The excitement was starting to
build as the church began preparing for the upcoming months of
celebration. They were preparing for
several big events. There was the church’s
homecoming celebration, the pastor appreciation and the 25th anniversary
service all to plan. The boards were all
meeting to make the necessary plans for all the events and the different groups
in the church were getting the decoration ideas together. They knew that this was their time to make a
membership drive in the community. A community
that they knew was ready for them to harvest.
The pastor
spent many hours preparing his sermons for these special times. He knew that everyone looked to him to
deliver a message that would bring many into the church. In his time as pastor, he had seen a lot of
changes in the community and especially in his church. They had grown to capacity twice and planted
two separate churches in other parts of the city. The church had expanded on the building
several times to accommodate the growing numbers. He just knew it was the right time for the
church to expand again. He had laid down
the foundation for the church and knew it was just a matter of time before they
would start another church.
In the
weeks leading up to the first special service, the pastor’s sermon was from 1
Corinthians 1:10-17. He spoke of the
dangers of following the wrong people even in the church. He warned the church about putting all their
faith in him as the pastor. As much as
he loved being there, he didn’t want the church to follow him. He wanted them to realize their faith should
be in Christ alone. The pastor felt
confident that he had delivered the message that God had given him leading into
the upcoming events and felt comfortable in the knowledge that they understood
him.
The homecoming
and anniversary Sundays came and went with resounding positive feedback from
the church. Everyone had felt the Holy
Spirit in both services and there were several people that accepted Jesus in
their lives during those services. The board
knew it was time to reward the pastor for all the hard work he had done in
making the services a success. They decided
they would dedicate the sanctuary to the pastor. They had a big plaque made with his name on
it with the date. They also had it
inscribed to read, “To our beloved pastor, in this building you brought many to
know Jesus. We as a congregation
dedicate this building to you as token of our appreciation.”
Pastor appreciation
Sunday was just days away and the board was prepared for everything. They had the plaque ready, they had the
monetary gift together, they even had dinner on the grounds planned but they
never expected to get a phone call from the pastor’s wife. She informed the board that the pastor had a
heart attack and passed away in his sleep.
After receiving the devastating news, the board postponed the service
and dedication. They had to bury their
beloved pastor before they could praise him.
The weeks
and months after the funeral were hard on the church. They interviewed several prospective
candidates to fill the pastor’s position.
They had guest speakers every Sunday as they tried to hire the right
person. The stress of losing their
pastor started taking its toll on the church.
The congregation started dwindling down.
At first, it was just a few people and the board didn’t think anything
about it. As time passed, the church
lost about 60% of the congregation. The
board finally presented a new pastor to the church in hopes of putting a stop
to the falling numbers. The new pastor
had no chance of rebuilding the church. The
congregation had lost all hope of finding “their” pastor again.
1
Corinthians 1:10-17 teaches us not to put our faith in the leaders of the
church. Paul explains that we must put
all our faith in Jesus. Churches all
over the country are falling victim to following the pastor. They put all their trust in a man and believe
that he can lead them. Churches are
being divided because one group has their agenda and another group has a separate
agenda. They have lost focus on the real
reason they are a church. Paul puts it
plainly in verse 13, “Is Christ divided?
Was Paul crucified for you? Were you
baptized in the name of Paul?” Paul knew
that he was not the answer and that the church needed to unify behind the
Prince of Peace. He knew that a divided
church could not stand up under the stress that would come their way.
Who are
you following today? Do you go sit in a
church because you like the pastor? Do you
go because of the music? Or do you go because
you have a foundation in Jesus? The leaders
of a church will change but as long as the church has Jesus in the forefront,
the church will continue to thrive. Its when
we start putting more faith in the leaders that we have a church that is
divided. And a divided church cannot
survive. Satan will devour a divided
church and will win a battle against man.
So again I ask, who do you follow?
Lord I pray for anyone reading
this right now that is in a church that puts all their faith and hope in the
pastor. Even the best pastor in the world
cannot compare to you. Lord, touch all
the churches out there that put the pastor up on a pedestal. The church can only survive when You are the
center of all worship and not a person.
Lord I pray for all the pastors that have become gods in their own minds
and think the church can’t survive without them. Please humble these people and open their
eyes to your glory. In your Holy Name,
Amen
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