Providence Reformed Baptist Church

Reformed Baptist Church in Remlap, Alabama

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Who is the Gossip?

Have you ever known someone who talks too much? They’re chatty. They tend to tell too much about themselves, their circumstances, and for that matter, they seem to share everyone else’s lives as well. We say of such people that they “they don’t have a filter.” But what we need to be asking is if they can be legitimately labeled as a “gossip?” The reason I raise this question, is due to the fact that these chatty folks are largely stereotyped as “gossips.” But is this a fair judgement? I would argue that it is a misjudgment for two reasons: first, it either denies or overlooks the reality of people’s natural dispositions – where with some they are the extrovert and with others, they are the introvert. The extrovert is your open book. They tend not to know a stranger. They’re very relational. Easy to get to know. And they are therefore wired to be naturally talkative. Whereas the introvert holds his cards close to the chest, as it were. They’re very private and typically have very few friends. They talk very little, though they’re silence doesn’t mean they’re not thinking. Nevertheless, in contrast to the extrovert, the introvert is a closed book. It is thus not hard to see how the extrovert could be more easily targeted as a gossip simply because he’s naturally bent to tell all. But is he really a gossip or just a natural born talker who loves relating to other people?

The second reason I believe it’s a misjudgment to stereotype those who are chatty as bona fide gossips, is because gossip as a sin has nothing to do with talking too much. As I labored to show in my previous post, gossip (defined by God’s Word) is “talking about other people laced with fabrications, hearsay, conjecture, and innuendo with the sole intent on ruining their reputation.” Essentially, gossip is slander. It is bearing false witness against another person (Exod. 20:16). It therefore has nothing to do with someone who is chatty, but with someone who has crafted what they say with the design to befoul a person’s credibility.

But can a person who is a natural born talker ever be guilty of gossip? The answer to this question is obviously “yes,” but with qualifications. Since the extrovert is wired to talk often and much about many things, they therefore have to be extra careful not to share information that could damage another person’s reputation. While it may not be their motive to hurt other people in this way, they can inadvertently reveal something about someone to the wrong person who could take that information and use it to their advantage to sully someone’s name. Those then whose aptitude is geared toward much conversation should remember the wisdom of God’s Word which says, “When words are many, transgression is not lacking, but whoever restrains his lips is prudent” (Prov. 10:19).

Nevertheless, I contend that it is an unfair judgment to automatically, without exception, label a talkative person as a gossip. So, who then can be legitimately classed as a gossip? Here, we turn back to Scripture and consider the word which the Holy Spirit has given us that helps us identify the true gossip. In Proverbs 26:20, we’re told, “For lack of wood the fire goes out, and where there is no whisperer, quarreling ceases.” The term”whisperer” is the biblical word for a gossip. It is the translation of the Hebrew noun nirgan which has as its root meaning, “to roll to pieces,” and is understood as a person who is a slanderer or talebearer. This is your gossip. They are someone whose commodity is never in truth but lies. Hence, they are rumormongers. Their expertise is in the spreading of false reports, which God categorically condemns (see Exod. 23:1). Moreover, they live upon scandal for their own selfish reasons, making it their malicious business to carry about tales to defame someone’s character. And their aim in this endeavor is manifold.

Matthew Henry (1662-1714) said of the gossip or talebearer, that they do this to stir up and divide the best of friends, sowing discord in families, churches, and societies. Yet what is most devastating in the wake of the gossip’s false report, is that it works itself deep in the memory of those who hear it. This is why Proverbs 26:22 says of the gossip’s words, that “they are like delicious morsels, they go down deep into the inner parts of the body.” As one writer said in this regard, “Although we may try not to be influenced by what we’ve heard, it’s hard to put it out of our minds.” Tragically, this is how gossip retains its power to divide and conquer. Adding further layers to this fact, Charles Bridges (1794-1869) wrote: “We may seem to make light of the tale brought to our ears, and wholly to despise it. But the subtle poison has worked. [We muse to ourselves], ‘Suppose it should be true. Perhaps, though it may be exaggerated, there may be some ground for it.’ The thought indulged only for a moment brings suspicion, distrust, coldness; and often it ends in the separation of chief friends.”

