Category Archives: pastoral leadership

Keeping God’s People Attentive to God

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Eugene Peterson is best known for his brilliant work presented in “The Message”- a paraphrase of the New Testament that has challenged millions to read the Bible in a different and enlightening way. As a former professor in my doctoral work, I have followed him from afar as a mentor in pastoral ministry. His writings regarding the role of the pastor are his best. His trilogy- “Contemplative Pastor”, “Five Smooth Stones for Pastoral Work”, “Under the Unpredictable Plant”- on pastoral leadership have encouraged and challenged me through the years. I’m inspired and troubled by his words below and I want my fellow pastors to be as well.

“American pastors are abandoning their posts, left and right, and at an alarming rate. They are not leaving their churches and getting other jobs. Congregations still pay their salaries. Their names remain on the church stationary and they continue to appear in pulpits on Sundays. But they are abandoning their posts, their calling. They have gone whoring after other gods. What they do with their time under the guise of pastoral ministry hasn’t the remotest connection with what the church’s pastors have done for most of twenty centuries.
A few of us are angry about it. We are angry because we have been deserted…. It is bitterly disappointing to enter a room full of people whom you have every reason to expect share the quest and commitments of pastoral work and find within ten minutes that they most definitely do not. They talk of images and statistics. They drop names. They discuss influence and status. Matters of God and the soul and Scripture are not grist for their mills.
The pastors of America have metamorphosed into a company of shopkeepers, and the shops they keep are churches. They are preoccupied with shopkeeper’s concerns– how to keep the customers happy, how to lure customers away from competitors down the street, how to package the goods so that the customers will lay out more money.
Some of them are very good shopkeepers. They attract a lot of customers, pull in great sums of money, develop splendid reputations. Yet it is still shopkeeping; religious shopkeeping, to be sure, but shopkeeping all the same. The marketing strategies of the fast-food franchise occupy the waking minds of these entrepreneurs; while asleep they dream of the kind of success that will get the attention of journalists.
The biblical fact is that there are no successful churches. There are, instead, communities of sinners, gathered before God week after week in towns and villages all over the world. The Holy Spirit gathers them and does his work in them. In these communities of sinners, one of the sinners is called pastor and given a designated responsibility in the community. The pastor’s responsibility is to keep the community attentive to God. It is this responsibility that is being abandoned in spades.”
-Eugene Peterson

Lord God, break us. Keep us on task, seeking to please you alone, glorifying our Savior to the end.

What’s the Gospel?

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At the core of our Message, our ministries, our lives, our hope, and life is the Gospel.  The longer I preach the more convinced I am that I (we) have but one message: the Gospel of Grace found only in Christ. Surely all of Scripture is inspired by God and all of the Bible is profitable for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness- but it is the Gospel that is central. I’ve heard Christians through the years express a desire to go “deeper” in the Word. Sometimes this is a true desire to get beyond the surface preaching that seems to come from many of our pulpits. But most of the time this is a desire for more knowledge (and not a desire nor evidence of obedience to what is already known- i.e. kindness, compassion, care for the poor, the marginalized, a lack of grace and purity, etc..).

I ask, “What’s deeper than the Gospel?” How can we ever tire of studying, scrutinizing, exploring, and- indeed- applying the Gospel to every aspect of life. The Gospel is the well that never runs dry. Jesus is eternal and the exploration of His majesty is never-ending. Let’s preach, teach, and apply the Gospel. It is (HE is) the Only hope of salvation for those who believe.

Here Tim Keller (who is always Gospel-centered) answers the question: “What is the Gospel?”

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w0g-s4Qhtyk&feature=youtu.be]

Missional Church-Simple.

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2011 Resolution for pastors and church leaders: Turn your church inside out for the sake of the kingdom, for the sake of the Gospel, for the sake of the mission of Jesus… for the sake of your congregation.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arxfLK_sd68]

Pastor: follower, leader, servant, debtor

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I’ve been called to be a pastor.  Paul wrote, “It was He who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers…” “Pastors and teachers is actually one word in the Greek- it could be said, “shepherd/instructor”.  Clearly my first calling is not to a position or a place but to a Person.  My highest calling (like any believer) is to Jesus Himself.  My role as a pastor is love God with all my heart and to love others- more than I love myself.  My task as a pastor is to communicate God’s vision for His church and to shepherd the people as together we accomplish the mission God.

“The first task of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say, “thank you”. In between the leader is a servant and a debtor.” Max Depree

I love Max Depree’s definition of the role of a leader.  My first task is to tell the Truth- whether people want to hear it or not.  The Bible gives us His truth.  And I know that I am a servant and that I indebted to anyone who will allow me to lead. It was Andy Stanley who said, “leadership is a stewardship, it’s temporary, and you’re accountable”.  All of us are accountable before God Almighty for the vocation (“calling”) He has given us.

