Church Dysfunction

The main reason that the prophetic ministry is not functioning correctly in the modern church is that the leadership is not functioning correctly. Most churches are led by a pastor-leader, so many prophets have become pastors to find a place of ministry. This is not a solution, because the church operates best when elders are functioning in their true ministry and not trying to be something they are not.

Without a prophet, a Church will be prone to sin. One reason that we have so many immature and weak churches is that prophets are missing from the leadership of the church.

A strong Church needs the righteousness that only comes when prophets are present. The modern church has millions of pastors, but only a few prophets. This serious imbalance has severely weakened the church.

Church Governance (9)

The concept of a CEO/Pastor does not exist in the New Testament. Funnily enough, the role of the pastor is missing as well.

Most English translations mislead with the use the noun pastor. The word pastor is actually a transliteration of the Latin word for shepherd. The role of a professional pastor is modern concept so the Greek language did not have a word for it. That does not matter, because the New Testament concept is shepherding, as in a shepherd caring for a flock of sheep (in a traditional way, not with a four-wheeler motor bike and sheep dogs).

Apart from references to Jesus, the word for shepherd is only used once as a noun, and that is Eph 4:11, where it refers to a gift and not a role. When not referring to Jesus, the word shepherd is used as a verb, ie as an action word, not a naming word. And the subject of the sentences that use shepherd as a verb is the elders (eg 1 Peter 5:1-2). Therefore, shepherding is an activity that elders do, it is not a separate role in the church.

The New Testament does refer to a “head shepherd” (1 Pet 5:4), but that is clearly a reference to Jesus. The prefix often translated as head or chief, just means the fisrt in order of rank, so it could be validly translated as Senior Shepherd. So, those who call themselves Senior Pastor are dangerously close to claiming a title that belong to Jesus.

Ascension Gifts

The ascension gifts are not spiritual things that are given to people, like the gifts in 1 Cor 12. They are people that God gives to each church. Each church needs all each of these types of people.

Apostles like to start new things and go new places. They are not so good at dealing with people problems. If people change quickly and get going, that is fine. However, apostles get frustrated with people who need a lot of time to get back on track, because they are already wanting to move on to the next new thing. That is why they need to be working with pastors, who love doing this people stuff.

These principles work in business too. A business will often be started by one person, but to keep going long term they need four different types of leadership. The business founder (apostle) will be keen to more on to breaking into new markets and launching new products. “Don’t worry about the details, we will sort that out later”. They need an accountant/legal type (prophet) to sort out the details and keep them from crossing boundaries. To grow rapidly, they will need someone to do the marketing/sales(evangelist). They also need someone to do the HR/people management stuff that the business founder cannot be bothered about.

Some workplaces have used the DISC profile for personal development stuff. It puts people into four categories. There are other versions using dog breeds, etc, that are similar. I have always been intrigued by they way these categories parallel the ascension gifts.

• Dominance/lion/ apostle loves making decisions and wants to get things done.
• Influence/otter/evangelist makes lots of noise and loves working with other.
• Steadiness/Labrador/pastor works with people and keeps the ship steady.
• Conscientious/beaver/prophet wants stuff to be right. They get the details sorted out.

These are categories are not a perfect match, but they do show how a leadership team needs to be balanced.

I have noticed that secular organisations are often better than Churches at harnessing the creative energies that emerge when these very different personalities work together in a team. Churches usually put one person in charge, and everyone has to dance to his tune. Real growth comes when very different leaders can work together, because they have committed to love each other.

Ahab's Character

God held a plumbline against the house of Ahab and it failed the test. The house was not upright.

The Bible teaches quite a bit about Ahab’s character. They provide important lessons for church leaders. These vulnerabilities leave church leader vulnerable to the Ahab spirit, which opens the way for the Jezebel spirit.

1) Populism
Ahab walked in the ways of Jeroboam son of Nebat (1 Kings 16:31)

Jeroboam = the people increase, multiply
Nebat = look.

Ahab and Jeroboam looked to the people. They were populist leaders.
Vulnerability: Insecure leaders find populism hard to resist.

