Where are all the men?

Look around you on an average Sunday morning. You'll probably notice a disproportionate number of women. Who is singing in the choir? Who is helping in the children's ministry? Who is stepping onto the mission field? More often than not, it's the women. To be sure, I praise the Lord for these women, but men, where are you?? Even as I think of counseling issues and spiritual lethargy in homes, most problems stem from a lack of male leadership.

Gender Blog reports today on the urgent need for male leadership in our homes and churches...

While the influence of evangelical feminism is harmful, John Piper helpfully points out that there is an even greater danger lurking in most evangelical churches and homes - men abdicating their responsibility to lead.

If I were to put my finger on one devastating sin today, it would not be the so-called women's movement, but the lack of spiritual leadership by men at home and in the church. Satan has achieved an amazing tactical victory by disseminating the notion that the summons for male leadership is born of pride and fallenness, when in fact pride is precisely what prevents spiritual leadership. The spiritual aimlessness and weakness and lethargy and loss of nerve among men is the major issue, not the upsurge of interest in women's ministries.

Pride and self-pity and fear and laziness and confusion are luring many men into self-protecting, self-exalting cocoons of silence. And to the degree that this makes room for women to take more leadership it is sometimes even endorsed as a virtue. But I believe that deep down the men - and the women - know better.

Where are the men with a moral vision for their families, a zeal for the house of the Lord, a magnificent commitment to the advancement of the kingdom, an articulate dream for the mission of the church and a tenderhearted tenacity to make it real?

When the Lord visits us from on high and creates a mighty army of deeply spiritual men committed to the Word of God and global mission, the vast majority of women will rejoice over the leadership of these men and enter into a joyful partnership that upholds and honors the beautiful Biblical pattern of mature manhood and mature womanhood.

[Excerpted from What's the Difference?: Manhood and Womanhood Defined According to the Bible, 68-69]

Men, will you, by God's grace, step up with this kind of vision, zeal, and commitment for the kingdom of God? Will you start tonight in your own home?

Men, will you rise to the challenge? A good place to begin is to come broken before the Lord in prayer, and to lead your family to church this Sunday.

Reflections on my first years as pastor

This month marks the three-year anniversary of my role as full-time pastor of our church. These have been some of the most wonderful years of my life, because my wife and I have finally been able to fulfill our calling and devote ourselves entirely to the church, using all the gifts and training God has given to us.

This morning, I feel the need just to jot down a few thoughts on a young man's first years of ministry, including some things to do and things to avoid:

1. Be loving. It is often said that people "don't care how much you know until they know how much you care." This has been proven again and again. Most laypeople could care less about my seminary degree, and even less about my GPA or the number of commentaries on my shelf. They simply yearn for a shepherd who is going to know, love, pray with, talk with, and visit them. Sometimes, it takes a card of encouragement, a home visit, a hospital visit, or even the funeral of a loved one to win the affection and trust of some of your members.
   
2. Keep learning. Seminary is a wonderful "seed bed" for developing theologically-minded pastors, but your learning has only just begun by the time you graduate. Then begins the "school of hard knocks." I have found my knowledge and awareness have increased dramatically since seminary through books, blogs, conferences, online sermons, and the people I talk with. Pulling out old college and seminary syllabi and textbooks has also been invaluable. I have learned to appreciate the history of my church and my denomination, highlighting its strengths rather than complaining about its weaknesses. Learning can be very exciting, because now it has immediate application in your ministry.
   
3. Form partnerships. I have made great efforts to cultivate relationships with other pastors in our area, both those in the SBC and other evangelical denominations. I participate in the local ministerial, and do my best to attend pastors luncheons, associational meetings, and state conventions. I want to be known as a team player, not a lone ranger pastor. I believe this is a great way to support the larger Body of Christ, encourage one another in gospel ministry, and model Christian unity to our congregations.
4. Change carefully. All change is not bad. Sometimes, a church is waiting eagerly for their new pastor to cast a vision and make some changes, wondering, "What's taking him so long?" But other times, the church can feel like, "He has no idea how important this is. How dare he change this!" I have tried to make changes in a slow and gracious manner. The bigger the change, the more prayer, discussion, and research has preceded it. I have used our deacon meetings and church council as sounding boards to throw out ideas -- sometimes very bold ones -- and then try to discern if a change would be wise or foolish. However, I did make some early mistakes on trying to make a couple of bold changes too quickly. At the time, I thought the people were ready, but I later discovered that there was still a lot of grassroots resistance that undermined the unity of our church. When major changes are involved, be very patient and almost resist change. Even if you know it is a good change, don't just assume it is right thing and the right time to do it. Much prayer and teaching is necessary before that change is made.
5. Be forbearing. This is a tough one, and I want to be very careful in how I explain this. In the early years, a pastor must learn to be tolerant of certain sins in the church. We as young pastors have the zeal of Phineas and want to crush all disobedience and get people on fire for God. But a new pastor is just going to have to hold his nose at some things that stink, and learn to minister in spite of certain programs, people, and even doctrinal beliefs in the church that he knows are wrong. In most churches, where church discipline has not been taught, and where a context of loving leadership has yet not been developed, it is just too early to rebuke and exercise church discipline, except in very gross cases of immorality or heretical teaching. Know your people, choose carefully the hills you are willing to die on, and let love cover a multitude of sins (1 Pet. 4:8). Remember that Christ did not unleash all His teaching and rebuke to His disciples at once, but spent three years with them, and even then He said there was more to say, but they were not yet ready to bear it (John 16:12).
6. Start discipling. As soon as possible, I identified some men and started discipling them. We cannot afford to wait in "entrusting these things to faithful men who will be able to teach others also" (2 Tim. 2:2). After researching what some other churches are doing, I developed a discipleship program and started assigning books to read, Scriptures to memorize, and/or lectures to listen to and discuss. Our group has been a mix of current deacon/leaders and potential future leaders. This has been a special time of sharpening and is crucial for the long-range health of our church. Identifying and training new leaders should start as soon as possible, even if it begins one-on-one with one other man in the church.

