MINISTRY AND RESTORATION
By W. Carl Ketcherside

The vitality and spiritual virility of the primitive community of saints stemmed from its implementation of the divinely ordained principle of mutual ministry. Each member of the community had been added to it as the result of his experience in establishing a personal covenant relationship with the Father, through his Son Jesus Christ. This experience involved a crucifixion of the old self (Rom. 6:5). The individual died, and his life was hid with Christ in God (Col 3:3). The result was expressed in this fashion, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Gal. 2:20) .

These saints did not regard their relationship as a way of life, but as life itself. They were not troubled about the philosophy of life which they should adopt, for they had been adopted, and were themselves the living embodiment of Him who was both the power and the wisdom of God. They were not so much philosophers, as they were a living philosophy—a philosophy demonstrated, manifest, and apparent to all who look upon them. Since they had died and now the Christ lived in them, they were in the world for the same reason he had come into it. That purpose was stated by Jesus in these words, “The Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Matt. 20:28). Since this was the motive of Jesus in coming, and since he now dwells in the saints, the life we now live must be one of ministration to others, and of giving even life itself. This must be the status of all who are in Him, not of a select few, a trained segment, or an elite corps!

We live in a decadent age of religion. The stream of Christian thought, in its onward flow through the centuries, has accumulated a great deal of sediment. The shape of the original concept has been greatly altered by the friction endured in its contact with the abrasives of human desires and determinations. The response of the thirsty soul to God is now made on the basis of “the plan of salvation”, illustrated by a kitchen stepladder arrangement on the blackboard, in which the individual steps off the lower rung of faith as quickly as he got on it, and is forced to take a third ritualistic step called “confession” which has been inserted by the simple expedient of wresting certain scriptures from their context. No longer do we come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, and enter into personal covenant relationship through faith in Jesus, validated by our submission to baptism, but we become members of an organization, instead of becoming partakers in a divine organism. The greatest surrender we are called upon to make, is not of the life to Jesus, but of our freedoms, prerogatives and rights to a System—inaugurated, perpetuated, and administered by men, but arrogantly demanding conformity in the name of Jesus.

The System, which has borrowed the livery of heaven, and appropriated and exalted as an official title, a simple descriptive term employed by the Holy Spirit, seeks, as do all human arrangements, to immortalize itself by resistance to all criticism and revolution. To achieve this end, it holds over the heads of its members the threat of excommunication, ostracism and boycott. And, as is characteristic of all such organizations functioning as usurpers in the spiritual realm, it has a vocabulary of its own, calculated to deceive the uninitiated and unwary, by employment of innocent terms which are equated in harmony with the partisan position.

“The truth” becomes the arbitrary interpretation placed upon the sacred scriptures; “preaching the gospel” is equivalent to parroting the party line, often from traditional outlines collected and classified in books; “Bible baptism” is immersion administered by a preacher (clergyman) in good standing with the party; “restoration” is defending the present status of the party by bending scriptures to justify what is done; and “entering the ministry” is not enlisting in the service of Christ, but going away to a theological school maintained by The System to prepare a clergy who will conform to party programs and become part of a pressure group to stifle original thinking and quell revolt against legalism.

In no other field is the divergence of The System from the practice of the primitive community of saints, more clearly apparent, than in the concept of ministry. Current expressions such as “hiring a minister,” “firing a minister,” “graduate minister,” “assistant minister,” “retirement from the ministry,” etc., were not only no part of the vocabulary of the Holy Spirit, but the connotation of the terms was wholly foreign to the community of God. Thoughtless, superficial students of the new covenant scriptures frequently urge that “mutual ministry” is not found in the sacred writings. It is important that we examine this claim without hesitancy or quibbling.

1. IS “MUTUAL MINISTRY” SCRIPTURAL?

The King James translators render the words of Paul in Romans 1:12, “For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established, that is, that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.” The RSV has it, “That we may be mutually encouraged by each other’s faith, both yours and mine.” This is important because it shows that the word “mutual” denotes a reciprocal action. It is not “one toward others,” but it is “each toward the other.” The same word that is translated “mutual” in this place is 76 times rendered “one another.” The lexicons define the original with the terms, “one another, reciprocally, mutually.”

