One of the great obstacles to the spread of the gospel

I hate to say it but sadly one of the greatest obstacle to the spread of the gospel is the church itself. It shouldn’t be. Indeed the church should be the instrument to the spread of the gospel. In one sense it has done this well. What began as a small Jewish community who followed Jeshua has a become bigger than the Beatles, Justin Bieber and One Direction. Yet sadly it is also a major obstacle to the spread of the gospel. Think about all the problems that Paul had. It wasn’t just from unbelievers. It was also from the church. The Corinthians gave Paul a real ear full. It was the same with the Galatian church. And in Titus 1:10,11  Paul tells Titus that the leaders have to rebuke some people in the church (I suppose one could question whether they are actually part of the church) harshly because they are upsetting whole households by their weird teachings. And when you look at the churches in Revelation 2,3 – it’s a woeful picture.

Unfortunately a lot of people sadly still don’t get it. They are surprised when the leadership can be a real $&&&$&&^$)*&)&% when it comes to gospel ministry. They think the church, especially it’s leadership should all be wonderful people like Paul or Peter or even Jesus. But sadly it’s not. One day it will but until that day comes (Rev 21) the church is like a spoilt brat and sadly that’s church.

Why is it like this? For a number of reasons

1. The church is still a community of sinners, which by definition means they are selfish, self centred. Many times people are more in love with the world than with Jesus, investing in the things of the world rather than in the world to come, having weird and wacky ideas about Jesus plus tonnes of other things.
2. The church is still growing up meaning there are going to be a lot of childish tantrums along the way until they reach manhood (1 Cor 3:1-3)
3. There is a spiritual battle going on behind the scenes (Eph 6:10-12)
4. The devil has taken some captives  (2 Tim 2:25,26)
5. There are false brothers (Acts 20:29,30; 2 Cor  11:13-15, 26)
6. There is sin (1 Coe 3:3)

All this, and so much more, when put together is a sure recipe for a ministry in hell. (Ok maybe not as bad as it can get). For this reason the one thing I keep drumming into everyone is that if you want to do ministry, if you want to serve as a pastor in a church you’ve got to know that you’re training to serve in hell. When you join the SAS you’re not training how to ride a surf board on the beaches of Waikiki. You’re training to fight in Iraq, Afghanistan and places like this.

When people want to go into the ministry they need to know they are fighting against the world, against sin and against Satan, all of which are trying, by hook or by crook, to take down the church. Remember what Jesus said about the church

“18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” Matthew 16:18, NIV.

Leaving aside  all the Catholic mumbo jumbo about Apostolic Succession etc, Jesus makes a telling point. Like the Armies of Mordor trying to storm the walls of Helm’s Deep. so the bible reminds us that all the forces of the evil one has not only enslaved the world,  they are also constantly battering against the walls of the church. And if they can’t smash the walls, they’ll infiltrate the ranks of God’s people trying to destroy the church from within.

Being a pastor is not like surfing the beaches of Waikiki. It going all out in Afghanistan and the pastor is usually the one in the sniper’s crosshair.

This is not to say we shouldn’t do it. It only means we need to be realistic about what we’re doing. God has given to the church pastors and teachers to equip the saints for works of ministry in order to grow the church (Eph 4:11-16). The church is like a baby that needs to grow up. God, in his kindness and wisdom,  has given such leaders to proclaim his word and to work towards presenting her church perfect in Christ. It is not an overnight thing. It is a life long process of battling against sin, satan and everything else.

We need more and more pastors but the context of their ministry is going to be hard, if not hellish. And it will be like this until the Lord Jesus returns.

Having said this, despite all the battle scars it is still the most brilliant job in the world.

Pastors, Preaching and Pastoral Care

A ‘concern’ I constantly hear about pastors is their lack of pastoral care. While I think there are a lot of pastors who really don’t care for their flock and treat their ministry like a ‘career’, what I find astonishing is how very rarely people complain about the lack of other things in the ministry of the pastor. Very rarely have I heard complaints about the lack of evangelism, or discipling, or training, or the lack of mission etc etc. I’m sure there are churches where they do complain their pastor doesn’t do enough of these things, but often these are rare and far between. And even when they do complain about the lack of these  things it is never to the same degree of passion as with the lack of pastoral care.