2) Presumption
Ahab thought to himself, he devised schemes in his heart
1 Kings 12:28,29, 22:8, 12:33.
Vulnerability: Many Christian leaders copy the ideas of other men.

3)Compromise
Ahab was enticed into compromise when he should have stood firm.
1 Kings 12:28,29; 16:31,33: 20:32,34; 11:40 II Kings 17:21; 8:18; 2 Chron 21:13 (prostitute themselves)

Ahab = Brother is father

Everyone was Ahab’s brother
Hiel rebuilt Jericho in Ahab’s time 1( Kings 16:34).
Vulnerability: Just as harshness is always a temptation to prophets,
compromise is always a temptation to peace lovers.

4) Tolerate
Ahab tolerated evil.
Rev 2:20, 1 Kings 16:31, 20:4; 20:33.
Vulnerability: This is risk for pastors in church without prophets. The problem is not Jezebel, but leaders who tolerate evil for the sake of peace.

5) Comfort
Ahab enjoyed the comforts of the flesh
1 Kings 16:9; 18:41; 21:1,2; 22:34; 21:16
Vulnerability: Enough said

6) Jealous
He was troubled by covetousness and jealousy
1 Kings 21:2; 11:26,27
Vulnerability: what if some of your sheep go to another church. Will you be threatened

7) Money
He used money to achieve results, bribery
1 Kings 13:7; 20:3,4; 21:2.
Vulnerability: Money problems are common in churches.

8) Anger
Ahab was sullen and angry (vexed NASB)
1 Kings 20:43; 21,2
Vulnerability: sulleness and sulking are a slippery slope.

9) Threats and Control
Ahab used threats and intimidation to control people.
1 Kings 18:10,11.
Vulnerability: Controlling guilty or vulnerable people is easy for pastors/leaders.

10) Up and Down
Sometimes Ahab was hard hearted. Other times he was humble – aconvenient humility
1 Kings 20:25-29.
Vulnerability: inconsistency is risky

11) Rebellion
Ahab ended in rebellion
1 Kings 11:26; 12:19; 16:20; 21:25;
He set up idols
1 Kings 12:31; 21:26;
Vulnerability: Some church programmes can become idols

12) Resisted the Kingdom of God
2 Chron 13:8,12
Rev 2:26,27.
Those who persevered in Thyatira were promised the Kingdom of God
They would have the Morning Star,
ie they will defeat Satan Is 14:12
Vulnerability: there is not much interest in the kingdom among church leaders.

Qualifications of Pastor-Teachers

The qualifications of pastor-teachers are determined by their role. They will need strong people skills, balanced with the gift of discernment. Pastor-teachers will do a lot of discipling, so they will need experience in teaching new Christians. They should have the ability to get on with all types of people and see the best in them. Pastor-teachers should be good at building strong relationships between diverse people. They will be experts on the “one another stuff”.

The elders have an important role in protecting the church from sickness, so they should have gifts of healing in their midst (James 5:14,15). To be recognised as a pastor, a person will need to have proved that they have the ability to deal with sickness. They should have demonstrated this by resisting sickness in their household/family, before being appointed to the position of elder.

The passage on qualifications of an elder in 1 Tim 3:5 says that an elder will “care for the church”. The Greek word translated as “care” is only used in one other place in the New Testament. The Good Samaritan used the same word when he asked the innkeeper to “care” for the wounded man until he was well (Luke 10:34,35). This suggests that a person should not be appointed as a pastor-teacher if they do not have victory over sickness in their family.

When David was a shepherd, he dealt confidently with a bear and a lion. He did not just chase them away, but killed them so they would not attack again. Pastor-teachers are not wimps. They should be tough enough to deal with evil with the same confidence as David (Being Church Where We Live, p.80.)

Jesus had victory over sickness. He saw this as a sign of the impact of his kingdom.
The Apostles of Acts had victory over sickness, indicating the further advance of the Kingdom of God.

The modern church does not have victory over sickness. This might be a sign that the Kingdom of God is flagging. I wonder if the problem is with the leadership?

