Superintendent's Corner

PRADA, PROBABLY NOT!

 

            During the middle of December Bevie Jo and I took a week of vacation in a southern climate … it was wonderful!  We went into town one day because from the airport Bevie Jo had noticed many little tent shops set up in the center of town and the taxi driver told her there were “great bargains” to be had.  Since it was vacation I caved on at least one day of “shopping” and since it was going to be “bargain basement” deals how could I refuse?  As we arrived chaos was everywhere, there were tiny tent like shops everywhere; and the big news was that they carried “fake” major name look-alike products.  By the way, I’m writing this with Bevie Jo’s knowledge and approval!  And then it happened, there was the “Prada” purse table … bargain fake Prada purses at less than $45 dollars … purses with that name normally cost around $1,000.  Well, you are probably ahead of me … we returned to our room that night with an imitation Prada purse for a bargain basement price of $35 (Bevie Jo talked the store owner down to this).  It actually looks pretty good (like I’m some expert on how purses look!)  This all got me thinking in spiritual terms … well, that’s what I do.  I wondered how many times this happens in the spiritual realm.  Instead of representing the expensive grace that God paid for our redemption we live out a cheap imitation of what real Christianity should be.

            Is it possible to be a cheap imitation today of what God really wants the church and Christianity to be?  I think it is.  We can wear the label but not really be the authentic article; we can actually be a cheap imitation.  It can be cheap to look the part, and perhaps even fool a lot of people for quite a while.  I wonder how the early Christians survived heavy persecution; horrible economic times when Christianity wasn’t even a permitted lifestyle.  How did they love, how did they persevere, how did they grow spiritually and look at faith and their relationship to God?  Today we run into a few inconveniences and we wonder where God is, and why He doesn’t love us anymore.  I admit that there have been times I have been shallow, weak, and I am embarrassed myself thinking of what I have at times based my own relationship to God on.  It seems to me that we should be the strongest of people in the most difficult of times.  We should be able to see opportunity in opposition.  We quote the passage about the gates of hell not prevailing against the church of Jesus Christ, but live sometimes as though the church can’t make it in this economic environment.  Churches can lose their focus and turn inward instead of remembering that their focus is suppose to be outward.  An inward focused church is doomed to implode.  For the early Christians faith was about their relationship with God, not about getting stuff.  Faith was related to inward growth, character development, not outward growth or the accumulation of things.

            Cheap imitation knock offs are great for products, but not for faith commitments.  I think this world is hungry for real Christians; authentic faith; real relationships that have real depth to them.  We need people who are really like Christ, accept real accountability, not just a spirituality that is sentimental and shallow.  We need a faith that is based more on following God than how we feel about God or others.  The real name should not be made cheap like an imitation.  It wasn’t to outside unbelievers that God said in His 10 commandments, “Do not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.”  This commandment was directed to HIS people, meaning that those who NAME Him should not live a mocking life or empty life because it takes HIS name in vain when we do so!  It was NOT a commandment about cursing God through swearing, it was a commandment warning God’s people to not carry His name in a vain, shallow, or empty way!  Are we the real article, or a cheap imitation?  The price tag is high for the real thing, but what a thing of beauty and value!

“BUT I LIKE…!”

By Dennis Marquardt

 

One of the interesting passages in the New Testament is 1 Cor. 1:10-18.  Paul is writing to the church at Corinth; and in the opening pages of his letter he is concerned about the church and its mission.  He says he has heard that there was quarreling going in the church; serious enough to hinder the unity within the congregation; and ultimately negating the church’s influence in the community.  The “divisions” (Greek word here is “schisma”) were NOT coming from outsiders or unbelievers however; these quarrelsome divisions were coming from believers inside the church!  What was the substance of these quarrels?  Preferences, pride, and personalities!  There were various factions in the church who liked different leaders and their particular style over another.  There was also a “super-spiritual” group in the church … “The Jesus Group.”  While many in the church followed the particular styles of dynamic leaders like Paul, Peter, Apollos, or others; this super-spiritual group claimed to follow “Christ.”  They no doubt claimed the “superior” position over all the other groups!  Paul however puts them all into the same category … they were destroying the witness and mission of the church! 

The church was supposed to show Christ’s care and compassion for the lost, to show the unity of believers in reaching a broken and lost humanity.  Instead it was fighting over style and personalities within the church, trying to prove which of them is superior to the others!  Paul immediately tries to draw their attention to the one thing that should have been preoccupying them all; “preaching the Gospel” … the power of the cross; not being cross with each other!  The church at Corinth was fast becoming just another “institution of man.”  With it came all the ego, demands, and political maneuvering that is symptomatic of man-made organizations. 

