Ultimate Authority
This blog post is Part 6 of a series entitled, "Orthodoxy" by Pastor Jeffrey Dean Smith of Donelson First in Nashville, TN.
Message Date: February 12, 2023
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Today there is a call among the masses for the Church and Christianity to be more inclusive. There are widespread efforts to affirm all religions, no religion, all beliefs, and any belief as acceptable. Though Jesus said: Small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it. Matthew 7:14
...for many, the gate into heaven should open as wide as possible to let everyone in regardless of beliefs, because, as the world says, “Inclusiveness and tolerance must lead the way.” Now, let me be clear... As a pastor, my heart breaks for those who are broken, for those who are lost, for those confused, for those who have been mistreated, misunderstood, and who have mistaken lies as truth and have found hurt and heartbreak along the way.
And the Church, this church, should be a sanctuary to all in need of a new beginning, those oppressed, hungry, alone, sick, vulnerable, without a home, in need of healing, forgiveness, mercy, and so much more.
If this is you today, I am glad you are here. You are right where you need to be, and we want to help you get to where you want to go, and more importantly, to where God created you to go, and be, and live, and thrive!
But make no mistake... To reach a hurting world does not mean we are to move the markers – to be more inclusive, more accepting, and more tolerable.
Instead, to truly offer the world what is most needed is to help the world see the reason for the hope that is in us.
Listen, you may think you are driving west, looking in the rearview mirror at sunset and think the sun must be going down in the wrong direction. But in actuality, you’re just driving in the wrong direction. Because...
Just as the sun can only set in the west, so too can there only be one absolute authority of truth. It is impossible for there to be two authorities.
And this is our conversation for today as we continue our study of Orthodoxy.
Today, many people use their own compass to set their point of reference for what is truth.
We are watching America drift further from the values and foundational principles under which she was founded. And when one chooses to speak up or speak out against any voice, movement, or lifestyle choice that is in conflict with what culture deems as “correct and acceptable,” that person is often threatened, labeled a homophobe or bigot, intolerant, and is culturally and socially flogged and flagged and often canceled.
It is times such as these that the Church, through compassion and love, must remember: Ultimate authority, though often perceived as restrictive, in actuality is the ultimate freedom.
Jesus made this very statement saying:
Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. John 8:32
You see...
The markers for a moral compass, for right and for wrong, to distinguish the east from the west, have already been established for us.
Fortunately, we do not have to define the markers.
We just have to follow them.
Because (in reference to the Bible) if not these boundaries, then what boundaries?
orthodoxy = The foundational truths that define the Christian faith.
We have started walking through the Orthodoxy Foundational Principles that clearly outline the markers and help to define our faith as followers of Jesus Christ.
Foundational Principle #1: The Word of God is the ultimate authority for everything.
I have shared my belief that this first principle is so important to your understanding of the remaining principles and how they each impact our lives. So, we are spending a significant amount of time on this first principle.
Last week, I discussed the first major component of Principle #1:
1. The Word of God.
Today, I want to talk with you about the second component to Principle #1:
2. The ultimate authority for everything.
Do you have an issue with authority? Many people have an issue with authority! Whether it be the government, or when involved in interaction with a police officer, or a superior in the workplace, or when a child is in conversation with a parent...
Recognizing there are people in positions of authority over you isn’t always a welcome reality! However, authority is a critical foundational necessity for the health and well-being of humanity. Without authority, there would be no order to law, regulations and legal matters. Without authority, there would be no protective rights to life and liberty. Without authority, it would be, “Every man, woman, and unborn child for themselves!” Simply put: For a society to function in a healthy & proper manner, there must be an ultimate authority as a foundation for what is true, legal, and right.
The same is true for our lives spiritually.
If we do not have an ultimate authority that never changes, never sways, and never caves to criticism and critique, then what is truth? If the truth can change as culture demands change, then truth is nothing more than an appeasing of our desires.
This is exactly what it means to be led astray by the popular voice of culture, as Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ, reminds when he wrote to the church in Ephesus:
Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Ephesians 4:14
God’s Word is the ultimate authority. All of the words of the Holy Scriptures are God’s Words. To disbelieve or disobey any words of the Holy Scriptures is to disbelieve in and to disobey God.
The phrase “This is what the Lord says” appears over 400 times in the NIV translation of the Bible.
The phrase “Thus says the Lord” appears 417 times in the ESV translation of the Bible. Here are a few examples:
Isaiah 45:1: This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him and to strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him so that gates will not be shut...
Amos 5:1-16 - We read, “This is what the Lord says...” in verse 3.
