The Office of Pastor
The declension of the spiritual health of the Church is directly traceable to the way the enemy successfully confused saints over the years that the five fold is not necessary. In the process, the enemy sold the Church a dummy: that one man and one office are sufficient for leading and guiding the people of God. This dangerous doctrine was borrowed from Rome which was structured as a hierarchy in which one man at every level had sole authority that is unquestionable. Such a man was essentially a supreme leader! Whether you spoke of the Pope or an Archbishop or Bishop or Parish Priest, the principle was the same – that in one man you will find all the gifts, callings and talents that are required to lead the people of God.
In varying degrees, the Protestant movement picked up and cultured this error. In many denominations including independent Charismatic and Pentecostal groups, the founder is indeed a Pope! When a man has powers to determine what doctrine of the bible to adopt and others to leave out in the name of drawing up Articles of Faith; when that same person is the sole source of feeding the Sheep, counselling them; when that same person oversees the finances and assets of the ministry, what you have is a supreme pontiff!
On the opposite side of the spectrum is another depravity: the concept of a weak Pastor who is virtually led by an elected board or council of carnal elders and deacons. These are men and at times women who have no time to pray or study the word but have time to throw out proposals of a Pastor who spends quality time to seek the face of God! The concept of a Pastor is a religious professional, employed by a Board of Directors to do a job as part of a tenured contract is one of the worst manifestations of how far Wall Street has permeated the Church!
Both sides are of course out of sync with the provisions of scripture. As a matter of fact, the prevailing scenario in American, European and African ministries is a manifestation of the concept of abomination of desolation on the altar of God! The fact that saints are in blissful ignorance of how ungodly and unscriptural their ministries are structured does not in any way absolve them from blame Hosea 4:6.
Two men received strong commendation from God for building structures committed to their trust according to exact specifications. These two, Noah and Moses, are a type of the kind of reformers God is looking for in the closing chapter of this age! For many years, Noah laboured to build an unusual structure, the Ark, according to the specifications received from above. God commended his work and it became the instrument of saving him and his family while the whole earth perished! Genesis 6, 7, 8. In the case of Moses, he received the exact specification of the Tabernacle on the Mount, documented it to the last detail and supervised its construction. Nothing was left to the human imagination.
Concerning the Church, Jesus Himself arrested and gave to the former executioner, Saul (Paul), a detailed description of how the Church birthed at Pentecost is to be run in order to be an instrument for manifesting the Kingdom of God. Paul faithfully documented this divine plan in the epistles that he was inspired to write. 1 Corinthians 3: 10 – 15; Ephesians 4: 1- 16 are very descriptive. Speaking of this plan of which he exhibited the rare privilege of calling himself a ‘wise master builder’ who lays the foundation in 1 Corinthians 3:10, the faithful saint warns all those who participate in building the Church to take heed how they build. In 1 Corinthians 3:14 and15, Paul makes it clear that at the end of the day, what substance we use to build the Church will be tried by fire. He then goes forward to state that those who build with enduring substances will see their work evaluated and rewarded while those who build with combustible materials will see their work destroyed by fire. There will be surprises on the last day, saints! Many ‘great men and women of God’ will barely manage to squeeze into the Kingdom on the last day because they built according to their fancies for their soulish pleasures or according to standards of the world. There will on the other hand be ministers of ‘small congregations’ who built faithfully according to the divine pattern who will be rewarded with Crowns on the last day!
This long introduction is necessary because of all the office gifts; none has been corrupted and disfigured like that of the Pastor. Satan knows how to go for the jugular! This very office which epitomises Christ in His Office as Great Shepherd of the flock.
Who is a Pastor?
A pastor is not a title to be bestowed on brothers and sisters who are kind, gentle or compassionate. It is not a reward for loyal service in a church. It is not a political position that can be attained by votes of the Presbytery, deaconate or an executive search committee!
