The Problem of Professionals in the Church

The problem of professionals in the church is that when people make their spirituality, faith, and God their job they change the nature of it. Our faith in Christ is suppose to be relational, that God the Trinity decided that a ultimate sacrifice had to be made for our sins so that mankind and the Lord would no longer be separated both on earth and in eternity. This was solved when Jesus Christ died on cross for our sins and rose from dead. This restored the relationship with God, and now we believers (Christians) keep that relationship as our focus (following or faith walk or discipleship is what we call it). But when you make that relationship a profession or job, it changes its nature. It is like how different your relationship with your boss and your parents is, or spouse if you must use that comparison. With your family (healthy family) you aren't meeting quotas, and having to merit anything, you should be loved unconditionally no matter if you prevail or fail. But if you turn that relationship into a professional one, it changes, just as son who works for his father starts having issues.

There never was meant to be a professional ecclesia, religious class, and clergy. Jesus Christ actually forbid it, "they (religious leaders, Pharisees) love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces and to be called ‘Rabbi’ by others. “But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ (today Teacher, Pastor, Priest) for you have one Teacher, and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one Instructor, the Messiah. The greatest among you will be your servant. " (Matthew 23:7-11). When the Apostle Paul mentions the different kinds of leadership, he actually in Greek calls them gifts, not offices and positions, "Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, and the pastors and teachers." (Ephesians 4:11, the gift comes from the Teacher himself Christ see Matthew 23:7-11). Position and titles are actually an angelic institution. The angels have many positions from Cherubim to Messenger, and they thrive in these professional positions. We, mankind, in contrast were made for relationship, to have relationships with God and people (Matthew 22:36-41, John 13:34-35, Revelation 2:4-5 NLT). This is why we want to socialize and be part of a community, family, club, group, mission, and church. The problem is that the Church has been angelized, the devil through Constantine the Great in 312-340 A.D. turned the church into a institution and profession, you could become ecclesia and clergy, wearing golden vestments, and getting paid by empire to do your mystical office. This is a pagan system, from the fallen angels, and it crept into the Church as early as 100 and 200 A.D., but got fangs, armor, and power in 312 A.D. Constantine when he 'converted' to Christianity wanted his pagan priests of Sol Invictus and other temples to keep their jobs, so he had them convert (likely not in earnest) and endowed them with offices (professions) in the Church structure he was creating. The result has been professional class in the church of priest and clergy, when the Apostles said, "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God's special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light," (1 Peter 2:9), "and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father--to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen," (Revelation 1:6), "And so, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven's Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus," (Hebrews 10:19), "So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most," (Hebrews 4:16), and "So we are Christ's ambassadors; God is making his appeal through us. We speak for Christ when we plead, "Come back to God!," (2 Corinthians 5:20). It is clear that all Bible believing Trinitarian Christians are a royal priesthood and priests of God, not some separate special class of men ordained by an institution, emperor, kings, or popes! In fact priests act as if they are more special and worthy to carrying Christ in Eucharist, but the Apostles tell us, "For God wanted them to know that the riches and glory of Christ are for you Gentiles, too. And this is the secret: Christ lives in you. This gives you assurance of sharing his glory," (Colossians 1:27), "And Christ lives within you, so even though your body will die because of sin, the Spirit gives you life because you have been made right with God. The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you," (Romans 8:10-11), and why would we need a temple or cathedral, when all Christians are temples of God, "Do you not know that you yourselves are God's temple, and that God's Spirit dwells in you?," (1 Corinthians 3:16), "What agreement can exist between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: "I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be My people," (2 Corinthians 6:16), "Or do you think the Scripture says without reason that the Spirit He caused to dwell in us yearns with envy?," (James 4:5), "If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him; for God's temple is holy, and you are that temple," (1 Corinthians 3:17), "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own," (1 Corinthians 6:19), "And in Him you too are being built together into a dwelling place for God in His Spirit," (Ephesians 2:22), "so that, if I am delayed, you will know how each one must conduct himself in God's household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth," (1 Timothy 3:15), and "But Christ is faithful as the Son over God's house. And we are His house, if we hold firmly to our confidence and the hope of which we boast." (Hebrews 3:6).

The reason the devil is called the prince of the world (John 14:30), is that he has created a caste system, ranks, position based system of life on earth. We in contrast, being humans were made in God's image (Genesis 1:27), were meant for paradise in Eden (Genesis 2 and 3), and are meant for loving relationships with God and people (Matthew 22:36-41). But the evil one and his fallen ones (Revelation 12:7-12) have corrupted the earth with His commerce (Ezekiel 28:11-18), making man slaves of Mammon (money) when he yearns to be free with the Lord God and people. By creating a paid and professional clergy (pastors, priests, leaders of any kind in the church) the Church is inviting Satan the author and maker of trade, commerce, and money into the church. Remember Jesus said, "No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Mammon/god of money," (Matthew 6:24), and yet this is what pastor, priest, or other ecclesia does, they take pay check for relating to God and to other brothers and sisters! They turn relationships into trade, and so it mares and makes the relationships change. Suddenly God is your boss, rather than friend (John 15:15) and Father (Matthew 23:9). Then the other people, brothers and sisters in Christ become a Pastor's customers who must buy their brand of ministry, hoping its as likable as Apple and Microsoft. This then changes how a person relates to the Body of Christ, its now on a clock (punch in and punch out) than just a family meeting together in love. Pastors then begin to look at their congregations as projects, payees, potential employees, and pay checks (they pay the tithes that finance the pastor or priest). So then relating to them changes, rather than giving an honest opinion or Spirit filled one, the pastor hesitates and thanks about his brand, his paid position, and if the board will like what he says (gag order).

