When You Sense Your Church is Dying

Friends at christianity.com have posted my, “When You Sense Your Church is Dying.” Here is an excerpt:

One of the most wonderful experiences believers can share is being part of a strong, growing church. What a joy it is to share in a congregation that has unity, love, holiness, a sense of the Spirit in worship, Christ-centered preaching, God-fearing leaders, members of all age groups and ministries towards all members, and a passion for reaching the lost. In contrast, it is burdensome to be part of a dying congregation: Worship is mundane, large age group segments are absent, there is strife among members and coldness toward visitors, and there is no purposeful preaching of the gospel to the lost or the baptized.

Having been part of both thriving and dying churches, I have witnessed believers make choices that have either blessed or harmed the recovery of their congregations. Here are some humble suggestions on how to live godly when you are facing a dying church.

My true concern is that we do not think long and hard about the Gospel when church becomes uncomfortable to us. Instead, we simply look for greener grass, not thinking about the possible ways the Lord can use us to be part of his work to sanctify his Bride, which includes one’s own, individual sanctification.

Recently I spoke with three young adult believers between 25 and 35 years of age,  each from different congregations, about staying in their churches of aging membership(s) and/or mediocre preaching and/or traditional corporate worship style(s). I appealed to them to consider the growth in their lives that could come from learning to endure and serve in imperfect settings. I attempted to explain that the substance of worship music is more important than the style, and that much could be learned from less contemporary styles. I spoke with urgency about the need to see the value of continuing in one place for a long time in order to see disciples formed and in order to maintain relationships saturated in the love of Christ. I wished for them to gather with other members in their churches to pray for the hearts of their older congregants, pastors, and leaders to be open to changes that would glorify the Lord and bring signs of life and health back into the church — and that for the sake of the local and international mission fields each of their churches could reach.

I think of the three that one heart was won to stay. One-third is not a bad bating average. However, I wish more saints would learn to remain in tough situations, pursuing the glory of God through prayer, meekness, and faithfulness. I am not suggesting that anyone accept false doctrine, ongoing infighting, or sub-Gospel lifestyles. Yet I am saying that where churches are seeking to honor the Lord but have lost their way slightly, it is better not to abandon such assemblies.

I am grateful for the ministry of christianity.com. I was glad to meet some of the faithful staff at TGC13.

Related:  Gospel Departures , and Committing to One Another (@amazon).

 

Gospel Departures

Christianity.com recently posted my article, “Gospel Departures,” based on Acts 20:1-12. The article is 700-900 words of an almost 5000-word sermon; each of the points is edited greatly.  I could not include the third point of the sermon in the article. Many thanks to christianity.com for their kindness.

_______________________

So often, it is the case that when church leaders make moves from one ministry to another, they leave the way people vacate foreclosed home. Hearts are yanked out. Relationships are fractured. Huge informational and resource holes are left behind.

Sometimes, this kind of destruction seems almost intentional—as if the ministry leader had a singe of vengeance coming off his clothes. It is astounding that some who are in “gospel ministry” never seem to think of leaving in a positive way so that a grace-filled, gospel ministry is set up to prosper long after their departure.

Departures from the local church—God’s house—ought to be gospel departures. Acts 20 illustrates this very different approach to departing. Paul’s example is instructive for church leaders, who—if they must leave because of God’s clear calling—ought to leave in such a way that will make the ministry enjoyable for people being left behind as well as for those who will eventually serve in their place.

1.     Gospel Departures should be an encouraging fellowship and elude fighting (20:1-6).

Realizing that this might be his last time seeing all of the disciples he made on the three missionary journeys, Paul makes the gospel version of a farewell tour. He calls together the disciples, encourages them (v.1), then he departs. He does the same all over Macedonia, “speaking many words of encouragement” (v.2). Comforting, exhorting, or strengthening the believers was very important at this point. Paul’s was focused on building, making sure the churches he planted were growing, healthy, strong, and hopeful in Christ. In this way he could be assured that they would continue in the gospel.

When a plot from the Jews comes up, Paul changes his travel plans so as to avoid a conflict with the Jews. The hostility of his enemies is growing fiercer in the Acts narrative. They are ready to do away with Paul. But rather than taking them head on, Paul goes back to Macedonia. Why? At that point, it was more important to make sure the gospel was firmly established in the churches than to battle his enemies. His goal was to have the gospel advance further so that Europe could eventually be reached.

Paul also had traveling with him men whom he could encourage (20:4). Dawson Trotman, founder of the Navigators, was fond of saying that this was Paul’s discipleship group. Paul poured into them so that these places would have an ongoing vibrant work when he was in Rome. He took time to just enjoy the Feast of Unleavened Bread with the people at Philippi before continuing his journey.

