“…shepherd the flock of God among you, overseeing not under compulsion, but willingly, according to God; and not for dishonest gain, but with eagerness;” 1 Peter 5:2 (LSB)
I think that possibly every child runs into a school teacher who has had it with children. When I say this, I don’t mean the teacher that has had a rough week, or even a rough year. I mean that teacher that no longer loves teaching, and has moved beyond the loss of love to an actual disdain for students that borders on hatred. In the children’s book Matilda, this person is portrayed in the character known as Agatha Trunchbull, whom the children fearfully refer to as “The Trunchbull.” I wonder if Roald Dahl went to my high school…
I think it is tragic when a teacher reaches this stage, where what was (I assume) once a love for teaching has become drudgery and buying time until retirement. But this danger is not one that only school teachers face; pastors can fall into the same trap and patterns of ministry. No longer loving people or ministry, just buying time until retirement or Jesus returns, but mostly retirement.
As he writes to the church that is scattered abroad, Peter warns pastors, as a fellow pastor, that there is a danger of overseeing the church in such a way that one feels that they do so “under compulsion.” The calling of God has been overshadowed by a sense of duty, which has devolved into buying time until retirement. Slowly pastoral duties are left off for someone else to do, or not done at all. Small ways of serving others are replaced with complaints and a bitter heart. The pastor who reaches this stage can sometimes be heard reliving the “good old days” when people really cared about things, and how now “nobody” has a passion anymore.
The vision has died in many of these churches because it has died in the heart of its leader. No longer can the disenfranchised pastor see the crowds of people as an opportunity to proclaim Christ. Instead, the oceans of humanity are seen as a trial to be endured. The traffic, the graffiti, the constant cries of those needing help. It seems never-ending, and the burnout grows each day. There is no “eagerness” anymore. Instead, some hang on, knowing they need a few more years to reach their retirement funding goals, or maybe because they don’t have retirement funds, and so they keep pastoring in order to provide for their daily needs. The ministry has become a job, and the paycheck is the motivation as much as anything.
I write this to both young and old in ministry. Be careful. If you find yourself in ministry for the money (no matter how little or much you receive), then it’s time to leave. It would be better to serve as a volunteer while working a secular job than to serve God for financial gain. By this, I don’t mean that being supported financially is wrong–because motivation is the heart of the issue here. Peter is warning about the motivation. Do we serve King Jesus willingly, even through the hard times, long hours, and dry years, or do we put up with the Church because we think we can’t do anything else, or do we find that the path of least resistance means to stay in ministry until something easier or better comes along?
I hope that no one reading this finds themselves in this place. If you are there, take some time for prayer, seek wise counsel from a good friend who can point you to God and help you as you examine your heart and motivations, and then see where God leads. You might find that the Lord brings a refreshing breeze back to your life and ministry that will once again restore you to a place of renewed usefulness in the Lord’s house.
I remember as a child scoffing as my parents said that the swat I was about to receive on my bottom was harder for them than it was for me. “Harder for you?!” I would think. How could that be true? But as a parent about to dole out discipline to my own children years later, I understood. My discipline was not meant to bring retribution but was instead aimed at true discipline, or teaching. Of course, my children didn’t always understand this, even when I explained it to them. The sting of discipline can sometimes get in the way of the communication process.
Right now our world awakes to the daily reality of multiple wars raging all over the world. For those in the war zones, the painful reality is both shockingly real and surreal. It is easy for us in the peaceful parts of the world to make judgment calls on who is right and wrong in these upheavals, like a person sitting in their living room watching a sports match and choosing sides. But in war, is there a winner?
In my Bible reading this morning through the Old Testament prophet of Ezekiel, I was struck by the words of the Lord through this man of God. His words were of judgment, but not toward His own people Israel. Earlier in the book, the Lord has doled out his discipline on His wayward people, and it has been harsh. The events that took place against God’s people were brutal, even barbaric. That isn’t to say that it wasn’t well deserved. God had sent wave after wave of His servants, the prophets, to bring God’s warning of impending judgment, only to be met with laughter, disgust, and further open wickedness. When the bowl of the wrath of God was full, He acted just as He had promised.
In bringing punishment to His people, the Lord used the enemies of Israel, some of whom they had treaties with, others who rejoiced in its fall and took advantage of their weakened state. Having completed the punishment against His people, the Lord turned to those who struck out against His people. Remember, God didn’t implant jealousy and hatred into the hearts of these people. They already hated Israel. He simply allowed the hatred, greed, and jealousy to have its result–the plundering of Israel.
