Ordinations Word Study: Ordain, Ordained, Ordaineth in the Old Testament Cf. Strongs Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible Nu 28:6 It is a continual burnt offering, which was ordained in mount Sinai for a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD. (KJV) 6213 Heb. asah--to do or make [established]. Sacrifices of the morning and evening lambs were ordained or established by the Lords commands at Sinai. The same word is used in I Ki 12:32 where Jeroboam establishes a pagan festival in Israel. I Ki 12:32 And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made. (KJV) 6213 Heb. asah--as above [established]. Jeroboam ordains or establishes a pagan feast in Israel. II Ki 23:5 And he put down the idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense in the high places in the cities of Judah, and in the places round about Jerusalem; them also that burned incense unto Baal, to the sun, and to the moon, and to the planets, and to all the host of heaven. (KJV) 5414 Heb. nathan--to give, put, make, appoint or establish [appointed]. Josiah here kicked out the pagan priests who had been ordained or or appointed by the former kings of Judah. I Chr 9:22 All these which were chosen to be porters in the gates were two hundred and twelve. These were reckoned by their genealogy in their villages, whom David and Samuel the seer did ordain in their set office. (KJV) 3245 Heb. yacad--to set, to found, establish [establish]. Here and in Psa 8:2 the same Hebrew word is used; in this passage Levite porters are established in their offices by David and Samuel according to their genealogical descent from Korah. I Chr 17:9 Also I will ordain a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, and they shall dwell in their place, and shall be moved no more; neither shall the children of wickedness waste them any more, as at the beginning, (KJV) 7760 Heb. soom or seem, to put, appoint [establish]. God promises to establish a land wherein he will plant the nation of Israel. II Chr 11:15 And he ordained him priests for the high places, and for the devils, and for the calves which he had made. (KJV) 5975 Heb. amad--to stand, appoint, establish [appointed]. Jeroboam ordains or establishes his false priests to administer the false religion he institutes in Israel, an idolatrous prototype since often patterned upon. These false priests may have been in fact mediums through whom the evil spirits of the calf-idols taught false doctrines. II Chr 23:18 Also Jehoiada appointed the offices of the house of the LORD by the hand of the priests the Levites, whom David had distributed in the house of the LORD, to offer the burnt offerings of the LORD, as it is written in the law of Moses, with rejoicing and with singing, as it was ordained by David. (KJV) The word is not in the original text. II Chr 29:27 And Hezekiah commanded to offer the burnt offering upon the altar. And when the burnt offering began, the song of the LORD began also with the trumpets, and with the instruments ordained by David king of Israel. (KJV) The word is not in the original text. Est 9:27 The Jews ordained, and took upon them, and upon their seed, and upon all such as joined themselves unto them, so as it should not fail, that they would keep these two days according to their writing, and according to their appointed time every year; (KJV) 6965 Heb. koom--to decree, establish [established]. The Jewish feast of Purim is ordained or established to commemorate the Jews deliverance from the plot of Haman. Psa 7:13 He hath also prepared for him the instruments of death; he ordaineth his arrows against the persecutors. (KJV) 6466 Heb. paal-- to make [wrought]. God has ordained, made, or wrought the arrows He will use against His adversaries in the Day of the Lord. Psa 8:2 Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger. (KJV) 3245 Heb. yacad--as above [perfected]. Strength was ordained, or praise perfected as it is translated in Mat 21:16, out of the mouths of babes rather than of the high and the mighty. Psa 8:3 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained...(KJV) 3559 Heb. koon--to set up, establish, prepare [established]. God has ordained or established the order of the heavens as it has pleased Him. Psa 81:5 This he ordained in Joseph for a testimony, when he went out through the land of Egypt: where I heard a language that I understood not. (KJV) 7760 Heb. soom or seem--as above [established]. The Psalmist reminds Israel that Gods laws were ordained in Israel when they came out of Egypt, but they would not obey. Psa 132:17 There will I make the horn of David to bud: I have ordained a lamp for mine anointed. (KJV) 6186 Heb. arak--to arrange, put in order, set, prepare [prepared]. The lamp is symbolic of the law of God which He prepared to illumine Davids pathway, and ours as well. Isa 26:12 LORD, thou wilt ordain peace for us: for thou also hast wrought all our works in