1 Timothy 4:12 Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity. 13 Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. 14 Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery.
The word of God is balanced. The presbytery is a body of elders. So at the start Paul says "let no one despise thy youth" and in the end the gift is given by both prophecy and the laying on of hands of the body of elders.
We can illustrate this with Tom Brady. He famously prophesied when he was first drafted that Kraft would view him as the best decision they ever made. He was despised for much of his career which is why he was drafted so late, and why he was paid so little, and why many people hated him. But in the end even his greatest detractors had to admit that you cannot despise him and calling him the greatest quarterback ever was impossible to refute.
So that is how I view Bible teachers, what do the body of elders say? I realize that all the greats are despised at first, so that doesn't bother me. But in the end were the body of elders won over?
The word of God is balanced. The presbytery is a body of elders. So at the start Paul says "let no one despise thy youth" and in the end the gift is given by both prophecy and the laying on of hands of the body of elders.
We can illustrate this with Tom Brady. He famously prophesied when he was first drafted that Kraft would view him as the best decision they ever made. He was despised for much of his career which is why he was drafted so late, and why he was paid so little, and why many people hated him. But in the end even his greatest detractors had to admit that you cannot despise him and calling him the greatest quarterback ever was impossible to refute.
So that is how I view Bible teachers, what do the body of elders say? I realize that all the greats are despised at first, so that doesn't bother me. But in the end were the body of elders won over?
My bad.