A Concern for American Christianity

From the many believers whom I have spoken with, it appears that they hold their pastors in high esteem.

A few parishioners whom I spoke with suggested that the other members of their church needed their pastor to teach the Bible slowly. Just because a pastor preaches from the Bible, however, does not mean that he is rightly dividing the Word of God.

Many parishioners seem to gather around their pastors because of their preaching skills, because of their dynamic personalities, or because they demonstrate an affable capacity with money, power, and prestige.

Yet we are not called to trust in any one pastor for our needs. Jesus Christ came not just to die for our sins, but also to free us from the bondage of the law, and to set Himself within us by the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ railed against the authoritarian spirit which has become widespread in the Church:

"But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.

"And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.

"Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.

"But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.

"And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted." (Matthew 23: 8-12)

No one person has more of the Holy Spirit than another. No one person has more access to the Word of God than another. Any person who has received more insight from the Scripture must thank and praise the Holy Spirit, who invests with all knowledge, and reminds us of everything that Jesus has taught. We all have on Father in heaven, we are all fellow-heirs with Christ, we all have the mind of Christ, we all have the Holy Spirit living an ministering within us. The role of a pastor, of a teacher, is to reveal more of the Person who lives in us, whom we are all going to be like. Scripture declares the beauty of this Person from the first verse of Genesis to the final verse of Revelation. Him we must receive, Him we must glorify,  not the messengers who speak of Him.

No one person deserves to assert a grand authority over another on the basis of closer access to God. No one person can claim to have greater access to God than anyone else. We can all boldly go before the throne of grace, we are all members of a royal-priesthood.

We do not assemble in order to maintain an element of groupthink. On the contrary, we assemble in  order to get excited about doing good works (Hebrews 10: 25), works which God has ordained for us to do since the beginning (Ephesians 2: 10).

We are not called to attend church, to adhere to any one pastor on earth. We are called everyone of us to minister, to serve, to present our bodies a living sacrifice, that Christ in us may live and witness His to bless us and to bless others.

In the United States, too many people celebrate their pastors, instead of celebrating the Pastor who lives within them, who loved them and gave His life for them. It is Christ and Him crucified whom Paul preached, whom Paul would have known among every church that he witnessed to.