Pastoring
Alan Knox over at, theAssemblingoftheChurch, hits one out of the ballpark with a series on "Pastoring". I especially loved this quote from Jamal from the post, but he has an MDiv and Ordination papers:
These precious saints who ask me to pray for their ‘Elders’ are frustrated because their ‘Elders’ (wise ones in the faith) are not really wise in the faith. I want them to realize that putting a descriptive term like ‘elder’ (one who is wise in the faith) upon a person who is not wise in the faith makes no sense. Instead of being frustrated with these people, simply see them for who they are, and who they aren’t.
I want these precious saints to realize that if someone is not ‘wise in the faith,’ they are NOT an elder even if they do carry the job description or title of ‘Elder / Pastor.’ Simply realizing this could free many from being held hostage to a system or organization led by a set of ‘unwise’ people who carry the title of being ‘wise.’ After all, the title of ‘elder’ does not make a person ‘wise’ in the faith.
The problem is not really with these unwise ‘Elders,’ rather the problem is with the people who think the term ‘elder’ refers to some type of ‘office’ that carries a hierarchical weight that is separate from the person itself. This is foreign to the New Testament. It is absurd to look to someone whom we already know is not ‘wise’ in the faith and refer to them with a term that means ‘one who is wise in the faith.’
Amen. Quote from "Jamal" over at illuminate. Read his whole post, too.
These precious saints who ask me to pray for their ‘Elders’ are frustrated because their ‘Elders’ (wise ones in the faith) are not really wise in the faith. I want them to realize that putting a descriptive term like ‘elder’ (one who is wise in the faith) upon a person who is not wise in the faith makes no sense. Instead of being frustrated with these people, simply see them for who they are, and who they aren’t.
I want these precious saints to realize that if someone is not ‘wise in the faith,’ they are NOT an elder even if they do carry the job description or title of ‘Elder / Pastor.’ Simply realizing this could free many from being held hostage to a system or organization led by a set of ‘unwise’ people who carry the title of being ‘wise.’ After all, the title of ‘elder’ does not make a person ‘wise’ in the faith.
The problem is not really with these unwise ‘Elders,’ rather the problem is with the people who think the term ‘elder’ refers to some type of ‘office’ that carries a hierarchical weight that is separate from the person itself. This is foreign to the New Testament. It is absurd to look to someone whom we already know is not ‘wise’ in the faith and refer to them with a term that means ‘one who is wise in the faith.’
Amen. Quote from "Jamal" over at illuminate. Read his whole post, too.
2 comments:
There is the opposite problem also, that those who are wise in the Spirit, anointed of God and called to be a servant guardian of the people of God are often overlooked and ignored. The church is too often worldly in how the choose and view their leaders. We are supposed to be recognizing the ones that God chooses.
believer333,
Great point. I think of 1 John that says all believers have anointing. So what would be the characteristics we should recognize? Many "display" them on stage but few people in the church really know them really up close and personal. Could we start there? Is that a red flag?
I am not sure if I can go along with the idea that God chooses and we are to recognize. I believe WE choose whether or not Christ indwells in us.
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