In the church it is not now as it was in the old covenant in Israel—then there were a few priests and the rest were the people. Now the church of God and Christ consists exclusively of priests. 1 Pet. 2:9. There are no “people.” The “people” are outside the church. Neither is there anyone in the church who is called a preacher (in contrast to the people). From the Scriptures we see that each member is to serve the other members. “How is it then, brethren? Whenever you come together, each of you has a psalm, has a teaching, has a tongue, has a revelation, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.” 1 Cor. 14:26. And in verse 31: “For you can all prophesy one by one, that all may learn and all may be exhorted.” “As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” 1 Pet. 4:10. “Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing.” 1 Thess. 5:11. “Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, leading to edification . . . . Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God.” Rom. 15:2, 7. “Bear one another’s burdens . . . .” Gal. 6:2. “For we are members of one another.” We are growing as a body “according to the effective working by which every part does its share.” Eph. 4:25; 4:16. You cannot go wrong with these words. God’s work and intention are plainly made known. However, there is also something else that is just as apparent; namely, that the work that goes on in churches (in the State Church and in others), and in religious assemblies in general is not like the work that is described above, but it is more like a contradiction of it. Generally speaking, these assemblies have a preacher (or a priest or pastor or leader) who almost considers it a pastime to make speeches, and if it is “really free,” a few others are permitted to use a few minutes at the end. The mistake they make is that they absolutely do not believe in edification, in the growth of the body in which we are each other’s members. The reason is that people lack a desire for godly truth and goodness. Both the preacher and the listener are agreed that they love themselves, thinking that their current state is good. The conscious church life where people exhort and edify one another and bear one another’s burdens, where one pays heed to one another and is responsible for one another—this is almost non-existent! Most religious leaders deny this work. They hinder it. They work against Christ without knowing what they are doing. At the same time as they labor and strive to get people to come to Christ, they ruin those who have come to Him by robbing them of faith in the body’s edification, teaching them instead to love their life, to cultivate music, feelings, and dreams. They are even taught to love the leader’s own emotional, fanciful (2 Tim. 4:4), and human speeches, even as he plants a fear of the truth into them—the very truth that is mighty to liberate them from their folly. What the listeners are capable of, what dwells in their hearts, what they actually want—all that does not interest the leaders. All they want is for all of them to smile and sing, give in the collection, and praise the leader’s message. Then they think that everything is in perfect order. Seen in God’s light, this is pitiful. It is appalling! These precious souls who are called to make steady progress in God’s wisdom and power, who are called to be continually transformed into the image of Christ, to be made perfect in both mind and deed, to be made perfect for the work of ministry unto all good works—these live aimlessly day after day, singing and playing, and will eventually leave this world as mere men, wretched and unfit, who do not know how to discern the simplest things. Paul says, “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some shepherds and teachers, for the equipping of the saints [all of them!] for the work of ministry . . . .” Eph. 4:11-12. We can imagine a flock of converted people in a given locality. As is only reasonable, they come together. Who shall now begin, and who shall conclude the meeting? Who shall lead and guide? Who shall teach? Who shall stand before the people and convince them that Jesus Christ is the Savior of the world? Who shall attend to the work of a shepherd? Let us now imagine that they, in their child-like innocence, choose their servants. Do you think that they will find the right ones? Do you think that with every single choice they make they will choose the one whom God knew and has chosen before the foundation of the world was laid? Do you think so? I don’t think so. In their carnality they would in all likelihood choose the most eloquent and sentimental, the most distinguished in this world, those who are strongest in themselves. However, this hardly applies to the most suitable, to the most upright and God-fearing, to the meekest and wisest, to the most faithful, and to the most truth- and goodness-loving! How should they conduct themselves? Every one of them could seek God with all of their heart! They could pray together and testify to each other and to the people outside as they received grace and were constrained to do it and without troubling themselves about who should be leaders. As time passes and God’s work in them advances, it would become evident who would be the most suitable leader, teacher, evangelist, etc. The various ones in the assembly would then be able to see and understand God’s gift in the various ones. This is the only way in which the church can be properly established. You could call it an “election,” if only you are clear about what this election is about: namely, to acknowledge those whom God has elected. This is what Titus, according to Paul’s instructions, was to set in order in Crete. Tit. 1:5, ff. He was to appoint (have acknowledged) elders and overseers in the various towns. His work was to consist of paying attention to the gifts of the Spirit that God has given the various brothers, or in other words, pay attention to whom God had already elected or appointed, and disclose this to the church, so that they could all understand it and have the proper relationship of confidence and occupy their rightful place in relation to each other (if this had not already come into order without any such apostolic labor). But what if (for example) there was no overseer to be seen in one of the churches in spite of the most careful observation? What should be done then? Then one should, for the time being, not appoint anyone, for we shall not appoint and recognize what God has not chosen Therefore Paul also writes to Titus that “if a man is blameless” etc. (Tit. 1:6), then he could appoint him as an overseer, not otherwise! An overseer, a bishop, the angel of the church, is a man who by God’s grace is able to keep order in his own house as well as in his local church; he is someone who has a special gift in this area. He occupies the same place in the visible church—a segment—that Christ occupies in the invisible church—the whole: He is the Head of the church. In a church that is functioning properly, you will see the various members submit to this overseer in the same way that he submits to this invisible Lord—just as the children submit to their mother in a virtuous house and she, in her turn, submits to her husband. The members do not wish to undertake anything except in harmony with the head. The one who is fortunate to behold such a vision has seen a greater beauty than any results of this world’s beauty competitions and the art of sculpting can display.Elias Aslaksen