Where are the Pastors

The pastor/leader model, so prevalent in the modern church, has created a desperate shortage of pastoring. The problem is that most pastor/leaders are not true pastors at all, but unfulfilled apostles, or businessmen who have not found their calling in the Kingdom of God. A genuine pastor cares too much about people to have the drive needed to lead a large organisation. They simply do not have the toughness and energy to be a modern leader.

The result of inadequate pastoring is that only a fraction of new Christians are fully discipled and even fewer move into a ministry. Many churches are full of half-done Christians. Large numbers of Christians get lost and fall away each year. This problem is so serious that we now take it for granted that many new Christians will fall away, despite the fact that Jesus did not lose any of the people entrusted to him (John 17:12).

When Jesus saw the people suffering from sickness and disease, he was filled with compassion for them (Matthew 9:35,36). He saw them as being harassed by Satan, like sheep without a shepherd (pastor). I suspect he looks upon many sick Christians today and sees them as harassed and without a pastor. He wants to send them shepherds, who will not preach at them, but see they are healed. The most urgent need in the Church is for pastors who can set their people free from sickness. True pastor-teachers will have the both the compassion and the faith needed to get the sick healed.

Most pastor/leaders are wonderful, dedicated, loving, enthusiastic people, but they are spread too thin. A weekly sermon, a monthly chat and a program once a year will not defeat evil attacks and transform lives. The inevitable result is a few very exhausted pastor/leaders, far more frustrated potential pastors, and a large number of immature and defeated Christians.

Ezekiel 34:1-4 is a strong word to church leaders. The prophet does not criticise them for shortage of anointing, or lack of vision or inadequate management and organisation skills. His concern is that the shepherds are neglecting the following tasks:

• Caring for the flock
• Strengthening the weak
• Healing the sick
• Bringing back the weak
• Searching for the lost

These are the things that Peter and Paul challenged pastors-teachers to do.

Many voices are saying that God is restoring the apostolic and prophetic ministries. That may be true, but I believe that the greatest need is for the restoration of a true pastoral ministry to the church. Considering the large numbers of Christian who remain immature, and the equally large number who fall from the faith, we urgently need God to restore the ministry of the pastor to the church.

Being Church Where We Live, pp81,82.

Pastor/Leaders

The modern church is almost always led by a pastor. Sometimes there may be a couple of assistant pastors, supported by several elders. Sometimes there are several pastors with a senior pastor. The pattern varies from place to place, but almost always a church is led by a single pastor/leader. The problem with this model of leadership is that it cannot be supported from the scriptures. The modern pastor/leader simply just does not exist in the New Testament.

New Testament churches are not led by pastors, but by elders. The apostles always appointed elders (plural) in the churches they had established.

Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust (Acts 14:23).

The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honour, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching (1 Tim 5:17).

Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you (1 Tim 4:14).

The reason I left you in Crete was that you might straighten out what was left unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you (Titus 1:5).

Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord (James 5:14).

Nowhere in the New Testament is one person appointed as the leader of a church. A "pastor" is never appointed to lead a church. They were always led by a group of elders, never by a pastor.

The word translated as pastor in the New Testament is the Greek word for shepherd. It is mostly used as a verb, describing the work (pastoring) of elders.

From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church….. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood (Acts 20:17,28).

To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder, a witness of Christ's sufferings and one who also will share in the glory to be revealed: Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, serving as overseers-not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to serve (1 Pet 5:1-3).

The phrase “Be shepherds” is a verb in the Greek. Pastoring is something that elders do. It is not the title of a church leader.

Most people will be surprised to learn that (except for real shepherds and reference to Jesus as the Great Shepherd) the word "pastor" is only used as a noun once in the New Testament. The one instance is in Ephesians 4:11, but this passage cannot be used to justify the modern pastor/leader as it describes a completely different model. The pastor-teacher is one gift among four others and their role is not leading and managing, but serving.

Apart from being unsupported by scriptures, there are several other problems with the pastor/leader model.

1. Jesus left twelve apostles behind on earth. He did not appoint one of them to be a pastor/leader of the church. If he had intended to have one single pastor as leader of each church, he would have appointed one person as pastor of the Jerusalem church.

2. A serious problem with pastor/leader model is fitting in the ascension ministries of Eph 4:11. Everyone believes that God is restoring apostles, evangelists and prophets to the church, but this is difficult in churches that are controlled by pastor/leaders.

