Even though she is coming at Christianity from a different place, in all probability, we should not ignore what she is saying.
http://www.cnn.com/2010/LIVING/08/27/almost.christian/index.html
Why has Christ permitted the “worship wars” to cause so much disturbance within our churches? Obviously, He has not told me! But of this I am absolutely certain: He has ordained it!
It is my personal conviction that He has ordained it to expose the weakness and perhaps even the absence of love among us. Not primarily the weakness of our love for one another (though it has indeed demonstrated that) but the absence of love for Himself. He has revealed so many of us to be more in love with our personal preferences than we are in love with Him and His cause.
The following blog speaks wisely and decisively to our need:
http://thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/tullian/2010/08/22/we-are-one/
Tomorrow, God willing, we shall gather as an expression of the Church of Jesus Christ. Our purpose will be two-fold: supremely it will be our calling to present together to Christ spiritual sacrifices of corporate praise, thanksgiving, faith and love; secondly it will be our responsibility to give and receive edification. The New Covenant places peculiar emphasis on what we do together both toward Christ and toward each other…singing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs to one another in the fullness of the Holy Spirit. In these ways we testify to God and to the world our commitment to Christ and to His Church according to the Scriptures.
This is a great work and it involves tremendous privileges. But, in order to be up for the task, we must be prepared in our souls. Our minds must be taken off the unreality which we call the “real world” with its combustible things and relationships and pleasures and set squarely on the eternal realities of Christ and His kingdom. That shift will require some effort. Our hearts must be “warmed to sing His praise”. We must remember! We must remember who God is, who we are, who Christ is and what He has done that we might draw near to God. We must remember who He has made us to be in Him and what a destiny He has given us. Our emotions must be focused and renewed. The world so abuses and uses up our emotions. We need revived emotional energy in our attempts to worship and fellowship for God’s glory. Above all, we need to be cleansed. How dirty we become each day in terms of spiritual defilement. We must seek Christ for fresh cleansing by the power of His death and through the confession of our sins.
In a humble effort to assist you in preparing mind, heart and emotions I am going to post some music for you to listen to and ponder. Music has been designed by God to stimulate our minds and emotions and to express both our thoughts and our desires. So, I submit a few songs for you to think upon and to take in for the purpose of helping your souls prepare for tomorrow. I am not endorsing the people who sing the songs. I am posting the songs so that you might focus on the words in their particular melodic context. If you do not like a selection (after all they are my choices not yours), simply move to the next. If you like none of them, then please find some of your own.
I look forward to participating with you in the privileges and responsibilities of tomorrow as being together the “house of God”.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-KnzSwuJoU&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFHfoEadyz0&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Voawjjqg8zw&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ENtL_li4GbE&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tkx8WAycYAc&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQMxdymSxHc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8_EfDqF7YI
May I assume that you have read the preceding blog? If so, are you happy…yet?
The content of the blog concerning the “happy Christian” is so basic as to demand an apology, except that so many of us lose sight of the most elementary facets of our salvation. The real question is this, having been reminded of the most basic ingredients of our happiness in Christ are we making the most of those reminders? Are we taking delight in our peace with God? Are we resting our hearts in the fact of God’s protection–which includes the truth of God’s provision? Perhaps most challenging, are we doing what we need to do to have a legitimately placid conscience? Let’s go a bit further in the matter of a placid conscience.
I strongly suspect that it is in the realm of conscience that many of us experience our most severe hindrances to “happiness”. Perhaps there are sins which we are reluctant to attack in the way they must be attacked and mortified if our consciences are to be satisfied. Why are we reluctant? Whatever momentary pleasure sin may provide, it is nothing in comparison with the pain it causes in preventing a good conscience before God. The pleasures of God’s right hand, His fellowship and sensible comfort, are denied to the soul that entertains willing disobedience to God. That denial is excruciating to the regenerate heart. The soul indwelt by the Holy Spirit yearns for God, felt communion with Him. The violated conscience hides from God, like Adam in the cool of the day. That is misery for the Christian. Have you forgotten how sweet it is to have nothing between your soul and Christ? Don’t linger in that misery! Confess your sin and stubbornness. Tell your Savior how foolish you have been to choose carnal tickles above the profound joy of His countenance. Tell Him! Ask for the grace to hate every rival to Him in your heart. Ask Him to purge your heart and to restore your fellowship. Ask Him! Then believe Him that He is your peace with God. He will bring you close to God with clean hands and a pure heart. Trust Him!
