Authority

Walking down the rural road near my abode today, my thoughts turned to the ever present problem of authority. While I doubt the wisdom of blogging on a subject that causes more problems than just about anything else in contemporary Christianity, I will give it a whirl. Matthew 28:18 makes clear that "all authority has been given to me ( Jesus) in heaven and earth. It also seems clear that He has delegated at least some of that authority to humans. Believers in Christ have authority over principalities and powers. Children are to obey parents, and wives respect and yield to husbands ( Now I'm really in trouble), and elders are to provide oversight for local groups of believers. So I do not question the delegation of authority to people in various roles. The concern that I have is the way in which that authority is used.
Are elders walking in humility ( Acts 20:19, 1 Peter 5; 5-6) or lording it over the flock? ( 1 Peter 5:3) Are husbands loving their wives or being bitter towards them? (Colossians 3:19 NKJV) Are fathers bringing up their children in the "training and admonition of the Lord or provoking them to wrath? ( Ephesians 6:4)
Do we acknowledge the priesthood of all believers? ( 1 Peter 2: 5,9 Revelation 1:6, 20:6) Do we understand the incalculable price paid equally for every child of God, the life and blood of the Lord Jesus Christ? Do we walk in the reality of our brotherhood in Christ, mentioned over 200 times in the New Testament?
Sadly, what I have seen repeatedly is insecure people in leadership roles commanding rather than appealing, coercing rather than persuading, wounding rather than loving, and I have done this myself. May we humble ourselves and remember that Jesus is the only Lord, and that we must give account to Him. ( Hebrews 13:17)