us. (KJV) 8239 Heb. shaphath--to locate, establish, bring [establish]. The Lord will ordain or establish peace for His people Israel. Isa 30:33 For Tophet is ordained of old; yea, for the king it is prepared; he hath made it deep and large: the pile thereof is fire and much wood; the breath of the LORD, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it. (KJV) 6186 Heb. arak--as above [prepared]. God has ordained or prepared the fires of Tophet for the destruction of the kings that invade the land of Israel. Jer 1:5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations. (KJV) 5414 Heb. nathan--as above [appointed]. Jeremiah was ordained or appointed a prophet by God before his birth, while still in the womb of his mother--where were here or- dination by laying on of hands? Dan 2:24 Therefore Daniel went in unto Arioch, whom the king had ordained to destroy the wise men of Babylon: he went and said thus unto him; Destroy not the wise men of Babylon: bring me in before the king, and I will shew unto the king the interpretation. (KJV) 4483 Chald. mena--to count, number, appoint, set [appoint]. Arioch was ordained or appointed executioner in charge of killing the wise men of Babylon, who failed to interpret Nebuchadnezzars dream. Hab 1:12 Art thou not from everlasting, O LORD my God, mine Holy One? we shall not die. O LORD, thou hast ordained them for judgment; and, O mighty God, thou hast established them for correction. (KJV) 7760 Heb. soom or seem--as above [established]. This prophecy is against the Chaldeans whom God has appointed for destruction and established for correction when they come against His people. Summary In the Old Testament ordain is usually used in the sense of to establish, to appoint, to make, or to prepare. Lambs are ordained as sacrifices. Jeroboam ordains a prototypical idolatry in Israel. Pagan priests are ordained by the kings of Judah. Jeremiah is ordained a prophet by God from the womb. David and Samuel ordain the Levitical descendants of Korah as porters. God ordains praise out of the mouths of babes. God ordains a land in which He will plant His people Israel. God ordains His Law when Israel comes out of Egypt. Chaldean and Assyrian invaders of Israel are ordained for destruction. Jeroboam ordains a false priesthood to administer his corrupted religion in Israel. In the days of Esther, the Jews ordain the feast of Purim to commemorate their deliverance from the plot of Haman for their extermination. God ordains the arrows He will use against His enemies in the last days. God ordains the arrangement of the heavenly bodies. God ordains a lamp for his anointed. God ordains the fires of Tophet for his enemies. God ordains peace for His people. Nebuchadnezzar ordains a chief executioner to execute the wise men of Babylon. Comment One of the most interesting aspects of ordination as used in the Old Testament is that it disappoints our expection of finding Gods ministers, priests, or prophets being ordained by the laying on of mens hands. Neither does the Old Testament indicate that the Holy Spirit or spiritual gifts are transferred by a rite of ordination. The only priests said to be ordained in the Old Testament are the idolatrous pagan priests ordained by the kings of Judah in II Ki 23:5, and the pagan priests ordained for his high places, demons, and idols by Jeroboam. The clear implication is that these false priesthoods functioned in part as mediums through whom demons taught deceptive false doctrines to Israel. (Cf. I Ki 12:32 and II Chr 11:15.) Satan and his demons are no less active in our sophisticated and blase scientific era than they were in ancient times. John shows us that they speak through deceptive false prophets (I John 4:1). The only prophet in the Old Testament who is said to be ordained is the prophet Jeremiah, ordained or appointed by God while yet in his mothers womb. It is interesting to note that Levitical porters are ordained by David and Samuel, but the Levitical priests are not mentioned. The only ordained person mentioned by name in the Old Testament, other than Jeremiah, was Arioch, appointed as Nebuchadnezzars chief executioner. It seems evident that the rite of ordination as practiced in the Christian Churches is not derived from the Old Testament Scriptures. Interestingly enough, the only ministers or priests ordained by men in the Old Testament were those of the false pagan or corrupted religions of Judah and Israel. Jeremiah, the ordained prophet of God, was not ordained by the interposition of mens hands, as practiced in modern Churches, but was ordained by God from the womb. Word Study: Ordain, Ordained in the New Testament Cf. Zodhiades, The Complete Word Study New Testament Mark 3:14 And he ordained twelve, that they should be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach, (KJV) 4160 Gr. poieo--to make or do [chose]. This verse and John 15:16 relate that Jesus ordained, chose, or selected