One of the things I have noticed by shepherding many public school teachers is that when their time of retirement comes, they often avoid a departing celebration. Instead, they say to their co-workers, “No thanks. I just want to get my stuff and go.” After 35 or more years on the job, they have become disgusted or wearied by their experiences or changes to their schools. So if they simply can leave, someone else can pick up their duties and train those who follow.

In switching Gospel ministries, whether leaving to run another small group, or no longer playing a lead role in a youth ministry, we cannot simply leave. We must take time to encourage those in whom we have invested our time—not magnifying ourselves, but emphasizing the importance of Christ’s death and of our resurrection hope, of our assurance before God in judgment and of the Holy Spirit’s sufficiency to give power to continue the ministry without us.

2.     Gospel Departures should make the last Sunday(s) about life and the Word of God rather than death and worry (20:7-12).

Luke is particular to indicate that this long episode took place in Troas on “the first day of the week” (v.7). On this Sunday, Paul spoke at extreme length because he intended to depart the next day. He reasons and dialogues, prolonging his speech until midnight in order to get in as much gospel truth as he could before departing.

In the room, as Paul is preaching even longer than I have ever preached, there is a boy named Eutychus who is being overcome by the heat and haze of the oil lamps and the length of Paul’s discussion. So this small boy sits in a window, maybe to get some fresh air, and falls out of the window two stories (what Greeks called the third story) to his death.

This seems anything but “fortunate,” which is the meaning of Eutychus’s name. This is the last time this group will see Paul, and now stuck in their memory will be the tragic death of a child! For most, this tragic death would have brought ministry to a standstill. But for Paul this was an opportunity to display the power of the gospel.

In the same prophetic manner that Elijah threw himself onto the widow’s dead son in First Kings 17, Paul runs down from the second floor, throws himself on the boy, put his arms around him and says, “Don’t be alarmed. He is alive!” (v.10). Paul shows the resurrection power of Christ by raising this boy back to life. Rather than people being alarmed or worried about the events, they were greatly comforted.

Paul then was able to share a fellowship meal with the people of Troas. He also continuedpreaching until daybreak—five or six more hours! He gave great exposition of “the faith once delivered” so that the people of Troas would be firm in what they had been taught and believed. His last Sunday’s focus was the Word of God.

Often, a going away event for an office employee can turn into a “roast” in which jests and pranks are meant to lighten the occasion of departure. While the business world is an appropriate place for roasting, such is not always the case with the church. For Paul, and for us, final words ought not be jokes or trivialities, but weighty, Christ-centered dialogue with clear explanation of the goal of God in the gospel. As the people of God, let us endeavor to make all our departures from the local church gospel departures.

Eric C. Redmond is Executive Pastoral Assistant and Bible Professor in Residence at New Canaan Baptist Church in Washington, DC. He blogs at “A Man from Issachar.” You can follow him on Twitter @EricCRedmond.

4 Reasons Why Christians Have Nothing to Fear

Christianity.com posted my, “4 Reasons Christians Have Nothing to Fear.” I am grateful to them for their kindness.

_________________________________________
We do many things to avoid death, the pain of death, and the uncertainty about what awaits us after death. Some people refuse to plan their wills or attend funerals, for that forces them to think morbid thoughts. Others avoid new ventures that involve air travel even though you are more likely to be in a car accident than a plane crash. Still others of us shrink back from sharing our faith where it would mean persecution or possibly martyrdom.

If we are going to be people who live Christ-centered, counter-cultural lives, we cannot let death bully us with concerns about death itself, the manner of our demise, and what lies just past the door to the afterlife. Instead, we must be fully assured that Christ’s work in the incarnation, on the Cross, and in the resurrection means for us that there is nothing to fear.

In writing to the Hebrew Christians in 2:14-18, the author immediately recognizes a problem of human existence. As human beings, we are mere “blood and flesh,” and once the blood is spilled, we are no more. God, being without blood and flesh – without a physical body – has no concern about dying.

So that he could go through the same experience as people, God himself came in the incarnation, put on human flesh and blood, so that he too could experience death, and in doing so take the power of death away from the Evil One.

So, the first reason we have nothing to fear is because Jesus has identified with us in order to defeat the devil (2:14-15).

The writer to the Hebrews is certain of the reality of the devil. Apparently he has some real ability to use death as a means to his ends, for it says he has the power of death.