But how can we, as God’s people, overturn the potential wreckage that the gossip spreads by way of false reports? Philip Graham Ryken, in his exposition of Exodus 23:1, answered such a question in very practical terms. He writes: “By not listening to unfounded rumors in the first place. If someone tries to tell us something that is none of our business, we shouldn’t even listen. If it is our business, then we should go back to the people involved and make sure that we have the story straight. We should be careful not to believe everything we hear, especially from someone who is angry or has an ax to grind. We should also be careful not to repeat everything we hear. We should only say what we certainly know to be true. Even then, we should only say it if it is our place to say it, if it is said out of true love for others, and if it will advance God’s work in the world. If  our words are unable to pass these simple tests, it would be better for us not to say anything at all!”

 

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The Truth about Gossip

For the past four years I have been mulling over a matter which I have read about and discussed with others, but have never till this time written anything on the subject. By the title of this post, it’s not hard to figure out the subject I’m referring to: it’s that dirty little word called, “Gossip.” For me personally, this term and the concept it defines biblically has been an issue of critical importance – and this, for a few weighty reasons.

First of all, since gossip is such a common sin, in both the world and the church, we tend to forget how ungodly it really is. Second of all, while this sin is so common, yet it also suffers a terrible confusion as to what it really means. What exactly is gossip? This question alone has to be settled by what God’s Word reveals and not what we might think it is. I have actually witnessed a local church destroyed due to a gross confusion over gossip. In fact, next to the sin of censoriousness (see Matt. 7:1), the sin of gossip is perhaps the one sin so many are charged with who are not guilty by those who are in fact the real gossips themselves! Hence, we desperately need clarity pertaining to this sin. Third of all, since the seed of every sin resides in all our hearts, then as Christians we must watch ourselves with great care that we’re not ensnared by this sin. Indeed, let me be clear on this point: there’s no believer in Christ who is incapable of committing the sin of gossip. Though regenerated by the Holy Spirit with a new nature in spiritual union with Christ, yet every child of God preceding eternal glory is plagued every day with remaining sin (Rom. 6:12-13a; 7:14-25; Gal. 5:17). Therefore, we have to be on constant guard against the sin of gossip, as we would any other sin. So then, we need to seek to understand what this sin is and how we can combat it by the Word and the Spirit (Rom. 8:13).

To begin with, I believe clearing the confusion away would be a good place to start. In the first place then, the sin of gossip is not committed when we’re having casual conversation about other people who are not present. If this were gossip, imagine how quickly our conversations would be limited and even cease to exist. This is where we have to be realistic. We live in a world full of people we know personally, are acquainted with, or hear about from afar. It is not possible for all such people to be in our presence every time we may bring up something about them in a benign conversation. To restrict the meaning of gossip to such an maddening rule is in many respects denying both our humanity and the world wherein we live. Moreover, it is laying a burden on us all which none can carry and God’s Word itself does not warrant.

In the second place, the sin of gossip is not committed when we have to warn others of false teachers or divisive people who are not in our presence. We see this practice replete in God’s Word. For instance, how often did our Lord Himself warn His disciples in private of the scribes and Pharisees (see Matt. 15:12-13; 16:5-12)? Or what about the apostle Paul warning Timothy in a letter of men like Hymenaeus and Philetus or Alexander the coppersmith (2 Tim. 2:17-18; 4:14-15). And then, there is the apostle John who warned a local church in a letter of a man named Diotrephes, “who likes to put himself first, [and] does not acknowledge our authority” (3 John 9). What these examples prove clearly is that calling people out by name and warning others of their doctrine or conduct which is destructive cannot be classified as the sin of gossip – even if such persons are not present while the warnings are expressed.