twelve disciples, to become apostles. John 15:16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. (KJV) 5087 Gr. tithemi--to place, put, settle [chose]. Here again, Jesus chose twelve disciples to train for apostleship. Acts 1:22 Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection. (KJV) 1096 Gr. ginomai--to cause to be, become [chosen, selected] One from among the hundred and twenty assembled had to be ordained or elected as a witness, to take the place of Judas Iscariot. Acts 10:42 And he commanded us to preach unto the people, and to testify that it is he which was ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead. (KJV) 3724 Gr. horizo--to appoint, declare, determine [appointed]. Christ has been ordained or selected or appointed of God to be the Judge of all. Acts 13:48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed. (KJV) 5021 Gr. tasso, tatto--to arrange, assign, dispose, appoint [appointed]. Christians are ordained or appointed unto eternal life. Acts 14:23 And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they believed. (KJV) 5500 Gr. cheirotoneo--to select, appoint, choose [appointed]. Paul and Barnabas ordained, selected, chose elders in every local church in the region of Galatia. Acts 16:4 And as they went through the cities, they delivered them the decrees for to keep, that were ordained of the apostles and elders which were at Jerusalem. (KJV) 2919 Gr. krino--to distinguish, decide, try, condemn, call in question [approved]. In Acts 15 the church at Jerusalem had arrived at four principles that Gentile converts should be careful to observe, which are probably the ordained or approved decrees referred to here. Acts 17:31 Because he hath appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead. (KJV) 3724 Gr. horizo--as above [appointed]. Christ is ordained or appointed by God as Judge of the world as evidenced by His resurrection from the dead. Rom 7:10 And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death. (KJV) The word is not in the original text. Rom 13:1 Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. (KJV) 5021 Gr. tasso, tatto--as above [appointed]. Secular powers or governments of men are ordained or appointed by God to maintain an orderly and peaceful society. I Cor 2:7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: (KJV) 4309 Gr. proorizo--to limit in advance, determine before, predestinate [predetermined]. God has ordained or predetermined His plan from the beginning. I Cor 7:17 But as God hath distributed to every man, as the Lord hath called every one, so let him walk. And so ordain I in all churches. (KJV) 1299 Gr. diatasso--to appoint, command, give, set in order, institute, prescribe [appointed]. Paul ordains or prescribes that men should continue in the occupations they pursued before conversion. I Cor 9:14 Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel. (KJV) 1299 Gr. diatasso--as above [prescribed]. God has ordained or prescribed that preachers of the Gospel are worthy of their hire, and should receive compensation for the work that they do, cf. I Tim 2:7. Gal 3:19 Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator. (KJV) 1299 Gr. diatasso--as above [given]. This is a difficult scripture, cf. Acts 7:53, Stephen confronts the Jews who had received the law by the disposition of angels. In Heb 2:2 the word spoken by angels was stedfast. Moses says in Deut 33:2 The Lord...came with ten thousand of his saints [angels]. The sense seems to be that God ordained or delivered his laws using various of the angels as His agents. Eph 2:10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. (KJV) 4282 Gr.proetoimazo--ordain before, prepare before [predetermined]. As new creatures in Christ, God has predetermined that we are to do good works as a way of life. I Tim 2:7 Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not;) a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity. (KJV) 5087 Gr. tithemi--to place, put, settle [appointed]. A paraphrase might be, Unto Christ am I ordained or appointed [by the will of God] a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of the Gentiles. In contrast to false apostles, Paul did not lie about his ordination. Titus 1:5 For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I had appointed thee: (KJV) 2525 Gr. kathistemi--to appoint, be, conduct, make [appoint]. Note that the word appointed in this verse is the Greek diatasso elsewhere translated ordain. Titus was to ordain or appoint elders in the churches as he had himself been appointed or ordained by Paul. The procedure is not described in this passage. Heb 5:1 For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins: (KJV) 2525 Gr. kathistemi--as above [appointed]. High priests are ordained or appointed to mediate between men and God. Re: Ex 40, Lev 8, and Num 3. Heb 8:3 For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer. (KJV) 2525 Gr. kathistemi--as above [appointed]. High priests are ordained or appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices. The Levitical priests were divinely ordained or appointed by genealogical descent. Re: Num 3. Heb 9:6 Now when [the tabernacle and its furniture] were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, according to the service of God. (KJV) 2680 Gr. kataskeuazo--build, make, prepare [prepared]. The tabernacle was ordained or prepared in such a manner that the priests might enter the holy place, but not the holiest place. See Ex 40. The tabernacle complex and the Levitical priests were hallowed and consecrated by anointing and by sprinkling with blood and oil, seemingly as a sign of their dedication to the service of God. Jude 1:4 For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ. (KJV) 4270 Gr. prographo--to write previously, evidently set forth, write aforetime, with 3819 Gr. palai--formerly, a great while ago, of old [predetermined]. Jude goes on to characterize these false ministers in one of the most eloquent and impassioned scriptures in the Bible. False min- isters turn grace into license to pursue the error of Balaam for reward, or for money (v. 11, II Pet 2:1,3). These ungodly imposters of whom Peter and Jude write are not motivated by the Spirit of God (Jude 19). Summary In Mark 3:14 and John 15:16, Jesus ordains or chooses twelve disciples to be be trained for apostleship. In Acts chapter one, Matthias is ordained or chosen from among the assembly of the hundred and twenty to take Judas Iscariots place as an apostle. Christ is ordained or chosen by the Father to be Judge of all, as evidenced by His resurrection from the dead. Christian believers are ordained or appointed by God to receive eternal life. Paul and Barnabas ordain elders in every church in Galatia. Titus ordains elders in the churches on Crete. The procedure used to ordain elders is not described in Acts 14 or in the Epistle to Titus, chapter one. Decrees for the conduct of gentile believers are ordained or approved by the apostles and elders at Jerusalem. Secular powers are ordained or approved by God. The hidden wisdom of God was ordained or predetermined by God from the beginning. Paul ordains or prescribes that converts continue in the occupations they pursued prior to conversion. God ordains or prescribes that those sent forth to preach the Gospel should receive payment for their work. The Law of Moses was ordained or established by angels acting as agents for God. God has foreordained or predetermined that new creatures in Christ, or Christians, should pursue good works as a way of life. Paul is ordained or appointed an apostle by Christs calling. The Levitical high priests were ordained or appointed by God through genealogical descent. The tabernacle in the wilderness was ordained or established by the commandment of God. False ministers of Christ are ordained or appointed for destruction. Comment In the New Testament, ordain is used in the sense of to choose, to appoint, to approve, to determine, to prescribe, or to establish. Jesus Christ is ordained by the Father to be the Judge of the quick and the dead in the resurrection. Christs ordination or appointment by the Father, as proven by His resurrection from the dead, is that to which the apostles were called to testify, Acts 10:42, 17:31. The Twelve Apostles were ordained or chosen personally by Jesus, John 15:16. After Judas Iscariot disqualified himself as an ordained apostle of Christ, Matthias was ordained to take his place. The account of Matthias ordination as an apostle in Acts one is the only specific description of a mans ordination in the New Testament, Acts 1:13-26. Note that throughout this passage of Scripture the pronoun they refers back to the eleven apostles and the disciples who assembled together with them, one hundred and twenty in number. It is they who appointed the two candidates in verse 23, and they who gave forth their lots to ordain or choose Matthias in verse 26. This is the democratic process as opposed to an arbitrary ordination or appointment by an established authority figure or chief apostle. It is also noteworthy that, although the eleven apostles are present at this ordination, no mention is made of their laying of hands on Matthias. Cf. the related study on the laying on of hands. Individual gentile believers, and all Christians, are divinely ordained or chosen for eternal life, Acts 13:48. They are to walk in the good works ordained or appointed for them by God, Eph 2:10. In the New Testament, elders, in the plural, are ordained in the local churches, which would seem to indicate that they are elected by the assembly much as Matthias was ordained in Acts one. Nowhere is it indicated that elders are appointed by a central headquarters and then assigned to local churches, as practiced in modern Christian Churches. Paul and Barnabas, or Titus, may have effected their ordinations by chairing