By Pastor Glynn Adams
January 19, 2025
The American Culture Church is being challenged in the same way the Prophet Elijah confronted the nation of Israel, “How long will you halt between two opinions?” Will we continue to support and live out these modern-day church structures and practices driven by the traditions of men or will we finally submit to the simple Ekklesia pattern Christ has given to His followers? Jesus said, “I will build my Ekklesia.” Not man, not the pastor, not the traditions of man but Christ Himself would build those who assemble in His Name. How long will we spiritually struggle with these man-made structures we have today that kill the “body- life” among the priesthood of believers.
The corrupt religious system we have inherited focuses entirely on “leadership – “the pastor.”” The office of pastor has been created by the traditions of men. There is no New Testament basis for the office of “the pastor.” The word pastor is used in the New Testament, not as a title but as a function and is always plural. It is interesting to compare the number of books on leadership and conferences for “leaders” versus books and conferences on cultivating “body-life” among the priesthood of all believers. You would think that “leadership” must be the largest topic discussed in the New Testament. Jesus upfront told His followers that “He was their leader” and that “He was their teacher.” Jesus and the writers of the New Testament spend most of their time explaining body function and conduct to the assembly of followers of Jesus Christ.
God never intended for His Ekklesia to have professional pastors and staff. He never intended for pastors to be top leader and the people under him. God intended for His followers to be a kingdom of functioning priests that serve under the Headship of His Son!!! To be focused on, or be concerned about “leadership” as we are today without a “loving functional body” brings about the disaster that we are living out today.
The Body of Christ is a family. It is a family who live the life of Christ that is expressed through all the members of the Body. It is to be a “body-life” where all followers participate to guide, enrich, and grow all the parts of the Body as they lift up Christ together. Every one participates in building up the Body (Eph. 4:16) by sharing what they themselves receive from the Lord. Body-life is the context for decision-making. Leaders are never mentioned in what Jesus teaches about problem-resolution in Matthew 18:15-20. The final context is “take it to the congregation.”
The New Testament letters were written to the assembly of followers not to leaders. The assembly at Corinth had a lot of issues but Paul assumed that the body could take care of them – “when you come together as a body.” (I Cor. 5:4). I do not think we have begun to grasp the significance of the fact that the New Testament letters were written to Ekklesia – not leaders. We would do well to focus on knowing Christ and sharing Him with “one another” since there are fifty-eight “one another” verses in the New Testament
Years ago, God gave me a revelation when I realized America was turning away from God – “Whatever is happening in our nation contrary to God’s Way has first happened in the church.” Just look at the breakdown of the family in our nation!! Wives and husbands estranged from one another. Wives not subject to their husbands and husbands who do not love their wives as Christ loves the church. Children disobedient to parents and children being raised without fathers. Children refusing to honor their father and mother. Fathers provoking their children to anger and not raising them in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. In families today, we are too quick to separate from one another because we don’t like the imperfections we see in each other.
God hates divorce because it destroys the family. Is not what is happening in our families happening in our churches today? The whole Kingdom of God message of Jesus Christ is Him gathering a people and how they should function in caring for “one another” and to others who know not Christ. We have missed out on so much by allowing our “body-life” to be corrupted. When we no longer learn from “one another” and when we no longer share with “one another” the intimate things we have learned of Christ, spiritual death sets in the Body of Christ. God bless, I remain his servant and watchman, Glynn Adams (Thanks to Milt Rodriguez and Jon Zens and his book, How Christ Leads Through the One Another)
© 2025 Glynn Adams – All Rights Reserved
E-Mail Glynn Adams: glynnadams@sbcglobal.net