These first three years of ministry have included many joys and trials, exciting testimonies and painful lessons. Our church is not yet where I would like us to be, but we also are not where we were. I believe God has allowed us to make some progress toward maturity in Christ, and I pray this will momentum will build in the years ahead.

Like farming, ministry can be very difficult and labor-intensive early in the season, with heavy plowing and sowing and minimal results. But as we continue to serve the Lord and depend upon Him for results, I believe He will bless His Word and bring a great harvest for His glory.

Keller on ministry idolatry

Tim Keller was recently interviewed by Towers Online, the news service for Southern Seminary. I really appreciated his warning about the idolatry of success in ministry.

Question: What safeguards should 20-something pastors have in place to avoid the idolatry of ministry fame and the attitude of big numbers equals success?

Tim Keller: If you know it is a danger, that is a very important start. Additionally, when you find yourself unusually discouraged because things aren't growing or people aren't listening to you -- you have to catch yourself. You have to realize "This is an inordinate amount of discouragement, which reveals the idolatry of justification by ministry." Meaning, you say you believe in justification by grace, but you feel like and are acting like you believe in justification by ministry. You have to recognize you are making something of an idol out of ministry. When you do experience inordinate discouragement because things aren't going well, you need to say, "It's okay to be discouraged but not to be this discouraged. This is discouragement that leads to idolatry," and you repent.

Additionally, idols create a fantasy world. You may think that you are just thinking about ministry strategy, but it could be you're fantasizing about success. So be careful about doing too much daydreaming about success, what you would like to see happen. Because it's really a kind of pornography. You're actually thinking about a beautiful church and people acclaiming you: be careful about fantasizing too much about ministry success and dreaming about it and thinking about what it's going to look like.

Interview, pt. 3

On Wednesday and Thursday, I shared parts one and two of a recent interview I had with a member of our church who was completing a school project on church leadership. Here's the conclusion to the interview...

5. Are you leading consistently and biblically?

a. Is your leadership based on biblical principals?

Yes, as much as possible, I try to base my leadership on biblical principles. I do not support an executive model, where a pastor rules from the top down, with an attitude of intimidation and condescension toward others. Nor do I support a marketing model, where a pastor is checking opinions, taking polls, and forming focus groups of current or potential churchgoers to see what is trendy. Nor do I not support a purely democratic model, where everyone has an equal voice in every decision.

God has given leadership to the church so all things can be done decently and in order (1 Cor. 14:40). Spiritual leadership is best pictured by a shepherd, who must lead from the front. I must be an example in both character and doctrine to my flock so they will trust and imitate me, as I seek to imitate Christ (1 Cor. 11:1).

b. Do you stand firm in your leadership role against those who try to go against you and the church?

When it is a biblical or philosophical issue, I must stand firm. I do not want to be a pleaser of men, but a pleaser of God (Gal. 1:10). I am called by God to fight the good fight, keep faith, and a good conscience (1 Tim. 1:18-19), and can expect criticism and hostility in the process (John 15:19). I am to do this in a way that is “kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition” (2 Tim. 3:24-25).

If it is merely a matter of preference, then I try to be very open and flexible, asking what others think and looking for some consensus. I want to always be open to new ideas, suggestions, concerns, criticisms, etc. Sometimes, change is very good, just to get us out of a rut. Some of the best ideas and changes this church has made since I arrived originated from other people. If I had not listened to them, it would have hindered our health and growth.

c. Are you bold and do you let God convict you instead of listening to others and their opinions?

I believe I am bold and led by God rather than timid and led by people. People’s opinions will shift from one minute to the next. You have to learn in ministry not to take yourself too seriously, nor the compliments and criticisms of others too seriously. If you live and minister for God, it is a wonderfully liberating thing, because He alone becomes the audience you are concerned about. To avoid discouragement or hypocrisy, I frequently have to remind myself I am here to please God, not men.

6. Are you leading by the strength of your character?

a. Do you have a genuine love for the people and for God?

