It is that time of the
month again lovely people. I know, The
topic!! The topic!! However, before you start throwing stones hear me out. Keep an open mind.
REFLECTIONS
This topic came to mind a couple of
months ago, and immediately two (2) things happened:
i.
I was speaking to
an acquaintance and she mentioned a situation which she was undergoing with her
boss. After explaining her expression
was “But that is manipulation, she stated I did not even know the word and the
meaning. It was while I was sleeping
that the Holy spirit brought the word to me and I looked it up. She then stated, but that is what is
happening in the church to”. I laughed and then concurred with my sister. That is when I decided to add the word to my
topic.
ii. This poem by the
late great Jamaican Folklorist the Hon. Dr. Louise Bennett-Coverley came to
mind “URIAH PREACH”- The gist of the poem is that a church member’s son has
access to the pulpit and when he gets the opportunity to preach, he uses it to
settle old scores or dress down the congregation. These days we are not so brazen it has been
developed to a fine art.
There are many types of submission
that the Bible speaks about governmental authority, children to parents and
wives to husbands. There is a lot of
material available on the latter. Ladies
they have your number. As I often say be
anxious for nothing.
The literature that is available on
submission is to a large extent written by Pastors and in my opinion for the
most part is superficial and simplistic.
The quotations of a few scriptures and then a conclusion.
I am writing this Blog as a sheep in
the church. I have no position and is
not trying to get anyone to submit to me.
I am writing from the perspective of one who led and is being led. People remember that we are all leaders
whether we want to believe it or not.
All you need to decide is whether it is positive or negative.
As I travel around and interact with
people, more and more I have come to realize that it is not major doctrinal
issues that are affecting the church. It is the St. John 3 verses 16 – 17 for
God so loved and the things contain in Jesus’ first sermon. THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT – the basic and
fundamental principles that governs life in the kingdom.
I am amazed at the things that goes
on between the pews. I am wondering if
most of us read the book that we take to church or have between WhatsApp and
Face Book on our smart phones.
The result of not obeying basic and
fundamental scriptural doctrine is that our doctrine lacks sincerity and there
are a lot of Christians in transition; people who are just in church in body. Instead
of producing sheep we are producing goats – people will buck the life out of
you.
Let me pause here to give an
illustration:
I visited a church in August 2016
with an acquaintance. While waiting to
enter the main auditorium, we sat in the hall. I sat beside a lady. So, as is
my custom I introduced myself and decided to get to know the lady. She was elderly and quite pleasant so I asked
if she was a member of the church. She
said no! nothing strange I was not either. She then went on to elaborate that
she visits the Catholic and the Anglicans and the present location. Having been
there done that myself (life happens) I did not shun the lady or acted
outraged. I just told her very calmly
you cannot do that. You must be planted Psalm
92 verse 13. I really did not know if
she was listening to me but it did not matter.
Suffice it to say, in December 2016 I
just had an urge to go back to the church.
The Jesus need go through Samaria sort of situation. On my way, if I was
faint of heart I would have given up because of the number of obstacles on my
journey. The bus got stuck at a train
line for over 20 minutes. The train was
long and it is the first time I saw a train literally crawled. Then I had to wait twenty (20) minutes for
the connection to the subway. So, I went
to Walmart and bought a bag of potato chips. All that salt was not good. Then I
got on another bus, would you believe it I missed my stop and had to get off
and walk back to the correct stop. This
was in freezing weather people. Then I
had to wait for another connection. However, I reached in time and did the
ladies thing before the start of the service.
When I went into the auditorium I had the shock of my life. I met the
same lady bouncing and smiling. She was
not only a member of the church she was now a bonified worker in the
fellowship. My joy was full. The service was good and the prayer session was vigorous
all that paled into insignificance compared to how I felt about my sister. Face
Book is good and WhatsApp but, how can you have hundreds and thousands of
nebulous connections and don’t even know the person who is sitting beside you
week after week in church.
By the way people the art of
connecting with people does not come by osmosis, it is something that you have
to be intentional about. Fortunately,
for me I worked under a Pastor who knew his congregation and when the
leadership asked him how he did it. He
told us that as leaders it was our responsibility to know the people we are
leading
CRITICAL
DEFINITIONS
Submission:
The word has two meanings however, the meaning we are interested in is the
action or fact of accepting or yielding to a superior force or to the authority
of another person.
