The people in the pews allow the preachers to be their spirituality for them, they become lazy and indifferent as long as someone else is paid to do the "job". Sadly this is unBiblical and leads to chaos and false doctrine.
In the New Testament gathering the men were commanded by God to question the preacher right then and there so the congregation could see the correction. Every man had the authority to speak out during the preaching. All men took turns leading and preaching.
1 Corinthians 13:29-33 "29 Let two or three prophets speak, and let the others pass judgment. 30 But if a revelation is made to another who is seated, the first one must keep silent. 31 For you can all prophesy one by one, so that all may learn and all may be exhorted; 32 and the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets; 33 for God is not a God of confusion but of [m]peace, as in all the churches of the saints."
When the Holy Spirit leads it is a beautiful thing!
The Lord's supper is the worship time taught in the Bible. One man asks for a song, another speaks from the word, another corrects or adds to the speaker who is preaching. Everything is orderly because it is all led by the Holy Spirit.
The teaching follows the Lord's supper worship, led by a man who was chosen to speak that week. No one man is ever in charge of all preaching or has all authority.
I have seen this in gatherings we were in and it was truly beautiful to see all the men participating in the leading. No one was paid, it was not a job to any of the men, but a calling by God. No one had greater authority over another, but all spoke truth as needed.
In gatherings where there are paid pastors there is overreach. Rather than leading by example and preaching as the Word commands, the preachers make rules that are not Biblical to keep their position secure.
I actually heard a young pastor say, "I protect my pulpit", they are taught this nonsense in Bible college. The pulpit does not belong to one man, nor is it Biblical for one man to have that much power over others.
We must drop the title "Pastor whoever", it elevates one man above the others, often abuse comes from this special class of people. There is no such thing as "leity" or "clergy" described in the Bible. Those terms come from the Catholic concept of hierarchy that is not Biblical.
I challenge every believer to study out the role of the pastors called by God to lead in the church, you might find it enlightening. The modern idea of church and leadership comes straight out of Catholicism. It tends to make gods out of the leaders rather than mere men led by the Holy Spirit.
So many people will believe whatever the man in the pulpit says without questioning and even becoming angry when someone else calls them to account. When someone becomes angry because we have challenged a doctrine, that is the first clue they angry one has an idol in their life, that idol being the man in the pulpit.
Psalm 118:8
"It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man."
Jeremiah 17:5
"Thus says the Lord: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord."
2 Timothy 3:13-17
"While evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work."
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