Professionalism: An Antithesis To Biblical Shepherding

Every occupation require some amount of training to do. Often, those with the best training are usually the ones that are effective at producing desired results. After all, as the saying goes, “to whom much is given, much more is expected”. So ordinarily, I would expect a Harvard(I’m assuming for the purpose of this post that they have the best medical school in the world) trained doctor to be more adept and knowledgeable than say a doctor trained in some obscure medical school in Cuba. This is due to the notion I have of the level of meticulous rigor and the lofty standards associated with their training.  A question though is, can I transpose this same thinking to Christian service especially with regard to Pastors? I think not!

Image Courtesy Google

Christians like to think of the work of a pastor as a calling as opposed to it being a profession. Typically, we distinguish a calling from a mere profession noting the concomitant mentality associated with each term so that, though both terms require almost the same components (i.e. special training, skills and knowledge acquisition), the emphasis of a calling is not just for improved output or service –  which would be ultimate aim of a profession – but for faithful service! As such, a pastor’s training in seminary is not so that he can learn to master Greek and Hebrew so as to enhance an eloquent delivery during a sermon but to be faithful in the preaching of the gospel and in the exposition of scriptures and also to be conscientious in the discharge of other pastoral duties.

Professionalism concerns itself with the exhibition of expertise and skills that comes through intellectual training and specialization and until recently, the notion of specialization among pastors was an alien one but somehow, certain Charismatic pastors – who in my view, are the champions of this whole phenomenon of ‘Professional Pastors’ – have succeeded in conflating that ideology with spiritual calling so much so that, we have pastors who claim to specialize in getting people married, others specialize in visa acquisitions and the most popular ones often specialize in making people rich among others. Mind you, this is just the tip of the iceberg of the fanatic fringe of the charismatic circles as there are many more of such ‘specializations’ that have developed in pastoral work as a result of this skewed thinking.

Another manifestation of this ‘Professional Pastors’ phenomenon is the seemingly innocuous but is in fact, the most pernicious, elitism that have crept into churches these days. With this kind, the pastors usually acquire MBAs and may have excelled in the corporate world and upon assuming a pastoral position (often because he’s an astute business man and not because he meets the biblical criteria for that role) proceeds to effect changes in keeping with prevailing business principles and practices and run the church like a business organization. Their kind are those who have reduced the gospel to a social message and specialize in reducing biblical truths to pithy how-tos. With some assigning such fancy titles as ‘Executive Pastor’, they have become nothing more than motivational speakers. These pastors effectively end up relying on human machinations and techniques rather than the Spirit’s power through the preached word to draw crowds in to the church.

Am I by this suggesting that pastors be reckless in the discharge of their duties? By no means. There is a certain amount of maturity required of pastors which should preclude any wanton recklessness.  However, this does not presuppose that they are to seek to be professionals, for the ways of the world are not the ways of God. John Piper sums it up so well when he says, “the more professional we long to be, the more spiritual death we will leave in our wake. For there is no professional childlikeness, there is no professional tenderheartedness, there is no professional panting after God.

Brothers, we are not professionals. We are outcasts. We are aliens and exiles in the world. Our citizenship is in Heaven, and we wait with eager expectation for the Lord (Phil. 3:20). You cannot professionalize the love for His appearing without killing it. And it is being killed. The world sets the agenda of the professional man; God sets the agenda of the spiritual man. The strong wine of Jesus Christ explodes the wineskins of professionalism.”

Book Review: Evangelistic Calvinism – Why The Doctrines of Grace Are Good News

It is a very common mistake that people who are new to Calvinism often make. They usually assume that the five points of Calvinism, which is often referred to as the Doctrines of Grace, are harsh truths that Christians are to be wary of and should be avoided as much as possible or dispensed with entirely since in their view, it casts a dim light on the loving nature of Christ to a dying world. To this very day, these five bible truths are still ignored in many Christian circles. Even among those who are favorably disposed to Reformed theology, some find these points discomfiting as they are often anxious that the doctrine somehow adversely affects any evangelistic endeavors. This apprehension no doubt arises out of a misunderstanding of the Doctrines of Grace and in his little book, Evangelistic Calvinism: Why The Doctrines of Grace Are Good News, John Benton succinctly presents a solid case for why the doctrine is good news for lost men and women in need of a savior.

