Beware the Wolves
Recently, my Facebook feed has included several pastors and friends who have linked to an article by Alexander Lang, “Departure: Why I Left the Church.” Many have added something about how this article is worth reading, food for thought, or how their heart goes out to this pastor. A quick scan of the comments to these posts reveals much the same thing: there is a great deal of empathy for this pastor and pastors in general. However, some responses attack the local church as if it is solely to blame.
So, I thought I should read the article for myself. As I read the article, I wondered why this pastor would face such opposition from his congregation. Was the church at fault, as this article stated? Was the church unwilling to be led, and was it actually guilty of a “fixed mindset,” as the pastor said? Was the church’s people happy with the status quo, unwilling to be led, or was something else going on there?
I understand and empathize with the desire to support pastors. My dad was a pastor. My brother is a full-time pastor. I have extended family who have served or currently serve as pastors. I serve as a lay elder (unpaid, non-staff pastor) at my local church. Many of my closest friends are pastors or have served as pastors. We ought to do what we can in our local churches to support pastors who support the gospel of Jesus Christ. We must pray for our pastors who protect God’s flock from false teachers. We need to come alongside our pastors to work with them in discipling others by passing on the faith, that is the content of the gospel that the Lord has entrusted to his people (Jude 3).
What we do not need to do as churches and as individual Christians is to support pastors indiscriminately. Some pastors are not worthy of our support. In an article on “8 Reasons Pastors Get Fired,” Chuck Lawless notes some valid reasons not to support a pastor or even to fire a pastor from a church. I highlight two from the article. First, some pastors fail morally. At least for a season, this person has disqualified themselves from pastoral ministry. That does not mean that restoration is out of the question. If the pastor who failed morally is repentant, has submitted themselves to godly counsel, and has given themselves and their family time to heal, I believe that biblically, there is room for them to pastor again. Second, some pastors mismanage the church’s funds. This may be embezzlement or simply being a poor steward of the church’s finances. In some cases, although not in every case, such misuse of church finances may justify a pastor’s termination.
There are other reasons, and one in particular that I was surprised did not make Dr. Lawless’ list. A pastor who is a proponent of false teaching ought to be resisted and fired. (Some pastors may be unaware of teaching false doctrine. Once confronted and made aware of their error, they repent. This pastor, in most cases, probably should not be fired.) Jesus calls his disciples to “beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves” (Matthew 7:15). Not everyone who claims the name of Christ is of Christ. Some pastors care little for Jesus’ sheep entrusted to their care. And how is a church to know if their pastor is propagating false doctrine? They are to test the pastor’s fruit, to inspect their life to see if it is consistent with the truths of Scripture, including godly Christlike living (Matthew 7:16, 20).
Second, churches are to not only inspect a pastor’s behavior and way of life but also to examine their teaching. Christians are to “test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1). There are pastors who are false teachers, false prophets. John expected this, and we should too. The apostle Paul, also speaking to how the church can and should guard itself against false teaching writes, “If anyone teaches a different doctrine and does not agree with the sound words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the teaching that accords with godliness, he is puffed up with conceit and understands nothing” (1 Timothy 6:3–4). Church members need to know well what the Word of God says. They need to regularly study God’s Word so they can detect false teaching, confront it and those who support it, and, when necessary, expel it from the church for the good and health of the body of Christ.
Some in the church today may make light of false teaching. ‘After all,’ they may say, ‘we’re talking about merely differing opinions. There are various interpretations of passages of Scripture; who am I to say who is correct and who is incorrect?’ This sentiment does not take false teaching as seriously as the Bible does. In Galatians 1:8–9, the apostle Paul writes, “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.” Notice how Paul repeats himself in these verses. He wishes to drive home that false gospels and teachers should not be taken lightly.
So, back to our earlier questions. Was Mr. Lang’s church in the wrong? Maybe. We would need to know more about the church. But is it also possible that Mr. Lang was in the wrong? Could the church have had good biblical reasons to resist his leadership? Before answering, I would encourage you to acquaint yourself with some of Mr. Lang’s thoughts on his blog, Restortativefaith.org. Perhaps start with his article “A New Take on Virgin Birth” or his “About” or “FAQ” pages. You may find that this church was justified in resisting Mr. Lang’s leadership and is far better off now since he is no longer its pastor.
keithmarriner 