Gut Check
Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction. ~ Proverbs 32:24
How do we make decisions? How do we judge? How do we choose between two or more alternatives? How do we figure out if something is or should be one way or another?
Much of the time we just go with the gut. We all have sensibilities that have been shaped by our family, upbringing, education, and culture. We almost immediately know how we feel about something, but what we think about something, or should think about it, is another matter.
First, let me give you two reasons why I say that we more often make decisions intuitively rather than thoughtfully. One is the typical way we use our time. The 2009 American Time Use Survey studied how the average American spends an average day. Regardless of our class, religion, gender, etc. everyone has 24 hours in a day. The average American spends about 8 hours sleeping, 8 hours working, 2 hours on work around their home, and 6 hours on leisure. The time spent on leisure includes an average of about 3 hours watching television and the rest is divided among sports, recreation, internet, reading for pleasure, etc. The sad reality is that the numbers for the average professing Christian in America are not much different, except that we have to squeeze in the 3-7 minutes on average they spend in prayer daily.
Based on the way we use our time, we are not regularly taking any significant amount of time to read, study, pray, think, and consider. These are activities that cannot be done properly in multitasking. Now, the time spent on weekend days does look a little different, but the main difference is the time spent working goes down and the time spent on leisure goes up.
If we are not taking time regularly to think and consider, how are we making choices and determinations? We are going with our gut most of the time. Granted, some decisions can be made intuitively because they are relatively unimportant, but can we say the same for eternal truths and the spiritual state of our souls and the judgment to come?
The second reason is anecdotal, based on my own experience, though I think it will resonate with many. I grew up a pastor’s kid, so I have been around church people my whole life. Whenever there are discussions about the Bible, one of the most common phrases to come up is, “I feel.” I have been shocked to hear this phrase spoken in direct contradiction to even plain Scripture. “Yeah, but I feel . . .” “Well, I feel . . .” People don’t want to think through the real meaning of God’s Word and they end up with their feelings. “I feel God is this.” “I feel God is that.” I feel God would never do that.” “I feel God is actually saying this.” It should come as no surprise that our feelings are often wrong.
Is this how we understand what is really true?
Let’s turn to the Scripture and find an answer to this question. Here is what Paul wrote to Timothy in a letter:
Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.
- 2 Timothy 2:7
The first word would seem to answer our question. Paul said, “Consider.” The word means to perceive with the mind, think about, ponder. Paul is telling Timothy to think about the things he has written to him to the end of understanding them.
There is a certain profile of person who is dying to object at this point. “Read the rest of the verse,” they would say. Paul said, “The Lord give thee understanding in all things.” Their logic runs thus: The Lord is the one who gives us understanding. Therefore, it is not our mental exertion that brings understanding. We see this premise incarnated whenever someone refuses to read and heed the Word of God, opting rather for the subjective, “I just have to live my life and, if I’m wrong, God will have to show me.”
So, which is it? Does the Lord through His Spirit give us understanding, or do we think and consider our way to understanding?
When we go back to the text to think about the two statements, we notice the conjunction joining them. This means that Paul did not view Timothy’s considering and the Lord giving him understanding as mutually exclusive. Paul affirms both as operative in our coming to understanding.
An objector might now point to particular verses. Such as:
But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”
- 1 Corinthians 2:14
The objection would be that man cannot know spiritual truths unless they are revealed to him. On the surface, this is true enough. But the unspoken premise of this objection is that the working of the Spirit and the working of our minds are mutually exclusive. Paul rejects this premise, and so does Peter but we’ll get to that in a moment.
How do we reconcile Paul in 1 Corinthians and Paul in 2 Timothy? We begin by taking both verses as true. Paul affirms the necessity of the Spirit in giving us understanding and he affirms our mental process in coming to understanding. The problem with the objector is that he is overstating Paul’s case to preclude any thought on the part of man. That is not Paul’s point. He asserts that man’s thinking is not ultimately decisive in understanding truth, but that does not mean it is wholly excluded. He asserts the absolute necessity of Spirit revelation in understanding truth, but that does not mean thought is not required.
Think about what Peter said relevant to this subject. He wrote of Paul in his second epistle:
As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, unto their own destruction.
- 2 Peter 3:14
Peter affirms there were some things Paul wrote that were hard to be understood. The question then is: Where does the difficulty in understanding lie? Is it difficult for the Spirit to give understanding in these things? Or, is it difficult for man to comprehend what he wrote? If we think that man’s mental process is excluded from understanding truth, then we must say the Spirit has difficulty in communicating certain truths. If, on the other hand, we think that human thinking is operative, though not ultimately decisive, in understanding truth, then the difficulty lies with man in understanding hard things.
The writer of Hebrews affirms this when he writes:
Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing.
- Hebrews 5:11
Those things were hard to be understood because the people were dull of hearing, not because the Spirit was struggling to reveal the truth to them.
The fact that our minds are involved in understanding truth is one reason why we are told our minds need to be renewed and we are commanded to renew them.
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
- Romans 12:2And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
- Ephesians 4:23And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:
- Colossians 3:10
We are supposed to think and renew our minds continually with the Word of God. We need to check our gut and be willing to think hard about the ultimate realities of life. And this we do in utter reliance and dependence upon the Holy Spirit to guide us into all truth.
A Pastor Lives and Breathes . . .
For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption ~ Acts 13:36
Oh the humanity!
Pastors are flesh and blood men. You probably think this is leading to comments about the humanness, and therefore lack of perfection, of pastors. I suppose I will indulge you there for a few moments but that is not the real point.
Pastors are not perfect and that means a couple of important things for the people subject to their pastoral practice. For one, they are prone to mistakes. I don’t mean scandalous and sinfully disqualifying mistakes, though some make those too. I mean gaffes, misspeak, wrong choices, etc. They make fallibly human mistakes, just like you. So don’t be harsh, overcritical, or too quick to condemn them for it. After all, they are still being sanctified. Even Paul said, “Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect” (Philippians 3:12).
The other consequence of their humanity is that they are not complete. I mean they are not omni-competent in every area. The Spirit gifts men “severally as He will” (1 Corinthians 12:11). Therefore, not all men have the same gifts, nor does any man have a complete set. All pastors have areas of strength and weakness. They should be improving the gifts they have (1 Timothy 4:15), but there are some things they will never be able to do. That’s okay as long as you both know it.
For the main point, I need to finish what I started in the title.
A pastor lives and breathes . . . and one day he won’t.
Excepting those who are alive and remain at the coming of Jesus, pastor’s die. Pastor’s should number their days and apply their hearts to wisdom today (Psalm 90:12). Mortality lends a sense of urgency to our business. But, what does pastoral mortality mean to you?
God has designed for Christians to be gathered into a body and have pastors (Ephesians 4:11-12). The pastors He gives are living, breathing men. They know you, live with you, and work with you (1 Thessalonians 5:12). Their hearts pump and they breathe on you. They share your joys and sorrows and watch sleeplessly over your souls (Hebrews 13:17).
Per God’s design, pastors are real men and just like other real men, the bounds of their habitation are before appointed (Acts 17:26). David, though a great man, was a real man who served his own generation and departed (Acts 13:36). As mighty in the ministry as Paul was, he himself said, “I have finished my course” (2 Timothy 4:7). A part of finishing his course was preparing other men to finish their course after he departed (2 Timothy 2:2).
God has designed pastors to be real men with a real life span. This means that God has designed you a pastor who is living and breathing with you. Charles Spurgeon may be your favorite preacher of all time, but he is not your pastor. You may benefit greatly from reading his sermons and other writings. You may even be shocked at how relevant his thoughts still are, but he is not your pastor.
The same goes for any beloved, departed pastor. You may still learn from them, but not one of them is your pastor. Your pastor, by God’s design, lives and breathes today. You know him, can call him, and eat with him. You can call him in the middle of the night if need be and he can pray with you. If he’s sick, you know and if you’re sick, he knows.
This principle applies also to the voice on the radio, television, or internet. That voice may come from a currently breathing real man, but if you don’t know him because he is not living among you and admonishing you, he is not over you in the Lord and he is not your pastor (1 Thessalonians 5:12).
I do not suggest that we cannot or should not learn from others whether living or dead. We benefit greatly from the learning and thoughts of others. I have libraries, both physical and digital, of the writings and preaching of men. I am thankful for them and certainly learn from them. But, according to God’s design, your pastor lives and breathes with you.
We Are Growing Trees
Which indeed is the least of all seeds: but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof. ~ Matthew 13:32
“You cannot grow a beard in a moment of passion.”
So said G. K. Chesterton in Tremendous Trifles. Dissent if you wish, but he was right.
Young men are often impetuous and young preachers particularly so. Their zeal is admirable but they are easily discouraged when they have not the whiskers to match the length of their vehemence. So they have to tarry at Jericho (2 Samuel 10:5), but that is time well spent if they learn the lesson.
Pastors are tasked with “perfecting the saints” (Ephesians 4:11-12). They are charged with a flock, which they must lead and feed so that they grow and mature. Growing things don’t typically grow in great leaps all in a moment. They grow slowly and consistently over time. If we are not paying attention, it might seem they grew overnight, but that is not the case.
Christians are compared to growing things in the Scriptures such as wheat. They are more often figured as trees—palms, myrtles, cedars, and willows. The maturing child of God is likened to a tree in Psalm 1. It takes time for trees to grow tall and strong. There are no real short-cuts.
I once had a boss who liked to say, “The best time to plant an oak tree is twenty years ago. The next best time is today.” Growing up with mine reclamation has taught us that grass can be grown quickly. You can spray the hydroseed on the mountain side and have grass very quickly. I guess if you are interested in quick results, hydroseeding is the way to go. But, brothers, we are not growing grass. We are growing trees.
