Saturday, January 28, 2012

On the True Method of Ministry and the Supremacy of God’s Word - Introduction

The more I read the Bible the more aware I am that much of the New Testament epistles are reiterations of the teaching of Christ, and of the Old Testament. This is worthy of note because sometimes we have a conception of the apostles as people with authority to lay down laws and institute doctrine, yet it was never so. In the great commission the apostles were told to teach their disciples all that I have commanded you which tacitly excludes enjoining anything which Christ has not commanded (Matt. 28:20). The apostles imparted in their teaching and writings what they had learned of Christ as the Holy Spirit brought it to their remembrance (John 14:26), something that He continues to do in our days as He takes what we have read and applies it to our situations and actions. Interestingly enough the Holy Spirit Himself does not teach of His own, but instead imparts what He hears, even as Christ did while on earth (John 7:16-18). It is also worthy of note in John 7:18, the Christ says that the one who speaks of himself seeks his own glory. Yet too often in the church more of human opinion, current fad and tradition is propagated than the Word of God. What is worse is that it is so well tolerated. One instance that I remember well is when a certain pastor I know was talking to me about a certain doctrine began by saying, “Well, there isn’t exactly a Scripture that states this, but…” That man said more against his doctrine right there than I ever could. Yet I was expected to not only assent but perhaps even teach the same. This is preposterous! There are 66 books in the Bible by common reckoning, thousands of topics, and hundreds of thousands of truths to be gleaned from it, yet I should consider very important to God something which He never even muttered and devote more time to that than what He thunders throughout! Thank God, I won’t do it. It is the Word of God that creates the spiritual new man in us when we are born again (1 Peter 1:23), and continues as food for that new man ever afterwards. If the church is an ecclesia – a called out assembly – it is the Word of God which calls us out. It is the Word of God that cleanses and sanctifies us (John 15:3;17:17). If it is by His Word that the bride that Christ redeemed to Himself by His death is made clean and prepared for Him (Eph. 5:25-27), then it is essential that His people receive this Word. If we take up pulpit time with things other than the Word – entertainment, human opinion, useless matters, then at best we are wasting washing time, and possibly we are actually befouling the bride with the smut of human opinion instead of washing her. There is no higher privilege than to deliver the Word of God to His people, it will prepare the Bride for the Bridegroom, so that He can see the travail of His soul and be satisfied. Consequently to fill up this time with trivialities is a great travesty. Even in the case of supernatural experiences and divine revelation, it must always be remembered that these illuminate that which is already stated in the Word and cannot, if they are true, run contrary to it. To show just how much the apostle’s writings were explanatory rather than asserting anything novel I intend to look at a few of the New Testament Epistles starting with James and see how the writers were actually drawing from Christ’s teaching in the Gospels. May God’s word run swiftly. Amen.

No comments: