Authority and Distraction

Just some thoughts I journaled as I wrapped up my study of Hebrews 1:5-14... Hebrews 1:5-14 can be summed up by saying that it refers to and exposes the writer’s belief that Jesus is a superior being on an equal plane with God. He says that Jesus, while being temporarily lower than the angels (Hebrews 2:7, 9; we haven’t gotten there, but be patient!), has risen to a status that is now far superior to them. In a day and age when religion is so watered down with feel-good philosophy and New Age heresy as related to angels and human wisdom such, how do we define authority? Even Christians (myself included) look to popular authors, speakers, and conferences for wisdom and inspiration. I’m not saying that there’s anything wrong with that, but books, sermons, and conference lineups are all rooted in flawed man rather than in the Word of God. Even in a sermon, a pastor is giving me HIS interpretation of Scripture. How many pastors in the last five years have fallen in one type of disgrace or another? So the question is, “Why would I give them more authority in my life than the Bible?” In the time of the early church, angels were given very high regard. They had reached what appears to be near mythical proportions and were so highly acclaimed that even the worship of angels began to surface as a new heresy. Angels have been popularized in movies and television shows like “Touched By An Angel”. I know people who collect angel figurines. I have talked with people who talked non-stop about their guardian angel (I’m not disparaging the idea of guardian angels. Some people approach angels with a worshipful attitude, though.) George Guthrie notes that angels are clearly both popular and big business in Western societies. The question is, how should the church respond to this cultural trend? Keeping in mind that the author of Hebrews uses his first audience’s respect for angels to speak to their need for a higher opinion of the Son… In Hebrews, it’s possible that some of the people for whom this sermon was intended had been having a problem with Spiritual authority and the writer may have been using an inflated view of angels for his jumping off point for a discussion of where they should be placing their trust and focus. Angel worship isn’t the problem that it once was, however Christians do end up worshiping at the altar of personality way too much. How do we avoid venerating people while respecting them? For example, I am a big fan of Matt Chandler, who is the pastor of the Village Church in Flower Mound, Texas. He would probably tell me to go look somewhere else for an example of Godly living, because that’s the kind of guy he is. Anyway, I listen to his messages, subscribe to his podcast, and I even watch how he preaches for pointers on style. I really respect the guy and if there is a person I follow in contemporary church culture, it’s Chandler (Francis Chan is another one, but he isn’t as active as Chandler, but I digress…). The question is this: “How do I glean from a man and avoid venerating his word as Gospel? How do I respect him, but avoid putting him on a pedestal that would cause his voice to supersede the word of God?” How do I let him be AN authority without allowing him to become ULTIMATE authority? The secret is that, first of all, it isn’t a secret, and secondly, it isn’t that hard. 1 John 1:1-3 (NASB95) 1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. 2 By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God; 3 and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God; this is the spirit of the antichrist, of which you have heard that it is coming, and now it is already in the world. Here’s the problem: many of the people in whom we see the world placing trust and whom we allow to have spiritual authority are NOT Christians. I’m not calling any specific individual out here. I am, however, addressing how it happens. I have been asking teenagers for years now how they know if I am telling them the truth. The answer always seems to go back to that one passage when Paul was in Berea and they searched the Scriptures to be sure that what he was saying was true. What is it that we’re looking for, though? Yes, we want to be sure that the doctrines are accurate, but how many of those doctrines fall completely apart without the centricity of Christ in our lives? Can I NOT murder and still not be a believer? Can I NOT steal and still not be a believer? If a guy preaches on not murdering and not stealing, does that make him a solid teacher if that’s what we find in the Bible? My question would be, “Did he mention the name of Jesus at ALL anywhere in his message?” I think hype can distract us. Sometimes I feel like guys go out and get into ministry and they can’t WAIT to write and publish their first book. It’s almost like today’s clergy is trying to make a name for itself instead of making a name of Jesus. Is the person whom I am following (i.e. Matt Chandler) trying to make a bigger name for Jesus than for himself? Is he confessing that Jesus is God and not himself or herself as God? I think that’s how we test the spirits. It’s not some sort of vague spiritual entity that we are consulting with. We don’t go get a Ouija board and start asking it questions to get guidance on whom to follow and whom not to follow. We test the spirit of the man or woman in question. Does the life match Scripture? More specifically, does that life match what the Bible says about Jesus? It’s a challenging question. It’s a question that causes a bit of fear and trembling in my own life and ministry. As Katy and I enter a season of searching out our first pastorate, I hope that this reality continues to humble us and keep us real.