In anticipation of the upcoming release of the completely updated and expanded edition of Biblical Eldership, we have been sharing excerpts from the book on the blog. Today we are sharing part three of this series, with another sneak peek from the book that we hope you enjoy. (See the first excerpt here and the second here.)
Brotherly Equality (from the new Biblical Eldership)
Jesus’s most severe denunciations were directed at the religious elite of his day. No one has ever exposed the true heart of religious hypocrisy and the ugliness of religious pride like our Lord Jesus Christ (Matt. 23:1–33). Using the strongest language conceivable, Jesus publicly censured the greed, pride, and abuse of power by the priests and scribes of his time (Matt. 23:13–33). They made the temple in Jerusalem into a money–making machine to enrich themselves (Mark 11:15–19). They devoured widows’ houses (Luke 20:47). They “were lovers of money” (Luke 16:14). They used people to enhance their own prideful status. They imposed heavy rules upon the people, thereby keeping them in spiritual bondage.
Do Not Be Like Them: Matthew 23:1–12
Jesus was nothing like these religious leaders, and he sternly warned his followers not to imitate them:
Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat. . . . They do all their deeds to be seen by others. 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 greetings in the< marketplaces and being called rabbi by others. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. . . . The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.” (Matt. 23:1–12)
The scribes and Pharisees sanctimoniously separated and elevated themselves above the people. They were image managers. They craved honorific titles, sacred clothes, the places of honor at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues. They loved the praises of people (Matt. 6:1–2, 5, 16). In short, they were religious hypocrites who used and abused the people (John 7:49; 9:34).
You Are All Brothers
In contrast, Jesus forbids his disciples from calling one another “rabbi,” and from elevating themselves in any way that would diminish their close brotherly relationships or usurp the unique place that Christ and the Father have over all believers. As Jesus said: “You are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers.” This important passage helps explain why the New Testament writers avoid lofty sacred titles or hierarchical structures for the body of Christ and household of God.