The Title Does Not Make The Man

Then said Jesus to the crowds and to his disciples, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat; so practice and observe whatever they tell you, but not what they do; for they preach, but do not practice. They bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with their finger. They do all their deeds to be seen by men; for they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues, and salutations in the market places, and being called rabbi by men. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brethren. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. Neither be called masters, for you have one master, the Christ. He who is greatest among you shall be your servant; whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

Matthew 23:1-23

Let me make one point clear straight away.

I am not an ordained minister. I am not the pastor of a church. I am not seeking to be the pastor of a church; I would question my fitness to be a pastor in the highly unlikely event I were asked become one.

I am not a professor of theology.

I am one man who reads the Bible and writes the thoughts that come into my mind, that I may share them with others.

If people read my words and are inspired to draw closer to God, that is good. That is my hope and my desire.

If people read my words, decide I am a raving lunatic, and opt to seek elsewhere for the path back to God, so be it. My control over the outcome of my writings ends the moment I share my writings with others. The feedback will be whatever it shall be.

I am a man, neither more nor less.

As a man, I am a sinner. In this regard you and I are the same. In this regard the Pope and I are the same. In this regard the pastor of every church on the face of this good Earth and I are the same.

We are all sinners. We have all fallen short of the glory of God.

I am troubled when I see presumptive Christians departing from the clear teaching of Jesus by according particular authority to ordinary people—ordinary sinners—with a title such as “pastor,” “reverend,” “minister,“ or any other title.

If we are not to be called “rabbi”, it follows just as surely as night follows day we are not to be called any similar title.

If we are to call no one “master”, it follows equally that we are not to behave as if we are masters.

If we are all brethren, it follows equally that no one can possess any authority over anyone else. Jesus has authority; men do not.

I am further troubled when I see such people claim Biblical support for their entitlement. They make the grave error of cherry picking verses and not reading Scripture holistically. They put a spin on their chosen verses which neither reason nor Scripture can support.

When someone argues as if a quote from Paul's Letters somehow supersedes Jesus’ explicit teachings in the Gospels, it is certain they are not reading Scripture holistically and putting verses in context.

I am troubled because such arguments in favor of human authority are foundationally egocentric. They conflate Man's desires with God's Will.

Arguments presuming human authority are simply false. Jesus has authority. Men do not.

A verse or even a passage says what it says; of that there can be no dispute. Yet the significance of what that verse or passage teaches is always reliant on the larger context that is the whole of Scripture. We cannot point to a single verse as if that is the complete teaching in and of itself. When we do that we are immediately led down a path that ends in contradiction and error.

It is true that Hebrews 13:17 says we should obey our church leaders. It says:

Obey your leaders and submit to them; for they are keeping watch over your souls, as men who will have to give account. Let them do this joyfully, and not sadly, for that would be of no advantage to you.

Note that the exhortation is that those anointed by the church to lead the church be able to lead “joyfully”. That is a plea to refrain from needless conflict. That is not a demand for blind obedience, but for prudence and commensality. That certainly is not a declaration that church leaders have particular authority over the brethren.

It is also true that an earlier verse, Hebrews 13:7 commends church leaders as exemplars of righteous faith. That verse says:

Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God; consider the outcome of their life, and imitate their faith.

The standard set forth in Hebrews 13 is not that a person who is the anointed leader of a church is definitionally good and endowed with unique authority over other men. The standard is that a person who by their life and by the fruits of their labors show they are a good person is who should be anointed to serve as the leader of a church. The standard is that those anointed by the church to lead the church should be supported by the church for the greater benefit of the church.

The title does not make the man. The man makes the title.

A title does not and cannot make any person worthy. Who they are and how they live makes a person worthy. The person whose faith has earned them the trust of the church community, whom the church community has asked to serve as its leader, has surely earned a greater respect of that same church community.

Yet that respect does not and should never extend to presuming such a person has any unique authority over the church community. Jesus has authority. Men do not.

If we are not reflecting what is in Scripture, if we are not amplifying what is taught in Scripture, then we are in error, our words have no merit and should be rejected. That is true whether a man is Pope, priest, pastor, or simply a man.

Likewise, if we are reflecting what is in Scripture, if we are amplifying what is taught in Scripture, then we are not in error, our words have merit and should be heeded. That is again true whether a man is Pope, priest, pastor, or simply a man.