Perhaps your pain of conscience is due to duties willfully neglected. Why do we neglect to do the good will of God? Do we have foolish views of God’s prescribed commands? Have we bought into Satan’s worn out lie that God’s commands are against our happiness? Do you honestly think that the Father who loved you so much as to send Christ to the cross for you, would then afflict your life with burdens designed to make you sad and miserable? That makes no sense. God commands only such things that will either bring us higher in temporal good or will protect us from temporal harm! Happiness in this life is illusive simply because sin is so deceptive and we are so willing to be deceived by it. God’s commands deliver us from all such deception. He forbids what will hurt us. He requires what is beneficial. God’s commands are truth. The lie comes from our sin-loving flesh. Thus our flesh must be denied and God must be obeyed. Obedience is for our well-being in this world. Obedience is also one key to a placid conscience.
Tomorrow, God willing, we gather as the house of God to bring Him spiritual sacrifices. He is most honored when we come before Him in a state of genuine happiness. Let us each one do whatever needs to be done to be in a condition of spiritual happiness. Some of us may have some hard work in order to get there…soul-searching work, confessing work, mortifying work; but, the happiness is worth the effort. In fact, let us resolve that by the mercies of Christ we will endeavor to live in perpetual happiness for the glory of Christ our King.
Most reformed writers and preachers choose to avoid the word “happiness” with reference to an ideal for the Christian. Perhaps the thought is that happiness is too readily identified with superficial or even sensual delights. However, few would want to describe the model Christian as “unhappy”. So, which is it? Should we expect healthy Christians to be “happy” or “unhappy”?
A simple definition of the word “happy” would be “delighted, pleased or glad”. If we are thinking of a permanent or continual condition, the argument could be made that Christians alone have the potential of being truly happy. Non-Christians certainly know experiences of delight or gladness; however, continual delight or inner gladness is something else. Such is the nature of this fallen world that continual delight is impossible apart from spiritual life. Natural people are not spiritually alive. Therefore, the case could be made that people apart from the life of Christ dwelling in them are not capable of happiness as a state of being.
On the other hand, how many Christians manifest a state of happiness in any continuing sense? The witness of the Gospel would be far more compelling if Christians were indeed happy in an on-going way. And, I think, that is the Christian’s privilege. Happiness defined as inward delight, pleasure or gladness is the exclusive privilege of the person whose soul is united to Jesus Christ by faith. The fact that so few of us who believe experience or manifest continuous happiness argues not against the proposition that happiness is our privilege. Rather, it argues for the sub-par nature of our experience.
What factors comprise a happy soul? I will name a few which I count as essential. You will no doubt think of others. But, what I wish for you to consider is that each of these factors is well within the reach of every believer in Jesus Christ.
1. Peace with God: the removal of all condemnation from God and a standing of perfection in God’s sight. This is Christ’s gift to His people. He removes our sin and condemnation by His death in our place. He gives instead His righteousness to be our righteousness before God. None have peace with God apart from faith in Christ. All who believe in Christ have peace with God. However, too few of those who believe focus upon that peace. We permit the objective reality of our peace with God to be obscured, with the consequential weakening of our happiness.
2. Protection from God: the continual care of God as our Heavenly Father whereby He absolutely protects us from any and all permanent harm. The word “absolute” is a huge word. It should not be used often. Yet, I use it here without embarrassment. Deuteronomy 33:29 Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the LORD, The shield of your help And the sword of your majesty! Your enemies shall submit to you, And you shall tread down their high places. Ultimately such promises are true only in Christ and only to the spiritual Israel of God who trust in Him. But, it is true of all believers that God is making all things work together for their good. That is not to say that each individual experience is good in and of itself. However, it is to say that God only allows those individual experiences which He intends to weave together for our final and eternal good. There is happiness here. Whatever comes comes from God’s invincible will, He intends it for good. The happy Christian dwells much upon the doctrine of Providence as Providence relates to people joined to Christ.
