Tony Evans - Order In The Court
We've all either been in a courtroom or seen on television a judge stop the proceedings, bang his gavel, and call for order in the court. The judge is going to do that because there has been a disruption in the proceedings. There has been something that has interfered with the process. The ultimate disruptor of the order of your life, your world, your family, the church, the society is the program and process of Satan. His goal is to bring about disorder in the court of God. We've spent some time talking about the fact that God relates to his creation covenantally thus, legally, relationally to be sure because a covenant is a divinely created relational bond. And he wants to disrupt the proceedings in order to detour you, and me, and us from our destiny, from God's purpose, and from what God wants to happen in our lives, he creates disorder.
So what I want to do today is, I want you to hear God call for order in the court. 1 Corinthians chapter 14 verse 40 says that "All things that God has to do with must be done decently and with order". There must be order in the courtroom of God for the proceedings for your wellbeing to continue. Now, to understand this, we have to go all the way back to the creative order. When God created, he created civilization and history to operate in a certain order. When that order is disrupted, Satan gets to rule. So there must be order in the court, order in the operation of God's programming in history. Now this principle applies even to non-Christians because it applies to even governments.
Titus chapter 3 verse 1 says, "Make sure that the citizens are properly subject to the government". So it is a system that God is operating from humanity. So this racial chaos, and cultural chaos, and all this stuff is satanic disruption to keep God away. And here's the key, if you are outta order, then your prayers are not going to be heard. That when the order is disrupted, then there is chaos and confusion, satanic success. So there must be a return to order in the court. Now, 1 Corinthians 11 verse 3. The book of 1 Corinthians as Paul writes a church that is out of order. The church at Corinth was a chaotic church. Paul has gotta get things back on track and so he says, "But I want you," verse 3, "To understand that Christ is the head of every man. The man is the head of a woman and God is the head of Christ".
He lays out a divine order, the word head. The word head is the divinely authorized governing authority, that's what we mean by head or headship. It is the divinely authorized governing authority. To be head in scriptural language is that you have been duly authorized to operate in this realm, in this sphere, this way, by God. It is called headship. God is the head of Christ. So let's start there since that becomes the paradigm for how we function here. God is the head of Christ. Now we all know Christ is equal to God. Christ is God the Son, he has all the marks of deity. So headship has absolutely nothing to do with equality of being because Jesus is equal to God. Jesus says, "Me and my father, we are one". You know, the Bible says, "All the fullness of deity dwells in him in bodily form".
So all that makes God, God, is incorporated in the person of Jesus Christ. Yet we are told in verse 3 that God, that is the Father, is the head, the governing authority of Christ. So headship is not concerned with equality of being, it is concerned with inequality of function. It is a functional difference, not an essence difference. Why is God the head of Christ? God is the head of Christ because there was a program to perform in history, namely our redemption. In order for the program and the purpose to be realized from heaven into history, Jesus had to volunteer. "So he who was in the form of God thought it not robbery to be equal with God," Philippians chapter 2, "And made himself of no reputation". He volunteered for the purpose of redemption.
Let me go a little deeper. In the principle of headship, is the principle of representation. Whoever is above you represents you. Let me say that again, whoever is above you represents you. The Bible says, "In Adam all die". Well wait a minute, we weren't in the garden of Eden, we didn't eat the forbidden fruit. When an offensive lineman goes offside, the whole team is penalized not just the lineman because they're part of the team. You and I are part of the human race, Adam was our representative and in Adam all die. Because we had a representative who failed and it affected us. That's why it's important to know when you need to switch representatives. Because in Adam all died, but Jesus is the last Adam. So you know why you're here today? 'Cause you switched reps. You're now tied to the last Adam not the first Adam, because the first Adam is physical death and eternal death, the last Adam is no physical death and eternal life.
So you switch representatives. So it is in this understanding of the representative principle of headship that is critical for now you and I operating in history in the courtroom of God as he calls for order in the court. This order started with Satan. He did not want to follow the regime. He was the ark angel, chief angel in charge. And his big statement was, "I will be like the Most High". He wanted there to be two gods and two kingdoms. Now, what was it about God that he wanted so badly? What was it about God? He knew he couldn't create, he couldn't create things. So he rebels, and so he is wreaking havoc with rebellion. He first started with the angels. He got one third of the angels to rebel and I like the way Jude puts it.