What the devil has, in fact, is delegated and usurped power. It is delegated from the Lord with limitations, as seen in the case of Job, for God alone is the one with the power to create life and to return men to dust. It is usurped in that man in the garden handed over dominion of the earth to him, and death entered under his rule with man’s disobedience. He uses that power to destroy the lives of the wicked.

Because Christ took on a body, he was able to go to the Cross and die. By dying and then rising again from the dead, he “rendered powerless” the devil by taking away his tool. Holding death in his hand, the devil could say to humanity, “You better obey me rather than God or I will kill you!” But it is now not so with Christ coming into the world. Thus the devil still attacks us and seeks our ruin; but we have nothing to fear from him because his power to destroy us by death is taken.

Second, we have nothing to fear because Jesus, in identifying with us, delivers us from the fear of death (2:16). Jesus delivers those who are slaves to the fear of death. The fear of dying controls the lives of unbelievers so as to enslave them to actions that seek to escape death and how one might die.

For example, the captain of the sinking Costa Concordia departed the ship before the passengers, to make sure he kept his life even if others perished. In a sense, everyone who tries to leave a legacy of their own greatness are trying to keep themselves from being erased completely by death.

Jesus, however, frees us from the fear of death so that we do not spend the rest of our lives making decisions based on avoiding the pains associated with death. Uniquely, Jesus does not do this for angels, but only for those described as “the offspring of Abraham.”

When one thinks of the offspring of Abraham, Isaac and Ishmael are the first to come to mind. The Lord separated Isaac from Ishmael so that the promises to Abraham would come by election. Those who follow in the faith of Abraham are also his offspring; all who have believed Christ by faith are his offspring. For us death will not be a scary event. Christ’s death for us makes death a short stop on the way to heaven, for Christ literally “takes hold of us” to carry us to glory.

Third, we have nothing to fear because Jesus has identified with us to diffuse the Divine wrath (2:17). We are identified as brothers of Jesus – a truth by virtue of Divine adoption. By coming in a body and experiencing the same things we are experiencing, Jesus takes on another role—that of High Priest.

Under the Mosaic Law, the high priest had one unique duty. Once a year, on the Day of Atonement, he took blood into the Holy of Holies, to the Mercy Seat, atop the Ark of the Covenant, in order to atone for the sins for Israel. If God accepted the sacrifice of the one goat, another goat that was spared would not return. In this way God signaled that his wrath against the people as satisfied.

Christ, by coming and experiencing the things of human life, and going to the Cross, took the role of the High Priest. It is he who would take sinful humanity to God through his sacrificial blood shed in his death for us; it is he who would bring the Holy God down to man.

Christ did this by making propitiation for the sins of the people. The word, literally, is “Mercy Seat.” Jesus is that mercy seat where God covers and removes sin because his wrath has been satisfied. He takes care of the real problem we face at death—the judgment of our sins.

Yet Jesus is not a detached priest. Because he experienced this life and death he is merciful and faithful. In the Old Testament God is the one who is merciful and gracious. Jesus takes divinity and sticks it into the priesthood by understanding what you and I go through in this life. Nevertheless, although mercy and faithfulness are for the benefit of the believer, Jesus’ service was for God. God is the one with the plan to send Jesus to satisfy his wrath. We have nothing to fear.

Fourth, we have nothing to fear because Jesus has identified with us to divert our desertion (2:18). The Hebrews faced real persecution. They were tempted to dessert the faith and leave Christ for Judaism. They were tempted to leave Jesus because to follow him meant martyrdom.

However, because Jesus took every temptation to the full extent, enduring it without giving in, he understands temptations better than any of us. Because he endured the Cross with our sin and God’s wrath upon him, he knows death better than any.

Thus, when the Christian life gets too hard – when submission is too much, pain is too strong, waiting is too long, or love is not returned – it is not time then to throw in the towel. It is then time to run to Jesus who is able.

 

Eric C. Redmond is Executive Pastoral Assistant and Bible Professor in Residence at New Canaan Baptist Church in Washington, DC. He blogs at “A Man from Issachar.”

 

Related

A Grief Sanctified: Through Sorrow to Eternal Hope (Packer)

A Grief Observed (Lewis)

 

Dr. Robert Cameron Received into Glory

It is with great sadness that I received word yesterday of the passing of Dr. Robert Cameron, founding pastor of Mt. Carmel Church (OPC) in Somerset, NJ. Dr. Cameron was a senior statesman among African American pastors within the Reformed traditions. He was author of, Last Pew on the Left: America’s Lost Potential, a work about racism and society. A few of his sermons are available on sermonaudio.com. Dr. Cameron preached Christ  crucified. I had the privilege of meeting Dr. Cameron through the work of my friends Chris Arzen and Joe Lasardo. Dr. Cameron will be missed.

