Good (news) Friday: My big brother is now a Bishop!

…If a man seeks the office of [ bishop], he desires a good work.

The bishop therefore must be without reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, sensible, modest, hospitable, good at teaching; not a drinker, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous…

Servants, in the same way, must be reverent, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for money….Their wives in the same way must be reverent, not slanderers, temperate, faithful in all things….

For those who have served well gain for themselves a good standing, and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus. [1 Timothy 3:1]

On Wednesday, at the 94th International General Assembly of the Church of God of Prophecy in Nashville, Tennessee, my brother, Dr Joseph Leon Hall (seen here with Barbara – his wife and partner in their Life Changing Ministries), was ordained a “newly deemed Bishop”. And, because proud looks are an abomination unto the Lord, members of the Hall family witnessed this solemn occasion with sublime reverence as he consecrated his life to a higher order of service to the Almighty God.

I must confess, however, that over the years my religious cynicism compelled me to try in vain to test my brother’s faith with intellectual queries, much as the Devil tried in vain to tempt Jesus Christ with earthly pleasures after he had fasted forty days and forty nights. Therefore, no one is more qualified than I am to testify to the fact that no one meets the criteria for the office of bishop (as set out in Timothy) more than my brother does.

And so, it is with profound humility and respect that I bring you the good news of his ordination….

I would be remiss, however, if I did not acknowledge the crisis of leadership facing the worldwide Christian congregation. But it would be unseemly for me to rain on my brother’s parade by harping on religious malaise.

Instead, I cite this crisis only to assure the world of what the people my brother has ministered to know quite well; namely, that he has always walked with the Passion of the Christ, comforting the afflicted every step of the way. And, moreover, that just as Jesus afflicted comfortable leaders – who coveted glory for themselves above glory to God, so too has my brother afflicted the leaders of his Church – who at times seemed more inspired by the passion of the dollar than by the passion of the Christ.

Therefore, this ordination merely vests him with the institutional authority that he has exercised in the honorable service of the Lord for years. But now, his moral rectitude and commitment to genuine fellowship will be felt not only amongst those he ministers to but also within the leadership councils of the Church of God of Prophecy.

Not a moment too soon, and to God be the glory!

PERSONAL NOTE: It seems the fulfillment of his biblical fate that – after being sold out by church leaders in The Bahamas – my brother Joseph had to relocate all the way up in Cleveland, Tennessee to be recognized as the special servant of God he is.

My family is blessed with a number of very successful people, including our sister, Dr Maureen Hall MD, who I paid tribute to here recently. And I have no doubt that we have all made our parents exceedingly proud. Yet none of us has any doubt that if our Mummy and Daddy were alive today, Joe’s ordination would have been the proudest moment of their lives.

Therefore, I pray that God will have mercy on the leaders of the Church of God of Prophecy in The Bahamas for conspiring to deny them this life experience.

But the Lord works in mysterious ways. And “all things work together for the good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose.”

Congratulations Bishop!

Bishop Dr Joseph Hall