Manipulation:
The action of manipulating someone in
a clever or unscrupulous way or to control or play upon by artful, unfair, or
insidious means especially to one’s own advantage. Every time I write the word
I am reminded of the Chinese character for crisis which on the other hand can
also mean opportunity. Likewise,
manipulation leads to deception.
Deception:
The act of making someone believe something that is not true.
Authority:
The power or right to direct
or control someone or something.
SUBMISSION
TO SPIRITUAL AUTHORITY
I am wondering if there is an
unwritten law in most churches that says when you become a Christian that you
are to leave your brain at the door or some people are not allowed to think? I
don’t remember seeing that written anywhere in the Bible. In fact, I see quite the opposite.
Peter, James and John were fishermen. Paul was
a scholar he went to the best school of the time Hebrew Institute of Gamaliel. Today that would be Oxford or Harvard
University (dare I say the University of the West Indies! Don’t look at me in
that tone of voice love yuh).
Peter wrote two (2) books Paul wrote half
of the New Testament. Need I say more.
The church is the only place where the total man is taken care of. We are to be trained and deployed. That is why the organizational structure is
so flat. I suppose the hospitality industry were not the first originators of
the all-inclusive concept. God was ahead of them.
We all need to be educated the saints
and the shepherds. In the book of I Corinthians 4 verse 15 – The Apostle Paul
advise that there are many teachers but not many fathers. In the book of
Ezekiel 34 Daddy is very explicit about this shepherding thing.
We will go to the only perfect
example to illustrate kingdom authority:
In St. Matthew 3 verses 13 -15- Jesus
was baptized by John the Baptist because John was the resident prophet on earth
at the time. He represented spiritual
authority reiterating Jesus in verse 15 – Let all righteousness be fulfilled. He had to be in right standing.
THE
WORKING OF JESUS’ MINISTRY
The Disciples
Jesus chose twelve (12) disciples.
Some had very distinct personalities.
Some you hardly read about. However, it is documented that most died as
martyr except John who died at a good oil age, leaving us to wonder if being
boiled in oil preserved him.
Peter was impetuous among other
things, Jesus had to rebuke the devil out of him, he denied Jesus but he also
walked on water and was the main guy on the day of Pentecost. Where in the Bible did you see, Jesus
chastening him openly or maligning him among his peers. In fact we read how
Jesus restored having abandoned all after the crucifixion and returned to
fishing.
We had James and John the sons of
Zebedee they not only wanted to call down fire on people but they were also
ambitious and got relatives involved in church business to put in a good word
for them. Jesus did not chastise them,
He just told them it was not His call and they had to be willing to pay the
price for such grandiose ambitions.
Judas; can you imagine eating and
drinking every day with a man that would play Brutus to your Julius Caesar.
Then you had doubting Thomas walked
around with Jesus for three and a half years (31/2) and still did not believe
that He was the Son of God literally did not believe in the resurrection.
You also had uppity Nathanael who
thought that nothing good came out of Nazareth.
Andrew thank God for faithful Andrew
who found a good thing and immediately shared it with his family member. People we need to stop singing those fly away
songs and Maranatha come Lord Jesus most of our families are not saved.
I was recently doing a research on
world religions and discovered that about thirty three percent (33%) of the
world population is of the Christian faith; of that approximately seventeen
percent (17%) is Roman Catholic, another one and a quarter percent (1.25%) are
Anglicans. Then you have the protestants
and various other denominations. Among
the potpourri of beliefs, the evangelicals did not even register. The Islam and
Hinduism have thirty four percent (34%) and then you have Buddhism, atheist
etc. controlling the other thirty three percent (33%). People we need to get
the fundamentals right so we can go fulfill the great commission. Religions of the World
Inner Circle
Jesus had an inner circle consisting
of three (3) disciples Peter, James and John and as such they witness many
miracles of Christ that the other nine (9) disciples were not allowed to see.
John was seen to be a favourite of Jesus even lying on Jesus’ bosom. There is nothing wrong with having
favourites. However, you need to handle
it like Jesus not Jacob.
This is the model that Jesus used,
twelve (12) to change the world and one was a betrayer, but God never leaves
himself without a substitute. If you can wait on the perfect will of God He
will send you somebody greater by the name of Saul/Paul. Even though you might have gone ahead and
drawn lots and replace Judas with a Mathias.
