Of Saints & Shepherds

• Can a saint be disobedient to the local church?
• Can a saint be disobedient to a church leader? 
• Who can be disobeyed?
• What happens when a saint disobeys?

Similar to “obedience”, the word “disobedience” is often used in local church or cult contexts to persuade congregations, members, and the saints in general that they are out of line for not adhering to or accepting authoritative rule of their leaders. Is this a valid biblical concept? Because those often promoting those ideas use scriptures to support themselves, below are word studies for any Greek words translated as “disobedience” in the New Testament. If no firm scriptural precedent can be established for leaders charging others with disobedience to themselves, then no one in the local church has the biblical authority or mandate to do so either.

This section seeks to discover how words translated disobedience appear to be used in the New Testament and further examine consequences for disobedience. Here are the Greek words translated as “disobedient” (and derivatives) in the New Testament.

• “apeitheia”
• “apeitheō”
• “apeithēs”
• “parakoē”