The Purpose and Power of Authority

Book excerpt: In Understanding the Purpose and Power of Authority, best-selling author Dr. Myles Munroe turns the widely accepted but counterfeit concept of authority upside down. Then, he reveals God’s original intent, showing us how to live in the freedom of our own personal authority in God’s great design and to respond positively to the inherent authority of others. Many people view authority as something oppressive, stifling, and even fearful. All of us hate to be controlled or manipulated. Our negative concepts and experiences of authority produce life-draining emotions—fear, distrust, suspicion, friction, defensiveness, antagonism, stress, worry, and dread. Others have a limited perspective of what authority means, believing that only people who reach a certain “level” in life can exercise it. They don’t believe they could ever be called to a place of authority. The truth is, we were all created for authority, and we are all answerable to the authority of others. Authority is what we’re authorized to do by our inherent purposes. You have a God-given calling to develop your own personal authority to carry out your unique purpose in life.