One of the things that has helped me get my mind around the serious and disappointing compromises which have come out recently, is coming to the conclusion that there is a difference between the church and the organization of the church, between the people and the framework of the church. Let me explain what I mean.
I’ll begin with some ominous words from Ellen White which we are hearing more these days.
“The church may appear as about to fall but it does not fall. It remains, while the sinners in Zion will be sifted out—the chaff separated from the precious wheat. This is a terrible ordeal, but nevertheless it must take place” (2 Selected Messages 380).
I think we’ve all wondered how this will come down. What will it look like? That, I believe, is what Dr. Vine was trying to get us to think about and maybe even have an adult conversation about. Keep in mind, it’s not Dr. Vine who is causing division in the church. The division is caused by the people who refuse to have a discussion about these things. They polarize the church by saying, “No discussion just compliance.” PUC all over again.
Here's how I’ve come to look at things in order to help me get through these disappointments over some of the decisions that some of our leaders have made.
First of all, I see the church, in its true sense, as comprised of people, the members. From the person who is the GC President all the way down to the individual member in the local church. That’s the church, the people. Some of them are the precious wheat, faithful to the Bible and the testimonies. Mingled in among them however are the sinners in Zion, the chaff. These are not faithful even though they are members of the church.
Some would call the broad body of the Adventist church the “remnant.” That’s okay, I don’t have a problem with that. After all we are Laodicea, the last of the seven churches. But I cannot help but recognize, from the statement quoted above, this remnant body is made up of two classes, the chaff which is the sinners in Zion and the precious wheat, which is obviously the people of faith. God is not surprised by this mix so neither should we be. This means the people who are associated with the church belong to one or the other of these two groups from the highest levels of the church organization down to the lowest levels. Who they are specifically we can’t really say, nor do we really want to say, but you will know them by their fruits.
So what we discover, looking over our history is that it has been a battle and a march for us to maintain faithfulness to the Bible and the testimonies among all these members. Maybe most importantly, it’s been difficult to make sure that those in leadership positions, are made up of the precious wheat. This was difficult even when we had a living prophet among us, reminding and encouraging our leaders. It has become even more difficult after her death. It takes diligence on the part of the precious wheat.
So while the broad church might be called the “remnant,” I have long believed, based partly on the passage quoted above, there is a “remnant” within that broader “remnant.” This smaller remnant is obviously made up of what she calls the precious wheat, faithful to the Bible and the testimonies and the mission and message of the Bible and Spirit of Prophecy.
I’m coming to look at things this way. I see the General Conference President first of all is an office, a job title. It’s an office which never changes. The title for that office is often attached to a person but, first of all it’s an office. Now the person, a member of the church, who sits in that office changes periodically. Sometimes you have a person in that office who is precious wheat, faithful to the Bible, the testimonies, and the mission. Sometimes you have a sinner in Zion, chaff, a real problem child in that office. And so it goes for every officer that is voted into a position all the way down to the local church level. It’s up to us as voting delegates to decide who gets into these offices. Advice from an “old pastor”: wake up and with spiritual discernment, get involved in your nominating committees and your constituency meetings in the selection of your leaders. We need to stay engaged. That’s the only hope.
I hope I’m clear in what I’m trying to say. Besides the people, that is the members of the church, we have a separate structure or a framework which is there to support the church and its mission. I think the mistake we make is in conflating the church with the structure, or the organization. I’m learning to see a distinction between the church and the structure or the organization upon which the church sits and functions.
The Framework
Let me explain. I have come to picture the structure or organization of the church like a large metal framework. Picture it, held together by bolts and welds, braces and rivets. This framework reaches up high. Its structure and organization is really quite amazing. Through the ministry of Ellen White the Lord helped us put this framework together. The framework, however, is not the same as the church. The framework, or the organization, is not the church. The people are the church. The framework is just a means to an end that the people can use, if they will, to accomplish their mission. The framework or the organization is not alive, it can’t speak. It has no authority. It’s inanimate. It has no life of its own. The framework is just a structure upon which the church or the people sit in their respective offices. They sit in different office spaces, as it were. These spaces are located on the framework. They are like the offices of the General Conference, Divisions, Unions and Conferences all the way down to the local church offices. Sitting in those office spaces, all over the framework, are the people who are put in those offices by the rest of the people. Everyone is in their respective place from top to bottom, some of whom are the precious wheat and sadly some of whom are the problem children, the chaff, the sinners in Zion.