In 1 Peter 4:10 we read, “As every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” This passage regulates the use of gifts which may be employed for the welfare of the community. The instruction is to every man. It embraces the proper utilization of every gift. God bestows no useless gifts. His grace is many-sided. It is reflected in diverse ways and means. But those who are recipients and possessors of gifts are stewards, and as such must render an account to the Master. To be good stewards, those entrusted with a gift, must minister the same one to another, that is, mutually. Here is “mutual ministry” and it is authorized by the God of heaven.

Those who oppose this clear instruction and are exponents and defenders of The System, which purports to be the church of God, seek by devious forms of argument to offset the teaching of the Spirit. Many who glibly quote the succeeding verse, which is but an exposition of this one, deny the applicability of the passage under consideration, to our present state. They wave it lightly aside by making it appear that it belonged only to the miraculous age, and the gifts to be ministered mutually are no longer obtainable, so the regulation for employment of the gifts of the holy ones has been abrogated.

This shallow reasoning is the refuge of those who have “an axe to grind,” and who are more interested in keeping what they have, than in restoring what God has authorized. The word charisma simply means “a favor which one receives without any merit of his own.” It may be either a natural or supernatural gift. In either case it is from God, for “every good gift and every perfect gift is from above and cometh down from the Father of lights.” The word is applied to the natural gift of continence, which enabled Paul to be free from the compulsion of sexual desire, and thus to remain unmarried (1 Cor. 7:7). He calls it a gift from God.

Supernatural gifts belong to the supernatural age of the community of the Christ, natural gifts belong to a natural age of administration. But the regulation for employment of the gifts of God does not change, and all such are to be ministered mutually, according to the ability bestowed by God. To attempt to deprive many gifted ones in the community from exercise of their abilities, and set up a system which would make such exercise impossible, and to do so on the basis that God removed the right to use gifts he now bestows, when he changed the method of bestowal, is to tamper with divine prerogatives in a manner which should make those shudder who are guilty of doing so. Certainly, if when men were directly endowed by the Spirit, all were to minister, it would be presumptuous to assert that since none are directly endowed, one may assume to do it all.

2. SCOPE OF MUTUAL MINISTRY

What was to be done mutually, or reciprocally, in the primitive community of the saints? In his wonderful thesis on the unified functioning of the divine organism, the apostle Paul points out that there are varieties of gifts, service, and working, although proceeding from the one source. The purpose of the gifts is thus described, “To each is given a manifestation of the Spirit for the common good” (1 Cor. 12:7). Here are a few of the mutual aspects pertaining to “the common good.”

1. Love. “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God” (1 John 4:9).

2. Hospitality. “Use hospitality one to another without grudging” (1 Pet. 4:9).

3. Forbearance. “With longsuffering, forbearing one another in love” (Eph. 4:2).

4. Forgiveness. “Be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, for giving one another” (Eph. 4:32)

5. Comfort. “Wherefore comfort one another with these words” (1 Thess. 4:18) .

6. Edification. “Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another” (Rom. 14:19).

7. Exhortation. “Exhort one another daily” (Heb. 3:13).

8. Teaching and Admonition. “Teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” (Col. 3:16) .

9. Care. “The members should have the same care one for another” (1 Cor. 12:25).

10. Confession of faults. “Confess your faults one to another, and pray for one another” (James 5:16) .

11. Service. “By love serve one another” (Gal. 5:13).

12. Burden bearing. “Bear ye one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Gal. 6:2)

Although, a community when newly planted, would be nurtured and nourished by the evangelist who begot them by the gospel, such a one, like a father, would train the new converts in every phase of service. He would seek to make them capable of doing without his presence, so he could be on with his primary task of taking the Good News to those who had not previously heard it. Every member would be given full opportunity to exercise and develop his ability, and the evangelist would work himself out, rather than work himself in. The goal of the infant community was to reach maturity, to stand upon its own feet, to further the cause without help. They had been called to minister, not to be ministered unto.

