Thursday, March 03, 2005
Leading Churches
Transforming Sermons had an interesting post yesterday about pastor's not being in a "helping" profession. I agree with what Milt has to say up to a point:
But I think that charge the church does have extends beyond worship. I really like the imagery that Piper uses about pastors, and elders, being shepherds.
There are many good pastors in the world. I suspect Milt is one of them, though I have not met him to know for sure. But the temptation is grave when your livelihood depends your ministry. The first century church often remunerated its ministers, but it was absent the salary contracts and performance evaluations of today's world. It was also a church that sought to raise up leadership from within rather than hold the volunteers at bay so the pastor and staff had something to do.
You want to rethink church? This would be a good place to put your attention. How do we structure a church, or more rightly, how do we reinstitute the existing structures of the church, so that they adhere more closely to the first century model and less to the modern-business model?
...make a strong case for keeping worship, not psychological nurturing, at the heart of Christian ministry.Psychological counseling and ministry IS NOT the primary ministry of the church. In fact, I believe movements in that direction have done imeasureable harm to the church. Mental well being and spiritual well being are separate and distinct things. The church is charged with spiritual well being.
But I think that charge the church does have extends beyond worship. I really like the imagery that Piper uses about pastors, and elders, being shepherds.
In one sense the elder-shepherds are just sheep like every other Christian, with Christ as the Chief Shepherd. But by virtue of their calling and their gifts and their affirmation by the church, they have a responsibility that is different than the rest of the sheep. Responsibility is the key word, or accountability.Milt's post talks about "the foolishness that passes for Christian ministry." You want an explanation for that you need look no farther than one of the three ways Piper says elders are to shepherd:
In a world driven by mammon, worth is measured in results. How do we calibrate the results of spiritual well being? How do we measure it? We have developed measures for psychological well being, and success in those measures brings remuneration.Not For Sordid Gain, but with Eagerness
Verse 2 at the end: exercise your oversight "not for sordid gain, but with eagerness." "Sordid gain" means making the ministry a means to get rich. It means being motivated by money in the ministry. It means thinking constantly about vacations and days off and retirement benefits instead of thinking about the value of the human soul and the preciousness of truth and the power of the Holy Spirit and the coming glory of the Chief Shepherd. A man might even hang on for a while in the face of great difficulty if he could make godliness a means of gain, as Paul said in 1 Timothy 6:5.
There are many good pastors in the world. I suspect Milt is one of them, though I have not met him to know for sure. But the temptation is grave when your livelihood depends your ministry. The first century church often remunerated its ministers, but it was absent the salary contracts and performance evaluations of today's world. It was also a church that sought to raise up leadership from within rather than hold the volunteers at bay so the pastor and staff had something to do.
You want to rethink church? This would be a good place to put your attention. How do we structure a church, or more rightly, how do we reinstitute the existing structures of the church, so that they adhere more closely to the first century model and less to the modern-business model?
