How many times have you heard someone say, "Be faithful Christian and trust God with the results." "The Lord will provide (per 1 Cor. 4:2, and Genesis 22:14)?" Or, "Trust and obey, for there's no other way, to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey." The longer I have been a disciple of Jesus the more this maxim has been tested and the more God has shown Himself to be Faithful and True.
As we began to see last time these simple principles however are not always quite so easy to live out. In my opening article I recounted father Abraham's extreme test of faith (Genesis 22:1-18).
The painting above is a powerful reminder of how God generally works. It is often not until the 'last moment' that the Lord chooses to rescue His people from the miry pit. God often "tests" His elect to prove and improve their faith (Job 1:1-21). King Jesus does this very thing with His beloved disciples in John 6. In Abraham's case it was not until the Patriarch "passed" his extreme test of faith that the Lord provided a glorious substitute.
Many years ago after some very challenging months of church revitalization the temptation to compromise reached a pinnacle for our leadership team. Influential and well-to-do members began withholding tithe checks in effort to put the squeeze on. Others would come to "their Sunday School class" and then meet outside in the parking lot for second service. Still others would attend the music portion of the worship service and then walk out of the sanctuary as I walked up the platform steps to preach. Anonymous letters were mailed to the church. One disgruntled member included a photograph from one of the liberal churches in town. The church sign read, "We accept everyone here (hint, hint)." Another infamous note stated that our pastor is "going around like a lion seeking to devour his own." Still others accused the deacons of being "spineless jellyfish." Some of this hostility was in response to the private confrontation (Matt. 18:15-17; 1 Cor. 5; James 5:20; Jude 22-23) of unrepentant church members. When confronted in love many wayward members sought refuge among friends and family. Family members and close church friends often rallied around these "abused" sheep. "You will have to go through us in order to reach so and so." Along the way the deacons and the pastoral staff often felt like Paul in Galatians 4:16 who asked, "Have I become your enemy by telling you the truth?" Now if you think this experience is unique (its not) consider this exceptional series of articles by "Mortification of Spin" host Todd Pruett on "Battered Leaders and Toxic Followers." In my opinion, during certain seasons of ministry shepherding should come with a warning label. Suffice it say, is it any wonder why so many churches have a shortage of lay elders and lay deacons who are willing to step up and serve?
The final effort to thwart our "set in order what remains" revitilization work was made when a some disgruntled members asked our lay leaders to remove the pastoral leadership of the church (let's hit the reset button again). After examining the indictments against the evidence the lay leadership went to Scripture and determined that the pastoral staff was not guilty of X, Y, and Z. In fact, they supported the new depth and direction of the church. A significant amount of time was invested along the way trying to reason with people and to bring in other sheep who had been influenced by the pointed accusations raised against the entire leadership team. We often explained, "This is what so and so is doing, this is what God's Word says about this, and here is how the Lord our God would have us respond." "The reason why we are getting involved in any of this is because we desire God's very best for so and so (not because we lack love and mercy)."
After much blood, sweat, and tears a pocket of disgruntled members decided to leave (many with guns a blazing). As this trial ran its course our weekly attendance dropped and our weekly giving went into further decline. It is often during difficult times that one's biblical convictions are truly forged. Were we willing to suffer financially, numerically, and personally for the sake of the truth (1 Timothy 3:15; Jude 3-4)? Will I trust the Lord even when doing so makes no earthly sense at all (Matthew 14:28-30)? Is the Master's approbation worth more to the me than the approval of man? Is pastoring a healthy church still the chief objective of my ministry (Colossians 1:28-29; Ephesians 4:11-16)?
It was during this Test of Faith that the Lord provided the Supernatural Blessings of Faith (see Abraham's blessings in Genesis 22:11-19). In an awesome display of Divine Providence a person in our community died suddenly and unexpectedly during the height of this ordeal. Most people (myself included) had absolutely no idea that this individual had any money to his name. We also did not realize that he put First Baptist Church in his will. Suffice it to say, it was during this very trying season of ministry that God displayed His awesome provision for First Baptist Church. Those of us with spiritual eyes to see could only sit back and say, "Jehovah Jireh: The Lord Will Provide. In the mount of the Lord it will be provided." In time we found out that our ministry would eventually inherit a large farm and various assets. Over the past many years this gift from Above has helped us cover essential ministry expenses (maintenance expenditures, missionary support, etc).
How can our eyes not well up with tears when we sing, Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing especially when singing this glorious verse of exalted praise?
Here I raise my Ebenezer;
Here by Thy great help I’ve come;
And I hope, by Thy good pleasure,
Safely to arrive at home!
