CHRIST'S PERSONAL SERVICE FOR THE SAINTS (4)
CHRIST’S PERSONAL SERVICE FOR THE SAINTS (4)
JT We might look at the last chapter of Matthew today. It may be said that our subject is administration. The facts recorded have in view that there should be moral power on earth for the enforcement of the will of God. The angel, as it will be observed, is seen by the keepers. In the other gospels the angels are said to have been seen by the saints only — those who visited the sepulchre. Another feature is that as the Lord appeared to the saints they worshipped Him. The feature of unbelief that we dwelt on yesterday is not in evidence at all.
In order to have government there must be respect; and this not only for the Lord, but for all who have moral power. “Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour”, 1 Timothy 5:17. So the Scriptures — the Old Testament Scriptures — furnish us with examples of the acquirement of moral power. Those who had an official place accredited of God had earlier qualified for the place on moral grounds. We find as an illustration that Joseph, who typifies the Lord in a peculiar way as in administration, in his dream, which he tells his brethren, and which elicits their hatred, says, “we were binding sheaves in the field, and, lo, my sheaf arose, and also stood upright; and, behold, your sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to my sheaf”, Genesis 37:7. That refers to inherent power. It is a remarkable thing that a sheaf should stand up. Whatever the growth may have been, the sheaf had been cut down; so that there was the power of life. It was not set up by another. No, it stood up. The suggestion is not conferred authority — [p. 53] that came later. Authority was conferred on Joseph, not because of his birth, not as a heritage, but on moral grounds. So that it stands; the sheaf stands up, and the others bow down. That is what comes out here.
Then Joseph goes on to a wider area; he has another dream. It refers to the exaltation of Christ. The first refers to His resurrection, and the second to His exaltation. He says, “behold the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me”, Genesis 37: 9. That is, all power in heaven and on earth has, as it were, to bow. He has gone into heaven, and all are subject — angels, principalities, authorities, and powers. He is made Lord and Christ. But He qualifies morally for the position.
I mention all that, dear brethren, because, if there is to be rule amongst the people of God now, it must be altogether on moral grounds, not on official. Not that one is made a leader, but one is that. It was so with Moses. In Proverbs 30 our attention is called to four stately things, ending with “a king, against whom there is no rising up”, Proverbs 30:31 and I think that is the point of this chapter. There is no rising up against the king. The first character is a lion; he turns not away from any. The second is a horse (it should read ‘war horse’, possibly), who, as we know from the book of Job, is always ready for the fray. He smelleth the battle afar off; Job 39:25. He knows the issue of the testimony, and is prepared for the consequences. He is ready for aggression, as well as for defence. Then there is the he-goat, which would suggest the isolation of the soul to God, wherein we acquire power with God. And, as having power with God, we have power with men. So that the king follows, “against whom”, as it says, “there is no rising up”. He is not merely a constitutional monarch; he is a monarch set up in moral power, and so you cannot rise up against him.
[p. 54] In this Moses qualifies strikingly. As coming down from the mount, he has been with God; and finding the people in idolatry, he faces the whole camp of Israel, and not a tongue is raised against him. There is no rising up against the man who has acquired power with God, so that Moses is said to have been king in Jeshurun; he had acquired that place. He was not the acknowledged king; he was a king on moral grounds. He acquired the place in the affections of the people; and I believe that is the point in this chapter, because the Lord says here in the end of the chapter, “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations”, Matthew 28: 19. Make them. That would be an entire impossibility apart from the power that the chapter suggests. The nations are to be made disciples. It is not a question of preaching, but of making them disciples.
JCS So that the Lord’s activities in this gospel are in view of putting us on these lines. His activities here are towards putting saints on this ground to come out as administrators in heavenly power.
JT That is the thing. It is quite obvious that rule has to be, but it has to be on these lines.
Ques Do we get a reference to the inherent power you refer to in the beginning of Romans — “Declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead”, Romans 1:4?
JT Yes; I think He qualifies there. He is declared to be Son of God. It came out that He had that power.
JCS According to Matthew’s gospel, the Lord Jesus was born to rule. He was born a King, and all His movements here proved He was One.
