The Health Inspector and Authority

Mike Johnson

Many years ago, I worked in a meatpacking plant.  One of my responsibilities was to roll a vat containing tubular molds of lunchmeat to an ice bin and then fill the container with ice.  The instructions were to use a stainless steel shovel, used exclusively for this task.  The plant was patrolled regularly by a health inspector.  I was told at the beginning that I should do whatever the inspector said because he had the power to shut down a production line or even the entire plant if something was not to his liking.  On one occasion, after filling the ice bin, I leaned the shovel against a nearby wall, its end resting on a clean-looking cement floor.  The inspector happened by and told me that I would need to hang the shovel on the nearby hook so it would be off the floor.  I said “OK” and did what he said from that point on.

However, I couldn’t understand the need to hang the shovel on a hook that touches a wall, which might not be any cleaner than the floor.  I also reasoned that the shovel and the ice never came into contact with the food.  So did it matter that the health inspector’s instructions made little sense to me?  No, it did not; he was the authority, and I had to do what he said regardless of what I thought about his instructions.

Most people understand the importance of submitting to earthly powers.  But, sadly, many do not understand the significance of yielding to the highest authority of all — the authority of God.  The Lord is our ruler, whether we want Him to be or not.  He inherently possesses His power and receives His dominion from no one; Jehovah has authority because of who He is.  God is the creator of the universe (Gen. 1:1),  the owner (Ps. 50:10-12) and the sustainer of all things (Acts 17:25-28), and certainly has a right to have authority over humanity.  But, one may ask, “Who gave God the right to rule over people?”  A person who would say this does not understand God’s inherent authority.

Today, God remains our authority.  He has revealed Himself to us through the Scriptures (2 Tim. 3:16-17, 1 Thess. 2:13, 4:2, 3, 8; 1 Cor. 14:37), which are the final authority.  Therefore, our opinion on some issue does not count.  It does not matter what we think; the only question is what the Scriptures say.  Consequently, we must be content to submit ourselves to the authority of God!