I deeply love the Lord and His church. I count it a tremendous privilege every day to serve God in full-time ministry. There’s nothing I would rather do. It is such a blessing to shepherd the flock of God. The burdens of ministry are heavy at times, as you deal with people’s sin and feel pulled in so many directions, but the joy is incomparable. God always seems to give you a word of encouragement just at that moment when you need it most. And I look forward to the day when First Southern Baptist will be made perfect and will become my “hope and joy and crown of exultation in the presence of our Lord Jesus” (1 Thess. 2:19).

b. Do you lead by example so the congregation will listen to you as the Pastor and see Christ in you?

I can’t expect anything from the church that I’m not first doing myself. It is extremely destructive for a pastor to have a “do as I say, not as I do” mentality. Many people have fallen away from the faith and left the church completely because of this. I’m not excusing their rejection of God or His church, because they will still be held accountable, but I do know there will be a heavy judgment on any pastor who has caused even one little one to stumble (Matt. 18:6).

Every area of my life should be an example and above reproach (1 Tim. 3:2). I’m far from perfect (chief of sinners would be more accurate), but I am striving to become more like Christ. I’m right there in the trenches, with my people, fighting sin and temptation every day and seeking to put on the full armor of God. I do hope as they watch me, they will learn to love Christ and be all-satisfied in Him.

c. Are you afraid that people won’t follow if you make changes and take complete control as the leader of the church and truly listen to God’s will for the church?

I’ve never really thought about this fear. God blessed me with a great team of godly men who serve as deacons in our church. I know I can trust them and glean great wisdom from them. If they were not supportive of something, then it would be highly, highly unlikely I would ever sense it was “God’s will” to move forward with it anyway. If, on the other hand, I have consulted with my fellow leaders and we really agree we need to move in a new direction and have biblical precedent for it, then I do believe I would step forward and lead with confidence, even if it put my reputation or “popularity” at risk.

I’m uncomfortable with the statement “take complete control as the leader of the church and truly listen to God’s will.” It sounds like something a cult leader would say. I always want to encourage people to search the Scriptures for themselves and discern if I am right or wrong. If I’m wrong, I want to be told. If I’m right, I expect to be followed. I don’t want people to just take my word for it. There’s no authority in that. I want a church full of Bereans, who “received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so” (Ac. 17:11).

God has given the church both leaders and a congregation to provide a healthy check and balance. Even the apostles, when proposing the first deacon ministry, gave instructions which “found approval with the whole congregation” (Ac. 6:5). Now, I realize unanimous approval is not always possible, but there should be a general sense that both the leaders and congregation agree to move forward in a new direction. If the people are not with you, then you may need to take more time to teach on the issue and explain the biblical reasoning for it.

Interview, pt. 1

I was recently interviewed by a church member for a school project she had to complete. I found some of the questions very interesting and since the whole interview dealt with leadership and pastoral ministry, I thought I would share my responses this week in a series of three posts. Here's part one...

1. Are you leading with “Confidence in God’s call” (on your life)?

a. Are you solely relying on Christ in your teaching?

As I study and preach each week, I’m often reminded of Christ’s words in John 15:5: “I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.” I know that Christ alone is the source of truth, and that He alone is the one who can open the eyes of the listeners to understand and obey the truth. I am sometimes tempted to rely on my own knowledge and abilities, but by God’s grace, I do my best to trust in God. As Paul said, we can plant and water, but God must cause the growth (1 Cor. 3:6). This is one reason prayer is such an important part of ministry – because it teaches us to stop working in our own strength and depend more fully upon God.

b. Are you being yourself in the way you teach or are you mimicking someone else’s style of teaching?

I think this is sort of a “both-and.” I do try to “be myself” in front of other people, speaking authentically and preaching from the heart. I don’t want to be fake, because people will see right through that. At the same time, I know that my own style is constantly evolving and hopefully growing steadily more effective. Part of sermon delivery is to experiment, try new things, and learn what is most effective for me as a speaker and to my specific audience. All of us are influenced by certain mentors who we either consciously or unconsciously emulate. I don’t think there’s anything wrong with this. After all, “A disciple, when he is fully trained, will be like his teacher” (Luke 6:40).

I know I have been influenced and probably reflect the style of my father, Dr. John MacArthur, R. Kent Hughes, and my former pastor Scott Ardavanis, to name a few. At the same time, I try to combine those styles and add my own personality into something that is uniquely “Stephen Jones.” When you listen to preachers on the radio, you will notice that no two speakers are alike. I think this is a beautiful example of the diversity of the Body of Christ, and how God uses many different people with different styles in his church.

c. Are you confident in where God has you at this time?

I am confident the Lord has called me to full-time ministry in a local church. There’s nothing I would rather be doing. I love teaching and preaching, love serving and shepherding God’s people, and love making an eternal impact for the glory of God and the spread of His kingdom. Sure, there are days when you grow discouraged and long for more visible fruit, but a big part of ministry is acting in faith and being diligent in the work God has called you to do.

