is so that by the time we are speaking about faith and we are combining it with authority, we will understand what God requires of us and what our authority in faith looks like. Hebrews 11:1- 11, it says:
1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. 2 For by it the elders obtained a good testimony. 3 By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. 4 By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts; and through it he being dead still speaks. 5 By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, "and was not found, because God had taken him"; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God.
6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. 7 By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith. 8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going.
9 By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; 10 for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God. 11 By faith Sarah herself also received strength to conceive seed, and she bore a child when she was past the age, because she judged Him faithful who had promised.
Now, this Scripture helps us to understand Faith. It starts by defining to us what faith is and it talked about Faith “being the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” And from verse 2, we will see the products of faith. Men and woman that exercised faith and got a good testimony. It first started by saying that the elders received a good testimony by faith. In verse 3, which we would highlight in the course of our discussion. It said “By faith, we understand that the world was framed by the word of God and that the things that are visible are not made from visible things.” The word made everything, both visible and invisible. And it went further to talk about Abel, Enoch, Noah and Abraham, who by faith obtained the promise.
How did they obtain this promise? Did they just believe? Did they just receive that faith just like that? How did they receive this good testimony by faith? Hebrews 10:38-39, it says:
38 Now the just shall live by faith; But if anyone draws back, My soul has no pleasure in him." 39 But we are not of those who draw back to perdition, but of those who believe to the saving of the soul.
This is God speaking here, “Now the just shall live”, shall exist, we shall survive by faith. So faith is the life blood in which a believer will live and it said in verse 39 “But we are not those who draw back in perdition,” we are not those who shrink, we are not those who are afraid, we are not those who throw in the towel. It said “but of those who believe in the saving of the soul”. That means, speaking from this Hebrews chapter 10 and we can connect it to Hebrews chapter 11, People that the Bible speaks of from verse 4 in chapter 11, they were not people that threw in the towel. They were not people that laid their hands on the plough and looked back. They were people that stood their ground in faith, that means they had authority.
Their faith was not just empty words. Their faith was noted in the authority that they had and what is that authority? What is that thing that gives us the power, that gives us the right to give orders? What is that thing? Who is that person that gives us the authority and the right to make decisions? Who is that person or that thing that gives us the right and the power to enforce obedience? We will look at John 1:1-3, we will read it to understand, what is the source of our authority? This power, this right? It is good to enforce obedience, it is good to make decisions, it is good to give orders but that power and might, where do we get it from? What is the source of it? John 1:1-3, it says:
1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.
Verse 3 is very essential “All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” Nothing existed outside of Him, In Him, all things exist, In Him all things have life, In Him all things comes to bear, talking about the Word. In Hebrews chapter 11 that we read, in verse 6; it said “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.”
Believe that He is what? Believe that He is the word. That He is the one that has been before times began. That He is the one that has created all things. That He is the one that framed the world by His word. That He is the one that compels obedience by His word. You must believe that He is. And that He is a rewarder and that He also rewards everyone that follows His word. He also makes sure that any one that follows His word also compels the same obedience.
The power and the right we have to give orders, to make decisions and to enforce obedience is the word of God. The word of God is what gives us the right, is what gives us the power, is what gives us the authority to command a good testimony by faith. The word of God is the substance of our faith. Hebrews 11:1 says “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for” That substance is the word, “evidence of things that have not been seen” because the bible says God is the one that calls the things that are not as though they were so he is the one that causes and enforces obedience of things that hitherto have not appeared but they will appear because He has said so.
In Genesis 1:1-3, when God was making the heavens and the earth. God did not look for a sledge hammer, God did not use an aircraft. God did not use the things that we think we use today and we think it works.
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. 3 Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light.
Then God saw the problem. Then God enforced obedience. Then God made a decision. Then God gave orders. How did He do it? Then God said “Let there be light” and there was obedience, there was light. God made a decision. God had the power and the authority and he enforced it via his word. He said, let there be light and there was light. Power came forth to enforce a decision made by God because an order was given by God and obedience was enforced. The earth had to comply because an order has been given. God did not second guess himself.
