Nathan

November 21, 2019

The Christian church had barely gotten started when problems arose. I’ve often heard people say they wish we could go back to New Testament times when the church was more pure and holy than today. Unfortunately for such imagination, the church has never been pure and holy. From the beginning, it was populated by weak and often selfish sinners, just like today. Our prayers should not be, “Lord, help us be like them,” but “Lord, help us; we are like them.” 

One of the earliest problems they faced was jealousy. The early church consisted of mostly Jews, but there were different branches of early Judaism. Some were native to Palestine, while others were of the Diaspora, what we call Hellenized Jews. These were those who worshipped the Jewish God while living scattered throughout the known world. They were often considered second-class by the Palestinian Jews, an attitude that didn’t magically evaporate when Christ was claimed. 

The early church did a pretty good job taking care of their poor and needy, especially widows. Without governmental or social programs in a highly patriarchal society, a woman who lost her husband was often immediately thrust into dire circumstances. The earthly church picked up the slack and made sure they were provided for. Therein lay the rub. The Hellenized converts complained that they were being shortchanged in the distributions. The apostles met to consider the problem, and instead of tackling the distribution themselves, appointed deacons to handle the practical side of the work with the explanation, “but we will give ourselves continually to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”    —Acts 6:4 NKJV

The pastors here chose to devote themselves to feeding the flock, which then in turn was tasked with doing good works. When pastors are running around doing all the good works, the flock doesn’t get fed, and the pastor eventually runs out of steam and the whole endeavor collapses. The Twelve has it right, devoting themselves to prayer and study.

Christians often act like the pastor is being paid to be their representative Christian, and too many pastors run themselves ragged trying to handle all the various responsibilities. Our United Methodist Book of Discipline’s pastoral job description is a nightmare of impossibilities, and we are not alone in our expectations. The squeaky wheels get greased, but often at the expense of the essentials. And the Scriptures are crystal clear about what those essentials are—prayer and the Word of God. Any pastor who for whatever reason skimps here robs the church, dishonors God, and ultimately dooms his ministry to failure. There is no substitute. Our primary job is to feed the people. It’s how disciples are made. It’s how the church grows strong instead of fat. 

When I was pastor of Park church, my son Nathan was ministry director. I cannot count the times he said to me, “My job is to free you to pray and study the Word.” He did that faithfully, and does it today for pastor Joe. I am thankful tonight for my son who understood his job often better than I did, and who regularly reminded me of what my job was. I benefitted from his faithfulness, and as a result, the church benefitted, too. Every pastor needs his or her own Nathan. Pity those pastors who have no one determined to make sure they have the time they need to pray and preach well.