2. Are you leading by “Equipping other Leaders”?

a. Are you formally or informally training? (Formally: long term, ex: Jesus and disciples; Informally: short term, casual, when convenient)

I am striving to do both. After all, this is the main duty of a pastor, to “equip the saints for the work of the ministry” (Ephesians 4:12). The very mission statement of our church is to “make disciples of Jesus Christ by reaching and teaching everyone.” Once a person has accepted Christ, I feel my duty is to help them grow in their Christian walk and move toward greater maturity in Christ. This is a life-long process of teaching or “discipleship”.

My primary area of formal training is studying and preaching each week. This is how I can reach the most people and make the biggest impact. The purpose of preaching is to teach God’s Word, instruct in sound doctrine, develop discernment, and help people learn how to study and apply God’s truth in their own lives. I also desire to move each member along our discipleship process, from evangelism, to early Christian follow-up, to ongoing nurture, to training in ministry (where they are actually being trained to help others). I have a formal discipleship group called SaLT (Servant-Leadership Training) where I meet with several men each month to take them through a systematic program and equip them for ministry in the church. I would eventually like to do more practical, hands-on training as well.

Despite these more formal aspects of training, much of my ministry is quite informal in nature. Talking with people after church, visiting them at home or in the hospital during the week, making phone calls, sending notes, and having people over to the house are all ways I seek to build relationships and informally train and model Christian living to my flock.

b. Do you have leaders trained up for when the church grows and you won’t be able to handle as much, such as youth group, Sunday school classes, etc?

They say the whole purpose of ministry is to work yourself out of a job. I’m seeking to do just that. As much as possible, I am praying for, training, modeling, and equipping other men to share the load and eventually take over the reins. None of us are here forever, so we are always trying to invest in the next generation, training up faithful men so they will be able to teach others also (2 Tim. 2:2). We are blessed at our church to already have several godly deacons who share responsibilities with me, and through ministries like SaLT and Young Adults Bible Study, I am working to train up others who will hopefully become future leaders in the church.

(Check back in tomorrow for part two)

SBC headed for extinction?

Nathan Finn from Southeastern Seminary writes on one of the major challenges Southern Baptists face: a lack of young leaders who are interested in getting involved. His conclusion:

This much I do know: we have to address our generation gap if the SBC is to enjoy a viable future as a denomination. Some already think the Convention is a dinosaur that just needs to go extinct, especially a number of folks in the under-40 crowd. Maybe they are right, but I am not ready to give up on the denomination just yet. I still think God has something for us to do as a Convention of autonomous churches. I continue to hold out hope that our best days lie ahead and that (Lord willing) my children and grandchildren can be a part of a great heritage of Baptist Christians who have been mightily used of God.

You can read the whole article here. I can attest that what Nathan observed at the National Convention was noticeable at our California State Convention last November also. There simply aren't many young pastors coming out to these events.

I found it helpful to read some of Nathan's reasons why the under-40 crowd is not involved. I also appreciated his reference to internship-minded pastors like Mark Dever and Johnny Hunt. This indeed is one of the keys to raising up a new generation of young, involved leaders: a focus on internship and leadership development.

The preacher's character

With Ted Haggard back in the media spotlight, we should all pause to take heed of ourselves lest we too stumble (1 Cor. 10:12).

Mark well these words from 19th century pastor and professor Robert L. Dabney about the preacher and his character...

Without a sacred weight of character, the most splendid rhetoric will win only a short-lived applause; with it, the plainest scriptural instructions are eloquent to win souls. Eloquence may dazzle and please; holiness of life convinces...No counterfeit will avail [in the pulpit], but the living faith and spirituality which are cultivated at the throne of grace, in the chambers of the afflicted and dying, and by the study of God's word. (Evangelical Eloquence, pp. 263-68)

Free Shepherd's Conference audio

The Shepherd's Fellowship has opened up their Shepherd's Conference and Resolved Conference media vault. Hundreds of past sessions and seminars are now all available for FREE DOWNLOAD. All you have to do is sign up for a free member account. Way to go, Shepherd's Fellowship!

It's also not too late to register for the 2009 Shepherd's Conference. I'm really looking forward to going back this year.

HT: Tim Challies

True success in ministry

Back in 2007, I took some of our men at church through a one-year discipleship program called "SaLT" (Servant Leadership Training). We read a book a month, memorized several key Scriptures, and came together once a month for some lively discussion and mentoring.

In 2008, we tried something a little different. Instead of all the men meeting at one time, I encouraged them to break up into small mentor groups, finding one or two "Timothys" they could each disciple. All the groups went through a common book, Living the Cross Centered Life, and I made up a set of discussion questions in advance for each group to use. This mentor-group program was open to both men and women in the church, and it saw mixed success. Some groups met regularly and reported some wonderful times of prayer and encouragement. Other groups never seemed to get off the ground, meeting only once or twice at best.

In 2009, I'm excited to re-introduce our SaLT program, but with a few tweaks to the program. Instead of asking participants to read a whole book each month, we're listening to one audio sermon or lecture (there's a wealth of great mp3 material available online for free!). And instead of memorizing a whole passage of Scripture, we've scaled it down to one verse per month. You can visit our podcast here.

