John 19:11 - ...You would not have any power or authority whatsoever...if it were not given you from above.
According to Jesus, all human power and authority comes down from God. It is distributed to each according to God's will, which all know can be so inscrutable.
Isaiah 55:8 - For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways, says the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.
So God says in His Word that we are to position ourselves under all of the authorities and powers which He places over us so that he may richly bless us and not punish us.
Romans 13: 1 - 7 - Let every person be loyally subject to the governing (civil) authorities. For there is no authority except from God [by His permission, His sanction], and those that exist do so by God's appointment.
Therefore he who resists and sets himself up against the authorities resists what God has appointed and arranged [in divine order]. And those who resist will bring down judgment upon themselves [receiving the penalty due them]
For civil authorities are not a terror to [people of] good conduct, but to [those of] bad behavior. Would you have no dread of him who is in authority? Then do what is right and you will receive his approval and commendation. For he is God's servant for your good.
But if you do wrong, [you should dread him and] be afraid, for he does not bear and wear the sword for nothing. He is God's servant to execute His wrath (punishment, vengeance) on the wrongdoer.
Therefore one must be subject, not only to avoid God's wrath and escape punishment, but also as a matter of principle and for the sake of conscience.
God constantly works in the lives of men and women thru the powers and authorities which He places over us thru Divinely ordained life circumstances. This is a huge subject and one to which, over time, I will keep adding more Scriptures and testimonies. Suffice to say for now that we need to see anyone who is over us in any way (even if that person or those people are being difficult to deal with) as being a divinely ordained minister for our good!
So, learn to hear God speaking to you in the words and actions of any of your authorities including all civil authorities and...
parents
older relatives
older siblings
your boss(es) at work
any administrator(s) over you
your church officers
etc.
In fact, Jesus admonished us to go so far as to consider ourselves as being servants of all if we wished to be great in God's sight!
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