02.04. The Sharing of Authority

Matthew, in Matthew 28:1-20, shows us the King on the mountain in Galilee which He had appointed as the rendezvous for His disciples. He is speaking to the group of followers who surround Him: "All authority hath been given unto me in heaven and in earth." (Matthew 28:18) It may seem a strange statement to many Christians, but it is nevertheless a profound spiritual truth that the authority of the risen Head at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, is planned to reach its full development and manifestation through His body. The Son of God became incarnate, not merely that He might save men from their sins, but also that He might bring man to that place of dominion over the works of God which was planned in the counsels of eternity (Psalms 8:1-9). Today, the inspired writer tells us (Hebrews 2:9), "we see Jesus" holding in trust for redeemed mankind all that the race has lost through sin. Our Lord has Himself taken the Headship, and is forming for Himself a body through which He will fulfil the original divine purpose.

Much of the weakness of the church is due to its failure to understand and appropriate this all-important truth. It is ours, as individual members of the body, to seek that the authority of Christ shall come with full acceptance into our spirits. It is not enough to know and acknowledge that He is our fulness; there must be as well the apprehension of the complementary truth that we are also His fulness (See Ephesians 1:23). What an amazing honor and dignity is thus purposed for us: "heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ" (Romans 8:17). For the coming of age of the body, and its entrance upon the prepared inheritance, all the rest of God’s creation is waiting with earnest expectation.