The Principle of Kingdom Authority

Text: 1 Corinthians 6

Proposition: To be an effective and growing disciple of Christ requires that we accept and exercise our role as being under Kingdom Authority.

Introduction: In 1977 Jack and his wife Anna were visiting England and saw many of the castles across the countryside. A song began to come to him. First parts of the melody and then words and phrases. That was the birth of a song we still sing today, a song called Majesty. There is this line in it, “Majesty, kingdom authority flow from his throne, Unto his own his anthem raise…”. Kingdom authority flows from His throne unto His own…that’s the part that caught my attention. One of the most well-known prayers that Jesus taught His disciples is recorded in Matthew 6 that begins, “Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.” There it is again, kingdom authority which exists in heaven now being called to come and be evident on the earth. Kingdom authority refers to the authority of God over all things as He continues to create the evident presence of His kingdom that will outlast time. Thy kingdom come… that’s what we pray but as we pray it are we aware that we are acknowledging His authority, an authority that we must choose to be under if we are to have effect in His kingdom. What I’m saying is that in our day and time we are people not easily willing to be under any authority. It’s a characteristic that marks a world culture which values individualism, autonomy and independence. It tolerates authority only to the degree that it serves them. Kingdom authority, however, asks more of us than just a tolerance or acknowledgement. It declares that we are people of The King as Christians, citizens of His kingdom and people under Kingdom authority. Let me show you what that looks like in part as we look at the next chapter of 1 Corinthians 6:1-7.

I. Kingdom Authority Governs Us, It’s Laws Overrule Our Opinions.                      

Look at how Paul begins this, “Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unrighteous, and not before the saints?” This is a reference to a disagreement between two Christians that has hit an impasse and one of the two has taken the other to civil court to get the matter settled. But catch the language, “Dare any of you…”, it has the inference that not only is this inappropriate but you run great risk to yourself by taking some small difference before a civil court instead of taking it before your brothers and sisters in Christ. Kingdom authority says that there ought to be a capability within the church to use godly wisdom to resolve points of contention in a way that glories God. In Corinth all civil matters were held in an open market square where a judge sat on an elevated platform called the Bema Seat. There, before the whole crowd of shoppers, the issue of two Christians differences were aired for the eyes of all to see and weigh. So the phrase ‘Dare any of you’ refers to the way that they would publicly destroy the glory of God by exercising their opinions rather than choosing to be under the authority of God’s Kingdom. Adrian Rogers once said, “You cannot be over those things that God wants you to be over until you learn to be under those things that God has set over you. When you are willing to be to Jesus what Jesus was in His humanity to the Father, then Jesus will be to your humanity what the Father was to Him.” Our opinions over differences we may have with another Christian need to be brought under the authority of Jesus Christ and that authority will be exercised by men and women who have the wisdom of God as believers in Christ as the Holy Spirit brings godly wisdom to them. If you choose not to do this as Christian to Christian, then you do so to your own harm. Charles Spurgeon saw this truth way back in the 1800’s. “If we let passion take the place of judgment, and self-will reign instead of scriptural authority, we shall fight the Lord’s battles with the devil’s weapons, and if we cut our own fingers we must not be surprised.”                                                      

II. Kingdom Authority Is Vested In the Body of Christ The Church, Eternally.

Look at verse 2, “Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters?” It’s an argument from the greater to the lesser. If you as a surgeon can cut into a body to repair it shouldn’t you be able to cut with a pair of scissors on a dotted line the outline in a coloring book? The outline in a coloring book in this case would be like a small disagreement between two believers, your goat trampled my garden, your bull smashed through my fence, you borrowed my lawnmower and broke it and returned it like that… If you’ve ever seen Judge Judy that’s the lesser kind of arbitration, it’s civil court not criminal court. Paul is not advocating for some kind of Sharia law here. In Romans 13 he upholds the importance of recognizing the judicial system of the land as that which God uses to create safety and order. He himself once appealed to Caesar for legal hearing, so it’s not that he seeks to throw out criminal law, just an appeal to recognize the reality of Kingdom authority and to exercise that in how Christians treat other Christians in civil disputes. The reference to the saints judging the world refers to the second coming of Christ, when ‘Thy Kingdom come’ hits full reality. The church will be used to administer the kingdom of God during that 1000 year reign of Jesus as King. You have vested in you right now that authority, it will one day be used to that extreme in a sinless way by people who are glorified and transformed. That Kingdom Authority is existent now, we are under it, let it govern the body of Christ here first, then in another time more so.                                                          

III. Kingdom Authority Extends Over All Creation, Soon To Be Fully Seen.          

In verse 3, Paul asks another question, “Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life?” Again another argument from the greater to the lesser. What he is referring to is the judgment of the demonic angelic beings who at present have different regions of assignment, different persons they are directed against, different ranks of authority and all with a much greater capability than we possess as mere human beings. The demonic that you have never seen or perhaps even realized was studying you and deceiving you will be made known to you the church and in that day Kingdom Authority will be exercised by the church as they judge these fallen angels. The holy angels that have served you, protected you, been God’s messengers to you are not who are referred to here. But the point remains, if you will one day judge these beings how much more is the church capable to judge itself in lesser things.                                                                      

IV. Kingdom Authority Has Two Recourses For Lesser Civil Disputes.                    

Verse 5 offers the first recourse, “Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you, not even one, who will be able to judge between his brethren?” Let both parties submit to a Christian arbitrator, let godly wisdom rule as an expression of Kingdom Authority. Verse 7 has the second recourse when either party refuses to use the church. “Now therefore, it is already an utter failure for you that you go to law against one another. Why do you not rather accept wrong? Why do you not rather let yourselves be cheated?” You can see by this statement how counter that runs to the way we would typically handle things and Kingdom Authority is inviting us to a different set of rules when it comes to civil disputes between two Christians. Then consider also this, whose possession is it that the church holds, who is it that ultimately owns your house, your car, your bank account? If you caught the truth that you are a servant/ steward of Christ then the answer is that these are Christ’s and I am a manager of them. That’s the reality of what stewardship extends to. So if you are willing to be defrauded in a civil issue by a fellow Christian whether from your church or another, who is it that in reality is being defrauded? Well it’s the actual owner, it’s Christ who is being stolen from. Are you sure you want to meet Jesus face to face as the person who derailed the stewardship of one of His servants? On the other hand, as the person being willing to suffer the loss, can you trust that His justice prevails and that as you glorify Him you express a faith that sees farther than what the world sees? Are you any less in His sufficient care if you suffer loss? Kingdom authority challenges us, confronts our perspectives and even faith yet as disciples of Christ it is how we move forward in our effectiveness, faithfulness and obedience. Next week let’s continue the exploration of what Kingdom Authority is and just how far it extends.