Associate Pastor:  You don’t really expect your pastors to work for nothing, do you?  Come on, don’t you know the Bible teaches that “God has ordained that those who preach the gospel should live of the gospel?”

House Church Proponent:  Yes, I’m aware of what it says—and maybe it’s worth taking another, more careful look at it.  I believe the main passage on that topic is in First Corinthians, chapter nine.  (He, the Associate Pastor, and the Worship Pastor all open their Bibles to that chapter.)  Go ahead and read that; I suppose you’ll want to start at verse seven. 

AP:  Well, no, let’s save some time and start at verse thirteen, and I’ll paraphrase a little of this language for you: “Do you not know that they which minister holy things live of the things of the temple?  And those who wait on the altar are partakers of the altar?  Even so the Lord has ordained that those who preach the gospel should live of the gospel.”

HCP (after a pause):  Why did you stop?  Keep going—there’s more.  You have to keep it in its full context without stopping.  Maybe you should have started at verse seven … 

AP (grumbling):  That should be all you really need—but OK, verse fifteen: “But I have used none of these things, and neither have I written these things so that it may be done for me; for it would be better for me to die than that any man should make my boasting of no account.  For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast about, for a burden rests upon me.  In fact, woe unto me if I do not preach the gospel!”

HCP:  So do you think this part contradicts the first part you read?  (Pauses.)  Of course not, because the point Paul is making here is that even though he may have a right to make his living off preaching, he has chosen not to.  He’s showing us the more noble approach; even before that, he said in verse twelve that “we have not used this power,” even after making the point about the ones who wait on the altar partaking of it. 

Worship Pastor:  Well, maybe he was only letting the Corinthians off the hook.  It might have been his usual practice at other places to accept payment for his services.

HCP:  Oh, really?  What kind of paychecks would he get back in those days?  And what bank would it be drawn from, huh?  And where would he get it cashed—First Corinthian Savings and Trust? 

AP (annoyed):  All right, all right.  But the fact that he turned it down in this instance—does that mean somehow that we aren’t supposed to take up that privilege?

HCP:  Paul always took the high road—the better way.  He also makes reference to the fact that the Old Testament law provided for the upkeep of those who ministered at the altar.  If that idea is to be transferred to New Testament practice, shouldn’t we at least investigate the form it took?

AP:  Well, I don’t really see what difference that would make. 

WP (interrupting):  And besides, have you forgotten all the other passages, such as, for example, “Don’t muzzle the ox that treads out the corn?”

HCP (sarcastically):  So now you want to give paychecks to animals? 

WP:  Come on, you know what I mean.

HCP (nodding):  Yes, I do.  You believe in rewarding those who labor for the Lord. 

WP:  Of course, you can see that can’t you?

HCP:  So then you would payroll all your children’s workers, every cell group leader, all your prayer warriors, your … 

Elder-at-Large (chiming in):  Now, wait a minute—we can’t afford anything like that.

AP:  And besides, we’re the professionals here! 

HCP:  So you don’t muzzle the professional oxen, but only the amateurs.

AP (even more annoyed):  Look, you’re getting silly now. 

HCP:  Not at all.  I’d like to give the same reward to everyone in the church; after all, in a healthy church, everybody is doing something in terms of ministry.  And that’s why it took a different form in the New Testament—all members are sharing from one common pot.

WP (looking confused):  Common pot?  What common pot? 

HCP:  Well, look at the sixth chapter of Acts, where the first deacons were established.  Do you know what they were responsible for?

WP (turning to the passage):  Yeah, in verse one it says “the daily ministration.”  But we don’t really know what that means. 

HCP:  Wow—you guys really don’t like reading the full context around a verse, do you?

Senior Pastor:  You know, it’s not really important, as long as we get the point about how we should delegate certain tasks to capable laymen. 

HCP:  No, really, it is important.  It’ll bring some insight into other aspects of their life together.  Look at what they say in the next verse—here, it says they shouldn’t “leave the Word of God and serve tables.”  So serving tables would surely identify the term “ministration” as some sort of a common meal; and notice that it says “daily,” not just a once-a-month potluck or something.

