What the Bible says about Church, Authority of
(From Forerunner Commentary)
A misunderstanding of the symbol, the key of David (see Isaiah 22:22; 9:6; Matthew 28:18), may have fostered abuses of church or ministerial authority. For decades, the church interpreted Revelation 3:7 to mean the church had "God's government," and the ministry too often wielded this club with a heavy hand (Ezekiel 34:1-10; Jeremiah 23:1-3). Revelation 3:7, however, is clear that the key of David belongs, not to the church, but to the One who is holy and true, Jesus Christ. He alone has the authority to govern the church and to open and shut doors before it.
Jeremiah 23:20 predicts we will fully understand this problem "in the latter days." Having experienced man's misuse of Christ's authority and the church's scattering, we should now see that in its administration, the church must be very careful to stay within the bounds of true Christianity and not usurp God's prerogatives.
Staff
The Seven Churches (Part Eight): PhiladelphiaRelated Topics: Abuse of Authority | Abuse of Ministerial Authority | Authority | Authority of Christ | Authority, Abuse of | Church, Authority of | God's Government | Government | Key of David | Philadelphia | Scattering | Scattering of Church