In the third place, the sin of gossip is not committed when in the process of church discipline you have to involve other church members (or the church as a whole) to charges of sin against another fellow member. This point is crucial. Christians who misunderstand gossip as reporting anything negative about another person cannot carry out the plain instructions and imperatives of corrective church discipline as taught by Christ (see Matt. 18:15-17). Yet sadly, this is why in many respects there is no church discipline practiced in a local church! Christians misinterpret the command of Ephesians 4:29, “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouth, but only such as is good for building up,” to mean that we can only say “positive things” about others – thus, overlooking to the point of ignoring if not denying the sins of those who are grieving the Spirit and destroying the church! This is a tragedy on so many levels. But a large cause of this tragedy is a warped and distorted idea about gossip. It’s that twisted idea that says, “If you don’t have anything nice to say about someone then don’t say anything at all.” I have heard this axiom all my life – and have heard it coming largely from well-meaning Christians. However, as right and good as it sounds, it is a secular adage. There’s nothing Christian about it! It flies in the face of how God has revealed the necessity for sin to be confronted, challenged and corrected in the church. And to do this God’s way, you have to address people in their sin and even warn others about their sin (if unrepented!), whether they’re present or not.

It should be obvious by these three clarifications as to what gossip is not, that I have emphasized as a recurring motif this point regarding the actual physical presence of the person under discussion. The reason for my emphasis here is because I saw personally the majority of a local church come under the delusion that if someone is not physically present, then they cannot be brought up in a conversation. What made this fallacy however so destructive and even insidious, is that it was spawned by a church elder as some bizarre policing tactic to bind the conscience and tongues of church members from committing what he wrongly believed was “gossip.” And despite how I and other pastors stepped in to override this ill-founded concept, the damage had been already done. To this very day, the members who left this church are still carried away by this bogus idea that “gossip” is when you say anything about another person in the absence of their presence – especially if their sins are reported!

Well, what then is gossip? Since gossip is a sin, then what makes it a sin? Gossip, as defined by God’s Word, is talking about other people laced with fabrications, hearsay, conjecture, and innuendo with the sole intent on ruining their reputation. Gossip as a sin stands in direct violation of Exodus 20:16, “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.” The immediate context of this commandment is in a court of law – having to do with the legal testimony a witness gives in a public trial before a jury. What the Lord therefore is obviously prohibiting and thereby condemning here is a lying witness. But what we should see at the heart of this commandment, is what God says is the worst kind of lying: it is charging an innocent man of a crime he didn’t commit, which in turn, will work to destroy his public reputation. When this is carried out in speech it is called “slander.” When it is put in print it is called “libel.” Either way, as one writer put it so solemnly, “the victims of gossip never to get to defend themselves. They never have a chance to explain their circumstances, clarify their motives, or correct the misconceptions people have about them. Instead they are charged, tried, and convicted in the court of private opinion.” And sadly, in the wake of a gossip tsunami (if you will), Martin Luther (1483-1546) said,”Reputation is something quickly stolen, but not quickly returned.”

To gossip then, is to bear a false witness against another person. It is to tell tales about what someone said or did but always in a report that is never the whole story. And it’ll never be the whole story, otherwise the complete and collected facts will undermine the wicked intent of the one gossiping – which is to annihilate the person’s reputation. This is why before we open our own mouths and begin to speak about anyone, we need to ask some hard questions: Is what I am about to say true? Is it the whole truth? Am I dealing with facts or is this hearsay or conjecture? Will what I say impugn anything evil to this person’s motive, which I cannot see but God? If what I am about to report is true and not impugning any evil to this person’s motive, then how necessary is it for the other person to hear this? Will what I am reporting sow discord against this person? Will what I am reporting stand under careful scrutiny and investigation – in short, can my report be proven?

These kind of questions should cause any of us as God’s people to be slow to speak on the one hand; and ponder carefully what we’re considering to say, on the other hand (see Prov. 10:19; 15:28; James 1:19). Moreover, it should also cause us to be careful when we do hear about others as it pertains to things they have allegedly said or done which threatens their credibility. Proverbs 18:13 and verse 17 are always a helpful guide in this matter: “If anyone gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame,” and then, “The one who states his case first seems right, until the other comes and examines him.” What both of these proverbs teach us is that before we go making conclusions and rushing to judgment, we need to pause and consider first what we’re being told and seek to find out if this is the whole story. One critical question we should ask in this regard is whether the credibility of the person reporting this can be trusted. A definite “no,no” would be to trust anonymous letters or emails! Documents of this sort can never be trusted since the person who wrote it cannot be questioned as to the trustworthiness of their report. Considering the source then is a huge factor to whatever we hear.