In Ezekiel 25, the Lord turns His attention to the nations that took advantage of Israel in her weakness. Although God was angry with His people, like a father who loves His children even while he is disciplining them, so too our God loves His people Israel, even as He brings judgment on them for their open rebellion. He never forsook them, and His wrath cannot be interpreted as a separation from them as His own. In case there was any doubt about that, this chapter (and the next several) describes God’s judgment not on Israel, but upon the people that attacked God’s precious people Israel. In chapter 25, God speaks His judgment against Ammon, Moab, Edom, and Philistia.
In God’s words of judgment to these nations, there is an important lesson to consider, especially in light of the war in Israel going on right now between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. It is this: Israel may be disobedient, rebellious, and hard-hearted in its attitude toward God and righteousness, and God will punish. But He will never forsake His people. And for those that point and laugh, and say that Israel is no different than any other nation, and that her punishment is proof of God’s rejection of Israel, I say you need to read your Bible, and specifically the way God dealt with those in Ezekiel 25.
First, look at what God says to Ammon, “And the word of Yahweh came to me saying, “Son of man, set your face toward the sons of Ammon and prophesy against them and say to the sons of Ammon, ‘Hear the word of Lord Yahweh! Thus says Lord Yahweh, “Because you said, ‘Aha!’ against My sanctuary when it was profaned, and against the land of Israel when it was made desolate, and against the house of Judah when they went into exile,” (Ezekiel 25:1–3, LSB)
God took offense against Ammon for its mockery when His holy temple was profaned. “Aha!” is an interjection, and the Lexham Analytical Lexicon of the Hebrew Bible connects this word to the Greek word euge, which means, “Good!” We can picture the rejoicing and dancing in the streets of many Muslims in the Middle East when the planes struck the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001.
For their hatred of God’s people, the Lord promised to give over their land to nomads and to turn their capital into a pasture for their camels. The Lord further elaborated on their joy over Israel’s demise: “‘For thus says Lord Yahweh, “Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet and were glad with all the scorn of your soul against the land of Israel, therefore, behold, I have stretched out My hand against you, and I will give you for plunder to the nations. And I will cut you off from the peoples and make you perish from the lands; I will destroy you. Thus you will know that I am Yahweh.”” (Ezekiel 25:6–7, LSB)
Instead of coming to Israel’s aid, the Ammonites celebrated. Instead of mourning, they rejoiced. And for their hard hearts and wicked scorn, God would destroy them.
The next nation that the Lord addressed was the people of Moab. Both the Ammonites and the Moabites were distant relatives of the Jewish people. They traced their lineage back to Abraham’s nephew Lot, who bore children by his daughters, and these children were named Ben-Ammi and Moab (Gen 19:30-38). This means that their mockery and scorn were doubly offensive since they were distantly related. But the animosity they showed had no compassion or love mixed with it.
To the Moabites, the Lord said, “‘Thus says Lord Yahweh, “Because Moab and Seir say, ‘Behold, the house of Judah is like all the nations,’ therefore, behold, I am going to open the flank of Moab by its cities, by its cities which are on its frontiers, the glory of the land, Beth-jeshimoth, Baal-meon, and Kiriathaim, and I will give it for a possession along with the sons of Ammon to the sons of the east, so that the sons of Ammon will not be remembered among the nations.” (Ezekiel 25:8–10, LSB)
Where the Ammonites rejoiced in the defilement of the Temple in Jerusalem, the Moabites declared that the House of Judah (and this the lineage of David) where nothing special, like everyone else. I have heard some Christians denounce Israel, saying they aren’t anything special to God anymore. They say that many Jews are rebellious, and wicked, and they hate Christians. Much of this is true for many Jewish people. And it is no worse than what they were being punished for in Ezekiel’s day. And yet, God still stands by them in covenant love, even though He was unwilling to overlook their sins against Him.
Do we really want to be on the side of these rebellious nations that sided against God’s people? Do we really want to equate Israel with all the other nations of the world as if it is not exceptional and special in God’s eyes still? I don’t need to justify or excuse Israel’s sins to stand by them as God’s people. As a matter of fact, God’s prophets spoke hard and true words to them, and so should we. We should not compromise to call the Jewish people to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, the Messiah. But we must not follow in the footsteps of the pagan nations and point at Israel as rejected both by God and men.
“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: “May they prosper who love you.” (Psalm 122:6, LSB)
“Then I proclaimed a fast there, at the river Ahava, that we might humble ourselves before our God, to seek from him a safe journey for ourselves, our children, and all our goods. For I was ashamed to ask the king for a band of soldiers and horsemen to protect us against the enemy on our way, since we had told the king, “The hand of our God is for good on all who seek him, and the power of his wrath is against all who forsake him.” So we fasted and implored our God for this, and he listened to our entreaty.” (Ezra 8:21–23, ESV)
Most of the time we find that our experiences of shame are due to our sin. Like Adam and Eve who recognized their nakedness after the Fall, shame is now an all too familiar part of the human experience. But in Ezra 8:21-23 we see a good outcome of shame–forced dependence upon God in a time of need.