JT That is what the gospel brings out, so that in the facts recorded here there is no rising up. They worshipped Him — the women and the eleven; that is, there was reverential respect [p. 55] for Him.
JCS In this gospel the Lord does not prevent them from holding Him by the feet. That is quite in keeping with His position.
JT He said nothing against it, because He is continuing on; as He says, “I am with you always”.
JFS John gives the inherent power you were speaking of; “I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again”, John 10:18. The sheaf that had been cut down, standing up in life. No man could place it there. It stood up of itself.
Ques Do we see it set forth in type in David when he slew Goliath? “There was no sword in the hand of David”. 1 Samuel 17:50.
JT Yes. He qualifies; as he says to Saul, “Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear”, 1 Samuel 17:36. He qualified in secret.
JCS So that really everything that transpired in the life of the Lord Jesus established His authority and power to take up the throne.
JT The disciples are reverential here. One would specially lay stress on that, because we are living in democratic times, in which authority is in disrepute. There are those who “speak evil of dignities”, Jude 8. The Lord would maintain amongst His own the true idea of the divine thought in rule. The democratic idea is not divine. It is not that one would speak against any order of government, only as to the principle. God would maintain amongst His people respect for authority. You worship Him. They are not filled with amazement, as Mark speaks of it. They worship the Lord as He meets them in Galilee.
JFS Paul suggests this line of thought in the end of the epistle to the Hebrews, where he says, “Wherefore, we, receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us have grace whereby we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear”, Hebrews 12:28.
[p. 56] Ques Does this come in on the line of Psalm 110:3, “Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power”?
JT Well, quite.
JCS So the scene in the closing chapter of Matthew would fit in with what you were saying about Joseph — the sheaf lifted itself up, and the others are bowing down in the recognition of his power. I think it is a beautiful scene.
JT Yes, they had to come to it. They hated him for it, but they had to bow down to him.
Rem “Fear not. Go, bring word to my brethren”. That is, I suppose, in connection with the sheaves. They are to take word to the disciples in Mark. What would be the difference?
JT The Lord brings the sons in for rule, as in Psalm 45:16 “Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children”. It is family relationship. “Whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth”. They are to be made princes here; but the underlying thought there is family relationship, hence David’s sons were chief rulers. The family link exists between the Lord and those who rule under Him. First we have to notice that the women received the message from the angel, and they are on their way to deliver it. In the end of verse 8, they ran to bring His disciples word, and as they went to tell them, behold, Jesus met them, saying, “All hail”. Here we are dealing at distances. Rule involves dignity in those who rule, and the “King’s business required haste”, 1 Samuel 21:8. It is the King’s business here. They ran to bring His disciples word; and then it is as if He hastened their pace by meeting them, and saying, “Hail. The King himself is speaking. The message you have is to be delivered not only to ‘My disciples’, by name, but to ‘my brethren’”. He would augment their pace in meeting them thus, but He elevates the message in addressing it to His brethren. It is as if [p. 57] He said, Rule is to be on a higher ground than simply discipleship. Perhaps there is nothing we need to be reminded of more than the thought of dignity in whatever we do. So in rule, the Lord would give us to understand that we are in the relation of brethren to Him; and yet we are to retain a respectful distance. It is not brethren as in John. We belong to the royal family; but in office we have to respect those above us; for a king’s son, although a son, if he is in office, has to respect the king. It is not his father, but the king. So, as they meet Him in Galilee, they worship Him.
Rem So that, being in the recognition of who He is adds dignity to them.
JT Quite. The greater His dignity, the greater ours.
JCS It is very comely they should be found so at this moment. They are able to perceive the dignity that belongs to Him and what belongs to Him has a universal character — it extends everywhere. They are prepared to recognise Him, and worship Him in the light of what He is entering upon.
JT The women are in the position of messengers. They bear the word, and the Lord would have them to bear it in suitable dignity and liberty. So He says, “Bring word to my brethren that they go into Galilee, and there shall they see me”. There is nothing here in Matthew about His going to them, as in Luke, to recover them. They act; they are to go.
Ques Have you in mind the journey that Joseph’s brethren took into Egypt?
JT Well, it corresponds.
Rem They were ultimately known as His brethren. He is found there in power, and they are placed with Him.
