Whose Authority | Under Pressure

Authority. I mentioned it in the beginning of

the service, I'm going to ask it again, a couple

people. When you think of the word authority,

now I am looking for something specific, I know,

cue the rolling of the eyes. When you think of

the word authority, what comes to mind? Or what

do you think I'm looking for? When you think

of the word authority, what comes to mind? Angry

dad. Interesting. Okay. Yeah. Angry dad. Nope.

Yeah. Responsibility. Sure. Yeah. A job, right?

Absolutely. Good answer. What else? Power. Sure.

To submit, right? Don't tell me what to do. Absolutely.

Do not tell me what to do. That's actually really

close, Rick. Really close. There is a certain

level of authority that starts to get formed

at a very young age. It's more of a challenging

of authority that if you've ever been with a

very, very young kid, whether you've been a parent

or a grandparent or an aunt or an uncle, or maybe

even you were a babysitter, maybe you've helped

out in the nursery or have done any kind of children's

ministry, there is... A challenging of authority

or really a placement of authority with a very,

very small word, three letters, asked by every,

all of us, right? It's the earliest sign of depravity

known to man when the child asks, you all know,

why? There is an establishment of whose authority

when really it's not a question. When my boys

started asking why, I knew that I knew that I

knew it was not a question. We were now entering

negotiations. We were now entering a testing.

We were now entering into a different stage of

our parenting. And if you've ever parented, it

was, you know, maybe it's, okay, boys, now it's

time to clean up. You immediately get that question.

Why? Or do we have to? Or right now? Or who said?

Or, in the case of the Holland donor and Scuthouse,

did mom say to do that? Okay, right? Mike, do

you submit to that? Absolutely. Right? That that

is, all of those same questions fall under that

same negotiation of... Authority. It's not really

a question. It's not really a conversation. It

is a challenge. It is a challenge done by how

old roughly when those questions start to come,

right? Yeah, in the back. About three, right?

I'm not going to say that it was the Vandermytons,

but that was about three that happened there.

And so that's roughly around that time when that

authority starts to get challenged, that I would

say that our kids' mouths are starting to write

checks that their bodies can't cash, right? They

start to really put it out there that they think

they can challenge mom and dad. They're trying

to understand their role. They're trying to understand

their place in life. That's usually met not always

in the best way. Yet the funny thing is, if you're

like my kids, though it was met with a very abrupt

ending to a lot of those conversations, they

still went back to the well. They kept trying

to see if that line would be held. What they

were actually asking other questions as they

kept going back to it is, do you really mean

this? Are you really in charge here? Or can I

push this just a little farther? Right? I think

I have those on the slide. Do you really mean

this? Are you really in charge here? Or can I

push just a little bit farther? That is them

doubling down on this. We've all done it. And

kids do it all the time. And this is the moment

you realize it's no longer about cleaning. This

is all about who gets the final word. This sets

up Luke 20. This is exactly the conversation

around Luke 20. Whose authority really matters?

Now, in the household, there needs to be an establishment

of authority. Because, let's be honest, let's

call a spade a spade, right? If the animals run

the zoo, it's not a good zoo. And when your kids

are little, right, three years old, If the three

-year -olds run the household, that household

is not going to do well. There needs to be an

establishment of authority. Where do we get that

concept? All the way back in the Garden of Eden.

We see a creator creating, and what does he do?

He creates. He sets boundaries. What do you mean,

Pastor? Well, go back to our Unintended Consequences

series, however many years ago that was. He told

the waters where they could go. He told the light

where it could go and when to go. He told the

dark when it stopped. He was all about boundaries.

And then he told his kind of prized creation,

us, what they could do. They could eat of everything.

Subdue the earth. Fulfill the earth. Just don't

eat that one tree. Now we know the story. Ended

up breaking that rule. Sin enters the world.

