House Church Talk - House church or simply church wherever people are

[jim sutton]

Glenn Frank wrote:

>It doesn't matter if the "pastor" is in charge or not in an IC church or a
>house church. My point was that he is not intended to 'be in charge'
>anyway... Just because he is gifted as a pastor.
>
>My point is that the scripture speaks of a GIFT of pastoral ministry...
>Nowhere do we see Paul telling Timothy or Titus to appoint 'pastors'. They
>appointed ELDERS... Men with the right heart for servant leadership who were
>in touch with the Lord and qualified.
>
>Being gifted as a 'pastor' really is like having a gift of hospitality or
>wisdom or any of the other gifts... (it does not automatically make you a
>leader or give you a position in the church) It is a GIFT not an OFFICE of
>the church.
>
>We can all find examples of people using the title "pastor" in both the IC
>and house churches and complain about it and the pros and cons of having a
>pastor in charge or a 'board' in charge over him.... Point is... Neither is
>right. Nor should it be that they are hirelings of a greater Board or
>denomination. 
>
>"Pastor" is just another one of those words which has been distorted by
>church tradition over the centuries. It has lost its real meaning and has
>sadly degenerated into a title of an officer or employee of an IC... Or
>sometimes a dictator of a house church. (don't take offence at that... It is
>simply a single head leader of a group... Something scripture does not
>support). Everywhere in scripture we see that ELDERS (plural) were the
>leaders in any given group of believers. Some of them might be gifted as
>pastors... Or maybe some other gift. And there might even be people gifted
>with the pastoral gift in the non-eldership part of the fellowship who will
>never be elders in a church. But the "pastor" was never intended as an
>office. The pastor was intended as a gift to the church for the building up
>of the body... Eph 4.
>
>Glenn Frank


Yes, so far as I can see, we're still in agreement.  

Scripturally, God's Spirit acts through all the members, according to His own 
plans and purposes, not according to the agenda that we may agree on, or the 
organization that we may try to set up.  The gifts of the Spirit are not 
personal possessions or private skills that we can somehow capitalize on, but 
simply the manner in which God's Spirit may choose to act, now in one person 
and then in another person.  

In addition to spiritual gifts that should be at work in the assembly of the 
saints, the Lord also calls different believers into different kinds of 
service -- and gifts them for that service.  But it still must always be the 
Lord Himself working in each person to accomplish His own work.  It should 
never about any of us, our talents, our plans, our desires.  

We only benefit when we let God lead, and when we each respond to the leading 
of the Lord.  If we follow each other, then we simply go around in circles. 
 If we always wait for a human being to lead us, then we're always at the 
mercy of that person's spiritual condition.  Better for each of us to be in 
meaningful fellowship, one on one, with the Lord Jesus.


Jim