Obedience is a tough sell today. How can it not be when the backdrop is one of “the sons of disobedience” as Paul calls them at Ephesians 2:2? In such a climate, even the Bible is reframed as though it were the Declaration of Independence. From there arises a horror of any religious human counsel that would direct people on what to do.
Nonetheless, Ephesians is clear on the need for “shepherds” and “teachers” among Christians. It is clear on the reason for them. (4:11-13) Faith cannot be just “Jesus and me.”
“And he gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelizers, some as shepherds and teachers, with a view to the readjustment of the holy ones, for ministerial work, to build up the body of the Christ.” (4:11)
The apostle Paul calls them “gifts in men.” How long are they necessary? The passage continues: “until we all attain to the oneness of the faith and of the accurate knowledge of the Son of God, to being a full-grown man, attaining the measure of stature that belongs to the fullness of the Christ.” (4:11-13)
That hasn’t happened yet. It will, once obedience humankind is perfected under Christ’s reign. But it hasn’t happened yet.
It is hard to imagine anything more Christ-dishonoring than “the name of God being blasphemed among the nations.” Yet, this routinely happens in the absence of “shepherds” and “teachers.” Says Romans:
“You, the one preaching, “Do not steal,” do you steal? You, the one saying, “Do not commit adultery,” do you commit adultery? You, the one abhorring idols, do you rob temples? You who take pride in law, do you dishonor God by your transgressing of the Law? For “the name of God is being blasphemed among the nations because of you,” just as it is written.” (Romans 2:21-24) Conduct matters if the goal is not to blaspheme God.
The last thing a Christian should want is for “the truth to be spoken of abusively.” (2 Peter 2:2) Yet, falling prey to “brazen conduct” ensures that will happen.
Also, Paul’s letter to Titus, observes that some “publicly declare that they know God, but they disown him by their works, because they are detestable and disobedient and not approved for good work of any sort.” (Titus 1:12) What can be worse than people publicly declaring they know God but disowning him by their works? That is what unbelievers see, rather than the self-contained feel-good society such ”Christians” have constructed for themselves.
So it was that evangelical author Ron Sider examined his own people and was aghast at their disobedient lifestyle. He found it not worse than that of nonbelievers, but not any better either….and he was mortified. It drove him to his knees, even though, like Daniel praying for his fellow Jews, he was not personally culpable. Then, as any repentant person should do, he sought ways to make it right. He came up with several fixes, apparently without realizing that Jehovah’s Witnesses have successfully implemented these fixes for years.
First, says Mr. Sider in his 2005 book, ‘The Scandal of the Evangelcal Conscience: : Why are Christians Living Just Like the Rest of the World?’ the Western world’s “obsession with independence must end, to be replaced with recognition that Christians are a community belonging to, and having responsibility for, each other. Paul goes so far as to say Christians ought to be slaves to one another. Galatians 5:13 literally reads “be slaves to each other,” yet most popular translations, Mr. Sider notes, dilute the verse to a more independence-savoring “serve one another in love.”
Many churches today trumpet that they are “independent Bible believing,” yet the very notion is “heretical,” says Mr. Sider. To be part of the body of Christ, a church must align itself with a larger structure to give “guidance, supervision, direction, and accountability.”
Jehovah’s Witnesses have exactly such a structure in their governing body. Malcontents rail against such organization as “mind control.”
Second, Mr. Sider suggests, any congregation with over fifty members ought to arrange its people into small groups, where oversight and encouragement can more effectively be offered.
They’re called service groups. Since as long as anyone can remember, perhaps from their outset, Witness congregations have made use of such small groups.
Make it harder to join, is a third suggestion. Evangelical Conscience points to early Anabaptists and Wesleyans, as if no modern examples existed. These groups took their time in admitting new members, ensuring that their conduct as well as words lined up with Christ’s teachings. They did not just settle for the silly and surface “confess the Lord and be saved.” Jehovah’s Witnesses are well known for requiring an extensive period of Bible study and dry run as a prerequisite to baptism..
Lastly, “parachurch” organizations, groups like Youth for Christ that transcend the larger church structure, have, by definition, no accountability to anybody. “Many of the worst, most disgraceful actions that embarrass and discredit the evangelical world come from this radical autonomy,” says Evangelical Conscience. Somehow such groups have to be brought into tow, though the author admits that he has no clue as to how to accomplish this.
Jehovah’s Witnesses do. They strongly discourage any such activity not under the oversight of the central governing body. You should hear critics rail about such “strong-arm” methods! But one can’t help feeling Mr. Sider would approve.
To be sure, Mr. Sider and Jehovah’s Witnesses are poles apart doctrinally, yet organizationally JWs are his dream come true – a peculiar irony, if ever there was one.
****** The bookstore
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