The Pastor is one who is called by Jesus Christ and vested with the authority to feed and care for the flock committed to his trust. He or she is, in effect, a shepherd that leads the flock to find pasture. The Pastor is therefore expected to be adept at using the staff to lead and the rod to chastise. Ability to exercise both with gracefulness and excellence of spirit is at the heart of the call of a pastor. This office is especially sensitive because it is the very one that has been ordained to care for the flock and ensure proper nurturing so that the saints are protected, preserved and grow in grace. The examples of Jesus in Psalm 23; Isaiah 49:11 and Jeremiah 3:15 are instructive.
In the model of the Kingdom driven Church whose emergence will precede the return of Jesus Christ, the Pastor is not automatically the leader of the Congregation! He or she is just one of the leadership with the grace to shepherd the sheep while the other leaders do their own work. In effect, the Pastor may not be the instrument God used to set up the fellowship. The Pastor may not be the most charismatic or anointed. The Pastor may not be the eldest or strongest. However, without any shadow of doubt, he or she is the one the Lord has given grace to provide the one on one care and systematic nurturing that the saints need in order to grow up in Christ and be all that God created and redeemed them to be.
If perchance the Pastor is the one the Lord used to start the fellowship, such a one will recognize his or her limitations and realize that without the input of Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists and Teachers, the saints will be grossly malnourished and grow out of shape! The true Pastor who has a heart for the people of God will thus recourse to two potential remedies. The first is to prayerfully seek that God will raise the missing office gifts from within the flock or bring such people from outside to join forces to be a complete five fold led assembly. Since this may take time to happen, the true Pastor who shares the passion of Christ for His flock will prayerfully align with a ministerial fellowship where these other leaders are. The pastor now puts in place an annual programme through which Apostle/Apostles; a Prophet/Prophets; an Evangelist/Evangelists and Teachers come in to impact and impart the saints.
Another approach may be to seek out, by the Spirit, an Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist and Teacher to align with in ministry. These them come in at specified times to make their ministry input so that the saints are built up and become all that they were created and redeemed to be. Any Pastor who is not asking the question ‘why did God create these saints?’, ‘why did God redeem them?’ and ‘what is their specific role in the Body and Kingdom?’ will never weigh in on the process of enabling the saints to locate their proper identities and will therefore be unable to empower them!
…To be continued… Please uphold us in prayers as we download what the Lord is saying in the now. This and all teaching notes of the Global School of Ministry are free of worldly Babylonian copyright rules. The Word of God is freely received and is freely released so that His saints can walk in light. These downloads from eternity to time are offered free of charge. Please feel free to use them for personal edification or to teach/preach as the Lord prompts you. In the Kingdom of God, His gifts are not to be merchandized or subject to rules which make them available to only the few who can afford. Feel free to forward these teaching notes to all your friends and contacts.
If you are called to the five fold and need help to recognize, pursue and fulfil same, please feel free to seek help and we will see what the Lord desires to be done to support you. Write to ariseoffice@yahoo.co.uk and we will take it from there.
Privileges of Pastoral Ministry
No matter how anointed the Apostles, Prophets and Evangelists are, the people of God will not grow as rapidly as they ought to if they do not receive proper pastoral care. Pastors are the part of the ministry team that “brings it all together” and bring home” all the truth and purpose of God into the lives of the saints. As part of the five fold, Pastors are to perfect the saints and equip them for the work of ministry so that they mature in their knowledge of God. Ephesians 4: 11-16.
Pastors therefore have certain privileges that are peculiar:
• The Pastor is the minister who shares the closest proximity with the saints. Good Pastors are a gift from God who declared in Jeremiah 3:15 “And I will give you shepherds according to my heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding”.
• The Pastor is the one who is able to share reach deep into the spirit and soul of the saints and establish a real connection. The Pastor is thus able to achieve greater intimacy and rapport with the flock than any other member of the five fold.
• The Pastor is thus able to win the confidence of the flock to a profound degree which enables them to open up at their basic level. Here the masks are off and the Pastor can understand the sheep better. This degree of vulnerability is fundamental for true spiritual growth to occur rapidly.
