Local churches vary in understanding about the role of the pastor. One view is that a pastor is hired by a church board to perform religious tasks for the people. Another view is that a pastor is a servant of the church who serves the church members and must live in poverty like the Lord Jesus. Still others view the pastor as one who speaks to comfort the people at various times. With these various conceptions of the pastoral ministry, come the different expectations from the pastor.
How should we regard the pastoral office? Does the Bible speak about proper view of the office? How should members relate with him? What are his tasks in the local church? Is he really a hired employee whom the church board can remove at their pleasure? Must the office of the pastor be given a term of service? How should leaders of para-church institutions relate with the man of God? Unbiblical answers to these questions will lead to ruin of the local church thus frustrating the man of God.
Occasionally, we hear of stories of young people who were sent to Bible school for ministerial training and who returned to his local church with different doctrines or behavior. Having imbibed the false views of institution teachers, he now questions the validity of his pastor’s teaching being less scholarly in nature. Other returnees quietly distrust the leadership of his pastor in various ministry areas. He is now mesmerized by the glitters of scholarship. He is now a victim of loyalty-hungry teachers who subtlely imbibed their supremacy over the young person’s pastor. This is true in my former alma mater as well as in other schools. Why does this thing happen?
First, the young student is too naïve and untaught with the true biblical role of pastor and also that of the school. Second, the school is either in competition with the local church followership or is plainly unsophisticated with the scriptural role of the school or worst probably desires to supplant the local church view about the pastoral role. Sometimes, this last perception is the dominant reason of conflict.
Some events that had transpired in our local church history and the current events are clear illustrations of above philosophy of pastoral role and authority. Let me discuss with you from the Bible some passages that provide answers to the above troubles.
God has entrusted to the office of pastor (and teacher) the task of qualifying the believers for the work of God in the local church. This is the truth of Ephesians 4:11b-12. The task of teaching is inherent in the pastoral office. The text does not provide separation of the office of teaching from the office of pastorate. This is hard to implement on a universal manner. But rather intended to be carried on in a local church setting. Qualifying task involves equipping work after selecting minimum qualities of people fit for the mold. Consequently, church members must accept the truth that their pastor, being God’s man, is the one to teach and to shepherd them towards becoming fully qualified for the local church ministry fulfillment.
See what is going on among Bible school graduates. Men and women are endorsed to the church for the work because they are degree holders. They are presumed fit for they have finished certain religious academic units. They have been influenced NOT by their pastors but by teachers who did not submit their teachings and practices to local church pastors. At best they only paid lip-service of being church members too as teachers but their belief and behavior were actually independent of their respective pastoral direction. This is plain worldliness among many fundamental schools. This is biblically wrong! Cornerstone people, we must unlearn this evil perpetuated among our generations and friends. We must remain in the belief that God has given us pastor(s) to qualify us into the various areas of local church ministry. We do not need teachers and scholars who refuse to submit their teachings and ways under the authority of local church! Thus, CBMS from inception until the Savior comes must remain under the control of Cornerstone Baptist Church else it has no biblical reason to exist! The former is an extension of the church pastor’s teaching ministry.
God intends that the pastor (and teacher) does the work until church members reach unity of the faith until the coming of the Savior. This is what is taught in verse 13. Christ is the final model of church members’ imitation and it must be sought diligently. However, a human leader is necessary for initial emulation. Paul extensively taught this point in 1 Corinthians 11:1; Galatians 4:12; Philippians 2:20; and 2 Timothy 3:10-14. So, academic graduation is not terminal, as far as qualifying aspect is concerned; but a beginning of a lifelong modeling of your pastor for the ministry’s sake. You will have to start by emulating your local church pastor towards fully imitating the Lord Jesus Christ. When church members look highly to teachers outside the local church then there is violation of God’s word in 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13. This will result in frustration either among members or the pastor as well as leaders. Such attitude is inviting conflict and chaos in the local church especially when the pastor is weak. When church members confide to teachers other than their pastor then there is room for local church conflict. Both the pastor and members need to know this truth. The pastor must be worthy of confidentiality and the member must trust the Lord for such a pastor God has given him.
God also designed the local church to be doctrinally stable as a result of pastoral work. Consider verse 14 as the basis for this. The pastoral teaching work either at the local church or at its extension in the Bible school must be geared at stabilizing the doctrinal grasp of the members. As the church increases in stability, it will survive attacks in doctrinal and ministerial areas. The local church must not be carried away by the fad of doctrine that changes in generations. She must not yield to changes in any area of doctrines. For instance, a large educational institution in the USA is changing its doctrine on bibliology. She used to believe that every word is inspired in the autograph. Now she still believes that, but denies the preservation of every word in the apograph. She now affirms that such (the preservation of every word in apograph) is not possible for it is not the original writings. She clearly affirms that God has preserved only the message (the essential doctrines of the faith) and not every word. Hence, there is a very minimal word discrepancy between manuscripts. So the discrepancies in words do not really matter for the essential passages on which the essential doctrines hang are unaffected. This teaching is seen in a book endorsed by the institution president. Beware of such slight departure, Cornerstone people! We must remain in the old fashioned doctrines of the faith and never attempt to change it.
God wants the pastor to speak the truth in love leading the church towards growth. Look at verses 15-16. Speaking in bitterness is never right. Harboring ill feeling towards our critics is ungodly. Exposing falsity is however urgent to warn the ignorant from deception. It is not necessarily being cantankerous. The pastor must lead the local church in growth of love towards one another even to its enemies. But love does not mean tolerating or compromising with errors. Separation is a must when there is unwillingness to correct error. The pastor must also lead the church to increase in number. These last two are both results of dependence upon the ultimate spiritual head of the local church – the Lord Jesus Christ. When the local church diligently follows (Hebrews 13:7,17) the leadership of the pastor, he will succeed in bringing together the local church into greater unity and growth. When members highly respect him as taught in 1 Thess. 5:12-13 he will have greater strength to work for the local church. As long as he remains scripturally qualified, as specified in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-11, he must pastor the local church.
Church members never neglect him and his needs! Consider 1 Timothy 5:17-18! Are you loyal to your church pastor more than to your bible school teacher? Whom do you regard more, your pastor or your teacher? Do you take time to encourage your pastor either personally or ministerially? With whom do you confide in personal and ministerial issues? Cornerstone people, if we favor, follow, and remain loyal to our pastor, then we shall strengthen him to do God’s vision for the local church!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment