Where does the teaching come from that believers have divine authority over their households (specifically relating to prayer, at least)? And what does it mean? I don't know if this is controversial or not, but it feels so to me, as I do not see the scripture to back it up. Thoughts?
I am supposed to lead a prayer meeting which includes the powerpoint line: FATHER, I THANK YOU FOR EMPOWERING (ME) and (US) WITH DIVINE AUTHORITY OVER OUR HOUSEHOLDS IN YESHUA’S NAME, and where some prayer requests (for healing, but not necessarily limited to healing) are indicated as under congregation or family authority.
And also: We declare that every agent of infirmity must lose its hold over their lives in the name of Yeshua.
Any suggestions to change these wordings to something more scriptural? I do have a bit of leeway here...
This is largely modern contemporary Charismatic practice, rather than something historically Christian or biblical.
Our Lord says to the seventy-two apostles, "
Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing shall hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven." - Luke 10:19-20
Now the question of authority can be understood in different ways. And that can make "authority" a sometimes dangerous word.
The historic understanding of the Christian Church is, as I noted above, that this was spoken to the seventy-two apostles. This may be a surprising phrase to hear to those perhaps unfamiliar with it. But the New Testament doesn't just mention Jesus' Twelve Apostles, but a good many apostles. Which is why, for example. St. Paul is an Apostle, but he was not one of the Twelve. Likewise, others such as Apollos, Barnabas, and Silas are all named as apostles in Scripture. In the Gospels we read that Jesus sent out seventy-two, that "sent out" is the basis of the word apostle, from the Greek
apostolos, "one who is sent out". So Christianity has always spoken of the "Seventy Apostles" (though, technically, seventy-two in number, it is rounded down here). Tradition even attaches names here, though the Gospel texts never gives us any names of these individuals.
But that they were apostles is important to the historic Christian view. Christ chose and sent out His Apostles to do the apostolic work which He commissioned for them. That meant that the apostles did, indeed, have Christ's authority when preaching, speaking, and working.
Today, where is that apostolic authority? And what does it look like? Depending on who you ask there are different opinions.
For those who believe in a strict Apostolic Succession and that the Office of the Keys is only valid with Apostolic Succession, apostolic authority is therefore found in the Historic Episcopate. In the Holy Orders given to those who become bishops--and by extension presbyters, and in a smaller sense deacons as well. Which is why in the Catholic and Orthodox Churches valid Holy Orders is necessary for the bestowing of this historic grace of God for the Church, coming down from the Apostles to the present.
In many modern Protestant churches, views can be all over the map. But many may come to the view that each individual believer has this kind of authority. And that tends to get emphasized and amplified very strongly in modern charismatic Protestant traditions. Such as what you have described in your Opening Post.
In the Lutheran tradition--of which I am part of--we would regard both positions above as perhaps extreme. What Christ gave He gave to the whole Church, what was given to the Apostles was for the whole Church; and is therefore the common property of all Christians. Not of a single person, or group of persons. But not only does that mean that it isn't exclusively the possession of, say, the Pope (as a pretty obvious example), but it also means that it isn't my possession as an individual. It is our possession as God's people. It isn't a private possession, but a public possession. It is the common property of the Christian Church. And because of that, for the sake of good order, the Church has always called and ordained ministers for the express purpose of exercising the Office of the Keys, as ministers of God's Word and Sacraments.
So that the "authority" of the Church is expressed not as a private possession of anyone; but rather is the public, common possession of the whole Church; and is therefore found in our reception and confession of apostolic teaching and practice.
Christ's authority is found in His Word and Sacraments, in the received faith which has come down to us from the Apostles, as expressed most importantly in the words of divinely inspired Holy Scripture. And, ergo, the Scriptures are authoritative, and the Church's authority depends upon her faithful retention and faithful confession of the Gospel, and the word of truth as she has received it and as it is found in Scripture.
Thus no person is "the authority", but rather Christ's authority is through the Church, but not the Church speaking its own opinion, but in the Church's speaking the truth of the word. Which is to say, something isn't true because the Church says so; but rather the Church has the obligation to speak what is true because of the truth she herself has already received, and she is therefore to speak that which has already been spoken.
There's no magic to be had here--we don't go around "claiming" things with magical thinking or magical incantations.
We instead come together, and live, in our vocations of life as Christ's disciples, in communion together in the Church, through our shared faith and confession.
Indeed, "resist the devil and he must flee". The devil is a liar and a coward. Make the sign of the cross, pray, confess the Creed, whatever--it is your faith that guards you against his fiery darts (Ephesians 6:16).
That is why our Lord said, "Nevertheless, do not rejoice because the spirits are submitting to you, but rather rejoice because your names are written in the heavens". We are Christ's, we belong to Him, that is the greatness that we should celebrate and rejoice in. Of course the devils cannot stand against that, because their Foe is the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, who has conquered the devil and all of hell.
Christos Anesti! Christ is Risen!
-CryptoLutheran
