Nicolaitans

But this you have, that you hate the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. (Revelation 2:6)

Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate. (Revelation 2:15)

So what was this hated doctrine of the Nicolaitans? It must have been pretty bad for God to say He hated it twice.

The root of the word Nicolaitans comes from Greek nikao, to conquer or overcome, and laos, which means people and which the word laity comes from. The two words together especially means the destruction of the people and refers to the earliest form of what we call a priestly order or clergy which later on in church history divided people and allowed for leadership other than those led by the spirit of the risen Lord. A good translation of Nicolaitan would be “those who prevail over the people.” (Link)

Is this not what we’ve been talking about? Our misunderstanding of power and authority? That we believe that our authority somehow elevates us above the laity?

We are all on the same road, and although we may fill an office within the body that doesn’t exempt us from being a mere man.

Before we go any further, maybe we should take a moment to define hierarchy.

Main Entry: hi·er·ar·chy
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English ierarchie rank or order of holy beings, from Anglo-French jerarchie, from Medieval Latin hierarchia, from Late Greek, from Greek hierarchEs
1 : a division of angels
2 a : a ruling body of clergy organized into orders or ranks each subordinate to the one above it; especially : the bishops of a province or nation
b :church government by a hierarchy
3 : a body of persons in authority
4 : the classification of a group of people according to ability or to economic, social, or professional standing; also : the group so classified
5 : a graded or ranked series

God hates hierarchies among men and especially among His people. Hierarchies deal with worth or value. They place more importance on those in positions of leadership. But in the Kingdom, every person has the same worth and value in God’s eyes. He shows personal favoritism to no man.

God never intended for men to have dominion over other men. God gave men dominion over the earth, animals and plants, but did not give them dominion over each other.

In the body of Christ, we’ve been accused of portraying that we are somehow superior to those who do not share our faith. Even within our ranks, we distinguish those who hold offices over those who don’t. While we say that we are not superior, our actions state otherwise.

As I was talking with a pastor the other day he made this comment:

Jesus Christ alone is our (pastors) coach/captain/king/ whatever analogy that we want to use for the moment. Elders follow the Lord, and in doing so support their pastor through counsel, work, and prayer.

He was in essence saying that pastors are accountable only to God, but was quick to add clarity to his words with:

Ugh - now I’m reading my post & thinking how that may be misconstrued. Language can be so limiting sometimes.

Maybe it would be sufficient to merely say that counsel from the elders includes the gamut from edification to reproof when appropriate.

The truth is, our words can be misconstrued and often are. But I think even deeper than that lies a root of pride within all of us, that if not subjected to the Spirit allows us to come to secretly believe that we are indeed above those that we lead, and most definitely above those who are without any faith in Christ at all.

When we say that we are God’s chosen people, other’s hear us saying that we’re better than they. When we say that pastors are to lead the sheep, we believe that we’ve been chosen by God over the sheep.

We create systems with chains of command fashioned after the world, but far removed from Jesus’ example of laying down His life as a sacrifice and in service to all. We believe that we can/could really do something for God if we were just given a title. If we would just be recognized as having more worth than our fellow brothers and sisters.

While there is no doubt that there are different levels of authority within the Kingdom, holding an office of authority is a fearful thing rather than a boastful thing. God requires more from those who serve in a position of leadership. They will be accountable for how they served His body, in addition to their own actions.

The Nicolaitan heresy believed that those who held offices within the body of Christ were lords over the people. They believed that it was their duty to lead, and that it was the duty of the people to be subservient to them. The Nicolaitans believed that they were as priests subject to God alone.

But God hates this kind of thinking, because he wants to be the top. He refuses to share His glory with anyone. He sent His only son so that we might become a priesthood of believers. So that each of us through our faith, could have divine access to the holy of holies without fear or the need for a middleman.

This is a little raw at present, so I may refine it at a later time.