When Jesus visited Nazareth and read in the synagogue the response of the Jews was a summary of how the Jewish nation would receive the message Jesus brought. Jews lived by the letter of the law and could not hear God speaking to them for-himself. They were bureaucratic and hierarchically inclined- fundamentally worldly in myopic dutifulness though set apart originally as a people from the pagan nations about them.
In the day social-economic and communications required a tight social cohesion to disseminate a message and way of life that was the word of God. People needed to be under the supervision of elders experienced in the word for a variety of practical reasons, yet that dogmatic pedagogical method changed with the arrival and liberation of the Lord. The Lord and the Spirit transcended worldly organizational forms though they continued to serve while the kingdom of God increased and technology evolved over millennia.
Recently the socio-economy of the U.S.A. and Europe has changed. No longer is the venerable hierarchical method of ecclesiastical organization terribly relevant to church and social organization. It has become maladaptive, egoistic and cultist. Can a televangelist be said to be a local church elder meaningfully?
Americans are very mobile people at least laterally. Consider the former Crystal Cathedral where automobiles from all over California would arrive to hear pastor Fuller talk then dissipate into the distance. A homeless guy in the parking lot might have wondered where all the SUVs went or where the houses of the holy were located.
Those were not local elders in a pedestrian community working and supporting each other locally in work. Neither were they all illiterates with rare sheep skin Torah scrolls to carefully hand down information from. Those Californians and the Fulleran Cathedral had Blackberry P.D.A.'s and would now be wired to the Internet if that church still was in business.
In order for contemporary churches to serve not just the pastor and his family on practical living facts of life an objective ecclesiastical structure that works independent of the personal-era formalism of the 1st century B.C. needs to be developed. Three ranks of beginner, intermediate and elder (with two forms of elder equivalent to officers and warrant officers) should exist with objective standards and testing for each that are reasonably easy to progress through.
Consider the lack of transparency and community support services of churches that use the 1st century B.C. hierarchical structure. If banks and colleges had such lack of transparent accounting and equalization of services as churches they would be regarded as entirely corrupt. If is also difficult for the majority to advance in church structure, elders may be incompetent and have little actual knowledge of the Bible. Financial and job support, medical and counseling support structures are generally ad hoc and inefficient-there are no Priesthood of Believers job or services credit banks with a nationwide infrastructure available to all members of the church association. There is a great need for modernization in order that better evangelization may arise and to defend the defeat in detail of Christian Churches by corrupt elites that can infiltrate and take over Church leadership thereafter ordering 'underlings' to comply with the dominating will of 'elders' even if they have been if have been in the church two weeks.
There would be a continuing role for Theologians to construct liturgical materials and edifying writings for the Priesthood of Believers Church locals that might be selected for use by local elders. And their could be a continuing role for hired guns of exceptional evangelistic speakers visiting churches. It should be stressed however that the star Christian and contract Christian singer is working for himself and family without necessarily serving local church members at all beyond spiritual reinforcement. One cannot just say 'live plentifully' and not help to provide help -uncomprehending like Marie Antoinette.
Church leaders today tend to view social and economic reality with their own interests clouding their vision of the need for ecclesiological reform. Objective church support structures that are efficient and honest should replace ad hoc methods that don't work in banking, social security or security in either a worldly or ecclesiastical setting. Nationwide work credit banks and attendance credit for advancing through the ranks of beginner, intermediate and elder should arise. Christians could deposit as much as $5000 dollars to their work credit and emergency funds accounts, and more advantaged Christians could contribute more. Referrals for services-repairing a roof, painting a house, could arise in fair trade work banks that would let Priesthood of Believers group help themselves and other members so that none are left out or compelled to look for help to elders with deep pockets and little Bible knowledge that may run a local hierarchical church.
“Luke:16 ¶ And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up: and, as his custom was, he went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and stood up for to read.
17 And there was delivered unto him the book of the prophet Esaias. And when he had opened the book, he found the place where it was written,
18 The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
19 To preach the acceptable year of the Lord.
20 And he closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.
21 And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.
22 And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. And they said, Is not this Joseph's son?
23 And he said unto them, Ye will surely say unto me this proverb, Physician, heal thyself: whatsoever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in thy country.
24 And he said, Verily I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country.
25 But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land;
26 But unto none of them was Elias sent, save unto Sarepta, a city of Sidon, unto a woman that was a widow.
27 And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian.
28 And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath,
29 And rose up, and thrust him out of the city, and led him unto the brow of the hill whereon their city was built, that they might cast him down headlong.”