 

Dangerous Calling

Paul David Tripp’s Dangerous Calling: Confronting the Unique Challenges of Pastoral Ministry is available (@Amazon). For the sake of your pastor’s health (and your church’s health), I would suggest getting a copy for yourself and your pastor. Crossway graciously invited me to review the book in pre-pub. My endorsement of the book appears below:

“Our wives, children, and the members we serve will have a new husband, father, and pastor by Friday if we follow Tripp’s example and give a humble and honest reading of this book—one with our inner Pharisee and scribe turned off. We will see the need to save our selves from a very dark and destructive force working against pastors: undiagnosed pastoral self-righteousness. With much wisdom and conviction, Tripp’s Dangerous Calling preaches the gospel of grace to the men who are preaching the gospel Sunday after Sunday to everyone but themselves.”

Learning to Live and Read the Word of God at the Same Time

This past Sunday, Rev. Gregory M. Sims, Pastor of New Canaan Baptist Church – my pastor – preached two great messages from Gal. 5:22-23 (at 11:00 AM) and Gal. 5:16-18 (at 7:30 AM). In the second message, entitled, “Flowing in Fruitfulness, Part 5: Patience, Kindness, and Goodness,” he made three points related to the definitions of “patience,” “kindness,” and “goodness.” Other important points in the message included these:

1. “Patience is available to every believer at any moment and in any situation.”
2. “God develops patience in us;” (he made a an appeal to Ja. 1:2-3 and contrasted peirasmois with hupomonen).
3. “Kindness is benevolence in action and moral goodness.”
4. On kindness: “I am blessed today because someone has been kind to me.”
5. “Goodness is uprightness of heart… it often is difficult to display when [people] are not good to us.”

I was particularly blessed by his typological use of four Old Testament passages to illustrate the failure or obedience of saints with respect to these products of the Spirit:

1. On patience, he cited Saul’s impatience with Samuel’s coming when the Philistines threatened the Israelites (1 Samuel 13). Being patient would have been the difference between sure victory over the Philistines (1 Sam. 13:13-14) rather than oppression (1 Sam. 13:17-23).
2. On kindness, he used the example of David’s kindness toward Mephibosheth – that he looked to be kind to his enemy’s offspring, provided in abundance for one crippled, and that his place at David’s table would be secure (2 Samuel 9). In the same way Christ, in the kindness of God (cf. Ex. 34:6), has rescued his enemies from God’s wrath [in justification] (Rom. 5:1, 6-11), provided abundantly for his own [in sanctification] (Mt. 6:25-34; 2 Pet 1:3-4), and made our hope secure [in glorification] so that we are assured to eat at his table throughout all eternity (Lk. 13:29; 14:15; 22:15-17, 30; Heb. 6:18-19; 1 Pet. 1:3, 13)
3. On goodness, he demonstrated it to be characteristic of God by appealing to Job’s encounters with Satan (Job 1-2)—that the Lord would not allow Satan to take Job’s life even though he granted him authority to destroy Job’s family, goods, and body. Thus, goodness exists alongside of evil and suffering in God’s plan for his own. Similarly, David demonstrated goodness toward Saul when he had opportunity to kill him (1 Sam. 24:4; 1 Sam. 26:12).

Thus, through the one message, Pastor Sims both exhorted us to walking with the Spirit, and he showed us how to read the Old Testament. I am enjoying messages like this each week; I am thankful for my pastor’s labor in the word of God.

Protecting Your Pastor’s Marital Fidelity

The sanctification of the believer is both an individual work and a community work. Each one of us has a personal responsibility to love the Lord with all of our heart, soul, strength, and mind. But as a local body of believers, each church member has a responsibility to hold all other members accountable to live before God in righteousness so that the church might be holy before the Lord. For every local congregation this accountability should include walking alongside its pastor in order to help him keep his marriage vows before them and the Lord with joy. Here are some practical tips:

1. Build time off into his contract and schedule. Your pastor needs time off in order to relieve the unseen emotional stresses of his work as a laborer in crafting souls. His contract should reflect this in vacation time, study leave, personal days off, and sabbaticals. The governing or ruling board of an assembly should work to make sure the pastor uses his time off every year. Often the distress points for an overworked pastor find their locale in his home life and make for a stressful life for his family.