JT What we all need, I am sure, is subjection to authority, not only to the Lord, but to all who have moral weight; and, indeed, submitting to one another,
as it says, “submitting yourselves to one another in the fear of Christ”, Ephesians 5:21. The brethren are to be respected, especially if there be moral power.
MPM Do you think Pilate had to be obeyed? Even in the inscription on the cross, when the chief priests desired him to write, “He said, I am king of the Jews”, he answered, “What I have written, I have written”. John 19:21,22.
JT What we find in Matthew is that Pilate is referred to as the governor. We are dealing With government.
HB Can you help us as to the characteristics of an elder?
JT Well, Timothy gives us the qualifications. He is to be “irreproachable, husband of one wife, sober, discreet, decorous, hospitable, apt to teach”, etc. 1 Timothy 3:2. He was to rule his own house well, and have his children in subjection. These, With other qualifications, indicate that a man has weight. If a man cannot rule his own house he has no moral power. If I have not this, I must turn to God. He gives it. Power with God involves power with men.
JCS Power as seen in a saint is the same power as is seen in its absoluteness in Christ. And that is why it carries respect. You see divine power amongst the saints.
HC If a man has not a home circle in which to qualify — that is, a Wife and children — how does he stand then?
JT Well, an elder should be qualified according to Timothy; he should have the qualifications given. Nevertheless, a man may acquire power amongst the brethren even if he have no family. The brethren are ready to discern his worth if a man has power with God.
HB Do you suggest, then, that it is only a man with a wife who can be an elder?
JT That is what is indicated at the outset.
[p. 59] That was amongst the moral qualifications. But, as I said, a brother will have weight among the brethren as he has power with God. We have no official leaders now. The thing that tells, as ever, is the power of a prince: “Whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth”. Psalm 45:16. That is what ‘Israel’ means. “Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men”. Genesis 32:28. Judah, it says, “prevailed among his brethren”, 1 Chronicles 5:2 and he became the chief ruler. He prevailed. Thus one is accorded the place of rule.
Ques Is that the picture we get in this chapter? The brethren are morally right here. As you were saying as to Luke 24, the Lord went to the erring ones; here, they came to Him; and, being in His company, they can move out and make disciples.
JT They are morally right. The women worship Him, and the eleven also. What we are speaking about can only be developed through prayer — having to do with God. So Matthew records that in prayer you are to enter into your closet, because he has in view that you should secure power with God; and as having that power you have power with men.
Ques What does the man wrestling with Jacob set forth?
JT Jacob says, “I will not let thee go, except thou bless me”, Genesis 32:26. Remarkable tenacity. You persevere with God, and you get power.
Rem He had great need of power on account of the lawlessness of his house.
JT He had indeed.
HB In Mark, the women were afraid; now in this chapter the keepers are afraid. Can you help us as to this?
JT That brings up the question of what the angel represents. The angel here represents the providential government of God in the world, which greatly helps the direct government we are dealing [p. 60] with. The angel represents the providential dealings, which, for example, have secured to us now the liberty of meeting together without molestation. I would connect the angel with the providential government of God. It is what I may call indirect, but nevertheless effective; it suffices to make a way for us. Direct government is in the assembly. Hence we pray for all those who are in authority. The angel refers to the indirect government of God; the providential government of God, which secures peace in the world, and makes a way for us to work out the principles of the assembly. We have nothing to do with it, save to be subject to it, and to pray for those in authority. We do not put them there; the angel attends to that. It says that angels are “ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation”, Hebrews 1:14. That, I apprehend, is the secret of the present international situation. God has ordered things for us, and we should be extremely thankful for them.
JCS The government of God was coming in in view of support for the testimony here, so they were not to fear. It encourages us to think of it in that light.
JT But then, what comes out is another thing. Satan would come in to deceive. Hence, what you find here is a lie — a lie circulated and established, as far as the Jews were concerned. That is a serious contingency that we have to deal with in maintaining the government of God — a lie, when it becomes accepted.
HB That is very remarkable. The world system is based on a lie. The kingdom is based on the truth.
JT We have to contend with it. The disciples have to disciple all nations; but see the difficulty in making disciples of people believing a lie! That is how Satan discredits what is of God. In the great apostasy men will believe a lie. Amongst the saints.
