Millions of believers are caught in a church structure which is a shadow of what it should be – but there is a formula for doing it right.
This is Part 4 of “Are You A Pharisee?”
Equality is the foundation on which democracy stands. The concept that each person is of equal value is not a concept which can be found in any major religion other than Christianity. It exists in Christianity alone because Christ died for each person without regard for their race, social stature, intellect, emotional, spiritual, or physical attributes.
Jesus gave up His right to equality with God. Equality originates in the Trinity. In the scriptures, God is said to be “no respecter of persons”, meaning that He created each person with a role in His plan and purpose; therefore, each person is equally important to Him. Some people ignorantly assert that the Church is not a democracy; but equality exists in the DNA of every Christian and the Body of Christ. It should inform our world-view and how we conduct ourselves as believers. Women’s rights, humanitarian benevolence to the poor, opposition to racism, etc., etc., all stand squarely on the equality resident in the Gospel. Don’t let anyone tell you that all religions are the same. Democracy could have only been conceived and founded by Christians.
In his instruction to believers, Paul warns that in the Jewish tradition, the priest went before God on behalf of the people, but when Christ came, an intermediary was no longer necessary. Paul uses the term “covering” and asserts that no covering is required when a person comes to God in prayer. In fact, it’s not just “not needed”, it’s WRONG, because it interferes with the believer’s direct access to God which negates Christ’s redeeming work.
Organized religion still has hierarchical forms of government which violate equality in the church. Pastors and priests enjoy privileges which other members of the body do not. They are elevated and do almost all the giving of ministry, but rarely submit to ministry from their own “body” of believers. This is unscriptural and creates an elite class of believer in the church. They also act as king-makers and gatekeepers, all of which get between the believer and God and is a form of priest-craft.
The last thing Jesus did at His ascension was to give gifts to men. The grace of God which flows through every believer (their gifts) IS God’s plan to provide for His work and His people. Scripture says that this grace flows through the whole Body and meets every need. Provision is in the people! Contrast that with a few ministers who do all the ministering. Is there any wonder why the Church is less than we all know it should be? Every member should have a role in the health of the Body. How we minister in the church determines the Body’s health and effectiveness. The structure is important. Millions of believers are caught in this system. They do not know the difference between what the church is, and what scripture says it should be.
Denominations have taken on the role of doing foreign missions on behalf of congregations and individual believers. This is another institutionalization of the work of God which robs people of their responsibility and the opportunity to engage in the process of hearing and learning to do God’s work, God’s way. It gets between the believer and God. It’s the way religion functions, not the way the Body of Christ should function. It doesn’t build spiritual strength; it keeps believers weak and unengaged.
The Body of Christ is a living organism which is headed and provided for by Christ. The church is structured more like a business than the Kingdom of God – and that’s what’s wrong. It is religion that has made it into an organization. Religion is built upon common sense, logic, and human understanding. It is not spiritual or living. Jesus warned that there are tares among the wheat. Those tares are distortions of the Gospel. They are legalism, inequality, temporal values, and human structure.
Where is the Body of Christ that is modeling the Kingdom of God to the world and demonstrating its power the way Christ did when He walked the Earth? Jesus’ work is done; it’s now up to us to follow Him and model what He taught, in the Church. So far, I don’t think we’ve done very well at being a good example of Christ or His Kingdom. I do, however, continue to pray that Christ will return to a victorious Church. We think we are waiting on His return, but maybe He is waiting on us.
© Copyright 2014-15, Paul K. Weigel – All rights reserved.