Note #0304 (28 September 2004)
Chief of Chaplains
Chaplain (BG) Donald R. Miller
Greetings in the name of our faithful Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.
On the Use of Military Structure and Ranks
Not everyone appreciates the military way of doing things with all its ranks and
chain of command and orders, etc. But I am convinced that all who understand
authority, unit mission and the discipline necessary to carry out that mission
will appreciate that our military must operate on that basis.
In fact our Lord never condemned the military and it ways. In His dealing with a
centurion (Matthew 8.5 - 13), who admitted that he was a man under authority and
who had himself the authority to command the actions of others, what impressed
the Lord most about the centurion was his utter faith that our Lord had the
authority to command at a distance the healing of the centurion's servant. The
centurion understood authority.
In my opinion no one understands and appreciates authority like Christians. They
know that only those who call upon the name of the Lord will be saved:
Romans 10.9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and
believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
10 For with the heart one believes to righteousness, and with the mouth confession
is made to salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, "Whoever believes on Him will
not be put to shame." 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for
the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. 13 For "whoever calls
upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."
Which is drawn from the prophecy of Joel:
Joel 2.32 And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the LORD
shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverance,
as the LORD has said, among the remnant whom the LORD calls.
They also know that our love for the Lord is expressed in our obedience to His
commands:
John 14.15 "If you love Me, keep My commandments."
And there is what I call the "umbrella" commandment under which is subsumed all
the biblical references to issues of authority:
Exodus 20.12 "Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon
the land which the LORD your God is giving you.
Ephesians 6.1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2
"Honor your father and mother," which is the first commandment with promise: 3
"that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth."So, just as
the command not to commit adultery is meant to cover all the expressions of
sexual immorality referred to in the Bible, the commandment to honor our parents
covers all the issues of authority pertinent to life on this planet.
During my years of ministry I have discovered some startling truths connected to
the Fifth Commandment, namely:
1. First, as I have said, it covers all the biblical references to issues of
authority as regulated by our heavenly Father.
2. The Bible teaches us that God has ordered an authority structure in the
family, the Church and the State.
3. The Bible teaches us that in these structures there are those who are
considered to be superiors, inferiors and equals. Now all of these individuals
are equal in the sight of God but because of their age, gifts and callings may
be regarded as either superiors or inferiors or equals.
4. The Bible regulates how superiors are to relate to inferiors, how inferiors
are to relate to superiors and how equals are to relate to one another.
5. Further, the Bible exposes us to the types of sins each of these classes is
prone to commit toward the others and summons them to their appropriate
responsibilities.
For example: the typical sins of inferiors against their superiors include
failure to respect and honor them, the neglect of their duties toward them, the
envying of them, the contempt shown to them, the unwillingness to imitate their
virtues and graces, failing to offer up prayer and thanksgiving for them, being
slow to defend and protect their anointing, not bearing with their infirmities
and excusing them in love, and rebellion against their persons and offices with
regard to their lawful counsels, commands, and corrections. Inferiors, simply
put, cannot treat their superiors any old way they choose to.
Similarly, the sins of superiors toward inferiors are: the neglect of their
duties toward them; the inappropriate seeking of their own glory, profit, or
pleasure; the issuing of unlawful or unreasonable commands; the failure to love,
pray for and bless them; the failure to instruct, counsel and admonish them when
it is appropriate; not commending and rewarding those who do well; not
disciplining those who do ill; the encouraging of them to do what is evil and
not to what is good; correcting them harshly and without warrant; carelessly
exposing them to temptation, sin and danger; provoking them to wrath; and not
setting forth an example to them of maturity and spirituality. Superiors cannot
treat inferiors any old way they want to either.
And what about the sins of equals? The sins of equals are: the neglect of their
duties toward one another; the undervaluing of the worth of one another rather
than preferring the other over oneself; the envying of the gifts of one another;
the grieving rather than the rejoicing at the advancement or prosperity of one
another; and exercising authority over one another.
It is a bit overwhelming is it not? But our God really cares whether we
understand and respect authority!
The Corps has chosen to follow the military model and has done so legitimately.
And with our understanding of structure and authority we have the potential to
make it shine brightly as we carry out our mission in a dark and hurting world.
For those who would like to study this matter further:
a. Contact me for helpful references.
b. In the New Testament our Lord is referred as Savior 16
times. How many times is He referred to as Lord?
God bless.
Chaplain (BG) Donald R. Miller
Chief of Chaplains