Paul steps in and reminds them that the church is about “preaching the Gospel.”  Any church that gets lost in preferences, pride, and personalities is about to lose its mission.  Paul said “no one should boast.”  As a leader Paul didn’t take pride in the group that followed him!  His focus to these factiousness believers was simple; “get your attention on Christ and what He asks you to do … preach the cross.”  They were to refocus their attention from their own likes and dislikes to how the Gospel was getting out.  How many times does this scene play out in churches today?  What “style” is the right style?  What “leader” is the right leader? 

The fact is that the message has never changed; the cross of Jesus makes possible new life!  Methods however DO change.  There isn’t one “right style.”  It isn’t about a particular personality.  The church of Jesus must learn how to “preach the Gospel” to every culture, at every time.  Paul said it wouldn’t be done by human wisdom, or even miraculous signs (see 1:22) … it will only be accomplished when we both preach and practice the “power of God” which Paul’s describes as the “foolishness of preaching” that change lives.  Jesus declared the same thing when He talked about people knowing us as His disciples, because they see us love one another. 

How much healthier the church would be today if we were asking questions like, “how can we touch this community with the Gospel?”  What do we need to do to seriously help people see the power of God in changed lives?  It is too easy to lose focus as a group, or an individual.  If our eyes are on the cross it will be way too hard to be cross with one another!  If our church exists to reach the community we won’t be lost in ourselves.  1 Cor. 2:2 “For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.”

 

PASTORAL LEADERSHIP!

 By Dennis Marquardt

 

In the business world you cannot spend capital you don’t have, at least not without serious consequences.  In the ministry this is also true.  So often pastors don’t understand authority and leadership.  They move into a new church and immediately begin to exercise authority and then wonder why they get a backlash of anger and resentment to their leadership.  You cannot lead people in the ministry that you have not EARNED their respect and trust first.  This is the capital you have to “earn” before you can “spend” it. 

Pastoral ministry is a lot like a bank account.  When you first open an account your balance is almost $0.  You haven’t made any real deposits yet so any attempt to spend will prove to be empty or bankrupt.  As time goes by, with each demonstration of servanthood and trustworthiness as a leader you make more and more deposits into your account.  As your account builds you can draw on it as needed.  You cannot spend more than you have.  If your account is still fairly low and you have to spend a large amount of your capital on a single moment you might find yourself bankrupt.  This is by the way why ministers who have stayed a very long time in one place have such powerful ministries.  They have built up huge bank accounts by their long proven record of sacrifices, trust, and selflessness.  They can draw on their capital in large measures and get things done because of their large account.  BUT … it takes the RIGHT kinds of investments over time to build up this kind of capital to have this kind of power or authority. 

Jesus taught that these are the right kind of “investments” to make in one’s leadership account: “selfless love, servant-hood example, laying down one’s own life for the sheep, feeding, listening, caring, valuing others over self, not lording over others, sacrificial giving, not demanding one’s own way, honesty, trustworthy, etc.”  When a leader exhibits these qualities his authority bank account builds quickly, and when he needs to draw on the capital to exercise authority it will be there.  New deposits will quickly replace that capital and he/she will continue to build up that account.  However, when a pastor demands his own way, lords over others, fails to engender trust in his leadership by being honest or gives the impression of manipulating events toward his own plans he fails to have any capital to work with.  This type of pastor resorts to exercising authority based on position or title, “I’m the pastor” rather than authority garnered from respect.  By the way, this applies to all areas of leadership, not just pastors. 

Real power to lead comes gradually, it does not come instantly.  This is why it is such a mistake when a leader tries to make major changes at first, they have not yet been at a place long enough to have “earned” capital for their bank accounts.  They may spend capital before they have actually gotten it and the results can be tragic.  Even if they get by their early decisions and make the major changes they may have bankrupted their accounts for some time to come and they will find the next several years difficult at best.  They won’t be trusted and may find a congregation that refuses to follow their leadership.  By the way, this is why many ministers never make it past a few years at any one place.  They become so frustrated and realize that things aren’t going to change where they are and so they move on, often repeating this same process at each new church they go to. 

The first couple of years at a new place of ministry should be devoted to one thing, proving the minister.  It is interesting that when Paul wrote to a young pastor named Timothy about defending his ministry he did not exhort Timothy to prove his calling by the Apostolic laying on of hands, or by Paul’s letter of confirmation on him, but by Timothy’s behavior.  1 Tim 4:12  “Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.”  Timothy would prove his qualification by his behavior, not his credentials! 

The Senior pastor of my home church gave me good advice when I left for Bible college many years ago, he said, “Dennis, God builds a man before he builds a man’s ministry,” and I’ve never forgotten those words.  Build capital before you spend it!