1 Timothy 5:17 gives special commendation to “elders who rule well”, but surely to focus on honor given to those who excel in leadership without pausing to consider the meaning of “ruling well”—the essence of excellence in leadership—misses the point entirely, which is to acknowledge and celebrate extraordinary effort. Nor should we forget the very next verse amplifies this message by reminding us that “the laborer deserves his wages.”

One cannot read these verses in 1 Timothy in conjunction with the whole of Scripture and rationally conclude that church elders are in any regard in a position superior to the congregation as a whole. Those who carry out their designated tasks should be recognized for that effort. Those who perform extraordinary tasks, or perform their tasks extraordinarily well, should receive extraordinary recognition. That is not merely Scriptural, it is also common sense.

Bear in mind that Deuteronomy 17 instructed any who would be king over the Israelites to write down their own copy of the law, and to study it daily, that they might remember they are as beholden to the law as any of their subjects. Mosaic Law is clear on this point: the leader is not above those whom he leads, and he strays from the path the moment he thinks he is. Anyone who presumes a pastor has unique spiritual authority strays from the path for exactly the same reason.

We do well to remember that Jesus repeatedly condemned hypocritical and self-serving priests—condemnations which apply equally to egocentric pastors and ministers today.

He warned people against false prophets who used the pulpit for their own purposes, aptly calling them “ravenous wolves.”

He cautioned His disciples to “beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sad′ducees.”

He further condemned the scribes and Pharisees for their greed, highlighting that they “tithe mint and dill and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law, justice and mercy and faith.”

These are not teachings of Jesus which speak well of human authority. These are not teachings of Jesus which speak well in particular of authority claimed by priests and pastors.

These are teachings of Jesus which condemn the arrogance inherent in presuming human authority.

Nor should we ignore the disdain Jesus showed those willing to concede authority to others rather than think, act, and answer for themselves.

When the rich young man approached Jesus about what he should do to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, Jesus began His answer by rebuking the young man for his unctuousness. Rather than looking to God’s Word and God’s Law for guidance, the young man servilely asked Jesus—whom he apprehended to be a man and not the Son of God—to do his moral thinking for him. Jesus was not at all impressed by the young man.

Moreover, we often overlook that Jesus’ advice for the young man to sell all his possessions and give to the poor hearkens directly back to Deuteronomy 15. The standard God set for the Israelites always included making proper provision for the poor within the community.

We can safely presume that a wealthy man such as the one who sought Jesus’ counsel on getting into Heaven had far more than his own material needs required. Putting one’s excess back into the community was a clear moral duty for the Israelites and later the Jewish people. It is a moral duty for people today; giving of our excess is how we show compassion for the sick and mercy towards the poor.

Jesus did not make any additions to God's Law. Jesus reiterated and affirmed God's Law. Jesus challenged all people to actually follow God’s Law.

Following God’s Law does not require the intercession of a priest or pastor. As the closing verse of Judges reminds us, the standard has always been that we are tasked individually with choosing right from wrong and acting accordingly, for better or worse.

We are not called follow blindly. We are not called to substitute a preacher's words for our own. We are not called to substitute a pastor's thinking for our own.

We are called to follow God's Law. We are called to hear God's Word. We are called to be filled with God's Grace.

We are called to remember always that the title does not make the man. The man makes the title.

Most importantly we are called to be one Church, one congregation, one body of Christ. This is a repeated remonstrance of Paul, that we not be consumed with divisions and discord.

Paul argues explicitly against the divisions that come when we choose to follow men in 1 Corinthians 3. It takes no great theological insight to understand that when we put preeminence on a title, when we accord individuals particular authority, we immediately create division where we should foster unity.

Nor can we overlook one of Paul's most quoted lines, Galatians 3:28, in which he reminds us of Jesus’ teaching not to be consumed with title or position, as we are all one body in Christ. This verse is frequently cited as the powerful plea for unity that it is, and rightfully so.

We would do well to heed its message. We would do well to put aside thoughts of title and position, and thoughts of authority, that we might focus on what truly matters: God, God's Law, and God's Will.

The title does not make the man. The man makes the title.

My prayer today is that all of us may remember that we are called to follow God and not men. My prayer today is that all of us may be mindful that we are called to listen, to think, and to apprehend God’s Law for ourselves, that each of us might find themselves on the path which leads back to God. My prayer today is that all of us may be mindful that how we live our lives says far more about who we are than any title.

We are not called follow blindly. We are not called to substitute a preacher’s words for our own. We are not called to substitute a pastor’s thinking for our own.

We are called to follow God’s Law. We are called to hear God’s Word. We are called to be filled with God’s Grace.

We are called to remember always that the title does not make the man. The man makes the title.