Sunday, December 4th, 2011
Romans 12:3-13b & 1 Cor 12:4-31
Power Walk – Part 2: Health
Bible Memory Verse for the Week: Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. — 1 Corinthians 12:7
The question to be answered is . . . What gifts does God provide to help the church become and remain healthy?
Answer: Lots! But, today we will concentrate on encouragement (exhortation), generosity (giving), leadership and mercy. Unless we are willing to submit to the gifts God gives us and realize that we need to have the attitude of “One for all and all for one”; then we will never enjoy the fullness God desires to bring to our lives.
So let’s take a closer look at the word, “equipping.” What does this mean and how is it done? In the original Greek the word is katartismon, from which we get our English word, “artisan”–an artist or craftsman, someone who works with his hands to make or build things. It is a special point of interest that this word first appears in the NT in connection with the calling of the disciples. As Jesus walked along the Sea of Galilee, he saw two pairs of brothers, Peter and Andrew and James and John, sitting in a boat busily engaged in doing something. What were they doing? They were mending their nets. The word “mending” is the word translated in Ephesians 4 as “equipping.” They were equipping their nets by mending them. They were getting them ready for action, fixing them up, preparing them. (Ray C. Stedman, Body Life, 81)
The key issue for churches in the twenty-first century will be church health, not church growth. (Rick Warren; The Purpose Driven Church , p. 17)
The Word for the Day is . . . Vitality
What does God provide to assist His Church to become and remain healthy?:
I. God gifts His Body the Church with encouragers (exhorters) so it can become and remain healthy. Rom 12:8, (see Prov 25:11; Acts 11:23-24; 13:15; 14:21-22; Rom 12:1; 15:30; 16:17; 1 Cor 1:10; 4:13, 16; 14:31; 2 Cor 1:4, 6; 2:7-8; 5:20; 6:1; 7:6-7, 13; 9:5; 10:1; 13:11; 1 Thess 2:11-12; 5:9-11; 2 Tim 4:2; Tit 1:9; Heb 10:24-25; etc.)
Encouragement: The special ability God gives some to offer comfort, words of encouragement, hope, and reassurance to discouraged, weak, or troubled Christians in such a way that they are consoled.
The gift of exhortation is listed by Paul in Romans 12:8. It is the ministry of encouraging, consoling, and when necessary confronting and admonishing others in the church so that the entire body is strengthened.
This gift is in high demand in churches enmeshed in the change process. Dying churches need daily encouragement and consolation. Churches that are plateaued and comfortable with the status quo need a certain amount of confrontation and admonition to begin to move forward again (Aubrey Malphurs; Pouring New Wine into Old Wineskins, p. 61).
He who slings mud, loses ground — CONFUCIUS
When you exhort you encourage, rebuke, rouse, stimulate, call for application, call to prayer–almost anything. Exhortation is concerned with taking the truth that has been taught and applying it to the Christian life in its various aspects. (D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Romans: Exposition of Chapter 12, 262)
Praise is like sunlight to the human spirit: we cannot flower and grow without it. -Jess Lair (Reader’s Digest, 6/97, 48)
Any fool can criticize, condemn, and complain — and most fools do. — Dale Carnegie
Exhortation should have one dominating note, and that should be encouragement. There is a naval regulation which says that no officer shall speak discouragingly to any other officer about any undertaking in which he may be engaged. There is a kind of exhortation which is daunting. Real exhortation aims not so much at dangling a man over the flames of hell as spurring him on to the joy of life in Christ. (William Barclay, The Daily Study Bible Series: Romans, 161)
The verb that Paul chooses here in Rom 12:8 offers a much better way to upbuild. When others are hurting, the greatest grace we can bring is to comfort or encourage them right in the midst of whatever they are suffering. A person doesn’t need empty words, but the freedom to crawl inside a hug and feel the embrace of God. In pain we need others to listen to our grief and fears, to help us sort them out, to encourage us by their presence not to lose hope. (Marva J. Dawn, Truly the Community , 124)
Perhaps the most needful kind of exhortation in contemporary congregations is that which criticizes constructively, reproves, calls back from error, or disciplines. (Marva J. Dawn, Truly the Community, 124-25)
We don’t want our prodding to cause the other to feel guilty for not being able to perform according to our expectations. Such legalistic performance principles destroy the Hilarity of being God’s people. On the other hand, fellow believers who are betraying the values of the community need to be challenged to repent and change. (Marva J. Dawn, Truly the Community, 125)
Then there is the grace of exhortation: “If it is encouraging, let him encourage” (v. 8a). The root idea is “to come alongside and encourage.” I see this exemplified every time my church has a roller skating party, and the parents put their little ones on skates for the first time. (R. Kent Hughes, Preaching the Word: Romans, 224)
Exhortation and teaching differ from each other in this respect that teaching is meant for the ignorant and exhortation for those who know. The teacher lays the foundation, while the exhorter builds upon the foundation. (Martin Luther, Commentary on Romans, 172)
The gift of exhortation, therefore, encompasses the ideas of advising, pleading, encouraging, warning, strengthening, and comforting sin or bad habit and at a later time to encourage that same person to maintain his corrected behavior. (John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Romans 9-16, 174)
One who exhorts may also be used of God to encourage and undergird a weak believer who is facing a difficult trial or persistent temptation. Sometimes he may use his gift simply to walk beside a friend who is grieving, discouraged, frustrated, or depressed, to give help in whatever way is needed. This gift may be exercised in helping someone carry a burden that is too heavy to bear alone. (John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Romans 9-16, 174)
II. God gifts His Body the Church with givers so it can become and remain healthy. Rom 12:8 (see: Mt 6:1-4; Lk 10:25-37;Mk 12:41-44; Acts 2:42-45; 4:32-37; 28:10; 2 Cor 8:2-5; 9:6-15; Rom 1:11; Eph 4:28; 1 Thes 2:8; 1 Tm 6:17-18; Tit 3:14; Jas 2:14-26)
Giving – The gift that enables a believer to recognize God’s blessings and to respond to those blessings by generously, sacrificially, and cheerfully giving of one’s resources (time, talent, and treasure) without thought of return. The divine enablement to contribute money and resources to the work of the Lord with cheerfulness and liberality. People with this gift do not ask, “How much money do I need to give to God?” but “How much money do I need to live on?”