2. Budget annually for competent pulpit supply for him. A church should not expect a faithful pastor to preach more than 80% of the weekly sermons in the course of a year, (75% would be even better). Pastors need 20%-25% of their Sundays off from preaching so that they can do the additional study in preparing ahead for sermons and the general pastoral leading and deepening of the congregation. Pastors who are faithful in their preaching sometimes (inadvertently) borrow this 20%-25% from their families because their families are gracious to allow them to do so. But their families and marriages pay a toll for the borrowing. With very little cost to a church’s annual budget, funds for supply preachers can be available so that the pastor can have breaks from the pulpit. Seminary and Bible college faculty and students often are seeking pulpit supply opportunities.

3. Send him and his wife to a marriage retreat annually. Many parachurch marriage retreats have special tracks and resources specifically for the marriages of shepherds and their spouses. These retreats recognize the unique pressures pastors face. The general sessions often serve as good reminders of the original marriage joy—the joy before congregational pressures. A wise church would be intentional about seeing that its pastor gets to give focused attention to his marriage apart from church duties. Finding this to be wisdom, the church where I served in Texas paid for its pastoral staff’s registration to one retreat per year.

4. Provide mature women to counsel other women in the congregation. Even with every Biblical and modern precaution in place, when a woman comes alone for counseling to her pastor, it creates a dangerous scenario for sexual temptation. This scenario might be avoided if spiritually mature women in a congregation would take up the mantle to make friends with and disciple other women in the church. In some cases, a church will staff someone over women’s counseling for this task. In other places women’s small group leaders can provide this ministry. Still other churches will utilize gifted women’s Sunday School teachers and/or deaconesses. The pastor then can give his attention to men and couples without the lure of sexual temptation.

5. Ask your elders to make it their responsibility to ask him and his wife about their marriage. Those who help a church’s pastor lead the congregation should themselves have strong marriages. As they will stand in account with the pastor for the souls of the congregation (Heb. 13:17), it would be prudent of them to encourage the health of the pastor’s marriage. An act of formative discipline in this area might consist of routinely asking the pastor and his wife about their marriage.

6. Pray for his family daily. Ultimately the pastor needs the powerful working of the Lord’s grace in his marriage. Every member of a congregation should pray daily for the Lord’s love, mercy, grace, joy, holiness, and peace to be upon their pastor’s marriage and family abundantly. The benefits will come to the lives of the congregation through their shepherd’s message, model, and morale.

Eric C. Redmond, a former pastor and professor of Biblical Studies, is Bible Professor in Residence at New Canaan Baptist Church, Washington, DC. Follow Eric at his blog, A Man from Issachar, and on Twitter @EricCRedmond.

More like this

• The Gospel and Cruciform Fidelity – Russell Moore

Original post of Protecting Your Pastor’s Marital Fidelity at christianity.com.

Preaching — From Today’s Broadcast with Pastor Christopher Brooks

Today on http://www.faithtalk1500.com, Pastor Christopher Brooks and I discussed what to look for in preaching each Sunday. I mentioned the importance of the average believer reading his own Bible faithfully, using commentaries to bolster his own understanding of God’s word, and listening for the centrality of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God the Son. Here are some recommendations:

The NIV Application Commentary Series seems to be written with the layman in mind as it examines passages of Scripture by moving from the original text to contemporary meaning (e.g., application). I would encourage the reader to start by reading a chapter per week of the Proverbs commentary in this series, along with the appropriate verses of Proverbs in the Bible. The Proverbs commentary in the Preaching the Word series also is very good.

An ESV Study Bible is an outstanding resource to help one read through the Scriptures with helps on every page of the Bible itself.

Both the daily Bible devotional, For the Love of God, and the complementary work, The God Who is There , each are good for giving the reader the ability to read through the entire Bible in one year with understanding. For the Love of God is available as an RSS feed or daily email.

Listen Up! A Practical Guide to Listening to Sermons, and the complementary, The Priority of Preaching, are good works to help laypeople listen to sermons with discernment, understanding, and joy.

What is the Gospel?, and, The Gospel and Scripture, are two practical booklets that explain what should be central in understanding Scripture (and thus in the preaching of Scripture).

Do you know who Joseph Kony is? (Lifted from Denny Burk’s blog with first person edits)

If you don’t know who Joseph Kony is by now, then it’s likely that you don’t own a computer. He’s a brutal warlord in Africa who kidnaps children and conscripts them into his “Lord’s Resistance Army” (LRA). His tactics are unspeakably vicious and brutal, and he’s been at it for over 20 years. The man is a monster, and he needs to be stopped. [Denny Burk (DB) has] written twice before on this blog about Kony, once in 2005 and again in 2008. Here’s what Christianity Today wrote about him in 2005:

Perhaps the greatest atrocity is teaching these children that they spread this carnage by the power of the Holy Spirit to purify the “unrepentant,” twisting Christianity into a religion of horror to their victims. It is spiritual warfare at its very worst, and it could not be more satanic. . .