[p. 61] on the contrary, the great thing is the truth — transparency. The river that flows out from the city is clear as crystal. There is nothing of the lie at all, not anything of dark counsels about the government of God. Our brothers’ meetings should be on this line — the line of transparency. What we are dealing with is the common property of the saints, not of an exclusive set. If there are those upon whom special responsibility rests, that does not exclude the weakest saint in the company. He belongs to the “angel”. Revelation 2:1. He is responsible, and should know all that is going on. We have no dark counsels as the stewards of the Lord. He would not allow a package to be carried through the temple; Mark 11:16. That is, something wrapped up; some secret thing. Things must be open.
JCS Things are not done in a corner, and there is nothing diplomatic there. Things are all open.
JT That is it. Paul says, “I withstood him to the face, because he was to be blamed”. Galatians 2:11 Referring to Jacob again — did he acquire moral power with God to judge the iniquity of his sons? In due time God raised up Joseph, who subdued them.
JT Yes. Then you see, in Genesis 49, Jacob is acting in the power of Israel. His last words to his sons — a prophetic outline of their history — were on the ground of moral authority: “Hearken unto Israel your father”. Genesis 49:2. He strengthened himself on the bed’s head — he himself. That is, he had inherent power. Even at that advanced age, when he was about to die, there was power there, and he spoke to his sons in that power. So no father need assume that he cannot have moral power, because it is available.
Ques Would that be the result of his going down to Joseph?
JT I think it was the result of his experience [p. 62] with God. He had wrestled with God. He was greater (consciously, I believe) than Pharaoh. “The less is blest of the greater”. Hebrews 7:7. As he is brought into the presence of Pharaoh, he blesses him. Joseph respects the greatness of his father at the end; Indeed, Jacob was more spiritual than Joseph when he blessed Ephraim and Manasseh.
MPM Lot would give us an example of one who had not that power. He was as one that mocked to his sons-in-law.
JT Quite. This was in keeping with his position in Sodom.
JCS The Lord Jesus Himself was the King. He had really brought in the legislation. Now He is educating the saints for the administration. His power and authority are with them in it, to go right on to the end.
JT Quite. Look at the responsibility He places on them. He says, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations”.
HC You have emphasised the making of the disciples a little in contrast with the preaching of the gospel. Would you make it clearer how the disciples were made?
JT “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptising them to the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”. This was a greater proposal than Alexander ever thought of, or any of the great conquerors. It is one thing to subjugate the world by force of arms, but a very different thing to make disciples — to make them. How could it be done, save by moral power? It is not a question of “he that believeth and is baptised shall be saved”. Mark 16:16. That is Mark. It is not that here. It is administration here. The question is not raised, ‘Who wishes to be baptised?’ They were to do it.
JR Such power is seen [p. 63] in Solomon.
JT Yes. He rose up in such moral power that no one could raise a finger against him. He was “a king against whom there is no rising up”. Proverbs 30:31.
SF So that those submitting to baptism in that way, would be in recognition of the power that existed in heaven, which was present on earth.
JT That is the idea. The commissioners of the Lord are in such manifest power that men must see the gain of becoming disciples. Hence it is a question of privilege. The princes are the models. The princes exhibit in their walk and ways the moral greatness of the thing. There never was anything like Christianity in the world. At Ephesus the whole power of the world was brought down before it. It was the superiority of the thing. Even napkins taken from the apostles sufficed to effect cures, denoting the power in the man, so that the world gave way before him! It is all opened up to you. Hence — baptism: “Go” — “baptising them to the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit”. Compare that with the Jew who went out proselytising among the nations. What had he to offer? Here we have the Father, the Son, and the Spirit, all available to you. Is it not worth while? It is on those lines you make disciples. It is a question of moral power. What is presented is superior. The nations were to be admitted into all the blessings and privileges involved in the revelation of God.
Ques Is not power acquired by the fact that the Lord was with them even to the end?
JT Yes; and they were made princes. We want to see that; we are to have power — influence.
JFS All this suggests the prophetic word, “A king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment”, Isaiah 32:1.
JCS That goes right down to the end.
