“Suspicion is not
discernment.” – Bill Johnson
“Pastor, I need to
talk to you about Jim. He’s new to the
church and I need to let you know that I have a ‘red flag’ about him.”
“You do? Why is
that?”
“I don’t know, I
just have a red flag, you need to be careful.”
“Well, I
appreciate your concern, but I’ve known this man for more than 15 years. We’ve walked through a lot of ‘life’ together
and he really is a great guy.”
“I understand, but
I have a red flag.”
“I understand
too…I don’t.”
This is a real
conversation I once had with a trusted elder who was genuinely concerned that a
new member of our church, and a long-time personal friend of mine, was some
sort of wolf in sheep's clothing. (Name
was changed to protect the innocent.) He was wrong in his discernment. It happens.
And the gentleman of concern ended up becoming a good friend to this
spiritual leader.
There are several
lessons to learn from this interaction that are very common in many
spirit-filled churches today:
1.
Don’t mistake discernment for suspicion.
A suspicious heart
is usually a critical heart. It often looks
through the lens of past hurts and usually takes either an overly aggressive
stance or a debilitating defensive one. Oft times those in spiritual leadership
will mislabel their own paranoia, past hurts or disappointments as “spiritual
discernment.” When not properly
handled, this spiritual mislabeling becomes a finger-pointing tool meant to
isolate and damage others in the Body of Christ. We don’t agree or don’t like someone else’s
method or ministry and we “discern” they are a false prophet. Just do a quick
Google search of Joel Osteen…you’ll be amazed at how horrible a person he
apparently is. (sarcasm intended)
2.
Understand that the different ministry
gifts are different for a reason.
Are you ready for
this?
The five primary ministry gifts denoted in Ephesians 4 are
different. They certainly can work
together, but they are very different in their primary motivations.
Pastors are not
prophets. Prophets are not pastors. Apostles are not teachers. Evangelists are not pastors. Teachers are not pastors. I did not say that a pastor cannot function
prophetically, or that a prophet cannot “do the work of an evangelist.” But understand…these gifts are very
different. Pastors (poimen) are
shepherds. They are care-givers, lovers
of sheep; nurturers and exhorters.
Pastors love to lead and feed.
Prophets tend to be…well…prophets.
At least the real ones do. A
sharper word, sometimes of warning of correction. The Old Testament prophets typically had one
message: “Repent or die!” My experience is that true prophets tend to
be loners, not typically people-oriented.
They are message-oriented.
Apostles are pioneers, breaking up fallow ground and plowing new
fields.
My first youth
pastor hire was a powerful young man of God.
When he preached, the anointing was palpable. He was passionate about “going into the
highways and byways” and ministering to the most helpless. I loved being around him. But he had little patience for the church. He felt most church people were self-absorbed
and not as passionate about reaching the lost as he. He wasn’t necessarily wrong…but he also
wasn’t a good pastor. I was cleaning up
a lot of messes. I told him one day,
“Dude, you are John the Baptist. You’re out in the wilderness crying, “Repent!”
wearing funny clothes and eating strange things. We need those prophetic/evangelists in the
Body. But we also need the church to
take care of those new converts when they come to Christ.
I could go on and
on illustrating the differences. My
point is that we need to recognize the differences and appreciate them. Prophets usually make terrible pastors. They can clear out a church quicker than
anyone. They tend to break legs rather than mend hearts. Apostles are usually so forward-focused that
tending existing sheep is very difficult for them.
I remember telling
a very prophet-gifted church member:
“There is no way I can pastor these people the way you see them.” He
chuckled. He understood.
The Father spoke
to me one day: “Don’t ever pastor my
people paranoid.” I knew exactly what He
meant. Never look at new people who walk
in the door as potential problems with huge amounts of baggage. Look at their potential and what they are
about to become. See the gift inside
each of them. Yes, they may be wounded
or broken, but Jesus came to heal them.
The God who saves and heals them is the same God who deposits precious
gifts within each. The very people that
others have labeled as “trouble” will become the greatest blessings of your
ministry.
Pastors, drop the
paranoia. You’ll never get anywhere with it.
It will alienate you from some incredible gifts from God. Being a
perpetual victim is not an appealing character trait.
However, don’t let
the pendulum swing too far the other way and throw the mantle of “pastor” onto
everyone who walks in the door. The
ability to Google search a Greek word does not constitute a degree in Theology.
Find the
balance. Seek the gifts in others. Be life-giving. Watch God do incredible things!