There was never supposed to be paid professional class and leadership in the Church. The Levities who were tithed to in Old Testament had no land or food of their own, they depended on the other tribes for sustenance. But the Levitical order is done away with, "For when Melchizedek met Abraham, Levi was still in the loin of his ancestor. If perfection could have been attained through the Levitical priesthood--and indeed the law given to the people established that priesthood--why was there still need for another priest to come, one in the order of Melchizedek, not in the order of Aaron? For when the priesthood is changed, the law must be changed also. He of whom these things are said belonged to a different tribe, and no one from that tribe has ever served at the altar. For it is clear that our Lord descended from Judah, and in regard to that tribe Moses said nothing about priests. This change has been made very clear since a different priest, who is like Melchizedek, has appeared. Jesus became a priest, not by meeting the physical requirement of belonging to the tribe of Levi, but by the power of a life that cannot be destroyed. And the psalmist pointed this out when he prophesied, "You are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek. Yes, the old requirement about the priesthood was set aside because it was weak and useless. For the law never made anything perfect. But now we have confidence in a better hope, through which we draw near to God. And it was not without an oath. For those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath. but Jesus became a priest with an oath by the One who said to Him: "The Lord has sworn and will not change His mind, 'You are a priest forever. Because of this oath, Jesus is the one who guarantees this better covenant with God." (Hebrews 7:10-22). Jesus is now our High Priest, of Judah, and He is God (Colossians 2:9, Titus 2:13, John 20:20-23, John 10:30, Revelation 1:14-18), and so He is the perfect priest reigning in every Christian (Colossians 1:27) which then makes all Christians priests of Mechizedek, because the High Priest lives in us. The priests and pastors of today claim the rites of Levi, to get tithes (the Law taught this) but we are no longer under Levitical principles and the Law has passed away, "When God speaks of a "new" covenant, it means he has made the first one obsolete. It is now out of date and will soon disappear," (Hebrews 8:13), "For Christ has already accomplished the purpose for which the law was given. As a result, all who believe in him are made right with God," (Romans 10:4), "For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse, as it is written: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law," (Galatians 3:10), "But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree," (Galatians 3:13), and those pastors and priests who believe they can revive even a peace of law like tithing are cutting people off from Christ  "Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I testify to every man who gets himself circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole Law.You who are trying to be justified by the Law have been severed from Christ; you have fallen away from grace," (Galatians 5:2-4). Here Paul makes it clear keep one iota of the Law, circumcision you must obey all the law, well its same with tithing and making professional priests, that's the law and it brings a curse and severs people from Christ! Indeed, because it makes men and women relate to Christ through priest, like Israelites did through Moses, "And they said to Moses, "You speak to us, and we will listen. But don't let God speak directly to us, or we will die!" (Exodus 20:19). Having a paid and professional clergy is backward, it is to go to the Law again. We all have Christ and God's Spirit in us (Colossians 1:27, Romans 8:10-11, 1 Corinthians 3:16, John 20:20-23, and beyond). We don't need one man or woman telling us what to do! We have God in us, and so no longer need a Moses, for Jesus is greater, "For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ." (John 1:17). Why would we go back to the Law, a shadow of what came with Christ, when we can have God's grace and Truth? For Jesus is that Truth (John 14:6), and all wisdom and knowledge are in Him (Colossians 2:2-3), so why would we then go to a lesser source, a man with pulpit? And ask him to be our priest, we Christ is the Priest of Priests living in us (Colossians 1:27).