• The Pastor has greater grace to minister to the sheep as individuals and not as a statistic. Here is how Isaiah 49:11 describes this privilege, from the lenses of the Great Shepherd Himself: “He will feed his flock like a shepherd. He will carry the lambs in his arms, holding them close to his heart. He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young”
The Charge of Peter
In an extraordinary charge to Elders of the Household of Faith that is of great application to Pastors, Apostle Peter exhorted “Care for the flock of God has entrusted to you. Watch over it willingly, not grudgingly – not for what you will get out of it, but because you are eager to serve God. Don’t lord it over the people assigned to your care, but lead them by your own good example. And when the Great Shepherd appears, you will receive a crown of never ending glory and honour”. If we break down this exhortation, the following elements are unchanging principles:
1. The flock is entrusted by God to the Pastor. The saints are the people of God and members of the Body of Christ. They are not members of the Pastor, denomination or the local assembly! A Pastor should never lose sight of this foundational truth!
2. The saints are to be cared for. It is about them, not the Pastor. The flock is the basis of the job, just as any good businessman knows that customers are the reason for being in business! If Pastors allow this paradigm shift to occur within their psyche, they will succeed in ministry. No matter how good, bad, ugly or difficult the saints seem to be, they are the reason for the Office of Pastor to exist! A Pastor who sets out therefore expecting an easy ride in ministry may well go for a mental check up. It is the very things we call dysfunction in the saints that occasion the need for God to specially empower Pastors with the grace to, with great humility, focus and sensitivity apply the healing balm of Jesus on their wounded souls and show them the way to worship God in Spirit and in truth.
3. Pastors are to watch over the flock with willingness – enthusiasm and joy, not with grudges and complaints! Remember Moses, the great Pastor, who allowed the murmuring and hard heartedness of Israel to get the better part of him, leading to an incomplete pilgrimage on earth.
4. The motives of Pastors must be pure – it is a calling, not an avenue for making money off the flock! In the economic meltdown going on world-wide and with the creeping doctrine of materialism closing in from the pseudo Kingdom movement, is very easy to forget this truism.
5. Pastors are not to lord it over the saints. This simply means the Lord has not give any Pastor the liberty to treat God’s people as slaves. God has not given to any Pastor the liberty to control them, against their will. Respect of the will of the saints and their consciences is the hallmark of matured pastor ship! No matter how strongly we feel about a particular course of action, Pastors must allow the flock to make their decisions and enjoy the benefit or consequences of their choice. That way, their will is respected. Even when they stumble and make poor choices, they will learn the relevant lessons and grow from what they suffered. This may sound difficult but that is the way to go. Pastors have no business trying to make the sheep live a crises free life. Crises are part of the appointed learning curve for every saint! Pastors cannot love the flock more than God!
6. Pastors are to lead by example. Every precept from the pulpit should be lived out in real life so that the sheep can see the way to go. For this reason, Pastors must live with transparency, taking off the professional masks that create a double identity. They must look up to Jesus, not Janus, the two faced god! Pastors must take off the ramparts which separate them from the flock. The saints should be given access to homes of their pastors, their home and cell numbers and access, outside the plastic professionalism of Personal and Executive Assistants! If the saints have no access, the minister is not their pastor! Period!
7. Every pastor must be conscious of the fact that judgement day is coming! There will be a day to appear before the judgement seat of Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:10. On that day, those who pastured well will receive the crown of never ending glory. What an awesome prize to work for? Paul laboured that he may obtain the crown as an example for all of us. 1 Corinthians 9:24 – 27; 2 Timothy 4: 6 – 8.
Additional Pitfalls to avoid.
