The Problem of Unworthy Authorities

Pastor, teacher, and author Adrian Rogers has introduced people all over the world to the love of Jesus Christ and has impacted untold numbers of lives by presenting profound truth simply stated. Thanks for joining us for this message. Here's Adrian Rogers. Would you take God's word and be finding 1 Peter chapter 2? As we continue our series on discovering kingdom.

Authority. If there's ever a day and an age in which we need to discover and to deploy kingdom authority. This is the day. And this is the age.

Now before I read the scripture And we're going to be reading from 1 Peter chapter 2, beginning in verse 11. Before I read the scripture, let me just tell you something about the Christians to whom this scripture was written. They were going through tough Ties. It was open season. on Christians.

They were being accused. And they were being slandered. By the enemy. Let me tell you some of the things they accuse them of. They accused them of incest.

because they call their wives are their husbands. Brother or sister. They were accused of cannibalism. Because when they took the Lord's Supper, They said, We are partaking of the body and the blood of the Lord Jesus. They were accused.

of insurrection. Because they said Caesar is not Lord. Jesus is Lord. And so they were hunted and hounded and killed. Do you know why they were?

Because they were like the Lord Jesus. And the servant He is not better than his master. Jesus said If they've hated me. They will hate you. And Jesus was slandered.

They called him a wine bibber and a glutton. And I'm going to tell you this. that anybody Who lives for the Lord Jesus Christ in this day, in this age, or in that day, and that age, or any age. He is going to find himself going against the tide. We're twice-born people in a world of once-born people.

And what we practice and what we believe begins at a different Source? It follows a different course. It arrives at a different conclusion. And we're going to be going against the tide.

Now, The chief weapon. The chief weapon That God has given us in these days, other than our faith in Him. Is a principle that many of us don't like to practice. It is the principle of. Listen.

Submission. You say, wait a minute. It would seem like if we're going to be overcomers, It ought to be the principle of rebellion. No. is the principle of submission.

And this principle is such that it will close the mouths of those who oppose us. Look in verse 11. Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, Abstain from fleshly lusts which war against your soul. Having your conversation, that means your behavior, honest among the Gentiles, that's the pagans. Whereas they speak against you as evildoers.

They may by your good works, and we're going to show you what those good works are in just a moment, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.

Now, the day of visitation is not talking about when Jesus comes again. It literally means the day of inspection or the day of observation. And then notice what he says in verse 13, submit yourselves. to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake. Did you see that?

Submit yourselves.

Now skip on down to verse 18. Satan's be subject To your masters. In all Fear. Turn over to chapter 3 and verse 1. Likewise, Ye wives, Be in subjection.

To your own husbands. That's an interesting thing. He speaks of evildoers. And he says, we had to do something. That will cause them to recognize in us A quality That is absolutely astounding and amazing.

And look down, if you will, in verse 15. For so is the will of God. that with well-doing ye may silence the ignorance. of foolish men. People who oppose God's people are ignorant and they're foolish.

And how do you silence them? Submission. Submission Submission. And this word silence literally means in the Greek language to muzzle like you would muzzle a yapping dog. How are we going to make a statement in this world?

How are we going to exercise kingdom authority? by submission. You say, now wait a minute, submission doesn't sound like authority. You see, that's the secret of the whole thing. Remember again that centurion who said to Jesus, Jesus, I know how you operate.

I know why you have authority over this disease, because I also am a man set under authority. And I say to this man, go and he goes, and to this man, come and he comes. And Jesus, all you need to do is to speak the word, and my servant will be healed, for I know how you work. And Jesus said, I've not seen faith like this in all the land of Israel. This man who was under the emperor was over His soldiers.

You can never be over those things that God has put under you until you get under those things that God has put over you.

Now that's what we're talking about this whole series. Kingdom authority. Let me say it again. You will never be over those things that God has set under you until you remain under those things that God has set over you. Kingdom authority is not for rebels.

And God cannot trust us and give us the release of the Spirit until we know the restraint of the Spirit.

So he says here that we're to submit. We're to submit to civil magistrates. We're to submit to those who work us on the job. We are to submit domestically in the home. This is what God says that we're to do.

Now, We're talking about the problem of unworthy authorities. How do you submit to an ungodly government? Godless government. How do you submit? to a bad boss.

How do you submit to a mean mate? What if they ask us to do something wrong, ungodly? What do we do? How can we live this principle of submission? In a wicked Lascivious age.

Sh Good question. All right, now let's look at it. Let's just take the Word of God and look at it. Look at the very principle of submission. Again, I remind you: verse 13 says, submit yourselves.

Verse 18 says, servants, be subject. Chapter 3, verse 1 says, wives, be in subjection. What is submission? Submission. Is one equal?

