“that we also may be like all the nations …” (1 Sam. 8:20a, NKJV)
What is the historical reason for the way in which the contemporary church has rendered the reverend or pastor as the one around which the entire church community revolves, and without him/her the church cannot function optimally
From previous teachings we now know that this was not the case in the first Acts prototype churches. In his book The Christian Priesthood Examined Richard Hanson writes, “Christianity … learnt from the example of pagan religions that most men find it difficult to understand or approach God without the aid of a man who in some sense stands for God, represents Him, and feels called to devote himself to his representative ministry.” But it’s closer to the truth to say that the root of the problem already lay in early Biblical times, because the people of God had not wanted to implement his will on the matter, but longed to do things in the way the heathen nations had done. In 1 Sam. 8:18-20 we read how the Israelites demanded to have a king: “And you will cry out in that day because of your king whom you have chosen for yourselves, and the Lord will not hear you in that day.” Nevertheless the people refused to obey the voice of Samuel; and they said, ‘No, but we will have a king over us, that we also may be like all the nations, and that our king may judge us and go out before us and fight our battles.’” (Also read the parable of Jotham in Judg. 9:7-15 about the stubborn trees in the appointing of a king, and the consequences thereof.)
God’s desire had always been to work with nations himself, and to not appoint someone in the group to lead in his stead. But already in the time of the Israelites in the desert the people wanted Moses to hear from God on their behalf: “Then they said to Moses, ‘You speak with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die.’” (Ex. 20:19). Despite the fact that God had chosen the ENTIRE Israel to function as a nation of priests (Ex. 19:6), they chose to follow their own way.
In the Old as well as the New Testament people still have the preconceived idea that only specific, singled-out people can hear from God and do certain spiritual actions. In Num. 11:26-28 we for instance read of Eldad and Medad on whom the Spirit of God had come and who had started prophesying. The zealous young Joshua urgently requested Moses to stop them, upon which Moses explained that that was not God’s will: “’Are you jealous on my account? If only all Yahweh’s people were prophets, and Yahweh had given them his spirit!’” (Verse 29, ASV). A beautiful New Testsament example is found in Mark 9:38-40: “Now John answered Him, saying, ‘Teacher, we saw someone who does not follow us casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow us.’ But Jesus said, ‘Do not forbid him, for no one who works a miracle in My name can soon afterward speak evil of Me. For he who is not against us is on our side. For whoever gives you a cup of water to drink in My name, because you belong to Christ, assuredly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.’”
In the next teaching we will look at how this myth was established in the development of the church.
- Selah: Try to establish a link between perversion and stubbornness.
- Read: 1 Chr. 7-10.
- Memorise: 1 Chr. 10:13 (establishes the link with stubbornness – see 1 Sam. 15:23).
- For a more in-depth understanding: Read Richard Hanson’s book.
