The Authority of Man

[reneweddaybyday]

Ty, ren (Idk why I feel that I can call you ren, but...)

ok by me Mem

This passage brings to mind the 'kvetch'ing of the Israelites, how they complained rather than appreciated God's provision.

The next verse in 2 Cor 4 mentions our light affliction, which is but for a moment. I don't know about you, but I've been through some trying times that lasted for years and God does bring to my mind these verses. Even in my most severe trials, there has been a peace in my heart and I know that I am not alone in facing adversity ... that God is with me ... the Lord Jesus Christ tells us we are yoked to Him and He helps carry our burdens (Matt 11:28-30).

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.


we all go through times of affliction and sometimes we keep our focus on the trial we face rather than on the One Who helps us through the trial.

Hebrews 12:1-4 Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds. Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.

 

[mustaphadrink]

I was having a conversation with the Lord about authority and discussed about a church pastor who tried to tell me to come under his authority, and how I gave the puffed up peacock the bum's rush. A verse of Scripture came to me:
"You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men" (1 Corinthians 7:23)

What this means that we have only one master - Christ. This is not to say that we have mentors who give us sound discipleship and confirm our faith in Christ. But the attitude of these ones is "Be followers of me as I am of Christ" (1 Corinthians 11:1). The good discipler shows an example of following Christ, and instead of forcing his own authority on his disciple, he points to the only Master of believers. Jesus Christ Himself.

The bottom line is this:
"No one can serve two masters: Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other" (Matthew 6:24).
I know that Jesus referred to having money as a master instead of God, but the principle is still the same, we cannot have Christ as our Master, and be under the authority of a man or group of men as masters.

If we put ourselves under the authority of men, we are no longer under the lordship of Christ. He is no longer our Master, the man or group of men are our masters instead. It means that as soon as we place ourselves under man's authority, we are no longer following Christ. We are rejecting Christ in favour of men, putting ourselves in a very serious situation concerning whether we are really committed to Christ or not.

This shows the the corruption of the Shepherding Movement, where "disciplers" and "shepherds" exerted their own authority on believers, causing immeasurable harm.

An example was in a New Zealand small town where there was a Pentecostal church. A group of people wanted to plant their own church, and the leader went, out of respect to the pastor of the existing church to inform him that a new Pentecostal church group was being planted and that they could work together in harmony. The pastor said, "This is my town, and I'm going to make sure that your church never gets off the ground". In six months, that Pentecostal church folded, and the pastor was out of the ministry, while the new church grew and flourished. This is an example where a pastor was setting up his own authority and not following Christ. The consequence was that the Holy Spirit took his ministry away from him and probably got into heaven by the skin of his teeth. The tragedy is that by asserting his own authority, he was deceiving his people and getting in between them and Christ.

I have attended church on three continents and the problem is the same and it is this. In western society, the church ignores Jesus teaching on being a servant. In the church you are a leader when you are a servant. If you are not a servant, you are definitely not a leader, you are a dictator.

A dictator will say do as I say, not what I do. A servant will say do as I do not what I say.

One of the reasons why we do not have servants is the practice of bringing in leaders from outside the church. If you do this you can hardly expect him to be less than the best and someone who is to give the orders.

The servant leader chosen from among the congregation because of his proven character has no need to dictate. All he has to do is carry on being who he is which all the congregation knows what that is so he does not have to elevate himself above the others.

This is just another example of the church doing things their way instead of following the teaching of scripture.