Proceeding according to the traditional TULIP acrostic, he begins by pointing out that Total Depravity – which is the spiritual condition in which sin’s contamination of every human being is total, with every human faculty bearing sin’s ugly imprint – rather than hurting people’s sensibilities causes them to face the reality of their true spiritual state. Indeed, one needs not look far away but to tune in to the news to behold the myriad manifestation of man’s depravity on display across the entire world. The stark evidence reveals that there is no depth of wickedness to which human beings will not stoop. This the author observes “provides us with the background for God’s grace”, making us appreciate the lengths to which this loving God will go to save sinners. A frequent corollary of this observation is that sinners need never pretend to be good but rather can be “transparently honest about themselves before God.” He concludes this portion with a hopeful rhetoric “if God loves those who can only be descried as ‘totally depraved’ then no sinner is without hope; no one can be ‘too bad’ to be saved.”

John Benton then moves on the show how Unconditional Election – God’s choosing of sinners in eternity past – dispels any fear that sinners have that they may not be welcomed by God due probably to the extent of the manifestation of their sinfulness. This is because the doctrine shows contrary to popular opinion that “sinners are not chosen on account of some merit, goodness, or ability to be found in them. Neither are they chosen because God saw beforehand that they would do something that would deserve his goodness” but rather salvation and grace are freely given to us by God. This truth underscores that face that whoever needs to be saved, whatever they have done, may come, just as they are, to Jesus Christ!

He then moves on to concisely explain that Limited Atonement – the belief that Christ’s death was intended specifically to save God’s chosen people – is a definite atonement with the implication that “no one for whom Jesus died can possibly fail to receive all that they need to reach heaven, which obviously include faith and eternal life.” This doctrine teaches that on the cross, Jesus actually secured the salvation of all his chosen ones when he cried with a loud voice, ‘It is finished.’ This is good news indeed since it assures all who believe in Jesus that they are definitely saved and are thus set free from all religious legalism and spiritual bondage and best of all, it communicates God’s love to the sinner in a very individual and personal way. It is a heartwarming to know that God had you and me in mind when he sent his Son to die for our sins. Oh, the bliss of this glorious thought!

The author proceeds to Irresistible Grace – the teaching that God’s grace works in such a way as to guarantee the required response to the gospel’s call – to show how this doctrine is of enormous encouragement to those who are caught in addictive habits and a sinful course of action who neither can nor desire to change. These are glad to learn that though they feel powerless to believe, God can give them faith. John Benton notes that “to be without faith is to be spiritually dead, but God gives life to the dead.” This is good news indeed since the irresistible grace of God tells them that there is power for the powerless and hope for the hopeless.

Benton ends with the Perseverance of The Christian – the belief that those who trust in Christ will be kept in Christ. Also referred to on popular level as ‘Once Saved Forever Saved’, this doctrine however does imply that the perseverance of Christians will happen regardless of how they live nor does it imply that Christians will be free from all forms of mundane struggles and falls and setbacks. Benton shows that this doctrine teaches that when a sinner is saved, he becomes ‘God’s workmanship’ and the Lord will keep on working on us and shaping us until finally the image of Christ is perfectly seen in every aspect of the sinners life. This doctrine unburdens the sinner from the anxiety that comes from the notion that one must keep doing good works in order to secure one’s salvation. As Martin Luther so beautifully put it, “He [God] upholds us in our sins and accepts our work and life, worthy as these are of total rejection. He goes on doing it until he perfects and consummates us…We escape his condemnation because of his mercy, not because of our righteousness…” with this assurance we can rejoice in Christ despite our failures and enjoy our Christian lives to the glory of God.

