We Need Shepherds
Authority Schmority
We are skeptical of authority, perhaps more so than any previous generation. It’s in our DNA. As Americans, we are, after all, born of a revolution from the tyrant King George III. In the last 250 years, our anti-authoritarian sentiment has only grown stronger. Reinforcing it, we have seen political figures get suspiciously wealthy, the “Me Too” movement expose business leaders and movie moguls, and social media billionaires playing god behind the curtain. We have reason to be wary. But is this ever-defiant attitude healthy?
Celebrity pastors
The church has sadly been no exception to this abuse of power. One church leader after another has fallen from grace. Celebrity pastors have lived up to their oxymoronic title (for isn’t a pastor one who leads people to celebrate the Lord), and have left a bad taste in pretty much everybody’s mouth. The respect given to clergy across the board has declined steeply. They are sometimes even categorized beside used car salesmen and shady attorneys.
This is stark in New England, where the Roman Catholic sex abuse scandal still looms ominously over churches. While the diocese was not alone in their diabolical scheming, they are the spotlight example of the depths of hell unleashed by corrupt authority.
Our inclination might be to throw the baby out with the bathwater and be done with church authority altogether. While I can understand the sentiment, anarchy is the worst of all options. Lord of the Flies is not an improvement over Big Brother. The Bible describes this spirit of anarchy, “Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 17:6; 21:25). From my experience the vast majority of pastors I know are godly, albeit fallible men seeking to be faithful to the Lord.
Legit to submit
In the Bible, it is revealed that God is the authority over all. What is more, he sets up lesser authorities over various spheres of life. The role of the state bears the sword (Romans 13:1-7), the place of a parent is to discipline without exasperating (Ephesians 6:1-4), and the church is to be led by mature elders (Acts 14:23). To spurn these authorities is to do yourself great harm.
There are limits. No earthly authority is absolute. God gives temporary and limited authority under heaven, and we are responsible to submit only as far as that authority is granted. Civil disobedience is not only allowed, it is at times demanded. When lesser authorities defy the authority of God himself, we defy them. “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge” (Acts 4:19).
For those in authority, to lead is a call to serve those we oversee. There is a reason we call political leaders “ministers,” that is, servants. Their authority is such that it is meant to serve those they lead. When done morally, leadership is a powerful form of servanthood, “even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28).
Undoing unruliness
Submission may be a curse word in our culture, but in the Bible it is a blessing towards spiritual maturity. Being under authority teaches us humility. John Calvin believed that the fifth commandment, honor your parents, was a way of addressing all submission to authority. Learning to submit to parents is a good prep school for submitting to God, and the under-authorities appointed by Him. Even Jesus submits to a higher authority within the Triune Deity, “and the head of Christ is God” (1 Corinthians 11:3).
The Bible gives shepherds for our own good. They equip the saints towards growth (Ephesians 4:11-16). To submit to those called to serve you spiritually is not only appropriate (e. g. Galatians 6:6; 1 Timothy 5:17, Hebrews 13:7), it is also to your own benefit: “Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you” (Hebrews 13:17). They keep watch over our souls and will give an accounting for you. Let them help you make it across the finish line.
To be humble enough to see your need for spiritual authority is to swim upstream. If you want to be truly radical, join a church and submit to spiritual leadership! Submission may be the most counter-cultural thing a Christian can do in this generation. It is also a crucial means of grace.
Rick Harrington is a pastor at First Baptist Church - Haverhill in Massachusetts and the Provost of the (upcoming) BCNE Multiplication Center. He is the author of the books "How to Find a Church: Seven Steps to Becoming Part of a Spiritual Family" and "The Weight of Preaching: Heralding the Gospel of Grace".