If you hear the term "unwilling leader," what do you think or imagine? I think first of those people who are thrust into a position of leadership without seeking it. I remember my days in veterinary science class in high school. Nearly everyone in the class looked to me for leadership during the lab dissections. I was considered smart, and I was able to make some educated guesses as to what our teacher was hoping we accomplished. I was shy and didn't want that kind of responsibility, but somehow people determined that I deserved it. I also think of the anointed Saul, hiding from his coronation before Israel. God chose Saul, but the man was still unsure of himself as a leader. He was called and needed to take that step of faith to claim the calling and live by faith in it.
There's a second way to think of unwilling leaders, and this also applies to Saul, though later in his life. Not everyone in a position of leadership is leading properly. The position doesn't make the man. King Saul became so involved in being king and taking advantage of the benefits of the duty that he lost sight of the type of leader that God desired. Unwilling leaders can be people in leadership roles who are unwilling to do just that - lead.
This problem is pervasive in so many parts of society because people enjoy the benefits of a position of power and authority but often do not want to be held responsible for the failures and losses that also come. We see ineffective managers all the time who yell at their employees for not fulfilling the managers' obligations to the company. They pass the blame to their workers even if it's not directly the workers' fault. We see public figures who are role models, being arrested for drugs or suspected of steroid abuse, who spend frivolously because they can, who have numerous marriages, who expect their every whim to be fulfilled because of the money and power that they wield. We see church pastors who don't actually lead their congregations in righteousness any longer. They have the position but are unwilling to lead. They are unwilling to risk what they have and stand firm. They waver with popular opinion. They bend to the wishes of the wealthy, lest they be cut off. They look for security from their own contrivances rather than from the Lord.
I was in Romania with an evangelical church group a few years ago, and this story has stuck with me. The denomination was relatively new in Romania, officially working as an outreach/aid organization. This evangelical church was attended mostly by young people. The denomination's missionary in the country considered it her duty to grow the church. The problem was that few men were taking leadership roles within the church. There was also a core group of members in the primary church of this denomination in Romania. Then they went to college and moved on with their lives afterward. That church has been dying. That missionary wanted the young men to stay in that town to be leaders of the church. She saw in them what she wanted to see and tried to make it work. It was her plan, not the Lord's plan.
There are churches throughout the world facing the problems of leadership. Not everyone is made to be a leader in the same way, but certainly there are times when we must act as leaders. We must each stand firm in the faith, to proclaim the good news throughout the world, to be obedient to our Lord and Savior. If others falter, that is still our calling. If that makes us leaders, then so be it. I saw four pastors at a medium size church this Christmas Eve; all of them were part of the worship service. But I saw none of them truly lead. I heard no preaching. No expounding the truth of the gospels about the need for Christ. Nothing of His salvation or resurrection. If nonbelievers happened to be at that service, that was a lost opportunity to share the Good News, the whole reason for celebrating Christmas - looking forward to the coming of Christ our King, whose life, death and resurrection have given us life and joy and peace. Much of the service I yearned to stand up and preach - not that I had any idea what I might say - but to share Christ, not some skits and a shortened version of our traditional Advent hymns that neatly fit into sixty minutes. Leaders, lead your people!
By being careful not to offend those who neither believe nor understand, those who do have not been fed and those who do not still cannot comprehend their lack. Our pearls have been cast before swine. Should we expect anything else than for them to turn next and maul us? Leaders, be bold and encouraged. Take heart, for the Messiah, God incarnate, is our Lord. In Him is our hope, our faith, and life everlasting.
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
A Human for All Humanity?
I started reading another book recently, called Exiles. One of the points the author makes is that so much of pop Christian culture puts Christ on a pedestal. Instead of earnestly waiting on the Lord and seeing the humanity in the human (let us not forget that Christ is fully God AND fully human), we see an object of worship. The God of the universe, of Adam and Eve, of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, of Peter, Paul and Mary - this same God is human. Would you know that from most of the Christian pop music? We sing that "God is bigger than the air I breathe," He's "my Glorious," "God of wonders beyond our galaxy." Such an immensely awesome and powerful God does not sound like a real being, much less like someone to whom I could intimately relate. But He is.
The writers of the New Testament wrote about a righteous, just, loving God who was incarnate - not like some hero of mythology - but who was fully human and fully God. He experienced joy and friendship, struggle and disappointment. He knew rejection; his best friends fled and denied knowing him when he was unjustly arrested. He performed miracles, and there were many people still alive when parts of the New Testament were written who experienced those very events that were recorded. Jesus Christ is a real person; he walked the earth like the rest of us. But that's not all He is.
Let's take a different perspective for a moment. Think of all the evil that humankind has committed. Numerous genocides, rape, war, beatings, murder, abortions, adultery and slavery are not only part of our collective history, they are all ongoing. What about stealing, lying, lusting, greed and pride? We build weapons for maximum destruction, maximum casualties. We release chemicals and germs to harm people to get our point across. We torture to get information to save lives. Every day millions of lives throughout the world are hurt by other humans. What would it take for a righteous and holy God to love such a broken humanity? What would it take to bring humanity back into a right relationship with its Creator? One man, even a perfect man, seems like a small offering for all that evil.
