I feel like the fallacy of some people having “high purposes” and others having “lower purposes” in the church is getting easier and easier to believe, especially as pastors are becoming celebrities, worship leaders are selling albums, and some of your friends are spiritual bloggers. Oh wait. Ha. But this socio-spiritual hierarchy we typically assume has no Biblical-base at all. In fact, not only is it not true, I believe it hinders the church’s effectiveness and takes away from the overall design of God’s plan.
When we think of this “high” and “lower” in the church, we typically associate the person with “high noble purposes” in the church as the pastor who has written 5 killer books, or the worship leader who just released his 3rd album. And on the other hand, we typically relate “lower members or lower roles” of the church to a social worker, Sunday school teacher, doctor, or sound guy. If we think in math equations, it may equate to this system of thinking:
Pastor > Worship Leaders > Youth Pastor > Bible study leader.
Or something like that. Regardless, any use of > is a wrong equation anyways.
And though the pastor with books and the worship leader with albums may seem more impressive compared to the other ‘regular spiritual people’, this has no bearing on the way God sees us, or where our significance and validation is found. In fact, if we adopt the lie of a hierarchy in the church, then we will feel either ineffective or overwhelmed in our own spiritual capacity to serve, minister, and missionalize. See, everyone is impressive in their own way–God tailors each person to specific strengths, and no one is better than the other! Giving me a sound board would make people deaf. Or mad.
Here’s the thing: God calls certain people to lead, others to be creative, others to provide social services, others to write, others to organize, some to finance, some to work media and sound, and etc. That’s the beauty of the collective church! And we should never feel like we should become someone we’re not–as if we’re trying to prove ourselves to God, others, or even ourself.
Indeed, the church is like the body, all made of different parts that coherently work together for a greater purpose. Everyone cannot be an eye or a hand—then the effectiveness and functionality of the church is zero. Others must be toes, some eyelashes, others neurotransmitters, and some the “behind-the-scene” inner organs (that keep everything going).
No one part is any more significant than the others. And each works together in perfect harmony with, and enhances the effectiveness of, the other roles—for the glory of the main cause that they are both working towards anyways! The church is the people of God who are collectively doing great things for Him! We are all like little cogs and axils and windows and tires that are cooperatively moving the advancement of God’s Kingdom further (1 Cor. 12). Therefore, no one individual in the church is any more valuable or significant than the other. Our significance is not tethered to what we do. It’s based on how God feels about us, and what God has done for us all.
For instance, if we were all pastors or all speakers, then the church would be utterly lacking in effectiveness. Preachers’ and speakers’ anointing is to empower the people of the church; the Holy Spirit uses them as the mouthpieces to spur the church on toward a greater understanding of and a more effective living in the gospel. For, what good is it if all of God’s people had the “high calling” of a preacher? There would be no people to engage the secular culture, there would be no one in the secular world to influence business ethics to reflect God’s character. There would be no teachers who would build up and equip a new generation to lead. There would be no doctors who could give healing and relief in such a way that would point patients to true healing and true peace in Jesus. Similarly, if all were teachers, then who would lead? Who would counsel? Who would engage business ethics? Indeed, “there are different gifts, but the same Spirit” (1 Cor. 12:4).
The lie of the “higher” and “lower” roles in the church implies that the “higher” are more valuable or significant to God than the “lowers”. If this is true, then this creates a gap of spiritual-inequality. Of course, we know this cannot be true because if so, then it would lead to the pride of the “high” and the humiliation or despair of the “low” for not measuring up in God’s eyes, other’s eyes, or their own eyes.
But that’s exactly what we do. We compare our positions to others to see how we measure up—if we’re better, then we feel good and treat the “lower-than-me’s” like dirt while our pride soars. And if we don’t treat them like that (indeed, that would be counterproductive to our high spiritual status of goodness and usable-ness to God), then our thinking will be saturated in judgementalism, condescension, and arrogance. On the other hand, if we’re at a ‘spiritual’ disadvantage, then we feel worthless to God and His purposes. Either case is absurd, I know. I’m just trying to make a point.
However, God did not just die for pastors. And His love is not partial to certain church people.
Therefore, no one individual in the church is any more valuable or significant than the other. Our significance is not tethered to what we do, it’s based on how God feels about us, and what God has done for us all. In fact, by the unique way He has designed us and given us a specific set of skills and passions and abilities, our role is contributory to the other parts—for the glory of one cause—advancing the gospel, that God is the good news in Christ. So whether we are the eye, arm, foot, nose, brain, vessels, or senses—we are all one body, made for one purpose, for one Person.
There are different gifts, same Spirit; different roles, same cause.