Last Saturday morning was our first SaLT meeting for 2009. We were very blessed to have 8 men attend the group, including several who have some real leadership potential.

For our January meeting, I asked the men in advance to listen to the message "Pastoral Success and the Cross of Christ," preached by R. Kent Hughes at the 1989 Desiring God Conference for Pastors. It's a scaled down version of his excellent book Liberating Ministry from the Success Syndrome. (If you're in any level of pastoral ministry and have not read this book before, it is a must-read.) Although delivered twenty years ago, Hughes' message could not be more relevant than today, as he addresses many of the pragmatic forms of success that have infiltrated the church.

Hughes recalls a dark time early in his ministry when attendance began to dwindle and he came very close to resigning as pastor and abandoning his call to ministry. But the Lord gave him and his wife Barbara new hope as they began to open the Scriptures and see that true success is not measured by marketing techniques and worldly standards, but by six basic principles:

1. Faithfulness. Hughes' principal text for overcoming the "Success Syndrome" was 1 Cor. 4:1-2. God is not looking for impressive numbers. He's looking for faithful obedience to His Word.

2. Serving. Success is not about having preeminence. The symbol of Christianity is the cross.

3. Loving God. This is the #1 priority in all our life and ministry. If we don't have love, everything else we accomplish will be meaningless (1 Cor. 13:1).

4. Believing. Much of ministry is walking by faith, and not by sight. Our doctrine must affect our living. In the trials of life, we must learn to "believe what we believe."

5. Prayer. Church leaders must learn to be men of prayer. This is an area I want to continue to grow in.

6. Holiness. We are called to be holy, even as God is holy. This includes areas such as sexual purity, where many pastors are particularly vulnerable.

These six principles define true success in ministry. It's not that we should hope our churches (or convention) will shrink in size, but we can rest assured that if we're faithful to God's Word and let Him take care of the results, we will find true success in His eyes.

Side note: This is my 200th post on this blog. With SaLT starting back up, and church ministry growing busier every day, I may be a little less active on this blog in 2009. But I still see it as a valuable tool in my discipleship toolbox.

The best way to stay informed of new articles I'm writing is to sign up for my weekly email or subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks to my faithful readers out there!

A practical thinker

I just ran a "Typealyzer" analysis of my blog, and it labels me as a "Mechanic" who is a "practical thinker." Here's my profile:

The independent and problem-solving type. They are especially attuned to the demands of the moment are masters of responding to challenges that arise spontaneously. They generally prefer to think things out for themselves and often avoid inter-personal conflicts.

The Mechanics enjoy working together with other independent and highly skilled people and often like seek fun and action both in their work and personal life. They enjoy adventure and risk such as in driving race cars or working as policemen and firefighters.

Hey! I guess church life is pretty fun, adventurous, and risky stuff! Being a pastor is a high and challenging calling, but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

It's also interesting to see how some of my favorite bloggers rate in the Typealyzer test:

Al Mohler - a thinker (no surprise there!)
Justin Taylor - a thinker
Tim Challies - a thinker
Logos blog - a guardian
Michael Hyatt - a mechanic
Walter Price - an idealist
David Sqyres - an idealist
Bret Capranica - a duty fulfiller
Jessica Pham - a performer

The true test of professionalism

Baseball offers a wonderful lesson in discipline. Take the first baseman, for example. It might appear to the casual spectator that his job is easy - that he just stands there and guards the base. But in reality, a good first baseman is performing dozens of tiny, seemingly insignificant, acts of discipline. In his book Men at Work: The Craft of Baseball, George Will explains,

When Rod Carew moved from second to first he discovered that a first baseman, far from being immobile, must always be doing something. Watch an excellent first baseman such as Don Mattingly, hold runners on first base. The instant the pitcher is committed to deliver the ball to the plate, the first baseman should make a strenous move, one comparable to that made by a base runner when stealing or participating in a hit-and-run play. "It's like stealing a base," says Keith Hernandez. "Take two explosive steps at the last possible moment. The point is to get into position to cover the hole. You get hurt more in the hole than down the line. Nowadays there are so few dead-pull left-handed hitters...Still, you'll see so many first basemen sitting on the line. Because they're lazy. It get boring over the season to come off the bag. You're tired and don't feel like getting out there." That is a true test of professionalism, this ability to do the small and boring and cumulatively stressful and draining things that must be done during the half of the game when you are at your defensive position.

If discipline is important in the sport of baseball, how much more necessary is it in Christian ministry! Making that phone call, visiting that sick person, planning that event, reading that commentary, praying for that spiritual need - each of these tasks might seem rather insignificant in itself. You might even be tempted to let it slide. After all, who will know the difference? But doing the small things of ministry with excellence is the true test of professionalism.

