The Pastor's Hats!
1 Corinthians 4:1-21
I speak tonite about my favorite person in the world...myself! Go ahead, admit it, you are your own favorite person. You take care of yourself better than anyone else, and spend more time in your presence than anyone else's! Well, it's not polite to talk much about yourself, and I only do this because it is next in our verse by verse study.
I have learned in my years of being a pastor that everyone knows what the pastor should be doing except me. That is exactly what Paul was saying to this church in Corinth and from the way I see it, things haven't changed much after all of these years.
I hear things like, "Preacher you need to go see so and so." Or, "Preacher such and such is broken and you need to make sure that gets fixed." Or, "So and so is unhappy and you need to go find out what you did to them".
I have also learned that many people think their pastor doesn't do anything except preach on Sundays and he does something on Wednesdays for an hour or so. I can't tell you the number of times I've heard this sentiment over the years and I know it is often said in a humorous way but I have a sneaking suspicion that there are some folks who actually believe this myth. These people are absolutely amazed when they find out that the pastor works an average of 75 hours a week, never fully off the clock, and that his average lifespan is a good 10 years shorter than others who don't face the same spiritual stress.
While some think that preachers do nothing others feel like their preacher should do everything at the church. After all, they pay his salary. When I say everything I mean things like plumbing, landscape, cleaning, repair, child care, etc. Maybe this is why so many churches are having problems. Their pastor is not pastoring the church because he is too busy doing everything else in order to keep his job.
So what does the Bible say a Pastor should be doing? Let's look at "hats" of a pastor in our text:
1. A Servant of Christ v. 1
The word servant in our text means "under rower." An under rower was a galley slave who rowed a ship from the bottom tier of the ship. These were the "low life's" of the slave world. Their job was to move that ship forward for their captain.
The pastor is to be an under rower for the Kingdom of God. He is to move the church forward for the captain of the ship. Who is the captain? It is God. How does the Pastor know God's direction? By listening to God speak to Him through Scripture and prayer. That means that the Pastor's prayer time must be a priority. Statistics show that the average Pastor prays just 5 minutes a day. In some cases this is a statement about the Pastor, and in some it's a statement about his life and schedule.
There are 3 very important points I must make about the Pastor being a slave:
« First, who does the pastor serve? God.
« Secondly, who tells the pastor where to lead? God.
« Thirdly, does this make the Pastor any more important to God than anyone else? Absolutely not, but it also doesn't make the Pastor any less important than anyone else either!
2. A Steward v. 1-8
It is interesting that Paul says that a Pastor is to be an under rower, which was a very insignificant slave; and then he turns right around and says that the Pastor is to be a steward, which was a very influential slave. A steward was a slave who was given the responsibility of managing the master's house. Our text tells us that God has entrusted His Word to Pastors and that they need to be faithful in the management of that Word. This is not saying that God's people are not supposed to study His Word on their own. What it does mean is that the Pastor should focus his time on the study, preaching, and teaching of the Word of God.
Now as an under rower for Christ and one who is entrusted with the Word of God comes much criticism. People want to have things done their way and as long as that happens it is fine, but if that changes watch out. But, Paul says, "I don't care if you talk bad about me." As a servant and steward for Christ what matters most is what God thinks.
This also brings up the fact that as God's people if we would do what God is asking us to do and not worry so much about what others are not doing we would not have so many problems. See, if you are focused on the fact that someone else is doing their job wrong and you are spending your time critiquing them; then you probably aren't getting your job done. It goes back to the fact that most Christians are sitting in the bleachers yelling out to the coach and those playing in the game about how badly they are doing. What that person needs to do is zip it and get in the game and they would find out that the way they thought it was may not be reality.
It is said that when the British and French were fighting in Canada in the 1750s, Admiral Phipps, commander of the British fleet, was told to anchor outside Quebec. He was given orders to wait for the British land forces to arrive, then support them when they attacked the city. Phipps' navy arrived early. As the admiral waited, he became annoyed by the statues of the saints that adorned the towers of a nearby cathedral, so he commanded his men to shoot at them with the ships' cannons. No one knows how many rounds were fired or how many statues were knocked out, but when the land forces arrived and the signal was given to attack, the admiral was of no help. He had used up all his ammunition shooting at the "saints."
3. A Spectacle v. 9-13
The fishbowl! The Pastor is on display to everyone around him. The Pastor is held to a higher standard by the world than other Christians. Is that fair? Of course not, but that is how it is. If a man is caught having an affair it's not a big deal to the world, but if a minister is caught doing the same thing it is national news.
The Pastor might as well get used to criticism because it is going to happen. Many Pastors leave the ministry because it is hard to live in a "glass house" where every word and action is judged, but it happened back then and it still happens today.
