Here are some more questions to ponder. Some of the questions are leading. They may have some wrong assumptions. To find the true answers you must look at them from a biblical lens and not the lens of tradition or church history. Have fun!
What is a worship leader?
What does the bible say about worship leaders?
Is it important for worship leaders to be talented?
Is preaching part of the worship service?
What does the bible say about the sermon?
Is there such a thing as a teaching elder?
What does the bible say about laity? clergy?
What is the laity supposed to do during a church service?
What is the clergy supposed to do during a church service?
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4 comments:
Guy Ben said something interesting to Kesley yesterday about church...
he said imagine yourself 50 days after Christ went to Heaven and Pentecost just happened. As the church, how would you act? What would you do? How would you go about being the church?
Answers to those questions you posted might be alot different if one puts oneself in that situation...
Its an interesting thought
50 days after Pentecost, I don't think they were thinking about form at all. Jesus did not teach form. He taught that, "Now I call you my friends". I believe that they functioned as a big happy family in the Lord Jesus. When Christians get together, the meeting has already started. Where two or more are gathered in my name, I am there in the midst of them, is what Jesus said.
I just finished a wonderful vacation with dear brothers and sisters in Georgia. They meet together as much as possible in their houses. And with the exception of a "planned" get together on Saturday, they try to get together all the time. No formalities. Just give a call and see if anyone is around. They just love one other and want to be around each other as much as possible.
One Saturday, they had their usual food and fellowship and a new comer was invited. This person was a member of an institutional church. He was curious to see what their meeting was like.
About halfway through the day, he was wondering when the meeting was going to start so he asked the question, "When is the meeting going to start?". Austin, then replied, "It started, when everyone began showing up." He said, "it did?" He was totally blown away by that truth. He was looking for a visible sign of organizational structure that "THE MEETING HAS STARTED."
And that is a wonderful truth! It does not start after the fellowshipping in the front yard, or helping others carry things from the car into the house, or after the meal or when everyone has sat down in the living room. It starts when 2 or more have shown up.
I think, in the early church, they were not concerned about human leadership, because the leadership of the Holy Spirit was very evident as it was manifest in the Believer's lives. We get bogged down with form today, and forget how to function naturally, in love towards each other. Well, no wonder, we have been taught form since we were saved and have seen very little functioning.
A family is a microcosm of the church. No one in my family is concerned about form when desiring to function. Well, they have been taught to be polite and not interrupt and a few other things but aside from that, they know they have the liberty to express themselves and they will do that because they know they live in a loving environment where they do not have fear of rejection.
I cannot tell you how blessed I was to see these brethren function in the Holy Spirit, so naturally and spontaneously. I felt like I had know these brothers and sisters all my life. The love and acceptance was so incredibly evident, that we felt instantly at home and part of the family. And isn't that the way it should be.
After lunch, everyone remained at their large table and just broke out their Bibles and started sharing. We arrived at 2pm on Saturday, and left at 11pm. Everyone wanted to stay together, so some brothers and sisters just went ahead and made dinner and later the women broke up into one room to share, then men into another, not in a planned way, they just had different things to share. And the children enjoyed fellowship all day with each other.
It gave me a real good idea what the early church looked like. Effortless, loving fellowship with no hierarchy, or rules.
Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is Liberty. Glory to be to Jesus!!
Correction: Glory be to Jesus!!
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