The other morning, I noticed how easily my heart slid into reaction mode.
I was reading the news with my coffee, telling myself I was just staying informed. But within a few minutes, something shifted. My shoulders tightened. My thoughts sped up. I wasn’t panicking, but I was no longer at rest either. I had started living as if everything depended on how quickly I could assess the situation.
When I put the phone down, what stood out wasn’t the headlines. It was the quiet assumption underneath them. I was acting as if no one was really in charge.
Christ’s Authority Is a Present Reality
Jesus never spoke about His authority as something believers should wait for or hope toward. He spoke about it as something already settled.
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”
(Matthew 28:18)
That statement wasn’t meant to inspire optimism. It was meant to name reality. Jesus reigns now, not symbolically and not provisionally, but actually. Heaven and earth are already under His authority, even when circumstances feel unstable.
When we forget that, faith becomes reactive. We start tracking events more closely than we attend to Christ, and our sense of allegiance quietly shifts from trust to anxiety.
Allegiance Grows From Trust, Not Tension
Authority is a loaded word for many of us. We’ve seen it abused, mishandled, and used to dominate rather than serve. So when Scripture speaks of Christ’s authority, it’s easy to hear control instead of care.
But Jesus’ authority looks like the cross before it looks like the throne. He reigns as the One who laid down His life and took it up again. His power is exercised for restoration, not coercion.
Living under His authority doesn’t begin with effort or intensity. It begins with recognition. Christ already reigns, and His reign is good. Allegiance, then, becomes a response of trust rather than a posture of fear. Who you are comes before what you do.
Faithful Presence Instead of Panic
When believers lose sight of Christ’s present reign, we usually drift into extremes. Some try to dominate, assuming faithfulness means winning. Others withdraw, believing distance equals purity. Still others live on constant alert, reading every development as a looming threat.
None of those postures flow from confidence in a reigning King.
Christ’s authority forms something steadier. It shapes faithful presence. You remain where God has placed you, living truthfully and patiently without needing to control outcomes. You love without compromise, speak without panic, and obey without fear because you trust the One who reigns over all things.
Authority Touches Ordinary Life
This isn’t abstract theology meant only for difficult seasons. Christ’s authority steadies everyday life.
It shapes how you work when faithfulness feels unseen. It guides how you speak when conversations are tense or confusing. It anchors you when progress feels slow and obedience feels costly.
You are not waiting for Jesus to take control. You are living as a citizen of a Kingdom already under His rule. Identity comes first, obedience follows, and peace grows from knowing who is truly in charge.
Living under Christ’s authority reshapes how we relate to the world around us, reminding us that we are citizens first, and representatives second.
A Steady Place to Stand
You don’t need sharper analysis of the times or faster reactions to events. You don’t need to live braced for impact or constantly on edge.
You need a steady place to stand, and Scripture gives it to you. You live under Christ’s authority, within His Kingdom, held by His reign. That posture doesn’t ignore reality. It faces reality without fear.
And it frees you to live faithfully right where you are.
Christ’s authority doesn’t just shape obedience. It steadies our hope.
Christ reigns. Christ restores. Christ will return.
Spread the Gospel; lives depend on it!
I pray, MARANATHA! (Come Quickly, Lord Jesus!)
Your brother in Christ,
Duane