Needless to say, gossip is an horrific sin which works to destroy peoples lives and ruin their credibility. It is a sin which works against the love of both neighbor and brethren – stealing one of our most precious treasures: a good name that is to be chosen rather than great riches (see Prov. 22:1). May God sanctify us all to be more careful in both our speech and hearing.

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Briers, Thorns, and Scorpions

For close to thirty years I have labored in the ministry of teaching and preaching the Word of God. I have carried this out both as an itinerant evangelist and (for the past twenty years) as a pastor. This divine calling and stewardship has been an unspeakable joy and privilege. To know, as I stand each week before God’s people, that what I have been set apart to deliver via exposition are the sacred, infallible scriptures of the living eternal God – is both staggering and overwhelming, to say the least. In the truest sense of the word – it is awesome. There is nothing therefore I can think of more amazing, formidable, and stunning than to open up God’s Word and proclaim “the unsearchable riches of Christ” (Eph. 3:8).

But as much of an honor and weightiness as I genuinely feel in setting God’s Word before others, this is not exactly the same reception which people have when they hear it. In fact, what I have found to be the general case as to how the preaching of God’s Word is received, at least in my experience, – is that it is by and large, “out of season” (2 Tim. 4:2). By this terminology, the preached Word of God is unwelcome. It’s not what the majority desires to hear – that is, the majority within the visible church. To the world of course, God’s Word is foolishness. The message of the cross is nonsense (1 Cor. 1:18). But should not those within the church have an entirely different response? You would think so. But sadly, this has never really been the case throughout redemptive history. There only seems to be a remnant who desire and crave after the Word of God. And in some instances, there’s not even a remnant.

This was certainly the circumstance faced by the prophet Ezekiel. When God called Ezekiel to declare “Thus says the Lord” to Israel, He prepared His prophet for the worst. “I send you to the people of Israel, to nations of rebels, who have rebelled against me” (Ezek. 2:3). This did not sound like a promising ministry. It certainly would not fit the “glory-story” ministry which so many of today’s pastors seem to covet after – that whatever they teach or preach it is received as gold by the hearers. This ideal ministry couches them in a celebrity status among their congregants combined with thousands of admirers on Facebook. There’s no dislikes nor blocking to whatever they say. But this would not be Ezekiel’s experience. In fact, the Lord sobered His prophet with even more dreaded news, that these people he would preach to were “impudent and stubborn” (Ezek. 2:4), likened to “briers…thorns…[and] scorpions” (Ezek. 2:6). Let’s think about these descriptions of Ezekiel’s hearers. They would give God’s man no respect despite the fact that he was a man of God. They would show an utter dogged iron-will in opposition to what God’s prophet was proclaiming. And to Ezekiel personally, they would give to him no comfort but only pain.

However, in the face of this, God commands His prophet: “Be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house. And you shall speak my words to them, whether they hear or refuse to hear, for they are a rebellious house” (Ezek. 2:6). The essence of this divine call is that God’s man must preach God’s Word because He has commanded His Word to be preached, period. Ezekiel was not to gauge what he said by the reaction of the people. Whether they listened or not wasn’t the point of his ministry. His call was to obey God not to get results. And what this says to every minister of God’s Word is that faithfulness and fortitude, under God’s grace, must carry the day in all their labors to remain steadfast in preaching and teaching. The man of God cannot buckle under the opposition of his hearers. He cannot let the fear of man ensnare him to tickle the people’s ears, in order to keep them warming the pews. No, what matters most for God’s man is what God has called him to say wherever he is sent – to few or many, to rich or poor – because God’s man will answer only to God for what he has said and done in obedience to God’s call (see 1 Cor. 3:6-15). So then, if we minister among “briers, thorns, and scorpions,” so be it. What people say about us or attempt to do to us because we give them God’s Word, they will answer for it. As for us, it is only God’s command that determines what we do. As John Calvin (1509-1564) once mused: “We must learn, therefore, when God calls us to the office of teaching, not to regard the conduct of mankind. For if it please God to exercise us while we strive with the rebellious and refractory, yet God’s word must be uttered, because he commands it.”