Often our money is not the best thing we could give them. More urgently they might need your farming skills, your medical expertise, or your time to help refugees resettle in a strange land. What is called for here is not necessarily financial generosity, but–vastly more important–an attitude of heart that says, “Whatever is mine is yours.” (Marva J. Dawn, Truly the Community, 126)
Someone asked the American Episcopal bishop Phillips Brooks what he would do to resurrect a dead church, and he replied, “I would take up a missionary offering.” Giving to others is one secret of staying alive and fresh in the Christian life. If all we do is receive, then we become reservoirs; and the water can become stale and polluted. But if we both receive and give, we become like channels; and in blessing others, we bless ourselves. American psychologist Dr. Karl Menninger said, “Money-giving is a good criterion of a person’s mental health. Generous people are rarely mentally ill people.” Someone wrote in Modern Maturity magazine, “The world is full of two kinds of people, the givers and the takers. The takers eat well—but the givers sleep well.” (Warren Wiersbe; Be Determined, 146-147)
There are two ways in which the commandment of giving is transgressed. First, when we give in order that others (to whom we give) may return it with interest. This evil (custom) is now spread amazingly in wide areas. We therefore are told in Lk 14:12-14: “When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbors; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompense be made unto thee. But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind: and thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just.” (Luther has in mind the unconditional giving that does not expect to be repaid.)
Secondly, the commandment of giving is transgressed when those who are superior give to those who are under them, or when such give to one another as are equal in rank. This affords still greater pleasure, for then the giver may provide glory and boast of his giving. (Martin Luther, Commentary on Romans, 172-73)
Those who have this gift are to exercise it without ulterior motives or hidden purposes, simply out of love. This is where Ananias and Sapphira failed. When we give, it is to be simply to the glory of God and to meet the needs of brothers and sisters in Christ in the world. A pastor under whom I served for years had a man in his congregation who gave only once a year–$10.00 which he placed in the pastor’s hand saying, “this is for the church.” He wanted to make sure he got credit for his generous gift! (R. Kent Hughes, Preaching the Word: Romans, 225)
The fifth category of giftedness is that of giving. The usual Greek verb for giving is didōmi, but the word here is the intensified metadidōmi, which carries the additional meanings of sharing and imparting that which is one’s own. The one who exercises this gift gives sacrificially of himself. (John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Romans 9-16, 175)
The apostle says: If the gift you have been given is the gift of giving, do it with simplicity. “Let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth.” Do not worry about the publicity; keep your eye on God and on His glory. (D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Romans: Exposition of Chapter 12, 267)
Christians must give sacrificially, until their lifestyle is lowered. However, giving must be in accord with calling and ministry opportunities. Also, every believer must be a steward of possessions so as not to become a burden and liability to his or her family. (Timothy J. Keller, Ministries of Mercy, 67)
Wealth is to be accumulated strictly for doing works of mercy and spreading the kingdom. Wealth is not to be stored up “for yourselves (Mt 6:19-21). (Timothy J. Keller, Ministries of Mercy, 72)
If your giving to the needy does not burden you or cut into your lifestyle in any way, you must give more! (Timothy J. Keller, Ministries of Mercy, 75)
As a priority, we should give to needy Christians both intensively and extensively, until their need is gone. But we must also give generously to nonbelievers as part of our witness to the world. (Timothy J. Keller, Ministries of Mercy, 80)
III. God gifts His Body the Church with leaders so it can become and remain healthy. Rom 12:8 (see: Ezek 34:1-20; Mt 20:20-28; Mk 10:35-35; Rom 13:1-7; 1 Tim 3:1-13; 5:17-20; Tit 1:5-9; Heb 13:7, 17; 1 Pt 5:1-3)
Leadership: The special ability God gives to some to set goals in accordance with God’s purpose and to communicate these goals to others in such a way that they voluntarily and harmoniously work together to accomplish these goals for the glory of God. The divine enablement to cast vision, motivate, and direct people to harmoniously accomplish the purposes of God.
One of the ways to assess whether or not your church is maturing spiritually is if the standards for leadership keep getting tougher as time passes, requiring a deeper level of commitment to Christ and spiritual growth. (Rick Warren; The Purpose Driven Church, 343)
Pastor Rick Warren of Saddleback Valley Community Church has said it as well as anyone: “For the church to grow, the pastor must give up the ministry and the people must give up the leadership.”