In conclusion, I can only affirm that the author achieved his aim of arguing to the effect that “the doctrines grace are in fact five beautiful diamonds from which  the glories of Jesus wonderfully shine to attract those who are lost in sin” with flying colors. This booklet is ideal for its brevity and concise elucidation of these timeless truths and makes for a perfect gift for young believers and newbies to Calvinism. I highly recommend it! 

The Invitation System—A Review

I hadn’t realized how just rare it has become these days to hear altar calls—the act of inviting hearers to receive Christ after a sermon—in churches lately until my memory was jolted back to this phenomenon when I chanced upon a pamphlet by Iain H. Murray titled The Invitation System where he examines the merits of this methodology of soul winning.

While growing up, it used to be a common feature of almost every Sunday church service. But it seems, it has been placed on the backburner in modern times.

This may probably be as a result of the sharp decline in evangelistic outdoor crusades which mostly served as avenues for such altar calls. Another possible reason, among others, could be the widespread decline in the preaching of the unadulterated gospel in our churches where the simplicity of the saving gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, has been replaced with motivational messages that are sure to garner impressive crowds that will fill church auditoriums.

Times have indeed changed so I was curious to find out his views of this phenomenon. Right from the beginning of his examination, Murray unequivocally affirms a clear scriptural stance on the proclamation of the gospel as being the “divinely ordained means for the conviction and conversion of sinners” and does not dispute the fact that “wherever preaching has ceased to require a response and wherever hearers are left with the impression that there is no divine command requiring their repentance and faith, true Christianity has withered away.”

His concern is with how the whole idea of inviting hearers to walk down the aisle to the front of the crowd has come to be identified with salvation. The author tackles head-on, three of the main reasons that the popularizers of this system resort to as basis for adopting it namely;

·         That Christ always called people publicly,

·         ‘Coming out’ it is said, ‘settles it and seals it’ and 

·         The invitation has value as a visual demonstration to the uncommitted.

To make his case even more appealing, he cites such people as Billy Graham who are renowned for this practice.

Regarding the first reason, Murray took time to elucidate some of the scriptural verses which are often quoted (and out of context at that) in support of this system. One such verse is Matt.10:32, ‘Whosoever shall confess me before men…’ and remarks rhetorically that “Is Christ here saying that by an act of confession we become Christians or is He teaching that one indispensable mark of those who are Christians is that they live a life which openly acknowledges Him?” He observes that “the whole invitation system inevitably gives the impression that ‘confessing Christ’ by moving forward is in order to conversion.”

The second reason for this system seem to find its support more in its psychological effectiveness than the seeking to engender sincere and truly genuine response from hearers. The idea behind this technique is to stir the emotions of hearers to a high pitch and then pressing for a decision for conversion in that very moment. This whole attempts betrays our distrust in the preaching of the word of God alone for salvation so much so that we have resorted to emotionally manipulative schemes for forced conversions.

The third reason immediately brought to mind a recent incident that made some waves in the Christian blogosphere about a year ago when it was brought to the fore that Pastor Steven Furtick and his Elevation Church have produced a baptism manual with the telling title Spontaneous Baptism How-To Guide.

This guide teaches, among other strategies that, some people are to be positioned at certain vantage points in the service where they will be visible to all and are to pretend to be responding to pastor Furtick’s alter call and by this act encourage the undecided to also walk to the front and make a profession of faith and be baptized. The idea behind this strategy is that once the undecided hearer sees very decent people walk the aisle to the front, they will be convinced Christianity is not only for the riff-raffs of society but the respectable members as well. It is very troubling to say the least that this man made technique though might produce the large number of ‘conversions’ as it is designed to achieve, it smacks of nothing but false conversions.

In the end, Murray succeeded in convincing me that The Invitation System as a method for conversion ought to be discarded since firstly, it has no biblical basis; secondly it is a fairly modern phenomenon popularized by such evangelists as Billy Graham and lacks any historic backing and thirdly it gives rise to a pragmatist approach where it is the end—in this case high numbers of conversions—that justifies the means rather than what is biblically sound.