3. Placid conscience: perhaps I am reaching a bit to preserve my alliteration; however, the word “placid” means pleasantly calm or peaceful and that does capture what I am trying to say. The happy Christian is the one whose conscience is pleasantly calm and at peace. This is where so many of us lose our happiness. Our consciences are often far from placid. Why is that? Often it is because we have sinned and have not dealt with our sins as Christians should. Some Christians in the quest for a placid conscience seek to heal their pains of conviction by excuses or rationalizations. But, the Holy Spirit who moderates the believer’s conscience will not be fooled by our self-righteous explanations for our crimes against God’s law. The way of peace, which is available only to believers, is to be completely honest about our sins in confession to God and to plead the forgiveness which Christ died to secure for us. Most of us have worn out the page on which 1John 1:9 is printed. But, how we need that guarantee: God is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. Nothing is to be gained by our equivocations. We must own our sins and cast them upon Christ with confidence.
Yet, that is only one explanation for our less than placid consciences. The other part of the explanation has to do with our failure to trust Christ for the grace required to do the things that God requires from us. Leaving assigned duties undone or at least unattempted is a prescription for a disturbed conscience. And it will not do to ascribe our responsibilities to legalism (as some foolishly attempt to do). God has a prescribed will for our lives. He has prescribed it in the Bible and we must yield to it. But, we must do so trusting in Christ! He has fulfilled that will completely; therefore, our failures will not separate us from God and condemn us. Furthermore, Christ will supply us with both the will and the strength to perform God’s will in substantial measure; thereby, averting a violated conscience. The life of faith in Christ is the life of abiding in Him–drawing by faith grace from Him to walk blamelessly before God. A placid conscience is a conscience which bears witness that we have made a conscientious effort to please God and to avoid those things which displease Him. That may seem utterly beyond our reach; yet, that is not the case for the believer who goes to Christ with his or her duties. And when we fail in our responsibilities, as we most surely will, we must not linger in the pain of our violated consciences. We must go immediately to Christ in confession and repentance.
The way of happiness is the way of constant trusting Christ for power and for cleansing. Keeping short accounts with God is a crucial element of happiness.
Much more could be said regarding the happiness of soul available to the Christian. We could and should think of love and the delight which we are privileged to enjoy through receiving and giving love through Christ.
However, I will end here. I will end by urging you to enjoy the happiness which is yours freely in Christ.
Everything good seems to evoke one of two extremes: either a perversion or a renunciation. Since I was a young boy, the idea that men should have muscles was rather clear. Of course males have muscles, just as do females; but, males should have muscles that are larger, more conspicuous, and stronger. The image of Charles Atlas appeared on many of the comic books I read. The idea of a male weakling was a negative to be avoided at all cost. Essentially it is a good idea that males have muscles that are developed to the extent of giving a distinct form and usefulness to their physiques.
However, that idea has been perverted by body worshipers and by those who are not content to be reasonably toned; but, want to have an exaggerated appearance of masculinity. That idea has also evoked negative reactions by those who oppose the concept of the masculine strength and advocate a image of the feminine male. Largely, though not entirely, this renunciation has come from feminists who wish to make men into their subjects and despise every concept of strength residing more with men than women. Parents, part of raising boys to be men is the deliberate development of muscles. Don’t be afraid to encourage strength and to discourage weakness on the part of your sons.
But, muscular Christians are not believers with biceps. Muscular Christians are those who accomplish notable works for the glory of Christ. Some of these works are private and some are public. Muscular Christians are strong enough to love Christ more than they love anything else, especially themselves. Muscular Christians love their brethren with sufficient strength to defeat the temptation to be personally offended and alienated from them on account of their weaknesses and offenses. At the same time, muscular Christians love their brethren with such strength as enables them to confront them if their offenses place their souls or the souls of others in jeopardy. Muscular Christians over-come the world. They resist ideas and practices, however popular and commonly accepted, which are the fruit of ungodly thinking or are violations of God’s will expressed in the Bible. Muscular Christians are holy. They are devoted to Christ with a sincere zeal that delights in doing what pleases and magnifies Him. Muscular Christians are active for the cause of Truth in their generation, particularly the Gospel. They are able to deny themselves for the sake of doing good to others. They are strong to love the unlovely and to lift up the lowly. Their strength supports them against attacks directed at them for their public stands for Christ and for the message of His cross. Because they are strong, muscular Christians are not afraid of ridicule or even persecution. Instead, they are bold and frank, speaking with love and candor. Should we not all aspire to become muscular Christians?
