Dear Ray,
There is a sentence that can close a conversation almost immediately.
“The Spirit led me.”
Once it has been spoken, anyone who questions the decision can appear to be questioning God. A personal conviction has been placed beyond the reach of the other members.
That should trouble us.
If Christ is the Head of the body, no member can make his own inward impression the unquestionable government of everyone else.
Paul tells the Corinthians that prophetic speech is to be weighed by others (1 Corinthians 14:29). He also says that the spirits of prophets are subject to prophets. A spiritual claim does not remove the speaker’s responsibility or silence the gathering’s discernment.
The person who speaks remains a member.
He has not become the Head because he believes he has heard Him.
Genuine dependence makes room for examination. It can say, “This is what I believe the Lord is bringing before me. Help me see whether I am receiving it clearly.”
There is vulnerability in that sentence.
The speaker has not protected himself with divine authority. He has placed what he carries among the members.
We need that freedom because our desires can speak in familiar spiritual language. Fear can call itself caution. Ambition can call itself burden. Impatience can call itself urgency from the Lord.
An inward feeling of peace does not, by itself, settle the matter. We can feel relieved because a decision gives us what we wanted.
The question must reach further.
Does the proposed action agree with the witness of Scripture? Does it express the character of Christ? What happens when others raise a concern? Does the person become defensive, threatening, or contemptuous?
A claim about the Spirit cannot excuse conduct contrary to the life of the Spirit.
Nor should correction become another means of control. The confident member must not acquire authority merely by becoming the person who evaluates everyone else’s leading.
Discernment belongs within our shared dependence upon Christ. Zoe is the life of the whole body, not the private possession of its most certain member.
Sometimes the faithful response will be to wait. A decision does not become more spiritual because someone demands that it be made immediately. If we cannot receive one another’s concern, proceeding may only establish whose will is strongest.
Ray, I would trust a brother more readily if he could acknowledge that he might have misunderstood.
I would trust his dependence more if correction did not threaten his identity.
The Lord does not need our certainty to protect His voice.
He can bring light through the member we least expected. We lose nothing essential by admitting that we have mistaken our own desire for His direction.
What we lose is the claim to be beyond correction.
Let that claim go.
Christ’s Headship is not preserved by making any member unquestionable.
It is honored when every member remains available to His light.
Your brother,
Brent
