All Authority Belongs To The Father

We are trying, to the best of our abilities, to follow the authority from heaven. We are trying to speak as the "oracles of God" (I Peter 4:11). We aim to "speak the same thing" (I Corinthians 1:10). We are all endeavoring to "walk by the same rule" (Philippians 3:16). As such, we recognize God the Father as the one ultimately with all authority. Jesus acknowledged that the words that He spoke were from God Himself (John 14:10, 24).

All Authority Has Been Given To The Son

In Hebrews 1:1,2, the Bible says: "God, who at sundry times and in divers manners, spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds." Furthermore, when Jesus was transfigured, the Father spoke from heaven saying: "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Hear Him" (Matthew 17:5). Finally, in John 12:48, Jesus says, "He that rejects me, and receives not my words, hath one that judges him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day." The words of the Lord Jesus Christ are going to judge us all on the last day. No one is going to be exempted from His authority. Jesus has been given all authority (Matt 28:19; Phil 2:9-11). There is no other leader or founder who can make such a claim.

Jesus Delegated Authority To His Apostles

In John 17:18, the Lord said, "As thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world." This means that the apostles had delegated authority on earth to "bind " and "loose" what had been bound in heaven (Matt 16:19; 18:18). To aid them in this work, Jesus said the Father would send the Holy Spirit to the apostles in His name, which means by His authority (John 14:26). The Lord went on to say, "He shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you." This was done for the express purpose of guiding the apostles into all truth (cf. John 16:13,14).

In Matthew 10:40, Jesus said, "He that receives you receives Me, and he that receives Me receives Him that sent Me." This clearly shows that the apostles were the official representatives (ambassadors) of Christ on earth (cf. II Corinthians 5:20; Ephesians 6:20). In connection with the "binding" and "loosing" work of Matthew 16:19 and 18:18, Peter, an apostle, was promised "the keys of the kingdom." The term "key" is frequently used in the Bible to represent authority. For example, in Isaiah 22:22, note what God had to say about the authority He would give to Eliakim, the sons of Hilkiah: "And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder; so he shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open."

This same expression and idea is conveyed in Rev. 3:7, which says, "And to the angel of the church in Phila- delphia write: These things says He that is holy, He that is true, He that hath the key of David, He that opens, and no man shuts; and shuts, and no man opens." In this passage, the "key to David" represents authority. As apostles, the twelve, plus Paul, had the authority to bind and loose. This means they had the right to command those who heard them (II Peter 3:1,2:I John 1:3,4; I Cor. 2:10-13; 14:37). This

does not mean that they could make up rules themselves! What it did mean was that they were the ones

authorized by the Lord to inform the world what had been bound and loosed by God. These Holy men of God were moved by the spirit to speak/write what we now have as The Bible. This was and is not a private interpretation. (2 Pet 1:21-22. The Scriptures are authoritative and complete for man's spiritual needs (2 Tim 3:15-16). Selected and edited for content and length - Bro Eli