It is sad but true that Pastors easily forget the potent instructions above and tend to slip into certain pitfalls. The chief pitfalls to avoid are these:
1. Misuse of confidential information. When people open up to the Pastor, it is a transaction of confidence and trust. Such trusts should be respected and held in confidence. What a saint shared under conviction of the Holy Spirit in a private counselling session should not be the object of a Sunday sermon or alluded to in a way to discomfit and embarrass the confessor. This does not mean Pastors should not deal with matters that require discipline. Due process must be in place and followed with great compassion when issues of discipline arise
2. Bearing malice or exercising discipline with malice. It is wrong for a Pastor to bear malice with a sheep entrusted to his or her care.
3. Feeding fat off the sheep. It is wrong to use Old Testament examples such as Elijah’s encounter with the widow to fleece the saints, especially the poor off their resources. Pastors should not prey financially on the flock.
4. Taking undue advantage of vulnerable members of the congregation. The Pastor is to bind up the broken hearted and nurture them back to wholeness. It is wrong to take advantage of the vulnerability of the flock. Unholy visitations should be avoided as well as life styles which promote immorality, stealing of funds of older folks who rely on the Pastor for financial transactions and other such practices that are unseemly.
5. Not empowering the flock. This is a function of insecurity. It is wrong to keep the saints in ignorance of whom they are in Christ and who He is in them. Insecure Pastors tend to find pleasure in the flock remaining babes ever needing to be fed with milk. Insecure Pastors do not train the flock and never allow the thought of releasing them one day to cross their minds. The result is that the saints constantly recourse to the Pastor for all their needs. If they want to change career, they want the Pastor to pray and confirm before they proceed. The same is the case when they want to marry or travel. This tendency is tolerable when they are young in faith. As they grow, the saints should be taught how to pray and release their faith and how to hear the voice of God and discern His will.
Reformation of the Church to make it Kingdom driven will require the emergence of truly called Pastors. The havoc of professionally trained staff that has turned the office of Pastor into a cold executive function has led to an anomaly. It has heralded politics into the Church. The time to root out this leprosy has come. The starting point, saints, is for Pastors to bring the work of Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists and Teachers together. Their job is to bring the synergy produced by the five fold into the lives of the individual saints.
The declension of the spiritual health of the Church is directly traceable to the way the enemy successfully confused saints over the years that the five fold is not necessary. In the process, the enemy sold the Church a dummy: that one man and one office are sufficient for leading and guiding the people of God. This dangerous doctrine was borrowed from Rome which was structured as a hierarchy in which one man at every level had sole authority that is unquestionable. Such a man was essentially a supreme leader! Whether you spoke of the Pope or an Archbishop or Bishop or Parish Priest, the principle was the same – that in one man you will find all the gifts, callings and talents that are required to lead the people of God.
In varying degrees, the Protestant movement picked up and cultured this error. In many denominations including independent Charismatic and Pentecostal groups, the founder is indeed a Pope! When a man has powers to determine what doctrine of the bible to adopt and others to leave out in the name of drawing up Articles of Faith; when that same person is the sole source of feeding the Sheep, counselling them; when that same person oversees the finances and assets of the ministry, what you have is a supreme pontiff!
On the opposite side of the spectrum is another depravity: the concept of a weak Pastor who is virtually led by an elected board or council of carnal elders and deacons. These are men and at times women who have no time to pray or study the word but have time to throw out proposals of a Pastor who spends quality time to seek the face of God! The concept of a Pastor is a religious professional, employed by a Board of Directors to do a job as part of a tenured contract is one of the worst manifestations of how far Wall Street has permeated the Church!
Both sides are of course out of sync with the provisions of scripture. As a matter of fact, the prevailing scenario in American, European and African ministries is a manifestation of the concept of abomination of desolation on the altar of God! The fact that saints are in blissful ignorance of how ungodly and unscriptural their ministries are structured does not in any way absolve them from blame Hosea 4:6.
Two men received strong commendation from God for building structures committed to their trust according to exact specifications. These two, Noah and Moses, are a type of the kind of reformers God is looking for in the closing chapter of this age! For many years, Noah laboured to build an unusual structure, the Ark, according to the specifications received from above. God commended his work and it became the instrument of saving him and his family while the whole earth perished! Genesis 6, 7, 8. In the case of Moses, he received the exact specification of the Tabernacle on the Mount, documented it to the last detail and supervised its construction. Nothing was left to the human imagination.