One equal. voluntarily placing himself under another equal. That God may therefore be glorified. Submission is simply getting under the authority that God has established, not for that authority's sake, but for God Himself's sake who established the authority. Look in verse 13: Submit yourself to every ordinance of man.

For the Lord's sake. When you submit yourself to some governmental authority, you're not doing it for his sake. You're doing it for Jesus' sake, and that makes a difference. You see, God has established authority everywhere. And God is behind all authority.

Yeah.

So, when you're submitting, you're not submitting to some human being, you're submitting really ultimately to Almighty God. And when you do that, God begins to invest in you kingdom authority. Remember that when you have the spirit of rebellion, you're like Satan. He was the original rebel. When you submit to authority, you're like the Lord Jesus, who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation.

Being found in form as a servant, he humbled himself and became obedient.

Now Satan said, I will exalt myself. God says, you're going down. Jesus said, I humble myself. God said, I'll give you a name that is above every name.

Now Jesus has this incredible authority because of this principle. Remember what Samuel told Saul, that rebellion is as witchcraft, 1 Samuel chapter 15, verse 23. When you have a rebellious spirit, You are practicing the same spirit that made the devil the devil to begin with, and that is witchcraft.

Now, You want kingdom authority. I do too. I want to live victoriously. I want power over the world, the flesh, and the devil. But come up close and I will tell you something.

Authority And submission. are heads and tails of the same creature. coin. Authority flows out of Submission. That's a principle that we need to understand.

And being submissive does not demean you. It exalts you. It makes you like The Lord Jesus Christ.

Now, that is the principle. That is the principle of submission.

Now, let's talk about some places of submission. We've already mentioned them. But Peter picks out three very hard places. Number one, He's talking about being submissive to a godless government.

Now you say, well, when Peter wrote this, he didn't know who was in the White House. Let me tell you who was on the throne of Rome. His name. Was Nero.

Well, first of all, let's read verse 13. Submit yourself to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake, whether it be to the king as Supreme. or unto governors? As unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers. And for the praise of them that do well.

For so is the will of God that with well-doing you may put to silence the ignorance. of foolish men. As free We're free. and not using your liberty for a cloak of maliciousness. But as the servants of God, Honor all men.

Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.

Well, you say if they had a good king, I can understand that.

Well, let me tell you who was the king. His name was Nero. Let me read what one man said about Nero. He was just three years old when his father died. It was little loss to the boy, for his father had been a killer, A bully and a cheat.

His mother took over the family trade and continued the boy's education. She murdered his stepfather with a dish of poisoned mushrooms. He was reared in in squalor and proved a notable son to his parents. While still young, he committed his first murder. killing a teenage boy who stood in his way.

and watching him die with callous indifference. He married at 15. but soon had his wife killed. He married again and slew his second wife also. In order to marry a third time, he murdered the husband of the woman he wanted.

His mother annoyed him, so he arranged her murder. First by guile, but when that was unsuccessful, he murdered her without pretense. He was an ugly man. With a bull neck, a beetle brow, a flat nose, and a tough mouth. He had a pot belly, spindly legs, bad skin, and an offensive odor.

At the age of 31, he was sentenced to death by flogging. He fled to a dingy basement. in the house of a slave, cut his own throat. He survived that and he gave the infant church. Its first taste of things to come.

His name was Nero. He was the first of the persecuting Caesars of Rome. That's the one. That's the one that Peter says. Honor The king.

Honor the king.

That's incredible.

Well Why is this? Because verse 14 teaches us that authority is necessary. C.S. Lewis said this. About democracy.

He said that he was in favor of democracy, not because everybody is equally intelligent or equally qualified to have an equal say. But because everybody is equally sinful, And we all need to keep an eye on each other. That's why he said we're in favor of democracy.

Well, whatever it is, whether it is a king, Our democracy An oligarchy, whatever it is. There can be no civilization without government. We are to have a submissive spirit. to the government and an attitude of rebellion Is as bad as the rebellion itself. Look again in verses 16 and 17.

We're free. and not using your liberty as a cloak of maliciousness. But as the servants of God, now look at this. Honor all men in our social life. We'd honor all men, every man, red, yellow, black, white, young, old.

Christian, pagan. Every Man. In the similitude and image of God is to be honored. The word honor is the Greek word is the word from which we get our word preciousness. Red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in His sight.

All men are intrinsically precious. Do you believe that? I hope you do. I don't care who he is. It matters not what is done.

The Bible says honor all men. In our social life, and then in our church life, in verse 17, it says, Love the brotherhood.

Now we are special. There is a special love. That we're to have for our brothers and sisters in Christ. I love all people, but my wife is my beloved. She is above all other women in my life.

