March 14, 2008
Feeding the Congregational Sheep
Are you sitting down? I’m going to support the elders… Christianity Today has an article titled ‘What Makes A Church Missional?’ by J. Todd Billings [March 2008]. The author gives an anecdote of a pastor friend who wanted to change the focus of her ministry and was met with resistance from the elders of her church. Shaking an accusing finger at those elders the author, Billings, says, “…the elders were locked into an internal mode, fixated on members’ desire rather than on God’s ministry in the world.” Huh? Elders hire church staff to meet the spiritual needs of their congregation…that is what they are paid for. I’ve seen numerous help-wanted ads for qualified men to pastor a church, but I’ve yet to see a church search committee looking for a man for God’s ministry in the world. It seems to me that if a preacher wants to minister in the world shouldn’t he/she be willing to leave the comfort zone of the local church?
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Gail;
-----I think you are right. Focus on God’s ministry to the world sounds a whole lot like what has always been called “missions.” It is indeed refreshing to hear about a group of elders who understand that some of the body really is about you. I’ve always said there can not be any serving unless there is just as much receiving. I am so disgusted with preachers who make big of their service from one side of their mouth while they spew shame at their congregations’ needs out of the other side.
-----Close to this topic, you might be interested to hear, the origin of the recent bomb dropped on our church may have showed itself just a bit last Sunday. The preacher who filled in kept holding up Rick Warren’s book while spewing that, “It isn’t about you,” deceit several times. In this church, there is a little ritual blessing pronounced upon the congregation just before official disbursement. The regular preacher always had a tidbit of scripture to quote in that process, but this guy once again held up Bro. Warren’s book to quote, “…once again those four little words…’It isn’t about you’…” I suppose that meant the blessing he pronounced upon the congregation was not about you.
-----I have never met people so anxious to exclude their brothers and sisters from the benefits of the brotherhood as are these purpose-drivers. It is as if all you heard before coming to the Lord, how much He loved you, how His death was for you and you alone, how much everyone down at the local church love you and want to help you gets yanked on down the by-way before you’ve fully dried off from the baptism (if you were lucky enough to get one.) All of a sudden, you learn that your tastes no longer count, your ideas are passé, your interests are superfluous, and the only desire you are to have is the desire to run on down that by-way telling everyone else it is all about them.
-----Well, I am sorry, then brothers and sisters, if I must apologize for retaining my brain beyond my baptism. I just could not be convinced that He wanted me to discard it with my sins. So having retained such a dangerous tool, I understand such statements as, “…let us do good to all men, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.” (Gal 6:10) Hey! Yah! Those of the household of faith are you! Me, too! And you all know all the “one another’s” of the Word, serve one another, love one another, welcome one another, submit to one another, etc. Yah! No kidding! Those are you, too! And me, too! By golly, guys, I think this is why God didn’t want me checking my brain at the baptismal, He wrote a Bible He wants me to read and understand. And He wants you retaining your brains, too. Because it is about you! And me. And all those who have come to life. And Jesus Christ, Who brought us to life. And those whom He will bring to life. Let’s all play a trick on the church leaders and not check our brains at the baptismal.
His love is about you,
So is mine,
Steve Corey
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