We see it again in verse 4. We read this statement again in verse 16. During the time of the writing of the Old Testament, this term “This is what the Lord says” would have been acknowledged as identical to the statement: “This is what the King says,” or “Thus says the King!”
When a statement or charge was delivered to the King’s subjects by a messenger, such a word was understood to be from the King and to not be challenged or ignored. Therefore, when we read these words, “This is what the Lord says,” there is to be no debate - - such words are from the very mouth of God. Look at 2 Timothy 3:16:
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness… 2 Timothy 3:16
The Greek word Paul uses for “scripture” is a very important word as to the authority of God’s Word.
Scripture (Greek ) = graphe (graph – a) graphe = Old Testament
This Greek word “graphe” appears 51 times in the New Testament. And in each of these appearances, it is in reference to the Old Testament.
So, Paul is stating that “All Scripture,” or all of the Old Testament writings, which is what was mostly available at this time of his writing to Timothy, are the words of God Himself.
Peter offers us a similar confirmation of the Old Testament writings being the very words of God. Look at what Peter wrote in 2 Peter 1:21:
For prophecy never had its origin in the human will, but prophets, though human, spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. 2 Peter 1:21
Peter too is confirming to us that, even though much of the Old Testament writings we have are words spoken by prophets, it is clearly to be understood that these prophets only spoke the words that God gave them to speak. Peter is saying that it was never the intention of any prophet to speak words other than the words given to him by God.
Even Jesus pointed us to the Holy Scriptures making the connection that every word of Scripture is the words of His Father. At the beginning of His ministry, He makes this point extremely clear: Matthew 4:1-10
Here at this critical moment in time, the beginning of the 3-year ministry of the Savior of the world, the first recorded words we have that Jesus speaks, other than the comment about His baptism before He is to be tempted, are the very words pointing humanity to rely on every Word that His Father speaks.
Each time Jesus responds to the temptation of Satan, Jesus responds how? He quotes scripture. And what scripture does He quote? The very words of His Father are recorded in the Old Testament in the book of Deuteronomy.
Jesus says what God already said:
Jesus said in Matthew 4:4: Jesus answered, It is written: Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.
God already said in Deuteronomy 8:3: He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.
Jesus said in Matthew 4:7: Jesus answered him, It is also written: Do not put the Lord your God to the test.
God already said in Deuteronomy 6:16: Do not put the Lord your God to the test as you did at Massah.
Jesus said in Matthew 4:10: Jesus said to him, Away from me, Satan! For it is written: Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.
God already said in Deuteronomy 6:13: Fear the Lord your God, serve him only, and take your oaths in his name. Jesus continues to respond to the temptations of the evil one citing words already spoken by God from Deuteronomy.
Jesus makes it clear... and it is of no coincidence that at this pivotal moment, at the beginning of the greatest ministry to ever happen on this planet, God’s Son wants us to see that:
The words of God bring absolute authority as holy boundaries against all of the enemy’s temptations.
Look at Matthew 4:4 again: Jesus is clearly stating that the authority to which we are to turn, to “live on,” as He states, is the very Words that “come from the mouth of God.”
Scripture continues to confirm and proclaim that the authority for every facet of my life:
1. Is the very words of God.
2. And the very words of God are the entirety of Scripture.
Before we move to Foundational principle #2 next week, I want to offer 3 final thoughts:
1. Because God’s Word is the ultimate authority, it is impossible for Him to lie.
I do not each melted cheese. I’ve never had mac and cheese, or lasagna, or a cheeseburger! I love just about any sushi! I do not drink hardly any coffee…but when I do, I love Café du Monde coffee from New Orleans. I’d rather be sweating on the beach than shivering in the snow. I love to fish for trout or catfish. I’ve preached in every state but one. I share the same birthday as my brother who is 7 years younger than me. I’ve never been snow skiing, but I placed 2nd in a slalom water ski tourney in 10th grade. I have broken 4 bones in my body and no longer have an appendix. And… I am about to have surgery to repair a deviated septum.
Everything I have just told you is truth! But I have not always told the truth in my life.
There is not a single person who has lived, is living, or will one day live, who has been, is, or will be completely honest. Not a single person. But God… He cannot be anything other than completely true!
Titus 1:1-2: Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness, in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time. The literal translation of verse 2 is: …in the hope of eternal life, which God, “who is an unlying God,” promised before the beginning of time.
Because He is an “unlying God,” there is no untrustworthiness in Scripture.
Hebrews 6:17-18: Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.
If God is an “unlying God.” Then Scripture is an “unlying authority.”