All we are going know of the gentleman is his name. Man, looketh at the
outward appearance God looks at the heart. I Samuel 16 verse 7.
JESUS MODEL EXPANDED
I remember a prominent Rastafarian
in Jamaica did a management training for the company I was a part of and he
called it the Jesus Model. This is the Jesus Model as per Raphleta Taylor
i.
You must be hooked up to the Father,
Jesus said I do nothing that I did not see my father do St. John 5 verse 19. He
prayed St. Mark 1 verse 35. You need to be accountable to someone. Jesus yielded to the authority of John when
he was alive. After John left it was
between Him and the Father.
ii.
Jesus had an inner circle you also
need a select group to brainstorm with and discuss confidential information.
Ideally these will be people filled with the Holy Ghost Power and Wisdom, to a
large extent independent thinkers and not people to massage your ego.
iii.
Clarity of vision – people are
going to come and go one thing that must remain constant is the vision. Jesus started preaching the arrival of the
kingdom of God and He has not stopped. Write down the vision make it plain
Habakuk 2 verse 2. People are perishing
for lack of knowledge Hosea 4 verse 6.
iv.
Put systems in place. Systems
outlast people. In the book of Acts 6
they had bickering because they did not have proper systems in place. If you
are having bickering, back stabbing and gossiping. Clear indications of leadership problems and
no proper systems. You must have a proper mechanism to deal with confrontations
or disputes. Moses and Jethro in the
wilderness. Jethro organized Moses (The black man the vision to the body of
Christ) Exodus 18 verses 18 -26. When there was a dispute at the highest level
in the church Paul and Peter circumcision versus uncircumcision of the Gentiles
they took it to the Elders Acts 15.
People are looking from transparency when they come to
church. It is not a secret society. My prayer is that soon I can go to all these
great church websites and see financial statements. Acts 17 verse 11 states
that we sheep must be like the Bereans. They scrutinized the teachings of the
Apostles exhaustively. It does not matter who is teaching we must test
everything against the word. This attitude prevents wolves getting among the
sheep St. Matthew 7 verse 15.
MANIPULATION
The most classical case of this is I Kings 21 Jezebel
and we know that ended up in the murder of Naboth a very severe case of
engineering things for your own end.
Let us now go to Jesus, one point of note people is
that Jesus never woed a sinner but he woed the religious people the Pharisees
and the Sadducees. The case of the woman caught in adultery St. John 8 verses 1
– 11. The first thing that comes to mind
is where is the man. In verse 6
6 This
they said, tempting him, that they might have to accuse him. But Jesus stooped
down, and with his finger wrote on the ground, as though he heard them not.
They clearly knew what to do, they are the teachers of
the law but they wanted to trap Him. Jesus is classical, people like these you
just ignore, not worth the time of day. Genesis 3 verse 21 God exposes no one
to shame and ridicule it is a principle established in the Garden of Eden.
The religious people also tried to trip him up
concerning the payment of taxes St. Matthew 22 verses 15-22. Jesus’ response
verse 18 But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, why tempt ye me, ye
hypocrites?
Jesus is brutal with religious people who are trying
to block other people from making it because they are hopeless themselves.
CONCLUSION
We will have to follow up in future
looking at specific areas in leadership particularly servant leadership based
on the sermon on the mount. St Matthew 5 verses 23 – 24, 18 verses 15-17. Based on these principles there should be no
Uriah Preach in the church. You have
ought against your brother you go to your brother. The method and criteria for
removing people from the church is clearly outlined in the Bible.
Ephesians 4 verses 11-13. Looking at
specific roles in the church. I heard one man of God said “A weak society is
the reflection of a weak church and a strong society is the reflection of a
strong church.” Simply put judgement begins in the house of God.
We want to explore scriptures such as
St. Matthew 18 verse 6. When I think of
this scripture a little anecdote come to mind.
It is this: I remember writing a particularly scathing email to a man of
God. When I was finished I was feeling
quite satisfied. I said to myself I have socked it to him. All I heard in my
Spirit was Really! That is my business. Leadership is God’s business.
