• Home
  • About This Blog
  • Contact Me
  • Subscribe
  • Comment Policy

Attempts at Honesty

Reflections on the interplay of the Bible and Culture

  • Westminster Shorter Catechism Series
  • Sermon on the Mount Series
Home Church Leadership What church should be

What church should be

Posted on September 3, 2013 Written by Mark McIntyre 9 Comments


i-love-my-churchI know what hurt has come from some of my own church experience. I have seen the damage done to others by inappropriate treatment within a church. Quite frankly sometimes it makes me want to find the reset button and see if we can begin again with this whole thing we call church.

I can name two friends that were pushed out of ministry, guys that have good hearts and really ministered to people. They got pushed out because they did not fit with the current leader’s vision of what church should be. These are two different people, in two different churches, in two different states, in two very different parts of the country. The locations may differ, but the churches are similar because the leader has given the Enemy a foothold in that congregation by not allowing these two men to operate in their giftedness.

Perhaps there is a different way to organize church. Perhaps we overlook a pastor’s inability to shepherd his congregation because he is a gifted speaker and can draw large crowds. Perhaps we turn a blind eye to the damage caused when a leader seeks to build his church rather than Christ’s.

Sometimes I am overwhelmed by the damage that I have seen done by those who have built organizational structures that claim to promote the kingdom of God but only are building a kingdom among men. Today was such a day.

But as I worked on collecting firewood today, I was reminded that for every empire building hawker who claims to represent Christ, there are dozens, hundreds or thousands of men and women who are really doing the work of ministry and living out the claims of the Gospel to change lives.

Some of these men and women are bi-vocational, they have jobs outside the church but still effectively minister in the church. Some are full time employees of the church but give of themselves way above and beyond a regular work schedule. All of them are in ministry because they have been called to that ministry and can say with the Apostle Paul that they are “bond slaves to Jesus Christ.” In short, they are in ministry to meet others’ needs and not their own.

I keep coming back to the chilling words of Jesus in Matthew 7:

“On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’” (Matthew 7:22–23, ESV)

God will sort it out in the end and those who have been obedient and have done ministry God’s way and with God’s methods will be rewarded for their effort.

I really believe that those who misuse their positions of leadership within the church are the minority and that most ministers are seeking to be obedient to the Lord of their calling. The problem is that those who abuse their power for their own ends are often the most gifted and most prominent so it seems as though they are a larger group than they really are.

But God is not mocked. He is watching.

This is bad news to the self-promoters who abuse their congregations. But this is very good news to the faithful servants who give of themselves for the glory of Christ.

To those faithful servants I tip my hat and offer my hearty thanks. You encouraged me today.


Filed Under: Church Leadership Tagged With: abuse, Church, Leader, minister, ministry

About Mark McIntyre

A follower of Jesus Christ who shares observations about how Scripture should impact the church and the world. Mark is the original author and editor of Attempts at Honesty.

Follow Attempts at Honesty

Honesty in your Inbox

Giving God Crap | Till He Comes Blog

I love the flowchart (shown above) that Jeremy Myers included in his post on his Till He Comes blog. Check out the post by clicking the link: Giving God Crap | Till He Comes. A man once confessed to a pastor that there was no way that God could love him since he had spent […]

Where the wild things are . . . worshipping

I noticed a reference to wild beasts in Mark 1:13: And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him. (NKJV) While in the wilderness, Jesus was with the wild animals. Do you suppose that the animals recognized Jesus as their […]

Research

Hypothesis, research and faith

The difference between science and faith is not one of method. The difference is what data are allowed to be considered. You may disagree with the presuppositions, but Christian thinkers follow the same methods of investigation and analysis that scientists follow.

Community

A Real Sense of Community

A few days ago I read a story about a man with 100,000 Twitter followers who took his own life. I know nothing about his history or the reasons behind the suicide. But I am struck by sadness that none of the 100,000 “friends” was close enough to prevent this tragedy. I often hear that […]

Scarlet Oak

Like growing oak trees

If you are a church leader and you are frustrated with how fast growth is taking place in your church, think of an oak tree. They do not grow fast, but they are strong. If you are a small group leader or Sunday School teacher, think of that oak which slowly absorbs the nutrients and water and grows as a result.

Post Series

  • Westminster Shorter Catechism Series
  • Sermon on the Mount Series
September 2023
SMTWTFS
 12
3456789
10111213141516
17181920212223
24252627282930
« Jun    

Categories

Archives

Blogger Grid
Follow me on Blogarama

Copyright © 2023 · Focus Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in