The reason people want their Moses and priests or pastor is they are lazy. They don't want to learn how to discern in Spirit, learn from Holy Spirit, "But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you," (John 14:26), nor do they want to test the spirits (1 John 4:1-3) by knowing, memorizing, contextualizing, and learning the Holy Scriptures themselves which are way to grow mature, " All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work." (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Instead like the Israelites in wilderness, they pay a man to know it for them, but that man is corruptible, even Moses disobeyed God and could not enter into promise Land, "So Moses and Aaron left the people and went to the entrance of the Meeting Tent. There they bowed facedown, and the glory of the Lord appeared to them. ⁷ The Lord said to Moses, ⁸ “Take your walking stick, and you and your brother Aaron should gather the people. Speak to that rock in front of them so that its water will flow from it. When you bring the water out from that rock, give it to the people and their animals. So Moses took the stick from in front of the Lord, as he had said. ¹⁰ Moses and Aaron gathered the people in front of the rock, and Moses said, “Now listen to me, you who turn against God! Do you want us to bring water out of this rock?” ¹¹ Then Moses lifted his hand and hit the rock twice with his stick. Water began pouring out, and the people and their animals drank it. ¹² But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not believe me, and because you did not honor me as holy before the people, you will not lead them into the land I will give them." (Numbers 20:6-12). Why would we trust Moses who was imperfect and gave  the Law? Should we not trust Christ Jesus who is God (Colossians 2:9), who was Perfect and did not sin (1 Peter 2:22, 1 John 3:5, Hebrews 4:15), who cleansed us of sin on the cross (1 Peter 2:24, 1 John 1:7), and who has abolished the old system of Law and creating a New Covenant of Grace (Hebrews 10:1-53). The other sad truth is that many in Church don't want to know God the Trinity intimately or each other, they are content with the curtain and Constantine altar, but the curtain was torn, "When Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, He yielded up His spirit. At that moment the curtain in the sanctuary of the Temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, rocks split apart." (Matthew 27:50-51) and those who return to the Law are cursed (Galatians 3:10), and there is veil that blinds people, "But the people's minds were hardened, and to this day whenever the old covenant is being read, the same veil covers their minds so they cannot understand the truth. And this veil can be removed only by believing in Christ. Yes, even today when they read Moses' writings, their hearts are covered with that veil, and they do not understand." (2 Corinthians 3:14-15).

The Truth is Jesus is the end of Law, "Christ is the end of the Law, in order to bring righteousness to everyone who believes. For the end of Law is Christ, unto righteousness to everyone believing. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth." (Romans 10:4 BB, NASB, KJV).

The Apostle Paul made it clear that he never took money for the Gospel, "What then is my pay? It is the opportunity to preach the Good News without charging anyone. That's why I never demand my rights when I preach the Good News," (1 Corinthians 9:18), "If others have this right to your support, shouldn't we have it all the more? But we did not exercise this right. Instead, we put up with anything rather than hinder the gospel of Christ," (1 Corinthians 9:12), and "See, I am ready to come to you a third time, and I will not be a burden, because I am not seeking your possessions, but you yourselves. For children should not have to save up for their parents, but parents for their children." (2 Corinthians 12:14). The Apostle Paul didn't take money for sharing the Gospel or his ministry, meaning he had no pay check, but was a tent maker (Acts 18:2-3), and we know Paul has mature view on this, He was familiar with paid ecclesia known as Pharisees, for He had been one, "If anyone else thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ." (Philippians 3:4-8). The Apostle Paul had his own second vocation of tent making to feed himself. He did receive voluntary gifts from brothers and sisters in Christ, but this was not tithes or pay checks, but free gifts that anyone can give if their heart be so stirred to do so by Holy Spirit, "You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don't give reluctantly or in response to pressure (compulsion). "For God loves a person who gives cheerfully," (2 Corinthians 9:7), and "Whatever you give is acceptable if you give it eagerly. And give according to what you have, not what you don't have," (2 Corinthians 8:12). Giving is willing, it comes from a desire in your heart, not a pressure to pay someone's pay check and manipulation by "if you give you will receive twice as much," (Malachi 3:10). Actually that's a verse out of context, and it was Levities that the Lord was talking to, the priesthood, who had not been paying their tithes into the tithe house of grain, and so a famine hit Israel, and there wasn't storehouses for it.

I have laid out how professional priests and pastors actually not only violates Scripture, it demeans the relationship between God and Man, and Man and Man. When you make your faith a job, profession, and occupation, it changes its nature from being this loving relationship with God where you learn on the journey, to a task, merit, and dividends (money) oriented relationship that makes you do things grudgingly and half hearted. We were never meant to make our relationships jobs, and yet that is what Pastor and Priest does, and so the curse comes with it because they try to be Levites, when Levite has been fired and Christ the High Priest of Mechizedek reigns in all Christians (Colossians 1:27). You are meant to have loving, free, and deeply intimate relationship with the LORD God, but making a business out of our faith turns it into corrupt church system, and makes Christ look conditional and like the angry paintings of the Middle Ages, rather than His true self, a God of Love (1 John 4:8) and Savior who wants to be close to His creation. The Problem of Professionals in the Church is that it poisons God's image, it taints the Gospel (see Galatians 1:8-9), it makes people go back to imperfect Moses (Exodus 20:19 + Numbers20:6-12) and leads people from pure and simple devotion to Christ, "But I fear that somehow your pure and undivided devotion to Christ will be corrupted, just as Eve was deceived by the cunning ways of the serpent. You happily put up with whatever anyone tells you, even if they preach a different Jesus than the one we preach, or a different kind of Spirit than the one you received, or a different kind of gospel than the one you believed.These people are false apostles. They are deceitful workers who disguise themselves as apostles of Christ. But I am not surprised! Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. So it is no wonder that his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness. In the end they will get the punishment their wicked deeds deserve."  (2 Corinthians 11:3-4, 13-14).