The Church and Power

Session 3 of Church in the World deals with the Church and power--specifically coercive power. We're probably all familiar with coercive power, even though we don't often use the word. In fact, in our day, it's probably the type of power that first comes to mind when we think of power.

Coercive power is simply the ability to influence someone through the threat of punishment or negative consequences. Coercive power is not a bad thing in and of itself. God can rightfully wield coercive power for good in the world. The Bible tells us that God has also delegated coercive power to governments. The Apostle Paul writes in Romans 13:4,

"For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer."

While we don't like the idea of coercive power because it can be dangerous in the wrong hands, we also understand that its use is sometimes necessary to promote justice in our fallen world.

In session 3 (and again in session 5), we deal with questions like:

• Is it ever appropriate for the Church to wield coercive power?

• Did Jesus leave it as an option? And if so, in what circumstances?

• What happened in history when the Church wielded the power of the sword? (We have a lot of evidence from history!)

• And what other kinds of power does the Church have to accomplish its mission?

These are important questions for us to answer today.