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Non-resident Church Members?

There’s no such thing as a “non-resident” church member. Despite the fact that this is an actual category recognized among churches (most notably Southern Baptist churches), the very concept is in direct contradiction to what the Word of God identifies as a legitimate member of Christ’s church.

When one is described as a non-resident church member they are typically classed as someone who has made a public profession of faith in Christ, received baptism, and has joined a local church – yet, for whatever reason, they are completely absent from the fellowship and service of the church they have joined. However, in spite of their disappearance, they are still considered members in “good standing” of that local church. In fact, their credibility as church members is especially seen when they just happen to reappear to vote the latest pastor out of the church!

But when we turn to God’s Word, the characteristics and conduct of a genuine member of Christ’s church is anything but the “non-resident” type. First of all, there is nothing superficial about the salvation they have received. They were chosen from eternity by God for salvation (Ephesians 1:4; 2 Thessalonians 1:4), given to Christ for redemption (John 6:37; Ephesians 1:7; Titus 3:14), and regenerated by the Holy Spirit unto a new life (John 3:3-8; Titus 3:5). They have also been taken out of Adam and placed into Christ (Romans 5:19), being liberated from the power of sin (Romans 6:1-14). Further, their faith in Christ is a gift from God who authors and preserves their trust in Christ (Ephesians 2:8; Hebrews 12:2). And they have become a part of Christ’s living body, the church, and thus joined eternally to all of God’s redeemed people (1 Corinthians 12:12-13; Revelation 7:9).

Second of all, there is an evident change in who and what they are. They are called “a new creation,” a “new self,” and “light in the Lord” (2 Corinthians 5:17; Ephesians 4:24; 5:8). The fruit of this transformation is seen in the growth, process and progress called “sanctification” (Romans 6:19, 22). The manifestation of this inner divine work is a manner of life that is being conformed to the image of Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18). Hence, there will be humility, love, patience, gentleness, kindness, faithfulness, joy, forgiveness, and self-control – which are all Godward virtues exercised for the sole purpose of glorifying God (Galatians 5:22-23; Ephesians 4:17-5:8; Colossians 3:12-17; cf. 1 Corinthians 10:31). Moreover, there is seen in them a growing hatred for personal sin that is carried out in the daily work of killing sin by the Spirit (Romans 7:14-25; 8:13). And finally, this transformation is also evidenced by an intentional witness to bear to others the glory of Christ in the saving message of His gospel (Acts 5:42; Romans 10:15).

Lastly, they desire the fellowship of other believers and seek that fellowship in the formal gathered community of a local church (see Acts 2:41-47). This means that they place themselves under the teaching of the Scriptures (Acts 2:42)  and thus under the discipleship of a faithful pastoral ministry (Ephesians 4:12-13). They also strive to build up other believers by bearing their burdens, exhorting them to holiness, praying for them, worshiping with them, and stirring them up to love and good works (Ephesians 4:16; 6:18; Galatians 6:1-2; Hebrews 3:12-14; 10:24-25; Colossians 3:16).

Are there really non-resident church members then, in light of what Scripture says? No. The truth is, if someone claims to be a Christian yet refuses to be committed in covenant with a local church – their entire claim is biblically called into question (1 John 2:19; 3:14). So, what should we look for in someone who joins a church? More than a mere decision, but a life transformed by grace.

 

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“Let them to do this with joy…”

In a recent statistic, it was reported that 16,000 pastors leave the ministry every year. The cause for their departure varies from minister to minister. But overall, the number one reason has been discouragement. 

Now to the man and woman sitting in the church pew, this may seem like an absurd reason to leave the ministry. In fact, I can hear many church people thinking to themselves, “What could pastors possibly be discouraged about? Why they must have the easiest vocation there is: they work primarily from home (which, of course, allows them to see their own family throughout the day); their main responsibility is to preach every week (and how difficult could that be – just prepare something to talk about); they don’t have to punch a clock and answer to an employer who is always looking over their shoulder; and above all, they have more free time than anyone I know, to come and go as they please. So, what could be discouraging about a job like that?!”