As Paul told Timothy,

"Bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come...take pains with these things; be absorbed in them, so that your progress will be evident to all. Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you" (1 Tim. 4:8, 15-16)

Our mission

This fall, our church has been asking the question, "What is the mission of our church?" In other words, what is the target, the overarching purpose, the unifying statement, that describes who we are to be and what we are here to do? What has Christ entrusted to us that will determine our faithfulness to Him on the day of judgment? (Mt. 25:21)

Developing a sense of God-given purpose can greatly help the maturity and development of a church. In his book Comeback Churches, Ed Stetzer notes, "Comeback leaders agreed that having a clear and compelling vision was foundational in the transformation of their churches. Casting the vision with other leaders and with the congregation was an integral part of their leadership. Through vision casting, a sense of unity developed as other leaders embraced a new sense of urgency about church growth and reaching the lost" (p. 45).

After much prayer, research, and discussion, our leaders have arrived at the following mission statement:

"Our mission is to make disciples of Jesus Christ who love God and love people, by reaching and teaching everyone."

We're now beginning to share this statement with our congregation and collectively thinking through ways we can apply it practically.

We believe this statement is faithful to Christ's Great Commission (Mt. 28:18-20), while giving a snapshot of a true disciple and a method of how discipleship must be done. We believe it is short enough to be memorable, yet long enough to say something of value. In the coming weeks, I would like to break it down into smaller parts, examining one phrase at a time.

Our prayer is that God would be pleased to use our church and this mission statement to advance His kingdom for His fame and glory.

Photo credit: ogimogi

Does male headship apply everywhere?

Last week, responding to my previous post on women holding public office, Michael asked, "do you think gender would play a role in your choice of a candidate, all other qualities being equal? Just curious."

Wow, that's a loaded question, and it's one I've been meaning to follow up on. I had to wrestle with a similar issue on a personal level before I was pastoring. When I was in seminary and employed at a secular company, my manager was a woman. I always did my best to treat her with submission and respect, but sometimes wondered if it was unbiblical for a woman to have authority over a man. I knew there wasn't much I could do about it, so I just did my best to be gracious and a good testimony in that environment. Now, with Sarah Palin on the GOP ticket, this whole issue of female headship has surfaced again.

Wayne Grudem, a board member on the Council on Biblical Manhood & Womanhood, deals with this very issue of women teaching and leading men. First, he quotes from Sarah Sumner, who accuses complementarians of being inconsistent:

"If it's wrong for a woman to teach a man on the basis of the order of creation, then it has to be wrong for a woman to teach a man piano lessons. If her teaching him per se upsets the order of creation, then her teaching him anything must also be regarded as wrong...If the order of creation is a general principle, then it ought to be applied across the board. Instead, it's applied inconsistently and selectively."

This argument by Sumner sounds convincing at first, and would seem to undermine the whole complementarian position. And by the same token, one would assume complementarians are obligated to oppose Sarah Palin's bid for VP, right? But Grudem reveals a critical weakness in this line of reasoning...

Sumner's argument is based on a classic mistake in biblical interpretation, a mistake that takes one principle found in the Bible and attempts to maximize it above other things the Bible teaches, with the result that those other things are ultimately denied. The problem is that the principle of male headship is not the only principle in the Bible. There is another principle, and that is the principle of male-female equality in the image of God...

[I]t is not up to us to decide in what ways these major principles in Scripture should be combined and applied in various situations. It is up to God, who has His own purposes and whose wisdom is infinitely greater than ours.

So how do we know which principles to apply? We are simply to obey the Bible in the specific application of these principles. What we find in the Bible is that God has given commands that establish male leadership in the home and in the church, but that other teachings in His Word give considerable freedom in other areas of life. We should not try to require either more or less than Scripture itself requires. (Evangelical Feminism and Biblical Truth, p. 392-93)

So, to finally answer Michael's question: All qualities being equal, I see no biblical reason to prefer a man over a woman in public office simply because of gender.

Does the Bible forbid a woman from holding public office?

Gender Blog, a ministry of the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, has finally weighed in on the nomination of Governor Sarah Palin as Vice-Presidential candidate. The bottom line:

Women should not be held back from an office that is not strictly forbidden in the Bible. Nevertheless, the question remains whether or not it is wise for a specific woman in a particular season of life to seek such an office — and the same would apply to any man.

While gender roles are clearly defined in the home and the church (1 Cor. 11:3; 1 Tim. 2:12), God has given more liberty in the realm of government. You can read the whole Gender Blog article here.

Leading with love

Tony Kummer posted an excellent article last Friday on choosing "hills to die on," and how we need to conduct church ministry in a spirit of love. Here's an excerpt:

I remember a time when I thought any accommodation was equal to compromise. I don’t mean preaching a soft Gospel. Rather, I was worried about third and fourth tier theological issues ...

This attitude would be bad enough if I were an apologist, but when the context for ministry is the church it could get ugly fast. Yes, churches need brave pastors who will stand up for the truth. But without love, I’d only be making noise or burning without profit. (I Cor. 13:1, 3)

You can read the whole thing here.

For an in-depth study on the importance of love in church leadership, I highly recommend Leading with Love, by Alexander Strauch. This is one of the best books I've ever read, and should be required reading for every church leader. In fact, I wish every Christian would read and apply this book. What a difference it would make in the church.

The best way I can serve a church...