JT That is what the Lord would help us on this [p. 64] afternoon. We have had features of the Lord’s service. That is one great feature. He is carrying on the service of administration, but He would have princes, so that He can act through them.
WHU Is that why food is brought in in connection with rule in the early part of Matthew? He shall rule, or feed, all the people. Is the feeding brought in in order to produce princes?
JT No doubt.
EBMcC I suppose they would learn something of this in the eleven who went to be alone with the Lord in Galilee. Some doubted; they would not get the gain of His presence.
JFS Why is Galilee mentioned so often?
JT To slight Jerusalem. Jerusalem had failed in government. Luke makes much of Jerusalem, because Luke emphasises grace. But when you come to government you have to take account of sins, and Jerusalem’s sins had mounted up to heaven, and the wrath of God must take account of them. The great education for us is to know how to combine grace and government. Grace would lead you to stand beside a brother, but judgment would lead you to leave him alone. We have to learn to combine grace and government.
HB That is why the earthquake comes in here, to level things.
HC The rod of Aaron and the rod of Moses brought together in one place.
JT Yes.
JFS The Spirit of Christ would really be the ability to govern.
JT So that it is a priest upon his throne.
Ques Do you give verse 19, “Go ye therefore and teach all nations”, etc., a present-day application?
JT It is the light you have to go by in administration. Other scriptures may modify this, because [p. 65] there may be certain limitations which would hinder you in carrying it out. Matthew contemplates the assembly in order — the assembly as it was at the beginning. It is a question now of getting the light of what existed at the beginning, and to have the moral power to influence those who are within your range. You must be able to expand, and to influence those within your range. You influence them.
Rem So they moved here in the same moral power whereby they had been affected by Him.
JT Yes.
JFS Would administration exercised rightly in the assembly have its effect universally?
JT That is the bearing of it. The princely or stately walk spoken of in Proverbs implies that others take notice of you, and they see you have something better; that is the thing.
MPM In John 1:29 it says, “Behold the Lamb of God!” They beheld Him as He walked, and followed Him.
Rem A priest is not necessarily a prince.
JT A priest has compassion on the ignorant and them that are out of the way, but whatever he does he has to combine that with government.
JFS John had the thought of a kingdom in his mind in the beginning of Revelation — a kingdom of priests. Is that the idea?
JT Yes. We are set up in Peter “a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light”. 1 Peter 2:9. These excellences become attractive, and they have moral weight with people; and if a man is affected, the next thing is you open the door to him. He can come into this by baptism.
LDB What did you say about the passage, “the government shall be upon his shoulder” Isaiah [p. 66] 9:61 That falls into line with this, do you not think?
LDB His shoulder is equal to the government of “all nations”, so that “all nations” can be discipled.
Ques It says the nations shall walk in the light of the city. Is that the divine end reached?
JT Yes. Because the idea of government is influence. It is a question of what influence I exert. I suppose the sun governs on the principle of influence. So, with the heavenly city, there is influence. The enormous value of the influence of the heavenly city will be perceived on the earth, and I think this is the point now. A prince shows the superiority of the thing; and now, if you want to come into this (indeed it is imperative that you should come in) the door is open.
MPM Is it seen in Peter and John? Peter says, “Look on us”, Acts 3: 4.
JT There it is. The power is there.
JCS And our power as princes is commensurate with our power with God. What we are as coming under God is the measure of what we are going to be there.
JT Quite.
Rem So that when things are morally right it becomes easy to submit. The saints are able to take account of those who are over them in the Lord, and to submit.
JT The Lord goes on to say, “Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have enjoined you”. Here it is not repentance and remission of sins, but what He has enjoined. All legislation comes from Christ. There are no Houses of Assembly or Upper Houses in Christianity. All legislation comes from Christ. He is the lawgiver. “The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come”, Genesis 49:10. Thus the lawgiver is Christ; so He says, “Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have enjoined you”. Enjoined, not taught. It is a question of government.
JCS It is in keeping with the presentation of the Lord Jesus in this gospel.
