The Higher Liberty

Order the book The Higher Liberty

The Higher Liberty

by Gregory HHC, d
Minister of His Holy Church

Go to the Table of Contents

Usage of Scholars

“And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed [it] unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.” Matthew 16:17

There were many scholars among those who crucified Christ. Satan has always deluded the scholars first. It makes his job so much easier. The educated Saul did not know Christ nor the Gospel of the Kingdom and even persecuted Christ’s followers. Paul, through revelation, eventually counted all he had known before Christ as little more than dung.1

Concerning Ardel’s comments on the meaning of Romans 13 he also suggests that Case “appeals to one of the word’s lesser used meanings in the New Testament to render that unlikely meaning the meaning of the word in Romans 13.”

We must ask, lesser used by whom? Joseph Thayer’s first definition of the Greek word exousia2 is the “power of choice, liberty of doing as one pleases”. It is not until the fourth definition that we see anything like “the power of rule or government”. The truth is most modern scholars choose not to use the primary meaning of the word exousia because it would be an indictment of the condition of the modern Church and the state to which it has brought the people it was meant to serve.

Ardel Caneday goes on to suggest that Case “fails to show that the New Testament regularly employs ἐξουσία to refer to ruling authorities, as it clearly does in Romans 13.”

The Greek word exousia [ἐξουσία] appears over 90 times in the biblical text. At least 12 times it is speaking of an individual’s, personal right or liberty. Over 50 times exousia is found in verses speaking of the “power” of God and Jesus the Christ, the anointed King3, who appointed ambassadors and was proclaimed king by thousands of people including Pontius Pilate.

“And Pilate wrote a title, and put [it] on the cross. And the writing was, JESUS OF NAZARETH THE KING OF THE JEWS... in Hebrew, and Greek, and Latin. Then said the chief priests of the Jews to Pilate, Write not, The King of the Jews; but that he said, I am King of the Jews. Pilate answered, What I have written I have written.” John 19:19

More than a dozen times the word exousia is specifying a jurisdictional right to judge or a conflict of law between man’s government or the adversary of God, and the Kingdom of God.4 If people are insistent upon using the fourth definition of exousia “the power of rule or government”, they should be willing to apply it to Christ’s government and its jurisdictional right as one form of government. Jesus was ruled the King of Judea by Pilate.

Jesus as Christ was the anointed King of Judea, the remnant of Israel. Those who proclaimed Christ were able to live, worship and serve God, unless the people, like the Pharisees, rejected Christ and chose to go under the authority or power of another. Christ sealed that Roman proclamation, nailed to the cross, in His own blood.

“Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances,” Colossians 2:20

In Matthew 8:9 and Luke 7:8 exousia is used concerning an officer’s right to direct his men. That power comes from the contract his soldiers signed when they became members under his authority. The modern Church has removed the Kingdom from the “Gospel of the Kingdom” and brought the people back into bondage.

 

 

 

----------

Return to the Table of Contents, Alphabetical Index or purchase the book The Higher Liberty

Related Articles and Audio:

Romans 13 part 1
http://www.hisholychurch.org/media/audio/rm/Romans131.ram

ROMANS 13 verse 1 the higher liberty
Does God want us to be subject or to be free?
http://www.hisholychurch.org/sermon/romans13.php

Romans 13 and I Peter 2,13-14
Is the Bible consistent about setting men free or does it contradict itself?
http://www.hisholychurch.org/sermon/romanspeter.php

Romans 13, NN Video Series:7-10 4:32
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SEMYx6affo

Footnotes: