It is not so much what credentials a pastor teacher has … it is more the credentials required by the Church or the Denomination. When I was training for the ministry, some students from other denominations required a specific degree obtained at UNISA (The University of South Africa). This was an off campus university / correspondence university. The faculty were liberal theologians and the degree offered was itself liberal. Let me remind you what this means (Liberal Theology). They do not believe the Bible to be the Word of God. They do not believe it is inspired, inerrant, infallible and authoritative. They do not accept Genesis 1 to 11 as anything more than “myth”. That is … stories to launch into what “some, they say” is called the Bible.
(1) They talk away the “miracles”, especially those Jesus is credited with. Let me cite an example:
Mt 14:22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, 24 but the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it. 25 During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. 27 But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
Although the Bible says:
Ac 14:24 the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.
And Mark writes:
Mk 6:47 When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the lake, and he was alone on land.
They say Jesus was stepping on stones in the shallow water. The passage is teaching that Jesus is Lord over creation, yet they talk it away! Shallow water on stones? Our text says … a considerable distance from land and in the middle of the lake. That is the Sea of Galilee.
(2) They talk away the virgin birth. Understand this … no virgin birth and no God Incarnate … then Jesus was just a man, sinful like you and me!
(3) They talk away the resurrection. The human man Jesus might have died but he did not rise from the dead. Their arguments are similar to the Jews who reject the resurrection.
Do you grasp what they do? They reduce Jesus to nothing more than a “good man”, and at the same time they remove the Gospel and its message. They are spiritually cruel, murderous and criminal. They steal souls for the devil because they prevent souls from hearing the Gospel, thus preventing belief, confession of sin and a repentant life style. Their god is not the God of the Bible! Now … picture these liberal scholars being let loose into Churches who do not know that their pastors are liberal. They believe them, follow them … and sadly … eternity for them shall not be with the Jesus they reject! We have started answering the question … “Why is leadership important?” We have been digging away briefly at Acts 20 where Paul was bidding farewell to the Ephesian elders, giving them a charge to be watchful and diligent with themselves and their congregants. He warmed them against fake leaders … ferocious wolves. Please read:
Ac 20:31 So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.
1) Readiness is a must. The Church Leadership … and here I include the pastor and elders (Church Council) as a body … must be ready, be on watch, be on guard … constantly monitoring the gathering of people for “wolves” amongst the “sheep”. This means they need to mix with the people, talk to the people, visit the people to know what the people are thinking about, believing about the Bible, the Gospel, the main doctrines of the faith and whether they are remaining true to the Church’s Constitution / Beliefs. They need to be encouraging and motivating the people to read the Bible, attend Church, Bible Study and various electives as well as fulfill a ministry in line with their spiritual gift mix. Being a pastor or elder is not for prestige, image or for power wielding. It is hard work because it is defending the Gospel against unscrupulous “wolves” out to destroy the flock!
2) Follow the example. No pastor or elder will ever be a Paul. He was “a one of a kind apostle”. Yet … he leaves an example … Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears. In Paul’s context, three years was a lengthy period of time. See what he did during this time?
(1) He never stopped. The opposition to the Gospel was huge, so he was unrelenting in being repetitive. He did this day and night! He never backed off or slackened. These were God’s men to do God’s work. They needed to be equipped. When in the Defense Force as one conscripted to be trained for war, the rifle drills were repeated, even when blindfolded so that in the dark one could assemble a rifle and use it. This is the picture here. You see, the enemy of the soul, the “wolf” … the devil and his demonic forces will attack when least expected and Paul wanted these elders to be ready for action.
(2) He was warning. The word “warning” used here includes …
(a) Teaching. Explaining so that there is understanding to the mind.
(b) Lay on the heart. To take God’s Word and impress it onto the heart so that there is not only theory but practical application.
(c) Corrective influence. When a person has a wrong belief about Christianity and Christian Doctrine, warning means to set things right. That is to correct a wrong belief!
(3) He did all this in tears. I met with the elders of our Church today. I requested a meeting because they were saying they needed help in various ways. I presented a seven page suggestion to them. The elder who is the chairman responded with tears running down his face … because he realized what I presented could help … and his concern was for the Church (souls) and evangelism. This was Paul. He was so passionate about God’s sheep and increasing the number that his emotions would get the better of him. This happens when Truth is presented.
We have a day or two left in this digression before returning to Acts 14. I trust that by now we have answered our question … “Why is leadership important.” You see, the blind cannot lead the blind, neither can the ignorant lead the ignorant. Tomorrow we shall look at the qualifications of the elders so that we know what type of person needs to be chosen … but for now, please see the role of Church Leaders is like those fighting a war. Apart from being trained, if they are not ready and prepared they shall loose the battle.
Father, graciously ready and keep ready the leadership of our Churches so that should evil onslaughts come, they shall be prepared to defend the Truth of the Gospel. Amen.