And now we are on this covenantal path. Authority

is huge. It's big to God, and therefore it's

going to be big to Christ. So we're going to

be in Luke chapter 20, verses 1 through 8, and

Luke 20:1–8

then we're going to jump to 19 to 26. So Luke

20. First eight verses. One day, as Jesus was

teaching the people in the temple and preaching

the gospel, the chief priests and the scribes

with the elders came up and said to him, Tell

us by what authority you do these things, or

who it is that gave you this authority. He answered

them, I also will ask you a question. Now tell

me, was the baptism of John from heaven or from

man? And they discussed it with one another,

saying, If we say from heaven, he will say, Why

did you not believe him? And if we say from man,

all the people will stone us to death, for they

are convinced that John was a prophet. So they

answered, So they answered that they did not

know where it came from. And Jesus said to them,

Neither will I tell you by what authority I do

these things. So, pressure point one. Human authority

feels threatened by Jesus. Okay? So human authority,

now, we see this engagement. I love how Jesus

does this. Because, again, it's the teachers

of the law. They're going to kind of go toe -to

-toe with Jesus. Okay? Toe -to -toe. The chief

priests, the scribes, and the elders approach

Jesus and ask, tell us by what authority you

do these things, or who gave you this authority.

This isn't curiosity. They're not like asking.

This is a confrontation. So there's really meaning

behind these words. This isn't like, we really

want to know, Jesus, teach us. This is, we want

gotcha journalism. We want to catch you in this.

Jesus has been teaching openly. We're in Luke

20. This isn't a new ballgame. A lot has been

going on. A lot of things about teaching. The

pressure of Jesus. This is like our fourth sermon

in this. The pressure's on. He had cleansed the

temple. He had disrupted their system. And now

their authority is feeling threatened. Now, not

nearly as, I mean, the threatening of a three

-year -old asking why isn't nearly comparable

to what the Pharisees are feeling from Jesus.

But their authority is feeling threatened. Because

Jesus is showing up and everything now is being

questioned. And that is threatening them. Why?

Because they had the people beaten. They had

them understanding. They had them heads down

just doing the things, right? They had them just,

they were living by the Pharisees' interpretation

of everything. Let me ask, is that still true

today? Do we have leaders in the world that just

want all of us just to kind of be sheep? Don't

think for yourself. Let us just tell you what

to believe and you just kind of go and do it.

Don't think for yourselves. Don't engage. That's

what the Pharisees wanted. Jesus is opening their

eyes, opening their house, going, no, no, no.

I am the Messiah. You need to follow me. Don't

follow this system. And this isn't just a kind

of wild rebellion. This is the understanding

of the way of Jesus. This is the fulfillment

of God's word. You see, Jesus challenges every

system. He challenges the leader. He challenges

the structure, including our own sense of control.

He'll come in. If you think you have ultimate

control of your life, he's going to come in and

challenge that. Anything that is going to take

the cross seat of your life, Jesus is going to

come in and challenge because he knows. That

seat is meant for him, not for anybody else,

not for anything else. Money, politics, authority,

power, anything. And what Jesus is going to do,

he's going to expose that. He's going to expose

that in order to remove it. But what he wants

you to do, he wants you to offer it up. And that's

our pressure point number two, that Jesus exposes

false authority. You see, Jesus answers their

question with a question. Was the baptism from

John from heaven or from man? And suddenly we

see a shift. I love how Jesus does this. They

try to confront him and he kind of misdirects

them a bit. If they say, and I love it, they're

kind of off to the side talking. If they say

from heaven, they must accept John's testimony

about Jesus. They know they can't do that. If

they say from man, they fear that the crowd will

stone them. This is the same group. That in Luke

4, tried to already stone Jesus, right? So now

they're kind of caught between, they're kind

of in a catch -22. Rocking a hard place, no pun

intended. This reveals something important. They're

not about seeking truth. Friends, expose that

with me. The Pharisees are not about truth in

this moment. They are solely about power. And

we see that in the church. When you have these

pastors, when you have these leaders in these

churches that are more about power, more about

gaining the authority and the power, they will

slide things under the rug more time than not

because the truth will expose it. That's where

accountability in our life, in systems, in all

of these things, that's what makes it so important.

That's exactly what Jesus is bringing up. He

is bringing up an authentic faith that submits.

to his lordship. Everything in the dark will

be brought to the light. False authority is more

concerned about control than truth. That's why

Jesus as eternal king is so important. That's

why the Heidelberg Catechism reminds us in Lord's

Day 12 that Christ is our eternal king who governs

us by his word and spirit. One minute on the

word govern. You ever think about that? The Lord

governs you. Now, we may think about that in

the world today, in the government, and we don't

know. Our head may go all sorts of places with

that, depending on how we engage that word. Kind

of pause the world's understanding of govern.