JT It is very beautiful to see Paul — although the great apostle of the Gentiles, and commissioned with greater administration than the twelve — humbly moving about among his brethren in the different cities, delivering the decrees from Jerusalem. How unity among the saints at that time was maintained by the humble acceptance of the situation by Paul, who went about and delivered the decrees to the different assemblies in the Gentile world; and then it says they “increased in number every day” Acts 16:5. That shows how discipleship was extended — the assemblies were increased every day. One feels the innate resistance there is in us to submit to rule, because we are living in democratic times, and we catch the spirit of the times so easily; whereas the divine principles never alter. This passage has the same weight today as at the beginning. It is what He has enjoined.
Ques The elevation is never lowered, is it? I was thinking it was a mountain in Galilee. Although they come out from Jerusalem, they come to an elevation in Galilee.
JT You find that throughout this gospel. It is the principle of elevation for government.
CC While the thought of government and the priestly character are so prominent, why is it that women are prominent?
JT I think they always represent the subjective conditions among the saints, and these are always essential to any feature of the truth; so that we can see how sisters come into this, although they may have to wear authority on their heads because of the angels, which is on this [p. 68] line.
HB Would you say that we learn how to rule by being ourselves in subjection? Is that the idea?
JT That is the thing. It is only as I learn in subjection that I can rule.
JFS Proverbs 31:23 would suggest what you say of the woman — “Her husband is known in the gates”. A woman has power administratively.
JT You will find examples of wise women throughout the Scriptures. Take a woman like Deborah. It says of her: “She dwelt under the palm tree of Deborah ... in mount Ephraim”, Judges 4:5. That is to say, I suppose, she had acquired victory over herself in her dwelling. She had learnt to rule her own spirit. She was not a gossiper. She dwelt under the palm tree of Deborah, and hence in her song in the next chapter, she speaks of leaders leading in Israel, and governors governing in Israel. “The highways were unoccupied, and the travellers walked through byways. The inhabitants of the villages ceased ... until that I Deborah arose, that I arose a mother in Israel”, Judges 5:6,7. See the great change that one woman brought in in her day; and it is all a question of moral power, because she had no official place.
SF I was noticing that “all power is given unto me in heaven” — up above, “and on earth”. Yet you do not find heaven made known in this gospel. The commission to the disciples is connected with the earth.
JT All that power is to support the disciples in this great service.
Rem In a company of believers, when some question arises, there is a tendency to follow a leader. Would you say it is quite right to obey, but a different thing to follow?
JT Of course a leader is to be followed. The idea is what one sees. If anything is to be done well we must have the fellowship of the brethren; it is [p. 69] quite right. But it was never intended that the conscience of one man should rule the assembly. One or two brethren may or may not be happy, but are they prepared to take on the obligation of holding up the government of God because of their conscience? Hence the thing is to be a leader. Leaders led in Israel. If anything is to be done, is there a brother of moral power to lead? You cannot expect everybody to see eye to eye in these days. The thing is, therefore, to proceed according to divine principles. If the thing is to be done, let it be done; and God will confirm it, if it is right, even though all will not agree. Of course there must be the utmost consideration for every conscience. All this may entail suffering, as we see in Joseph; at the very outset hatred arose — a double hatred. They hated him before the dream, and more after it. Nevertheless, there it is. The thing has to be done. The will of God has to be carried out, and it is imperative.
LDB It is encouraging; they came to it, as remarked earlier. I suppose today we can count upon that. Whatever is of the Lord is to be maintained. Brethren will come to it.
JT One has seen it over and over again. An action has been done because it is the will of God. Brethren come round.
GR Have I the right to demand my brethren to respect my conscience?
JT No, I have not. It is for me to submit to my brethren, and the Lord will reveal to me what is now hidden. Why should that hold up the government of God? You might as well try to hold up the sun. It is the same thing. I may be dragging in my will. It is a question of confidence in the brethren.
GR Could my will not be exercised by forcing such upon the brethren?
JT Certainly. It often is — very often.
Ques What is the force of “worthy of double honour”? 1 Timothy 5:17.
JT An elder that rules well, it says. He is exemplified in that he has ruled well.
JCS What you said before is helpful, that the ruling is on moral ground. Power is on moral ground.
JT Yes. Peter says, the “elders among you”. He addresses them as a fellow elder. You see how he takes mutual ground with the elders. “I exhort that they feed the flock, and be examples”. 1 Peter 5:1 - 3.