And in the Christian world. Our brothers and sisters in Christ are special. We are to love one another with a very special love, and so the Bible says we are to honor the brotherhood. And then in our spiritual life, He says, fear God. Verse 17.

If there's one thing that we need in America today, it is to bring back the fear of Almighty God, for the Bible says the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, and America has lost that. But then he says, finally, in our political life, not only in our social life, our church life, our spiritual life, but in our political life, we are to honor the king. Whether that government is led by king or president, the principle is the same. Put in your margin 1 Timothy chapter 2. Verses 1 through 3, I exhort therefore that first of all supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings.

And for all that are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. And so we are to submit. to godless government.

Now, second thing. Not only should we submit to a godless government, But to a bad boss. Look, if you will, in verses 18 and 19. Servants, be subject to your masters with all fear. Not only to the good and gentle.

but also to the forward. For this is thankworthy if a man for conscience toward God endure grief. Suffering Wrongfully.

Now the word servant here literally means household slave. It's not talking about a domestic servant like we have today who is paid. But it's talking about a person who was a slave. And these slaves were not inferior people. In that day, a man would have a doctor slave to take care of him.

He would have a teacher slave to educate his children. But Aristotle, his philosophy had come to full flower and he said, master and slave have nothing in common. A slave is a living tool, just as a tool is an inanimate slave. Slaves were not treated as persons, they were treated as things. And yet Peter says, slaves?

Be in submission. To your master as unto the Lord. You say, well now wait a minute. Shouldn't we be against slavery with all of our heart? And what Peter taught here Broad.

Slavery crashing Down! He was speaking of Reality. We're going to say more about that later on. They found themselves in a situation over which they had no control. But he said now guard your spirit Have a submissive spirit.

Maybe some of you today are not a slave in that sense, but you work for what you call a slave driver.

Well, let me tell you something. There is no better place for you to demonstrate. the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ if you have an unfair or an ungodly boss. Any pagan can gripe and rebel when things are wrong. But notice what he says in verse 19, for this is thankworthy, if a man for conscience toward God endure grief.

Suffering Wrongfully.

Now he mentions a third case of an unworthy authority. How do you react toward unworthy authorities? Godless government. Bad bosses. Mean mates.

Look in chapter 3, verse 1. Likewise, ye wives. Be in subjection to your own husbands, that if any obey not the word. This is not talking about a Christian husband. It's talking about an ungodly husband who will not obey the word of God.

They may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives. That is, while they behold your chaste or pure behavior joined or coupled with fear. Whose adorning, let it not be the outward adorning of the plaiting of the hair, the wearing of gold, or the putting on of apparel.

Now, lady, he's not saying it's wrong to fix your hair or to wear gold. If it is, it's wrong for you to wear clothes. He's not saying that. He's saying that is not your adornment. But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and a quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.

This is so contrary to the wisdom of this world that a wife is to be submissive even to an ungodly husband. But the Bible teaches that a home cannot function without the head. 1 Corinthians 11 and verse 3. But I would have you to know that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is the man, and the head of Christ is God. Are God the Son and God the Father co-equal, co-eternal?

Of course. Is a man and a woman, are they co-equal? Of course. She's not inferior to him. Submission is one equal placing himself or herself voluntarily under another equal, that God thereby may be glorified.

Galatians 3 verse 28 says, There's neither Jew nor Greek, neither is there bond nor free, neither is there male nor female, for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. That is settled. But God teaches authority. And what should a wife do if she has an ungodly? unworthy husband.

She's not to lecture him. According to the scripture, she's not to leave him. She is to love him. Mrs. Billy Graham said, It is your job to love your husband.

It is God's job to make him good.

Now let's move on quickly. We've talked about the principle of submission. That is that we will never be over those things that God has put under us until we get under those things that God has put over us. We've talked about the places of submission, and Peter mentions three of them: the government, The job And the home.

Now let's talk about the problems of submission. Because there's some real problems. Suppose you work for a man and he asks you to do something dishonest. He asks you to cook the books, to juggle things, to steal for him. And you try to be in submission.

Suppose uh you are in a government and the government enforces upon you an unjust law and ask you to do something that is contrary. to the will of God. Suppose the government were to tell me, that I could not preach the gospel of Jesus Christ. Let me say this and I want you to listen carefully. Submission is not always the same as obedience.

Submission. is not always the same as obedience. Your ultimate loyalty belongs to God. Your ultimate loyalty belongs to God. You're to render unto Caesar the things that belong to Caesar, and unto God the things that belong to God, but never give to Caesar the things that belong to God.

Never give to Caesar. the things that belong to God. Let me give you an illustration of that. The apostles were preaching the Lord Jesus Christ, and the high mucinamucks, the magistrates, said, be quiet. You're upsetting the status quo.