How does Christ govern your life in a sovereign

way? And that's uncomfortable, let's be honest.

Because that means he knows all, he sees all,

he is all. You're not, I'm not, but he is. Are

you okay with that? Challenge yourself in that

today. When you're sitting down, watching your

brackets burn, ask yourself the question. How

many of you have a perfect bracket right now?

See, you just did a test. You're not sovereign.

Because if you were... your hand would be up.

ESPN showed me zero perfect brackets, so nobody

is sovereign in the world. All right? So as you're

watching that burn, ask yourself, is it okay

that I'm governed by Christ? The answer should

be yes. That he knows your thoughts as you're

thinking them and before you think them. He doesn't

take a chance on you every day. Right? I've said

it before. He's not rolling the dice. I hope

Jim does this today. He is sovereign and we should

take comfort in that. But then the real question

comes. Are you okay with that? Am I okay with

that? Or do I wrestle with that? And why do I

wrestle with that? Why do I wrestle, maybe internally,

with the fact that Jesus knows everything about

me? That Jesus governs my life. Why do I wrestle

with that? Why is that scary? Well, if we're

going to get to the real naked truth, if we're

going to rip off that band -aid, rip off that

scab, rip off that scar, or whatever it is, it

has to do with the level of faith. It has to

do with our ultimate trust in God. Because when

the chips are down, when the bank account's in

the negative, when nobody is connecting with

you, when you feel all alone, is that faith still

there? What Jesus is questioning in this moment

to the religious leaders, to us, do you trust

in the Lord? The Pharisees don't. They put their

trust in power. The religious leaders rejected

the authority because it threatened their own.

Is the same said about you? Is the same said

about me? Or do I have to be in control? Do you

have to be in control? I know we have plenty

of type A personalities. I'm going to look in

the mirror first. There's one. And then I know

there's some in there, in the sanctuary today.

I know there's some watching online. Can the

type A's submit to authority? Can the type B's

and C's and D's and E's and F's? I don't know

how many go in that, but can we all submit to

Christ's authority? Because if we can't, guess

what's going to happen? Christ is going to divide

us from our loyalties. And that's the third point.

Divided loyalties will always create tension.

Divided loyalties will always create tension.

So let's go back to the text. So we go back to,

so we read the first eight verses, right? So

let's go back, Nikki. So we're going to jump

back to verses 19 through 26. The scribes and

the chief priests sought to lay hands on him

at that hour, for they perceived that he had

told this parable against them, but they feared

the people. So they watched him and sent spies

who pretended to be sincere, that they might

catch him in something he said, so as to deliver

him up to the authority and jurisdiction of the

governor. So they asked him, teacher, we know

that you speak and teach rightly and show no

partiality, but truly teach the way of God. Is

it lawful for us to give tribute to Caesar or

not? But he perceived their craftiness and said

to him, show me a denarii. Whose likeness and

inscription does it have? They said Caesar's.

He said to them, then render to Caesar the things

that are Caesar's and to God's the things that

are God's. And they were not able. And they were

not able in the presence of the Lord to catch

him in what he said. But marveling at his answer,

they became silent. We all know this set of verses.

The leaders try again, this time through spies.

So now they're not even able to do it themselves.

They send somebody else. They ask, is it lawful

to give tribute to Caesar or not? Now they can't

do the religious authority way. They go to a

political trap. Is it lawful to give tribute

to Caesar or not? You see, if Jesus says yes,

he risks alienating his people. If he says no,

he risks being accused of rebellion. Both are

going to end him in the slammer. This is a pressure

of divided loyalty. Rome on one side, God on

the other. And look what's happening. Everybody

is waiting to see how he answers. And here's

the thing. Jesus isn't like, oh no, what am I

going to do? Jesus isn't like, I didn't see this

coming. He knows exactly what to do. He saw this

coming. That's why he's sovereign. What does

he do? He redefines the whole conversation. He

redefines what belongs to God. He asks for a

denarii. He asks for a coin. Whose likeness and

inscription does it have? Of course, they answer

Caesar's. He says, then give to Caesar what is

Caesar's. Give to God what is God's. To me, one

of the most profound verses in all of Scripture.

