We often see within our congregations people who cannot fulfill the basics (punctuality, assistance, participation, etc.) and those same people, when assigned a position of responsibility, then want to oppress the servants in their charge, imposing on the same burdens that not even they can borne.
On one occasion Jesus confronted the Pharisees and the Scribes, for their attitude of showing works in front of others and not wanting to clean their interior. In this confrontation an interpreter of the law felt alluded to and told Jesus that His words also affront them, to which Jesus responded:
And he said, Woe unto you also, ye lawyers! for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers.
Luke 11:46
The interpreters of the law interpreted the law in a way that they themselves could not borne out what they said. Here are some examples of how they interpreted the law:
– It was taught that on the Sabbath day, something could not be carried in the right or left hand, chest or shoulder. But you could carry it with the back of your hand, with your foot, with your elbow, in your ear, your hair, in the hem of your shirt, in your shoe or in your sandal.
– Nor could a knot be made on the Sabbath, but the woman could make a knot in her belt. So, if you had to take a bucket of water from a well, you couldn’t tie a rope to the bucket. The solution was for a woman to tie her belt to the bucket to get it out of the well.
– Also, in the time of Moses the army of Israel had been ordered to make their physiological needs outside the camp to keep that place pure (Deuteronomy 23:12-14). The rabbis took this and combined it with the Sabbath, so that they even forbade going to the bathroom on the Sabbath.
Many church leaders demand assistance, demand punctuality, demand commitment, want everyone to participate in all the programs they do, but once they no longer have the position and become one more of the membership, then they do not appear even in dreams.
Dear brothers, we must be punctual and participate in the various programs that are developed in our congregations for its growth. But the next time we have a leadership responsibility in some task and want to demand something, let’s think first: Would I fulfill that if I were a member instead of a leader?