The key to spiritual leadership, then, is to encourage followers to grow in their relationship with their Lord. This cannot be done by talking about God. It cannot be accomplished by exhorting people to love God. It can only be achieved when leaders bring their people face to face with God and God convinces them that he is a God of love who can be trusted. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership; Moving People on to God’s Agenda, 76)
“Some congregational-type churches oppose strong pastoral leadership on principle. Congregationalism was developed along with American Democracy, and strong pastoral authority seems undemocratic to some Christians. Where this feeling persists, it will be overcome if the church wants to move into a position of growth.” (Peter C. Wagner; Your Church Can Grow: Seven Vital Signs of a Healthy Church, 62)
It is significant that Paul makes no mention of leaders in his first letter to Corinth. Lack of a functioning leadership would help explain its serious moral and spiritual problems, which certainly would have been exacerbated by that deficiency. “Free-for-all” democracy amounts to anarchy and is disastrous in any society, including the church. The absence of leaders results in everyone doing what is “right in his own eyes,” as the Israelites did under the judges (Jg 17:6; 21:25; cf. Dt 12:8). (John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Romans 9-16, 177)
Effective leadership must be done with diligence, with earnestness and zeal. Spoudē (diligence) can also carry the idea of haste (see Mk 6;25; Lk 1:38). Proper leadership therefore precludes procrastination and idleness. Whether it is possessed by church officers or by members who direct such things as Sunday School, the youth group, the nursery, or a building program, the gift of leadership is to be exercised with carefulness, constancy, and consistency. (John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Romans 9-16, 177)
Those who govern must be especially sensitive to the fact that their diligence in leadership serves as a model for the zeal of the whole community. (Marva J. Dawn, Truly the Community, 133)
There are fewer and fewer people with a sense of service and of responsibility, willing to give up their leisure and their pleasure to undertake leadership. In many cases unfitness and unworthiness is pleaded when the real reason is disinclination and laziness. If such leadership is taken up, Paul says that it is to be taken up with zeal. (William Barclay, The Daily Study Bible Series: Romans, 162)
I once traveled to Germany with a group to tour the sites of the Reformation. One day we went to examine the spot where the Diet of Worms had been assembled. We were given a lunch break and told to return afterward to where the buses were parked. We split up in different directions, and the group I joined had lunch near one of the town squares there. After lunch I could not remember how to get back to the bus, but a girl in our group said she knew the way back. We all got in line behind her, and she started marching with great confidence toward the bus. I did not recognize anything that looked familiar, so I asked her, “Are you sure this is the right way to the bus?” She said, “Yes, R. C., I am sure.” Finally, she stopped and said, “I am always sure but seldom right.” She had not done due diligence; she should have spent some time with a map. If a gifted leader is going to be followed, he or she had better know the way to go. (RC Sproul, St. Andrew’s Expositional Commentary: Romans, 419-20)
I once had a discussion with a gentleman from another country who said he was envious of Americans’ ability to form teams. “When your people want to get something done, they gather a group and assign the tasks. In my country, unfortunately, we do not have it so easy. Many of us cannot even seem to sit down together at the table. We spend years playing King of the Mountain, while your people have already figured out how to move it, save it, or make it bigger.” One of the most important keys to successful teamwork is agreeing to agree.
If you as a leader or manager intend to accomplish anything significant, the first step toward attaining your goal is to create a team. (Lauire Beth Jones; Jesus CEO, Using Ancient Wisdom for Visionary Leadership, 90-91)
Jesus Christ clarified reality for His followers as they had never understood it before. A leader is a servant. The one charged with authority must lead in love. Jesus did, and He is still changing the world. Perhaps he had even influenced Mohandas Gandhi, who said:
Power is of two kinds. One is obtained by fear of punishment and the other by the art of love. Power based on love is a thousand times more effective and permanent. (Stu Weber; Four Pillars of a Man’s Heart , 72)
Harry Arinian, formerly president of corporate quality for the Colgate-Palmolive Company, once said, “I like to tell the story about the entrepreneur who wanted to build the perfect car. He rented a warehouse and filled it with the 150 best cars ever built. Then he told his engineers to find the best part in each car he had bought.