democratic assemblies who elected their own elders, to which they gave their approval, somewhat as James seems to have done in Acts 15. Since a procedure for ordination is not described in Acts 14 or Titus one, it is not necessary to assume that these ordinations were done by authoritive appointment by either Titus or the apostles. The word elder in the above cited two passages is the Greek presbuteros--older, a senior, a Sanhedrist, member of the celestial council, old; cf. Gr. presbutos--an old man, and presbutis--an aged woman. In Judaism the term was applied to a member of the Sanhedrin, mature religionists and experts in the Jewish law. The word properly means an older person. There may be any number of older persons in a given congregation. There is no basis for assuming that elders must all be ordained persons. Neither must we make the assumption that all elders need be men. When the scriptures cited say they ordained elders in the individual local churches, the sense is that individual Christians older in the faith were elected from among the elders of the congregation to serve in a capacity determined by their gifts or abilities. We need not assume that they were appointed to an official position called elder within a hierarchy of such elders. They were ordained, or elected, to enlist their abilities or gifts on behalf of the local congregation, whose object was to attain to salvation and to help others attain it also, which is the essence of the Great Commission. Decrees were ordained or approved by the apostles and elders at Jerusalem for the guidance of gentile converts, Acts 16:4. In Acts 15:1-20 the so-called Jerusalem conference is described. This is not a Ministerial Conference of church officials, as is often carelessly assumed. In actuality, Paul and Barnabas, in company with others from the church at Antioch, journeyed to Jerusalem and met in assembly with the Jerusalem church, verse four, including the apostles and elders. In verse seven, Peter addresses the men and brethren of the assembly, and in verse 12 all the multitude kept silence while attending to what Paul and Barnabas had to say. Note that in verse 13 it says, And after they [the assembly or multitude] had held their peace... This implies that after Peter, Paul, and Barnabas had had their say, they had not held their peace but had engaged in a discussion of the issues at hand. When the discussion period was over, James, as chairman of the assembly, gave his summary of what had been agreed upon or ordained by the assembly, including of course the apostles and elders. This meeting or conference was conducted by the democratic process in an orderly manner, as was the meeting in Acts chapter one where the election of Matthias took place. Apostles ordained to preach the Gospel were entitled to accept support from the churches to maintain their ministries. There is no indication in these passages that elders in local churches received payment for their services, though expenses may have been the churchs responsibility. The Twelve Apostles were ordained to be eyewitnesses of Jesus resurrection, therefore there can be no modern apostles in that sense. It would be a very audacious person indeed who would claim to be a latter day apostle of Jesus Christ, yet some have done so. The wisdom of God was ordained or predetermined before the world was. The Law of God was ordained in the time of Moses by angels acting on behalf of God. Jude speaks of the ordination or appointment to condemnation of imposters who pose as true ministers of Christ. These seek power and money, and are noted for their speaking ability, mentioned several times in Jude. These are false ministers who have had the temerity to insinuate themselves into positions of advantage in the church of God. Such men are known to God, and ordained or predetermined for destruction. Since they creep in unawares and are gifted speakers, whose heresies are not immediately apparant, they are not easily distinguishable by the brethren, whom they regard as the laity, but Jesus assures us that in time their fruits will make them known, Mat 7:16. We will find them, of course, where money and power are concentrated. The New Testament teaches us that Jesus Christ was ordained by God the Father. He in turn chose or ordained the Twelve Apostles. We find that Paul was ordained an apostle by the calling of God. When Matthias was ordained an apostle to replace Judas, it was not done by a unilateral authoritative appointment by the laying on of the hands of a chief apostle or of a group of church elders, but seems rather to have been a democratic election by the assembly of the hundred and twenty disciples, the apostles included. Valid ordination seems always to be either election by God or by a group of Spirit-led believers, but never appointment by human authority. Elders were ordained in local church congregations. In the absence of descriptions of the manner