Someone New Is In Charge
I've never wanted to pastor a church I didn't originally plant. My reason is that I've seen how difficult it can be to take on a church that someone else has led according to their vision. I'm not saying it's impossible because men have managed it and done it well. I'm just saying it's not something I would desire.
The evidence of this is in Scripture. Israel had been led for generations by Moses; they held onto his vision long after he was gone.
Then Jesus arrived. Jesus came, revealing what the Father is truly like and doing things in a way that seemed different to the people in their imaginations. Some embraced Him while others struggled to do so.
It was as if some believed they would offend Moses if they embraced Jesus. This phenomenon still seems true today. That's why there is still so much mixed teaching in the church. Trying to please two leaders with different visions creates confusion and misleads those seeking to be committed.
Hebrews 1:1 God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, 2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; 3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.
Jesus is now the one in charge and calling the shots. Moses is no longer present, and the prophets all spoke of this moment, and they are pleased to see Jesus having His say in real time.
It is Jesus's word that sustains everything, not the word of Moses or the prophets of old. A new vision has been established, called the New Covenant. Moses delivered the covenant that God gave him for Israel alone, but Jesus has established His covenant to replace it, and it now includes the entire human race. It is better and broader in scope, made by the Son of God who is far greater than Moses.
Luke 9:35 And a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is My beloved Son. Hear Him!”
Insisting that the things Moses spoke and instituted still be held dear causes confusion and creates divided loyalty. There can only be one person in charge: Jesus.
Moses was never described as Jesus is in this letter to the Hebrews. Jesus is not like a new manager at all. He is the owner's Son, the heir of all things. He is far more than just a new manager. He owns everything and rules over all. He is the Lord of all.
The glory of Moses was already fading when he was coming down the mountain to give the law to Israel. The glory of the Son is constantly increasing and will never fade. The two do not mix and are not meant to mix by God. Someone new is in charge now—His name is Jesus, hear Him. Spend time learning the vision of His New Covenant and follow Him according to its terms, leaving the old things behind, because in Him everything has become new.