But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not whither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.
~ Psalm 1:2-3
The maturing Christian is a tree with deep roots that drinks from the rivers of water. His leaves are green and he bears fruit in season. He grows through the Word of God and little by little he is stronger and taller. It takes time to grow trees and it takes time to grow saints. Patient plodding is the only way.
Young pastors are frequently discouraged because they overestimate what can be accomplished in one year and underestimate what can be accomplished in five or ten. Sometimes they erroneously conclude there is nothing more they can do and they must move on to somewhere else after a short while.
Take heart and have patience. We are growing trees. Trust in the Spirit to do His work and trust in the Word of God. Be committed to faithful exposition of the Word and know the Spirit will take the edge of that sharp sword precisely where it needs to go. Jonah’s gourd came up in a day, but it was also withered and gone the next. Desire fruit that will remain to the glory of God’s name.
Tea Time
I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. ~ 1 Timothy 2:1-2
Political and Civil Involvement for Christians
While preaching, I have made a few references lately that I thought could stand a little more explanation. They were just passing references and far from main points. Nevertheless, it would be good to make intentions and meaning clearer when possible.
One of the greatest happenings in all church history is what happened in Ephesus when the Gospel was preached there in the middle of the first century. I don’t know of anything else quite like it in the annals of history.
Ephesus was one of the great cities of the ancient world. To talk of Ephesus then would be like talking of New York, Hong Kong, or London today. Ephesus was home to the temple for the goddess Diana, who was worshiped throughout Asia. There was a thriving manufacturing industry that sprung up around this temple to supply people with small shrines to Diana they could purchase and keep in their homes. From the biblical account, it seems there was a high concentration of demonic activity there that went along with dark occultic practices.
Paul had made a brief visit there and then returned to spend two years preaching the Gospel, organizing a church, and discipling the believers. Acts 19 recounts how this whole city was turned upside down by the Gospel. Let’s look at what happened.
- Paul baptized the twelve followers of John the Baptist who had not even heard of the Holy Spirit. (1-7)
- Paul went to the synagogue and later to the school of Tyrannus to preach the word of the Lord. (8-10)
- Paul worked an unusual number of powerful miracles, including healing diseases and casting out evil spirits. They even took pieces of cloth from Paul to the sick and possessed and they were healed. (11-12)
- Traveling Jewish exorcists began invoking the name of Paul to cast demons out of possessed people. Seven brothers, sons of Sceva, did this in one particular instance. The evil spirit answered by acknowledging Jesus and Paul, but asking who they were. The possessed man then beat all seven of them until they were naked and wounded and they fled. (13-16)
- Great fear came on all the city because of the power of the Gospel. (17)
- Many believed and actually confessed their sins. Many were involved in various occultic aspects and their confession and repentance involved the burning of numerous monetarily valuable books. (18-19)
- The Word kept spreading and Paul stayed for a season. (20-22)
- Demetrius, a silversmith, raised a complaint against Paul and the Christians because their idol trade was being ruined. (23-41)
The whole socioeconomic climate of the city was affected by the preaching of the Gospel. A major city was turned upside down in two years by the preaching of the Gospel.
I have referenced the happenings in Ephesus several times. I typically point out that Paul turned the city upside down in two years and he did not do it by having a million man march on the courthouse, hosting a tea party, or endorsing a particular candidate for public office. He did it by preaching the Gospel. He did it by determining not to know anything among them except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
Whenever you pit preaching the Gospel against political action, you are running a few risks. Certain apathetic people use that juxtaposition to do neither thing. Some assume you are saying Christians should neither care about nor be involved in civil and political concerns. Here is a good place to add some clarification.
The Bible does speak to our relation to civil government.
Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil. Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake. For for this cause pay ye tribute also: for they are God’s ministers, attending continually upon this very thing. Render therefore to all their dues: tribute to whom tribute is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honour to whom honour. Romans 13:1-7
I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. 1 Timothy 2:1-2
Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not? But Jesus perceived their wickedness, and said, Why tempt ye me, ye hypocrites? Shew me the tribute money. And they brought unto him a penny. And he saith unto them, Whose is this image and superscription? They say unto him, Caesar’s. Then saith he unto them, Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s. Matthew 22:17-21
And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace. Jeremiah 29:7
Certainly we should be good citizens and we should take a serious interest in the government of our land. In saying what I did about Ephesus, I am not suggesting Christians should not care nor participate in any way in politics or the government. I am saying that however that concern and participation is manifested, it should not be in a way that obscures, neglects, adjusts, compromises, or forsakes the Gospel. Also, whatever form that involvement takes, it should not assume the place of our ultimate hope nor obscure the fact for us that our great warfare is not physical and neither are our greatest weapons.
