The Prophetic Telegraph - No.71
IN PURSUIT OF EXCELLENCE
The pursuit of excellence
is a goodly theme. He who would remain content with the mediocre despises his
Lord. Talents are given for multiplication, not preservation. An
over-indulgence in pondering the weaknesses and sins of the flesh prevents us
from laying hold of God's strength and righteousness.
"Though our
feelings come and go, His love for us does not. It is not wearied by our sins
or our indifference, and therefore it is quite relentless in its determination
that we shall be cured of those sins, at whatever cost to us, at whatever cost
to Him."
(C.S.Lewis, Mere Christianity)
Few would argue with such
sentiments. But we must ask ourselves the question, what is excellence?
To what shall we look as a legitimate goal? What does our Master expect of us
when He urges us to achieve, to strive, to seek, to hunger and thirst after, to
have courage, to pursue, as this "excellence"? Within the churches of
the western world, to achieve some degree of excellence usually involves
becoming a "leader" of one sort or another. It is really quite
surprising how much emphasis we place on what our brethren DO in their Christian
lives, quite apart from what they ARE. I have seen numerous advertisements in
Christian magazines and newspapers extolling the virtues and achievements of
certain individuals whose names have become common parlance.
"Come and hear Brother
A., whose work in B. is well known."
"Our main speaker will
be C., a truly charismatic figure in today's evangelistic thrust."
"Brother D., the well
known healing evangelist - -."
"We are privileged to
have E. as our main speaker, an accepted apostolic figure in the British church."
Of course, there is
absolutely no precedent for such advertising in the documents of the New
Testament; in fact the SPIRIT of such advertising is wholly contrary to the
SPIRIT of New Testament teaching. But to most, the atmosphere created by such
advertising induces an urge to rise "through the ranks" and become
someone who has a credible list of "achievements" like those of the
"big names."
What is it that creates
this urge? When analysed, it reduces to a fairly simple common denominator -
the desire to be seen, to be admired, and to be successful in the eyes of the
Christian world. When seen in that light, the whole edifice collapses like a
house of cards. There is absolutely no justification for it. But pride is a
horrible thing that niggles within our minds, and the Devil uses it as a rudder
to steer us along a slippery downward path to our own destruction.
Is it wrong then to have a
ministry? Didn't the twelve apostles have ministries? Is it wrong to use the
gift of healing, if God has given it? Didn't the Lord Himself? There is no
argument against ministries. It is part of the method that God employs as His
"joints and bands" within the organic structure of His Church. No,
the problem is not in this direction. The problem arises from two sources. First,
the man or woman who has a ministry of any sort, and second, those who support
and sustain such a ministry. The minister himself needs to understand the
nature of the problem, how any form of publicly acclaimed Christian ministry
can lead to pride, and what steps must be taken to ensure that this pride is
stamped out continuously along the daily path of work for the Lord. And those
who uphold that ministry must not take steps to elevate their brother/sister by
advertising of the sort mentioned above. They must do everything they can to
help their friend towards the goal of humility, rather than pride.
Let's take a quick look at
the New Testament, and see what it says about ministries. We find there a
mention of Bishops, Elders, Deacons, Ministers, Apostles, Prophets,
Evangelists, Pastors, and Teachers, just to list the best known titles. But
what did Paul say about the last five on that list (and by inference, the other
four as well)? They are given for the "building up of the Body
of Christ." This is a far cry from the "building up of
the ministerial status" of individuals. And in Ephesians 4 Paul goes on to
say "until we ALL come - - to the measure of the stature of the
fullness of the Christ, to a full-grown man." Yes, there is
the goal of all ministries, the interworking of each one part, the sharing, the
helping, the sustaining, of each other until ALL reach their God-intended goal
of maturity. Ministries can never be looked upon as a means of achieving
personal fame, acclaim, or higher rank than others in God's Kingdom.
Self-esteem may force some to settle themselves at the top table, near to the
King, only to be asked, very politely, to move down. Others may have an equal
desire to be near to their Master, but consider it an impertinence to assume that
position of nearness unless asked. Moses was the God-appointed leader of His
people in the wilderness experience, but he was said to be "the
meekest man on earth." (Numbers 12:3) The Hebrew word here
translated "meek" is ANAV, and it attracts a variety of nuances in
English, such as Humility, Clemency, and Gentleness. When found in David's hymn
of praise (2 Samuel
In our youth we do not
understand this process, having an urge to "rise and conquer", but
with increasing age and experience, the Lord imparts the knowledge of a
different way. Paul puts this in a nutshell in Philippians 2:3-5.
"Let nothing be done through rivalry or self-glorification, but in
lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves." A
more suitable translation of the latter half would be, "Let
each esteem others more than, or beyond, themselves." To use
the word "better" is only to foster differentials the other way round
and I'm sure Paul didn't wish to create such an inversion. He goes on to say, "Look
not every man on his own things, but also on the things of others."