So it’s worth reflecting once again on the primary role of the pastor. That being said, the sad thing is that many pastors resign because of a conflict on what the role means. While the laity has one expectation, the pastor can and often does have a different one. This difference invariably boils over into conflict. In many cases the pastor resigns because of this. However, in all honesty sometimes the fault is the pastor. Other times the blame does lie with the laity. In either cases I’m sure everyone, both pastor and laity contribute to the problems we see in pastoral ministry today.

So what is the role of the pastor? The number of books, articles and blogs on the subject are countless and undoubtedly this highlights how confused, ignorant or plainly wrong our thinking can be on this very important role.

Most pastors will tell you the primary role of the pastor is to be the preacher of God’s word. This is their primary role from which everything flows. I for one agree with this wholeheartedly. However instead of re emphasizing this point, I was reminded again, as a I read Psalm 119 WHY the preaching of the Word of God is so important and the preaching/teaching of God’s word is itself a work of pastoral care.

What really struck me is how the Word of God is more than sufficient to meet the pastoral needs of all my people.

Here are some of the things I came across

• It gives clarity and guidance vs. 9
• It is our counsellor  vs. 24
• It gives strength and encouragement and refreshment vs. 25
• It gives comfort those who are weary vs. 28
• It warns people about deceitful ways vs.29
• It gives us hope vs. 43
• it gives freedom vs. 45
• It gives comfort to those who are suffering vs. 50,52
• It teaches us knowledge and good judgement vs. 66
• It gives us strength in difficult times vs. 92
• It gives wisdom, insight, understanding vs. 98 – 100
• It gives us understanding so that we can see clearly what is wrong vs. 104
• It gives light in a world of darkness vs. 105
• They bring joy to the heart vs. 111
• It provides protection against our enemies vs. 114
• it gives light and understanding vs. 130
• Directs our path away from the rule of sin vs. 133
• It gives us delight in the midst of our trouble and distress vs.143

If this is what the Word of God does for those who humbly hear it, is it any wonder that our primary role is to bring the Word of God to our members, indeed to all people. Is it any wonder that Paul’s injunction to Timothy was to devote himself to the public reading, preaching and teaching of God’s Word (1 Timothy 4:13). Of course this doesn’t confine our work merely to the Sunday sermon. We can and should be taking every opportunity outside Sunday  to open the word of God to people whether that is one-to-one, in small groups as well as the pulpit ministry. Every occasion and opportunity should be seen as an opportunity to open the Word of God to people and to bring the powerful and comforting Word of God to bear on the lives of people. Whatever the occasion it is always an occasion to instruct people in the life giving Word of God. As I was reminded during my own uni days – I need to make sure that the reading of God’s word is a central part of all that we do. If I have not opened the scriptures when I visit people or at least taught them the word of God then I have failed in my pastoral duties.

On the other hand, I think it is right to say that one of the key measures of the pastoral health of our congregation is how much they know, love  and humbly submit to the word of God. It is amazing to see the difference between a church where the Word of God is read, studied and humbly submitted to compared to a church where the Word of God does not lie at the heart of the life of the church. Both will have all their pastoral issues etc. But there is a glow that shines in the church where the Gospel is central while a complaining spirit where the Word of God is not.

As I survey what is going on in churches today it is sad to see how the pastoral role has either been hijacked by the psycho therapeutic industry or by the Company director or the business manager. At the end of the day our work is very simple. Jesus said that “man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” Matthew 4:4

If this what the Word of God does then we need to make sure that the pastor fulfils his first calling – to devote himself to the preaching and teaching of God’s word in any and every context be it from the pulpit or from the pew.

Anyway these are some of my reflections.

On Calling a minister

For nearly 20years I’ve been actively challenging people to consider full time ministry, particularly as a pastor. If we’re going to reach the world with the gospel, invariably the church will be the key instrument by which God will do this. It is through the church that God’s people are nurtured and equipped with the gospel and given skills to do the ministry. However, it will also be the church that will receive new believers who need to be cared for, nurtured and then equipped to further the mission of God. Yet the reality is that many churches throughout the world do not have biblically solid, gospel centred, spiritually humble and mission minded pastors. Many of these are struggling to just survive let alone think about mission. For this reason I believe raising up more pastors for the churches throughout the world is a key strategy in reaching the world.