Under threat of death, LRA child soldiers attack villages, shooting and cutting off people’s lips, ears, hands, feet, or breasts, at times force-feeding the severed body parts to victims’ families. Some cut open the bellies of pregnant women and tear their babies out. Men and women are gang-raped. As a warning to those who might report them to Ugandan authorities, they bore holes in the lips of victims and padlock them shut. Victims are burned alive or beaten to death with machetes and clubs. The murderous task is considered properly executed only when the victim is mutilated beyond recognition and his or her blood spatters the killer’s clothing.

In 2008, Michael Gerson shared this horror story in The Washington Post:

A friend, the head of a major aid organization, tells how his workers in eastern Congo a few years ago chanced upon a group of shell-shocked women and children in the bush. A militia had kidnapped a number of families and forced the women to kill their husbands with machetes, under the threat that their sons and daughters would be murdered if they refused. Afterward the women were raped by more than 100 soldiers; the children were spectators at their own private genocide.

This is ultimately the work and trademark of a single man: Joseph Kony, the most carnivorous killer since Idi Amin.

These were the stories that provoked [DB] to write about Kony back then, and his continuing atrocities have provoked [DB] to write again today.

Kony is trending right now on the internet because of a viral video (see above) that has garnered 32 million views since its Tuesday release. The group that produced the film is called “The Invisible Children.” When [DB] was a professor at Criswell College, [DB] had some students involved with this organization, but that was several years ago. Until [DB] saw this tweet yesterday, the organization has been off my radar screen. When [DB] watched the video, [DB] was reminded again of just how horrific Kony’s crimes are.

There has been some controversy about the methods used by the organization that produced the video. The Invisible Children group has responded to that criticism, but the debate goes on. [DB is] not going to attempt to resolve that here. If you are interested in reading a summary of the criticism, The Washington Post has a short piece that is very helpful. [DB is] sure there will be more scrutiny to follow as the national media is now catching up with this story. The leader of The Invisible Children will sit for an interview on “The Today Show” tomorrow morning. [DB looks] forward to hearing him answer some questions.

[DB did not post] this video to encourage you to give money to The Invisible Children organization or to participate in its program. [DB hasn't] given any and wouldn’t without a little more vetting of the organization.  [DB is providing] this video simply to shine the light again on Kony’s crimes. He needs to be exposed.

——

Further Reading:

J. Carter Johnson, “Deliver Us from Kony,” Christianity Today 50.1 (January 2006).

Michael Gerson, “Africa’s Messiah of Horror,” The Washington Post (June 6, 2008).

Elizabeth Flock, “Invisible Children responds to criticism about ‘Stop Kony’ campaign,” The Washington Post blog (March 8, 2012).

Sarah Pulliam Bailey, “Why Joseph Kony Is Trending (And What Invisible Children Wants with Rick Warren and Tim Tebow),” Christianity Today liveblog (March 7, 2012).

Refreshing Your Shepherd

It is Clergy Appreciation Month. Your pastor needs encouragement. These are good things, for it means that he is human, and that you have a unique opportunity to be a servant to him.

Many parishioners have and will celebrate their pastors during this month. They will give him gifts, say kind words to him, or provide him with some extra time off. Yet other local congregations will miss this great opportunity, and their pastors will go without any special recognition – this, despite the fact that celebrating the pastor in October is now an annual tradition known throughout the North American Christian community. Many pastors will not be honored even as they watch their fellow pastors receive honor again and again by their churches. Thinking that this responsibility is someone else’s – such as the pastor’s aide committee or the deacons – many churchgoers will miss a chance to be a great blessing within the kingdom of God.

Why do We Honor Our Pastors?

For various reasons, there are churches that do not believe in showing special honor to a pastor. Some have overreacted to being stung by the greed of hirelings and wolves. They have witnessed the pastor who demands unbudgeted financial gifts at every turn: For his birthday (and his wife’s birthday), his wedding anniversary, anniversary of his call to the church, Christmas, and for Clergy Appreciation Month too! For fear of being fleeced by this rouse, some people hesitate to give any special honor even to faithful, humble shepherds.

It is important to remember that honoring the shepherd is the Lord’s idea. Through Paul, the Lord says, “Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching” (1 Tim. 5:17; cf. 2 Tim. 3:16). Regardless of our bad experiences, shepherds, especially the hardworking and faithful ones, are due honor that is “double.”

