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NASB | Acts 21:23 "Therefore do this that we tell you. We have four men who are under a vow; |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Acts 21:23 "Therefore do just what we tell you. We have four men who have taken a vow; |
Subject: Why did Paul do it? For conscience sake? |
Bible Note: Dear MJH, I believe that you do respect me. I also believe your apology is sincere. As I said, I am not anyone to whom your respect is required. Oddly enough, God calls us to respect people for the positions in which He has placed them -- not that they deserve or warrant respect. That's odd to us, because we tend to think entirely in matters of merit. For example, Paul affirms his clear conscience in Acts 23:1. His assertion wins the disapproval of Ananias, who commands that he be struck in the mouth, a way of demanding his silence (v2). Paul, reacts angrily to the blow (v3), with words that are in and of themselves quite true. Such language was recognizably out-of-line (v4). Paul had not known who had ordered him to be struck (v5a). When he is informed, he immediately apologizes (v5). Was this because Ananias was a man whose character merited respect? No -- quite the contrary! It was because Ananias' held his position by virtue of the suffrage of God. The Lord would, indeed, bring judgment and destruction down upon the entire organization a scant few years later. The example of submission to those in authority ranges from one end of Scripture to the other. Christ Himself exemplifies this on several occasions. MJH, God has placed your pastor in a position of authority over you specifically because He has deemed it to be appropriate. Your pastor deserves great respect and deference by virtue of God's calling on him to minister to your congregation. When you express yourself as you have described, you elevate yourself as his teacher. What is worse, you leave an example to others that this is acceptable behavior. Thus you are assuming a position in direct opposition to God. Scary! Might I suggest that a humble man, exemplifying Christ-like submission, would remain publicly silent. He would approach the pastor on an individual, private basis to gain clarification and instruction. Ultimately, if you discern that your pastor is so prone to error, the appropriate thing to do is to go elsewhere. After all, your pastor is one who will stand before God to give an account of how he has disposed his office. Meanwhile, God will give the humble man grace (Job 22:29; Isaiah 57:15; James 4:6; etc.). The Puritans used to speak of cultivating a high degree of self-suspicion. The heart of man can spring forth all kinds of ungodly things, while assuming a guise of righteousness. You know that I disagree with your position on the role of the Mosaic Law in the life of the believer. Nevertheless, wisdom is justified by her children (Luke 7:35). So let us seek humility and meekness, forbearance and forgiveness, in how we relate to those in our individual congregations. Then, perhaps, our Lord will grant us grace to correct us where we err. It is not a matter of whether one or the other of us is right. In the long run, what do we care about that? Only our Lord is important. In Him, Doc |