“So, they took the best engine from the Mercedes, the best door handle from the Buick, the best transmission from the Toyota, the best rack-and-pinion steering from the Ford, and so on and so on. When he was done, he had a car assembled out of 15,000 best parts that human minds could engineer. Unfortunately, the car didn’t function because the parts didn’t work together.” Artinian’s point is clear: In order for synergy and teamwork to take place, the people on the team have to function as a team, not just as a collection of individuals. (Pat Williams; The Magic of Teamwork, as quoted in Bits & Pieces Oct. 5, 2000)
However, there is a serous issue that may hinder the American church from living out its organic destiny in the new millennium. Take note of our propensity toward visionary leader-driven ministry and organizational structures straight out of current secular management models. It appears, in fact, that we are acting very much like the first-century Corinthians when it comes to overplaying certain spiritual gifts. (Paul R. Ford, Knocking Over the Leadership Ladder, 145)
Leaders also need to be counseled in how to send such people for therapy (ideally, to a church-sponsored support and recovery group) or how to ask them to leave the group. Otherwise, the leader is allowing the Body of Christ in that cell to be sick. (Carl F. George, Prepare Your Church for the Future, 111)
If you cannot keep a secret, do not try to lead. If you cannot yield a point when someone else’s ideas are better, save yourself the frustration of failed leadership. If you want to maintain an image of infallibility, find something else to do besides leading people. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 38)
As to behavior, the leader must be respectable. A well-ordered life is the fruit of a well-ordered mind. The life of the leader should reflect the beauty and orderliness of God. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 41)
Given the importance of competent leaders in the church–and in business and government, too–we might expect that the Bible would use the term more often. In fact, the King James Bible (on which many of my generation have been nurtured) uses the term leader only six times. Much more frequently, the role is called servant. We do not read about “Moses, my leader,” but “Moses, my servant.” And this is exactly what Christ taught. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 21)
Leadership is influence, the ability of one person to influence others to follow his or her lead. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 28)
President Harry S. Truman (1945-53) said cogently: “A leader is a person who has the ability to get others to do what they don’t want to do, and like it.” (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 28)
“It occurs to me that perhaps the best test of whether one is qualified to lead, is to find out whether anyone is following.” -D. E. Hoste, general director of China Inland Mission (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 28)
A true and safe leader is likely to be one who has no desire to lead, but is forced into a position by the inward pressure of the Holy Spirit and the press of [circumstances]…There was hardly a great leader from Paul to the present day but was drafted by the Holy Spirit for the task, and commissioned by the Lord to fill a position he had little heart for…The man who is ambitious to lead is disqualified as a leader. The true leader will have no desire to lord it over God’s heritage, but will be humble, gentle, self-sacrificing and altogether ready to follow when the Spirit chooses another to lead.” (A. W. Tozer, The Reaper, 459)
Humility is the hallmark of the spiritual leader. Christ told his disciples to turn away from the pompous attitudes of the oriental despots, and instead take on the lowly bearing of the servant (Mt 20:25-27). As in ancient days, so today humility is least admitted in political and business circles. But no bother! The spiritual leader will choose the hidden path of sacrificial service and approval of the Lord over the flamboyant self-advertising of the world. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 61)
A leader shows patience by not running too far ahead of his followers and thus discouraging them. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 71)
When we lead by persuasion rather than command, patience is essential. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 71)
John Wesley had a passion for reading, and he did so mostly on horseback. Often he rode a horse fifty and sometimes ninety miles in a day. His habit was to ride with a volume of science or history or medicine propped in the pommel of his saddle, and thus he consumed thousands of books. Besides his Greek NT, three great books took possession of Wesley’s mind and heart during his Oxford days: Imitation of Christ; Holy Living and Dying, and The Serious Call. These three were his spiritual guides. Wesley told the younger ministers of the Methodist societies to read or get out of the ministry! (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 102)
A leader should neither be content with easy books nor satisfied with reading only in his specialty. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 105)
Unless our reading includes serious thinking, it is wasted time. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 105)
To aspire to leadership in God’s kingdom requires us to be willing to pay. The toll of true leadership is heavy, and the more effective the leadership, the higher it goes. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 115)
Fatigue is the price of leadership. Mediocrity is the result of never getting tired. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 119)
Paul sought the favor of God, not of people. His hard work was not to please those around him (Gal 1:10). Nor was Paul terribly disturbed by criticism. “I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court…It is the Lord who judges me” (1 Cor 4:3-4). Paul could afford to take lightly the comments and criticism of others, for his heart was owned by God (Col 3:22). (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 120)
The true leader is concerned primarily with the welfare of others, not with his own comfort or prestige. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 125)
Discipline is yet another responsibility of the leader, a duty often unwelcome. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 126)
Providing guidance is a third area of responsibility. The spiritual leader must know where he or she is going before presuming to lead others. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 126)
“The ideal leader,” said A. W. Tozer, “is one who hears the voice of God, and beckons on as the voice calls him and them.” Paul gave this challenge to the Corinthian Christians: “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ” (1 Cor 11:1). Paul knew whom he was following, where he was going, and could challenge others to follow him there. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 127)
The leader must either initiate plans for progress or recognize the worthy plans of others. He must remain in front, giving guidance and direction to those behind. He does not wait for things to happen, but makes them happen. He is a self-starter, always on the lookout for improved methods, eager to test new ideas. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 127)
Bear the blame; do not share or transfer it. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 129)
The degree to which a leader is able to delegate work is a measure of his success. A one-person office can never grow larger than the load one person can carry. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 138)
Writing about the leader of a large missionary society, a member of his staff commented: “He had a great gift of leadership in that he never interfered with those who worked under him. Everyone was left to do his own work.” Another member wrote, “He knew what people could do, and saw that they did it, leaving them to make the best of their opportunities, and investigating only if things went wrong.” (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 140)