But that being said, I’ve worked out that no matter how hard I pray and push, there are still so few people entering into seminary. We are a long long way from filling these pulpits let alone raising up enough pastors to start new churches. However just recently  I was directed to an interesting document written by the big daddy of the reformation, Martin Luther.

In his letter “Concerning the Ministry” written in 1523 addressed to the church of Bohemia and to the Senate and the people of Prague he writes concerning the calling and ordination of a pastor of a church. But before he explains the evangelical approach, he rips into the whole Catholic system of consecrating a priest and explains what the proper function of the pastor should be. He assures the senate that they have every right to dismiss a priest who is not teaching the word of God. In the Catholic System only the Bishop had the right to call and appoint a priest over the church without their approval. In response to this Luther assures them that they have every right to dismiss a priest who does not teach the word of God faithfully or is not a godly shepherd.

However what really caught my eye was his very novel approach to finding a pastor.

Then call and come together freely, as many as have been touched in heart by God to think and judge as you do. Proceed in the name of the Lord to elect one or more whom you desire, and who appear to be worthy and able. Then let those who are leaders among you lay hands upon them, and certify and commend them to the people and the church or community. In this way let them become your bishops, ministers, or pastors. Amen. The qualifications of those to be elected are fully described by Paul, in Tit. 1[:6ff.], and I Tim. 3[:2ff.].

In short what Luther is saying is that when a church is in need of a pastor the church should gather together humbly before the Lord and to pray as to who within their church should be appointed to be their pastor. And after much prayer they should approach the person whom they deem mature in the faith and suitable for the ministry. They should lay their hands upon him and appoint him to be their pastor.

This, can I say is very novel. It seems to me that today with the many churches that are empty, our default positions seems to be to advertise for a pastor in the seminaries and in the local Christian newspaper.  In other words our natural tendency is to look outside for our pastor, yet Luther’s approach is novel in that he thinks we should be looking from within the congregation for our future pastor.  Behind this lies his doctrine of the Priesthood of all believers. In other words all believers are qualified to teach the word of God and to administer the sacraments. Why then appoint a pastor to specifically teach the word and administer the sacraments? For the sake of order and peace. While everyone is a priest not everyone is able to do the public ministry.  In short the pastor is the first amongst equals.

Now admittedly the context of Luther’s time probably demanded that it was best to look inside. There were no good evangelical seminaries at the time churning out a string of good evangelical pastors and so there was no one they could approach.  But that being said in many respects we are no different. Everyone keeps thinking there is an ample supply of pastors out there some where just looking for an opportunity to serve. However I have to keep telling churches again and again that such is not the case. There are so few pastors around to fill the many empty pulpits. Worst still there are so few good pastors who will do the job faithfully. So what should we do? I think Luther’s approach is something worth considering.

I can tell you now that if every church, without a pastor, would stop looking outside, but instead gather together to humbly,  prayerfully and with the scriptures open at 1 Tim 3 and Titus 1 come before the lord and consider who amongst themselves  should be their pastor, and appoint him as  such, not only would we see our pulpits filled we might actually reduce our stress level.

Some personal reflections.

Does he have what it takes to pastor our church? Hmmm…

I was talking to a friend from overseas the other day and he was sharing with me about his pastor. He is a good godly, faithful man and YET he is totally out of his league when it comes to full time ministry. As my friend commented; “He would be great as a lay person, but not as a pastor!” Sadly there are many people in full time ministry who should not be

Churches have enough problems as it is so it doesn’t help to add more to its woe by calling some one who is really not cut out for full time ministry. And let’s be brutally honest, many of the problems in the churches are caused by pastors. The church is already a nut case. Think about it. It’s a collection of sinners and when you put sinners in the same room and ask them to change the light bulb, you’ve got problems.  The responsibility of the pastor is to grow the church individually and corporately, but some of the pastors on the field, really and truly don’t know what they’re doing, and worse till many are just cut from the wrong mould. Please don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying that they are ungodly or immoral or unfaithful (although I think there are some who should be given a massive kick up the !@#$!@#). To be a pastor requires a certain skill set, something we often don’t give serious thought to.

