We are addressing a problem that churches are experiencing all over the world, and it will take all of us to solve the problem. Together we can help each other, our families, our church ministry, and the ministries of other churches.
After talking to other pastors, it is obvious that churches are facing common problems. This is not just about the pastor, and not just about the congregation, and not just about young adults or teens in a church, and not just about the condition of the lost community.
Churches are experiencing the same challenge of general congregational malaise, a decline in new converts, and a decline in retaining members. There is a negativity toward pastors, services, and church ministries in general. I will attempt to connect a string of thoughts together to show you, in part, what is going on.
Two obvious things come to mind in looking for an explanation and a solution to the commonality of problems in churches.
Number one, we are all part of the problem.
We are all human, sharing in the common experiences of being human. Our behaviors are predictable. In my ministry I have used the book Type Talk to help settle conflicts among students by showing how predictable different personalities are and how predictably some personalities will clash.
I use the book to help students understand that as individuals they are not the standard to which all others should conform and that, by understanding personality types, we can figure out how to get along. It also shows the vulnerabilities in each personality to Satanic manipulation.
Number two, Satan is our common enemy.
Satan is anti-Christ and anti-Christian. He has the same hatred for Christ and for His followers today as he had while Jesus walked on earth and as he had in the Garden of Eden. The same Devil that tempted Jesus in the wilderness is the same Devil accomplishing his dastardly deeds today.
And the hate and murderous activity he displayed toward Jesus, the disciples, and the early church is unchanged today. Jesus was tortured and hung on a cross much to the delight of Satan. The apostles were stoned, stabbed, torn asunder, and crucified. The early church saints were unmercifully tortured, drowned, and burned at the stake.
If anything, Satan has improved his tactics. His hate for Christ and for Christ’s followers is no less today than it was then. And if he could, he would literally torture us and burn us at the stake with the same passion he had in the past (Revelation 13:7).
So why is he not killing us? Because he has found something that works just as well if not better. It is called lukewarm Christianity. In Revelation 3:16, Christ rebukes the church at Laodicea, saying,
So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.
God is saying that He would rather us not call ourselves Christians than to call ourselves Christians and be carnal and mediocre. Of course, He wants us to be hot. But if we will not choose to be hot, He is making it clear that of the other two alternatives, He wants us to not identify with Him. This is a sobering thought, isn’t it?
Lukewarm Christianity discredits the message of Christ. And every time there is a breakdown in God’s church, there is a breakdown in credibility of His message.
The Culture of Darkness and Deception
Second Corinthians 4:3-4 warns,
But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
This verse is warning us that our culture is designed to be anti-Christ. Our culture is intentionally designed to deceive and mislead people away from Christ and away from the Gospel message that can save their souls.
The anti-Christ culture is not obvious, especially when you grow up in it. A man raised in an aboriginal tribe feels content without air conditioning and clothes. There is nothing abnormal about eating grub worms and putting thin, sharp bones through his nose. It is something he has done all his life. To us that would be weird. But only because we did not grow up that way.
Likewise, evil’s work is the norm in our culture. Here is what it looks like.
James 3:14 says,
But if ye have bitter envying and strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth.
James 3:16 says,
For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.
Second Corinthians 12:20 says,
For I fear, lest, when I come, I shall not find you such as I would, and that I shall be found unto you such as ye would not: lest there be debates, envyings, wraths, strifes, backbitings, whisperings, swellings, tumults:
Galatians 5:19-21 says,
Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
Philippians 2:3 says,
Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves.
Romans 1:29-32 says,
Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.
People watching soap operas every day see nothing abnormal about broken relationships and strife. They don’t like it. They may not think it is right. But that’s life. To a person normalized to soap operas, he/she must have drama in his/her own life to feel normal, not because it’s right, but because it’s normal.