One of the repulsive manifestations of pride, egotism is the practice of thinking and speaking of oneself, of magnifying one’s attainments and relating everything to the self rather than to God and God’s people. The leader who has long enjoyed the admiration of many followers stands in peril of this danger. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 154)
Every preacher ought to be primarily a prophet of God who preaches as God bids him, without regard to results. When he becomes conscious of the fact that he is a leader in his own church or denomination, he has reached a crisis in his ministry. He must now choose one of two courses, that of prophet of God or a leader of men. If he seeks to be a prophet and a leader, he is apt to make a failure of both. If he decides to be a prophet only insofar as he can do without losing his leadership, he becomes a diplomat and ceases to be a prophet at all. If he decides to maintain leadership at all costs, he may easily fall to the level of a politician who pulls the wires in order to gain or hold a position. (A. C. Dixon, Dixon, 277)
The greatest obstacle to effective spiritual leadership is people pursuing their own agendas rather than seeking God’s will. God is working throughout the world to achieve his purposes and to advance his kingdom. God’s concern is not to advance leaders’ dreams and goals or to build their kingdoms. His purpose is to turn his people away from their self-centeredness and their sinful desires and to draw them into a relationship with himself. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 23)
The key to spiritual leadership, then, is for spiritual leaders to understand God’s will for them and for their organizations. Leaders then move people away from their own agendas and on to God’s. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 23)
If Jesus provides the model for spiritual leadership, then the key is not for leaders to develop visions and to set the direction for their organizations. The key is to obey and to preserve everything the Father reveals to them of his will. Ultimately, the Father is the leader. God has the vision of what He wants to do. God does not ask leaders to dream big dreams for him or to solve the problems that confront them. He asks leaders to walk with him so intimately that, when he reveals what is on his agenda, they will immediately adjust their lives to his will and the results will bring glory to God. This is not the model many religious leaders, let alone business leaders, follow today, but it encompasses what biblical leadership is all about. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 29)
Leadership development is synonymous with personal development. As leaders grow personally, they increase their capacity to lead. As they increase their capacity to lead, they enlarge the capacity of their organization to grow. Therefore, the best thing leaders can do for their organization is to grow personally. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 31)
The message is clear. Leaders’ best thinking will not build the kingdom of God. Why? Because people do not naturally think the way God does. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 66)
Every time leaders choose to develop their own vision for their people instead of seeking God’s will, they are giving their people their best thinking instead of God’s. That is a poor exchange indeed. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 68)
Spiritual leaders must resist the temptation to insert their own best thinking where God has promised a miracle. Attempting to hurry the process or to adjust God’s plan to make it more achievable are both signs of immature spiritual leadership. Spiritual leaders must continually remind themselves that what God has promised, God will accomplish completely in his time and in his way (Phil 1:6). (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 72)
Today, Christian leaders often develop a vision for their organizations and then demand the members either get on board or find another organization. This approach could not be further from the NT pattern. Spiritual leaders know they cannot change people; only the Holy Spirit can do this. If the Holy Spirit is not convincing people to follow in a new direction, it may be that God is not the author of the new direction. Secular writers agree that selling vision is difficult. Peter Senge observes that “90 percent of the time, what passes for commitment is compliance.” (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 75)
The leader cannot convince people that a particular direction is from God. This is the Holy Spirit’s task. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 75)
The key to spiritual leadership, then, is to encourage followers to grow in their relationship with their Lord. This cannot be done by talking about God. It cannot be accomplished by exhorting people to love God. It can only be achieved when leaders bring their people face to face with God and God convinces them that he is a God of love who can be trusted. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 76)
The lesson for leaders is obvious: spiritual success is not defined in terms of ability–it is a matter of obedience. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 96)
When people see their leader stretching the truth or strategically glossing over problems, they lose confidence in that leader. Followers don’t expect their leaders to be perfect, but they do expect them to be honest. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 105)
Integrity means being consistent in one’s behavior under every circumstance, including those unguarded moments. If leaders are normally peaceable and well mannered, but they throw violent temper tantrums when things go wrong, their lives lack integrity. If leaders are honest and moral in public, but discard those standards in private, their lives lack integrity. When leaders have integrity, their followers always know what to expect. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 105)
God gauges success in terms of faithfulness and obedience, not in terms of dollars or status. The definitive measure of leaders’ success is whether they moved their people from where they were to where God wanted them to be. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 111)
The primary goal of spiritual leadership is not excellence, in the sense of doing things perfectly. Rather, it is taking people from where they are to where God wants them to be. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 125)
A grand performance done with excellence, using high-tech sound equipment, professional lighting, eye-catching brochures, and charismatic leadership, can draw a crowd. It will not, however, build a church. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 126-7)
The ministry of the organization will not depend on one overworked leader always having to decide what god is guiding them to do. The entire organization will be excitedly scanning the horizon for the first glimpse of what God has in store next. When spiritual leaders have brought their people to this point, they have truly led. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 130)
Leaders ought to be constantly praising their people for their accomplishments and acknowledging their contributions to the organization. At staff gatherings and special occasions, leaders ought to be known for praising their people for their work rather than for blowing their own horns. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 138)
The single most important thing leaders should do is pray. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 148)
Few things discourage employees and volunteers any more than lazy leaders. Leaders should not ask their people to undertake tasks they are unwilling to perform themselves. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 153)
Leaders should ask themselves, “If the people in my organization worked with the same intensity as I do, would they enhance the operations of this organization or would they reduce it to a crawl?”
