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
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.
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.