Earlier this week, Sovereign Grace posted an excerpt from a recent Leadership Interview. In it, C. J. Mahaney had this to say about the activity of reading:

...I would want to encourage pastors who I think might be tempted to view reading and study as selfish. I view reading and study as one of the most important ways I can serve the church. So it is not a selfish act for me to set aside this time. It is really the most effective way I can serve this church, by tending to my soul and by preparing for the various forms and expressions of ministry. The best way I can serve a church is by responding to the command to watch your life and watch your doctrine (1 Timothy 4:16). It is the example of a pastor over a period of years and decades that will make a difference in the life of a congregation. And therefore I want to guard my heart from growing familiar with the pastoral world, growing familiar with God’s Word, growing familiar with corporate worship, growing familiar when I am listening to preaching, growing familiar when I am taking communion, growing familiar with God. I want to guard my heart from that. And the best way I can do that is by attending to his Word and applying his Word to my heart on a daily basis. I think that is the most effective way I can serve those I care for and those I have been called to serve and lead.

Do we really believe reading and study are among the best ways we can serve our churches? And if so, how should we regulate our schedules? How do we set aggressive - yet realistic - goals for reading and personal enrichment? How much time should we spend in general reading versus preparing for next Sunday's sermon? What other ministries and activities should we decrease or delegate so we can devote ourselves more fully to our personal life and doctrine? Should reading time ever replace family time? These are issues I continue to wrestle through.

I'm reminded of the apostles' decision in Acts 6:4 to appoint "deacons" so the apostles could devote themselves to the priorities of prayer and the ministry of the word. I am compelled, too, by Ephesians 4:12, which says that the primary duty of the pastor-teacher is not the work of service, but rather the equipping of the saints. Yet it can be challenging to flesh these principles out practically at the local church level in a typical week. So many "good" things compete for our time.

I do spend a significant amount of time each week preparing for Sunday sermons, but I probably do not spend enough time doing "general reading." I once heard Al Martin classify "general reading" into eight categories. He said we should have regular exposure to each of these: devotional (e.g. Bunyan, Ryle); theological (e.g. Calvin, Owen, Dagg); biographical; historical; pastoral; polemical (refuting false doctrines and engaging controversies); technical (e.g. textual criticism, archaeology, seminary journals); and contemporary (both secular and religious). Blogs, newspapers, and magazine articles would mostly fall into the final category.

By God's grace, I would like to improve my general reading by (1) better balancing my book selections into these eight categories; and (2) being more purposeful in goal-setting, weekly scheduling, and daily discipline.

How about you? What guidelines have you established in your scheduling and study habits? How would you like to improve?

Fridays are often dedicated to practical church ministry issues. If you have a question or suggested topic for the future, please email me.

You are God's sword

A week ago, we had a deacon ordination service at our church for a dear friend and man of God who recently joined our deacon ministry team. During my sermon on 1 Thessalonians 2:5-11, I read a quote by Scottish minister Robert Murray M'Cheyne. It comes from a letter M'Cheyne wrote to a young missionary in 1840, and is one of my very favorite quotes. It applies not only to leaders, but to all who call themselves followers of Christ.

My dear friend, I trust you will have a pleasant and profitable time in Germany. I know you will apply hard to German; but do not forget the culture of the inner man – I mean of the heart. How diligently the cavalry officer keeps his saber clean and sharp; every stain he rubs off with the greatest care. Remember you are God’s sword – His instrument – I trust a chosen vessel unto Him to bear His name. In great measure, according to the purity and perfections of the instrument, will be the success. It is not great talents God blesses so much as great likeness to Jesus. A holy minister is an awful weapon in the hand of God. (quoted in Wiersbe, On Being a Servant of God, p. 39)

Is seminary important?

The longer I'm in pastoral ministry, the more thankful I am for my college and seminary education. At times, it felt like an endless journey of one semester after another. The classes, reading assignments, papers, and exams never seemed to let up, and there was no end in sight. But just like driving across the Great Plains of the Midwest, if you persevere by the grace of God, you do eventually arrive on the other side. It was a total of ten years from the time I started college and sensed God's call into ministry, until the time I actually finished seminary and began serving full-time. But I don't regret it for one minute. It was an investment that reaps daily dividends.

If you're wondering whether you should pursue further theological education, which seminary to attend, what degree to get, how to prepare, and how to survive, then here are some articles that will prove very helpful:

Owen Strachan, Seasons of a Seminarian

B. B. Warfield, The Religious Life of Theological Students (1911)

Helmut Thielicke, A Little Exercise for Young Theologians (1962)

John Frame, Learning at Jesus’ Feet: A Case for Seminary Training

John Frame, Studying Theology as a Servant of Jesus

Reformed Theological Seminary’s pre-seminary reading list (short version and extended version)

Irvin Busenitz, "Training for Pastoral Ministry," ch. 7 in Pastoral Ministry, edited by John MacArthur (click here to open in Libronix)

There is also a blog called SeminarySurvivalGuide.com designed to give practical wisdom on this subject, and to help students avoid burnout and finish well.

