Quote:
Originally Posted by Evangelical
"Don't assume you can dictate to elders what they can do. "
Statements like this, if taken to the extreme, contradict the evidence of the apostle Paul, who clearly "dictated" to elders and churches what they should do:
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As I've said, Apostles like Paul no longer exist. The Bible clearly says the Apostles of that time had seen the Lord Jesus and were able to work miracles. (1 Cor 9:1; 2 Cor 12:12). Neither Witness Lee nor any workers in the LCM nor anyone else I know have such credentials or power. They do not have the signs of an Apostle that the Bible specifies.
The original Apostles had special authority. They could direct churches, they could define the faith, they could author Scripture. No one in the modern age has such power. The Bible has replaced them.
I do not believe extra-local workers have the right to go to churches and order elders around. If invited they can teach, preach, exhort, even rebuke. But whether the leaders of a church listen to them is totally the prerogative of those leaders. Direct authority begins and ends at the doors of a church or ministry. And even there it is narrow in scope.