Another gem is Hebrews 13 verse 17
This one reminds me of another teaching moment in my life. I remember I was
home reflecting in the formative years of our fellowship and listening to a
tape series (I had no CD in those days) on Submission by Pastor John Bevere. I
can’t remember who gave me the series. He used the life of King David to teach
this principle. Summarizing the teaching
I realized that King Saul was a mad man whose only goal in life was to
annihilate David. King David had the
opportunity to kill King Saul twice and he stated that he would not touch the
Lord’s anointed.
Then I had one of those ha-ha
moments. Raphleta what you ladies on the executive are doing is wrong.
Let me back up a little on the church
executive committee we had four (4) ladies. Three (3) of us were University
graduates and all single and two (2) were never married and one (1) divorced. I
was among the single never married category.
To complicate the matters I used
to be a member of the Junior Chamber International (that is another
story). At that time, it was touted to
be the premier young people’s leadership training organization. So, I thought I
had parliamentary procedures, meeting management, report writing and some other
skills pat. When you think that you know, then you realize you don’t know. We
were a very zealous bunch. So one of the things we three (3) or most of us
would do is discuss matters prior to the meeting and have a position going into
the meeting. Really and truly no Pastor
should have to deal with this. This is
not a political party it is not a democracy.
It is a theocracy. God has his way of doing his business. Thank God that
the days of ignorance He winks at. This can tie a Pastor’s hands. You have to trust that God is using the man
of God and defer to His judgement on most matters. There is room for discussion
but ultimately if the man is a man of prayer and you have proven him you have
to submit. Hence, my ha-ha moment so I
did my repenting in my little room.
People please note that every new word you get will be tested. The next day I got a phone call. Hello! Raph? Yes, yuh si dah one Pastor So
and So (You see that Pastor So and So).
The old Raph would have said yes, weh him duh? (Yes, what has he
done?). The enlightened Raph said Have
you spoken to him? Call him and talk to him.
To date I have not received another phone call. I was tested the same way several months
hence, this time at an open meeting. I just said to the lady call him and speak
to him. The late Dr. Myles Munroe and Pastor E.A. Adeboye says the closer you
get to God the shorter your leash. You don’t get away with things. I believe
them.
One of my best gems though of
biblical portrayal of leadership that I have had to date is with my past
Principal the late great J. Barbara Martin at Merl Grove High School. This school is my alma mater. She encouraged
me to do a stint at the school. I accepted, I taught Advanced Level Economics, CAPE
(Caribbean Advanced Proficiency Examinations) Accounts and CXC (Caribbean
Examination Council) Accounts and Principles of Business. Since I had no prior teaching experience
except for Sunday School at Church and my hand writing was terrible those day
it was chalk and talk. In the same
manner, I did for my Sunday school class I had to find innovative ways to
impart the knowledge. By this time, I
had written many Sunday School lessons on various topics given out many gold
stars and candies. The school had a bus so my strategy became Education in
Action. For Principles of Business I took the ladies on a field trip to one of
the largest and most diversified companies in Jamaica and they had one of the
Senior Executives sat down with them and taught them about business. He was
fantastic. It was a joy to watch. So they now had practical knowledge and could
make more informed career choices plus they had information for their School Based
Assessment. For Economics, I took them to the Bank Of Jamaica, the Mecca of
Economics in the country so they did the grand tour and lecture. In addition, the bank overlooked the sea and
the International Conference Centre so that was bonus. Moreover, with these
responsibilities I oversaw a form. As you can imagine between writing lesson
plans, organizing field trips, teaching and marking I have never worked so hard
for my bread. Father bless all teachers.
To my surprise, I was summoned to the
Principal’s Office. Mrs. Martin said
“Raphleta Miss so and so has informed me that …and it continued (people if you
can’t call name it is gossip). Then she
said what say you” So I cleared up whatever the matter was and was never
summoned again. When I think of it I am
still blown away never in the church have I seen this biblical principle in
operation. Phenomenal woman of God. Then came a Principal who knew not
Raphleta.
So people it can be done and it will
be done because Jesus is coming back for a church without spot or wrinkle.
In closing, let me leave you with
this teaching by Dr. Mensa Otabil. Get
the book that he speaks about Good to Great by Jim Collins. Very good
book. However, it is not for the
uninitiated. If you are not comfortable with analysis and critical thinking
continue to burst bubbles. These days
all I hear the Spirit saying is that you know better, you know better.
Once again this is me Raphleta,
Lillene’s baby girl coming to you from the True North.
À bientôt
