We spoke last month about how the church must press beyond the habit of filtering ongoing Truth by our previously formed worldview (our own culture, past experiences, and theologies that cause us to respond to the world around us). Today, the Lord calls us to stretch the tent pegs of our understanding. As we search together for greater Truth that supersedes our own present thought, let’s remember that our conclusions determine how we view God and how we live our lives.

One of the major obstacles to growth into present Truth, is this current idea of “spiritual authority.” Before we begin this study, let’s agree that there really should be proper governmental authority in church ... but for the most part, we’ve misunderstood and misapplied it.

Most of us have participated or been held hostage to some of these attitudinal mistakes in the past. We recognize the familiar rhetoric as some church leaders actually claim that they are “in charge.” These days, lots of preachers believe that they have God given "authority" OVER their congregations and OVER all the activities in their church. Therefore, what they say, goes! They simply appoint themselves into positions OVER others and expect certain responses (see my website article on “Covering”). They demand to be respected and obeyed by the others in that church by saying things like, “Just do whatever I say, and if I’m wrong then God will correct me.” Then, when the bottom inevitably falls out, there is no consoling help for those who have been injured from this controlling type of leadership.

The church today desperately needs to discover the truths about effective leadership. We’ve copied far too many models that have failed. The present day church should function out of an apostolic GRACE (1 Cor. 3:10-11) that provides accurate patterns of spiritual authority. We must endeavor to discover what God's "PRESENT TRUTH" church should look like. Then, we must also begin to realign ourselves within this process of Apostolic/Prophetic restoration and reformation. 

Today, the trumpet sounds a certain sound – it can now be more clearly discerned (1 Cor. 14:8). The sound is one that explains how we can no longer be prideful of our great accomplishments, of being recognized, or being famous. Our ministry exists solely for the sake of establishing the Kingdom. We live and breathe and have our being because of HIM and not ourselves. The church-universe no longer rotates around the “head pastor,” the “arch-bishop,” or the “chief apostle.” We’re no longer on top of the heap!

Major cultural and theological changes occur as the church now shifts into the emancipation of God’s liberty. Massive changes are ahead as the church now redefines herself and becomes the accurate structure that images the intentions of our Great Designer. We must take heed how we build upon the foundation of Christ (1 Cor. 3:10-11). Old paradigms, archaic modalities, meaningless tradition, and empty religious ritual will be dismantled. The church no longer benefits from a rigid pyramid of hierarchy ...but rather, it must become correctly re-structured into a loving community that respects one other for their individual dignity and distinctiveness.

To be continued --