God has revealed His will and His Way through His WORD. Jesus is God’s WORD.
When we walk together with other followers of JESUS, we learn of Him through His WORD. By God’s Spirit, we understand and obey what He says.
Many things remain hidden, yet the revealed things belong to us and to our children forever.
One of the things revealed in God’s WORD relates to who God has chosen to be the one and only Pastor of His people.
Another truth God has revealed through His WORD is that His perfect will regarding marriage is one man and one woman for life. His perfect will revealed clearly in His WORD is that His followers should not divorce and should not remarry while the one they were married to is still living. In the resurrection, we will no longer be married to our earthly spouse.
There is great heavenly wisdom in God’s WORD. We each as followers of JESUS need daily to read, study, obey and walk in God’s Living Logos.
I may post some more detail on these and other topics in time. For now I was thinking about the first topic here and a quick revisit produced this result which would have been right after the very last source that I would have shared. But since the words here are solid WORD, here it is because it is the Living WORD Who is our Good Pastor.
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The Great Divide
The Clergy/Laity Divide
Jesus destroyed the divide between clergy & laity
Man rebuilt it
If I rebuild what was destroyed, I prove that I am a law breaker
[eyn]
So to what degree to we oppose the rebuilt structure, particularly given how many have accepted and re-engaged in it?
[eny]
In eternal terms, there simply is no divide in God’s Kingdom, no clergy/laity divide or any other divide
Each of us is to be transformed. The more we each accept God’s WORD, the better… the better for each of us ultimately, and the better for others and the better for every gathering, every synagogue, every kenista, every group, every community, fellowship…
We are to function as such
To demonstrate and live out this truth consistently
There is honestly no need to oppose others
Look how ingrained this is
Try this and see how difficult it is. It is nearly impossible and so this will prove there is no need to oppose others because the followers have allowed this thing to grow in them. Yes, teachers will be judged more severely.
Here is the simple test
Obey Jesus simply teaching
He said do not be called father
Do not be called teacher
Do not be called rabbi
Since most have no rabbi
Most would die by the letter and say he did not say do not be called pastor
The letter kills
The Spirit gives life
He said
You have ONE [count them, 1] teacher, ONE shepherd [which the latinos call pastor]
He demolished the divide
Men love honor
Try calling a bishop brother with the great dignity and respect in that term JESUS gave us
We are brothers
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He actually said it to the leaders*
Do not be called rabbi
Do not call anyone on earth father
Do not be called teachers
See, I put the onus on those considered lower. That’s actually easier. This whole thing itself is a nefarious web…the more you look at it. Wyclif saw this too.
It’s not directed as another burden for the lowly followers to carry. It’s leveled at the blind guides to humble themselves, ourselves, myself. You’ve heard people call me pastor. It’s annoying to ask people continually to call me brother. What if I carefully reminded them that we are to be as brothers…
[*Editors note: the post directly preceding this one actually originally said “Call no man father, call no man teacher, call no man rabbi” etc until it was corrected as noted here.]
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