Grace Community Fellowship

I learned a lesson early on in my military service:  We respect the rank, not the man.  I met many officers that I didn’t particularly care for, but I had to learn to hold thier rank in high enough esteem to give them proper customs and courtesies.  We salute the rank, even if we don’t like the man.

We have a similar problem in the church, except that it’s not rooted in dislike of an individual but rather in familiarity.  What do I mean by familiarity?

“When Jesus had finished these parables, he moved on from there. Coming to his hometown, he began teaching the people in their synagogue, and they were amazed. “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers?” they asked. “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? Aren’t all his sisters with us? Where then did this man get all these things?” And they took offense at him.
But Jesus said to them, “Only in his hometown and in his own house is a prophet without honor.” (Matthew 13:53-57)

From this passage of scripture, you can see two basic things:  First, you see the amazing anointing of Jesus.  He was clearly displaying His wisdom and miraculous powers.  Second, you can see that the local folk, having known Jesus personally from his youth, allowed their familiarity with Him to become a barrier to their ability to receive the anointing that Jesus carried.

I’ve seen this played out in multiple circumstaces throughout my own life.  The small town pastor, known for being friendly and congenial, is never really respected as the anointed carrier of God’s word because people know him simply as “Jim.”

I’m not saying that we shouldn’t get to know one another.  I’m simply saying that there comes a point in time where being too familiar with our spiritual elders may cause a barrier that will prevent us from receiving God’s word from that person.  God’s anointed deserves a healthy respect.  Even fathers demand respect from their children.

We also have to be aware that God chooses his leaders according to his own criteria, and not ours.  I can see how it might have been difficult for a Pharisee living in Jesus’ town to accept him as the anointed messenger of God, having come from a lower class, less religious family.  I’ve personally experienced this.

I grew up with a kid who is younger than me, and who has become a leader.  Frankly, he leads at a level above me, and it was a struggle for me to accept his promotion at first.  After some prayer, I was clearly able to see God’s hand on this young man, and subsequently submit to his leadership.  I’ve been greatly blessed as a result, but I could have missed that blessing if I had allowed my familiarity with him to stand in the way of receiving from God’s anointing in his life.

Summing it up, God chooses whoever he wants to carry his anointing.  We aren’t consulted in the choosing, but we have a choice as to how we will relate to that person.  We should default to respect for God’s anointing, regarless of who He chooses as His vessel.