Well, to any church member who reduces the work of pastoring to such a superficial, shallow, and non-spiritual vocation, as has been just described – they are naive at best and a block-head at worst. Sadly though, the aforementioned description of pastoring is how many people in the church judge the ministry to be. Pastoring the church to them, is nothing but a “cakewalk.” In fact, there are church members who actually scorn pastoring as not even measuring up to real work. Thus, to hear that 16,000 pastors are leaving the ministry every year, due largely to discouragement – causes great perplexity for many people in the church.

But their perplexity is rooted in an ignorance of what the real work of pastoring the church calls for by God’s own mandate. God commands His under-shepherds to “shepherd the flock of God which is among you, exercising oversight” (1 Peter 5:2). When this work is carried out with faithful earnest, it places the pastor in a vulnerable position where they are open to the most severe attacks of discouragement, and even depression. But why is this?

Charles Spurgeon (1834-1892) once spoke to this very issue as a part of his Friday afternoon lectures he deliberated to his ministerial students at his Pastors’ College. He titled this particular lecture, “The Minister’s Fainting Fits.” And in the course of this message, he addressed the question as to why pastors would succumb to discouragement and depression. Among a host of answers he gave, one of his responses truly nailed what is at the root of pastoral work, and how the nature of this work plays right into grave discouragement. Spurgeon observed:

“Who can bear the weight of souls without sometimes sinking to the dust? Passionate longings after men’s conversion, if not fully satisfied (and when are they?), consume the soul with anxiety and disappointment. To see the hopeful turn aside, the godly grow cold, professors abusing their privileges, and sinners waxing more bold in sin – are not these sight enough to crush us to the earth? The kingdom comes not as we would, the reverend name is not hallowed as we desire, and for this we must weep. How can we be otherwise than sorrowful, while men believe not our report, and the divine arm is not revealed? All mental work tends to weary and depress, for much study is weariness of the flesh; but ours is more than mental work – it is HEART WORK, the labor of our inmost soul. How often, on the Lord’s day evenings, do we feel as if life were completely washed out of us! After pouring out our souls over our congregations, we feel like empty earthen pitchers which a child might break.”

As Spurgeon rightly put it: the work of pastoring is more than “mental work,” it is heart work. It is the pastor’s own heart spending and being spent to exhaustion, as he gives himself fully to the Lord’s call and to the Lord’s people. Moreover, it is heart work from the standpoint of where the pastor is actually ministering to the church. He is working to reach their soul – nourishing them in the faith, building them up in Christ, and doing all he can, by what God has given him to help the church grow and mature as faithful followers of Christ.

Mark it down: there is nothing easy about this kind of work. For not only do pastors have to work on the spiritual state of their own hearts – both as a Christian and an overseer of the church – but they also have to be much at work on the hearts of God’s people. And this is where the work of pastoring becomes most discouraging and depressing. Consider again the words of Charles Spurgeon on this point:

“One crushing stroke has sometimes laid the minister very low. The brother most relied upon becomes a traitor. Judas lifts up his heel against the man who trusted him, and the preacher’s heart for the moment fails him. We are all too apt to look to an arm of the flesh, and from that propensity many of our sorrows arise. Equally overwhelming is the blow when an honored and beloved member yields to temptation, and disgraces the holy name with which he was named. Anything is better than this. This makes the preacher long for a lodge in some vast wilderness, where he may hide his head for ever, and hear no more the blasphemous jeers of the ungodly. Ten years of toil do not take so much life out of us as we lose in a few hours by the traitor or the apostate…The trials of a true minister are not few, and such as are caused by ungrateful professors are harder to bear than the coarsest attacks of avowed enemies. Let no man who looks for ease of mind and seeks the quietude of life in the ministry; if he does so, he will flee from it in disgust.”