When men among their own number had attained the qualifications required of bishops, or pastors, these were selected by the community, ordained by the evangelist, and under their oversight, the community functioned as an independent unit. The evangelist was no longer required. His work with the congregation had been finished. To suggest that such a community “hire a minister” to conduct their corporate devotions, carry on instruction in exhortation and admonition, visit their sick, and administer their communal affairs, would have been an insult, a reflection against their growth in grace and knowledge, and an implication that they were still in a state of infantile weakness and incompetency. The measure of growth in one congregation of saints, is found in the words of the apostle Paul, addressed to them, “I am persuaded of you, my brethren, that ye also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another.”

Mutual ministry applies to every phase of life and activity in the community of the holy ones. It utilizes for the common good every gift, talent, or ability, within the regulation of the apostolic doctrine. It is not limited to the public corporate worship of the community, nor does it exclude it. It does not make a majority of the saints a mere paying membership whose chief function is to provide a stipend for one to minister unto them, but it recognizes that all are ministers without exception, and the term “ministry” is an inclusive one which describes every act and function by which God and man are served.

3. RELATION TO RESTORATION

Every honest researchist in the history of the ancient community of God, is forced to admit that mutual ministry was the very basis of communal life, and the reason for the rapid spread and conquests of Christianity. Why, then, those who claim to be laboring for restoration of the primitive order, show such disinterest in, and often manifest such open hostility to, the recapture of this concept? We cite a few factors which we consider pertinent to any attempt to answer.

1. Unbelief. There are those who freely admit that mutual ministry was the secret of the strength and growth of the primitive community. They acknowledge that “the saints, with the bishops and deacons,” constituted the local community, and the modern “located minister” was no more a part of the divine arrangement, than was an archbishop or pope. But they hasten to say that God’s plan will no longer work. In this age of complexity and perplexity, we must reverse the order of heaven and teach the disciples that they come “to be ministered unto, and not to minister.” The simple ministry ordained by God is not adapted to a gadget world of slot machines where you turn a knob to indicate what you want, then drop your money in to get it, so “the minister” must be selected by the trial sermon method. Thus, we are treated to the sordid spectacle of performers passing across the stage, exhibiting their wares, and turning on their charm, like bathing beauties in a contest, hoping for the nod from the judges on the sidelines, hearts beating with trepidation while the elders make their decision.

Those who begin with the premise that God’s way is outmoded and impossible, forfeit all right to be regarded as restorationists. They are actually enemies of restoration. They will oppose it with the bitterness and animosity of a wildcat defending the cub to which it gave birth. It is only those who feel a compulsion to adopt and implement the ideal of God, those who are not legislators or inventors of schemes and systems of their own, but who trust in God and labor under the earnest conviction that He who said His ways were not the ways of men, will no more allow His way to fail, than he will allow His word to return unto Him void, who may be truly called restoration-minded. This is the way of faith!

2. Party spirit. This work of the flesh (Gal. 5:20) is a motivating factor for much that is done in the religious realm. It is subtle and cunning, worming itself into the hearts of the believers, and beguiling even the strongest with a hundred innocent guises. It is apparent in every propaganda move which attempts to spur communicants to greater contributions and outlays on the basis of comparison or contrast with other factions or sects.

Promoters of The System, which has generally supplanted the movement for restoration of the primitive order in our generation, are especially adept at exploitation of the party spirit. They seek to wring shekels from the purses of the members to maintain their benevolent and eleemosynary institutions and societies by appeal to what the Roman Catholics are doing with their orphanages; they stimulate interest in their television and radio programs, and solicit funds to be sent to the national headquarters for these communication media, by citing the per capita gifts of Seventh Day Adventists. They spur up flagging zeal in foreign missions by contrasting the paucity of their own efforts with those of the Baptist and Methodist organizations. The laggards are whipped into line through fear psychosis. “The Baptist will get ‘em, if you don’t watch out!”

All such incitements are fatal to the genius and spirit of the Christian faith. They place relationship to the Christ upon the basis of sectarian competition, and although we may by such devious and ill-contrived means build another sect, and a more successful one than others, we do a great disservice to our Lord and his cause by such undesirable motivations. The party spirit spawns factional pride. We dare not be outdone in popular appeal. We must erect edifices as great as those about us; we must at least match, and surpass if possible, the ritualistic performance of our rivals. This demands a “minister” to serve as our front man, one who is skilled in the art of public presentation, a dramatic actor upon the speaker’s platform, attired in the height of fashion, driving a car of the latest model, a good mixer, a social person who will bring honor to us. And some who ought to worship God are soon diverted to the worship of a man.