This is however not to say that preachers should be precluded from requiring a response from hearers after a presentation of the gospel but rather, that it should be made clear to hearers that walking to the front is not by that very fact a testament to their conversion but rather repentance and faith in the finished work of Christ on Calvary alone is their only hope of salvation.

A FALSE SENSE OF SECURITY

As I write this the current milieu of much of Accra is that of despondency as we’re still in the throes of coming to grips with the recent twin disaster of fire and flood which resulted in massive loss of life and property. 

Amidst much of the palpable anguish and grieving is welcoming news of recuperating victims and also the much anticipated albeit belated implementation of actions plans that have seen many a day atop dusty shelves by city authorities in attempts to forestall a possible recurrence of flooding as we’re still in the early days of the annual raining season. There is also news of various groups and organizations working in concert to bring relief to the victims especially in the worst affected areas. Indeed there is much to admire in all these selfless acts of assistance in this time of difficulty.

In the midst of all this, my attention has been brought to one particular story about one lady’s “miraculous escape” from the inferno which many are touting as a modern day equivalent of the account of the biblical narrative of the three Hebrew boys in the furnace (see Daniel 3). I had initially picked up the story in the media but had brushed it aside as one of those numerous sensational fictitious stories that usually go viral on social media. However, I have been proven wrong as I was informed by a friend that the character in the said narrative appeared on one of the premier morning shows in Accra to recount her story. I have since been in discussions with him and have decided to pen down a word of caution as the narrative seem to paint a skewed picture of what being a Christian entails.

Firstly, I must state that I’m mighty glad about the fact that she openly professes her Christian faith and also that she attributes her narrow escape to be the result of the grace of God. I could wish for more of such testimonies as they are some of the ways to boost the faith of the saints by way of reminder that “the name of the LORD is a strong tower; the righteous man runs into it, and is safe”. Indeed, Christians believe in a God who is more than able to keep his own because he neither sleeps nor slumber. However, I’m concerned about the, dare I say, embellished manner of the narrative as it seems to suggest, unwittingly perhaps, that once you’re a Christian, you are somewhat shielded from such gory loss of life.

The fact is, she was not the only person to have escaped the incident. There were a good number of people who also survived the incident, among whom are non-Christians. Another fact is, there were a number of Christians who perished in the same incident. This alone should be enough to shatter any such notion of Christianity being one’s sure bet to safety from disaster. My worry is that the manner in which many are hailing her escape reduces God’s providence to a mere protection against future loss. I am also concerned that another possible fallout from her story will be a perception of a lack of or weak faith on the side of those Christians who perished. This is most unfortunate indeed!

It is very disheartening to know that many are made to believe they automatically fly above all the besetting problems of life once they profess to be Christians according to a certain ‘gospel’ which unfortunately has spread very far and wide. Yet all one needs to do is simply take a cursory look at certain pages of the Bible to ascertain that that belief is patently false! Take the apostle Paul for instance; he was imprisoned, beaten, stoned, shipwrecked, hungry, cold, and destitute(2 Cor.11:23-28). As my friend also noted, some of those who perished “might have probably prayed in the morning for safety before leaving home; yet they didn’t return. Has God abandoned them? Did their faith fail? No, death is inevitable. How we die has no bearing on our level of faith…” 

The obvious truth is, being a Christian in fact comes with its own set of peculiar challenges in addition to the routine troubles of daily life. But Christians take comfort in the fact that “nothing can happen to us by chance but only by the arrangement of our gracious heavenly Father. He watches over us with fatherly care, keeping all creatures under his control, so that not one of the hairs on our heads (for they are all numbered) nor even a little bird can fall to the ground without the will of our Father.” Article 13, Belgic Confession

In the meantime, we do well if we offer relief items to the victims of the flood and the bereaved families while keeping them in our prayers to God remembering that, we are to “rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.” May God grant us the grace to endure all the hardships in these trying times!

Soli Deo Gloria!!!

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE REFORMED?

