Template:Clergy of Christ
Clergy of Christ
If a clergy is "the body of all people ordained for religious duties" then Christ's clergy would be the body of ministers ordained by Jesus. More people than the Apostles were called out by Jesus to form this body but they are the ones who remained with him and were appointed a kingdom.[1]
Jesus also appointed 70[2] who were his Sanhedrin.
Jews commonly gathered in groups of Tens forming congregations or synagogues connected by ministers and the early Christians were Jews. The Essene community also organized itself in the same way with ministers forming religious orders because they provided welfare for their people through charity.
Couple these customs with the fact that Christ had commanded that his disciples to make the people organize themselves in the same groups of tens and you can see the pattern of the early Church. The ten heads of families were connected in a social network of charity by the ministers they chose in each group. Each group of ten ministers formed a congregation of ministers so the highest among them were the servants of all.[3]
That would make the first Apostles and their successors part of an ordained body of servant ministers or clergy. Even the 120 in the upper room represented twelve groups of ten who were in one accord.[4] These were the early clergy of Christ. As thousands repented of the old system that made the word of God to none effect and were baptized. As those numbers grew among the people the number of clergy also grew among those who were fulfilling the "duties of religion". So we need to know what was religion and what Pure Religion would be and the instructions to the apostles given by Jesus to know what those duties were.
Jesus clearly called out His little flock to serve the people without exercising authority one over the other. They were to be separate from the world with no personal estate owning all things common like the Levites before them. The oversaw a daily ministration that served the needs of their society rightly dividing bread and supplies from house to house and across borders of nations during economic dearths and famines.
Elders of the early Church were first of the laity and functioned as free souls according to the Perfect law of liberty. They could become a part of the clergy of Christ who like Christ only came to serve, not rule over the people.
Is the modern Church doing what the early Church did?
Without the Church in general which we may call the laity gathering in free assemblies or congregations of Tens and the Church specific which consists of the offices of Deacon, Bishop and Priest, There will be the temptations of Balaam and the Nicolaitan.
- ↑ Luke 22:28 Ye are they which have continued with me in my temptations. 29 And I appoint unto you a kingdom, as my Father hath appointed unto me;
- ↑ Luke 10:1 After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come.
- Luke 10:17 And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name.
- ↑ Lu 22:26 But ye [shall] not [be] so: but he that is greatest among you, let him be as the younger; and he that is chief, as he that doth serve.
- ↑ Acts 1:14 These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.
- Acts 2:1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
- Acts 2:46 And they, continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, did eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart,