Whenever we talk about the administration of the church, we should consider the question of authority. Without authority, there is no administration. Whether it is the administration of a group of people or the administration of a place, there is the need for authority. If you examine the affairs conducted among mankind, you will discover that there is hardly an issue which does not involve authority. This is quite amazing. Actually, it should not be amazing, because God has ordained it this way. For instance, a maid may be hired to work for you in your kitchen. Even here, there is the question of authority. On one hand, you give her the authority to manage the kitchen; on the other hand, you also become the authority over her. Although she only performs such menial tasks as those pertaining to the kitchen, there is authority above her, and at the same time there is authority in her hand. Strictly speaking, the authority in her hand is the same authority over her. If she does not acknowledge the authority over her, she will lose the authority in her hand immediately. This is very clear. If she does not acknowledge you as her employer, or if she denies your authority over her, immediately she will lose her authority to work in your kitchen. Although cooking in a kitchen is a very menial task, authority is involved in it.
Suppose two brothers in a meeting hall are responsible for the cleaning of the hall throughout the year. If you look into this matter carefully, you will realize that authority is also there. When the responsible brothers assigned these brothers to the cleaning work, they were given authority to open and lock the doors in order to manage the cleaning of the hall. When they want to close the doors, you and I have no right to interfere, because they have this authority. Where does this authority come from? It comes from the responsible brothers. The responsible brothers have given them this authority; at the same time, they also have become their authority. If they do not accept the authority of the elders, they will at once lose this cleaning authority. Once they reject the authority over them, immediately they will lose the authority in their hand. You can see the matter of authority even in such a work.
This is true not only in the home and in the church, but everywhere. There is no way to avoid this consideration of authority, whether in the school, in the office, in the factory, or in any organization. Once authority is removed from human society, it will be impossible to organize people together. This is a sure principle.
Among all of mankind, nothing is more noble than the administration of God's house. Of course, such a noble task can never be carried out without authority. If authority is taken away from a church, there will be no way to administrate and manage the church. It will be useless to talk about anything else. To administrate is to rule, and to manage is to arrange. Without authority, there will be no way for anyone to administrate and manage. Perhaps you can do something haphazardly, but you can never administrate affairs and conduct them on the right track. In order to conduct matters on the right track, there is no way to dispense with authority.