So what should we look for in a pastor? We’ll there always a few dangers when anyone talk about this . Firstly what they offer can often be more a reflection of what they are like rather than what should be the case (hmmmmm…..). Secondly, you’ve got to ask whether you yourself measure up. It’s always easier to critique a pastor  than to be a pastor. Ok so let me state from the beginning that these are my personal reflections. They are not biblical (they are not necessarily wrong either) nevertheless, from the years of pastoral ministry and looking at others, I think I’m pretty much on the mark with this (I hope).

Firstly let’s recognise that I’m assuming the person is a mature stable bible loving, Christ living, mission minded person. I mean if he is not like this, don’t even give him a second thought. Sadly many desperate churches seem to over look this most fundamental criteria. Ok enough said on this. So what makes a good pastor.

a. Leadership skill. Let’s face it, the person in full time ministry is not just leading one or two people. He is leading a GROUP of people and this is a whole new ball game. I’m not saying that the person will go on to be a senior minister of a great megachurch, but the fact of the matter is that managing and leading people requires a new skill set that is different to leading one or two people. Sadly many people in pastoral ministry are not cut out for leadership. They are not bad people, they are just not leaders. However, even if the person is not wired to be a senior minister but a team player, he will still be responsible to lead various groups under his care. He will be responsible to organise people, mobilize people, gather people, plan, strategize etc etc. So whether you’re go on to be a senior minister or merely a member of a team, you’ll still need leadership skills to lead a group of people.

b. People skill. We need to remember that we are leading PEOPLE. We are called to love the sheep that God has placed under our care ,and dealing with people, as we all know,  is no easy task. In fact one of the greatest problems we have in church is people. All our problems are caused by people. So if we can’t work with people we’re not going to lead them anyone. In fact if we can’t work with all sorts of people, we’re going to drive them away instead of lead them to Christ. Sadly many of the problems in many churches arises because the pastor was NOT able to work with the people.

c. Teaching skills. The way we lead is through teaching the scriptures. Paul reminds us in Colossians 1:28, 29 that his aim is to present everyone perfect in Christ by teaching and admonishing everyone with all spiritual wisdom. Teaching and admonishing is a central activity of his ministry life. Just reflect on Paul’s ministry. If the person cannot teach he will not be able to lead people. Now I’m not saying you have to be a hot shot preacher. My theory is that most of the preachers in the world are competent but not great. That’s OK. All I’m saying is that you’ve got to be able to string some words together in a coherent way so that others know clearly what you’re talking about and where your heading.

d. Basic Organisational skills. When you’re dealing with people you’ve got to be able to organise them. Now most great leaders are shockers when it comes to organisations. .This is where their other abilities kicks in. Because they are able to lead, teach and work with people, they are able to mobilize others to fill in for their weaknesses, but that being said, the pastor still needs some basic, and I emphasize BASIC organisational skills. If he can’t get his sermon in on time, remember his appointments, read his minutes, stick to the programs etc he won’t last. Some of us are better organised than others, nevertheless everyone in full time ministry needs to be able to organise themselves and others, even if its very basic.

e. Basic entrepreneurial skill. I’m not saying that the person has to be a hot shot church planter who will conquer the world. There are some who are just born entrepreneurs. These guys are unstoppable and the best thing to do with them is not to stop them but to guide them. On the other hand, in my experience, most pastors are not natural entrepreneurs. It doesn’t come easy to them. Rather it’s something they’ll have to work a bit harder at. That being said, I think anyone in ministry needs to have some ability to start new things. If he doesn’t he’ll merely end up doing the same old thing over and over and over and over and over again – get the point. If he is not able to start new things he will never grow anything.

Ok these are my ideas. Now let’s be clear, I’m not saying you have to be top of the class in every area (Although that would be nice). Some are great leaders but OK teachers. Others are OK leaders but top class preachers. Still others are stronger in starting new things, but now so crash hot in organising themselves or others. We all have our different strengths and weaknesses nevertheless in my thinking anyone thinking about pastoral ministry, or a church looking for a pastor should consider these five simple areas as essentials.

Of course all this is built on the very strong assumption that the person is biblically solid, Gospel centred, spiritually humble, mission minded. If you find someone like this plus all the above qualities take him out to dinner.