My primary role is to stay close to Jesus. My highest calling is to Christ Himself- to stay so close to Him, to listen to Him and obey Him in my role as pastor.  The priorities of my life will be guided by Scripture: God first, my wife second, my family, and my ministry.  I will live openly and authentically before you. I follow the apostles example in Acts 6:1-4. I will devote my life to prayer and to my personal walk with Jesus Christ. This is true for me- but it is true of you as well- as a parent, a friend, a co-worker, a classmate… if you’re not walking closely with Jesus, everyone around you becomes a victim of your unspiritual life.

I long to walk so closely with Jesus that I could join Paul who said, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.”  1 Corinthians 11:1 Copy me as I copy Jesus.  The pastor’s role is to point everyone to Jesus. I don’t want to waste my life- and I know you don’t want to either.  God is calling us into this great adventure that is His redemptive mission- to bring hope and healing to our world.  If a church can determine to align all things (both personally and corporately) with His mission, that church will change the world.  Let the journey begin.

Thoughts on Leaving…

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I’ve recently made the hardest decision I’ve ever made in my life.  Yesterday I was the Pastor of the FBC McKinney; today I officially begin my new role as Pastor of the Park Cities Baptist Church in Dallas.  Though God’s call on my life has come once again- with crystal clarity- it has been difficult nonetheless.  In fact, I’ve discovered that those things are almost always one and the same; following God is always costly.  Throughout the process I have turned to Jesus, venturing deeply into His character, His heart, and His desires.  I’ve hung out in places like Colossians 1 where Paul offers one of the most comprehensive revelations of Jesus Christ in all of Scripture. There, Paul speaks of the preeminence of Christ- the Supremacy of Christ in all things.  He summarizes his thoughts with, “Christ is all.” Colossians 3:11

Years ago I decided that Christ would be preeminent in my life but the reality of that commitment has played out in ways I would’ve never imagined.  Christ becomes preeminent in one’s life only after being confronted with a series of life’s hardest decisions.  I’ve been confronted with the same question(s) that Peter wrestled with on the shore of Galilee.  In John 21, Jesus is face to face with Peter for the first time since His resurrection.  He’s given up as a disciple.  He has denied his Master and now Jesus will show Him the depth of His forgiveness and the length of His restorative agenda for Peter.  Jesus asks,

“Do you love me more than these?” John 21:15

What are “these”?

  • More than these other disciples love Me?
  • More than you love these disciples?
  • More than you love these fish? (Some commentators offer a stronger argument for this option than you might imagine).

Do you love me? Here’s the weight of this question:

  • As I love you?
  • More than you love any other human relationship?
  • More than your own livelihood?
  • More than your own plans, hopes, and dreams?

As I’ve wrestled with this question as never before, I’ve asked (again), “How would I know?”  How would I really know if I love Jesus more than anything/anyone else in life?  In the end, the only way you would know is if God called you to give up your hopes, your dreams, your loves, – even your deepest and most meaningful relationships- in order to follow Him.  This, of course, aligns with Christ’s words in Matthew 10:37 (and elsewhere) when He says if we love our father or mother, son or daughter is not worthy to follow Him.  Did he really mean this?  He most certainly did.

How would you know?  Well, every now and then in life we have one of those defining moments when we are faced with a decision.  God comes to us and says, “Do you love me more than these? More than anything in your life?”  For me to leave the greatest church I’ve ever been a part of and dive into the great unknown of the future has been heart-breaking, hopeful, sad, exciting, and gut-wrenching.  I know that He has called me to go; so I must go.  It is true, “saying goodbye is such sweet sorrow”.  Some day I will stand before my Savior again, face to face (like Peter) and on that day I will be the one resurrected, following after my Savior.  When He asks, “Did you love me more than these?” I want to say, “Yes, you know I did.”

What about you? What is He asking you to release, to deny, to give up, in order to love Him comprehensively, with your whole life? Seek His face.  Let Him reveal what it is.  Then, do it.  Ultimate freedom in life comes when you realize that nothing is yours and all is His.  Freedom. Release.  Joy.  Christ is all.

Core vs. Non-core (Part 2)

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In Part 1 I noted that a church devoted to the Gospel as the core message and proclamation will be a church in which grace is central in all things.  We noted a progression that takes place in churches devoted to the Gospel:

Grace -> Inclusion -> Diversity -> Differences/preferences -> Conflict

The more grace is offered the more diversity a church will experience and logically, the more conflict will follow.  Now, I use the word conflict, not as a negative one, but as a positive (or at least necessary) outcome and means toward even more grace.  Think about it: the greater the diversity, the more grace is necessary.  So it becomes grace upon grace.  Grace abounds in a church like this.