This framework remains over the years but the people in the offices change. The authority of the people in those offices is not by virtue of the position itself or the office in which they sit. The office has no authority to bestow. The only authority comes from the Word of God and His testimonies. If the people in those offices have a connection with the Word of God and lead out accordingly then they will earn respect and even have authority in the eyes of the precious wheat who will gather to their leadership. Authority has to be earned. If they don’t have that connection with the Word they have no authority, especially in the eyes of the precious wheat regardless of the position they hold.
This is why Ellen White changed her view at one point regarding the authority of the General Conference. She said that the idea that “these men should stand in a sacred place, to be as the voice of God to the people, as we once believed the General Conference to be—that is past” (The General Conference Bulletin, April 3, 1901, p. 25). Why was it past? Because the people sitting in those office spaces were not connected with the Word of God. What this tells us is the authority of the people sitting in these positions will depend upon their faithfulness to the Word of God. Thus they will have earned the right to be leaders in the eyes of the precious wheat. The precious wheat are the only group that really matters. It really doesn’t matter what the chaff or the sinners in Zion think. The only question that really matters regarding our leaders is, are they precious wheat or chaff?
The Chaff
“If they don’t have that connection with the Word they have no authority, especially in the eyes of the precious wheat regardless of the position they hold.”
Neither does the precious wheat have any obligation to take orders from the chaff. Even if the chaff sits in some high office. Jesus Himself said of the faithful shepherd of the sheep, “the sheep follow him for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger” (John 10:4). If the people in any position on the framework are chaff or sinners in Zion then the precious wheat won’t follow them. Other people in the church who are chaff might follow them but the precious wheat won’t listen or follow. This creates tension in the church. Keep in mind the precious wheat are always willing to discuss differences. The chaff however seems rarely willing to discuss anything that appears to go against their opinions.
Over the years because of those on the framework who are chaff, respect for the framework deteriorates and it begins to rust and loses strength. We need to remember the framework was put in place by people in the first place. It is people who keep the framework strong and useful or make it weak and useless. Because of the chaff working upon the framework the bolts start to come loose, and the welds begin to crack. It loses it’s effectiveness towards its purpose. Before long it loses balance and begins to wobble and creak. Its usefulness wanes. Because of the sinners in Zion which are making poor decisions from their offices on the framework, many of the people who are the precious wheat in the church begin to lose confidence in the effectiveness of the framework.
Precious Wheat
On the other hand, the framework can actually gain strength from the precious wheat which may be in those positions. The framework can only be effective if precious wheat are in those offices. And we all know people in those high positions who are precious wheat. The precious wheat, even those who might be higher up on the framework are worried. They try to speak out about the decisions being made by some to loosen the bolts. They wonder why the welds aren’t strengthened, but nothing is done. They wonder why bridges are being built between the framework and worldly frameworks and their social issues. These bridges are actually a drag on the framework. But the precious wheat hangs on, speaking out. They attend GC sessions and constituency meetings attempting to strengthen the framework and steer the ship back on course. It seems to them that sometimes those leading out are more interested in adjusting the framework to fit with the purposes of the world. But the precious wheat up and down the framework continue, hoping against hope. In fact they are prisoners of hope. They cling to the Bible and the testimonies. Sometimes local churches and even conferences come together and vote to write letters to the leaders warning them of the danger. This was done recently by many churches.
At one point it becomes quite apparent that the framework may be about to collapse, pulled down by its earthly attachments. The precious wheat feels like the church is about to fall but they know somehow it won’t. The framework creaks, it groans, it sways. It becomes so big and centralized and distanced from the average member that it becomes unbalanced and is almost crushed under its own weight.
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Stay tuned for the Conclusion!
Owen Bandy
