AUTHORITY-GOD
God speaks by
the Church (the true Church we mean); but He speaks nothing by her but what He
speaks in the Scriptures, which she does only ministerially
declare to us; and therefore the authority of God and His law is above hers,
who, though she publish, yet did not make it, but is herself subject to it.
A Puritan Golden Treasury,
compiled by I.D.E. Thomas, by permission of Banner of Truth, Carlisle, PA. 2000, p. 57.
A God with
whom we are on…easy terms and whose reality is little different from our
own…who is merely there to satisfy our needs – has no real authority to compel
and will soon begin to bore us.
David Wells
God
in the Wasteland: The Reality of Truth in a World of Fading Dreams, Eerdmans,
1994, p. 93.
The word command
carries the idea of authority. The most basic meaning of the word is “to direct
with authority.” A command does not just give guidance that one may accept or
reject; a command implies that the one giving it has the authority to require
obedience and the intention of doing so. This is true of the commands of
God. As the Sovereign God of the
universe, He has the authority to require obedience and He does insist that we obey
Him.
Jerry Bridges
Transforming Grace, NavPress, 1991, p.
90. Used by permission of NavPress – www.navpress.com. All rights
reserved.
To reject the authority of God is the height
of arrogant wickedness. To do so is to imitate the works of Satan, and there is
no excuse for it. God is holy and just. His word is true and trustworthy. He
does not deceive or speak with a forked tongue. When He commands us He commands
us for our good and His glory. As His adopted children and subjects, we are
called to submit to Him. We are called to trust Him and obey Him.
Keith Mathison
By
What Authority?
September 2008, Tabletalk, p. 32. Used by Permission.
The very word
authority has within it the word author. An author is someone who creates and
possesses a particular work. Insofar as God is the foundation of all authority,
He exercises that foundation because He is the author and the owner of His
creation. He is the foundation upon which all other authority stands or falls.
R.C.
Sproul
The Divine Foundation of Authority,
Tabletalk, March, 2009, p. 6. Used by Permission.
The authority
by which God governs all things is His autonomous authority. To say that God’s
authority is autonomous is to say that God is a law unto Himself. He is not
bound by some abstract system of law that exists outside of Himself or
independent from Him (ex lex). Nor is God
under some external law (sub lego); rather, He
is a law unto Himself. This does not mean that He acts or behaves in an
arbitrary manner. Rather, God’s activity is directed by God’s own character.
And His character is completely righteous. All that He does flows out of His
own internal righteousness. His external authority comes from His internal
righteousness. In this sense God’s authority is intrinsic. It is found within
Himself. It is not borrowed, delegated, or assigned from any other source.
R.C.
Sproul
The Divine Foundation of Authority,
Tabletalk, March, 2009, p. 7. Used by Permission.
A sacred
regard to the authority of God ought to lead us to reject an error, however
old, sanctioned by whatever authority, or however generally practiced.
C.H.
Spurgeon
Are we under
His authority, or our own? You can’t “yes, but” to
Scripture. He said it, or He didn’t say it. And we either obey, or we do not.
It is not we who have the authority. It is the Lord. His name is Jesus and His
title is “the Christ.” And He has it all. He will share it with no one.
Cal
Thomas
The Authority of the State, Tabletalk, March,
2009, p. 21. Used by Permission.
People love
God everywhere except on His throne.
Author Unknown