Category Archives: Church Life and Practice

Pastor You Are Just A Bus Driver

Posted on by
Reply

Know that the Lord Himself is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. Psalm 100:3

One of the many challenges that church leaders face is the challenge to remember that our brothers and sisters in the faith belong to God.  They are His people and as our focus passage states, “sheep of His pasture.”

This highlights some very important implications.  For instance, men and women who make your church their spiritual home, do so as a result of their relationship with God.  He has entrusted them to your care for a season.  They need sound spiritual guidance from you.

Second, it is God who will sustain His people. How does God do that? God does that by feeding them in His pasture.  That may be your church for a season but it can just as easily be another church in another season. But even while being a part of your church, God’s people should be partaking of solid spiritual food as a result of their personal communion with Him. Yours should not be the only voice they hear.

Why do I bring this up?  For this simple truth – far too many church leaders today, behave as if God has assigned people to their churches for as long as they live.  Now before you church leaders start getting yourself all worked up, hear me out.  What I am suggesting to you is that you are merely a bus driver in the Kingdom of God and not a warden.  In other words the church door swings both ways. And it is my belief we should encourage that.

People will get on and off the bus at every stop you make on this faith journey called life. We should not be surprised by this.  The days of 3rd and 4th generation families calling the same church their home, are rare according to recent statistics.

Given that fact, shouldn’t church leaders be preparing people to be Kingdom builders in their own right?  What would happen if more church leaders actually discipled God’s people under their care, to go out and start new churches?  That would create a Gospel title wave that would sweep across our nation, something we desperately need in America today.

Church leaders – take seriously your role as a Kingdom bus driver and watch the amazing things that will happen as a result.  That will be a transforming moment in your life.

A Thanksgiving Prayer – Prayers of John Wesley

Posted on by
Reply

John Wesley

“Thanksgiving is inseparable from true prayer; it is almost essentially connected with it. One who always prays is ever giving praise, whether in ease or pain, both for prosperity and for the greatest adversity. He blesses God for all things, looks on them as coming from Him, and receives them for His sake- not choosing nor refusing, liking or disliking, anything, but only as it is agreeable or disagreeable to His perfect will.”

John Wesley, How To Pray: The Best of John Wesley on Prayer

No Shoes, No Shirt, No Service

Posted on by
Reply

So then, each one of us shall give an account of himself to God. Romans 14:12

Although not as prevalent as they once were, I still occasionally see signs posted in store windows that say, “No shoes, no shirt, no service.”  The meaning is clear – please dress appropriately when entering this establishment for the purpose of conducting business. This idea is carried to lofty heights in finer restaurants that proudly display signs that proclaim, “Jacket and tie required.”

Reminders of requirements are not a bad thing and I think Christians and churches could learn something from this principle.  Perhaps churches could display a sign that reads, “No riding on coat-tails allowed.”  For those unfamiliar with the phrase “riding on coat-tails”, it is a simple way of saying you must do things for yourself and not expect to meet requirements based on someone else meeting them for you.

The Apostle Paul told the Christians residing in Rome that each one of them would give an account of himself to God.  This is a good reminder that each individual must enter into a saving relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ.  No one is saved because their father, mother, brother, sister, aunt, uncle, grandfather, or grandmother was or is saved. There is no such thing as coattail salvation.

Since salvation is an individual issue, a number of clear implications arise. (1) Church membership does not save you.  Salvation is the result of an individual profession and possession of faith. (2) Baptism does not save you. Since it is something engaged in after profession and possession it cannot be responsible for that which it is a demonstration of. (3) Each person will give an account of their life and will be fully responsible for how they lived. (4) No individual will be permitted to play the “blame game” before the throne of God. Blaming your parents or employer may work in this world but it won’t work in eternity.

Friends, it is important that you take full responsibility for your life.  The day is coming when every person will have to do that. Don’t get caught attempting to ride someone else’s coattails into eternity.

These are transforming truths.

Doctrine Matters, But . . . .

Posted on by
Reply

As I urged you upon my departure for Macedonia, remain on at Ephesus so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines, nor to pay attention to myths and endless genealogies, which give rise to mere speculation rather than furthering the administration of God which is by faith. But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. 1 Timothy 1:3-5

In most Christian churches today doctrine reigns supreme as the number one litmus test for fellowship as well as for consideration for leadership and ministry. Believe the same things as those in power and you’re in.  Have a different view on specific subjects and not only are you not considered for leadership, you are essentially shunned for any other ministry opportunity.

Is this the right approach?  How can the big “C” Church ever become united as Christ prayed we would if we allow doctrine to divide us?  In our focus passage the Apostle Paul urged Timothy to teach sound doctrine.  On this we can all agree – sound doctrine matters.  But here is where we have to consider a very important question – does disagreement on certain doctrinal matters disqualify one for ministry or leadership?

People ask me all the time why there are so many denominations.  My answer is nearly always the same – because people make doctrine the dividing line and forget that what really matters is the life we live based on the doctrine we believe.  What do I mean by that?

Note that after Paul instructed Timothy to correct the strange doctrines being taught in his day, he gave Timothy the reason why doctrine matters – because “the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.”  In other words, doctrine matters but the more important thing is that what you believe results in godliness, a pure heart, a good or clean conscience, and a sincere faith.

If you are like me you know churches which allow for the most oppressive, obnoxious, and rude behavior from its leaders because they adhere to certain doctrinal positions.  The true litmus test of the validity of any doctrine is the fruit it produces.  Doctrinal “purity” that does not lead to godliness and the spiritual fruit of Galatians 5 is no better than the “strange doctrine” Paul warns Timothy about. It is high time that the big “C” Church came to grips with this truth.

When we do, we will all experience a transformation in our relationships, ministries, and churches.

We Are Butlers Not Chefs

Posted on by
1

“But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” 2 Peter 1:20-21

It has become fashionable today for preachers and teachers to construct their sermons based loosely on a passage of Scripture. I say loosely because the main ingredient is not normally sound exegesis of the text under consideration but rather is much more often an amalgam of hobby-horse theology and whatever the preacher wants to say to the congregation.  This trend is to be expected for a couple of reasons.

First of all, many pastors have abandoned any belief in the inspiration of the Scriptures. These individuals have succumbed to the siren song of biblical criticism run amok and have adopted a view of the Scriptures as a collection of not too accurate narrative histories of a deceived people.

Second, when inspiration is jettisoned the inerrancy of the Scriptures must follow. If the Bible is a collection of fanciful stories and not at all God’s message to mankind then it cannot possibly be without error.

Third, if the Scriptures are not inspired and thus not inerrant, then they cannot hold any degree of authority over a person’s life. People are thus justified in cherry-picking what they will accept and will not accept.  The end result is they really don’t accept any authority beyond themselves.

The Apostle Peter reminds us in the passage above that we are not the originators of the truths we preach. The Bible is God’s Word to His creation and as such we have the high honor and responsibility to accurately convey God’s message to all people.  In this sense we are butlers of the Word of God faithfully serving Him and not chefs who are free to concoct our own recipes based on what we think is true from the Bible.