This means that if the pastor urges his members to participate in a workday at the church on Saturday, the pastor is there in his work clothes, not in his study finishing off Sunday’s sermon. It means that if a company is forced to ask employees to take a reduction in pay, the CEO is the first one to make a sacrifice. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 154)
If leaders want their people to work hard, they must set the example. That’s what leaders do. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 156)
Just as Christians are aware that a worldly lifestyle can discredit their Christian witness to others, so leaders know that a careless lifestyle can diminish their credibility in the eyes of their followers. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 158)
A pessimistic leader is a contradiction in terms. Leaders, by virtue of their role, are obligated to nurture positive attitudes. Leaders who doubt that success is possible and who fear the worst should immediately change their attitude or resign so a true leader can take their place. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 168)
If leaders cannot manage their own attitudes, they cannot be entrusted with the morale of others. When leaders believe anything is possible, their followers will come to believe that too. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 169)
Leaders should pay close attention to their attitudes, for these serve as barometers to the condition of their hearts. When leaders become pessimistic, cynical or critical, they need to evaluate the causes. Perhaps they have been focusing on what people are doing rather than on what God has promised. Maybe pride is corrupting their thoughts, or insecurity is causing them to be overly defensive. Whatever the reason, a wise leader will recognize these attitudes as symptoms of an unhealthy relationship with God. Often leaders will spend plenty of time seeking the world’s advice on how to manage their organization, but little time considering the wisdom found in God’s Word. Busy leaders neglect their prayer life and wind up overwhelmed with anxiety. Such people need a fresh encounter with God. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 174)
Spiritual leaders are not discouraged by their circumstances–they are informed by them. Through circumstances and events in leaders’ lives, God leads them forward in his will. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 185)
Leaders ought never to allow the least motivated members of an organization to set the pace for the others. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 219)
Leaders who continually invest large amounts of time into people who refuse to do God’s will are investing their time unwisely. On the other hand, when God is working in people’s lives, it is their leaders’ responsibility to invest time and energy into helping these people grow. Since only God knows whether a weak member will respond positively to their leader’s attention, it is essential that God set the leader’s agenda. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 220)
People who cannot handle criticism need not apply for leadership positions. Being criticized, second-guessed, and having one’s motives questioned are unpleasant but inevitable aspects of leadership. Great leaders are not immune to criticism; in fact, the criticism they receive is sometimes the most venomous. It is impossible for leaders to avoid being censured. If leaders take decisive action, they are open to critique for being too reactionary. If they cautiously refrain from taking action, they are chastised for their indecisiveness. Faced with the inevitability of criticism regardless of what they do, leaders must make a choice. Either they stop leading, or they do what they know is right and trust that God will vindicate them. (Henry & Richard Blackaby, Spiritual Leadership, 247)
IV. God gifts His Body the Church with members who are able to express mercy so it can become and remain healthy. Rom 12:8 (see: Mt 5:7; 9:13; 12:7; 18:21-25; 20:39-34; 23:23; 25:34-40; Mk 9:41; Lk 6:36; 7:12-15; 10:30-37; Jas 2:12-13; Jude 1:21-23)
Mercy/Compassion: The special gift whereby the Spirit enables certain Christians to feel exceptional empathy and compassion for those who are suffering (physically, mentally, or emotionally) so as to feel genuine sympathy for their misery, speaking words of compassion, but more so caring for them with acts of love that help alleviate their distress. The divine enablement to cheerfully and practically help those who are suffering or are in need by putting compassion into action.
Verse 8 stresses that acts of mercy are to be done with glad Hilarity. As emphasized in the preface to this book, we don’t want to make the anachronistic mistake of interpreting the Greek hilarotēs with our contemporary understanding of its English derivative hilarity. But the word does blast all the old stereotypes of dour-faced, serious-minded women dispensing soup for the poor. What better witness to the Hilarity we have because of our relationship with Jesus Christ if such acts of mercy are done with eager cheerfulness! (Marva J. Dawn, Truly the Community, 135)
Some may do their work quite properly but the way in which it is done makes such a difference. A cheerful doctor, a cheerful nurse, have a right manner; they are not, as it were, proud of themselves. How hopeless it is if they do their work merely mechanically or as a matter of duty. It is said about doctors, is it not, that sometimes the man himself does much more good than his medicine. And it is quite true! We are not machines, we are not animals, and this cheerfulness of disposition, this happy frame of mind helps us; it cheers us; it lessens pain; it makes us feel better. (D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Romans: Exposition of Chapter 12, 269)
I don’t like to receive reluctant mercy: If it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully. Real mercy is expressed in a spirit of joy and cheerfulness, the way God gives mercy to us. (RC Sproul, The Gospel of God: Romans, 201)
The sick, dying, and bereaved are in need of visits by someone who knows how to impart genuine Christian sympathy and understanding, someone who shows mercy with cheerfulness. “For as nothing gives more solace to the sick or to anyone otherwise distressed, than to see those cheerful and prompt in assisting them, so to observe sadness in the countenance of those by whom assistance is given makes them feel themselves despised” (John Calvin on this passage). (William Hendriksen, New Testament Commentary: Romans, 412-13)
The only true and enduring motivation for the ministry of mercy is an experience and a grasp of the grace of God in the gospel. If we know we are sinners saved by grace alone, we will be both open and generous to the outcasts and the unlovely. (Timothy J. Keller, Ministries of Mercy, 58)
As Edmund Clowney has put it, “God requires the love that cannot be required.” Mercy is commanded, but it must not be the response to a command, it is an overflowing generosity as a response to the mercy of God which we received. (Timothy J. Keller, Ministries of Mercy, 62)
Mercy to the full range of human needs is such an essential mark of being a Christian that it can be used as a test of true faith. Mercy is not optional or an addition to being a Christian. Rather, a life poured out in deeds of mercy is the inevitable sign of true faith. (Timothy J. Keller, Ministries of Mercy, 35)
In Proverbs 14:31 and 19:17 we are told that to ignore the needs of a poor man is to sin against the Lord. So the poor and needy are a test. (Timothy J. Keller, Ministries of Mercy, 39)
But as we look at these three social institutions–family, church, and state–we see that the closer the covenantal connection, the greater the responsibility for mercy. (Timothy J. Keller, Ministries of Mercy, 82)
God’s mercy comes to us without conditions, but does not proceed without our cooperation. So too our aid must begin freely, regardless of the recipient’s merits. But our mercy must increasingly demand change or it is not really love. (Timothy J. Keller, Ministries of Mercy, 93)
Psalm 41:1 pronounces “blessed” the man who “considers” the poor. The latter word means careful thinking toward a practical program of action. God is not interested in mere relief, but restoration. Education, job training, capital for beginning a business–all of these are necessary to develop the poor. (Timothy J. Keller, Ministries of Mercy, 180)
Neither the “liberal” approach (no conditions on aid to the needy) nor the “conservative” approach (only help the deserving poor) understand grace. Instead, our mercy ministry must help people freely, yet aim to bring their whole lives under the healing lordship of Christ. Mercy is kingdom endeavor. (Timothy J. Keller, Ministries of Mercy, 227)
When the person in need is acting irresponsibly, and your continued aid would only shield him from the consequences of his own behavior, then it is no longer loving or merciful to continue support. (Timothy J. Keller, Ministries of Mercy, 228)
Every Christian is expected to be merciful. This is a role that reflects the fruit of the Spirit. But those who have the gift of mercy make compassion and kindness their lifestyle. They do not simply react to emergencies, as every Christian is supposed to do. The continually seek opportunities to show pity for the miserable. (Peter Wagner; Your Spiritual Gifts; 68)
CONCLUSION/APPLICATION: What needs to take place for us to become and remain healthy and make effective use of these gifts from God?:
A- The members of the Body must look at all of life in view of God’s mercy.
