a work in progress.

Leaders, Pastors, Ministers and the like:

Let the text speak for itself.  Instead of reading into it, let it read you!  How are you doing?

Matthew 23:1-12 (The Message)

1 Now Jesus turned to address his disciples, along with the crowd that had gathered with them.2 “The religion scholars and Pharisees are competent teachers in God’s Law.3 You won’t go wrong in following their teachings on Moses. But be careful about following them. They talk a good line, but they don’t live it. They don’t take it into their hearts and live it out in their behavior. It’s all spit-and-polish veneer.

4 “Instead of giving you God’s Law as food and drink by which you can banquet on God, they package it in bundles of rules, loading you down like pack animals. They seem to take pleasure in watching you stagger under these loads, and wouldn’t think of lifting a finger to help.5 Their lives are perpetual fashion shows, embroidered prayer shawls one day and flowery prayers the next.6 They love to sit at the head table at church dinners, basking in the most prominent positions,7 preening in the radiance of public flattery, receiving honorary degrees, and getting called ‘Doctor’ and ‘Reverend.’

8 “Don’t let people do that to you, put you on a pedestal like that. You all have a single Teacher, and you are all classmates.9 Don’t set people up as experts over your life, letting them tell you what to do. Save that authority for God; let him tell you what to do. No one else should carry the title of ‘Father’; you have only one Father, and he’s in heaven.10 And don’t let people maneuver you into taking charge of them. There is only one Life-Leader for you and them-Christ.

11 “Do you want to stand out? Then step down. Be a servant.12 If you puff yourself up, you’ll get the wind knocked out of you. But if you’re content to simply be yourself, your life will count for plenty.

Disclaimer.

I hope my recent blogs in this series aren’t being “read into.”  The purpose of my posts aren’t to point a finger toward or tear down any church I’ve served with.  In fact, I consider everyplace I’ve been a blessing.  I’m truly thankful for the people and organizations who have invested relationships, time and resources toward my growth as a person and in ministry.  I’ve met amazing people–who do amazing things.  It’s a privilege to serve alongside such God-fearing people who have sacrificed their skills, talents, and abilities toward the advancement of the Kingdom and the Universal Church.

My posts, however, are reflections on experiences I’ve had or  have seen in my short time in ministry, so far.  My writings are meant to exploit and expose the parts of leadership and the view of leaders in the American church that should probably be challenged, reconsidered and abandoned.  As I continue this series of blogs (yes, there are more–not sure how many), I pray that God transforms the way leaders lead and the way leaders are viewed.  My desire is for all to be pushed toward a holistic view of the Body of Christ.  Consider this series of blogs as “the world beneath” church leadership.

By the way, I’ve made sure I have accountability in case I’m ever to go off the “deep end.”

Offense Taken.

A couple of years ago, I had the opportunity to be part of a learning environment alongside the church staff I served with.  It was a very enriching, inspiring and humbling time where we learned about and discussed spiritual gifts.  During this time we assessed the supernatural in our own lives as well as the lives of others in the group.  While assessing and sharing our own gifts in the group, one of the pastors shared something profound.  He shared that he does not possess the spiritual gift of “pastor.”

What?  A pastor does not have have the “pastor” spiritual gift?  Then why do we call him pastor?

Think of it in the arena of a hospital.  What if anybody and everybody who worked at the hospital was called, “doctor”?

First, the doctor.  I’m sure the doctor would be pretty offended by this.  Afterall, the doctor has put in countless hours of study, residencies, and spent thousands of dollars to be set apart by educational standards and experience to be called, “doctor”.  By no means, should anybody be granted this title except for the one who has been set apart for it, right?

Now, the rest of the staff.  Can you imagine the weight of expectation and responsibility the receptionist would experience given the title, “doctor”?  Seriously, imagine somebody who’s very sick walking up to the receptionist asking for medical advice.  Pretty crazy, right?

What about the patient?  The patient would be the most misled.  Walking up to the kitchen staff and asking for surgery on their appendix would seem quite strange and really dangerous!  That experience would probably skew the patient’s view of every doctor and every hospital out there.

I wonder when we began to exploit the spiritual gift, “pastor,” by making it a job title?  Somehow, it’s become a shallow term that means more money (in a church environment) and unrealistic expectations (I’ll do a little more in-depth exploration of this in another blog).

I can’t imagine how pastors who don’t have the that spiritual gift must feel.  I’m sure at times they feel inadequate, frustrated and burnt out.  There are obvious issues and consequences, personally and corporately when working outside your God-given gifts.

It’s been affirmed in me, by myself and others that being a “pastor” is part of who I am.  In the past, it has angered me when the term “Pastor” is handed out as a superficial job title instead of recognized as a supernatural gifting.  I’m sure there are healthier ways for me to handle it but yes, offense taken.