This statement by Jesus means so much to me.

And again, if you receive it, it might mean a

whole lot to you as well today. There are things

that belong to earthly authority. There just

is. How do I know? How many of you have already

filed your taxes? How many of you plan to? How

many of you don't? Don't raise your hands. We

live stream. There you go. There's human authority.

You just proved my point. Right? How many of

you have paid for a speeding ticket this year?

I'm just asking. I've not gotten one. Hey, we

got one. Thank you. Right? I'm not going to out

you. I so badly want to say your name, but I'm

not going to. But understand, there you go. Human

authority. Right? How many of you have done dishes

in the last month? Yeah, you just fell under

your wife's authority. There you go. All those

things. You have fell under human authority.

There is going to be earthly authority in life.

Right? That's why you stop at stop signs -ish.

Right? That's why you stop at red lights. That's

why when the train starts on the 31st and there's

going to be seven runs a day going through Munster,

my hope is when those gates are down, you stop.

I just hope you do. Understand, that is an earthly

authority. You will submit to that authority

or bad things will happen. But ultimately, everything

else belongs to God. Because the coin bears Caesar's

image. So the things of the earth, those things

belong to the earth. But whose image do you bear?

You belong to God. Your life, your heart, your

faith, your submission, yes, they belong to the

Lord. If you're here this morning and you've

never submitted your life to the Lord, I'm going

to ask that you consider that today. If you're

watching online, if you've never submitted your

life to the Lord, consider that today. Let's

find a time to talk about that. Because that

is an investment in your earthly future. Now,

by April 15th, when you submit your taxes and

you don't pay anything that you're supposed to

pay, and you just write, I've submitted my life

to Christ, and that's what you submit, you'll

probably get fined. And you'll probably have

to pay more. Because there are earthly authorities.

But when you get to heaven, and when Christ comes

out, and he says, Dad, you're with me, and you

go into glory, that's because your soul belongs

to God. And that's the real issue. And that's

what worship is. Because when the true king stands

before you and asks what authority you submit

to in your life, and all of us will come to that

point in life, whose authority do you submit

to? That's the turning point. Are you going to

be like the three -year -old and ask Jesus why?

Why do I have to give my life to you? Or are

you just going to fall on your knees and give

your life to the Lord? Are you going to ask for

justification like the Pharisees? Are you going

to receive it? Because the gospel answer is the

one standing before you is not just a teacher

but a king. This king that does something unexpected.

He doesn't seize power from you. He lays his

power down for you. The king who claims authority

over all things will allow himself to be handed

over to the rulers of the world in less than

two weeks. The king of heaven who will stand

before Pilate, the one that we worship today,

will be mocked. The one that will establish his

kingdom forever and ever and ever will hang on

a cross and say, Father, forgive them for they

know not what they do. You see, the ultimate

authority of Christ is not revealed by a sword

or a judgment. The ultimate authority of Christ

is revealed on the cross where he takes the judgment

we deserve. So that we can belong to him. Not

partially, but completely. So what is Luke showing

us? Where do we go from here? What do we take?

Well then, the leaders asked, who gave you this

authority? And they refused to accept the answer.

Now, we wrestle with authority. We struggle with

it. We want control over our lives. We want to

define truth on our own terms. But what does

Jesus call us to do? Surrender that. Not to oppress

you, but to let you live freely. Live freely

for the authority of the one who loves you. Who

defines truth over your life by his word. Because

you bear his image. Leicester Church, the coin

bears Caesar's image. You bear God's image. That

is one of the main truths little Clay is going

to understand in his life one day. That's why

he was baptized in the name of the Father, the

Son, and the Holy Spirit. That's why he wasn't

baptized in the name of Seth and Katie and his

brother and sister. He's a part of that family,

but he belongs to God. And so do you, and so

do I. So the question is not simply, what do

you give to God? The question I want to ask you

today is, do you belong to him? Because the King

has come. And under the pressure, the truth being

revealed, there's no neutral ground. You can't

have one hand in and one hand out. Are you all

in? Are you surrendering to Christ? Are you believing

the good news? Because as we're soon going to

see, the king is going to surrender that you

and I may have everlasting life in him. Let's

pray.