We belong to one another only through and in Jesus Christ.
What does this mean? It means, first, that a Christian needs others because of Jesus Christ. It means, second, that a Christian comes to others only through Jesus Christ. It means, third, that in Jesus Christ we have been chosen from eternity, accepted in time, and untied for eternity. (Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together, 21)
Christians know that it is our love for God, and, even more basically, His unconditional love for us, that motivates faithful, healthy service and growth. (Donald J. MacNair; The Practices of a Healthy Church , 80)
Some think they can’t do it; others refuse to change or grow. They simply lack the faith to step out and do something. “Where is your faith?” I wish to admonish them (and many times I do). “Don’t you believe that God will enable you to obey Him?”
The churches that mature in health and effect lasting change are the ones that come to God in brokenness and humility and beg Him to produce the obedience of faith in them. (Donald J. MacNair; The Practices of a Healthy Church , 231)
Spiritual hunger is the OT prescription for spiritual health. (R. Kent Hughes; Preaching The Word – Luke Vol. One, 61)
“Christians are called to a life of habitual repentance, as a discipline integral to healthy holy living…conversion must be continuous…There has to be for all of us some form of entry into the converted state, in which none of us is found by nature…But there is more: following from ‘the hour I first believed,’ conversion must now become a lifelong process. Conversion has been defined from this standpoint as a matter of giving as much as you know of yourself to as much as you know of God. This means that our knowledge of God and ourselves grows (and the two grow together), so our conversion needs to be repeated and extended constantly.” (J. I. Packer, Rediscovering Holiness, 121, 139, 140)
“Sorrow for sin and gratitude for the amazing mercy of God replace self-assertion, vision of God and the soul’s fallen motives. Optimum spiritual health simply involves remaining in the focused light of truth concerning our needs and their fulfillment in Jesus’ redemptive work (1 Jn 1:5-7). An honest assessment of our spiritual state and a deepening trust in the Messiah are qualities which guarantee our continued spiritual growth.” (Richard Lovelace; Renewal as a Way of Life; 134)
He needs his brother solely because of Jesus Christ. The Christ in his own heart is weaker than the Christ in the word of his brother; his own heart is uncertain, his brother’s is sure.
And that also clarifies the goal of all Christian community: they meet one another as bringers of the message of salvation. As such, God permits them to meet together and gives them community. Their fellowship is founded solely upon Jesus Christ and this “alien righteousness.” All we can say, therefore, is: the community of Christians springs solely from the Biblical and Reformation message of the justification of man through grace alone; this alone is the basis of the longing of Christians for one another. (Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together, 23)
What is conviction of sin? It is not an oppressive spirit of uncertainty or paralyzing guilt feelings. Conviction of sin is the lance of the divine Surgeon piercing the infected soul, releasing the pressure, letting the infection pour out. Conviction of sin is a health-giving injury. Conviction of sin is the Holy Spirit being kind to us by confronting us with the light we prefer to ignore. Conviction of sin is the severe love of God overruling our compulsive dishonesty, our willful blindness, our favorite excuses. Conviction of sin is the violent sweetness of God opposing the sins lying comfortably undisturbed in our lives. Conviction of sin is the merciful God declaring war on the false peace we settle for. Conviction of sin is our escape from malaise to joy, from attending church to worship, from faking it to authenticity. Conviction of sin, with the forgiveness of Jesus pouring over our wounds, is life. (Raymond C. Ortlund, Jr.; Preaching the Word: Isaiah, God Saves Sinners, 25-26)
B- The members of the Body must not think more highly of themselves than they ought to think.
Christian living, therefore, must be founded upon self-abhorrence and self-distrust because of indwelling sin’s presence and power. Self-confidence and self-satisfaction argue self-ignorance. The only healthy Christian is the humble, broken-hearted Christian. (J. I. Packer, A Quest for Godliness, 196)
The more single-minded we become, the more thoroughly committed to God all our efforts will be, the more his purposes can be accomplished in them, and the greater Hilarity we will experience. Our tendency to slip so easily into manipulation of others for our own ends is one of the greatest destroyers of genuine community, but to recognize our constant battle for purity of motive enables us to keep growing toward maturity in our faith and in the Body. (Marva J. Dawn, Truly the Community, 133)
As we become “empty” of self and dependent on God, the Holy Spirit will use us. (J. Oswald Sanders, Spiritual Leadership, 24)
True humility is not thinking less of yourself, it is thinking of yourself less. (Timothy J. Keller, Ministries of Mercy, 64)
C- The members of the Body must be like the Musketeers: “One for all and all for one”.
