Authority
Thanks to Nee (1972), my mind was able to connect the dots in one centripetal motion to cause a revelation in my mind.
After reading this excerpt, I felt I owed all authority figures in my life some mark of respect. And I wanted to meet as many authority figures as possible.
This is what it said:
'Some think our Lord's prayer in Gethsemane when His sweat fell like great drops of blood was due to the weakness of His flesh, to His fear of drinking the cup.
Not at all, for the prayer in Gethsemane is on the same principle as 1 Samuel 15:22. It is the highest prayer in which our Lord expresses His obedience to God's authority.
Our Lord obeys God's authority first, more than sacrificing Himself on the cross. He prays earnestly that He may know what is the will of God. He does not say, "I want to be crucified, I must drink the cup." He merely insists on obeying.
He says in effect, "If it be possible for me not to go to the cross," but even here He has not His own will. Immediately he continues with, "but Thy will be done."
The will of God is the absolute thing; the cup (that is, the crucifixion) is not absolute. Should God will it that the Lord not be crucified, then He would not need to go to the cross.
Before He knew the will of God, the cup and God's will were two separate things; and after He knew it was of God, however, the cup and God's will merged into one.
Will represents authority. Therefore, to know God's will and to obey it is to be subject to authority. But how can one be subject to authority if he does not pray or have the heart to know God's will?
As God's servants, the first thing we should meet is authority. Before we can work for God we must be overturned by His authority.
Our entire relationship with God is regulated by whether or not we have met authority. If we have, then we shall encounter authority everywhere, and being thus restrained by God we can begin to be used by Him.'
Furthermore, after reading this passage, I realised that what is in my cup is the crucifixion of Christ, the suffering He endured, and the resurrection in which he defeated the ultimate of all fears: death. My cup will never be absolute, for it focuses on the crucifixion, the time and place of His death for our sins. It is important for me to always remember what Christ did for me to be able to enter into His kingdom, but I want to focus not on the cup of suffering anymore, but on His Will. I want to focus on the Will of God, the absolute, the invitation to everyone to enter the kingdom of God.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Nee, Watchman. Spiritual Authority. Richmond, Va.:Christian Fellowship Publisher, 1972.
THE END.
After reading this excerpt, I felt I owed all authority figures in my life some mark of respect. And I wanted to meet as many authority figures as possible.
This is what it said:
'Some think our Lord's prayer in Gethsemane when His sweat fell like great drops of blood was due to the weakness of His flesh, to His fear of drinking the cup.
Not at all, for the prayer in Gethsemane is on the same principle as 1 Samuel 15:22. It is the highest prayer in which our Lord expresses His obedience to God's authority.
Our Lord obeys God's authority first, more than sacrificing Himself on the cross. He prays earnestly that He may know what is the will of God. He does not say, "I want to be crucified, I must drink the cup." He merely insists on obeying.
He says in effect, "If it be possible for me not to go to the cross," but even here He has not His own will. Immediately he continues with, "but Thy will be done."
The will of God is the absolute thing; the cup (that is, the crucifixion) is not absolute. Should God will it that the Lord not be crucified, then He would not need to go to the cross.
Before He knew the will of God, the cup and God's will were two separate things; and after He knew it was of God, however, the cup and God's will merged into one.
Will represents authority. Therefore, to know God's will and to obey it is to be subject to authority. But how can one be subject to authority if he does not pray or have the heart to know God's will?
As God's servants, the first thing we should meet is authority. Before we can work for God we must be overturned by His authority.
Our entire relationship with God is regulated by whether or not we have met authority. If we have, then we shall encounter authority everywhere, and being thus restrained by God we can begin to be used by Him.'
Furthermore, after reading this passage, I realised that what is in my cup is the crucifixion of Christ, the suffering He endured, and the resurrection in which he defeated the ultimate of all fears: death. My cup will never be absolute, for it focuses on the crucifixion, the time and place of His death for our sins. It is important for me to always remember what Christ did for me to be able to enter into His kingdom, but I want to focus not on the cup of suffering anymore, but on His Will. I want to focus on the Will of God, the absolute, the invitation to everyone to enter the kingdom of God.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Nee, Watchman. Spiritual Authority. Richmond, Va.:Christian Fellowship Publisher, 1972.
THE END.
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