House Church Talk - The Pharasees Strike Again

[Claire Bennett]

Just when you thought it was safe....

OK, who has the right to decide whether a church is "legitimate" or not?  To our master, we stand or fall, and he is able to make us stand.  I don't see any discussion in scripture about how adhering to a structure yields legitimacy.  Off-hand, the only mention of legitimacy I am familiar with is God's adoption of us and his discipline which proves us legitimate sons and daughters.

Anyone want to show me an example of how more leadership or more "proper" leadership encourages ministry and relationships rather than repressing the same?  Sure, we need those gifted and experienced to share in ministry.  We don't need them to rule over us.  Or have the authority to squash disagreement through edict or, more subtly, emotional manipulation.

This is more than an academic issue, as many of these groups are in bed with political leaders, with an agenda to take over society and cause it to conform to their vision.  Guess who is going to end up being the rebels slated for elimination and/or assimilation.

I guess if we don't have the "right" authority structure, we need their "proper" elders to come and rule over us.  It follows, that, to legitmize ourselves, we need to submit to their superior "covering."  Oh, and we should probably send them our tithes also, as we don't want to muzzle the ox.  

Here I go again.  Someone once asked me, "Claire, why is it that you always have to go stir the pot?"  I thought about that.  The only answer I could come up with is, "Because I want to find out what's in it."

Potstirrers of the Kingdom, Unite!
Shalom
claire