in which ordination was done, we may logically assume they would have followed a procedure much like that outlined in Acts one. Careful reading of Acts 15 shows that it is describing the democratic process in action as the problems of gentile converts are discussed and a consensus of opinion arrived at in regard to them. James summarizes their decisions before the assembly disbands. Individual Christians are ordained or appointed by God for eternal life, not by men. They receive the Holy Spirit, but not by the necessary interposition of mens hands, as shown in Acts 10:44-48. In modern Christian Churches rites of ordination are practiced wherein inductees are called forward, hands are laid on them, they are prayed over, and then declared to have been ordained elder or to have been raised in rank and ordained into a higher Church office. In this manner they erect a hierarchy or gradation of Church officers. Congregations have no role in these rites of ordination, other than that of spectators. The difficulty with this practice is that there is no scriptural basis for it, and therefore no authority for it in the Bible. Neither do the Scriptures substantiate the erection of authoritative bureaucratic hierarchies of such ranked elders headed up by a chief apostle at a remote church head- quarters. These ideas are carelessly, or perhaps not always so carelessly, read into the New Testament, but in reality they are not there. In the New Testament the only ordinations of elders are those done in the local churches. No instance is mentioned of an elder ordained at a Church headquarters and then sent out to pastor a local congregation in a remote area. The wording in Acts 14:23 and Titus 1:5 says that elders, more than one, are ordained in each of the local churches. Neither the apostles Paul and Barnabas nor Titus appointed one man to assume authority over a local church, but rather two or more individuals were elected as ordained elders in each of the local churches in Galatia and on the island of Crete. They were not appointed to lord it over the congregation but to participate with the brethren in their common cooperative endeavor. Note, for example, that there were three or more elders who were serving in the church at Ephesus (Acts 20:17,25). There is no instance in the New Testament where ordination of elders is specifically equated with a rite of the laying on of hands. This seems to have been done for blessings, dedications, healings or to symbolize the receiving of the Holy Spirit by be- lievers, but not for ordaining elders. Were the laying on of hands a part of the ordination procedure, surely Peter or others of the eleven apostles would have used it in the ordination of Matthias. We read rather of a democratic election of Matthias by the assembly. It would appear that the Churches of God should re-examine their beliefs and practices regarding ordination of elders as well as their administrative practices concerning Church government, or governance, as some now prefer to call it. Study shows that local churches need not be governanced by remote centralized Church authorities as the Churches of God have traditionally assumed. The New Testament examples seem rather to show that local church assemblies governed themselves by the democratic process. And why would a body of praying, Spirit-led believers in a local church congregation in assembly not be capable of arriving at a consensus that would reflect the will of God? There is no instance in the Bible of a prophet of God being ordained to an office in a hierarchical structure of priests or elders by the laying on of mens hands. Prophecy is a gift of God and not a Church office. Jeremiah was ordained a prophet of God from the womb. The other gifts of God, listed in I Cor 12 and Eph 4, are bestowed at Gods discretion on whomever He will without regard to the interposition of mens hands in a presumptuous rite of ordination. There is no rite of ordination as such to be found in the pages of Holy Scripture. The practice may have been adopted into the Roman Church from one of the pagan priesthoods in the First or Second Centuries, but that is beyond the scope of this inquiry. It should be instructive to note, however, that the only religious ordinations done specifically by human authority in the Holy Scrip- tures were ordinations of the idolatrous priesthood of the high places of Baal in Judah (II Ki 12:32) and the priesthood of the calf idols erected in Israel by Jeroboam (II Chr 11:15). One may well wonder whether idolatry in modern Church organizations is all that much different today from the pagan idolatry of ancient Israel and Judah? Perhaps they were as deceived as we, and as fully adept as we at rationalizing to themselves the idolatry they elected to espouse, urged on and encouraged by their falsely ordained teachers.
Posted on: Fri, 21 Mar 2014 21:19:18 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015