How is that accomplished? Probably not in the ways you think. Physical muscles are the result of genetics improved by rigorous, self-discipline. Muscle development requires the determination to work and work and work notwithstanding the pain or depriving oneself much more enjoyable activities. Is this pattern helpful in developing spiritual muscles? Numerous books and sermons say “yes”. The thought has been sounded often that if we are to be holy we must bring ourselves to a decree of self-denial and self-effort that approximates that of the body-builder in the gym. Thus, many Christians are convinced that they can never by really strong Christians because they cannot muster the resolve and tenacity to be sufficiently self-disciplined to develop spiritual muscles. Books recounting saints going days without food or sleep in order to achieve intimacy with Christ or isolating themselves from all human company for days on end in order to read the Bible through or to master spiritual classics like Calvin’s Institutes convince the average believer that he or she will never by more than a spiritual weakling. Such books are misleading! Such testimonials portray spiritual strength as the reward of human determination and effort. That is misleading and dishonoring to God! It is legalism.
2 Corinthians 12:7-10 7 And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. 8 Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. 9 And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 10 Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.
Paul was a muscular Christian of the highest class. Yet, his strength came because of his acknowledged weakness. God granted Satan something of a free shot at Paul. A messenger of Satan brought some sort of physical infirmity and distress to Paul. It was tormenting to the degree that Paul pleaded with Christ to have it removed. Instead, Christ promised him grace. Grace, the infusion of Divine strength, was given Paul to make him resilient and strong in the midst of his pain. Therefore, Paul discovered the secret of having spiritual muscles: feel your weakness sincerely and cry to Christ for strength! The Apostle came to realize that Christ made him strong when he truly felt and acknowledged his weakness! The key to strength was weakness coupled with faith expressed by prayer. As a result of this experience, Paul came to glory in whatever made him more sensible of his weakness–whatever made him more earnestly prayerful, that resulted in the strengthening work of God within his soul. Then, he could do all things through the one strengthening him, even Christ.
Now, please understand, I am not denying that we must be disciplined. We must be in our Bibles. We must resist and defeat the weakness of our fleshly cravings which war against our souls! We must kill those cravings. All that is true. Spiritual muscles must be employed to defeat spiritual enemies. However, my point is that spiritual muscles themselves are not the reward of our hard work and courageous self-effort. Spiritual muscles are the gift of Christ in response to our weakness…weakness expressed in believing prayer! We feel our weakness, our inability to do anything good. We cry to Christ in sincere petitions that He undertake for us. And He does! He comes in grace and infuses His strength into us. Thus, by His strength we are able to do great exploits. Yet, the strength is His, not ours. The praise is to Him, not to us. We appear strong. We appear muscular. We do good things.
But, it is all the result of our helpless cries for mercy and grace. If you want to be a muscular Christian, you must be weak. You are weak; but, you must accept it, feel it, turn it into serious prayer and Christ-seeking. The measure of how weak you are, in your own eyes, is the pathos with which you pray. Prayerlessness is the result of felt strength. Prayerfulness is the result of felt weakness. Our mistake is reversing those realities in our minds. We think that prayerlessness is the result of weakness and prayerfulness is the result of strength. Actually, it is just the opposite. We do not pray because we suppose ourselves strong enough not to need God’s help and blessing. We pray because we feel weak and are convinced that we can do nothing except by the enablement of our glorified Lord. How muscular are you? The answer will coincide with how weak you feel yourself to be and how much you seek strength from Christ: For when I am weak, then I am strong.
John 5:19-24 19 ¶ Then Jesus answered and said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner. 20 “For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel. 21 “For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will. 22 “For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son, 23 “that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him. 24 ” Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.
Paul Miller in his helpful book, A Praying Life, makes this striking observation:
“Because Jesus has no separate sense of self, he has no identity crisis, no angst. Consequently, he doesn’t try to ‘find himself’. He knows himself only in relationship with his Father. He can’t conceive of himself outside of that relationship.”
