Quote:
Originally Posted by Ohio
Calling it a "conflict of interest" was just a kind way of saying that they had all become hirelings. Obviously they did not see things that way, and took great offense at my concerns. These hirelings were simply being loyal to their boss. They may have prided themselves with the fact that were "co-"workers with the great "apostle" Titus Chu, but there was no "co-" about their service to him. Whatever liberty they had once enjoyed was forfeited once they were on the payroll. They had lost the Christian liberty and rights they once had concerning where they lived and how they served the Lord.
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When a brother is simultaneously an elder and a co-worker, how does a conflict of interest not exist? Isn't this a case of
“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth."
(Matthew 6:24)
On one hand as an elder serving the local assembly and on the other hand serving a ministry. Sooner or later which of the two is more of a priority?
When a brother is an elder/co-worker, is he just an elder when not abroad fulfilling the co-worker function?
The concept is no different from the family unit. When a father's employer has him traveling for work or if family situations results in the husband and wife being separated or divorced, how is the father going to shepherd his family? He's not if he's not home. He needs to be home in order to do that.
Same applies to the local assembly. When an elder/co-worker is out of town, he won't be able to fulfill his responsibility to shepherd the church. When you have this conflict of interest, invariably being a co-worker reduces the responsibility of an elder to a "rubber-stamp" function.