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Religious Titles Forbidden in Christianity
I recently got into a discussion with a messianic Jew who insisted he had the right to usethe title "Rabbi" without any violation of scripture. I pointed him to Matt. 23:8, "
but you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren
" (NKJV) to no avail. He is not alone for you could point a Catholic priest toMatt. 23:9, "
do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who isin heaven,
" (NKJV) and it would have no effect upon him either.Not only are men accepting religious titles, contrary to Jesus' teaching, but the generalpublic is just as guilty in granting these titles. I have never seen a single instance in my lifetime of a Catholic priest being interviewed on TV without the interviewer calling himFather. Indeed, I suspect any interviewer who tried to do so would lose his job. There islittle doubt his superiors would call him on the carpet and accuse him of beingdisrespectful. There is no problem being disrespectful to Jesus and what Jesus said but just do not offend the Catholic priest or the Catholic Church. What did Jesus teach on this subject? The answer is found in Matt. 23:1-12:"(1)
Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to His disciples, (2) saying: 'The scribesand the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. (3) Therefore whatever they tell you to observe,that observe and do, but do not do according to their works; for they say, and do not do. (4) For they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men's shoulders;but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. (5) But all their works they do to be seen by men. They make their phylacteries broad and enlarge theborders of their garments. (6) They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in thesynagogues, (7) greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.' (8) But you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you areall brethren. (9) Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, Hewho is in heaven. (10) And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, theChrist. (11) But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. (12) And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted 
.' " (NKJV)In his condemnation of the scribes and Pharisees Jesus says (verse 5) "
all their worksthey do to be seen by men
." The desire to be seen as a man superior to his fellowman, aman who ought to be bowed down to figuratively, if not literally, was the desire of theheart and the sin of the pride that resided within them. Jesus gives several examples of things they were doing and things they enjoyed that manifested this attitude. One of these things was to be called Rabbi, Rabbi. It was not a threat of something that mighthappen in the future but was a present reality. These men were actually being calledRabbi and loved it. It was wrong then to do this but my messianic Jew says it is fine todo it today. Albert Barnes, in his commentary on Matthew, says of the word Rabbi used here that,"It was a title given to eminent teachers of the law among the Jews; a title of honor anddignity, denoting authority and ability to teach." No doubt Barnes was correct in alsosaying that each time the word was used "it implied their superiority to the persons who
 
used it." (comments on Matt. 23:7) They thus reveled in having the title for their desire was to be seen (recognized) by men (verse 5).Jesus clearly gave the command in verse 8 of Matthew 23 to not accept the title of Rabbifor he says, "
 But you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren
." (NKJV) He gives two reasons. (1) Christ only is our teacher. (2) You are all brethren. The Rabbi I was in discussion with says that what Jesus wanted usto understand from this passage was only that Christ is our ultimate teacher, that weneed to keep that in mind, and that we are not specifically forbidden from using the word Rabbi as a title. He never considers the second reason Jesus gave for forbiddingthe use of the title—"you are all brethren." We all stand on equal footing before God.No one is special, no one gets a pass, and no one gets to exalt himself above the rest of the brethren.The reader might find it interesting to note that you will not find the word Rabbi in theOld Testament. The Bible commentator Adam Clarke says of the word Rabbi, "None of the prophets had ever received this title, nor any of the Jewish doctors before the time of Hillel and Shammai, which was about the time of our Lord." (commenting on Matt.23:8) Man had come up with a title to give to himself that pleased his vanity.Jesus likewise forbids our calling anyone Father as a religious title in Matt. 23:9 already quoted. The word father is used in the New Testament as well as in the Old Testamentmany times in many different ways. Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words lists 9 different applications of the noun as used in the New Testament alone.This means, obviously, that the word father can be used by men when usedappropriately and not in the way Jesus condemned. What did Jesus condemn?Jesus condemned me, you, and the neighbor next door from calling any man Father as atitle in the spiritual realm. Reread Matt. 23:1-12 as many times as it takes to get the gistof what Jesus is getting at. There is a problem among men (the scribes and Pharisees inparticular) in that they are seeking the praise, honor, and glory of men. They are proudand puffed up. They want to be recognized and acknowledged as superior. They desiretitles. They do not want to be the servant of Matt. 23:11. They want to be exalted amongmen (Matt. 23:12). The warning to you and me is don't do it, don't allow it, don't callthem what they want to be called, and don't reward their pride and vanity.I am in full agreement with what Albert Barnes says in his commentary on the wordfather in Matt. 23:9 where he says, "But the word 'father' also denotes 'authority,eminence, superiority, a right to command, and a claim to particular respect.' In thissense it is used here. In this sense it belongs eminently to God, and it is not right to giveit to people. Christian brethren are equal." Yes, it is true Paul said to the Corinthians, "
 For though you might have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet you do not have many fathers; for in Christ Jesus I havebegotten you through the gospel 
." (1 Cor. 4:15 NKJV) Paul also referred to Timothy ashis "
true son in the faith
." (1 Tim. 1:2 NKJV) He referred to Titus (Titus 1:4) and toOnesimus (Philemon 1:10) in a similar way.
 
In 2 Cor. 12:14 Paul implies that the church at Corinth is his children (making him theirfather) and likewise in Gal. 4:19 with reference to the churches of Galatia. John, theapostle, does the same sort of thing when he says, "
 My little children, these things I write to you
." (1 John 2:1 NKJV) There are other passages with similar import.It is said that Paul and John, and Peter also (1 Peter 5:13), are referring to themselves asspiritual fathers so we can use the word father as a title in reference to priests who arespiritual fathers over their flock. There is a lot wrong with that line of thinking. NeitherPaul nor John nor Peter was using the word as a title. They were rather simply describing the fact that by teaching and preaching the gospel children of God had been begotten. That they felt some duty or obligation toward those whom they had taught thegospel there is no doubt. Those who had obeyed the gospel under their preaching feltlike children to them. They had a love for them and felt a kinship to them much like afather toward his children but that is as far as it went. They did not adopt the titleFather and attach it to their name. All three of these apostles would have recoiled in horror at the thought of being giventhe title Father. Paul says, "
There is one God and Father of all 
." (Eph. 4:6 NKJV) Paul was not seeking the title of Father, had no desire to be called Father Paul, and that is justthe opposite of the desire of the Catholic Church for their priests. I wonder what wouldhappen in a Catholic congregation if all the membership would suddenly stop callingtheir priest Father and refused to do so. Would the fur start to fly?[Paul compared himself and his companions not only to a father but also to a mother.In 1 Thess.2:7-8 Paul says to the church of the Thessalonians, "We were gentle among you, just as a nursing mother cherishes her own children. So affectionately longing for you, we were well pleased to impart to you not only the gospel of God, but also our ownlives, because you had become dear to us." (NKJV) Dear to us like a mother's childrenare to her.]None of the apostles even took the word apostle as a title. They claimed to be apostlesfor such they were but not one time in scripture (I just searched my online concordance) will you find the word apostle before their name. An apostle was what they were just asa man might be an elder (a bishop) or an evangelist in the church. These words werenever meant to be titles or given as titles but were rather descriptive of the work or roleone had.But there is a lot more wrong with the Catholic position than just this. Their idea is thatonly certain men are priests (one per local church) and they have a spiritual fatherhoodover "their flock." Peter and John both teach that all Christians are priests, not just aselect few. (Read 1 Peter 2:9 and Rev. 1:5-6.) There is also nothing in the New Testament giving authority to one man only to rule a congregation or flock if you want todesignate it that way. This desire for position over others is what led to one man rule. If  you will read your New Testament you will find that every congregation was to beoverseen by a plurality of elders (bishops), not just by one.
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