Ezra was preparing to go back to Jerusalem to restore the temple after it had been destroyed by the Babylonians. Not only would the long trip be dangerous, but the danger would be amplified because their party would be large and they were to be laden with large amounts of gold and precious items of great value. Ezra would have preferred an armed escort by soldiers (the equivalent of our modern armored trucks) to make this journey, but he was ashamed because he had openly shared with the king the goodness and power of the Lord God. Since this was true, he shouldn’t need escorts, should he? How could he ask for protection by men when he has so openly confessed the power and might of God to protect His children?
What a predicament! The lesson here isn’t that God’s people should keep our testimony of the goodness and power of God under wraps–we actually need to become more vocal about it! Instead, we should do as Ezra did; he chose godly men to accompany him in fasting and prayer to implore the Lord to protect them as they knew He could do. The shame Ezra felt wasn’t in boasting, it was in his desire to live as if what he said about God wasn’t true and yet being forced to live by that truth or be ashamed at taking back what he said about his God.
Let us be abundant in our praise and glorying in the works of the Lord. And perhaps as a side effect we will find ourselves “forced” into living as if our great God is as great as we claim. Now wouldn’t that be something!
“This is not a moment for timid souls. Boldness comes easily when you are in the presence of those who agree with you; it is difficult when you are standing alone in the midst of people who seek your demise. Boldness behind a pulpit is one thing; boldness in a city council meeting is another. Boldness is seen most clearly when you have burned the bridge that would have enabled you to retreat to safety.”
Erwin Lutzer, We Will Not Be Silenced: Responding Courageously to Our Cultures Assault on Christianity, 120.
We are at a critical point in the history of the world and the Church. Should the Lord tarry, our children will look back on these dark and trying days and judge whether we were courageous in the face of great opposition or see evidence of compromise and capitulation. What will make the difference? Can I suggest a few things from Acts 4:8-12, where the disciples ran into their first major confrontation with aggression?
“Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:8-12)
1. The disciples were filled with the Spirit.
This is the only way a group of Christ-followers who were cowering behind locked doors only a few days before could be so radically different. Courage and boldness is not for those of this type of personality. Boldness and courage filled the hearts of those filled with the Spirit.
2. The disciples testified to Jesus Christ.
The evangelical church is scattered and divided about a lot of things today—spiritual gifts, baptism modes, music, methodology, women in ministry, and more. Don’t get me wrong, hese are all incredibly important things. But the primary need for standing firm against the onslaught of the enemy is the gospel message. The heart and focus must highlight the cross of Jesus Christ and the atoning work accomplished. Everything else must be seen in its subordinate place.
3. The disciples upheld the importance of the resurrection of Christ.
The resurrection points to the acceptance of the sacrifice of Christ on our behalf. It is not tangential, but central. The resurrection of Christ points to our own future resurrection and glorification. If you grasp this, then courage is sure to come because nothing—NOTHING—can stop you. Not even death.
4. The disciples never forgot that Jesus was rejected too.
If you forget that they hated Jesus, you might be tempted into the sin of seeking to please man. But if you remember that they hated our Lord and crucified the Lord of glory, then we will not be surprised when they hate us as well—no matter how winsome or loving or kind we might be.
5. The disciples knew that there is no other hope for the world than Jesus.
If a person could be saved through Islam, or Mormonism, or liberation theology, then it would be much easier to just quietly practice our faith privately without any care about others because they’ll eventually get to heaven too. But the message of Jesus was clear—He is the only way to the Father. And that should embolden us because although some people might want to silence us or shout us down, we can’t be silent if we truly love them.
Brothers and sisters, don;t lose heart. Jesus is coming soon, but we have work to do and we can’t allow the shouts of the world to drown us out.
“Restore us, O God of our salvation, And cause Your indignation toward us to cease. Will You be angry with us forever? Will You prolong Your anger to all generations? Will You not Yourself revive us again, That Your people may rejoice in You? Show us Your lovingkindness, O Lord, And grant us Your salvation.”
(Psalm 85:4–7, NASB95)
What is true biblical revival? Where does revival come from and what needs to precede true revival in order for heartfelt change to occur in each person? And what about the broader culture? How does a revival in the Church spread to a revival in society? All of these questions are answered in these verses, leading us to seek the only true source of life–God Himself!
