Yoke of Exousia: Our Struggle With Authority

In talking about authority, it requires us to delve into a few other aspects which are brought out quite well in a book entitled "Purpose and Power of Authority" by Myles Munroe.  In this book, it states four points:

• Author: related to the origin of your gifts and power
• Authorization: permission and right to carry out your assignment
• Authenticity: to be who you are created to be, to fulfill what you are designed to fulfill, to do what you are destined to do
• Authority: the right and power to be who you were created to be

Once we understand and begin walking in the authority God has given us, we can see how it should be "natural" - in other words, as He designed it to be.

In his book, Mr. Munroe related a story about his encounter with the authority of the shark.  The shark's natural habitat is water ... it can swim quite well, one could say "expertly".  The water is the shark's natural domain and realm - it has authority in that water.  Its teeth, created to be capable of tearing flesh, are also part of its authority structure.  When Mr. Munroe, or any creature for that matter, enters the domain of the shark, it is required to submit to the shark's authority.

Let's take the four points above and relate it to the shark.  God (the Author) created the shark to live in the water to swim and eat (authorization).  The shark, not questioning this at all, is merely being real (authentic).  All of this equates to the shark functioning as God had designed it (authority).

There is "real" authority and "fake" authority.  Our struggle with authority is often based on the "fake" authority.  We don't like it, we challenge it, we see it for what it is: not real.  What we need to realize is that God created things to operate within a "real" authority structure.  What happens is that we, humans, pollute it.  Our encounters with authority can take many forms - from "titles" and our environment, to our experiences (both good and bad).  Our discussion highlighted the good and the bad and we concluded with a quote from Mr. Munroe's book:

"Genuine authority creates an environment for people to think, to dream, to discover and refine their gifts and talents, to build others up, and to develop themselves fully."

This is the kind of authority God implemented.  This is the kind of authority that we will take the next few weeks to unpack further.