I submit to authority, even an authority whose wisdom I question.
I believe that the tension that exists between the mountaintoppers of the CGGC and me is related to my ability to submit to an authority which they all defy.
The highest earthly authority in the CGGC is not the General Conference Executive Director and his staff. The highest earthly authority in the CGGC is the General Conference in session.
In 2010, the General Conference in session declared this to be the mission of the CGGC:
As witnesses of the Lord Jesus Christ, we commit ourselves to make more and better disciples by establishing churches on the New Testament plan and proclaiming the gospel around the world.
This sentence is, in my opinion, a diabolically clever twisting of Church of God mission announced by John Winebrenner at the first Eldership meeting in 1830.
Winebrenner declared that the first focus of the Church of God was the conversion of sinners and that, when men or women repent, the Church of God organizes them according to the pattern described in the New Testament.
Since 2010, the General Conference in session has determined that the end of what we do is making more and better disciples and that the CGGC uses two methods to make disciples:
1. Establishing churches on the New Testament plan, and,
2. Proclaiming the gospel around the world.
As I said in my first sentence, I question the wisdom of the revision of Winebrenner's vision. But, here's the thing:
I submit to the authority of the highest earthly authority in the CGGC. I set the making of disciples as my ultimate goal and I begin by organizing what I do in ministry, as best I can, according to "the New Testament plan."
I do that to live in harmony with the CGGC community. Sadly, it feels to me as if I submit alone.
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When people have passed on to me the, still unsubstantiated, rumor that the ERC removed my credentials last spring, I normally ask what the charge is that was leveled against me and no one has been able to answer that question but they do talk about the suggestion that I am guilty of criticizing leadership.
If, that is the charge, I absolutely deny it.
The truth is that, since 2010, when I have been at odds with Ed Rosenberry, for instance, or Lance or Kevin Richardson or, say, Dave Williams in the ERC, it has been because I have been DEFENDING the leadership of the Eldership when members of the hierarchy have defied it and, usually, because they are not, in my opinion, following the New Testament plan.
And, that is what I am doing now.
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The truth is that the highest earthly authority in the CGGC has spoken. The goal of all that we do is to make more and better disciples.
And, according to the highest earthly authority in the CGGC, we perform two activities in order to achieve our goal of making more and better disciples:
1. We establish ourselves on the New Testament plan, and,
2. We proclaim the gospel.
So, why is General Conference staff promoting a workshop on discipleship and mission? I can see no reason to have that workshop AT THE MOMENT.
As I've said previously, I expect that the material contained in the workshop will be good.
But, I prophesied, and I will repeat myself, the workshop won't make a difference in the CGGC because we need to change ourselves before we can be effective in changing what we do.
We need to submit to the authority of the Eldership and make establishing ourselves according to the New Testament plan our first activity in seeking our goal of making more and better disciples.
Or, of course, we can ask the Eldership to redefine it definition of our mission.
After we've worked ourselves toward that goal, if Lance suggests that, in order to refine our New Testament identity, we should look to 3DM for training in discipleship and mission, I'd listen. I'm certain that all of us would.
But, clearly, we are not living in obedience to our own earthly authority and the Lord will not bless this and the majority of our people will be cynical about it and see it as nothing more than our hierarchs following another fad that will soon be abandoned for a newer, shinier bandwagon.
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One other note about our highest earthly authority. As I've said, I question its wisdom.
Yet I submit to it.
If I'd been given the chance, I would have voted against the Mission Statement. But, I submit to it nevertheless.
On the other hand, our hierarchs pay lip service to the Mission Statement, yet they have been defying it from the moment it was approved.
How can we possibly think that the Lord will bless them, or us?
We must repent.
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