A Little Clearing Up

In my post... "This is not a rant", I made a statement that someone took the time to ask me about and I want to clear it up.  First of all... kudos to the one who asked!  It's generally protocol to read, form an opinion (Right or wrong) and then act accordingly.  When one asks, that one will usually find that their conclusions were off base.

I spoke of the demands that are placed on Pastors by other humans.  I actually shared an instance when an actual man told me that every Pastor should be on call 24/7.  My precise purpose was to educate the church on the differences between God's demands verses the demands of people.  Biblical demands placed on a Pastor and the church's demands on a Pastor are at two different ends of the spectrum.  The Bible mandates that a Pastor give himself continually to prayer and the ministry of the word (Acts 6:4).  People mandate that a Pastor do that as well as... visit every person who is sick, make it to the annual Birthday party for cousin Sully, remember everybody' name, see to it that the bulletin is printed, make sure the prayer list is up to date, etc...  Why do the people demand that of a Pastor?  Because they aren't obedient to the Biblical demands on their own lives regarding the ministry.  If the body of Christ was as busy finding God's place for them as they were showing the Pastor what they expected, there would be nothing left for the Pastor to do other than pray and minister the word!

Now, if you go to my church... Hear me well... I visit those whom I know are sick, I lay out and print the bulletin every week, I built the church web site and keep it up to date, I gladly celebrate annual occasions with those who invite me to be a part BUT I do not do those things because my job mandates it, I do it because I love the church and I love people.  If you call me at midnight and need me... I'll be there.  Why?  Not because I get paid to be there but because I want to be there.  I love my people.

Thanks to the one who asked the question and allowed me the opportunity to make the matter clear.  I would invite anyone who has any question regarding anything I say to take the time to contact me.  You may find out that you were right about your assumption but you'll probably find out that you were wrong.

All of the above was written with all of the love I have in my heart.  I truly long to see a body operating in obedience and therefore harmony!

Are You Aware of the Cost?

Jesus made a pretty hard statement in the book of Matthew 8:22... "Follow Me and let the dead bury their dead".  Do you think Jesus was serious about our commitment to Him?  Sounds to me like Jesus don't play!  So let me ask you this... why do we?

Ask the congregation corporately if they want to follow, learn and receive all Christ has to give and the overwhelming response will be... "Amen", "Yes sir preacher", "You can count on me"!  Can I?  Can Jesus?

When one disciple told Jesus that he would follow Him anywhere and everywhere Jesus replied, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."  In other words... this ain't no easy road!  He might have asked the disciple, "Do you know what you're signing up for"? I believe the honest answer to that question, for the better part of the body of Christ, would have to be, "No, I don't have a clue what the demands of discipleship are".

On another occasion a gentleman said that he just wanted to go home and bid farewell to his family before he committed to discipleship and to that Jesus replied... "No one who puts his hand to the plow and then looks back is fit for the Kingdom"!

One might read the replies of Christ and consider Him uncompassionate but nothing could be further from the truth.  Jesus knew the heart of each individual.  As a pastor, I can't see the intent of the heart but I've been around the block a couple of times.  When that one told Jesus that he would like to go home and bury his father first, Jesus knew that as he walked off and faded into the distance... that's the last he'd ever see of him.  So often folks use excuses as to why the aren't able to serve and generally they are excuses that one would find hard to argue with.  The bottom line is, there is no valid excuse for not committing 100% to Christ!  If there's one thing I've learned it's this; people WILL do exactly what they WANT to do!  Every hard luck excuse for not enlisting in service for the King is nothing but a cover up for the fact that you don't want to!

Your salvation was bought at the expense of Christ Himself... along with that purchase came the requirement of service.  If you're too busy to serve the Lord you're just too plain busy.