In light of these very pointed words by Spurgeon, I hope in some way it’s clear why pastors can be discouraged and depressed – and tragically, would even succumb to leave the ministry altogether. But of course, the pressing question we must raise is this: How can pastors overcome such discouragements that would bring them to leave the ministry?

Spurgeon’s answer to this question focused on what the pastor could do – and his counsel was very wise. For instance, he said the pastor should not be “dismayed by soul-trouble.” He also exhorted his fellow ministers to put no trust in frames or feelings. Care more for a grain of faith than a ton of excitement. Trust in God alone, and lean not on the needs of human help. Moreover, he said, be not surprised when friends fail you: it is a failing world.

This is all good counsel to be sure. Yet, as mentioned, it is counsel restricted to how the pastor himself can minister to his own soul. But would it surprise you to know that the church body itself can take a direct role in the encouragement of their pastor to stay the course in faithfully shepherding the flock of God? The assembled congregation of God’s people have a divine mandate from God’s Word to hearten the man of God who labors to shepherd them. This mandate is in Hebrews 13:17. In this passage, it is revealed that a pastor’s summary labor is described as “keeping watch for your souls, as those who will have to give an account.” By “watching for your souls”, a pastor watches for dangerous doctrine and false teachings outside the church; he keeps alert for deceitful and divisive behavior within the church; and he stays attentive to the church’s spiritual development (cf. Acts 20:28-31; 3 John 9-10; Titus 3:10-11; 2 Timothy 4:1-2; Ephesians 4:11-12).

But how must the church respond to such spiritual “watching” like this, which the pastor conducts as a matter of good for their souls? Hebrews 13:17 answers this question with this imperative: “Let them do this with joy and not with groaning…” Here’s where the church member has a direct responsibility in the encouragement of his pastor. As the pastor is faithfully keeping watch for the souls of his congregants, they in turn respond by letting their pastor lead with joy in this stewardship. And the joy springs from the church obeying and submitting to the leadership God has entrusted to His under-shepherds in the work of the ministry. This is how Hebrews 13:17 puts it in the whole:

“Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.”

So, connecting the dots here – it is only when the church is obedient and submissive to the watchcare which the pastors are giving them for Christ’s sake, that the pastors are then enabled to shepherd with joy verses discouragement. What every local church must take into account from Hebrews 13:17, is that if they fail to let their pastors lead with joy due to either their own rebellion or apathy to his watchcare, they will in turn be the ones who suffer most. As this passage warns in its closing words: “…for that would be of no advantage to you.” The term “no advantage” means “harmful.” It would be harmful to the church to be the cause of their pastors’ grief in his work. Fanning out this consequence, A.W. Pink (1886-1952) observed:

“For the members of a church to so conduct themselves as to be a constant source of grief unto their minister is to despise their own mercies. It not only prevents their receiving his instruction into their hearts, which results in their spiritual barrenness, but it also saps his vigor, quenches his zeal, causing him to proceed with a heavy heart instead of with cheerfulness. What is still more solemn and serious, the Lord Himself is highly displeased, and the tokens of His favor are withdrawn, for He is very sensitive of the mistreatment of His stewards.” 

One of the great biblical principles we need to take away from this is that Christ does not exercise His rule over the church directly but by mediation (John 13:20). Specifically, the Lord rules His church through those men He has gifted and given to the church for that purpose – namely, the pastors or elders (1 Timothy 5:17). Therefore, the church advances in spiritual blessing through the faithful leadership of its pastors (Ephesians 4:11-13). Hence, when the church obeys and submits to the watchcare of Christ’s under-shepherds, then believers can expect great spiritual blessing. This is because as they are liberating their pastors to lead with joy, they are at the same time receiving joy by the work God has enabled His under-shepherds to carry out in behalf of His people. Or as John MacArthur put it: “You will never find a truly happy pastor apart from a happy congregation, or a happy congregation apart from a happy pastor.” 

So then, according to Hebrews 13:17, the church is responsible to encourage their pastors to lead with joy, only, as they obey and submit to the watchcare which any faithful pastor will give. When such a relationship like this is working and developing within a church, then that congregation will be greatly blessed with spiritual vigor, health, and maturity.