:: In.a.Mirror.Dimly ::

While in college in the Midwest I used to attend this church that was a pretty happy, high-strung place. They had a band up front and a bouncing choir that sang as you walked in. Depending on their song choice, you could describe the atmosphere as electric.

Everything crashed when the pastors’ plans for a new building met strong resistance among a vocal minority who held up the process by voting against it, landing them 1% below the 75% majority demanded in the by-laws. The senior pastor followed this by preaching a sermon on Numbers 16 when the earth swallowed Korah and his followers who defied the decisions of God’s chosen leaders for the people.

Neither story has a particularly happy ending.

While these instances of authority abuse among leaders are easy to spot, every Christian has a a certain measure of authority and that authority can be abused. We all can and do abuse our authority at times, and that makes it quite hard for us to love one another.

This week we’re looking at the things that clutter our relationships with fellow Christians and make it hard for us to love one another. Authority abuse is at the top of my list, and I want to look at the ways the average Christian can abuse authority today.

What is Our Authority?

Jesus gave us authority to bind and loose things on heaven and earth, we are commissioned to proclaim the Gospel, and we have the responsibility of helping one another as part of Christ’s body. We can make a real difference in the lives of others, either helping God’s Kingdom advance or neglecting our roles by either inaction or misusing our authority.

How Do We Abuse It?

We all abuse our authority sometimes, but we generally only notice leaders because they’re the most visible. However, every time I have set myself up as a judge over another Christian and fail to pursue a redemptive and constructive course of action I’m falling short of my calling.

I’ve seen this kind of abuse plenty of times online as well when Christians accuse others of watering down the Gospel, call their salvation into question, or set themselves up in authority over another believer in an inappropriate way. We generally see authority abuse when one Christian assumes the role of gatekeeper for other Christians, a position that God never intended anyone but himself to occupy.

How Should We Use It?

All that to say, we have a responsibility to watch out for one another. That means we should speak up in a relational and redemptive manner when a fellow Christian is tangled up in sin or embracing troubling beliefs. However, we come alongside of them as equals who are pursuing God together and who share in the same measure of God’s authority.

Our goal is not to establish ourselves as the brilliant authority figure with all of the answers who will defend the faith, but rather to help fellow Christians attain the full measure of maturity and authority that God has given to them. We don’t want them to forever depend on us or to be alienated from God based on the way we relate with them.

We have been given authority for the benefit of others, making us servants who should automatically opt for the lowest positions, rather than using others to build up our spiritual merit badges. When we use our authority as servants we are in a perfect position to love others, to be loved, and to spot those who are abusing authority.

Understanding our proper position among fellow believers is critical in determining how we relate with the supposed “heretics” or those we deem “irrelevant traditionalists.”

Tomorrow’s Post:  We’ll dig deeper into the ways labels such as “heretics” and “irrelevant” impact Christian community and some suggestions to move beyond these labels.