There is a helpful model here for all who believe on Christ. The Lord Jesus described our lives in Him as a vine and branch relationship. He is the vine and we are the branches (John 15:5). The major point of that analogy is that without Him we can do nothing. The “nothing” here refers to nothing of a fruitful nature. We were created to bring forth fruit to the glory of God. Our individuality comprised of varying personality traits and talents is given by God to be used in honoring Him, doing His work. Sin has rendered that impossible. Sin has turned us to our own way. Sin moves us to use our individuality for our name’s sake in quest for satisfaction in ourselves. Thus, Cain’s sacrifice was rejected, it was a purposeful reflection of his independent thought and talent. Abel’s sacrifice was accepted because he carefully took his cue from God Himself. His purpose was not to demonstrate his individuality so as to bring attention to himself. Rather, his choice was aimed at demonstrating his happy dependence upon the Lord. When Christ said that apart from Him we can do nothing, He did not mean that we could not sin or show irreverence apart from Him. He meant we could not do God’s will or bring forth fruit in our lives for God’s glory apart from Him.
Do we believe that? Are we so reconciled with that notion that we do not attempt to think of ourselves or present an image of ourselves apart from our conscious dependency upon Christ?
Young people are sometimes heard to say that they need to get away from home and parents so that they may “find themselves”, who they really are. And, not only young people say such things but sometimes grown-ups declare that they must have a time away from their spouses and children because they have never really found themselves, their true identity. That has a romantic and adventurous sound. But, actually it is quite dangerous. For the Christian, we do not need to go away from all that holds us accountable into to some distant and new place to discover who we are. We are sinners who have a desperate and constant need for Jesus Christ. It is ruinous for us to be on our own. It is a disaster when we endeavor to exercise our individuality independently of a deliberate looking to Christ. What we are all trying “to find” is a greater sense of need for Christ, a more consistent prayer life wherein we express our need and faith more sincerely, more consistently. We do not want a name or recognition for ourselves. We want a name and recognition as those whose lives are hidden with Christ in God. We want to be those who instead of striking out on our own, follow Christ very precisely in accordance with His Word and example. The far country is not the place to find ourselves. The place to find ourselves is in our private places of prayer. The place to find ourselves is in the world God has appointed for us living in humble submission to His Word and in felt reliance upon His power.
Let us all forget about establishing an identity for ourselves in and by ourselves. Let us, rather, seek to be known as those who are branches utterly and happily dependent upon the Vine. Let us know that we can do all things that become our responsibility to do because of the One strengthening us, even Christ. Let us live optimistically and let us live large, attempting great things for God, because we know how to trust in Christ–because He is our strength.
Who are you, what makes you unique? I am a very dangerous man apart from Christ. But in union with Him and in dependency on Him I am a servant of the living God and whatever I do in word or deed is an act of worship. My life possesses rich meaning and significance because I am in a proper relationship with God. How are you today? I am good because Christ is in me and I am in Him.
The last blog was written to rebuke the readiness to divide that seems so prevalent among the independent minds of American Christians. There are many churches from which to choose; therefore, if the church I am attending ceases to please me, I will find another. Or, if the church to which I have joined myself makes any change that displeases me, I will disown the covenant commitments which I made and find a church that looks more like my church used to look. The Christ-dispensed authority granted to pastors to lead the church through careful exposition and application of the Bible is easily disregarded by church members who deem themselves to have the responsibility to critique and contradict pastoral authority. Consequently, pastoral authority simply does not exist in the minds of many, unless that authority agrees with them. In matters of worship and church life wherein the Bible does not speak with sufficient clarity to be dogmatic, pastors are not permitted to exercise authority in deciding how those matters will be resolved in their particular church. The mindset of so many contemporary members is that inconclusive issues must be determined by them, not by the pastors. This spirit prevails in the evangelical church at large and has crept into Reformed Baptist churches. Thus, divisions are happening over matters of, at best, secondary importance. It is a contradiction to the love and grace of the Gospel. Division on account of secondary matters grieves the Holy Spirit and creates a most unnecessary stumbling-block to the unbeliever.
Do pastors have any responsibility in these situations? Have pastors sometimes failed to behave as pastors and therefore unnecessarily accelerated the process of division rather than preventing it? This post is a meager attempt to answer that question.
There is an assumption in the Biblical doctrine of pastoral authority–a very important assumption: namely, that pastors love the people of God and will treat them with gentleness and patience. Christ is the Chief Shepherd, 1 Peter 5:4. The Lord Jesus modeled love and patience in His relations with His apostles and others who followed Him during His earthly ministry. At times He blew their minds with His statements and rebukes and actions. At other times, He patiently endured their unbelief and pride and cowardliness. He wisely discerned when the disciples were able to bear instruction and when to wait until they would be experienced enough to absorb more difficult matters. Yet, in giving and withholding, Jesus was not thrown off schedule. He wisely led His people so that His Father’s will took place just as appointed. Thus, Christ modeled for us wise, loving, aggressive leadership. The only one He lost was the unregenerate “son of perdition”. Jesus led in a radical direction; yet, He lost none of His own. Such was His love, tenderness, and wisdom. No pastor can equal Him; but, He is both our model and our resource.
