It may seem strange to talk of High Priests in today’s western culture, but we are actually inundated with would-be gurus and priests, demanding that we subscribe to their peculiar belief system. We are constantly being asked to give up our wits and our will to the soothsayers who assure us they know what is going on and what is best. So, let me call them “High Priests”.
As you can tell from my opening remarks I am not particularly sympathetic to the new breed of social priests. They seem to loom from every quarter, like an elephant parade at a Hindu Festival. We have prognosticators on climate, ozone, diet, religion, politics, economics, education, origins, history, war, terrorism, and on and on it goes. Everyone “hath an opinion”. But it is not the opinions that both me.
What I am seeing is the assertion, by some, of their superiority over others whom they deem to be lesser mortals. In clever ways people have come on the scene to assert that ordinary people need the presenter’s peculiar wisdom, their prescribed methods, their “To Do” list, their 12 Step program, or whatever. I don’t doubt that there is safety in the multitude of counsellors – a fact attested to by the wisest man who ever lived (see Proverbs 11:14). However, I question the assertion that some have transcendent knowledge, like an illuminated guru, and therefore have the right to live above others. They even ask for the right to suborn the will and sovereignty of others, subjugating it to their own power.
Consider this line of reasoning. “The things presented in the Bible are deep and profound. Only truly enlightened or highly intellectual people have any hope of really understanding it. Many people through history have ended up with a wrong interpretation, leading to tragic consequences. Therefore the wisest thing you can do is to subscribe to the answers and insights given by ……”
Whoever is plying that line of reasoning is arguing for the High Priest status. They wish to be a guru, exercising sovereignty over the beliefs of others. Yet, history reveals that millions of very ordinary people, even those with lesser minds, have found faith, forgiveness and transformation through their simple reading of the Bible. What the theologians or deep thinkers claim to be hard to grapple with proves to be accessible to the meanest of folk, even those who cannot read what it says.
We continue to see the emergence of a new guru-ism. Ordinary people are less secure about their common sense and more ready to swallow the high-sounding opinions of others. The foundations, especially the foundations of the fear of God and knowledge of the Bible, are being eroded. The result is insecurity, leading to an increase in dependence on others.
Allow me to suggest an alternative to handing over your personal sovereignty. Ask God for wisdom. That’s right. Pray. Ask God to give you wisdom. The Bible says that if you lack wisdom you should ask for it. God will give it freely (see James 1:5).
God did not say, “If you lack wisdom – get yourself a guru, or find a High Priest to follow.” God said, “If you lack wisdom, ask for it and God will give it to YOU.” Wow! That means that God, Himself, is on the side of your personal sovereignty. God wants you to rely on Him, not some other man. Even the most intelligent man in the world has nothing over you, in terms of sovereignty. Oh, and don’t forget what the Apostle Paul pointed out. He said that God delights to take those who seem to be useless to confound those who really think they are somebody! (See 1Corinthians 1:27)
God is barracking for your personal sovereignty. He gave it to you and He expects you to live in it, not hand it over to someone who thinks they are better than you. If you don’t know what to think in a situation, get many counsellors, not one guru. And ask God for wisdom. You’ll be surprise what God has equipped YOU to do.