Concerning the Church, Jesus Himself arrested and gave to the former executioner, Saul (Paul), a detailed description of how the Church birthed at Pentecost is to be run in order to be an instrument for manifesting the Kingdom of God. Paul faithfully documented this divine plan in the epistles that he was inspired to write. 1 Corinthians 3: 10 – 15; Ephesians 4: 1- 16 are very descriptive. Speaking of this plan of which he exhibited the rare privilege of calling himself a ‘wise master builder’ who lays the foundation in 1 Corinthians 3:10, the faithful saint warns all those who participate in building the Church to take heed how they build. In 1 Corinthians 3:14 and15, Paul makes it clear that at the end of the day, what substance we use to build the Church will be tried by fire. He then goes forward to state that those who build with enduring substances will see their work evaluated and rewarded while those who build with combustible materials will see their work destroyed by fire. There will be surprises on the last day, saints! Many ‘great men and women of God’ will barely manage to squeeze into the Kingdom on the last day because they built according to their fancies for their soulish pleasures or according to standards of the world. There will on the other hand be ministers of ‘small congregations’ who built faithfully according to the divine pattern who will be rewarded with Crowns on the last day!
This long introduction is necessary because of all the office gifts; none has been corrupted and disfigured like that of the Pastor. Satan knows how to go for the jugular! This very office which epitomises Christ in His Office as Great Shepherd of the flock.
Who is a Pastor?
A pastor is not a title to be bestowed on brothers and sisters who are kind, gentle or compassionate. It is not a reward for loyal service in a church. It is not a political position that can be attained by votes of the Presbytery, deaconate or an executive search committee!
The Pastor is one who is called by Jesus Christ and vested with the authority to feed and care for the flock committed to his trust. He or she is, in effect, a shepherd that leads the flock to find pasture. The Pastor is therefore expected to be adept at using the staff to lead and the rod to chastise. Ability to exercise both with gracefulness and excellence of spirit is at the heart of the call of a pastor. This office is especially sensitive because it is the very one that has been ordained to care for the flock and ensure proper nurturing so that the saints are protected, preserved and grow in grace. The examples of Jesus in Psalm 23; Isaiah 49:11 and Jeremiah 3:15 are instructive.
In the model of the Kingdom driven Church whose emergence will precede the return of Jesus Christ, the Pastor is not automatically the leader of the Congregation! He or she is just one of the leadership with the grace to shepherd the sheep while the other leaders do their own work. In effect, the Pastor may not be the instrument God used to set up the fellowship. The Pastor may not be the most charismatic or anointed. The Pastor may not be the eldest or strongest. However, without any shadow of doubt, he or she is the one the Lord has given grace to provide the one on one care and systematic nurturing that the saints need in order to grow up in Christ and be all that God created and redeemed them to be.
If perchance the Pastor is the one the Lord used to start the fellowship, such a one will recognize his or her limitations and realize that without the input of Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists and Teachers, the saints will be grossly malnourished and grow out of shape! The true Pastor who has a heart for the people of God will thus recourse to two potential remedies. The first is to prayerfully seek that God will raise the missing office gifts from within the flock or bring such people from outside to join forces to be a complete five fold led assembly. Since this may take time to happen, the true Pastor who shares the passion of Christ for His flock will prayerfully align with a ministerial fellowship where these other leaders are. The pastor now puts in place an annual programme through which Apostle/Apostles; a Prophet/Prophets; an Evangelist/Evangelists and Teachers come in to impact and impart the saints.
Another approach may be to seek out, by the Spirit, an Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist and Teacher to align with in ministry. These them come in at specified times to make their ministry input so that the saints are built up and become all that they were created and redeemed to be. Any Pastor who is not asking the question ‘why did God create these saints?’, ‘why did God redeem them?’ and ‘what is their specific role in the Body and Kingdom?’ will never weigh in on the process of enabling the saints to locate their proper identities and will therefore be unable to empower them!