This is a question I have received on countless occasions when an opportunity has been presented to me to articulate my religious persuasions. One would think that given the umpteen number of time I have been asked this question, I should by now have a pithy answer I give to all such inquirers but curiously that is not the case. Sometimes, I wish that when someone asks me my religious affiliation, I could simply say “Christian” and that when they ask me my religious beliefs, I could simply say “the Bible.” Unfortunately, such simple answers are no longer sufficient because all sorts of people today claim to be Christians, and even Bible-believers, who are actually far from the kingdom of Christ. Liberals, cultists, and New Age syncretists all abound in the name in Christianity. Therefore, it has become necessary for some descriptive adjective that distinguishes one from broad Christendom.

Basically, when we speak of the Reformed faith, we are referring to the true Christian religion as it was recovered during the Protestant Reformation of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The Reformed faith holds to all the apostolic doctrines set forth in the Bible and given creedal formulation by the great ecumenical councils of the ancient church on such cardinal articles of the Christian faith such as the Trinity, the atonement, justification by faith, the virgin birth and the bodily resurrection of Jesus, his miracles and the inspiration of Holy Scripture.

Reformation Wall in Geneva

It is important to recognize that these doctrines have been variously misinterpreted by the several branches of the visible church. Which interpretations belong to the Reformed faith and which do not? The answer to that question can only be gained through careful study of the various Reformed creeds, confessions and catechisms. Aside the ecumenical creeds, the Reformed subscribe to what is popularly referred to as The Three Forms of Unity, comprising The Heidelberg Catechism, The Belgic Confession and The Canons of Dordt. In recent times, these confessions together with the Westminster Confessions are fondly called The Six Forms of Unity, whose purpose is to serve as a convenient summary of the church’s beliefs of the teachings of Scripture. Hence, it is no secret what the Reformed system teaches regarding any doctrine of the Scripture and makes for easy perusal to ascertain the veracity of our doctrines.

Another major distinctive of the Reformed faith is the utmost seriousness given to the Bible emphasizing its sufficiency for all aspects of the Christian faith and life, its inerrancy and thus necessity in coming to “that knowledge of God, and his will, which is necessary unto salvation”(WCF1.1). The Reformed system is also heavily God-centered with strong emphasis on his sovereignty and unfailing providence, all of which culminates in his glory, which is man’s chief end!

A lot more could be said about the distinctives of the Reformed faith but in conclusion, it can be said in summary that, it is the Christian religion in its most consistent expression. This is not to claim that others, who do not hold to the Reformed confessions, are not Christians. It is simply to insist that there is only one true religion and that the most consistent expression of it is the Reformed faith. “In other words we believe that Christianity comes to its fullest and purest expression in Reformed faith” as Loraine Boettner so concisely asserted!

Scriptures + Something More?

I was hoping to break my unplanned hiatus of about a year with a more sanguine post than this but I fear that was not meant to be for I’ve been jolted out of my silence by a growing canker among Evangelicals which ought to alarm any conscientious believer but alas, its infusion has been so subtle that it has crept in amongst us unawares! What I speak of is the increasing belief that the Bible alone is not sufficient for the Christian life.

I used to read about the spread of this belief from noted Christian authors and bloggers in the West which left in me the impression(and a false one at that in hindsight) that such phenomenon was way too far away--in fact near impossible--to occur among Evangelicals of my own home country where I assumed believers were of a more fervent sort than in the West. But how mistaken I have been; for my recent encounters with some believers of a certain theological persuasion has jerked me to the harsh realization that this incident is in fact too close to home than I had initially assumed.

You may find this hard to believe but it’s an unfortunate reality today. Of course, most Evangelicals would dare not admit it in such outright terms but often, their actions and utterances belie their profession. I cite one zealous young man in a recent discourse who asserted, “…if all I know about God is what I read in the bible sorry that won’t be enough for me.” In other words the Bible is insufficient hence he needs something more. And right there is the problem.

With this underlying belief of insufficiency, many like him have suggested we need the arts i.e. books, paintings, music, videos, choreography and what have you to make up for our Christian experience. Others still think we need visions and dreams and ‘still small voices’ to supplement the scriptures. This stance is most unfortunate indeed for when God, in his divine wisdom, has given us all we’ll ever need in his written word(which is a closed canon) and has further given us of his Holy Spirit to illumine and guide our hearts to the truth contained therein and to ever lead us on in our pilgrimage, we’re still craving something more. This in my view unwittingly depicts our gross incredulity at his unfailing promises. 