WP:  Yeah, it does say daily.  I guess they did spend a lot of time together.  So do you think they ate together every day? 

HCP:  Having meals together wasn’t all they did for each other.  See, there are other passages to look at …

AP (interrupting):  No, no, I can’t see all of the church eating meals together every day. 

HCP:  Maybe not, but there would be a very regular common meal together; they would all share in it, and no one would be restricted because we don’t “muzzle the ox.”

SP:  So you would be treating the laymen and the clergy the same. 

HCP:  Yes, true; because there is no such distinction in the New Testament.  By calling some laymen and some clergymen, you relegate some believers to a second-class level in the Body of Christ.

Youth Pastor:  Yeah, we get your point; but most of us are trained in seminaries and Bible colleges and stuff—that ought to count for something. 

HCP:  Well, it does get you your denomination’s seal of approval.  And didn’t I crack a joke earlier about seminary training getting you the treatment like you have some kind of hidden knowledge like the Gnostics claimed to have?

AP (rolling his eyes):  Oh, not again! 

HCP:  Sorry, but that is how you guys are starting to come across.

YP (interrupting):  OK, OK, say you do get rid of the clergy-laity thing and turn over all your leadership to elders and apostles and whatever.  How can you make sure you’ve got people who know what they’re doing? 

HCP:  By the way, I find it interesting how you keep referring to this as ”my church,” as though it were my own original idea.  Well, I know you’re not going to like this answer, but you just have to trust God—and the elders and leaders who do the mentoring.

AP (quietly, with his head in his hands):  Oh, sure. 

EL:  OK, so what about your parachurch ministries that you mentioned before—do they get full-time leaders, or is that all volunteer, too?  And would the people in the churches make sure to provide income for them, like financial partners?

HCP:  Remember, anything like that is strictly up to the church, if they do it at all.  That’s really the most flexible part of this whole deal. 

WP (smugly):  So if you can be flexible about that, why not be flexible about giving some paychecks to your workers who do more than their fair share?

HCP:  Well, it seems to me that we left that debate right after I demonstrated to you that the whole idea of the “right” to receive pay for ministry turns out to be proof-texted from verses taken out of their greater context … 

SP (after a chorus of loud sighs and groans from the staff):  OK, we’ve all got our own opinions here.

YP:  Yeah, and his (nodding toward HCP) certainly isn’t going to make him very popular. 

HCP:  Well, think about it—where does the money for salaries come from?

EL:  Well, it comes from the offerings, of course. 

HCP:  And in the New Testament church, where did their offerings go—since they didn’t have the overhead expenses of buildings and such?

EL:  Uh, different places, I guess. 

WP:  Wasn’t it sent to the people in a famine or something?

HCP:  Right.  In every case but one that we have any indication of, all the money that got collected went to relieve the poor or those in dire need. 

WP:  All but one?

HCP:  Yes—in Philippians chapter four, Paul thanks them for an offering after they sent him relief in a time of what he referred to as his “affliction.”  And it doesn’t appear that he demanded it or was even expecting it, but it was still greatly appreciated. 

WP:  So are you saying that all the church’s offering money is meant to go to the poor?

HCP (relieved):  Yes, and that’s exactly what the first century church did. 

AP:  But, hold it then—if we’re taking our pay from money that you’re saying belongs to poverty relief, then that means you’re accusing us of robbing the poor!

HCP (waving his hands as if to repel the thought):  You said that, I didn’t. 

WP:  But you must know that some are called to full-time ministry …

HCP (interrupting):  Yes, I do; in fact, I would argue that every genuine believer is a full-time minister in the biblical sense.  But tell me this—would you minister at all if money weren’t involved?  Is that what it takes for God to get any ministry activity out of you? 

WP:  Hey, you’re making it sound a little bit dirty or something—like I was being bribed.

HCP (pointing this time):  Again, you said it, not me! 

SP:  But what I don’t understand is why you think all this is so important.