That clinches the meaning. "Let this mind be in you which was
also in Christ Jesus." In the Old Testament Ezekiel was given
a very stern message to pass on to the "Shepherds of Israel", the
Pastors of God's own Flock. In chapter 34 we read, "Woe to the
Shepherds of
The Lord was recalling this
passage when He spoke of Himself as "the GOOD Shepherd",
who cares for His sheep, and leaves the ninety and nine to search for the one
who is lost. Pastors of churches today should pattern their ministries on the
Lord as the Chief Pastor. Those who copy His example He will honour. But those
who "feed not the flock" and who "rule
with cruelty" will be rejected, not from their redeemed
state, but from any responsible position in God's
One has often heard over
the last twenty years the expression "Heavy Shepherding." Within the
Charismatic Movement there has been a great deal of emphasis on Leadership at
various levels, almost creating a pyramidal system. Without doubt many of those
who have occupied such positions have done so with admirable concern, prayer,
and service to those placed within their jurisdiction. But it has also created
the opening for misuse, harsh ruling, domination, and various forms of abuse
and injustice. What did the Master have to say about this?
"Remember the word that I said to you, the servant is not greater than his
lord." (John 15:20) And in Matthew 23:1-12 He spoke about the
Pharisees who "love the chief places at festivals, and the best
seats in the synagogues, the greetings in the market place, and the cry of
"Rabbi, Rabbi!" In all their works they "loved
to be seen of men, broadening their phylacteries, and enlarging their
fringes." But our Lord turned to His disciples and said, "Let
no man call you Rabbi, because you have one Teacher, and you are all brethren.
And call no man Father on earth, because you have one Father in heaven. And be
not called Leaders, for you have but one Leader, Christ. And the greater among
you shall be your servant. Whoever shall exalt himself shall be humbled, and he
who humbles himself shall be exalted."
I suppose it was because of
such teaching that ten of the disciples were so incensed against James and John
when their mother presented them to the Lord, asking that they may have the
chief seats in His Kingdom. But when the Lord answered, He didn't eliminate the
quest for excellence in His Kingdom, but merely said that such positions were
held within His Father's jurisdiction. What He DID say was "Are
you able to drink the cup that I am drinking?" In other
words, are you able to share in MY sufferings? For as Paul said later, "Those
who suffer with Him shall also rule with Him; but those who deny Him (the
suffering) shall He deny (the rule.)" (2 Timothy 2:12) Then
again, "If any man desire the office of a Bishop (i.e. an
Overseer) he desires a good work." There is nothing wrong in
such aspirations. It could well be that the desire is founded on the gentle
urge of the Holy Spirit. If this is the case, then the Lord has singled out
that man for the position. But Paul (in 1 Timothy 3) goes on to give a very
grave list of character values which such a man must have. Likewise for Deacons
(Ministers). "Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride, he
fall into the condemnation of the Devil." Such Officers of
the Church must be "Vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given
to hospitality, ready to teach, grave, not double-tongued, not addicted to much
wine, not fond of base gain, able to raise their own families in the fear and
discipline of the Lord, holding the faith in a pure conscience."
In addition, Paul said that they should first of all be "proved",
indicating that there should be a period of probation.
I get the impression that
God is very jealous of His children, unwilling that any of us should be exposed
to situations engendering the spirit of pride. The person is
more important in His sight than the Ministry he performs.
Hence none should be allowed to occupy high positions in the church until they
have been proved. Proved, not only to be able to take the lead, but also proved
to be resistant to pride and self-glorification. How great a service we should
perform for some men today, if only we were able to convince them that their
High Office is corrupting them, and destroying their own credibility. But this
is no easy task. It is difficult to approach some. Paul says in 1 Timothy 5:1 "Rebuke
not an Elder (or an Older Man) but entreat him as a father."
But sometimes the Leader is unapproachable, having arrogated to himself a
position where advice cannot be accepted. If this is the case, then pride has
already done its nefarious work, and one must resort to prayer, asking that God
may so engineer his circumstances that he is brought to repentance. That which
is impossible for man is easy for God. He said, "My yoke is
easy, my burden is light."
Wherein then is true
excellence? What is it that we should pursue with a continual drive? The Lord
said, "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness for
they shall be filled." What righteousness should they seek? Their own righteousness,
as an assessment of their own ministerial work? By no means. It is God's own
righteousness which comes by faith. And faith comes by hearing the word of God.
Hearing the divine directive, and obeying it cannot produce pride because one
can only say, "I have merely performed that which the Master asked."
Jesus once said, "So when you have done all those things which
are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants, we have merely done that
which was our duty to do." True excellence is based on
Meekness, Humility, Gentleness, Servanthood, a Childlike attitude towards our
Father in Heaven, Yieldedness, a willingness to suffer for, and with, Christ, a
strong desire to help and assist our brethren not only in a practical way, but
also by prayer as the Lord leads, and a profound thankfulness for all the great
mercies and lovingkindness that God showers upon us day by day.
False excellence is based
on self-esteem, the pursuance of a personal goal regardless of what it does to
others, a desire to rule God's people without the accompanying Servanthood, an
overbearing manner that cannot listen to others but believes in its own ability
at all times and in all situations, and a belief that some people have more
leadership-potential than others, and seek to use it to their own advantage. "The
disciples came to Jesus saying, 'Who is the greater in the