Men hooked on violence in movies and trash talking athletes are normalized to violence and conflict. Insults, injustice, and hostile aggression are not right but are normal in our culture. And to a man normalized in a culture that glamorizes chest beating and vengeance, he must have his dose of drama and agitation to feel normal.
Teenagers in particular are vulnerable to normalizing in a culture of emotional upheaval. The normal physical changes and energy they possess make them easy prey for high energy discord and agitating music. They see no harm in angry music and chaos. To them it is fun and exciting. Suggesting that such conditioning and reinforcement of chaos is unhealthy to their spiritual well-being is typically met with disdain and unbelief.
The bottom line is that our culture is designed to normalize hostility and turmoil. Making this a normal experience means that Satan can influence us to accept sin as normal. Our culture is designed to blind us to the presence and influence of evil, which contributes to blinding us to truth.
We are conditioned to normally react to problems in such a way that we unwittingly work against those whom we love and who love God. We are culturally conditioned to devour one another, not because it is right or because we think it is acceptable to devour, but because we are conditioned to accept devouring and the tactics that lead to devouring as normal.
The Buck Stops Here.
It is easy for a group of people in any setting, whether on a basketball team or in a church, to be discontent. There will always be a better way to do things. There will always be someone trying to one-up someone else. There will always be someone making decisions that others do not agree with. And these things will lead to discontent. And discontent left unchecked will lead to complaint and eventually criticism. And criticism will be shared and will infect others with discontent.
The Bible calls this sowing seeds of discord. The complaining will spread, and unrest among members will increase. When assembled together, there will be ill-will and negativity. How can a church or any group thrive when members are carrying such a negative load?
To thrive, a church must have someone make the final decision, especially when there are alternative choices. Of course, that someone in the church is the pastor. He is the overseer. He is responsible to God and will answer to God for the choices he makes.
If not the pastor, then who in the church should make the final decision? You? And why you? Why not one of the twelve-year-old girls in the congregation?
It is common sense that someone must be the designated leader in the church. And who does the designating? Acts 20:28 says that it is God. That means that following God’s man is following God’s choice.
I know there is the argument that the choice is to follow God or the pastor. But that is a straw man argument. I know of no pastor who tells his congregation to follow him instead of God. There may be some, but I know of none. Following a pastor of a church is not choosing to rebel against God. In fact, it is just the opposite.
It is unfair for those in disagreement with the pastor to accuse him of being a dictator when he is charged with the responsibility from God to make final decisions. It is unfair to say that the choice is between following the pastor or Christ just because you disagree with his decision. It is unfair to say that a pastor is a controlling egotist just because you don’t like his choices.
God ordained leadership for churches and nations.
If God ordained government and leadership, then to oppose that leadership is to oppose God. Following the pastor then is following God because God ordained it to be so, and He expects it of us.
Let me qualify this statement. I am not talking about leadership decisions that are contrary to God’s will clearly evidenced in His Word. We are always obligated to follow God. Wives are obligated to follow God. Everyone, regardless of who it is, is obligated to follow God. Whenever the question is posed to obey God or man, who wouldn’t say God?
Obey Them That Have The Rule Over You
God said to obey your leaders. Heb 13:7 and 17 make this very clear. Attempts to argue that these verses are no longer relevant for today are futile. That is the argument put forth by some arguing against obedience commanded in the verses. The claim is that the words rule and obey were chosen for that particular time in history and do not apply to us today.
But why discredit only those two verses? Why not apply that argument to all verses in the Bible? With that kind of reasoning, we might as well throw out the Bible altogether. If there’s anything you do not like in a verse, just dismiss it as a choice of words appropriate for a past time in history.
The Bible, interpreted literally, makes it clear. Rebellion against leadership is rebellion against God. Why? Because God ordained leadership. It is His idea, so it is a good idea. And therefore, it is the right idea. Pastoral leadership is not too centralized, and it is not a contest between the pastor and Christ. To suggest that it is a contest misrepresents the Biblical teaching of pastoral leadership.
Protecting Yourself From Corrupt Leadership
You may be thinking, How do you protect yourself from corrupt and bad leadership?
That’s easy. The Word of God and the Spirit of God have been given to protect us. The leader is always subject to examination by God’s Word and God’s Spirit. Obedience does not mean mindless, robotic conformity.
Obedience is an intelligent, spiritual choice. It is always up to you whether to obey or not. The choice to obey a pastor is the choice to obey God or not.
And just as you are never forced or locked into mindless obedience to God, you can choose to disobey God or your pastor at any time. But obviously, this is no light matter, and you will answer to God for the choice you make. And make no mistake in thinking that disobedience is all right or that you will be unchallenged. A loving pastor will warn you about this mistake. He has to, or he is not doing his job, in which case he will answer to God for his failure.
How can you tell if pastoral leadership decisions are wrong?
Let’s clarify two types of wrongs. There are wrong decisions because those decisions were not the best decisions, although not contrary to the Word of God. For example, we should have used oak instead of maple, or we should have built the church to face east instead of west. These are operational and procedural blunders. And then there are the wrong decisions that are contrary to the Word of God, namely, false doctrine.
Regardless of the category of wrong decisions, operational or doctrinal, there is no Biblical justification to criticize and sow seeds of discord.
It is the failure of the leader to make the best choice. And so be it. Someone had to make the choice. And God appointed one man to do so. Let him answer to God. You should thank God that you are not the one having to make the decisions and then answer for your mistakes.
God appoints a pastor, and then God holds him accountable. To disagree is not sin. But to criticize and sow discord is sin and rebellion, and you will answer to God for that.
What about Peter refusing to obey the magistrates in Acts 4:19? He said,
Whether it be right in the sight of God to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye.
His defiance of leadership was obedience to God because leadership had told him to disobey God. In this case, it was a choice between obeying God or men. The leaders were in rebellion against God. To follow them would have been to follow in their rebellion.
As for the second wrong, namely, doctrinal wrong, there are plenty of gainsayers in the world who will debate sound, Biblical doctrines. And it rests upon each of us to make the decision which doctrines are right. We will answer to God.
And those who argue for works in order to be saved have made their choices and are accountable to God. Any doctrine can be argued, but it is clear that there is one right doctrine: God’s doctrine. This is the reason 2 Peter 1:20 says,
Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
When God adds you to a church, He is protecting you. He gives you pastoral leadership to receive counsel and instruction. Ephesians 4:11-14 explains,
And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive.
Pastoral leadership is given to protect you from every wind of doctrine and is used to bring a body of believers into unity of doctrinal truth in Jesus Christ. With a multitude of disagreeing voices in the world, it is important to have pastoral leadership.
Defending Doctrinal Truths
If God has led you to a church, the statement of faith and aims and the covenant are publically published. The doctrine is taught and well known. Because it is Biblical doctrine, it should be no surprise that it will be defended vigorously. The pastor and congregation have a duty before God to do so. They must not shrink from that responsibility.
Arguments contrary to sound, Biblical doctrines will be answered and debated and shown to be false. Church leadership has no choice. Second Timothy 4:2 says,
Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.
Jude 1:3 says,
Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.
In addition, as a member of a church, God has added you to be a supporter and defender of His doctrines. Those who argue contrary to the doctrines must be confronted, and fallacies in arguments must be exposed.
It can be said that some doctrines are not that important to defend. But again, who makes that decision? You, the radio preacher, or the man that God appointed to be pastor? Again, when God adds you to a church, he adds you to be a supporter and defender of its doctrines.
So, are there debatable doctrines?
Are there doctrines that we can disagree with at least for the time-being with the expectation that maturity will lead to a change in conclusion?
If so, then there is latitude to differ for an indefinite season. But public criticism and opposition to official doctrines in the church is sin and undermines the strength and integrity of God’s work. You will answer to God for how you chose to undermine the doctrines and ultimately the unity and influence of God’s legitimate, appointed leadership in the church.