Individual and corporate spiritual vitality are coinherent; it is impossible to grow to full stature as an individual while separated from smaller and larger groups in the church, nor can the body grow without the renewing of its members. — Richard F. Lovelace
A person does not reveal weakness or liability in such a manner in the early stages of a relationship, if at all. In fact, that commonly is the problem: we never get to admitting weaknesses that each of us bring to the team. And it is those weaknesses, not the projected strengths, which commonly create the problems that divide team members from one another.
I have found that the freedom to admit weaknesses and need to one another on a level playing field is one of the most important qualities of team life–and of real Christian community. We have known that admitting our sin and weakness to God is core to our respective personal relationships with God. But it is also a core part of healthy team life, essential for learning to value one another. In fact, through these team-building seminars I have discovered an amazing principle of life in the body of Christ.
God has designed each of us with great strengths to offer to one another. But God has also designed each one of us with intrinsic weakness–not sin, but rather areas where we are not as strong as others–so that we would need others. (Paul R. Ford, Knocking Over the Leadership Ladder, 45)
D- The members of the Body must honor others ABOVE themselves.
Let me give so much time to the improvement of myself that I shall have not time to criticize others.
On a healthy team, team members believe the best about one another. Everybody is innocent until proven guilty. When team members begin working on secondary agendas, they become suspicious of everybody else. Why? Because they read their own impure motive into everybody else’s actions. (Andy Stanley, Visioneering, 169)
Our absolute usefulness to the Lord depends on the three things Paul mentions in our present text: proper attitude (v. 3), proper relationship (vv. 4-5), and proper service (vv. 6-8). (John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Romans 9-16, 157)
Teddy Roosevelt once commented, “The things that will destroy America are prosperity at any price, peace at any price, safety first instead of duty first, the love of soft living and the get-rich theory of life.” (John MacArthur, The MacArthur New Testament Commentary: Romans 9-16, 179)
The importance of helping members develop friendships within your church cannot be overemphasized. Relationships are the glue that holds a church together. Friendships are the key to retaining members.
A friend told me of a survey he took in a church. When he asked, “Why did you join this church?” 93% of the members said, “I joined because of the pastor.” He then asked, “What if the pastor leaves? Will you leave? 93% said, “No.” When he asked why they wouldn’t leave, the response was, “Because I have friends here!” Notice the shift in allegiance from pastor to other members. This is normal and healthy. (Rick Warren; The Purpose Driven Church, 324)
E- The members of the Body must realize that all growth is painful but necessary.
It is essential to the health of your church that you periodically “clean house”—abandon programs that have outlived their purpose. When the horse is dead—dismount! (Rick Warren; The Purpose Driven Church, 90)
A healthy body is necessary to do effective work. To attempt evangelism while the body of Christ is sick and ailing is worse than useless. It is not difficult to keep a body of Christians healthy and vital if the individuals involved (especially leaders) are concerned to bear one another’s burdens, confess their faults one to another, and to instruct and admonish one another in love, by means of the word of God. It is by these means that the church is becoming what its Lord desires: a church in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing (Eph 5:27). (Ray C. Stedman, Body Life, 114)
A healthy church member recognizes this chastisement as love and accepts it as one source of assurance, since those who are not so chastised are “illegitimate children and not sons” (Heb 12:8). (Thabiti M. Anyabwile, What is a Healthy Church Member?, 79)
Worship point: When we begin to look at all of life in view of God’s mercy, and think more highly of others than ourselves; then we begin to see just how extensive and comprehensive God’s provision is to us to help us become and remain healthy. God helps us to be healthy by giving us encouragers, leaders, givers, and those who are merciful so we might be . . . “built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” (Eph 4:13) But, we will never experience this and become and remain healthy until we open ourselves up to . . . “teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so we may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Tm 3:16-17).
Spiritual Challenge: Realize that God has provided the Body of Christ with everything we need so we can become and remain healthy so we might become like Jesus: strong, vigorous, and whole. Look to Jesus!
Quotes to Note:
If you study healthy churches you’ll discover that when God finds a church that is doing a quality job of winning, nurturing, equipping, and sending out believers, he sends that church plenty of raw material. On the other hand, why would God send a lot of prospects to a church that doesn’t know what to do with them?
In any church where lives are being changed, marriages are being saved, and love is flowing freely, you’ll have to lock the doors to keep people from attending. People are attracted to churches with quality worship, preaching, ministry, and fellowship. Quality attracts quantity. -(Rick Warren; The Purpose Driven Church, 51)
We need to ask ourselves if we have received a changed heart by God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ. This sort of self-examination is a spiritually healthy thing to do. In fact, this is what the apostles often exhorted their readers to do (2 Cor 13:5; Phil 2:12; 2 Pet 1:5-11). The first order of business is to know our own souls. Are we trusting in the finished work of Christ alone for our salvation? Is there evidence of God’s grace in our lives? Are we growing in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ, in the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-24), and in the virtues mentioned in Christ’s beatitudes (Mt 5:3-12)? (Thabiti M. Anyabwile, What is a Healthy Church Member?, 50-51)
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