Before we are too harsh in judging those scribes and Pharisees of Jesus' day, let's stop and look at ourselves. All too many Christians today go to church to find fault, to gossip, and to criticize. Warren Wiersbe, in his book Angry People, wrote, "An incident in the life of Joseph Parker, the great British preacher, illustrates this tragic truth. He was preaching at the City Temple in London. After the service one of the listeners came up to him and said, 'Dr. Parker, you made a grammatical error in your sermon.' He then proceeded to point out the error to the pastor. Joseph Parker looked at the man and said, 'And what else did you get out of the message?' What a fitting rebuke!"
W. Wiersbe.
Don't write or say anything that you won't sign your name to. If you receive a negative, anonymous note, ignore it! If they're not willing to sign their name, it's not worth reading don't take heed to it. Like the pastor who received an anonymous note with nothing but the word "FOOL!" written on it. The next morning he got in church and said, "I've gotten many notes without signatures before but this is the first time I got one where someone forgot to write the note and just signed his name!"
Notice that verses 12-13 tell us that Pastors are expected to handle problems and criticism like God would handle it, not like the world. Paul was also trying to cause them to understand that they ought to be living a godly life because they too were children of God.
The warning of Leviticus 19:17, "...thou shalt surely rebuke thy neighbor, and not allow sin upon him," is preceded by warnings against spreading slander and nursing inner hatred You can easily determine, therefore, when you should criticize and when you shouldn't by asking yourself these three questions: (1) Am I motivated by an earnest desire for the welfare of the person I think needs correcting? (2) Am I going to face him honestly, but gently? (3) Do I find the task thoroughly disagreeable, or am I secretly getting some pleasure out of it?
Two taxidermists stopped before a window in which an owl was on display. They immediately began to criticize the way it was mounted. Its eyes were not natural; its wings were not in proportion with its head; its feathers were not neatly arranged; and its feet could be improved. When they had finished with their criticism, the old owl turned his head...and winked at them.
4. A Spiritual Mentor v. 14-21
Paul tells the Corinthians that he looked at them as his spiritual children and he was their spiritual father. He wasn't saying he was God but he was saying he was going to lead them by example. He was also going to correct them through the Word.
A Pastor should be regarded as a spiritual father. The Pastor should be concerned for the security, comfort, and growth of the congregation God has called him to. He is an overseer and implicit in that word is the oversight of everything that God is going to hold him accountable for. He has the oversight of the staff, the stuff, the saints, and the aints!
When God's people are doing wrong, the pastor has to allow God to speak through him the words of correction. Not out of vengeance, but out of love. I believe people think that pastors enjoy preaching "harsh" sermons, but the simple fact is the pastor better preach and do as God calls him to do. The moment that a man of God realizes that he has been called to be a pastor and not to be win a popularity contest is the moment that God can really begin to use him.
You are no different. When you stop worrying about what others are doing; and start being concerned about what you are supposed to do for God, then God will begin to use you.
You have heard what God has called me to do as your pastor. I pray that you would serve where God has called you to serve so that I may be able to serve God faithfully. Please pray for me as I do for you.
Here's 4 reasons to pray for your pastor every day: [may sound selfish, but true]
Advice from Dr. Mitchell's life: Someone in his congregation pointed out several faults in him and his preaching. Instead of retaliating, or trying to defend himself, he looked at the woman and said, "If what you say is true, would you mind praying for me?"
1. Restoration -- Bring back the glory of the ministry and the church. Not too many years ago the minister was at the top of the list of mostly highly regarded people in the community The office of pastor needs a restoration of respect and trust, given away by the last 40 years of scandals that have given us all a black eye.
Examples of Jim Bakker, Jimmy Swaggart, Robert Tilton, Pete Popoff, Ted Haggard and many others that sadly are too numerous to mention.
Each of these did wrong, but all of us suffered.
You can think of many names like his, and maybe some others who are famous, but you don't know the names of regular Joes out there who are serving faithfully.
2. Limitations -- mine, specifically! This is easy to agree with when I say it, but hard to remember when I disappoint you: "Human imperfection includes preachers."
God paints His men in the Bible warts and all, and I'm glad [examples]
I'm not trying to excuse my mistakes in advance...I'm asking, Will you pray for me?
3. Expectations -- Hundreds and thousands look to the pastor, and all have different expectations. And you should, and you should make them known, but if I'm going to be able to amount to much, I'll need your prayers!
Of course, my real goal cannot be to please everyone, but to please God, and that makes my point all the more...I need prayer!
4. Qualifications -- No other profession requires a job description like that of a pastor.
Will you pray for me? Prayer is the oil that greases the wheels.
[Some points from Shawn Drake]
