The building of personal fiefdoms within ministry is something that has become a burden to me. As with all leader types, I am tempted to siphon off a little of God’s glory for myself from time to time. It is easy to do in ministry. We build our numbers and compare them to the other (little “k”) kingdoms down the road. As a Southern Baptist, I am tempted to compare myself to other denominations around town – the Lutheran church next door, for example. In Tulsa, it is easy to eschew such comparisons, because around here, the biggest churches are the “name it, claim it” charismatic churches that are on every street corner.
When you are getting beat, it is easy to dis the game.
I can discount those folks for “easy believism” and then just compare my church other Southern Baptist churches. Compared to many, we are bigger and are growing. Compared to others, we have a long way to go. It’s a mixed bag.
What drives us to build personal empires within God’s kingdom?
1. A failure to realize that, though we pastor a church, it does not belong to us.
2. A failure to realize that the success of a church is not dependent on its pastor. I think that a pastor alone cannot carry a church, but he can kill it. The truth is, a servant pastor and a missional congregation that is empowered and directed by God is wildly successful. It’s a team thing – and God is the head.
3. A warped need for personal recognition. This exists in all of us to some degree. It is part of our sin nature. When it is out of control, things around us and under our influence begin to bend to this need. When that happens, a personal sin within leadership becomes an albatross around the neck of the church. What if a church is growing because the pastor is driven by this need? Does that “success” justify the process? That’s a new thought, but one at the core of this issue. It leads us to point number…
4. A misunderstanding of success. Success is not baptisms, attendance, budgets or buildings. Success is faithfully discipling the saved and leading them, corporately and individually, to proclaim the fullness of the Gospel to our entire world. Note, please, that I didn’t say that the acceptance of the Gospel by the lost was a success. Whether or not they accept God’s offer of salvation is not, never has been, nor ever will be, dependent on us. It is between them and God.
Think through that for a second. You might be tempted to discount that thought as an excuse to sit around enjoying each other and not really seek converts. If you believe that, then you also condemn Adoniram Judson, among others. He labored in Burma for years as a faithful witness, translating Scripture, suffering imprisonment, the loss of children and wives to death and ultimately dying of the illness that plagued him for most of his life there. There was a mere handful of converts during his lifetime. Yet, if you go to Burma today, you will find a Christian community. If you ask one of those Christians for their Bible, you will find a note in the front saying that these words were translated by Adoniram Judson. Ask him how important that man is to their Christian history and their relationship to God in this day. What will your hear? It won’t be that he was a failure.
The definition of success is not the number of converts, but whether or not we are faithful witnesses.
When we build personal kingdoms, we may share the Gospel, but we do so in such a way as to look at those with whom we share with an eye for what we might gain from them, not what we might give to them.
No wonder the culture outside the church is offended by the church. We are full of fiefdoms.
No wonder the Missional mind of giving your life in service to others resonates in the current generation.
Fiefdoms are about gaining for self. If others get something out of it, it is an accident. Jesus’ Kingdom is about following His example of giving everything away.
For all of these various thoughts and more, I have tried to check my ego where I can. I do not have my name on the church sign, or anywhere else in the church. I do not have my name on the church’s letterhead. These things are not laudable, though. Make note. They are attempts for me to curb that thing inside that desperately wants self recognition. It wants the biggest and the best. I pray it never wins, but I confess that sometimes it does.
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Bart Barber
on Oct 5th, 2006
@ 11:48 am:
Goody! I get to be the first to say how much I completely agree.
David Rogers
on Oct 5th, 2006
@ 12:00 pm:
Great thoughts, of which I believe we all need to be reminded from time to time!
(Curious how much Bart and I agree on a lot of things lately) :)
Bart Barber
on Oct 5th, 2006
@ 2:17 pm:
David,
It’s all a part of my sinister plan to woo you over to the Dark Side. :-)
dave woodbury
on Oct 5th, 2006
@ 2:22 pm:
Great thoughts! Keep preaching it.
Taran
on Oct 5th, 2006
@ 5:17 pm:
Art,
I was a church member under a pastor who wrote a weekly church column entitled “My dear people” which I always thought sounded a little condescending (and fiefish).
One thought does come to mind (and this isn’t a shot, just a question) Do you think that there might be some bloggers who regard their sites as fiefdoms???
Thanks for your excellent work!!
Wayne Smith In His Name
on Oct 5th, 2006
@ 7:01 pm:
Art,
Thanks for sharing what a Church and It’s people sometimes try to do to meausure up to the Jones. When we take our eyes off Jesus, we loose Focus on what really matters.
In His Name
Wayne
Kevin Bussey
on Oct 5th, 2006
@ 7:59 pm:
Art,
I’m at Catalst this week and Andy Stanley spoke from Daniel 4-5 where it says that God is the one who decides who will lead. Great stuff.
Alan Cross
on Oct 5th, 2006
@ 9:09 pm:
Good thoughts, Art, and right on. Since we’re in football season, I’ll make an analogy. The really successful teams do not focus on the opponent or on comparing themselves to others. They focus on making themselves better. They focus only on doing the best that THEY can on the next play and in the next game. They don’t look too far down the road. They focus more on the process than on the outcome. That is analoguous to faithfulness in the Christian life. We can’t control everything. All we can do is look to God, be the people we are to be, and build up our church in Christ. If we develop hearts that are for Jesus and turned toward the lost, we’ll see results. What we desperately need is God’s power.
