Tuesday, March 20, 2007

Find the Pastor

Here's a little game for you. Find the pastor. Or even the sermon for that matter.

Hebr 10:24 (NKJV) And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, 25 not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as [is] the manner of some, but exhorting [one] [another], and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.

1Cor 14:24 (NIV) But if an unbeliever or someone who does not understand comes in while everybody is prophesying, he will be convinced by all that he is a sinner and will be judged by all, 25 and the secrets of his heart will be laid bare. So he will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, "God is really among you!"
26 What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation. All of these must be done for the strengthening of the church.

1Cor 12:21 (NIV) The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!" 22 On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, 23 and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty, 24 while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, 25 so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other. 26 If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.

Matt 23:9 (NIV) And do not call anyone on earth `father,' for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. 10 Nor are you to be called `teacher,' for you have one Teacher, the Christ.


Silly game. We all know we need a pastor. Our pastor told us so.

Oops, maybe we’re supposed to build each other up as Jesus teaches us.

Huh?

2 comments:

Steve Pye said...

Ok, this is fun:

Heb 10 - the pastor is the "some" who forsake the assembling. I've known many pastors who "hate" when people get together outside the church, unless it's part of a group that is "sanctioned" by the church. I guess it threatens its very structure. In fact, a friend of mine wanted to start a bible-study and prayer group with three other women, of which my wife was one. My wife was excited about it, but it was rejected by the church leaders, and never formed. Ouch.

1 Cor 14: dare I say it... the pastor might just be the unbeliever in this one. The one most threatened by the presence of God where "two or three are gathered" and the pastor wasn't part of it. See the above.

1 Cor 12: gee, the pastor could be any part of the body that says "I don't need you" to any other part. Amen, or ouch?

Matt 23: pastor... aka.. 'father' ? So what do we call them now? I'm sick of hearing 'brother'. What if maybe, just maybe, we're all in it together? We're all pastors. We're all congregation. We're all teachers. We're all students. in other words, we're all just us, useful just as we are. Cool.

David Grant said...

Hurray, somebody is playing the game. Wouldn't it be great if everybody played?