A word to pastors…on the high calling of leading worship

Recently, I was in a gospel conversation with a woman in my city. She was cordial and I extended an invitation to an upcoming event at our church…and then proceeded to ask her about her religious background. She confidently shared with me that she was a committed Jehovah’s Witness. I went on to ask her if this was a faith she was introduced to as a child or if she had embraced it later in life. Her response should be convicting and illuminating for all who lead worship in the local church.

She said that she was raised in the Baptist church. As a child she attended regularly and was frequent even into her adult years, but something was missing. She described her church experience as one of emotionalism. “We would sing a lot…and there was always a lot of shouting,” she explained. But I had questions. In her evaluation, the church of her childhood failed to equip her with answers for life.

At a point in her journey, she began to wrestle with purpose and meaning. Then came the questions around death. She asked her grandmother, a fixture in the church, about these things who simply told her that dying was our purpose and then we go to be with Jesus. That’s it. The answers failed to satisfy and the question marks in her mind made her a willing listener for anyone with a coherent explanation. Then she was introduced to the Jehovah’s Witnesses. These nice evangelists gave her answers that made sense, were logical, seemed plausible and even made her feel better. The woman began to study her new found religion and became versed in its tenets and fairly adept (if I may say so) in telling her story in a winsome way.

As I probed further, I found that she has had numerous encounters with Christians, mainly Baptists, whom she always talked with but with little more success at discovering answers to life’s questions. I went on to present the gospel but this woman was not remotely interested. Of course, I left a wide door for future conversations, but left the encounter frustrated. Here’s why:

Christians have the market cornered on life’s purpose, on answers about things like death, suffering, and the afterlife. In fact, no non-Christian source can speak holistically and authoritatively about these things. Here is a woman who was in a church from childhood and was not properly equipped to think rightly about them. Instead, her church, and specifically the pastor as lead worshipper, substituted clichés and emotional appeals, dancing and shouting… for the pure Word of God. Now some may push back on this and tell me that only the Holy Spirit gives understanding. Forgive my direct response: That is a cop out. Yes, the Holy Spirit DOES give understanding; however, the pastor is required to set the table, make the food palatable, and insure there is a balanced diet for consumption. Some may argue that the human instrument (the preacher) is insignificant, to which I would ask, “Why then must an overseer (pastor) be able to teach?” (1 Timothy 3:2).

As pastors, we have incredible influence among our flock. They trust us to feed them. If we serve up a steady diet of cotton candy, they’ll know no different. If we teach on some cerebral level that fails to connect with the heart, they will simply not care. But if we do our job…then we will be able to stand and give an account for our ministries. So, what must we do? I would suggest five things. I’ll only mention them for sake of time, but may expand in a follow-up article.

1. Make the Word a priority. Study it diligently and present it clearly.
2. Measure often. If you think you’re doing a faithful work but your people cannot articulate and apply basic doctrines, you’re not fulfilling the task.
3. Teach doctrine. As a professor once said to a group of preachers, “Preaching doctrine is not a sin. Being dull and boring is a sin. Teach doctrine but don’t be boring.”
4. Demonstrate dependence on the Scriptures. If you’re citing the latest book on the best seller’s list or never stray far from Calvin’s Institutes, you’re doing it wrong. If John Calvin himself discovered you were citing him more than the apostles, the prophets or the Lord Himself, he’d flog you.
5. Own it. A shepherd knows well the condition of his flock. They are a reflection of your leadership, your investment, and your teaching. If they get bored unless there’s dancing parades or purple flags waving, then you’ve taught them to love the wrong things. If this persists across generational lines, you’ve made the devil’s job easy.

Now I am a pastor. I am not mad at anyone. I love pastors and respect the calling. I know of the many draws on a pastor’s calendar and the multiplied agendas seeking “just a quick minute” on Sunday morning during the service. You must guard that time, minimize the distractions and expose the people to the self-revelation of God through His Word.

I wonder, had the pastors in the case of the woman I spoke with done differently…had they equipped the people with the Word…would she have defected to a false religion and become an evangelist for the Jehovah’s Witnesses? May that not be true of us and may we be able to say before the throne of God, “I am innocent of the blood of all men for I did not shrink back from declaring to you the whole counsel of Scripture.”