CB Scott
on Oct 6th, 2006
@ 12:12 am:
Art,
Did you post this so we would tell you what a deeply spiritual person you are or did you do it because you are so deeply spiritual and you just want to let us know it:-)
Seriously, this is worthy of a seminary classroom. Thank you.
Alan,
Surely we will win this week. We are playing Duke.
ROLL TIDE
cb
art rogers
on Oct 6th, 2006
@ 12:51 am:
CB,
In no way am I holding myself out as the example of deep spirituality. I know you were teasing, but if anyone thinks that, let me quickly abolish that conception. I do what I do BECAUSE I am tempted to be self serving, not because I am above it.
Everyone,
Thanks for the encouraging words.
Taran,
I can say that I have not ever posted anything with a desire for more hits. I must, however, say that, early on, I watched my numbers and compared them to others.
As for the rest of the blogosphere, I am sure some struggle with it, and some don’t. I am pretty sure that marty doesn’t. There was a very brief while when my blog was out drawing his. When he found out, he thought it was great. That time is long past, by the way.
Great insight, though.
Dorcas Hawker
on Oct 6th, 2006
@ 3:47 am:
Art -
A few thoughts:
1. I understand your reasoning, but doesn’t not having your name on anything make it a little difficult for people visiting? I know when I used to be church hunting years ago, I would always go back to the bulletin to check “what was the pastor’s name?” so I wouldn’t be embarrassed for not having remembered when I visited the next time. Anyway, I’m still pondering your very different approach to this.
2. I don’t think that watching blog stats necessarily equates with being a blog fiefdom or trying to steal God’s glory. I suppose it depends upon the person’s heart. I’ll admit I do have the tendency to set up a mental caste system as to bloggers which I am trying to stop doing. Everyone has the potential to say something worth reading. Some do a better job at it, but everyone still has value. Yet I like to watch my stats more as a fun competition. There was one day recently when my blog stats were up more than usual and I realized you and Marty hadn’t posted anything new in a day or two. I’ll admit I thought … thank you gentlemen, for not stealing my readers today! But that was just in good humor, not me actually thinking I own the blog world.
Art, from what I do know of you, I know you would not condemn a pastor who “did” have his name on the sign. (most do) Yet with the tendency of Baptists in general to take one man’s personal conviction and make it a rule for everyone else as a measure of holiness, I get cautious.
Bob Cleveland
on Oct 6th, 2006
@ 9:02 am:
Art:
If we’re to strive for the ideal, its a Good Thing to keep it in plain view, along with where we miss the mark. If we don’t, we’ll settle for less than all God has for us. Too often we aim for the minimum requirements, which then become the maximum obligation.
As to the “why” of fiefdoms … I prefer to see it as “empire builders” … can you think of an area of human endeavor where that’s not the case?
I can’t.
Light Horse
on Oct 6th, 2006
@ 10:46 am:
Pastor Rogers,
This is one of the best posts I’ve read on your blog. You have zero-ed in on the struggle with the self and with ego. It’s good thing to be aware of for both preachers and laypeople. It’s often hard to remember that God owns the church and its people and not the other way around. Thanks for the good thoughts.
art rogers
on Oct 6th, 2006
@ 11:20 am:
LH, Thanks.
Bob, Good point. I don’t know an area where this is not a problem in human life.
Dorcas,
A long response deserves a long response. ;)
1. My name is in the bulletin, so visitors will have a chance to put my name with my face. We put the name of everyone who has a part in worship in the bulletin for that purpose. It is not on the structure or on the “promotional materials” of the church. In other words, we want to be promoting Christ and be seen as following Him, not me.
I remember growing up in Houston and seeing John Osteen’s (Joel’s father) on the billboard advertising his church. I think that was ther first church to do that type of thing – twenty years ago. His head stuck up over the top of the builboard and was half again as big as the sign structure. I remember thinking, “Who are we promoting, here? Not Christ.”
More than anything, this stuff is a response to that early impression.
2. As for the blogging, with everything, it is up to the blogger to know how things are being handled in their own heart. By the way, Marty and I don’t steal your readers … We loan you ours! ;)
3. Of course I don’t condemn pastors with their name on the church sign. A lot of guys probably don’t have a choice in the matter. The church loves their pastor and is proud of him, so they put his name on the sign. What can he do? In fact, had this been done before it came to me, I wouldn’t have had them take it down because I wouldn’t have wanted to insult anyone. I made a public statement about it and everyone seems to be happy.
The whole “apply my convictions to other people” thing is pharisaical. It is something that desperately needs to go away in the SBC specifically and the Kingdom overall. Don’t you think?
art rogers
on Oct 6th, 2006
@ 11:28 am:
The astute person will quickly note that I have contradicted myself in my above comment.
I said that I was turned off by John Osteen’s big head, but don’t pass judgement on others as they put their names on their churches.
Twenty years ago, I was much more pharisaical than I am today. Like Kevin Bussey, I am a recovering Pharisee.
At this point in my life, I have taken those early judgemental attitudes and turned them inward. I try to evaluate myself according to those convictions and leave the rest alone – the best I can.
Hey, its messy. No point in denying it. I’m just on the road, you know?