Featured No pastors in the Bible

BTW, not only does God GIVE Pastors for the Church, He even foretold of this aspect of the New Covenant!

Jer 3:15 And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding.
Jer 3:16 And it shall come to pass, when ye be multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith the LORD, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of the LORD: neither shall it come to mind: neither shall they remember it; neither shall they visit it; neither shall that be done any more.


:tonofbricks:

 

You are totally wrong about NT scholarship; you need to do some unbiased, objective study and research.

You are also totally wrong about the RCC; their justification for bishops is completely different from the position I am putting forth. They make a distinction between bishops and pastors when there is no such distinction in the NT. You can see their views on this forum.

If you are going to engage me in this area, you seriously need to do much more studying first. I am not saying that to disparage you, but it is clear that this is the case from what you post.

 

This thread is a prime example of the saying, "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing."

 

It is a prime example of the brainwashing of the housechurch movement

 

Which has a "little knowledge."

I am not opposed to house churches per se, as the early churches were that, but I understand what you're talking about.

 

Well there is an actual organized movement that teaches against:

1. paid pastors
2. "pulpiteering" (preaching)
3. church buildings
4. defined leadership

etc. The organized movement is unorthodox and unbiblical

 

I know, which is what I meant when I said I understand what you're talking about.

 

The 1st one kind of bothers you though doesn't it?

 

It should bother any real Christian...

1Co_9:14 In the same way, the Lord commanded that those who proclaim the gospel should get their living by the gospel.

It shuts down huge amounts of ministry.

 

I'm 56 years in this world & I have never seen one ministry worth a damn....except some that actually go out and press the flesh & feed people. Unfortunately they are mostly all Catholic or grass roots independent churches

 

That's sad. We do an enormous amount of ministry. Nevertheless, scripture is clear.

 

Not in New Jersey you dont:laugh: Paper Tiger.

 

Compare your comments to the churches Paul started? Any of them still around? Ministry is done where you are among those you meet. I have been among the very rich and poor. The rich do not need food. Years ago I got to know a man who worked with divers. The first two weeks he complained to God about the lack of fellowship. The next time he was out there God worked in him and he started a Bible study among the men. All of those men on the rig came to Christ and he had all kinds of fellowship. It does not take a church or a recognized ministry to do that but rather knowing the God who is. Ministry is not about what we know so much as it is about whom we know.

 

What on earth? Not sure where you get your info. It is WRONG (at least in Baptist circles!)

This is how the process ACTUALLY works, oh uninformed one...

First, Pastors/Elders (same thing) are called from within a church. That person DOES have an "internal" call (a desire to teach, protect, and work for the Glory of Christ), but there is also a VISIBLE call, which is recognized and confirmed by the elders/pastors of a church. A person who is qualified for the position of pastor/elder, goes to the elders of a church or is approached by the elders/pastors of a church (either way is acceptable), and then the elders/pastors of that church decide if the person is qualified and gifted for that position (good character, able to teach, etc.).

Once it is determined, by the elders/pastors that the person is indeed qualified in terms of his God given spiritual gifts, then, the pastors/elders get together, bring in the candidate, and grill him, to make sure that he has a basic understanding of Christian beliefs, and that there is nothing that would disqualify him from the office.

At this point, he is either ordained (appointed as an elder) or licensed (basically an apprenticeship period, for those gifted, but not ready for the office). Some go to Seminary at this point, some are trained within the church by the pastors/elders, when possible.

Your straw-man is just silly. You might actually want to research something, before you talk about it. Is it good to bring up elders from within the church? Absolutely! Is it commanded in scripture? NO. Is it always possible? NO.

 

By the way, a felt call is CONFIRMED by the Bible, oh uninformed one...

1Ti_3:1 The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task.

ὀρέγομαι
oregomai
Thayer Definition:
1) to stretch one’s self out in order to touch or to grasp something, to reach after or desire something