3. One person leadership is the norm in the world and is used by Satan, but the Trinity is a shared leadership. The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are submitted to each other and rule the world in unity. Shared leadership is difficult to achieve, but is the model that the church should follow. To manifest the full glory of the Trinity, the church should have shared leadership.

4. The prophet Samuel warned the children of Israel not to appoint a king to rule over them (1 Samuel 8). Wanting one man to rule was an expression of distrust in God. The same spirit manifests in the desire to have one man leading a church.

5. The professional leadership model belongs to the Old Testament, where ministry was limited to a priestly class. One of the fundamental ideas of the New Testament is the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers. This means that every believer has access to God and can exercise a ministry for Him.

6. The professional leadership model places the Christian leader under a tremendous pressure to perform that can leave them feeling very insecure. This insecurity is often manifested in a need to control everything that is happening in the church. The ensuing rigidity hampers the growth of the church. The result is a vicious circle in which pressure to perform feeds insecurity, that leads to control, that impairs performance.

A large modern church, with lots of staff and a number of programs will need a leader/manger to lead, inspire and co-ordinate. However, we should be honest and call them what they are: leader/managers. One person cannot be a shepherd to hundreds or thousands of people, so they should not take the title pastor.

Manager or Pastor

When I was the manager of a large division in a public service organisation, I spent my time doing the following tasks:

• Going to meetings
• Organising people
• Dealing with issues
• Resolving problems
• Talking the vision

When I was a pastor, I did these same tasks.

Most pastors are managers or chief executives. If they want to be managers, that’s fine, but they should not call themselves pastors. Words should be used correctly. The people who do the pastoring (shepherding and discipling) should be called pastors.

If Christian leaders want to be regional mangers or management consultants, that’s fine, but we should not call them apostles. The title "apostle" should be used for those who are "sent out", because that it is what it means.

In the beginning was the word, and the word was with God, so we should be more careful about how we use words.

Pastor-Teacher

A correspondent asked me why I refer to pastor-teachers in my book Being Church Where We Live? He said that he had experienced many pastors (true shepherd hearts) who are absolutely hopeless teachers, and many excellent teachers who are abysmal at looking after people. My answer was as follows.

The reason that I treat pastor and teacher as one ministry is that this is the way it is treated in Eph 4:11. Paul says that Jesus made "some to be pastors and teachers". He did not say "some to be pastors and some to be teachers". Paul seems to have been quite deliberate in the way that he worded this, although this is ignored by most commentators. (I suspect that they they see themselves as teachers, but are not good pastors, so they want to find a place for themselves.)

It would be nice for someone like me to have the teacher as a separate ministry, but I cannot see how we can do this and be true to Eph 4:11. I think the key is that teaching in NT times was the same as making disciples. It was about teaching people how to live, mostly by them following a mentor's example. If teaching is seen in this way, it merges with the pastoral task. Teaching, in the sense of giving a logical lecture, decorated with some good examples and some funny stories, is not what Paul was talking about.

I agree that there are many pastors who are hopeless teachers. However, the idea that a pastor should preach a sermon to his disciples every week is totally foreign to the New Testament. It is a terrible method of teaching people to follow Jesus.

I think the so-called teaching ministry has been bad for the church. This role has been to the fore ever since the Reformation and its generally tended to intellectualise our faith. On the whole this has been damaging for the church. I am more intellectual than most people (that’s why I write a blog), and I really love to study the scripture, but I am acutely aware that being a Christian is about having a relationship with Jesus, and other Christians. When Chritianity becomes agreement with a set of intellectual ideas, it quickly gets sterile. We need theology, but it is a tool we use to build our relationship with God, not the goal of our life.

The ascendancy of the ministry of the teacher has allowed the intellectuals to control the Church for nearly 400 years. Fortunately that shackle is now being thrown off.

I also agree that there is a place for public communication and proclamation of Christian truth. Evangelists should do this frequently. Prophetic people will do it from time to time. Others may do it as well, but we should not see it as one of the ascension ministries.

I have explained all this a bit more here.