Church Employees (An Excuse For Wrong Actions)

It has been some time since my last post and as I mentioned recently to someone asking if I had been writing lately, I only write when something comes to me from my past and the only way I can relieve myself of the burden is to write.

My thoughts today have to do with something I think we have to work the scriptures with a hard "twist" in order to support from the word of God. Not uncommon from many things I came to know differing from the message I was taught as a youth, I find no support for the idea of "Church Employees." Most often in discussion groups the concept may work around the idea of a "located preacher" and yet preachers are not the only people employed by church congregations.

While I see nothing contrary to the will of God in various groups of Christians supporting various individuals to work in one area of another for the good of everyone, I have been forced recently to focus on problems stemming from this concept developed by men to "aid" the will of God for us to come together and be the church.

In another blog, I presented my thoughts on whether God ever intended for Elders to be managers of His people or spiritual leaders and while many in my heritage come down on the side of the elders managing the affairs of the church congregation, I fully believe from my reading the proper life of an elder should be one of not managing but SHOWING the way of our spiritual life in their own lives. As Paul instructed others to look at himself, I feel an elder should willing stand up after God, not man recognizes him as having a life to model. One of the problems in how one views the recognition of a man as an elder comes from how we read about the appointment of elders in various locations.

I am only a "lay" person with man's translation of the text at my fingers but I see the religious leaders being the ones to "appoint" elders because they were equipped to recognize the working of Christ in other individuals. Individuals, God was showing forth to be worthy of following. Having been associated with many congregations and witnessing the selection of elders numerous times, one characteristic stands out in my mind. Much like a political machine, elders are selected with similar views as those already named elders. At times when someone has seemingly "slipped" through the cracks, they do not last long since the individuality of their life in Christ comes in conflict with having to be "unified" in positions going against their life in Christ.

This condition, by itself, is reason enough to question the process of selecting elders I have witnessed in churches and yet it continues. One difference in our lives different from the first century is the number of spiritually gifted people we have in so many congregations who are able to recognize spiritual leadership in the lives of others. I remember telling one of my dear friends I considered him an elder and I have also recognized this to other people who see this man in the same way. We did not need someone to point this out to us and yes, many of us attempted to follow his example and when called upon continue to lift him up as an example because God appointed him, not MAN.

Returning to the idea of problems with many groups of elders in my heritage, is the idea of having to "oversee" the business of the church. They take it upon themselves to contractually hire various people to work for the body and they, not the body of Christ, become the final say on who is allowed to work for the church congregation and who is not allowed to work as employees of the congregation. Oddly, the body of elders in a congregation often works like the political structure of Washington or even the city of Houston where the will of the people, as was recently given in a vote to turn off the red light cameras in Houston was overturned by the "rulers" because it is what "they" wanted not the people.

We do not have a papal system (so defined) in the churches of Christ and yet, as is the case many places, the body of elders function in the capacity of a papal system claiming to be specially set aside and guided by God. In the case of employees, the continued service should be between the church they are serving and the individual and not a group of men "looking out" for the best interest of those not spiritually gifted like themselves to discern on their own.

Before closing these comments, I have to mention the one area of our man-made system of elders causing the most harm to those maturing in the life of Christ. We teach the concept of righteousness not needing to be hidden from anyone and how sin lurks under the cover of darkness and secrecy. Yes, the only thing we feel a need to hide in our lives is our indulgence in the sinful nature tempting all of us!

Having developed into a position of "church managers" instead of spiritual leaders, elders often find a need to meet privately to discuss the affairs of the church and to ANNOUNCE their decisions to the body to be followed. I know I'm often way off base but find the "authority" for secret meetings to decide the future of various members of the body absent in scripture. I typed that last part without even realizing what I was saying and yet even as the words came from the tips of my fingers, I realized the employee is not just an employee but an often SUPER faithful member of the family!

Am I to believe God wants the elders to treat, often the most devoted and sincere members of our family with secret meetings and announcements? Having never looked at it this way, I'm convinced God's hand is not in these decisions but rather the will of fallible men whose position is little more than an excuse to behave contrary to the will of God.

I will close with what I have always been taught is the will of God when faced with a problem brother (assuming there is a problem since for what other reason would someone be FIRED). You take the problem to your brother and try to work it out. When the brother is unrelenting in his will to change the "problem" behavior, you then take it to the CHURCH! The church will decide what is to be done and not a few men.

You answer for yourself, Is it a Godly thing for a small group of men to meet secretly and to the surprise of the body of Christ announce something similar to "after careful consideration we have decided to terminate the employment of......!