…To be continued… Please uphold us in prayers as we download what the Lord is saying in the now. This and all teaching notes of the Global School of Ministry are free of worldly Babylonian copyright rules. The Word of God is freely received and is freely released so that His saints can walk in light. These downloads from eternity to time are offered free of charge. Please feel free to use them for personal edification or to teach/preach as the Lord prompts you. In the Kingdom of God, His gifts are not to be merchandized or subject to rules which make them available to only the few who can afford. Feel free to forward these teaching notes to all your friends and contacts.
If you are called to the five fold and need help to recognize, pursue and fulfil same, please feel free to seek help and we will see what the Lord desires to be done to support you. Write to ariseoffice@yahoo.co.uk and we will take it from there.
Privileges of Pastoral Ministry
No matter how anointed the Apostles, Prophets and Evangelists are, the people of God will not grow as rapidly as they ought to if they do not receive proper pastoral care. Pastors are the part of the ministry team that “brings it all together” and bring home” all the truth and purpose of God into the lives of the saints. As part of the five fold, Pastors are to perfect the saints and equip them for the work of ministry so that they mature in their knowledge of God. Ephesians 4: 11-16.
Pastors therefore have certain privileges that are peculiar:
• The Pastor is the minister who shares the closest proximity with the saints. Good Pastors are a gift from God who declared in Jeremiah 3:15 “And I will give you shepherds according to my heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding”.
• The Pastor is the one who is able to share reach deep into the spirit and soul of the saints and establish a real connection. The Pastor is thus able to achieve greater intimacy and rapport with the flock than any other member of the five fold.
• The Pastor is thus able to win the confidence of the flock to a profound degree which enables them to open up at their basic level. Here the masks are off and the Pastor can understand the sheep better. This degree of vulnerability is fundamental for true spiritual growth to occur rapidly.
• The Pastor has greater grace to minister to the sheep as individuals and not as a statistic. Here is how Isaiah 49:11 describes this privilege, from the lenses of the Great Shepherd Himself: “He will feed his flock like a shepherd. He will carry the lambs in his arms, holding them close to his heart. He will gently lead the mother sheep with their young”
The Charge of Peter
In an extraordinary charge to Elders of the Household of Faith that is of great application to Pastors, Apostle Peter exhorted “Care for the flock of God has entrusted to you. Watch over it willingly, not grudgingly – not for what you will get out of it, but because you are eager to serve God. Don’t lord it over the people assigned to your care, but lead them by your own good example. And when the Great Shepherd appears, you will receive a crown of never ending glory and honour”. If we break down this exhortation, the following elements are unchanging principles:
1. The flock is entrusted by God to the Pastor. The saints are the people of God and members of the Body of Christ. They are not members of the Pastor, denomination or the local assembly! A Pastor should never lose sight of this foundational truth!
2. The saints are to be cared for. It is about them, not the Pastor. The flock is the basis of the job, just as any good businessman knows that customers are the reason for being in business! If Pastors allow this paradigm shift to occur within their psyche, they will succeed in ministry. No matter how good, bad, ugly or difficult the saints seem to be, they are the reason for the Office of Pastor to exist! A Pastor who sets out therefore expecting an easy ride in ministry may well go for a mental check up. It is the very things we call dysfunction in the saints that occasion the need for God to specially empower Pastors with the grace to, with great humility, focus and sensitivity apply the healing balm of Jesus on their wounded souls and show them the way to worship God in Spirit and in truth.
3. Pastors are to watch over the flock with willingness – enthusiasm and joy, not with grudges and complaints! Remember Moses, the great Pastor, who allowed the murmuring and hard heartedness of Israel to get the better part of him, leading to an incomplete pilgrimage on earth.
