Authority and The lordship of Christ

"There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry: ‘Mine!’” – Abraham Kuyper

In Sunday’s sermon, we began a sermon series on the role and function of elders. Elders serve as under-shepherds to Christ. They have a derived authority. One of the ways, that Christ executes his office as a King in our lives is by gifting elders to the church to watch over our souls. However, elders are not the only ones who have a delegated authority.

1 Timothy 2:5 says, “For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” A mediator is one who reconciles opposing parties and restores peace. Christ, as our mediator, bridges the gap and reconciles sinful humanity with a holy God. Christ’s role as a mediator is intimately connected to his three-fold office as a prophet, priest, and king.

These three roles explain how Christ mediates between God and humanity. As a prophet, Christ reveals God to us. As a priest, Christ reconciles us to God by dealing with our sin, satisfying God’s justice, and bringing us in to a right relationship with God. As a king, Christ rules over us by bringing God’s reign into our lives and protects us from our spiritual enemies. Through his three-fold offices, Christ provides everything that is necessary for our salvation and reconciliation with God. It’s been said that as a prophet, he reveals the way. As a priest, he opens the way. And as a king, he leads the way. I want to take a moment to explore how Christ, as our king, leads us by setting others over us to watch and care for us.

In Matthew 28:18, Jesus said “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.” Christ reigns and rules over all creation. It is important to realize that Christ rules and reigns over all of creation and not just over spiritual matters. Jesus is not just King of our hearts, but he is king over politics, education, business, family, and everything else. He rules over every sphere of our lives and within each sphere, Christ delegates authority through human leaders.

Consider the three main spheres of our life for a moment: Family, Church, and State. Parents, and fathers in particular, exercise a delegated authority in the lives of children in the family. Pastors, exercise a delegated authority in the church. Judges and civil magistrates exercise a delegated authority in the state.

Each sphere is also given a tool for corrective measures. In the family, the father is given the rod of discipline. The church is given the keys of the kingdom. The state is granted capital punishment. Each tool is given by Christ to enforce authority.

But in God’s wisdom, he has also set limits on each sphere. The church can lock the keys of the kingdom by enforcing church discipline but they cannot execute capital punishment. Likewise, the government cannot proclaim someone to be a member of the church. Church history shows how detrimental this has been when attempts were made.

Each sphere, and the leaders of each sphere, must respect the boundaries that God has set. This prevents any sort of authoritarianism. No sphere should seek to control the other. The family should not seek to control the church, and the state cannot tell the family how to raise their children.

But what does all this mean? Since Christ is Lord over every sphere of our lives, every part of our life is spiritual. We should seek to honor Christ in our work, parenting, politics, and education. If Christ is Lord over all, then we should seek to be disciples of Him in all of life. In this way, even things like our vocation and politics become a means to serve him. This idea of “sphere sovereignty” is a helps us to understand how to live faithfully under Christ’s kingship in every area of life. Ultimately, through obedience to those who Christ has placed over us, we are submitting to his Lordship and trusting in his sovereign care and provision.