We are focusing on four distinct areas of authority that God has delegated to man for his good. The firstdelegation of authority recorded in the holy scriptures is for the individual to take dominion. Gen. 1:28  And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.  God created the earth for His man to rule over!

        Then we see God instituting marriage and the family, delegating headship to the husband in the home. God gave authority to the parents to train, discipline, and raise their children. Ephesians 6:1 Children obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right.  The very first promise that God gave us is that, as we honor our father and mother, He causes things to go well for us and gives us a long life on the earth. If you have regrets from not honoring your father or your mother and now they are gone on to their reward just repent, cheer up and move forward. We christians can greatly honor our heavenly Father by believing His word and doing what He says!  Hebrews 12:9  Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?  Our Father in heaven is pleased when we embrace His Son and His assignment to take this gospel to the whole world! Jesus said everyone who hears the word and does it will be blessed! The whole body of Christ is to put the great commission first!

He Who Hears My Sayings And Does Them Will Still Be Standing After The Storm!

            Thirdly, God has authorized government to do us good and to bring wrath on the evildoer.  Rom. 13:4 ASV  for he is a minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for hebeareth not the sword in vain: for he is a minister of God, an avenger for wrath to him that doeth evil.  We are to recognize and honor government workers as ministers of God and obey them in all things unless they make demands in opposition to the word of God.

        The fourth area of authority is what God has given to the church through His Son Jesus Christ! All of heaven was excited when Jesus was born in Bethlehem because the redeemer was in the earth! The dominion and authority that Adam had handed over to the devil in the garden of Eden was about to be restored to God’s people through Jesus sacrificial death, suffering, and resurrection from the dead!  1 John 3:8  He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the works of the devil.  Another definition for the word destroy is to loose or loosen. We could say it like this, Jesus came to loose us from the works of the devil. The law of sin and death that had gripped all of us has been superseded by the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus. God’s mighty work in raising Jesus from the dead was much more powerful than what satan had done through the law of sin and death.  Romans 5:17  For if by one man’s offence death reigned by one; much more they which receive abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness shall reign in life by one, Jesus Christ.   Through God’s great plan of redemption every person who chooses eternal life is granted power to become a child of God.  John 1:12  But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:  We who have come to Christ are referred to as righteousness, believers, christians, light, the body of Christ, the temple of God, and the church. The Spirit of God through Paul refers to us as being married to Christ. All of these describe our oneness with the Lord! 1 Cor.  6:17  But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.  It is in our oneness with Christ that causes His

He That Is Joined Unto The Lord Is One Spirit With Him!

authority to become our authority! Our submission to His mission allows this grace to flow freely! God is a jealous God and we are warned that friendship with the world will make us His enemy. The Spirit of God through James reveals that the key to kingdom authority is submission to the King! First, we submit ourselves to the will of God, then we resist the devil and he flees from us!

        If we have strayed away from God’s plan for our life we need to repent (confess our sin and turn from it) and come back into fellowship with our heavenly Father. The fundamental doctrines of Christ never change. The way we entered the kingdom of God was through repentance from dead works and faith towards God and that’s how the erring one must return as well. God’s desire is that we stay close to Him and not stray away after the glitter of this world so that we mature and become an asset in the kingdom of God.  Hebrews 6:1  Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,  God wants to take us on to greater truths but we can not have fellowship with God and victory over the evil one without turning away from evil and submitting to His will and His way. If our heart condemns us we will not have confidence to receive from God. Our confidence will soar when we separate from that which is evil and do good!  1 John 3:21  Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.  1 John 3:22  And whatsoever we ask, we receive of him, because we keep his commandments, and do those things that are pleasing in his sight.

        We, the people of God, the body of Christ, the disciples of Jesus, have been commissioned and authorized to take the glorious gospel of Jesus Christ to the world. Jesus declared that all authority in heaven and earth had been given to Him, and then He delegated that authority to us, His disciples, to take the gospel to the ends of the earth.

Mt. 28:18-20  And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

We have been given the name of Jesus!

Mark 16:17  And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;

We have been given the power to bind and to loose!

Mt. 18:18  Verily I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

Mt. 16:19  And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.

Does Jesus Notice If We Don’t Show Up Or Give Him Place?

        Jesus made a strong statement to the one who informed Him that His mother and brothers were outside wanting to speak to Him. Jesus answered him by saying, who is My mother? and who are My brothers? Then He stretched His hand toward His disciples saying, these are My family!  Matthew 12:50  For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother. We know that His brothers did not believe in Him early on in His ministry but we are told that that they were in the upper room after He had appeared to them in His resurrected body.

     One having dinner with Jesus said, Blessed is he that shall eat bread in the kingdom of God, prompting Jesus to tell the parable of the great supper. When the supper was ready and the call went out to come to the supper they all began to make excuses of why they can’t come. The first said that he had bought a piece of property and he has to attend to it. Another said he had just bought five yoke of oxen and has to try them out. Another said that he just got married and he can’t come. This caused the master of the house to become angry and he said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in the poor, the maimed, the lame, and the blind.  Luke 14:22  And the servant said, Lord, it is done as thou hast commanded, and yet there is room. And the lord said unto the servant, Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled. For I say unto you, That none of those men which were bidden shall taste of my supper.  It is obvious that Jesus expects us to respond with eagerness when He calls and lay aside anything else we have going because kingdom things are to be first!  Mt. 6:33  But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

     Isaiah prophesied about a people that walked in darkness who would see a great light. This was fulfilled when Jesus left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum, which is by the sea coast, that borders Zabulon and Nephthalim.  Mt. 4:16  The people which sat in darkness saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.  Mt. 4:17  From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.  The great light that these people saw was the mighty miracles that Jesus did and the great opportunity to repent that Jesus offered. Recognizing the truth and acting on the truth are not the same and only those who act on the truth receive God’s blessing.  Mt. 11:20-24  Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not: Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you. And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.

1 Sam. 2:30  Wherefore the LORD God of Israel saith, I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before me for ever: but now the LORD saith, Be it far from me; for them that honour me I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed.

Heb. 10:25  Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.