Although verse 4 is a cry for restoration, restoration was not enough for Israel. They knew that their disobedience betrayed an ugly truth about their spiritual state. They were spiritually dead. They needed to be brought back to life; they needed revival.
When the Bible refers to “revival” we need to know that it is not simply whipping up some experience in the church. It’s not a tent meeting. It isn’t where the Holy Spirit shows up with a special outpouring in a new and fresh way like being slain in the Spirit, or some other ecstatic experience. These aren’t even biblical practices. So, what is a revival?
Walter Chantry helps us to understand it a little better when he writes,
“There have been outstanding periods in the history of the church when the intensified activity of the Holy Spirit has amazed her. Such times are known as revivals. True revivals do not result from some special work of the Spirit of God different from his normal gracious influences! Rather they are the effect of an increased measure of precisely the same power and grace which operate at every time and in every place that the church has been found since Pentecost. In revival times the Spirit’s work remains what it has ever been since Pentecost, namely, the work of inwardly convincing the unconverted by the Word, inwardly regenerating sinners by the Word, inwardly teaching and sanctifying saints by the Word, and inwardly prompting worship of Father and Son by the Word.”[i]
What I want you to see in Chantry’s definition and as seen in Psalm 85:4-7 is that revival, as biblically defined, is a mighty work of God, and not of man. Just like forgiveness, which must come from God’s mercy, so too revival is a result of the mercy of God, or else we would never have it.
Secondly, I want you to see that revival is an inward work of God that results in soul-work—reviving of a person who is dead in their trespasses and sins, bringing them to new life. They are vivified, they are born again. So, when a church wants to see revival, it must recognize that it is speaking of two related but different matters—either it recognizes that it is spiritually dead and filled with many unbelievers who think that they are believers and need new life, or it is speaking of evangelism outside of the church. Often true revival of the church will have the effect of spreading out to the community around it when those newborn Christians begin to live and speak for the glory of God.
With these things in mind, let us turn tour attention to Psalm 85:6-7. Again, “revive” refers to being made alive, to recover life. This verb in Hebrew is in the piel form, which means that God must put into action what the psalmist is asking. To say it differently, just like normal human life finds its origins in God, so too God must bring revival. If God does not bring it about, it will not happen.
There is an amazing picture of revival found in Ezekiel 37:1-14. I’ll leave you to read the passage for yourself. But in it the prophet Ezekiel is shown an old battlefield where there are probably hundreds of human skeletons lying about on the ground. These bones have been here for a long time because they no longer have flesh on them and are bleached out from being exposed to the sun. The Lord asks Ezekiel if these bones can once again become alive. The prophet wisely says that it depends upon God, who alone knows. After all, unless God raises dead bones, they will remain dead.
Then God tells the prophet to speak to the bones….
Notice a few things about this biblical illustration:
The question of whether the bones could be made alive again was not dependent upon the response of the bones, but God-v. 3.
Although it was ridiculous, the means that God chose to “activate” these dry bones was the Word of God as spoken by his servant Ezekiel-vv. 4-10.
Also notice in those words of prophecy that the power for life comes not from the bones, nor from the prophet, but from God alone who can cause these dry bones to live-v. 5.
Finally note that this whole scenario was set by God to show Ezekiel that God alone revives the spiritually dead.
Every time that God saves a person, he revives their dead souls. But that isn’t what we mean by revival—a soul saved here and there. That happens all the time. Revival is the accelerated work of God, whereby a small stream of people saved join together to become a torrent of saved souls. When this happens, the work of God is the same, but He acts in a wider and broader way with more people.
But with an increasing work of God in revival, there is more than just increased activity of the Spirit bringing about saving faith—there is a sudden influx of new Christians whose changed hearts are producing changed lives and then changing society around them.
We need to keep ever before us that when the gospel message changes a heart, it will change a life, and that means changed actions. This makes sense because our allegiances and loyalties are radically altered from darkness to light and from the evil one to Christ. When God changes a heart, he changes a whole life.
In the New Testament, as the gospel swept through the world, people were changed. These changes weren’t a fad, or even popular among unbelievers. These new Christians were despised and rejected of men, like their Savior. They had to survive wave after wave of persecution from the unbelieving world around them.
But they did it.
And as Psalm 85:6 says, if God will bring about revival, it will bring about the result that his people will rejoice in him. You see, rejoicing will not come until revival in the heart has occurred. Revival will not happen until God does his cleansing and saving work in us.
[i] Chantry, Walter, Signs of the Apostles: Observations on Pentacostalism Old and New. Banner of Truth, 1976, 129-30. Italics in the original.
Always Reforming 