Never be fooled into thinking because someone has a degree in "Divinity" or from a "Bible College" that they have greater wisdom than anyone else who does not have these degrees.
In Bible colleges, students are taught what to think according to their professors. They come away with the notion that they do not have to depend on the Holy Spirit because they were taught the right things by those educated people in those universities. They are also often full of pride thinking they are so above their congregations that no one can question or challenge them, just like the Pharisees of Jesus Day.
The godliest and wisest people I have ever met have been those who have never been educated by men in institutions but were educated by the Holy Spirit through the study of His Word. They were not indoctrinated into the thinking of men but open entirely to the Holy Spirit because they were a blank slate not encumbered with mind manipulation by men.
Mark 7:13 "13 Thus you nullify the word of God by the tradition you have handed down. And you do so in many such matters.”
The expectation for a Christian to attend Bible college in order to be a leader in a church gathering is not Biblical and has become a detriment to the gathering.
God told Paul to appoint elders and no one is paid. The only people who received a stipend were those who were traveling preachers who had to move from place to place to preach. There were no full-time local paid pastors who were in charge of the congregation.
This one-man-paid-pastor system that has been instituted was man's lack of faith in the Holy Spirit to train and teach those within whom He dwells. Someone down through the years thought men could do better than the Holy Spirit Who lives in every believer.
This system of paid pastors was a pattern of hierarchy taken from the Catholic Church model. It was not commanded in Scripture and there is no example in the Word of God.
There is an unspoken mentality that drives the paid pastor system, and that is that the pastor is the mediator between God and man. I have even heard pastors say; "don't let anyone else take your pulpit." This is patently unbiblical and dangerous. No one person in the gathering should have the power over others.
Every man in gatherings who is led by the Holy Spirit should preach and teach and there is no mandate in the Word that he be educated in man's formal schooling systems.
Because of this false system, many people in the gatherings have become lazy in their home study and prayer, they expect the paid person up front to do everything for them. Just as it was in the Catholic church when I was there. The congregation didn't make a move about anything without getting permission from the priest.
The priest claimed authority over the people as do many paid pastors in congregations today. They separate the people from the preacher through erroneous language such as; "clergy and laity." There are no such designations in the body of Christ according to God's word, these are traditions of men and are designed to suppress the Holy Spirit in order to give power over the people to these false leaders.
When the congregation has a sense of awe over a man who is educated and paid by men, they will not seek the Holy Spirit, they will seek the approval of the leaders instead. And, if the leaders say something different from what the Holy Spirit said they will follow the leaders believing the leaders know best.
Often the leaders under this system will water down their messages to keep the money flowing, they will even speak things the people want to hear to keep their jobs.
2 Timothy 4:3 "
For the time will come when they will not tolerate sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance with their own desires,"
John 16:13-15
"But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak; and He will disclose to you what is to come. He will glorify Me, for He will take of Mine and will disclose it to you. All things that the Father has are Mine; therefore I said that He takes of Mine and will disclose it to you."
The Holy Spirit will never glorify men He will always glorify Christ.
Nowhere are we taught to seek men for our wisdom, even though we have teachers we will evaluate them according to the Word of God and if they speak something different from the Scriptures then we are to correct them and disregard them if they will not listen to correction.
John 14:17
"the Spirit of truth. The world cannot receive Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him. But you do know Him, for He abides with you and will be in you."
The hierarchy of church gatherings do not want the congregants to think for themselves as led by the Spirit, they want followers to themselves. This is why they are so often resistant to correction or discussion in disagreement. They expect the people to believe them without question.
John 14:26
"But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have told you."
1 Timothy 4:1
"Now the Spirit expressly states that in later times some will abandon the faith to follow deceitful spirits and the teachings of demons,"
The Advocate is the Holy Spirit and He lives in every born-again believer. No man has more authority over another believer than the Holy Spirit. Men preach and teach, we evaluate what they say according to the Holy Spirit and accept or correct it according to what is needed. However, the preacher and teachers do not have authority over anyone. It is the Holy Spirit Who has the authority.
We listen to the teachers and preachers as they are led by the Holy Spirit to encourage us and we do not listen when they bring false doctrine.
The one-man-paid-pastor system has ruined the modern church so much so that it barely resembles the first-century church gathering and has led many into false beliefs that defy God's Word.
People are prone to follow a leader they can see and have a propensity to disbelieve the Holy Spirit they cannot see. This is why the system of paid-pastor today has ruined gatherings, making people spiritually lazy and fostering idols in the form of educated men.
May those who are not familiar with this problem go back to the Scriptures and read exactly what God said about the order of the gathering setting aside everything they have been taught while seeking the Holy Spirit.
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