Some of these would make very good devotional reading. And since every pastor is a life-long student, it wouldn't hurt any of us to go back and read these articles from time to time.

(HT: Justin Taylor)

Bad tips are a bad testimony

A couple years ago, I read an article called "The Dreaded Christian Table" that has been forever etched into my mind. It testified to the careless, stingy manners of many Christians in restaurants, and that Christians, in general, have a bad reputation as being terrible tippers. Here's an excerpt:

When other servers got word that I had the "Church table" they all immediately patted me on the back and told me everything would be all right. My “non-Christian” co-workers automatically volunteered to help me out because they knew what was coming. They told me that I might as well not waste my time by trying hard at this table, because they were going to be rude and leave me next to nothing. The entire staff at the restaurant, including the manager on duty, had nothing but contempt for this group of people—the Church people—because time and again they come in and treat the staff like second-class citizens.

In a separate blog, a young man writes,

When I delivered pizza in college, I had a rotten feeling everytime I went to a door that had a fish outside or one of those ‘as for me and my house …’ plaques outside the front door.

Another guy I went to school with worked parking at what was then Starwood Ampitheatre in Nashville. He said his worst experience ever wasn’t Metallica or the rock shows but an Amy Grant concert.

What a tragedy! The Bible says "whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Cor. 10:31). Surely, behaving rudely or leaving a lousy tip is not honoring to God. In 1 Timothy 6:16-18, Paul exhorts, "Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy. Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share..."

If I leave a shabby tip, I might rationalize it is good stewardship, but in all reality, I'm missing an opportunity to give generously and reward a laborer who is worthy of his wages. Worse yet, I'm damaging my Christian witness. Our actions speak louder than words. I can smile, be friendly, pray in public, and leave a tract at the end of the meal. But if I don't accompany all of those little gospel seeds with a reasonable tip, then I've probably just driven that person further from the gospel. Not sure who deserves a tip, or how much is "reasonable?" Check out this "Tipping Etiquette" article. I have bookmarked it and refer to it often.

Generosity is important for all Christians, but especially for us pastors. We must model good tipping. God is watching. Our church members are watching. And that waiter is watching. Why not surprise him by tipping a little extra? Let's tip to the glory of God, and for the spread of the gospel!

Fridays are often dedicated to practical church ministry issues. If you have a question or suggested topic for the future, please email me.

A year of leadership development

Shortly after becoming the pastor, I had several men in our church asking me if we could do some sort of Bible study or theology club together. Wow. There's nothing a pastor loves more than a bunch of guys who are humble, teachable, and hungry for the Word.

Discipleship is one of the main priorities of a spiritual leader. In 2 Timothy 2:2, Paul instructs Timothy, "The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also." So, after prayer and some research, I put together a one-year leadership development program called "SaLT" (Servant Leadership Training). We started it in January 2007.

SaLT was fairly intense, requiring the men to read a book a month, memorize a passage of Scripture each month, and attend a 1.5 - 2 hour meeting each month for accountability and discussion. We just concluded the program, and I can testify God blessed every one of us through it. Here is an outline of what we did together over the past year:

• Month 1: Introduction to biblical discipleship.
• Month 2: Bible Study. Read Sproul's Knowing Scripture and memorized Psalm 19:7-10
• Month 3: Bible Application. Read Doriani's Putting the Truth to Work and memorized 2 Timothy 3:14-17
• Month 4: Personal Holiness. Read Bridge's Pursuit of Holiness and memorized 1 Peter. 1:14-16
• Month 5: Purity & Marriage. Read Alcorn's The Purity Principle and Mahaney's Sex and the Supremacy of God; memorized Romans 13:13-14 and Hebrews 13:4
• Month 6: Basic Theology, pt. 1. Read Grudem's Christian Beliefs and memorized 2 Timothy 2:15-16
• Month 7: Basic Theology, pt. 2. Read Lutzer's Doctrines that Divide and memorized 2 Timothy 2:24-26
• Month 8: Prayer. Read Carson's A Call to Spiritual Reformation and memorized Philippians 1:9-11
• Month 9: Theological Orthodoxy. Read Machen's Christianity and Liberalism and memorize dGalatians 1:8-9
• Month 10: Love. Read Strauch's Leading with Love and memorized 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
• Month 11: Baptist Theology. Read Why I am a Baptist (ed. by Moore and Nettles) and reviewed all Scripture
• Month 12: Evangelism. Read Driscoll's Radical Reformission and reviewed all Scripture
  

I highly recommend a program like this for those who are willing to stick with it. The main drawback was that it was too intense for some of our church members, so we did not have the broad participation I would have hoped for. There were only about 7 of us who stuck with it the whole year. It allowed me to pour more time and instruction into those who are most eager to learn, but we need to also find ways to pursue and train those who stay quietly on the fringes. We are looking at possibly doing some mentoring small groups for next year - essentially now asking the men I have trained to take what they've learned and go disciple one or two others.

If you have other ideas for leadership development, I encourage you to leave a comment below.

Fridays are often dedicated to practical church ministry issues. If you have a question or suggested topic for the future, please email me.