4. The motives of Pastors must be pure – it is a calling, not an avenue for making money off the flock! In the economic meltdown going on world-wide and with the creeping doctrine of materialism closing in from the pseudo Kingdom movement, is very easy to forget this truism.
5. Pastors are not to lord it over the saints. This simply means the Lord has not give any Pastor the liberty to treat God’s people as slaves. God has not given to any Pastor the liberty to control them, against their will. Respect of the will of the saints and their consciences is the hallmark of matured pastor ship! No matter how strongly we feel about a particular course of action, Pastors must allow the flock to make their decisions and enjoy the benefit or consequences of their choice. That way, their will is respected. Even when they stumble and make poor choices, they will learn the relevant lessons and grow from what they suffered. This may sound difficult but that is the way to go. Pastors have no business trying to make the sheep live a crises free life. Crises are part of the appointed learning curve for every saint! Pastors cannot love the flock more than God!
6. Pastors are to lead by example. Every precept from the pulpit should be lived out in real life so that the sheep can see the way to go. For this reason, Pastors must live with transparency, taking off the professional masks that create a double identity. They must look up to Jesus, not Janus, the two faced god! Pastors must take off the ramparts which separate them from the flock. The saints should be given access to homes of their pastors, their home and cell numbers and access, outside the plastic professionalism of Personal and Executive Assistants! If the saints have no access, the minister is not their pastor! Period!
7. Every pastor must be conscious of the fact that judgement day is coming! There will be a day to appear before the judgement seat of Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:10. On that day, those who pastured well will receive the crown of never ending glory. What an awesome prize to work for? Paul laboured that he may obtain the crown as an example for all of us. 1 Corinthians 9:24 – 27; 2 Timothy 4: 6 – 8.
Additional Pitfalls to avoid.
It is sad but true that Pastors easily forget the potent instructions above and tend to slip into certain pitfalls. The chief pitfalls to avoid are these:
1. Misuse of confidential information. When people open up to the Pastor, it is a transaction of confidence and trust. Such trusts should be respected and held in confidence. What a saint shared under conviction of the Holy Spirit in a private counselling session should not be the object of a Sunday sermon or alluded to in a way to discomfit and embarrass the confessor. This does not mean Pastors should not deal with matters that require discipline. Due process must be in place and followed with great compassion when issues of discipline arise
2. Bearing malice or exercising discipline with malice. It is wrong for a Pastor to bear malice with a sheep entrusted to his or her care.
3. Feeding fat off the sheep. It is wrong to use Old Testament examples such as Elijah’s encounter with the widow to fleece the saints, especially the poor off their resources. Pastors should not prey financially on the flock.
4. Taking undue advantage of vulnerable members of the congregation. The Pastor is to bind up the broken hearted and nurture them back to wholeness. It is wrong to take advantage of the vulnerability of the flock. Unholy visitations should be avoided as well as life styles which promote immorality, stealing of funds of older folks who rely on the Pastor for financial transactions and other such practices that are unseemly.
5. Not empowering the flock. This is a function of insecurity. It is wrong to keep the saints in ignorance of whom they are in Christ and who He is in them. Insecure Pastors tend to find pleasure in the flock remaining babes ever needing to be fed with milk. Insecure Pastors do not train the flock and never allow the thought of releasing them one day to cross their minds. The result is that the saints constantly recourse to the Pastor for all their needs. If they want to change career, they want the Pastor to pray and confirm before they proceed. The same is the case when they want to marry or travel. This tendency is tolerable when they are young in faith. As they grow, the saints should be taught how to pray and release their faith and how to hear the voice of God and discern His will.
Reformation of the Church to make it Kingdom driven will require the emergence of truly called Pastors. The havoc of professionally trained staff that has turned the office of Pastor into a cold executive function has led to an anomaly. It has heralded politics into the Church. The time to root out this leprosy has come. The starting point, saints, is for Pastors to bring the work of Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists and Teachers together. Their job is to bring the synergy produced by the five fold into the lives of the individual saints.
