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The Congregational Context of Church Leadership
Perspectives in Tension
Doctrine
- I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by
the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another;
only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel
of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you
a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!
As we have said before, so I say again now, if any man is preaching to you
a gospel contrary to what you received, he is to be accursed! (Gal 1:6-9).
- Paul is writing not only to the Galatian elders. He's writing to the
whole church. And he's saying that the church is responsible to evaluate
the teaching that comes from the pulpit. They are not to passively accept
anything that comes out of the preacher's mouth, but are to hold it up
to the light of Christ and test it by His Word. And if the teaching fails
the test, the whole church is responsible to quit listening to the teacher
- even if that teacher is an apostle like Paul himself.
- Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke,
exhort, with great patience and instruction. For the time will come when
they will not endure sound doctrine, but wanting to have their ears tickled,
they will accumulate to themselves teachers in accordance with their own
desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside
to myths. (2 Tim 4:2-3)
- Paul here lays the responsibility for the presence of false teachers
clearly at the foot of the congregation. They are the ones responsible
for accumulat[ing] to themselves teachers in accordance with their
own desires. They are the ones who do not endure sound doctrine,
who want their ears tickled, and who consequently turn from truth to myths.
They are the ones ultimately responsible for allowing their own desires
to determine the kind of teachers they seek out for themselves.
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