If you attack the doctrines of God’s Word as understood by the church, and in particular the church leadership, which God has appointed, then you have opened yourself to a counter attack. It is common sense to expect good, responsible leaders to defend Biblical doctrine. Failure on their part to do so discredits their commitment to God to do right.
Discussion of doctrine is fine. Debate of any doctrine is fine. But such discussion and debate must be made in wisdom. When it is done in such a way as to threaten the well-being and unity of the church, then it is sin.
Romans 14:1 tells us that there are weaker brethren. You might say, “But they too need to be protected from false church doctrine.” And you are the one to do it? You have the greater wisdom? God has raised you up to save others from church doctrine? That thinking comes from below.
Weaker brethren should not to be drawn into doubtful disputations or disputations that cause doubt. To do so is to engage in devouring the flock. And now it is the responsibility of God’s man to protect the flock. He is duty bound to do so. You have become a wolf, threatening to devour and scatter the flock with discord. And in Romans 16:17 Paul instructs,
Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.
To pursue weaker brethren and to be a source of continual criticism in meetings with folks, in the safety of non-confrontation, with the absence of leaders to counter your criticisms, is evil as well as cowardly.
If you have a gripe, take it to church leadership. Until it is resolved at that level, spreading complaints is not justified in God’s eyes. It is sowing seeds of discord, which is one of the seven abominations that God hates (Proverbs 6:16-19).
Disagreeing with Pastoral Leadership
What should be done when you disagree with pastoral leadership? Take your disagreements to God, and then take them to your pastor.
Wise leaders will be open to allowing discussion and sharing of concerns. They will create a safe and non-threatening environment for dialogue. To do otherwise is to invite trouble.
And of course, this is exactly what Satan will work for. He will attempt to create a sense of intimidation and threat to promote fear and hesitation toward leadership. And if there is a sense of threat to openness, then no one talks.
Discontentment, whether legitimate or not, is bottled up. Pressure builds, and in the end a fight ensues. And Satan wins another battle.
But until disagreement with pastoral leadership is resolved, you are duty bound to God to obey.
Why?
Because this scenario sets up a choice between what you say and what the pastor says.
Now who is appointed by God to provide counsel and guidance? And whom does God command us to obey? You or the pastor?
For the sake of harmony and the work of Christ, it is essential that everyone agree to abide by God’s Word and to follow the leadership appointed by God. To do otherwise is to invite chaos and division in the church.
Paul rebuked the Corinthians for dividing into camps against one another, saying,
Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ (1 Corinthians 1:12).
In a church without an appointed leader to follow, anyone can rise up and challenge others rising up. Chaos results. But God is not the author of confusion, so He chooses a pastor for each church.
But how are problems to be presented to church leadership?
All concerns must be dealt with, whether legitimate or not. By legitimate, I am talking about the spirit in which they are brought. If concerns are used as opportunities to agitate and criticize, then there is evil present.
How do you identify a legitimate disagreement? Is it possible for legitimate disagreements or frustrations to be initiated properly and then turn bad? Is it possible for a legitimate concern to turn into a fight?
Yes. Satan uses problems of all kinds to generate discontent and eventually hostile conflict.
To identify legitimate disagreement, the first thing you must do is to examine yourself when there is disagreement.
Is your disagreement provoked by anger, fear, envy, etc? Then be careful. Satan is ready to pounce on the opportunity of weakness. Did Christ lose His peace when those in leadership around Him did wrong? Of course not. His example is ours to follow.
Undermining Pastoral Influence
Reputation and testimony are vital to the trust in and the influence of leadership. An attack on that trust closes the ears and removes God-ordained pastoral influence on members. Thus, you can expect Satan to attack in this manner.
Any attempt to undermine the influence of church leadership must be suspect, legitimate or not. Any statement or word that can be used to sow seeds of doubt about the integrity of church leaders can and will be used against them. It is Satan’s intent to disconnect members from the influence of their spiritual leadership. It opens the door to scattering the flock.
This is the reason 1 Timothy 3 says a bishop must be of sound character, and he must have a good report of them which are without, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.
It matters not how good the argument is for a doctrine if the character of a man is not trusted. Thus, leaders must guard and protect their reputation to the best of their abilities. They must invite safe dialogue and allow for honest critique so that false perceptions of their character can be dispelled and corrected.
Otherwise, Satan can create a persona of pastoral leadership, a virtual image or avatar, to discredit them and undermine the influence they should have on a congregation. False representations of anyone passed on through the proverbial circle of communication will always end up more corrupt than when they began.
Members of a church need to be alert to the fact that Satan is always attempting to discredit church leadership. Always.
Therefore, members must always be on guard when in disagreement and ask, “Is it I?” Recall at the Last Supper table in Matthew 26:21-22 that Jesus said,
Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me. And they were exceeding sorrowful, and began every one of them to say unto him, Lord, is it I?
All of the disciples examined themselves. We should do likewise lest we fall into the snare of the Devil and end up betraying Jesus and the pastoral leadership He has appointed in the church.
Almost all disagreements are about procedure and operation. The pastor is the designated leader to make the final decisions. Some micro-manage and others macro-manage. There is nothing unbiblical about either method or anything in between.
The strength and unity in a church is in its members’ dedication to God to follow the leadership ordained by Him.
This is not to say that church leaders are ordained to be perfect and chosen to lead because they are flawless. They have their faults. They are human. They make mistakes. This makes their job all the more difficult and in fact impossible to do without fault. A pastor does not deserve to be followed on his own merit.
But God, by His mercy, appoints leadership. And that leadership is important to maintaining unity and stability in God’s flock. Having leadership is important to getting the work of God done. And God ordains pastoral leadership for spiritual counsel and protection. It is not wise to undermine God’s choice of leadership.
One pastor or more?
Some argue that having just one pastor is not Biblical. Some claim that an elder board where authority is equally shared among two or more pastors is more Biblical. But this claim breaks down in light of Scripture.
God’s message to the churches in Revelation was to the angel (the messenger) of each church. This is the pastor of each church. Paul wrote to Timothy and Titus with instruction to each of them as to how to rule over his church as pastor. And many churches have but one ordained pastor. There are no other elders.
Some think that having one pastor who is responsible for decisions in a church is dangerous and takes the leadership out of the hands of the Holy Spirit to guide a congregation. It is argued that church authority and majority vote is the best way to make decisions.
But the fact is that Biblical pastoral leadership is under the guidance of Holy Spirit administration, and pastors receive His authority and ordination from His church as directed by the Holy Spirit.
For decisions requiring authority and authorization of the church, as the pillar and ground of truth, a pastor is obligated to seek guidance, confirmation, and authority from his congregation. He is then obligated to the Spirit of God to guide the church.
The pillar and ground of truth
The church is the pillar and ground of truth. But each church is given a pastor for counsel and guidance. This means that the pastor’s counsel to the church should be heeded by members. Heeding the pastor is acknowledging the role that God has given to their pastor.
What member can biblically justify self-righteously appointing him/herself as a better counselor than the pastor? Such self-appointment is contrary to God’s Word. It is far better to have God’s designated leader than to have others rise up on their own and claim that their counsel is God’s will in contradiction to the pastor’s.
Church members are obligated to protect themselves from falling prey to Satan’s devices by showing honor and support for their pastor. They must guard themselves from falling into the trap of using disagreement to sow discord and suspicion on church leadership. Sowing discord undermines the influence of God-given pastoral leadership, spiritual guardianship, and protection.
When church leadership is discredited or suspected of being out of touch with God, the vision and direction given to the pastor for the membership to hear is subsequently discredited and falls on deaf ears. The church then languishes in spiritual malaise and negativity.