Book of Jude verse 6 says, "And angels who did not keep their own domain, but abandoned the proper abode," their proper role, "He has kept in eternal bonds under the darkness for the judgment of the great day". So the angels that rebel with Satan are now under judgment because they left the position God put them in. Verse 9, "But Michael, the archangel," kind of took the place of Satan, "When he disputed with the devil and argued about the body of Moses, did not dare pronounce against Satan, him a railing judgment but said, 'The Lord rebuke you.'" He appealed to a higher order, but if you out of order, you lose your appeal. He says, "This is how Christ operates and therefore redemption was achieved". But he goes deeper. He says, "Christ is the head of every man". You don't get to define manhood independently of the Jesus rule in your life.
God did not create Adam and Eve at the same time, they were not created simultaneously on purpose. In Genesis chapter 2, he creates man, he gives man a job, cultivate the garden. He gave him his Word, "From every tree of the garden you may freely eat. The tree in the midst of the garden you will not eat". "Adam, I'm telling you what to do. I am your boss. I'm the boss here, okay". He tells Adam, "Name all the animals," right? Some birds, cows, you know, giraffes, elephants. He named all the animals. And God goes over here and he fashions a woman, okay. And the Bible says, "Adam named her". That's why I love being a man, good Lord, I love it. 'Cause you get to name stuff. He named her. And he says, "Whatever", he named her, "named, that became its name". He brought it, but Adam named her. Whatever you name you're responsible for.
See, naming involves responsibility. You, have to own the responsibility. So if she took your name, she's accepting that you're gonna be responsible, you gonna own that, okay. So snake comes into the garden and he skips Adam in Genesis 3:1-6, he skips Adam and he goes and talks to Eve. He appeals to sister girl's emotions. She starts feeling this tree and feeling the fruit, it was a delight to make one's eyes. He leaves off the word Lord only says, "God" 'cause Satan doesn't mind religion as long as Jesus is not in charge. So he drops the name Lord. And it says, "And she gave to Adam to eat". When they sinned, God did not come looking for Eve. He said, "Adam, where are you"? But he said, "But this woman, I was happy single, this woman who you gave me I was fine. This woman who you gave me," "Oh, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I left you in charge. So if the house is outta order, you're responsible". He says, "I held you in charge, Adam where are you"? And then he says, "Because you listened to your wife, 'cause even your woman is not to overrule me. I'm in charge here, and I'm in charge of you, and my Word has the final say so".
So every man is under Christ, he's under spiritual authority. That's what headship means. He says, "This belongs to every single man". In fact, he gave him a reminder 'cause remember, he was not on the scene yet. He put a tree in the den, tree in the den 'cause it was in the middle of the garden. He said, "When you pass through the den, you pass through this tree, this information center," he says, "You can't eat that because I don't want you to get your information independently of me. I want to be your information center, because there's evil on this tree. There's good on this tree too, but there's evil. I don't want you trying to figure that out. I want you consulting with me and I'll tell you what's right, wrong, good, bad, up, down, I'm your boss. I'm your boss".
That's why Satan wants to get rid of men. He wants to get rid of men because he wants to get rid of the order. And so in getting rid of men, and making them irresponsible, and making them not fulfill their obligations, and keeping them from repent when they do fail, all of that is designed to disrupt the courtroom proceedings. Okay ladies, your turn. He says in verse 3, "The man is the head of a woman". Okay, let's get it straight, not all women. So don't get this messed up man, you ain't over every female, okay. I know you think you Don Juan and all that, Billy Dee and all that kind of stuff, no, "A woman," okay. Governing authority, divinely authorized governing authority but you won't do it right if you're not under Christ. If you're not under Christ, then you won't be leading right. She is to place herself under his legitimate authority, that is her first commitment is to the Lord.
So you have the power of appeal when your head is off. You have the power of appeal and you should use that power both in heaven and through the church when there is rebellion on his part, and he names the name of Christ, which means there's authority of the church to be operating. That's why 1 Corinthians 6 says, "The church should have a court to mitigate cases". No woman is to be abused, misused, cussed at, physically harmed. You're not to be treated like a ragdoll, you're not to be used up and tore up from the floor, you don't have to accept that nor should you accept that because he calls himself a man. No, he has a head over him. And when his head over him can't get to him, you have a point of appeal. It says, "You are to recognize his headship and you are to give him," there's no command in the Bible for a wife to love her husband, none, none.
Titus says, "Teach the woman how to love their husband," but that's not a command that's an indicative. There's no command in the Bible for a wife to love her husband. The command is to respect him. A woman's need is in her heart, a man's need is in his head. He needs to know he is honored, held in high esteem, highly valued. Ephesians 5:33, "See to it that you respect your husband". But then he goes a little deeper. He says, verse 4, "Every man with something on his head while praying is prophesying disgraces his head," That is disgraces Christ. "Every woman who has her head uncovered while praying or prophesying disgraces her head," which is her husband, "For she is one and the same as the woman who is shaved".
