Authority and Submission; Dangers of Silence

Dangers of Ministry – E3

"Give me one pure and holy passion; give me one magnificent obsession. Give me one glorious ambition for my life; To know and follow hard after You."

This prayer (song written by Mark Altrogge in 1988) captures the difference between pure ambition and distorted ambition in ministry. Pure ambition seeks God Himself; distorted ambition seeks outcomes, applause, and spiritual milestones—even when they cost obedience. Much of what we celebrate in ministry today looks like zeal, but often lacks submission to the heart of God.

It is a sad thing to be ambitious about clocking milestones and achieving things in God’s Kingdom without reflecting the heart of God. For example, a minister who is ambitious about winning 1,000 souls for Christ, and yet, cannot love his wife, or is not committed to raising his children in the way of the Lord at home. Or another example, a minister of God who cannot be faithful to his wife and yet, has sworn loyalty or faithfulness to his pastor or church.

If our ambitions have not been carved out to follow both the spirit and the letter of the Word of God, we may simply be performing righteousness—trying to look good to our community rather than obedient to God. Essentially, you will stop making the right choices to favour the community or the people we are trying to impress, to the detriment of God’s heart; His will.

It becomes even more tricky, when you’re trying to look good in front of a figure of authority: your deacon, pastor, prophet, apostle, etc. Referencing what I mentioned in the first post, there may be confusion here; we may be eager to be in their good books (as anyone would be, for someone they like and respect), but they are not the ultimate point of accountability – God is. When ambition shifts from “following hard after God” to “staying in good standing with authority,” obedience subtly changes shape. What looks like submission may actually be fear, and what feels like loyalty may slowly silence discernment.

I’ve learnt that as people, if we are hammered long enough with messages and instructions that toe a particular line, our mindset can be moulded to suit that specific way of thinking. That is how formation happens—through repeated exposure, teaching, and reinforcement. The difference is that God’s work of renewal is not coercive; it is invitational, awakening discernment rather than suppressing it. what with the instruction Apostle Paul gave in the book of Romans 12:2; “Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.”

One of the greatest dangers in ministry is not rebellion—but silence: when submission is taught in a way that kills discernment, conscience, and moral responsibility.

Let me break down a scenario: I was once influenced to not attend a wedding. The reason I was given was that the people were out of God’s will and had incurred God’s wrath. Attending the wedding will signal being joined with them, and in turn, I will incur the wrath of God.

I’m not even joking. This is what I was told, and I was too scared to question the sanity of it. Gladly, this wasn’t from my pastor; though from an associate at the time; I was given clarity by my pastor and he basically rebutted everything the other minister had said. But it was too late.

Looking back, I realise that what governed my decision in that moment was not obedience; it was fear. Fear of displeasing God. Fear of being seen as rebellious. Fear of stepping out of line. But Scripture is clear that obedience that is driven by fear rather than love is not the obedience God desires. “Perfect love drives out fear” (1 John 4:18). God does not require terror to secure loyalty; He seeks willing, discerning hearts that respond to Him in truth. When fear becomes the primary motivator for obedience, something has already gone wrong.

I also see now how flawed the assumption was that association equals endorsement. Jesus Himself was accused because of the people He ate with—yet His presence did not validate sin; it revealed grace, truth, and love. Attending a wedding does not mean affirming every decision made by the man and woman. The idea that proximity alone incurs God’s wrath reduces holiness to superstition, not covenant relationship.

Most sobering of all is the realisation that I had slowly outsourced my discernment. Somewhere along the way, I stopped weighing instructions against Scripture, the character of God, and the witness of the Spirit—and began treating someone else’s confidence as spiritual certainty. Discernment is not rebellion. Questioning is not defiance. God never intended for our minds to be switched off in the name of submission. If obedience requires the suspension of conscience, reason, and the fruit of the Spirit, then it is not biblical obedience—it is control.

This incident with the wedding was not an isolated event – getting here, came after years of in-depth teaching about loyalty, about authority, about submission, and the dangers of rebellion. As an assertive individual, my response to these teachings was self doubt and second-guessing. I lost my questioning voice – it seemed a sin or a sign of rebellion when questions were asked so I just wound up not asking at all.

But if we can’t ask people in authority questions, who can we get answers from?

Ministers have a very heavy duty and calling.

My pastor always says that he is just a nanny; taking care of God’s flock and he will have to answer to God, about the ways in which he treats us, about the things he says to us and the way in which he stewards his calling. With this analogy, it is dangerous to stand in service and mismanage the access God has given to us, in a bid to control others.

It is a fearful thing to mishandle the beloved of God.

We’re well aware of what the bible says about “touch not my anointed and do my prophets no harm”, but can you imagine what will come to the prophets and anointed of God who mishandle the people God died for? I wouldn’t want to find out, to be honest. But here are a few passages of scripture that can give the idea:

Ezekiel 34:2–4, 10:  “Woe to the shepherds of Israel who only take care of themselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock? … You have ruled them harshly and brutally…I am against the shepherds and will hold them accountable for my flock”

James 3:1: “Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.”

I’ve seen ‘ministers of God’ carry their authority as something to oppress others with, twisting God’s word and using it to gain influence and access – fueled by some twisted ambition or other. The only authority we have is what we get from being submitted to God. Ministers are servants who have been given God’s approval based on their consecration and assignment. Authority in ministry is stewarded, not owned and while calling may remain, the legitimacy of authority is compromised when it no longer reflects God’s character.

We must be extremely cautious who we yield to in ministry; even more, we must be very cautious who we grant the platform of service to. Inevitably, they will be seen as representatives of the entire institution and in extension, representatives of the body of Christ; and when they do not look like Christ, speak like Christ, and act like Christ, we will be held accountable for why they were given that access in the first place.

If you’re reading this and you’re a minister; I hope this gives some light and conviction to serve in love and truth.

If you’re reading this and you’re not in the body of Christ. Its better to be part. Our weaknesses have no bearing on our saviour and we’d welcome you to walk with Him as we navigate the ins and outs of life with Him.

If you’re reading this as a member of the body of Christ, there’s always a way to inquire; and the Holy Spirit is available to help.

Submission that cannot ask questions is not biblical submission; it is fear dressed as loyalty.