So, pastors- and the people of the church- are called to a difficult challenge (that only God can accomplish).  In a diverse congregation the pastor must lead in a way that honors the Lord and brings unity to the Body.  However, too many people (pastors included) believe this means that we simply maintain status quo.  Certainly this is the easiest way, but it is not God’s Way.  As a pastor, I know that when God speaks to me regarding my congregation, I must obey- regardless of what I think.

Here’s how I describe the constant role of the senior pastor:

Preserve the core AND (at the same time) stimulate progress and innovation.

I’m indebted to Jim Collins for helping me grasp this coexisting task of great leaders.  First, the role of the pastor is to constantly preserve the core.  By definition, to be core, to be essential means that it is not be open to change- never.  It means it never has been changed and never will be. If it is non-core, however, it must be open to change (or it has, by default, become core).  This is the stuff heresy is made of- either core issues becoming non-core or non-core issues becoming core. This is how the Church has moved forward for 2,000 years: Preserving the core while stimulating progress and innovation.  Any great church will be devoted to the core (and be united around the core) and we will not allow non-core issues to divide.  This is a Spirit-led strategy of leadership for a pastor and the leaders of any great church.

Of course the challenge comes when we start talking about what is core and what is not core.  How do you define what it is core?  And we all respond in unison: “The Bible is our authority!”  How do you know (biblically) what is core and what is not core?  Let’s look at that in Part 3.

Core vs. Non-Core (Part 1)

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I’ve been asked recently to post my thoughts and approach as a pastor of a diverse, growing, and dynamic church in transition.  I’ve met with several pastors recently who have sought guidance in the leadership of churches in decline.  The challenge for these pastors is always the same: They have a clear calling and vision from God and they are leading some (or many) people who don’t want to make necessary changes to get there.  First of all, (for all my pastor friends) every church is unique and each pastor must seek the Spirit’s guidance in his own context.  It is true that all churches are in transition; it’s just some just don’t know it- you’re either growing or you’re dying.  But I have learned that certain truths are transferable in pastoral leadership form church to church, regardless of size or demographics.

So, here’s the first of a three-part series on what is at the heart of transitional leadership in the church.  I’ve stated this in several contexts of leadership and I believe it will be helpful for other pastors/leaders who are struggling to guide their flock.  The main challenge in transitional leadership (leading change) in the church is a collision of core vs. non-core issues.  Here’s how I explain it: The core of the Church is the Gospel of Jesus Christ (even more, Jesus Christ Himself).  We are called to share, explain, proclaim, and live out the Gospel.  Mostly, even a defense of the Gospel becomes unnecessary if it is lived out and explained.  But this is the core: That Christ died for our sins and it is through Him alone that all can be saved.

Here’s the progression of thought and why there are (and should be expected) conflicts in churches: Our Gospel is a Gospel of Grace.  This is the one message we have.  Our God is a God of grace and He offers His grace freely to all so we offer that same grace freely to others as well.  If we do not, by definition, it is something other than grace that we offering.  Of course, grace means inclusion will be a high value that follows.  The Gospel of grace means that His love is available to all; our God is an inclusive God and wants everyone in His family.  Inclusion will logically bring about diversity in the Body if we’re really a community of grace.  With diversity then, logically, will come different opinions and preferences and ultimately conflict.  No one should be surprised when conflict comes in the church.  If there is no conflict (particularly in a transitioning church) it simply means that you’re not leading and not reaching new people.

So here it is: Grace > Inclusion > Diversity > Conflict (the challenge of every pastor proclaiming the Gospel of Grace).

So, what’s a pastor to do?  If he’s doing his job he’s got trouble!  The great task of the pastor/leader is to constantly define the core. Here’s the Good News: The core is the Good News- it’s the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  You don’t have to figure out what the core is.  We preach Christ and Him crucified.  Our mission is clear: to know Christ, grow in Christ, and show Christ to the world.  By definition then, that defines all that’s not core.  A pastor (and a church family) must decide that they will examine, explore, unpack, and live out the core.  In fact, I think it is the Christian’s duty to die for the core.  But it is also equally important that we understand that we will not die for non-core issues.  And we will not let non-core issues divide us.  By definition, the core does not change (and never will) but if it is not core it must be open for change.  It may not need to change but we must be willing to allow it to change.  Non-core issues (styles, preferences, forms, programs, traditions) must be open to change or they have become core.  This is the stuff that pseudo-Christian cults are made of: non-core issues become core (or core issues become non-core).

The leaders role then, is to constantly bring people to the core, define the core, proclaim the core.  As we rally around the core, the non-core issues become secondary, even trivial because we start to realize that, in the end, the core (the Gospel of Jesus Christ) is all that matters.  Let’s stick to the core and never let non-core issues divide us.  in Part Two I’ll talk about how to preserve the core and, at the same time, stimulate progress and innovation.