Saw this quote today: "We are in the middle of a war for the soul of the visible church. We are in a civil war, going up against the Evangelical Leaders who’ve been entrusted to safeguard the church, but have betrayed each and everyone of us by allowing Social Justice & Cultural Marxism to infiltrate the church without putting up any resistance."
Who made these men the leaders of "the church"? Who? By what authority? An institution? A consensus? A popular teacher? This is one of the most corrupting influences of the local churches today next to the biggest problem of doctrinal triage. There is no such thing as elders of other churches having authority over anyone else's church--that notion is straight out of Roman Catholicism. 1 Peter 5 makes it clear that elders are to shepherd the sheep of the local flock God gives them. The epistles lay out the structure and function of the local church and it's leadership--and nowhere in Scripture does it give some sort of universal power, leadership, or authority over multiple flocks. Also one cannot test up close and personally men who claim to be elders--the requirements necessitate the testing of their private lives by observation, for example. This is impossible to do when the teacher is not part of the local flock, miles and miles away. Biblcal elders live among the sheep, they don't jet in, give a speech, get paid, and then jet out. There is accountability to be had by the elders to the local assembly. WE test THEM. WE observe them up close. WE discern and vigorously test them. This is impossible for anyone who floats around running from church to church, conference to conference, seminary to seminary (neither conferences nor seminaries are part of the local assembly and won't be found anywhere in Scripture).
1Pe 5:2 shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight not under compulsion, but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not for sordid gain, but with eagerness; 3 nor yet as lording it over those allotted to your charge, but proving to be examples to the flock.
2Ti 2:2 And the things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, these entrust to faithful men, who will be able to teach others also.
1Jn 4:1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
Joh 10:1 "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber.
Joh 10:2 "But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep.
Joh 10:3 "To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name, and leads them out.
Joh 10:4 "When he puts forth all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice.
Joh 10:5 "And a stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not know the voice of strangers."
Joh 10:6 This figure of speech Jesus spoke to them, but they did not understand what those things were which He had been saying to them.
Joh 10:7 Jesus therefore said to them again, "Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.
Joh 10:8 "All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them.
Joh 10:9 "I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
Joh 10:10 "The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy; I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly.
Joh 10:11 "I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.
Joh 10:12 "He who is a hireling, and not a shepherd, who is not the owner of the sheep, beholds the wolf coming, and leaves the sheep, and flees, and the wolf snatches them, and scatters them.
Joh 10:13 "He flees because he is a hireling, and is not concerned about the sheep.
Joh 10:14 "I am the good shepherd; and I know My own, and My own know Me,
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