John Stott was an Anglican priest. Time magazine once named him one of the one hundred most influential people in the world in 2005. He was a pastor and authored more than fifty books. That’s common information you can find about him online. I encourage you to learn about his ministry.
Speaking of Jesus, Stott once said, ” His authority on earth allows us to dare to go to all the nations. His authority in heaven gives us our only hope of success. And his presence with us leaves us no other choice.”
Let’s see how that connects to our reading today.
The risen Lord met his disciples in a locked room on the first Resurrection Sunday. There’s no indication this is true, but I always imagine them placing any furniture they had in front of the door as well. Their fear was that what happened to Jesus on Friday might happen to them.
When Christ appeared to them, they didn’t seem to recognize him. Once he showed them his hands and side, they rejoiced. I read that to suggest there was a double-take involved.
The disciples’ worry was legitimate. After all, Jesus had already told them they might be excommunicated or even killed. What’s worse, those who would seek to kill them would profess they were offering a service to God in doing so (John 16:2).
Jesus did not hide that reality from his followers. Remember when he said, “If they persecuted me, they will persecute you as well” (John 15:20).
But the Lord also gave them something else to share with him.
They may share in his suffering. They would also share in his authority. He doesn’t say it outright. Notice what he tells them: If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”
Let’s be clear. Only God can forgive sins. So, there’s has to be some other sense of what Jesus allows the church to do. It has to do with our mission as the body of Christ. We were given the authority of Christ to do his work.
Unfortunately, Christians can take this authority too far or misunderstand it altogether. According to John’s telling of the gospel story, sin is not all the moral failings of our lives. Sin is disbelieving Jesus. With the Spirit’s guidance, followers of Jesus can now show the world what the abundant life of Jesus looks like so the world can know Jesus. The church becomes God’s presence in the world. As Jesus people, we have the authority to teach God’s truth and share the love of God.
Now, let’s not confuse our authority.
God gave us the authority to share the good news. We do not control it. Once we try, it becomes something else. And we do not control how others receive it. Trying to control the gospel and people builds our own sense of importance. We become gatekeepers and judges instead of gospel tellers. Our authority is not in titles or even how long you’ve been a part of the church. That’s pride, and pride leads to control.
Control seeks to shape God and others into our image of what is right and true. Our authority rests in who Jesus is and frees people to know the image of God within them.
We must rely on Spirit’s guidance to exercise our authority with faithfulness. That means we need to be in constant prayer and fellowship with God. Remember last week when we talked about abiding in Christ? That all comes to play once again.
God gave us authority to show the world the difference the love of God makes. The authority Jesus imparted to the church gives us the courage to reach the world, to hope for the world’s turn to Christ and to realize it isn’t our choice to share. It’s our mission.
Stay blessed…john