Pastors must be growing in their understanding of the Bible and of how the Bible instructs the church to function for His glory. Pastors must lead their churches in change. The idea that a church should never change is a contradiction of the basic principle of sanctification. It is also a reflection of the failure to distinguish between the regulative principle as applied in the Old Covenant and as applied under the New Covenant. The “church” in the Old Covenant was inseparably bound to a Biblically defined culture. The same law which regulated the church also regulated the culture, not just morally but in terms of its form and its convergence with the church. The two were very much meshed together. There was no place for change, until the Christ came. Now, change did take place due to Divine Judgment which brought upheaval and destruction to both the church and the culture of Israel. However, the Divinely mandated change occurred with the coming of Christ. The Lord Jesus removed the church from the exclusive culture of Israel and made it universal. The expectation is that the church will go into every culture (including emerging modern cultures) and be the church. That is to say that the church will preach the same Gospel, worship the one true God with prayer and the reading and proclamation of Scripture and with the singing of Biblically rooted music and will celebrate the sacraments and will collect material offerings–the same as always. But, it is not expected that the church will always look or sound the same in every culture. The content is determined. The outward forms in which that content is expressed must be culturally responsive. Pastors are the ones required to make the necessary adjustments in expression while maintaining the Biblical content and the appropriate spirit of awe.
Pastors require super-human degrees of wisdom in order to do this. Pastors also require super-human measures of compassion and patience. This is where the love of Christ must prevail in the pastors’ hearts. While difficult decisions must be made in leading the church, those decisions and especially the application of those decisions must happen under the government of love.
Here are a couple regulative passages written to pastors:
2 Timothy 2:22-26 22 Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart. 23 But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife. 24 And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, 25 in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, 26 and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.
1 Peter 5:2-4 2 Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; 3 nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; 4 and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away.
Pastors must make every effort to instruct God’s people patiently out of the Scriptures concerning whatever changes or improvements are needed. Without entertaining carnal quarrels, pastors must endeavor to gain the consciences of God’s people through loving instruction and through prayer. Tenderness and a pursuit of peace must characterize the leadership of pastors. There must be a willingness to move slowly where change is especially shocking, realizing that the sheep may not be able to bear all at once. Yet, pastors must lead the church toward ever greater conformity to the Scripture and toward an improving position for ministering the Gospel in their present cultural context.
These are dicey matters. There is much opportunity for Satan and the flesh to do mischief. It is in this regard that both pastors and people must be of the same mind regarding the absolute necessity of love and unity. If the people are unwilling to listen or to change, even where the Word of God indicates that change is needed—if they threaten disunity when change is taught and implemented even in the most careful and patient pastoral manner—Satan will win in that church. If the pastors are so set on instituting change swiftly and are unwilling to give repeated exegetical instruction, at least in private—if they are unwilling to moderate the pace of change for the sake of weak sheep who are willing to follow them but cannot do so at a rapid pace–Satan will win in that church. If pastors are unwilling to receive correction from the sheep who come to them humbly with the Scriptures and with Scripturally accurate arguments—Satan will win in that church. When I say that Satan wins I am talking about succeeding in producing division within Christ’s Body. Of course, his victory is temporary; but, it is a shame for those entrusted with the treasure of membership in Christ’s church.
Everyone must embrace the differing positions and responsibilities belonging to pastors and church members in the realm of leading the church toward greater conformity to the Bible and greater usefulness within the culture. But, there are certain vital matters wherein both pastors and members must be of the same mind: the authority of the Bible; the Gospel imperatives of love and unity; and the necessity of the Holy Spirit’s activity in making everyone concerned more devoted to the reputation of Jesus Christ in their community than to the accomplishment of their own personal preferences whether for or against change. These spiritual virtues must control pastors and people alike.
Will we all humble ourselves and plead for the graces of love, meekness, patience, forgiveness, and submissiveness? Otherwise, either we will cease to grow in grace and usefulness or we will become divided to the loss of the spiritual blessing which Christ has been pleased to give us in our beginning.
