Some believers look at my page, my site, and quotes from my unpublish book and think I am against leaders, pastors, and preachers; quite the contrary. I believe that those who have answered this calling desire a good thing (1 Timothy 3:1). But Peter also urges the elders in the Church in 1 Peter 5:1-4 as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly; not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory. It is only that kinds of leaders that Peter says that the younger in the faith should submit to. Also, that leaders and followers should submit to each other. I will show you what that looks like in another post, so let’s move on. What I am against, but more importantly, what God is against, is revealed as we read through the Gospels and epistles. We see this when Jesus talked about wolves dressed in sheep's clothing; he trashed hypocritical religious leaders, even distancing himself from them when we read his openly stark rebuke of these leaders in Matthew 23, known as The Seven Woes. Jude, Paul, and Peter did the same. Because, as good shepherds, they were obligated to lead and protect the sheep. Jude said, "...when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints." The book of Jude is the smallest book in the New Testament which warns about falsehood, the variant of one of the highest callings_leadership.
Jude wanted to write to the Church about the salvation we shared but saw it necessary and more adventitious for him to bring their attention to and direct their focus on the ungodly leaders who turn the grace of our God into licentiousness and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ. You remember how back in the day when you wanted to have your friends come over, but your parents would say, Before you invite any of your friends over, you better make sure the house is clean first.' This is kind of what Jude was getting at. The Church is facing a pandemic of this variant of false leaders, not just a few but many (Matthew 24:11). Woe to them, for they have gone the way of Cain. For pay (for or because of money), they rushed headlong into the error of Balaam and perished in the rebellion of Korah. These men are hidden reefs in your love feasts when they feast with you without fear. In other words, they participate in religious/sacred activities without fear, caring for themselves. They are clouds without water, carried along by winds; in other words, boasters of their own oratorical skills using fancy words that pack no spiritual nutritional value words that only cater to one's taste buds. Causing flocks to be carried about with every wind of doctrine by the sleight of men and their cunning and craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive.
They are autumn trees without fruit, doubly dead, uprooted; they have no personal relationship with God, only a celebrity media status relationship. These false leaders are like wild waves of the sea, casting up their own shame like foam, meaning they are loud, boisterous, energetic, animated, exuberant, and exciting. Yet, they have an unrestrained, uncontrollable consumption to take over, the foam of their waves only bringing forth and leaving behind empty shells, seaweed, and the muck and mire, from that which is in the depths of their souls. They are like wandering stars for whom the black darkness has been reserved forever. Like wondering stars, they shine for a season as they are falling as they disappear into the darkness of the night sky. Jude went as far as to say these false leaders were like fallen angels who left their first estate. Paul echoed this when he said: "You were running a good race. Who cut in on you to keep you from obeying the truth? That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. “A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough,” Jesus warned the disciples to be on the lookout for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod, which means to be keenly aware of religious hypocrisy, greed, and political influence that give rise to false teachings.
The yeast of the Pharisees is hypocrisy, greed, legalism, self-righteousness, spiritual pride, love of money, and such; the yeast of Herod has to do with political, governmental, and cultural influences that invoke the necessity of false teaching. These false leaders are well well disguised. They practice ungodly behaviors, dreamers (self-indulgent/entrepreeurialistic). They don't respect authority (narcissistic/they answer to no one). They use the glory of God in blasphemous indulgent ways (prosperity preaching/selling such things as holy oil, prayer cloths, or even charging believers "to hear from God," etc.). Jesus said this: "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean."
In conclusion, Scripture tells us in Psalms 23 how it looks when God is our shepherd. In John 10:11-15 Jesus said he is the Good Shephard and shows the quality of shepherding, so the question would become this: If you're a leader doing God's will, why would you be upset about anyone warning or talking about these false prophets and preachers when these same warnings are not only expressed by the Apostles throughout their writings but by Jesus himself throughout the Gospels. Jesus and the Apostles, throughout the New Testament, cried loud and spared not when concerning this subject. Jesus said, "And many false prophets shall rise and shall deceive many." so I feel that if any leader, pastor, preacher, or prophet is offended by these teachings/warnings, maybe one should ask themselves why. If the shoes don't fit, why are you squeezing your foot into them and being offended by the discomfort it brings? And then ask ourselves, if Jesus and the Apostles weren't silent about these false leaders, these variant forms of shepherds, why am I? Because, in the end, our silence only makes us complicit.
Ezekiel 22:23-31
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