Just the facts...until my opinion...

Ok. So. I was asked this question..."Is an armor-bearer a real position in a church?"

(And because my church doesn't have one...I had to ask what exactly that was...and I had one of my things that make me go hmmm moments.)

So. My answer...after some research...was this...

The term armor-bearer is found in the Old Testament in the books of Judges (9:54), 1 Samuel (14:1, 6, 7, 12-14, and 17, 16:21, 31:4-6), 2 Samuel (18:15 and 23:37), and 1 Chronicles (10:54 and 11:39).

Armor-bearers were ones who carried the armor or arms of another...usually a person in authority such as a king or a highly esteemed warrior. They were considered right hand men and would even die for whom they were in service. (PERSONAL RED FLAG!)

There is no mention of an armor-bearer in the established church of the New Testament. For a list of church offices specifically mentioned in the Bible please see Ephesians 4:11-16, 1 Timothy 3, and Titus 1.

Ok. Those are the facts. And I invite you to go to the source...GOD’S WORD...yourself for your own understanding.

However...after presenting the facts...I was asked how I felt about it. So...here goes.

I am not comfortable with the position of armor-bearer (AB) AT ALL. I think it invites someone in authority to get a very big head and possibly exalt themselves over THE HEAD...CHRIST.

Let's go back to who actually had ABs...kings. Why did the people have kings in the first place? See 1 Sam 8:5-9 and Acts 13:21-22.

God never intended for us to have a king...BECAUSE HE IS KING...and look at how Him giving us what we wanted turned out. Even David...God's chosen king after His own heart through whose lineage Jesus came...ultimately failed in this position.

And if you pay attention...none of the "good" kings had ABs. The kings who did ultimately had their power stripped from them by God due to pride which lead to disobedience. Not good.

And I know that just because ABs aren't mentioned in the OT doesn't mean it isn't or can't be a vital part of today's churches. By that argument...one could say the same of the church secretary or praise and worship leader or Sunday school teacher. So that's not why I have a problem with it.

And let me just say this. If your church has one...(I already admitted that mine does not)...and that works for you...AND IT GLORIFIES GOD...it works for me. I am not trying to say that your church or belief system is wrong.

But if it over inflates a pastor's ego or his sense of importance...that's dangerous...and not Christ like at all.

Jesus was a very humble servant. Remember He was the same one who washed His disciples feet. The same one who died for you and me.

I honestly can't imagine Jesus having an armor-bearer.

(And this is not an invitation to debate. Every word after HOWEVER...is my personal opinion. And while I am no Bible authority...I am the authority when it comes to my opinion.)