The debate on the nature of “double” continues: “Double” of what? Is it twice what one gives widows (1 Tim. 5:3)? Is it much more than that due to other Christian workers? Is it greater than what one would give a professional outside of the church? Is it a unique measure of respect of their authority? One thing is certain: “Double” has a financial factor. The reasons for honor concern “wages” given for “labor” by the worker, and food for the ox to eat while he is pulling the plow (1 Tim. 5:18, cf. Mt. 10:10; Lk. 10:7). Of the later illustration, Paul writes that this Scripture concerns the payment of people (1 Cor. 9:8-12; cf. Dt. 25:4).

One church will build such monetary honor into the pastor’s salary and benefits package. Another church will provide it through a special annual anniversary gift (or annually during Clergy Appreciation Month). Still others provide special honor through a year-end bonus. These are commendable acts that demonstrate appreciation to the pastor. By some significant means, an assembly remembers the shepherd’s service for the maturity, comfort, and joy of his people.

Recently, a colleague of mine at a nearby congregation went to a pastor’s conference as a surprise gift from the leaders of his church. They recognized a particularly challenging season of work for their shepherd and spontaneously rewarded him. They paid for the conference registration and made travel arrangements. All he had to do was go. His smile was huge and humble as he recounted the story.

In stark contrast, for an unnamed number of assemblies and believers, the financial factor contributes to the caution (or refusal) of some to give generously toward their pastors: We are greedy people who love our money; we are selfish people who will spend discretionary funds on steak and shrimp, movies, and fifth and sixth mobile gadgets before we will give to one who labors in the word on our behalf.

Who Benefits from Honoring the Pastor?

In the economy of God, the great grace of the Lord toward his church is that the members of a local body benefit from honoring their shepherd. In Hebrews, speaking about leaders of the church, the writer says, “they are keeping watch over [our] souls, as those who will have to give an account” (Heb. 13:17). He then exhorts the church: “Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.” The implication is that watching over souls with joy is of advantage to the people of God. Showing the shepherd special honor for his labors is one small way to foster this joy. Commenting on Heb. 13:17, Calvin notes,

“The heavier the burden they bear, the more honor they deserve; for the more labor anyone undertakes for our sake, and the more difficulty and danger he incurs for us, the greater are our obligations to him. And such is the office of bishops, that it involves the greatest labor and the greatest danger; if, then, we wish to be grateful, we can hardly render to them that which is due; and especially, as they are to give an account of us to God, it would be disgraceful for us to make no account of them.”

In August 2010, when it was announced that Washington Nationals rookie star pitcher Jason Strasburg had to have Tommy John surgery, fans knew that this meant he would miss most of the 2011 season. He would need a year off for recovery and therapy. Then, he would have to work his way back to the Major League from the farm system. Did Nats fans say this was too much extra care to give to a rookie pitcher? No. Did his teammates say to management that he was gaining favored treatment? No. Did anyone in the Nationals’ organization suggest that Strasburg’s incentives were sufficient and that having the surgery and time off was over the top? No. Why not? Because both fans and players knew that such a surgery would make Strasburg an even better player, which would mean wins for the entire team. In and around Washington, DC, the baseball faithful wanted this perk and the hiatus for their team’s leader so that they all could celebrate the victories the leader would gain for and with the whole team.

In a similar way, believers in a congregation benefit from showing special, non-contracted, even spontaneous honor to their leader. The shepherd, serving from the overflow of a joyous heart filled by the love his people have shown, provides ministry with excitement and not drudgery. Being human, he is strengthened by his people’s displays of affection, and he gains esteem from their acknowledgement of his faithful labors. With gladness he then gives to his people. Again Calvin writes,

“If [pastors] have their minds restrained by grief or weariness, though they may be sincere and faithful, they will yet become disheartened and careless, for vigor in acting will fail at the same time with their cheerfulness. Hence the Apostle declares, that it would be unprofitable to the people to cause sorrow and mourning to their pastors by their ingratitude; and he did this, that he might intimate to us that we cannot be troublesome or disobedient to our pastors without hazarding our own salvation.”

What are Some Practical Means of Showing Honor?

Practically speaking, it is very easy to encourage a faithful shepherd! It is difficult to encourage a hireling because his goal is to take advantage of the flock for himself. Thus he never will be satisfied. But a faithful pastor will be grateful for a reward, because he serves out of a motive to please the Lord and serve the people. Here, then, are a few suggestions of simple ways to show special honor this month.