Jesus Christ did live a perfect life, was crucified, did die, was resurrected and lives forevermore. In Him is our hope for life, for salvation. He wasn't just a man, but He was fully human. Jesus knows temptation. He knows loneliness. He knows what it's like to feel lost and abandoned. He talked to other people, ate with them, laughed and cried with them. God isn't some idol, whether literal or figurative. He doesn't just want to be worshiped and obeyed. He wants a relationship with every person. He desires our faith, our belief, our resources and our energy. He wants to share with us as well. He wants the relationship. He wants access to your heart, to my heart. It's too easy to write off Jesus as being far beyond our comprehension. It's time to relate to the risen Christ, to learn from Him. Fully God, fully man - Jesus Christ came for all humanity.
The writers of the New Testament wrote about a righteous, just, loving God who was incarnate - not like some hero of mythology - but who was fully human and fully God. He experienced joy and friendship, struggle and disappointment. He knew rejection; his best friends fled and denied knowing him when he was unjustly arrested. He performed miracles, and there were many people still alive when parts of the New Testament were written who experienced those very events that were recorded. Jesus Christ is a real person; he walked the earth like the rest of us. But that's not all He is.
Let's take a different perspective for a moment. Think of all the evil that humankind has committed. Numerous genocides, rape, war, beatings, murder, abortions, adultery and slavery are not only part of our collective history, they are all ongoing. What about stealing, lying, lusting, greed and pride? We build weapons for maximum destruction, maximum casualties. We release chemicals and germs to harm people to get our point across. We torture to get information to save lives. Every day millions of lives throughout the world are hurt by other humans. What would it take for a righteous and holy God to love such a broken humanity? What would it take to bring humanity back into a right relationship with its Creator? One man, even a perfect man, seems like a small offering for all that evil.
Jesus Christ did live a perfect life, was crucified, did die, was resurrected and lives forevermore. In Him is our hope for life, for salvation. He wasn't just a man, but He was fully human. Jesus knows temptation. He knows loneliness. He knows what it's like to feel lost and abandoned. He talked to other people, ate with them, laughed and cried with them. God isn't some idol, whether literal or figurative. He doesn't just want to be worshiped and obeyed. He wants a relationship with every person. He desires our faith, our belief, our resources and our energy. He wants to share with us as well. He wants the relationship. He wants access to your heart, to my heart. It's too easy to write off Jesus as being far beyond our comprehension. It's time to relate to the risen Christ, to learn from Him. Fully God, fully man - Jesus Christ came for all humanity.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
An Epic Battle
Sometimes I am still surprised by the extent to which people become prey to heretical doctrines. Is it the information explosion that has left us with so much more to sift through - both orthodox and heretical - that we can hardly keep up? Is there simply a need for more discernment in the church? Is it the lack of righteous men and women to stand for Christ and His commands? Is it a matter of pride or greed? Is it the draw of our own sinfulness to pervert the truth given to us, that we would act as gods, thinking ourselves Sovereigns over the kingdoms of our lives?
Heresies take many forms, but ultimately I believe that it comes down to the same old fight - are we individually for Christ or against Him? Rarely are the lines drawn in such stark contrast to the circumstances. After all an effective lie isn't the one that looks like a lie; it's the one that's plausible, that sounds similar to the truth but is not the truth.
2 Peter 2:1-10 states, "But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. 3In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.
"4For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment; 5if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; 6if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; 7and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men 8(for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)— 9if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment. 10This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the sinful nature and despise authority."
This same scenario has been played throughout history and continues today. There are many people who call themselves Christians today but who don't believe that the Bible is inerrant or that absolute truth is real or that Jesus is God or that faith in Christ is the only way to heaven or that hell really exists. And often we don't even realize that our brethren in Christ are believing such heresies until they are in a position to profess their beliefs to others. If the rest of us just keep our mouths sealed as these false teachings are happening, our silence is condoning these heresies.
James 5:19-20 gives us this encouragement and exhortation to one of the tasks laid upon us: "My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins." I pray that we take the stand for the sake of Christ and out of love for our brethren. There is a better way to live. Choose true life. May your eyes and ears be opened to see and hear the truth, and may your tongue be bound to proclaim it and nothing else.
Heresies take many forms, but ultimately I believe that it comes down to the same old fight - are we individually for Christ or against Him? Rarely are the lines drawn in such stark contrast to the circumstances. After all an effective lie isn't the one that looks like a lie; it's the one that's plausible, that sounds similar to the truth but is not the truth.
2 Peter 2:1-10 states, "But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves. 2Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. 3In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.
"4For if God did not spare angels when they sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into gloomy dungeons to be held for judgment; 5if he did not spare the ancient world when he brought the flood on its ungodly people, but protected Noah, a preacher of righteousness, and seven others; 6if he condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah by burning them to ashes, and made them an example of what is going to happen to the ungodly; 7and if he rescued Lot, a righteous man, who was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men 8(for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard)— 9if this is so, then the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment. 10This is especially true of those who follow the corrupt desire of the sinful nature and despise authority."
This same scenario has been played throughout history and continues today. There are many people who call themselves Christians today but who don't believe that the Bible is inerrant or that absolute truth is real or that Jesus is God or that faith in Christ is the only way to heaven or that hell really exists. And often we don't even realize that our brethren in Christ are believing such heresies until they are in a position to profess their beliefs to others. If the rest of us just keep our mouths sealed as these false teachings are happening, our silence is condoning these heresies.
James 5:19-20 gives us this encouragement and exhortation to one of the tasks laid upon us: "My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and cover over a multitude of sins." I pray that we take the stand for the sake of Christ and out of love for our brethren. There is a better way to live. Choose true life. May your eyes and ears be opened to see and hear the truth, and may your tongue be bound to proclaim it and nothing else.
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