Don't preach anymore. Put this verse down in your margin, Acts chapter 5. Verses 28 and 29. They caught them there and they told them not to preach, and I'm beginning in verse 28, saying, Did not we strictly command you that ye should not teach in this name? And behold, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine.

and intend to bring this man's blood upon us. Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to be able to do it. obey God Rather than men. Do you have that? We ought to obey God rather than men.

Now for their disobedience, they were thrown into jail. They submitted as far as they could, and as far as I can tell. They did not resist when they were thrown into jail. But they did not stop preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. All human authority is limited.

There are some commands that are qualified and there's some commands that are not qualified. Let me give you an example of a command that is qualified.

Now the Bible says we're to live in peace, but Romans 12 verse 18 says if it be possible as much as lieth in you. Live peaceably with all men.

Now the reason that sometimes it's impossible is we can't control other men. And so we must be submissive if possible. As much as lieth in us, it lies in us. But if there comes a time when somebody commands us to do something that is antithetical, to the word of God. The truth of God.

Then we obey God. rather than men. Government is here to restrain evil. And God's plan is a free church and a free state. And when the government does what it alone can do, that is restrain evil, the church is free to do what she alone can do, and that is to preach the saving gospel of Jesus Christ.

There are problems with submission. But we need to understand That we must obey God. What if a wife has a husband who is physically abusing her? And the Bible says, be in submission. The Bible says also, if it be possible as much as life, then you live peaceably with all men.

If I had a daughter who was physically abused and battered, I'd get her out of that situation. I wouldn't say, well, now the Bible says submit. Yes, she's to have a submissive spirit. But there is a time, there is a time when there is a higher law that takes precedent. And so remember that our ultimate allegiance.

is to Almighty God. A man was praying for a politician. A politician said, Oh, I'm so glad you've learned to pray for those who are in authority. He said, That wasn't the verse I had in mind. I was praying for those who persecute you.

Yeah.

Now Folks, listen. We are to have a submissive spirit. Now, let me just wrap this up. I've talked to you about the principle. I have talked to you about the places.

I've talked to you about the problems. Let me talk to you about the price of submission. You think this is easy? This is the hardest thing we're asked to do. Look, if you will, in verse 19 through 21.

He says, for this is thankworthy if a man for conscience toward God endure grief. Suffering wrongfully. For what glory is it if when you be buffeted for your faults? You take it patiently. But if when ye do well and suffer for it, ye take it patiently, this is acceptable with God.

For even here unto were ye called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example that we should follow in his steps, who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth, who, when he was reviled, reviled not again. When he suffered, he threatened not, but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously. That is, he appealed to the Supreme Court of the universe, and the word means he just handed himself over to God. He had undeserved suffering, unretaliating suffering, unfrustrated suffering, because he was counting on God to even the score.

Well, you say, Pastor, that doesn't sound fair.

Well, look at verse 24. Speaking of Jesus. Who His own self bare our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness. That is, He bore our sins, He took our sins. Think of a doctor who makes himself sick in order to make the patient well and then turns around and pays the hospital bill.

That's King Jesus.

Now that wasn't fair, but thank God he did it. Amen. And he left us an example that we should follow in his steps. And because of that, God hath highly exalted him and given him a name that is above every name. And I'm telling you, folks, God will do the same thing for us when we began to obey Almighty God.

You see, it was the spirit of these early Christians. that brought the Roman Empire crashing. Down. Because God gave them Kingdom. Authority.

And they turn that world up. Side. Down! because they learned the strength. of submission.

They did not give in to evil. They overcame evil. Submission does not embolden tyranny. It destroys it. And they were just honeycombing that entire Roman empire, that mountain of evil.

with gospel dynamite. And it brought the whole thing. Crashing. Bow. God gives authority.

To those who understand submission, we will never be over those things that God has put under us until we get under those things that God has put over us. The Lordship of Christ. the Word of God. those institutions that God has put in place. They were killing the Christians.

up in the Coliseum. It would seat 50,000 people. I've stood there many times. Underneath the ground in the catacombs were the Christians worshiping God and praying to God. Up here, Caesar was Lord.

Down here, Jesus was Lord. But Caesar's gone, friend, and Jesus is still Lord. He's king of kings. and Lord of Lords. We have victory in Jesus.

Hallelujah. Let's pray together. Father God. Seal the message to our hearts. And help us, O God.

Help us to be men and women of God. Then thank you, Lord, that you give to us. Kingdom authority. If you would like to learn more about how you can know Jesus or deepen your relationship with him, simply click the Discover Jesus link on our website, lwf.org. For a copy of this message or additional resources, visit our online store at lwf.org or call 1-800-274-5683.

Thank you.