Oh how pitiable when men think they know better than the Almighty himself and have gone in search of strange voices, working up emotions into a frenzy in their meetings all in the name of God. They whip up sentiments to numb their sober minds into self-inflicted delusions and hallucinations, receiving revelations whose origins are thought to be celestial beings garbed in bright shiny garments like in many a children’s fairytales. Bingo, they’ve seen angels! Surely it must be, they insist!

Oh puny man, when will you learn that the scriptures are sufficient in and of itself and that all we’ll ever need on this side of eternity are recorded therein and that we’re only to heed those ancient words and live?

Oh puny man in search of sensual experiences and gratifications, when will you learn that the path you thread is a slippery slope into an endless abyss of folly, doom, and despair? Oh puny man, won’t you heed the ever true and unfailing words of scripture alone and live?

May be it’s time our pastors and teachers started shouting themselves hoarse in the congregation with ‘Sola Scriptura! Sola Scriptura!!’ but regrettably that won’t be, for they are the chief source of this canker! Nevertheless, we need to work harder at instilling the absolute certainty of the authority and finality of scripture alone as the only rule and guide to the Christian life!

As for me, my motto is Sola Scriptura…Always! May God have mercy on us all!

The Art Of Growing Old by Herbert Vander Lugt

One characteristic flaw of humankind is our tendency to take a lot of things for granted especially regarding the cycles of life. We typically assume that once a child is born, she will grow up sane and strong, attend school and graduate, get a good job and then marry and start her own family, then she’ll succeed in her career, grow old and eventually die at a ripe old age. This repetitive nature of certain events of this life is well documented by The Teacher in the book of Ecclesiastes who laments the utter futility of these cycles. They are all vanities he says.

Reality however has a way of yanking us out of this enshrined orientation of taking things for granted by the many failures and disappointments we encounter as we age. Yet, our grief from these heartbreaks could have probably been rendered more bearable had we be somewhat open-minded about life’s uncertainties.

The late author Herbert Vander Lugt in this short book, The Art of Growing Old, shares his experiences and that of other senior citizens on some of the possible pitfalls of old age and offers sound advice on how to deal with them. He notes an unfortunate pattern among many people especially those in their late forties and early fifties who are often forced to brood over the implications of their personal mortalities only when tragedies strike. He observes that, “the awareness of life’s brevity may come with a jolt when a person finds out he has high blood pressure or other physical problems that are usually associated with aging,” which statements rings too true!

The author observes that, many intentionally avoid discussing and planning for their old age because such inevitably must include debilitation and death, which themes are deemed too morbid and depressing, yet this ought not to be the case especially for the Christian. He asserts that “a Christian who properly faces the reality of departing this life, acknowledging it openly and cheerfully will not get sour on life or develop a fixation on death and dying.” Christians ought to be confident that when they depart this life, they are going to be with their Lord.

Even though death preoccupies the thinking and planning for old age, it’s not all about it. There are many positive benefits to growing old. Freed from the pressure of making a living or raising a family, we can use much of this time for personal growth and spiritual impact. For instance, the author shares the story of a man he personally knew whose joy seemed to abound after retiring because now, he had ample time to embark on evangelism and other missionary works. Apart from this, old age also affords one the quality time to spend with one’s grandchildren(kids always love their grandparents), ample time to volunteer for and support worthy causes, to coach and counsel young ones in their life decisions and so on.

As a relatively young person, I found The Art of Growing Old very helpful as I was opened to certain realities of life in a fresh way by the author’s measured tone in dealing with this topic which inspired in me a much welcomed sober cogitation.

I agree with Herbert Vander Lugt when he says that old age “can be happy and useful if we plan for the adjustments it will demand and utilize its new opportunities to glorify God.” Do give this book a read if you do come across it!