God cannot lie. Therefore, His words can always be trusted. The Holy Scriptures are His exact words. Therefore, God’s words are the final authority for my life.
2. Because God’s Word is the ultimate authority, there is no truth that will trump God’s truth.
Okay, men… you have a day and a half to get that perfect Valentine's Day gift purchased!
If you really want to know what to get your favorite lady, there’s no better way to get this right than to learn from women what they say NOT to give them this Valentine’s Day! The Top 5 Gifts NOT to Give:
5. Flowers picked from the neighbor’s yard! (Because she AND the neighbors will know!)
4. Gifts for the pets! (No chew bones or new doggy toys!)
3. Handmade coupon book for massages and emptying the dishwasher!
2. “I love my husband” bumper sticker! (I did this one year. Amy never used it!)
1. A gift that is really for you men! (A gift card to a favorite restaurant – Cinco de Mayo.)
What do women want for Valentine’s Day? The latest surveys say: Silver & gold... or both!
And the words of the Lord are flawless, like silver purified in a crucible like gold refined seven times. Psalm 12:6
The Psalmist writes that the Word of God is as the refining process of silver and gold. It is perfected “seven times.” Of course, we know that the number “7” is the number of perfection in Scripture.
When silver or gold has been refined and perfected, we know that there are ZERO imperfections!
Since God does not lie and since Scripture is truth, there is nothing that can or will ever happen that can alter the authority of God’s truth in any way.
Some might think that there is more waiting to be discovered, more evidence waiting to be uncovered that will then help us better define truth and will then “move the markers” and become the “new authority.”
But this is impossible!
Proverbs 30:5: Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him. In Part 1 of this study 6 weeks ago, I shared with you the Greek word: aletheia (al-I-thi-a)
truth (Greek) = aletheia (al-I-thi-a)
aletheia = to convey truth or to convey the right way
In John 17, we find our Savior, Jesus, praying this:
John 17:17: Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth.
Interestingly, the Greek word here for “truth” is not the Greek adjective words:
alethinos or alethes (Greek) = true (adjective)
One might expect Jesus to use the word “true” here, stating: “Your word is true.”
Instead, Jesus uses the noun for this Greek word, which is “truth:” “Your word is truth.”
The statement:
“God’s Word is the final authority” isn’t merely a statement that establishes the true markers for today.
“God’s Word is the final authority” is a timeless declaration that always was and always will be the ultimate standard of truth.
Jesus is stating that:
God’s word is the final standard of truth. Period.
3. Because God’s Word is the ultimate authority, biblical Orthodoxy principles are timeless and necessary for my life.
There are many popular theologians today who would presume that the bible is merely human words rather than God’s words.
Look at this statement made by Harvard Divinity School Professor Gordon Kaufman:
Theology is in every respect a human work. Dr. Gordon Kaufman, Harvard Divinity School
If this is true, then nothing we have discussed today is accurate and reliable.
This is why Paul said in Galatians 1:11-12: I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that the gospel I preached is not of human origin. I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ. Galatians 1:11-12
Church, because the truth in which we place trust as Christ-followers has always been, we need not worry when the world works to move the markers, working to redefine truth from generation to generation.
Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the whole world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God. Psalm 90:2
The foundational principles of the Christian faith:
The Bible is the Word of God and is the ultimate authority for everything.
God is the one Holy God.
God is the Creator of all things.
All of humanity is created in the image of God for the purpose of bringing God glory.
The family is defined and ordained by God as the foundational institution of humanity.
Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
Jesus Christ was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary.
The penalty for humanity’s sins is eternal death.
Jesus Christ paid the price for humanity’s sins by dying on a cross.
Jesus Christ was crucified, died, and was buried for three days.
Jesus Christ rose from the grave and offers salvation by grace to everyone who believes in Him and surrenders life to Him.
The Church is the body of Jesus Christ.
Heaven is real and where every Christian will spend eternity with God.
Dr. Kaufman of Harvard University, you are incorrect.
This is not a theology of human work.
And aren’t we glad it is not.
Humans continue to move the markers to suit their desires and justify their deeds.
God, who has always been, established the markers of Orthodoxy to set us free in spite of our desires and deeds.
And because God’s Word is the ultimate authority, these biblical Orthodoxy principles are timeless and necessary for my life.
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Jeffrey Dean Smith is a husband, father to Bailey & Brynnan, author, and the Senior Pastor at Donelson First in Nashville, TN. If you are in Music City, meet Jeffrey and enjoy iced tea on the front lawn each Sunday at 10:30a.