5^th October 2011

Rev Dr Max Champion at St John's UCA Mt Waverley Sunday 25 September 2011

Lessons -- Psalm 146; 1 Corinthians 1:10-18; Matthew 21:23-27

As Jesus was teaching, the religious leaders came and said to him 'By
what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this
authority?' (Matthew 21:23 para NRSV)

People in authority are very clever at denigrating the credentials of those who challenge them. They say, 'What right do you have to question our authority?' This is true in every sphere of life. It is true in this encounter between the religious leaders and Jesus.

Jesus certainly had authority. He commanded attention. What he said and did could not be ignored. Love him or hate him, he had a presence. People took notice when he healed the sick, forgave the sinful, condemned the smug, cleansed the temple and accepted titles that closely linked him to the will of God. Jesus had an authenticity the like of which had not been seen before!

Unlike other charismatic figures, he attributed this 'authority' not to himself but to the One who had sent him. 'I can do nothing on my own authority' (John 5:30, 12:49). 'All authority on heaven and on earth has been given to me' (Matthew 28:18f).

This was like a red rag to a bull. The religious authorities thought they had a God-given 'right' to teach the law and the prophets. Thus Jesus'
claim proved to them that he had 'no right' to be taken seriously. He was a blasphemous impostor without any credibility. He simply was not 'authorised' to say and do what he said and did -- especially in the Temple where the chief priests were 'the authorities'. Unauthorised people like Jesus should keep out!

Jesus does not directly answer their angry question. He does not get out his degrees in theology and medicine to justify his teachings and healing.
He does not get defensive or go on the attack. Instead, he asks a simple question that puts them in a quandary. 'Did the baptism of John come from heaven or was it of human origin?' (v25). Did it come from God or not?

The 'authorities' are so flummoxed they cannot give a simple answer.

* If they say 'John's authority was from God', their hypocrisy will be exposed. Already they have grumbled about John the Baptist's ascetic life- style (Matthew 11:18,19) and dismissed his demand that they, like everyone else, needed to radically change their ways (Matthew 3:1ff). They can hardly turn around and say that he is a true prophet.

* If on the other hand they say 'John's authority is of human origin', the people who regarded John as a prophet would turn against them.

Their response is rather comical. As authorities who think they have the right to question Jesus' authority, they cannot decide whether or not John the Baptist -- and the One to whom he points -- receive their authority from God. So they stammer, 'We do not know.' (v27a)

What kind of authority is that? If, by their own admission, they are incompetent to discern whether God was at work in John the Baptist, then neither are they competent to question Jesus. They lose credibility and disqualify themselves as authorities on matters of faith.

Jesus lets them squirm. If they cannot answer a simple question then 'neither will he tell them by what authority he is doing these things'
(v27b). He forces them to re-think what it means to act with divine authority by simply pointing them to what is taking place in his ministry.
As he says in the following passage, the unrighteous 'tax collectors and prostitutes who believed John the Baptist and changed their ways'
(vv31,32) shall go into the Kingdom of God ahead of authorities who think they have righteousness on their side.

Jesus challenges them to see, in his acts of mercy to reconcile the lost and heal the broken, that his authority comes from the God of grace.
Indeed, the whole of his self-giving life, death and resurrection -- of which this brief episode is part -- is the sign of God's love for humanity. This is authority that we can trust -- authentic, humane and redemptive!

The question of authority is behind all the controversies facing our church and society. Who says? What right do you or your group have to tell me / us what to believe/do? Behind debates about Christian Education in schools, the use of the Lord's Prayer in Parliament, the establishment of a charter of human rights, the 'marriage' rights of same-sex relationships and suchlike are conflicting ideas of authority.

Today we face a crisis of authority. The authority of Christianity and humanitarianism (which have played a pivotal role in shaping our Western ideas of freedom and responsibility) are under attack. In the Churches the crisis is evident in debates on controversial matters that often set the 'authority of the Bible' against the 'authority of the individual'.

* This should concern all Christians. By what authority do we speak? What is the nature of biblical authority? Does Scripture authorise us to take everything literally or to pick-and-choose according to our personal taste?

* And what do we make of the fact that there are many sacred writings that claim to give us authentic words about life. Should we follow those in the church who say that there are many authoritative ways to the realm of God?
Should not we accept their basic idea that individuals and groups alone have the right to decide what is right for them?

This may seem like the most sensible path to take if it were not for the fact that the Good News for all people is that 'the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth' (John 1:14). The authoritative Word of God is not a sacred book but an authentic Person in whom God's
will is embodied.

This is well stated in the Uniting Church's Basis of Union where Jesus is described as the authoritative 'Word of God who acquits the guilty, gives life to the dead and brings into being what otherwise could not exist'
(para 4) and where the Bible is described as the 'unique testimony' that 'nourishes', 'regulates' and 'controls' the Gospel of Christ (para 5).

Nothing is said in the New Testament, the historic creeds or the Basis of Union about believing in the 'authority of Scripture'. Hebrew Scriptures were authoritative sources for understanding the goodness and grace of God. New Testament writers and thinkers in the early Church drew together different strands of history and faith in order to speak to their generation about the magnificence of God's grace to Israel and the nations. As time went on, these writings too were given 'authority' as witnesses to God's grace in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.

In any discussion of authority it is crucial to see that the question of the authority of Scripture is part of a larger picture centred on the authority of Christ.

The Bible is 'authoritative' only in a derivative sense. It receives its authority from the exercise of God's sovereign power and love 'for all nations' displayed in the history of the Hebrew people and embodied in Jesus. It is 'authoritative' only as it testifies to the 'author' of all
things: the Creator and Reconciler in whom hope for the fulfilment of history, the redemption of our humanity and the renewal of the whole earth has been uniquely revealed.

Much more could be said on authority. As Paul reminds us, and as we know from current disputes between 'evangelicals' and 'liberals,' there are always competing 'authorities' in the Church (1 Corinthians1:10ff). The decisive thing is that we must not mistake the authority of a book or a charismatic figure for the authority of God supremely embodied in the cross (1 Corinthians 1:18) and resurrection of Christ (1 Corinthians 15).
In him is the sign of hope for a world scarred by sin, evil, affliction and death!

Today, this authoritative story is disputed, both inside and outside the Church. Wherever the 'authorities' dispute this reality they have no authority. Still, opposition is to be expected. Even Jesus did not force people to acknowledge the divine origin of his authority!

At a time when claims to know the truth are thought to be authoritarian and individuals and groups are thought to be the ultimate source of authority, what could be more important than to point to the One whose crucified and risen love for broken humanity is unparalleled in history?

-----------------

Rev Dr Max Champion is minister in the St John's Uniting Church, Mt Waverley, Victoria, Australia. Dr Champion is Chair of the Assembly of
Confessing Congregations within the UCA.