And once the influence of leadership is suspect or discredited, then who fills the vacuum for spiritual counsel and guidance? The radio or TV preacher? Which one? The book author? Which one? You, as a self-appointed leader claiming to know better than God’s designated church leader?
If you are the chosen one to lead and to be trusted, then why did God not choose you publicly with church-wide acknowledgment that you should be the pastor?
How do you address leadership with disagreement?
With respect and in the calmness of Christ’s peace.
And some may choose to do so anonymously. That is fine too as long as it is not spread elsewhere as criticism. It is an option. But either way, if you choose not to bring your concern to pastoral leadership, then you choose to be silent and take your complaint to God. That is fine too. That is a very good thing to do.
Accepting Pastoral Decision
And what if pastoral leadership does not agree with you? What if he continues to preach the same doctrine or continues defending the same procedural choice? Here are your choices that will not bring harm to the church or play into Satan’s hands.
- Live with it.
- Trust God. Pray.
- Take your complaint to God, not to men.
- Plead your case before the throne of God.
- Pray for His protection.
- Pray for His help.
If God is still on His throne, and if God is still in control, then He will take care of things. If it is not to your liking, then maybe it is because you are wrong. Or maybe He plans to deal with the wrong at His throne at a later time.
Are you afraid of leadership?
Are you wondering what protection you have from errant church leadership?
A church congregation’s best protection from corrupt leadership is to be right with God. If you are not right with God, then why should He protect you? You get what you deserve. But if you pray and walk right with God, you will be on the right side. God will protect you. God will provide the conditions you need to grow, mature, and thrive.
But what about the sense of helplessness and hopelessness that occurs when cries for help are denied, ignored, or dismissed? Why bother? Why care? What is the point of risking the label of having ungodly motivation or being in sin because you disagree? Doesn’t this promote complacency and despair?
You must trust God. He is still on His throne, which means He is still in control. If He appointed leaders who are making bad decisions and wrong choices, they will answer to God. It is God who will deal with them. It is God who will remove them. And through Him, you will be vindicated. But by taking matters into your own hands, you are choosing to put yourself against God’s choice of leadership.
David was a victim of bad leadership when Saul reigned as king. Yet even when David had opportunity to destroy King Saul, he refused, saying in 1 Samuel 24:6,
The LORD forbid that I should do this thing unto my master, the LORD’s anointed, to stretch forth mine hand against him, seeing he is the anointed of the LORD.
But Saul had been trying to kill David, and the prophet Samuel had already declared that God had removed the kingdom from Saul to give it to another. Yet David refused to attack King Saul.
Who today can say that their justification for attacking and rebelling against pastoral leadership is greater than David’s?
Why is rebellion never justified?
To rebel condones all rebellion of any kind by anyone for any reason of their choice, and that spells disaster for God’s churches. This is the reason that it is so important to understand this principle and process of redress of grievance.
We must never allow Satan the smallest foothold into our lives because what begins small will end up as a major tragedy. We must always do right, or we risk tragedy personally and corporately.
Wise pastoral leadership will cultivate a non-threatening environment of communication so that grievances can be shared and dealt with. And members must take advantage of opportunities to communicate grievances with pastoral leadership to resolve discontent and ward off Satanic attack. Open and friendly pastoral-congregational relationships are essential to the well-being of a church.
Reacting to Rebellion
What can be done to fight this insidious evil of rebellion stirred up by Satan that threatens churches?
What should be done to respond to Satan’s influence to sow seeds of discord and to pit brother against brother?
- First, pray.
- Second, open dialogue.
We must keep the channels of dialogue open. It is like keeping the light on all the time. The moment it goes dark, the roaches come out to feast. We must talk. And disagreement must be voiced. But a final decision must be made by both sides. And both sides will answer to God for the decisions they make. The important thing is that decisions be made decently, with the peace of God and unity of the church in mind.