First, considering giving your shepherd a gift card to Barnes and Noble, Amazon, Westminster Bookstore, Christian Book Distributors, Family Christian Stores, or Lifeway Christian Stores, for most shepherds love to read. Their jobs are wrapped in reading the Scriptures, and anything and everything that helps them better understand Scriptures, explain it to their sheep, and utilize it to foster Christlikeness in their people is truly a gift. Having the ability to purchase books by gift cards will allow him to pick up some leisurely reading titles rather than titles only associated with his ministry duties and pastoral budget. In this way, your pastor can take advantage of some very encouraging books such as The Mighty Weakness of John Knox, Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor, The Faithful Preacher, The Bruised Reed, or Jonathan Edwards: A Life.

If your shepherd is one with a large family, consider giving a gift that will help stretch his family budget, such as a gift card to Walmart, Target, or a local grocery store. Sometimes vehicle maintenance or home repairs have to be deferred for long periods of time in large ministry families. So offering to help repair a vehicle or home could lift a financial burden off the shepherd’s family, and thus off him. Yes, small, non-pastoral families may suffer from prolonged deferred maintenance. However, no one has an expectation that laymen will always have means to travel to serve other sheep, or that they will regularly invite people into their homes. Moreover, laymen can ask for benevolence from the church body without concern of their ministry being suspect. Typically pastors are not given this margin of error.

Some shepherds would welcome a fancy dinner out for their entire family. They would like the experience of eating where you like to eat. They would enjoy your pleasant company too.

Other pastors would welcome a few personal days off without concern of being docked for pay. Many pastors do not use the annual leave contracted for them; even fewer experience professional sabbaticals of any form. If you are an elder and chairman of deacons reading this, I would charge that you are responsible to see that your pastor takes necessary periods of rest, and that you make it your duty to see that he has no concerns about the ministry ceasing or revolting while he is resting. Grant your shepherd free, unscheduled leave, and exhort the membership to direct concerns to you while he is away.

If you are tired of watching your shepherd wear the same three suits or blazers each month, take him to a men’s clothier and purchase him a new suit, shirt, tie(s), and shoes. If you do not take him, he probably will not take the time out of his ministry schedule to go on his own. Make him go by taking him to the store and picking up the tab. You do not have to do this alone; a small group can do this as a group gift. He (and his wife) will be glad that you noticed the pills and loose threads on his suit pants and took thoughtful actions to care for him rather than pity or scoff at him.

If you have no financial means to provide a gift, a heartfelt note of thanks and encouragement will be very meaningful to your pastor. Cards and notes, however, should not be used as excuses for not making sacrifices to show honor. Honor is not communicated by thoughtless, cheap, obligatory acts; only duty is communicated: “I gave this to you because I had to, because it is politically correct to do so, and did the minimum necessary to fulfill this requirement.” Works of this sort reveal a heart that lacks gratefulness to Christ for granting a man of God to prepare the Lord’s church to meet with God, and to care for them in the stead of Christ until our Lord returns.

Is All of this Really Necessary?

Is all of this really necessary? Shouldn’t a shepherd serve faithfully even if he does not receive encouragement from the sheep? My answer to the latter question is “Yes!” Yes, a faithful shepherd will serve diligently when the fuel needle goes past “E” to “D” and “C.” However, whether or not special honor is necessary is the wrong question.

Again, the idea of double honor is from the Lord. Giving special honor is just one means of providing double honor. So we do not have the authority to ask if it is necessary. I follow my pastoral mentor in finding that those who desire to be obedient in providing double honor look for opportunities to provide special honor.

Also, as stated above, your overseer is a human being. He therefore needs occasional refreshment—an idea common to Paul’s writings about himself. The great apostle had need for his spirit to repose and gather strength (1 Cor. 16:18, Gk. ανεπαυσαν [anepausan]), and, figuratively speaking, he had need to cool off and recover from the effects of heat (2 Tim. 1:16, Gk. ανεψυξεν [anepsuxen]). Your pastor is no apostle; his needs are greater than Paul’s. He needs acts of love that will allow him to collect his strength and recover from working in the sun of ministry—from ministry sunstroke. When he is back to full strength, you will see and feel the effects in his ministry toward you and all of God’s people.

Act Now

October is almost over. But there are just enough days left this month for you to show special honor to your pastor. Your whole congregation will relish in victory as your refreshed shepherd leads you toward the Cross. Your obedience will magnify the Cross as you show gratefulness to God for sending someone to model and point you to the Great Shepherd who gave his life for us. Because of his grace, we will spend all eternity gladly showing special honor to Christ our Shepherd without any restraint from sin.

Coda

If you are one of those shepherds who will not be celebrated by his people, I have prayed that this post will encourage and refresh you, that your people might show you a special kindness, and that even if they do not, that the Lord might be your treasure. May his grace be great upon your faithfulness. The Lord himself remembers your labor of love and will reward you.