As iron sharpens iron,
one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)
“On July 5, [BMM] paid tribute to President Emeritus Gary Anderson and his wife, Barbara, bestowing on them our highest honor, the William C. Haas Lifetime Service Award. And on July 6, we formally installed Dr. Vernon Rosenau as our new president.” GARBC
“The presbytery dismissed them on a voice vote that was overwhelmingly in favor,” explained Cole, whose regional body has seen other churches leave the presbytery over the past few years because of the PC(USA)’s liberal theological direction.”
“A rift has emerged in the United Methodist Church after delegates in the Western Jurisdictional Conference defied the Church’s prohibition of homosexuality on Friday to elect the Rev. Karen Oliveto as its first openly gay bishop.”
Paul’s instructions to Timothy regarding the qualifications for leadership in the church (specifically for elders in 3:1-7) are vitally important. They are also not as simple as we might sometimes prefer. We generally prefer things to be neat and clean—objective and quantifiable. So it is not unusual to see the standards of 1 Timothy 3:1-7 received as a checklist which can be mindlessly applied as if black and white, requiring no judgment or wisdom.
However, Paul’s words are not intended to be received or applied in that manner. Instead, of the sixteen specific qualifications mentioned by Paul, all of them are decidedly subjective rather than objective. There is certainly one assumed qualification, that the elder be a he (tis, “anyone” in the masculine). That is the only objective characteristic described in the entire passage.
But as for the sixteen qualifications Paul lists, they are not so simple as is the gender issue.
“But looking deeper into this situation … is Noble’s church part of the problem? Is its ultra-contemporary worship emphasis – in which pastors are hailed as rock star gurus – displacing real religious substance? And are those who attend these heavily-secularized services en masse merely feeding a ‘feeling’ as opposed to feeding their souls?”
“For months FPC Bethlehem has considered seeking dismissal from PC(USA) amid disagreement over the increasingly theologically liberal direction of the denomination.” CPost
“The revelation came as the megachurch, which boasts more than 30,000 members in 17 cities in South Carolina, is in the final stage of two more expansions.” USA Today/Independent Mail
When I say “our” leaders, I mean conservative evangelical and fundament leaders. By churches, I mean conservative evangelical/fundamental ones.
The question does not involve how popular our schools will be. Many may close, for example, but that is not the issue at hand. We are talking about enjoying the freedom to hold to our convictions.
Discussion