The Mirror of Conviction

This past Sunday as I approached the pulpit and unfolded my sermon notes, I no more than spoke the title of the message God had laid on my heart when the Spirit prodded me to go down an unexpected trail. It wasn't written in my notes nor had it even been planned. However it was a word the church needed to receive. I won't go into what was said because it was an intimate word for those who were present but I do want to share something interesting about how folks choose to handle truth.

God's word speaks of itself as a mirror. I believe, when we take the time to gaze into the scripture, that it has the power to make us see us as we really are. It has the power to convict us and help us recognize where we are lacking in our own spiritual lives. Sadly enough, most of the body never takes the time to pick up a Bible much less read and study it and therefore God uses the spoken word to hurl those arrows of reproof.

Now that I've set it up... here's what I'm wanting to say. When we hear a word that causes conviction we can choose to handle it in one of two ways; we'll either admit that we've been pegged and take our medicine or we'll get mad at the one who spoke the truth. When I went down, what some would call, a rabbit trail on Sunday morning there was no particular person in mind... honestly. God laid it on my heart and I laid it on the table. When I write a blog and speak truth from which I feel the body could benefit if it were received... I'm not writing about any one individual. Are there church people in my life who willingly make themselves the poster children for how not to live the Christian life? Absolutely, but I'm not so ignorant as to think they are the only ones who behave in such a way.

To conclude let me say... in the event that you read or hear words that dot you between the eyes and make you mad but cannot Biblically refute them... don't get upset at anybody except the one you're looking at in the mirror. If you feel it's been said or written with only you in mind you are obviously guilty. You know the old saying... If you throw a rock into a pack of dogs, the only one who yelps is the dog who got hit!

This is Not a Rant

NO... this is not me just spewing in order to get some bad taste out of my mouth. The following in not a rant but is instead the truth.

Why is the church as a whole not marching forward in a steadier, unified and fortified effort? Because most march to the beat of their own drummer! Too many church folks tend to form their own opinion as to how the church ought to operate and mistake it for the gospel. Just in case anyone is wondering the gospel can be found between the table of contents and the maps; it has been summed up in the 66 books that were breathed into the heart of man by the Holy Spirit of God. In the event that you would wonder if your outlook on truth is valid, I would invite you to peruse the scriptures!

As a pastor I have come to notice that no other institution in the world even compares in regards to revolving doors! I see people come and then I watch them leave. The reasons are more numerous than you can imagine; everything from you didn't put my sister on the prayer list to I don't like the kind of toilet paper they use! Every now and then you'll get the spiritual answer... "God is leading us somewhere else". Now let's be honest... is He? It's a funny thing how God always starts leading folks away after something has happened to upset their apple cart. Hey, and if that offends you... take a step back and take a long look at you.

Pastors have had demands placed upon them that no human should have to bear. Here is precisely what I mean in regards to opinion verses truth. In the book of Acts 6:1-4, it is made clear that the man of God is mandated to do one thing... 4. but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word. Why did they have to arrive at that conclusion? Because there were a bunch of church folks griping about one group getting more attention than another group! Here was their direct reply... "It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables. 3 Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. SO... the Deacons were put in place! When was the last time somebody left the church because the Deacon didn't come running when they had a stumped toe? I had one gentleman tell me that a pastor should be on call 24/7 and that the pastor should even be willing to come to his house and have personal Bible study with his family! Hey... and for just $2.00 more I'll tuck you all in and sing you to sleep while my family does without a husband and a father!

In Jesus name it's about time the body of Christ gets a clue about the way things are supposed to be and step out of their Disney World mentality in regards to church! I know it's not good grammar but... this ain't no Country Club! This is not even a place that was designed to serve the believer. The church was established to win the lost and disciple those into mature Christians that in turn would serve the Church.

So Christian... if you are at odds with the Church, your pastor or any other part of the body because you haven't had your way... keep in mind that Jesus didn't die and therefore establish the Church to serve as your pacifier, in fact you need to count yourself blessed, humbled and privileged to even be considered a part of it!