JRM Sison Chapter - Teachings - Authority and Power

DEFINITION

          POWER - ability to act or produce an effect; possession of control, or influence over others; physical might: mental or moral efficacy: political control or influence; a source or means of supplying energy.

          AUTHORITY - power to influence or command thought, opinion, or behavior; persons in command; convincing force.

THE DIFFERENCE

          Authority is different from power. From the definition alone, power possesses control that influences over others. It is done either through physical might, mental or moral efficacy having influence on the possible outcome. Power is the source or means of supplying energy. Authority on the other hand focuses more on command rather than control. It is a convincing force that influence thought, opinion or behavior.

          When Jesus spoke about the power given to Him (Matt. 28:18), He stresses that He has complete control, in earth and heaven. But not only did Jesus had power but He also spoke with authority (Luke 4:36). Thus, His words are not words of power but of authority and His words are delivered with power.

          It is much better to explain the differences of both through further examples.

          a.     President vs. Crime - All laws were given by the government because they have the authority to do so. The president is one of the major authorities but on his own the president has no power whatsoever to prevent crime. He needs his armed forces to do the job for him. Thus the president has the power to COMMAND (one having authority) his armed forces to take care of any crime that will transpire. And the armed forces have the power to CONTROL (one having power) crime.

          b.      Police vs. Warrant of Arrest - If a policeman had been tipped of an illegal activity in a certain area; he has the power to inspect it. But without any warrant coming from the proper channels, he doesn’t have any authority at all to carry any inspection on his own.

          c.      US Government vs. Child Abuse - In the US, parents have the power to discipline their children through spanking or scolding. But they don’t have the authority to do so else they be subject to the Department of Social Welfare and be charge with child abuse.

          d.      Joshua 7 and 8 - The Israelites have power to defeat a small country named Ai. But because of Achan’s sin, they don’t have any authority. Thus, they were defeated and shamed. Only through acknowledging their fault have they regained their authority.

          Thus, having authority doesn’t exactly mean having power and having power doesn’t exactly mean having authority. But God has allowed us to have both, just as His Son Jesus Christ who spoke with power and authority over all men. When we say that a man possesses authority, he has the power not to control any situation or win any direct confrontation but the power to command on winning any situation or any direct confrontation.

1 Cor. 4:20 states that authority (the kingdom of God) is not exercised by words but by power. It clearly states that as God’s adopted children we are given authority to exercise our power against the enemy; because they are subject to us (Luke 10:19-20). We are given power to trample over serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy; and, the beauty of this is, nothing shall by any means hurt you.

Authority brings fear; power gains respect. A man has power to own and hold a gun; but unless he has a permit he doesn’t have any authority. A man has power to drive a motorcycle but if he doesn’t have a driver’s license then he doesn’t have any authority to drive. A man has power to open any business he wants but if he doesn’t have any business permit then he doesn’t have any authority to operate.

Authority gains power; power inherits responsibility; responsibility gives birth to authority. If a peasant is to be appointed king, that person became the highest authority. But if that person allows his peasant-thinking to exist then he won’t gain any power. Once a person gains authority, he must gain power. For a person that has authority and not power is a pawn of his own authority. The aim of God for us is to gain power as we receive the authority Jesus gave us. And once power is gained respect follows suit. But respect is gained only through having responsibility. And once responsibility is attained he begins to understand his authority. Thus, authority is to be exercised to gain power; power must be used because of responsibility; responsibility enables authority to be understood.

HOW AUTHORITY AND POWER ARE GAINED

          From the very acceptance of Jesus Christ as our God and Saviour, we gained authority from God. This authority is being adopted sons of God (John 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name). Thus, being children of the living God, He gave us authority to exercise it over the enemy. But the problem here is, many Christians have authority but doesn’t have any power at all. How then is power gained? Power is gained through faith. I have been an instructor of martial arts since I was 13 years old. But I gained power when I was in my 19^th year. A friend of mine spoke stories on how a Japanese aikidoka (a practitioner of aikido) could do such feats no logic could ever explain (unbendable arms, pinning persons on the ground with one finger, throwing persons using one arm only). Now, I tried to imagine myself having such power as that Japanese aikidoka (named Koichi Tohei-Sensei). As days gone by, I never imagined that I was using that kind of power on my students and senior blackbelts. I became someone very powerful during that time. The thing is, nobody taught me how to gain this power. I just had faith that I could have it and pushed myself on gaining it. The faster and harder I pushed, the faster I reached my goal: power. With that kind of thought, Christians can easily gain power from God through the Holy Spirit. First, they must imagine themselves having that power. Second, they must discipline themselves to gain that power. Third, they must believe with all their heart that they will (if they haven’t gained it yet) have it. Thus, faith is the key to gaining power; i.e. a person who can sing like Frank Sinatra but when exposed to a large audience began to lose faith on himself and began to sing like a broken piano. There are three G’s to gain power: Goal; Guard; Glow.

          Goal - one must know his goal to make sure of his path and plans. Without any goals, people live their lives aimlessly. They achieve one thing and lose it badly. How to have a goal? Jesus has promised to give us power (Mark 3:14-15 14 And he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach, 15 And to have power to heal sicknesses, and to cast out devils; Mark 6:7 And he called unto him the twelve, and began to send them forth by two and two; and gave them power over unclean spirits; Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.) This power is our goal. This power is what we must gain. Having a goal means having hope. And a hopeful man brings forth success and victory over most situations.

          Guard - gaining power is one thing but maintaining it is another. Many people today once they grasp of power doesn’t want to let go of it. But the problem lies not on what they want but on what they must do to maintain such power. I, for one, maintained an aikidoka power that can easily throw a man off-balance, no matter what the size of that person has. But it didn’t take days, weeks, months or years but a lifetime. If I try to take it easy, I will just feel weak and my body starts to ache all over. Once power is gained, maintain it. Push yourself above your own expectation and meet with God’s expectation.

          Glow - some people maintained their power but abused it. They used it for their own selfish gains. To glow means to allow the light to shine on us (Matthew 5:16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven). This enables people to see the goodness and mercy of God upon us (Psalms 23:6).

          Brethren, fight the good fight of faith and lay hold on eternal life (1 Tim 6:12). Have the power of the Holy Spirit be your goal. Use your faith that brings impossible things possible; turning hopelessness to pure hope. Achieve your goal and guard it with all your might. Never be caught off-guard by the enemy (1 Peter 5:9 Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour). And glow for the Lord so that whatever you do, you will bring glory to Him and bless His name everyday and forever and ever (1 Corinthian 10:31 and Psalms 145:1,2)