FAWNING OF SPIRITUAL FATHERS

"They love to have the places of honor at festivals, the best seats in the synagogues, to be greeted in the marketplaces, and to be called ‘Rabbi’ by people." (Matthew 23:6-7 ISV)

Worthy of note is the fawning of spiritual fathers by spiritual sons and daughters especially in the Charismatic circles. Charismatism is becoming notorious for extremities of faith, doctrine and practice. Here, I speak of Charismatism as a movement in Christianity. 

What is fawning?

Fawning is the act of seeking favour by way of flattery. Spiritual fathers especially of the Charismatic fold are often difficult to please. They are like monarchs. They take decisions that are solely led by the Spirit in them. This is to mean that your personal needs and concerns do not matter to them when they are taking decisions. 

If the Spirit in them brings your personal needs and concerns to their attention, that is the only time they get moved by your needs and concerns. Do you now see the reason why sons and daughters especially of the Charismatic fold often fawn their spiritual fathers? They do so in order to attract their attention and favour to get their personal needs and concerns met. 

Forms of fawning

To attract the attention and favour of their spiritual father, sons and daughters seize every opportunity of ministering given to them by their spiritual father to hail praises and appellations on him as a way of honouring him and voicing how deeply they esteem him in their hearts. 

Additionally, sons and daughters who seek the attention and favour of their spiritual father often prepare precious sum of money (fat seed) to honour their spiritual father on special occasions such as his birthday, wedding anniversary and ordination anniversary among others. This, they would not do on ordinary days. 

Moreover, sons and daughters who desire the attention and favour of their spiritual father undertake to do menial jobs in the home or office of their spiritual father at their own expenses. This, they would usually not do in their own homes or offices. 

Furthermore, sons and daughters carefully draft testimony, or exaggerate a testimony in order to win the attention and favour of their spiritual father. 

These and many other inauthentic events are going on in the body of Christ, in the Charismatic fold particularly. Sons and daughters are not entirely to be blamed. This is because, while a son or daughter may want to seek audience with their spiritual father on a matter of personal need and concern, they are afraid to do so for fear of being chastised, stigmatised or ostracised for choosing to do as they please, or for going their own way as against the way of the Spirit supposedly revealed to the spiritual father. They resort to fawning as the only way to attract the attention and favour of their spiritual father to get their personal needs and concerns addressed. 

Is it wrong to hail praises on a father?

The Bible teaches us to honour our parents in the Lord, and this includes our spiritual parents (Eph 6:1-2). Spiritual parent is a mature Christian (a man or woman of God) who takes oversight of your spiritual needs as well as responsibility for your personal development. Such a person may or may not have won you to Christ, however, he or she considers you to be someone whom the Lord has led to them for their parental care and guidance. Usually, they are one of a kind, and you will have none other than them. 

Notwithstanding, the kind of honour that the Bible encourages us to give to our spiritual parents is not as we often see or hear about especially in the Charismatic fold.

Honour is from the Greek word "timē [pronounced tee-may']" which means a valuing in terms of price fixed. It is the root from which we derive our English word honorarium. Timē also means the honour we bestow on a person by reason of their rank or office. 

The word of God enjoins us to honour our spiritual leaders for the spiritual and developmental responsibilities that they have toward us. This honour may be in the form of honorarium or expressions of esteem for them. However, we must be careful the dimension of praises and appellations we give to our spiritual parents or receive from our spiritual sons and daughters.

Herod, being the king of the Jews and knowing very well that Jehovah alone is God, was quiet when his subjects hailed praises on him that his voice was the voice of God. This angered the angel of God and he smote him dead, and was eaten by worms. The instance of Herod's death, and the nature of his death, tell us that God is totally displeased when a human receives praises and appellations that are due him as the only true God. 

In the Old Testament, women sang songs of praise and appellation for David after killing Goliath. God did not show his teeth to David for accepting the praises and appellations of the women. This implies that some dimension of praises and appellations for a minister of God are permissible, especially when they are authentic and pour out from a sincere heart, and have no ulterior motive for fawning a spiritual leader in order to attract his or her attention and favour. 

However, can you really tell whether or not the praises and appellations flowing from your spiritual son or daughter are authentic and sincere? Definitely, you cannot. So then, discourage everyone from hailing extreme praises and appellations on you especially during public worship services. 

#Truth Haven