In such an atmosphere of haughtiness and vainglory, the modest unassuming ministry of the primitive community of holy ones, cannot thrive. Fashionable communicants who keep one eye on God and the other on their religious neighbors, to see how they are being impressed, may pay lip service to the apostles, but would not permit one of those fishermen to “occupy the pulpit.” The blackened, needle-pricked fingers of a tent-maker would hardly adorn one of our cathedrals. So the humble ones are relegated to a menial position where their voices can never be raised in the assembly to edify or exhort one another. The right to speak now belongs only to a professional who performs the task for a fee.

4. WHAT IS THE REMEDY?

Those who are concerned about recapturing the spirit and essence of pure Christianity, cannot sit idly by and know that the ideal of God is still enshrouded by the mists of human philosophy. They must be impelled by an overwhelming urge to dispel the clouds and unveil the beauty of the divine arrangement. But what can be done to offset the influence of entrenched power, pelf, and prestige? Does anyone dare to face the storm of ridicule, venom and hate which will be unleashed against him? Can he endure misrepresentation, malignant whispering and malicious attack? The Roman hierarchy, confusing itself with “the Church” has rendered itself impervious to attack by the parishioners, who have been taught that opposition to the priestcraft, regardless of venality, is a betrayal of the Christ. In the same fashion, The System, which equates itself with the New Testament church, seeks to make it appear that those who criticize it are enemies of truth, and in conflict with our Lord.

The problem we face is a major one. It is intensified by the fact that mutual ministry runs counter to the laziness, indifference and sloth, which characterize many who would rather pay a man to serve God in their stead. It is unappealing to the pride of a professional caste whose craft will be endangered. There is no easy solution by which we can slough off the dross and restore the original ideal. We do humbly suggest a few points for consideration.

1. The sincere preachers of the Good News, who have been unwitting victims of The System, should recognize that the position which they hold as “the minister” of a congregation is without warrant or sanction in the sacred scriptures. It is but a humanly devised pastor system under disguise. They should retain a vision of their real mission, which is not to remain a nursemaid for deliberately retarded, puling spiritual infants, who refuse to learn to feed themselves, but to take the Good News to those not yet in the fold.

2. Those who are bishops, and thus, are God’s pastors, should confess their failings and shortcomings in the past, and begin at once to act in conformity with the dignity and seriousness which becomes this sacred function. They should go among the sheep, gently leading, teaching, feeding, and be ever on the alert for those gifts which have been latent and dormant, but which can be called into use.

3. The saints who read these words should gird themselves for renewed effort and responsibility. Every one of you is a minister. Everyone is a priest of God. Begin to serve and to sacrifice. Each one should study, seek and search, and be ever watchful for the means by which he can strengthen and encourage his fellows. “Follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.” Be longsuffering, forbearing and patient with those who do their best, yet whose efforts are feeble. We must learn to crawl before we can walk!

4. All of us should come to know the depth of responsibility which is attached to a state of covenant relationship with The Eternal One. As ancient Israel heard the words of God thundered from the darkened brow of Sinai, and said, “All that the Lord has commanded us will we do,” so let us at the foot of the mount which cannot be touched, affirm our intention to be faithful to the covenant which is sanctified by the blood of sprinkling that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

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W. Carl Ketcherside is a publisher of religious literature and Editor of Mission Messenger, 2360 Gardner Dr., St. Louis 21, Mo.
 

 

MORAL CONSCIOUSNESS

No one of us can be utterly free from a sense of shame while bigotry, intolerance and factionism exist in the name of religion. We are Christian, and the rents and tears in the Christian fabric reflect against us all, as surely as injustice, inequality and cruelty to human beings in any part of the earth reflect against us as human beings. We cannot disavow our responsibility by arrogantly inquiring if we are keepers of our brethren. We cannot, like Pilate, wash our hands, and be free of the guilt of the mangled body of Jesus, so long as we have made no attempt to pour in ointment, and bind up the wounds.—W. Carl Ketcherside, Mission Messenger, Vol 20, No. 12, p. 1.