Sign up to save your podcasts
Or
Share Doctrine of Authority – Lesson 6: Authority and Power
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Share to email
Share to Facebook
Share to X
Or
Doctrine of Authority – Lesson 6: Authority and Power
Professor: Rushdoony Dr. R.J.R.
Subject: Systematic Theology
Genre: Speech
Lesson: 6 of 19
Track: #06
Year:
Dictation Name: 06 Authority and Power
[Rushdoony] Let us begin with prayer. Our help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth. Thus said the high and lofty one who inhabiteth eternity, whose name is holy; “I dwell in the high and holy place with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the Spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the contrite. If thou shalt seek the Lord Thy God thou shalt find Him; if thou seek Him with all thy heart, and with all thy soul.” Let us pray.
Glory be to Thee oh God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. We praise Thee on this day and always that Thy hand is every upon us for good. That all the days of our life Thou art mindful of us. Thou hast beset all our goings and our comings with Thy gracious love and care. Give us grace so to walk oh Lord that in all things we may seek to serve Thee, be faithful to Thy word, and rejoice in Thy providence, in Jesus name amen.
Our scripture this morning is two verses of the chapter of Acts, Acts 1:7&8. Our subject is authority and power, authority and power.
“7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.
8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
As we have seen the New Testament word for authority in the Greek is exousia. It is translated in several ways in the New Testament. In Luke twenty-three verse seven it is translated as jurisdiction. In first Corinthians eight verse nine as liberty. Many, many times exousia is translated as “right” and when it is used in these various sense what it is trying to convey is that the authority to speak or act and the liberty to do so, and the rightness of such actions are all one and the same. We also have it translated as “strength” in one instance. In other words there is a relationship between power and authority; they are essentially one in God. In man power and authority do not necessarily go together. A tyrant may have a great deal of power but no, or very little, legitimate authority. A usurper or conquering army may have power, but no legitimate authority. A gunman breaking in and holding a family as hostage has power, but he has no authority. Authority means legitimate jurisdiction, a rightness morally; a liberty which comes from this legitimacy. There can be no separation of authority and power in the triune God. This is why kenosis is so evil and destructive a doctrine.
But we have to go a step further; can we legitimately separate Godly authority and power? An ironic fact is that in the modern age a great deal of to-do is made about mothers when their authority is at a low ebb. But in terms of scripture than can be no separation of authority and power; in this sinful world Godliness may have authority, but it attracts hostility, it incites attacks. The aim of the ungodly is to obliterate God’s witness in man’s righteousness. Westminster Confession of faith says, with regard to holiness, that we are quickened and strengthened and given more authority in the practice of holiness. We are told that they who are effectually called and regenerated, have a new heart and a new spirit created in them are further sanctified really and personally through the virtue of Christ’s death and resurrection by His word and spirit d...
View all episodes
By Pocket CollegeProfessor: Rushdoony Dr. R.J.R.
Subject: Systematic Theology
Genre: Speech
Lesson: 6 of 19
Track: #06
Year:
Dictation Name: 06 Authority and Power
[Rushdoony] Let us begin with prayer. Our help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth. Thus said the high and lofty one who inhabiteth eternity, whose name is holy; “I dwell in the high and holy place with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the Spirit of the humble and to revive the heart of the contrite. If thou shalt seek the Lord Thy God thou shalt find Him; if thou seek Him with all thy heart, and with all thy soul.” Let us pray.
Glory be to Thee oh God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. We praise Thee on this day and always that Thy hand is every upon us for good. That all the days of our life Thou art mindful of us. Thou hast beset all our goings and our comings with Thy gracious love and care. Give us grace so to walk oh Lord that in all things we may seek to serve Thee, be faithful to Thy word, and rejoice in Thy providence, in Jesus name amen.
Our scripture this morning is two verses of the chapter of Acts, Acts 1:7&8. Our subject is authority and power, authority and power.
“7 And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.
8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”
As we have seen the New Testament word for authority in the Greek is exousia. It is translated in several ways in the New Testament. In Luke twenty-three verse seven it is translated as jurisdiction. In first Corinthians eight verse nine as liberty. Many, many times exousia is translated as “right” and when it is used in these various sense what it is trying to convey is that the authority to speak or act and the liberty to do so, and the rightness of such actions are all one and the same. We also have it translated as “strength” in one instance. In other words there is a relationship between power and authority; they are essentially one in God. In man power and authority do not necessarily go together. A tyrant may have a great deal of power but no, or very little, legitimate authority. A usurper or conquering army may have power, but no legitimate authority. A gunman breaking in and holding a family as hostage has power, but he has no authority. Authority means legitimate jurisdiction, a rightness morally; a liberty which comes from this legitimacy. There can be no separation of authority and power in the triune God. This is why kenosis is so evil and destructive a doctrine.
But we have to go a step further; can we legitimately separate Godly authority and power? An ironic fact is that in the modern age a great deal of to-do is made about mothers when their authority is at a low ebb. But in terms of scripture than can be no separation of authority and power; in this sinful world Godliness may have authority, but it attracts hostility, it incites attacks. The aim of the ungodly is to obliterate God’s witness in man’s righteousness. Westminster Confession of faith says, with regard to holiness, that we are quickened and strengthened and given more authority in the practice of holiness. We are told that they who are effectually called and regenerated, have a new heart and a new spirit created in them are further sanctified really and personally through the virtue of Christ’s death and resurrection by His word and spirit d...