Authority: Who Needs It?

Jonathan Leeman’s latest book, Authority: How Godly Rule Protects the Vulnerable, Strengthens Communities, and Promotes Human Flourishing, comes at a pivotal time in Western culture. Plagued by angry partisanship, a recent worldwide pandemic, public exposes of abuse from well-known authority figures, and the internet’s assault on expertise, the very concept of authority has fallen on hard times. Public trust in the people in charge has eroded as the general public defaults to suspicion.

Leeman keenly illustrates the contemporary mood by pointing to the everyday experience of his readers. From popular culture, he observes that our movie heroes follow a predictable pattern: they tend to be individuals who stand up to evil authorities. Pointing to such figures as Luke Skywalker, Jason Bourne, and Disney princesses, Leeman writes, “It’s as if our moral imaginations cannot conceive of a different kind of hero, so saturated isn the Western soul with anti-authority-ism. The hero we cheer on is the person who resists the leadership, the system, the powers-that-be” (5). Leeman doesn’t delve into the content of contemporary pop music, but he would most certainly find more of the same there.

And who hasn’t noticed troubling trends in modern parenting? Leeman recounts a scene from a trendy coffee shop in Washington DC in which a “well-heeled DC power couple” desperately tries to placate an unruly three-year-old—a scene we’ve all witnessed in one context or another. In our world of “gentle parenting,” the tone of authority is missing and even seen by some reluctant parents as abusive. Leeman writes, “The husband pleads softly. The wife desperately offers toys and more treats. They reason with him as if he were an adult. It’s as if no one has ever explained that they’re the parents. That they can draw lines and impose consequences. That they don’t need the child’s consent, if it comes to it.” He concludes, “They don’t know how to exercise authority.” I would add that even if they knew how, many lack the moral courage to follow through with it.

Authority has never been easy. Whether you’re a parent or someone’s boss or a Little League coach or an exhausted teacher, you’re undoubtedly familiar with the pressure of having to make decisions and enforce rules within a domain in which not everyone is happy to comply. If you’re going to develop the moral courage to follow through, you first need to understand the nature of authority, why God has entrusted you with it, and how to use it responsibly. Enter Leeman’s book. While the book is full of practical wisdom, I want to focus on four strengths and one small weakness. But let me say this up front: I wish everyone would read this book. In fact, I’m so high on it that I’m planning to lead our church through it in the fall.

First, Leeman distinguishes between good authority and bad authority. Human beings tend to overreact. So often in history we have sought to right wrongs by overcorrecting out of one ditch into the another ditch on the other side of the road. In the reactionary age of the #MeToo movement, we have rightly called attention to horrible abuses of authority where those in power selfishly use their position to prey on the very people they are called to protect. In response, many conclude that authority is the problem. But Leeman wisely points out that the issue has never been authority per se, but the evil human tendency to abuse authority. As a theologian, Leeman roots this battle for authority in the story of God’s redemption through Christ. God created authority to order his world. Human sin introduced the corruption of authority. However, Christ has come to restore authority back to its original purpose. But that begs the question: What is God’s purpose for human authority?

Second, Leeman clarifies that God ordains four purposes for authority: that those under authority grow, that those in authority grow, that authority orders the world by creating groups and assignments, and that authority teaches about the nature of God. The supreme model for authority is Christ, the one who came “not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). Leeman writes, “Good authority is profoundly costly, usually involving the sacrifice of everything. It requires the end of personal desires. Meanwhile, those ‘under’ good authority often possess most of the advantages. They’re provided protection and opportunity, strength and freedom” (11). In other words, God doesn’t put someone in authority for their own advantage, but for the advantage of the ones they are called to lead. Finally, he clarifies that all authority is under submission to God’s ultimate authority (35). Good authority submits. Abuse, Leeman writes, is particularly heinous because “it lies about God and how he uses his authority” (41).

Third, Leeman rescues submission. I don’t know if any biblical teaching could be more at odds with American culture than the New Testament’s much-repeated admonition to submit to authority. In fact, all Christians are called to submit in one arena or another. Leeman writes, “People must learn to submit before they can rule, and the best leaders are the best submitters” (70). To submit well, we must recognize that the call to submit does not entail superiority of one person over another. We do not submit to people who are inherently superior to us. In fact, often we will find ourselves submitting to people less educated or less experienced. But we submit because God has placed someone in an office of authority. We’re submitting, not to the person, but to the office (72). Only God—the Creator of the office—has the right to command submission of one person to another. Because no human possesses absolute authority, the call to submit always has limitations. God would never call someone to submit to harm or unrighteousness.

Fourth, Leeman helpfully distinguishes between two different types of good authority. Anytime the topic of submission to authority comes up, we must deal with the elephant in the room—the call for wives to submit to their husbands. In many ways, Leeman has already taken the sting out of the admonition by emphasizing sacrificial service as the purpose of authority. However, he also makes a key distinction between two different kinds of authority: the authority of “command” and the authority of “counsel.” Leeman observes that God grants the power of discipline to many types of authority. The Bible points parents to the rod, governments to the sword, and churches to the keys—all mechanisms for enforcing what is commanded. However, not all kinds of authority possess a disciplinary mechanism. Husbands and pastors, Leeman contends, possess the authority of counsel. Thus, these leaders operate primarily through trust and relationship as they seek to gently lead those entrusted to them toward Christ.

Finally, Leeman’s book is full of practical wisdom. I won’t illustrate this point other than to say that he writes as an experienced pastor and father. He uses a lot of real-life illustrations to drive his points home. Many times, I found myself impressed by his ability to describe something I’ve experienced but never been able to articulate. There is something for everyone in this book.

And that leads me to my one critique. Leeman’s theological angle rightly leads him to focus on the offices of authority. However, he never explores more ambiguous authorities, or what some might call, cultural authorities. How should we look at the notion of expert authority or credentialed authority? How do we appreciate the value of expertise and training without losing the freedom to voice dissent? Are doctors authorities? What kind? These are questions that we face every day, and I would love to see Leeman weigh in with his typical wisdom on the matter.

In conclusion, you really need to read this book. You don’t have to choose between celebrating abuse of authority on the one hand and denying the legitimacy of authority on the other. Christ shows us that there’s a better way. We can use authority to model the character of God and to serve others toward flourishing, and we can submit to legitimate authority as a means to grow.

The post Authority: Who Needs It? appeared first on Remembrance of Former Days.