Okay, now we get into this head covering. Okay, stay with me here. In verse 16, which is very important, "But if one is inclined to be contentious, we have no other practice". The Greek word there means custom, "Nor have the churches of God". There was a practice, a custom. It was a physical visible demonstration that I recognize I'm doing this under legitimate, keyword is legitimate authority, okay. So she demonstrated that. Now there were women refusing to do it. He says, "Well if you really wanna be a man, why don't you just cut all your hair off"? He's speaking about their rebellion which was reflected in the custom or the practice. So he's not saying every woman who comes into church has to have a veil on, first of all, if they prayed or prophesied so it wasn't just the general, but he's dealing with the problem of women who are outta order.
Rebellious women, rebellious wives who don't wanna submit to legitimate, key word is legitimate, a legitimate authority. And he says that rebellion, you wanna be a man that way, so let's get something straight. Women are women and men are men, okay. A man is a real man when he's operating under Christ. A woman is a real woman when she's operating under Christ and if she has a man, legitimately underneath his authority. Why does this matter? Verse 10. "Therefore, the woman ought to have a symbol of authority," there's our word, "On her head because of the angels". Oh, what's angels got to do with this? "Because of the angels". Remember, we're talking about order in the court. God has a post office. Every day the postman comes to your house to deliver the mail. The postal workers are the delivery system from the post office they deliver.
Every believer has been assigned an angel. Hebrews 1:14. So every believer, and in this case he's talking to women. The principle is for every believer though. Every believer has an angel assigned to them, so you have a postal worker from heaven who's assigned to deliver the mail to you. In other words, they deliver God's answers to your prayers, they deliver God's answers to your needs, they deliver God's answers to your circumstances. When you are operating in rebellion to legitimate, there's the word legitimate authority, your angel takes the day off. You will not get the delivery of heaven to your prayers, to your needs if you are rebelling against divine authority. If you are a rebellious woman, rebellious wife, same principle for men. If you are not operating underneath God's regimen authority, then your prayers are not heard, answers are not given, 'cause there is confusion in the court. He says, "Because of the angels, you will not get angelic assistance. Your assigned angel is not working for you".
And so a lot of men and a lot of women are not getting what they need from God because the post office is saying, "Stay in, they ain't home". They're operating in spiritual rebellion and so they are in contempt of court. Isaiah chapter 3 verse 12 says this because the people weren't doing it God's way, it says, "Oh my people, their children are their oppressors, the women are ruling over them. Oh my people, those who guide you lead you astray and confuse the direction of your path". We got confusion 'cause we're listening to the wrong leaders and we are not making an appeal or we are being the wrong leaders. He says that was chaos in the culture. Children were telling parents what to do, women were bossing men around. The men went around and let me tell you what happened with the men.
Verse 23, verse 25, "Your men will fall by the sword". In other words, ruly women make weak men. Your men are falling, men are collapsing, 'cause everything is outta order for how I created it. 1 Corinthians chapter 7, it says in verse 14, "For the unbelieving husband is sanctified through his wife and the unbelieving wife is sanctified through her believing husband for otherwise your children are unclean, but now they are holy". When you are operating in order, you bring benefit to everybody else in your house. And he says, "You keep your children safe". God covers your children when you are in order. When you get a chance this week, read Luke chapter 7 verses 2 to 10. He's a centurion, he's a big man, he's a main man and there's sickness in his house. And he appeals to God or Jesus, "Come heal. I got sickness in the house, there's no solution, come heal".
Jesus is on his way to heal. The centurion, he's a big time guy. "Tell Jesus he don't need to come". And then he says, watch this, "I'm a man under authority. But then I tell my men, 'Go here and do this and do that,' and they do it just 'cause I said it". "I'm a man under see, I'm under authority, but I'm also in authority. I got somebody over me, but I'm over some other folk. So I'm under authority and I'm in authority, so you don't have to come. All you gotta do is speak the word because I understand a principle". Jesus says about this man in Luke chapter 7, "I have never seen faith like this in all of Israel".
What was he talking about faith like this? It was faith that understood authority. The man said, "I'm under authority, I'm over authority, I got folks over me, so I know how this thing works. And if I submit to the one legitimately above me, it'll take care of the problems underneath me. If I submit to the one in charge of me, it'll cover the stuff underneath me". A lot of us want God to cover the stuff down here when he can't get us to submit to the one up there. But if we can submit to the one up there, he'll cover a lot of the junk down here that we need in our situations and in our culture. Every man is under Christ. Every woman is under the legitimate male, and all of us are under the rule of God. And then we can see heaven come down in history and the kingdom of God advance.