Importance of Understanding Jurisdiction

"Give me that money!" This statement has different connotations depending on the relationship between the speaker and one to whom he is speaking. If for example, the speaker is a thief, the appropriate response from the soon-to-be-victim would be to defend himself with appropriate force or escape. It would be inappropriate to simply surrender the money unless no alternative existed. On the other hand, if it is a parent speaking to a child who has just taken a $20 bill off the table that was not his, then the statement demands obedience.

What is the difference? Jurisdiction and authority. In the first case, the thief has no jurisdiction whatsoever. He has no right to demand that anyone give up any money to him. He may be armed, thus forcing the surrender of the money from an unarmed victim, but that does not give him either jurisdiction or authority. In the second case, the parent has both authority and jurisdiction, necessitating compliance. These two cases are very understandable in that authority and jurisdiction are either both absent or both present.

What if authority and jurisdiction do not coexist? Which one takes precedence? The Bible gives us the clear answer to this question in Acts where Peter and John are brought before the Jewish leaders to answer for their repeated flaunting of their authority. The Jewish leaders beat the apostles and let them go on the condition that they keep quiet about Jesus. The apostles response is simple: "We must obey God rather than men."

Did these Jewish leaders have authority? Yes, they did. They were religious leaders as well as pseudo-political leaders underneath the Roman regime. Therefore, the apostles did not refuse to obey them because they lacked authority. Since the apostles were Jews, they were underneath the authority of these Jewish leaders. However, the question was not one of authority, but of jurisdiction. The Jewish leaders had authority, but God's authority trumps man's authority in every case. Further, the Jewish leaders were condemning the apostles without any Biblical foundation. Their religious jurisdiction does not allow them to condemn heretics based on their own definitions. Essentially, they did not have the right to make up the rules as they went along and expect others to obey. That was outside their jurisdiction.

Thus, a person can have authority without having the jurisdiction to act with authority. A police officer has authority, but only within his jurisdiction. We must then recover the lost legal philosophy of limited jurisdiction in order to restore the many imbalances that exist in our society.

The idea that the leadership of a church has authority is a Biblical, but unpopular, doctrine. However, there are those in the Fundamentalist camp that would take the proper authority of pastors or elders within a church, concentrate that authority within one person, and then claim that there are no limits on their jurisdiction. Because of this false doctrine, the majority of the Christian community has totally rejected the idea of authority within the Church.

Men have been beaten down by modern culture, public education, and even the Church. Men have been taught that their masculinity and aggression are bad and must be suppressed. Women, conversely, have been taught to insert themselves into work, political, and social situations where aggression, ambition, and assertiveness are required, making them sacrifice their femininity. Children have suffered because their parents have no idea how to operate within the confines of a nuclear family. Thus, authority and jurisdiction have become twisted within our families today. Roles and responsibilities are confused, and foundations are destroyed. Without a positive, clear example of a solid family in society, we have degenerated into a culture that accepts broken homes, sodomite relationships, and overall lack of commitment.

Finally, and farthest reaching, is the complete disregard for jurisdiction within our government. A human government without limitations on its jurisdiction is an abomination and threat to liberty in every case. Why? Because mankind is flawed. Sin has destroyed our ability to see truth clearly and do what is right. Our thirst for power, influence, money, and fame lead us to do terrible things. Put one person or many people into positions of power without jurisdictional limits and they will parley their authority in one area into authority in others. Finally ending up with the power to force compliance in areas where they have no business even making suggestions, such as how we run our churches or homes.

As is the case with so many of the critical failings of our society today, this one began with the Church mingling jurisdictions and compromising on the Biblical teachings of law and jurisdiction. If we believe that the Bible is truly sufficient for all matters of faith and practice, then it should hold the answers to where the lines of jurisdiction must be drawn in a proper society made up of families, churches, and secular government. In the posts to come, we will investigate precepts, patterns, and principles that should clarify these lines of demarcation, allowing us to repent of the apathy that has allowed encroachments on our liberty to occur. Maybe if the Church repents and begins to fight for a Biblical society, God will see fit to release America from the captivity and depravity within which we are sinking deeper and deeper as time moves on.