"So let us stop going over the basic teachings about Christ again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Surely we don’t need to start again with the fundamental importance of repenting from evil deeds[a] and placing our faith in God. You don’t need further instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And so, God willing, we will move forward to further understanding."
Jesus said to the spiritual leaders of His time that they had made the traditions of man of greater importance than obedience to the commands of God. I believe that many churches today are doing just that on a weekly basis. I do not believe that they are intentionally violating His commands in a rebellious act but rather through traditions that have been being followed for hundreds of years in many cases. I believe the majority are sincere in their hearts and minds but I believe that tradition has put shackles on many congregations and on entire denominations. I believe that tradition is very often (not always but often) used by the enemy of the gospel to keep men from thinking for themselves.
I may be challenged for what I believe but from what the writer of Hebrews said I can come to no other conclusion. There is of course an exception to the 'rule' for some congregations. For instance if a congregation has nothing but people who have never heard the gospel of salvation through grace before then it is perfectly fine to preach salvation week after week. If however a congregation is made up of mainly Christians who have been believers for many years and all they hear from the pulpit is the basic gospel message week after week they are missing the purpose of gathering together around the scripture. Don't get me wrong it is always good to revisit the fundamentals from time to time but it should not be our steady diet.
We can agree to disagree on the purpose for gathering weekly. Some believe the weekly gathering is a time for fellowship and to worship together, encouraging one another to do good works. Some believe it is the time for them to be taught scripture by their pastor. My personal belief is that the job of a pastor is not to necessarily 'feed the sheep' but to lead them to where the 'green grass and calm water' is and to protect them while they 'graze and drink'.
Paul writes in Ephesians that God gave gifts to the church; apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. He says that those 'gifts' were given to the church for the purpose of training and equipping believers to do the work of the ministry. Church leaders should be training and equipping the people God has given them to minister in the private sector. The purpose of training and equipping is to bring the body to maturity in the faith.
If week after week pastors only teach and remind believers of the basics of the faith we will not mature and fulfill the mandate to make disciples of all nations. A large part of training is allowing for and providing a platform for ministering to the body and to the public. It is a messy process and sometimes quite ugly, but it must happen because the pastor cannot go into the workplace of each of his "sheep" and reach out to their co-workers.
The preaching of the gospel, by believers to the people in their sphere of influence, is the power of God to salvation. "Preaching" does not necessarily mean standing on a platform and preaching to co-workers but rather being so familiar with the word that they can easily share it when the time is right, very often it is a 'one on one' situation in a casual conversation. Church leaders should provide times for practicing that ministry.
Believers need to move to a deeper understanding of the word of God so that we mature in the faith and become relevant in our society.
One final observation in this rambling rant... when the woman at the well, the demoniac, and several others Jesus healed, delivered or otherwise brought to a saving knowledge of Himself he didn't tell them to go to a Bible college or seminary for a few years, He simply said go and tell what He did for them. He gave them the assurance and confidence to share what God did for them without being worried about them messing things up. Church leaders should be doing no less today.....
Jesus said to the spiritual leaders of His time that they had made the traditions of man of greater importance than obedience to the commands of God. I believe that many churches today are doing just that on a weekly basis. I do not believe that they are intentionally violating His commands in a rebellious act but rather through traditions that have been being followed for hundreds of years in many cases. I believe the majority are sincere in their hearts and minds but I believe that tradition has put shackles on many congregations and on entire denominations. I believe that tradition is very often (not always but often) used by the enemy of the gospel to keep men from thinking for themselves.
I may be challenged for what I believe but from what the writer of Hebrews said I can come to no other conclusion. There is of course an exception to the 'rule' for some congregations. For instance if a congregation has nothing but people who have never heard the gospel of salvation through grace before then it is perfectly fine to preach salvation week after week. If however a congregation is made up of mainly Christians who have been believers for many years and all they hear from the pulpit is the basic gospel message week after week they are missing the purpose of gathering together around the scripture. Don't get me wrong it is always good to revisit the fundamentals from time to time but it should not be our steady diet.
We can agree to disagree on the purpose for gathering weekly. Some believe the weekly gathering is a time for fellowship and to worship together, encouraging one another to do good works. Some believe it is the time for them to be taught scripture by their pastor. My personal belief is that the job of a pastor is not to necessarily 'feed the sheep' but to lead them to where the 'green grass and calm water' is and to protect them while they 'graze and drink'.
Paul writes in Ephesians that God gave gifts to the church; apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. He says that those 'gifts' were given to the church for the purpose of training and equipping believers to do the work of the ministry. Church leaders should be training and equipping the people God has given them to minister in the private sector. The purpose of training and equipping is to bring the body to maturity in the faith.
If week after week pastors only teach and remind believers of the basics of the faith we will not mature and fulfill the mandate to make disciples of all nations. A large part of training is allowing for and providing a platform for ministering to the body and to the public. It is a messy process and sometimes quite ugly, but it must happen because the pastor cannot go into the workplace of each of his "sheep" and reach out to their co-workers.
The preaching of the gospel, by believers to the people in their sphere of influence, is the power of God to salvation. "Preaching" does not necessarily mean standing on a platform and preaching to co-workers but rather being so familiar with the word that they can easily share it when the time is right, very often it is a 'one on one' situation in a casual conversation. Church leaders should provide times for practicing that ministry.
Believers need to move to a deeper understanding of the word of God so that we mature in the faith and become relevant in our society.
One final observation in this rambling rant... when the woman at the well, the demoniac, and several others Jesus healed, delivered or otherwise brought to a saving knowledge of Himself he didn't tell them to go to a Bible college or seminary for a few years, He simply said go and tell what He did for them. He gave them the assurance and confidence to share what God did for them without being worried about them messing things up. Church leaders should be doing no less today.....
No comments:
Post a Comment