“Challenge” what we have learned in religious matters, 1 Jn. 4:1, 6  Cannot accept “that’s the way it is”  Cannot accept “family tradition”  Test all by God’s word  Open-minded without brains falling out

Test & hold fast what is good, 1 Thes. 5:21  Will find a lot of false  Also find truth  Hold to it

Areas of agreement “ So prevailing is the pastor in the minds of most Christians that he is often better known, more highly praised, and more heavily relied upon than Jesus Christ Himself!”

Areas of agreement “ The word is used in the plural. It is pastors…. Consequently, there is no biblical support for the practice of sola pastora (single pastor).”

Areas of agreement  Modern pastor-system wrong 1 Cor. 4:6; Acts 10:25, 26 Acts 14:23; 20:17; Phil. 1:1

Rails against priesthood of almost any kind “ With the Fall came an implicit desire in people to have a physical leader to bring them to God. For this reason, human societies throughout history have consistently created a special caste of revered religious leaders.”

Rails against priesthood of almost any kind “ We see it again when Moses ascended Mount Horeb. The people wanted Moses to be a physical mediator between them and God because they feared a personal relationship with the Almighty (Exodus 20:19).”

Rails against priesthood of almost any kind  God made many “special caste” ­Patriarchs ­Melchizedek, Heb. 7:1 ­Moses, Aaron, Levites, Ex. 28:1

Rails against priesthood of almost any kind  Israel feared God…period!  God appointed Moses a physical mediator, Ex. 4:15, 16; 24:1, 2; Num. 16:1-35  DOES NOT mean a “clergy” in NT, 1 Pt. 2:9

No pattern for leadership in the NT Church “ Up until the second century, the church had no official leadership… But leadership was unofficial in the sense that there were no religious ‘offices.’”

No pattern for leadership in the NT Church  The apostles, Acts 6:1-6  “Office” of bishop, 1 Tim. 3:1; Acts 1:20  Qualifications, 1 Tim. 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9  Duties, Titus 1:9; Acts 20: Pt. 5:1-4; Heb. 13:7, 17

No pattern for leadership in the NT Church “ In striking contrast to the Old Testament provisions made at Mt. Sinai, neither Jesus nor Paul imposed any fixed organizational patterns for the New Israel.”

No pattern for leadership in the NT Church  Elders in every city, Titus 1:5  Elders in every church, Acts 14:23  Elders in Jerusalem, Acts 15:6  Elders in Ephesus, Acts 20:17  Elders in Philippi, Phil. 1:1

No pattern for leadership in the NT Church “ Also present [besides overseers] were extra-local workers who planted churches. These were called ‘sent ones’ or apostles. But they did not take up residency in the churches for which they cared.”

No pattern for leadership in the NT Church  Paul 1 ½ years at Corinth, Acts 18:1-11  Paul 3 years at Ephesus, Acts 20:31  Philip over 20 years at Caesarea, Acts 8:40; 21:8

Sermons a post-NT insertion “ The earliest recorded Christian source for regular sermonizing is found during the late second century.”

Sermons a post-NT insertion “ They were stolen from the pagans. A polluted stream made its entrance into the Christian faith and muddied its waters.””

Sermons a post-NT insertion  Main teaching method of prophets, Deut.  Ezra & Levites, Neh. 8:1-8  Paul’s practice, Acts 20:7  Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, Mt. 5-7  Jesus’ Sermon on the Plain, Lk. 6:17-49

Sermons impede growth & true worship “ How can the pastor learn from the other members of the body of Christ when they are muted? How can the church learn from the pastor when its members cannot ask him questions during his oration?”

Sermons impede growth & true worship “ How can brothers or sisters learn from one another if they are prevented from speaking in the meetings?”

Sermons impede growth & true worship  Bible classes  One speaker, women silent, 1 Cor. 14:26-35  Singing, Col. 3:16

The style / format of sermons is corrupt “ ’The original proclamation of the Christian message was a two-way conversation’”

The style / format of sermons is corrupt “ The Puritans borrowed the preaching method from Calvin…. It was the systematic exposition of Scripture week after week.”

The style / format of sermons is corrupt “ The Puritans also invented a form of preaching called ‘plain-style.’… Their dividing, subdividing, and analyzing of a biblical text raised the sermon to a fine science.”

The style / format of sermons is corrupt “ We do not grow by passive listening week after week.”

The style / format of sermons is corrupt  Format & feedback varied, Mt. 5-7; 22:15-46  Stephen’s “systematic exposition,” Acts 7  Rightly divide, 2 Tim. 2:15; 1 Tim. 4:1-16  Did apostles grow by “passively” listening to the Lord?  Active listening brings growth

“Challenge” what we have learned in religious matters, 1 Jn. 4:1, 6  Cannot accept “that’s the way it is”  Cannot accept “family tradition”  Test all by God’s word  Open-minded without brains falling out

Test & hold fast what is good, 1 Thes. 5:21  Will find a lot of false  Also find truth  Hold to it