Whose Church?
This is an article I wrote for our ministry paper many years ago. It is still very relevant today.
1 Corinthians 1:12 Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ.
In the first chapter of 1 Corinthians, Paul accuses the Corinthian congregation of having clicks between members because they gave allegiance to one man over another. Some were of Paul, others were of Apollos, etc. Notice that the Lord Himself was just a man in the list of men they followed. In this age of big names and big churches, I want to use this text to deal with an increasing problem in fundamentalism today.
While it is true that God works through a man He calls to do a work, God does not call men to steal His glory. The independent Baptist movement abounds with ministries built around men and “their” churches, instead of Christ and His church. I believe this is very similar to what Paul was rebuking the Corinthians about. Permit me to illustrate by personal testimony. This is the most extreme case of my Christian experience that happened over 30 years ago, and I certainly hope it is as rare in our ranks as it is extreme.
A man in our church informed me that a certain famous Baptist preacher was to be in the area. We decided to go and see this preacher. I had never met him, but always wanted to. I was excited to say the least, as I had great respect for this man of God. When we arrived at the church, parking was very tight as was expected. What I did not expect though, were the ladies standing at the entrance to the church instructing every person to pin a small, round button on their clothing in a prominent location before entering the sanctuary. One might ask what was on the button. Just a photo of the famous preacher and I think the words “the apple of my eye.” I thought it was kind of funny; a joke of sorts. I had no idea they were very serious!
Once inside and seated, I began to look around and take in all the sights. The church could probably seat 500 easily. The sanctuary had been decorated with what appeared to be banners of quotations from this famous preacher. I really did not mind that because I have always enjoyed jotting down quotes from God’s men. The only banner that bothered me was the one in the middle of the right side wall that read, “The Master Teacher Has Arrived!” Buttons, banners, and borrowed titles? I was beginning to feel a bit uneasy. But then, I had never been this close to such a man of God before. When the preacher and the pastor of the church finally entered the sanctuary, after the song service, the pastor took the time to recognize visiting preachers and other common practices at meetings like this. I followed my turn standing, and giving my name, church, and town where I was a pastor. Soon after, the man of God mounted the pulpit to a standing ovation. I watched as he took in all the decorations and received the warm welcome. It looked a lot like a political rally with all those buttons. He smiled as they clapped their hands from one side of the packed church to the other. I was particularly expecting him to correct the offensive banner that bothered me, but he did not. He allowed it to remain and said nothing to make us believe it was not so. His text escapes me now, but it did not really matter. His sermon was more akin to a testimony than a discourse from the Book. Of course, that is his prerogative if he felt that is what God wanted. After the service ended, all hope of getting to the platform to shake this man of God’s hand was gone. In fact, I could hardly see him at all. The Bible signing phase of his visit had begun.
That was the one and only time I ever saw this preacher. He is now in heaven. If I mentioned his name every reader would know of him. I would have loved to had the chance to speak to him, and I am sorry I did not. I left rather disappointed in the whole experience, probably because I went expecting to see more than a man. Even though the church considered him “The Master Teacher,” I too was guilty of elevating a man of God higher than what is proper. I must confess, I never saw it done to that degree, nor have I seen it’s equal since.
That was a long testimony, but it perfectly illustrates a problem we have in this Laodicean age of the Church. There are too many Christians following too many men, and not Christ. If I saw my wife with that kind of button of another man on her dress, with those words inscribed on it, I would be upset. Can we imagine how Jesus Christ felt when His bride did that to this preacher? The worst thing about it is the fact that the preacher allowed them to do it without correcting them like Peter did in Acts chapter 10 when he received more honor than what was due a man.
Acts 10:25 And as Peter was coming in, Cornelius met him, and fell down at his feet, and worshipped him.
Acts 10:26 But Peter took him up, saying, Stand up; I myself also am a man.
Would you believe I have actually seen Acts 10:25 in a church service? I have seen Christians pray, holding the feet of their pastor, and their pastor allowing them to do it. Instead of correcting them as Peter did, the pastor justified it to the skeptical in the congregation as being the proper thing to do. It is real easy to condemn the Catholics for kissing the ring of the Pope, but why do preachers allow Baptists to elevate them above what they should be? What did Paul say to the Corinthians?
1 Corinthians 3:4 For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?
1 Corinthians 3:5 Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers by whom ye believed, even as the Lord gave to every man?
If any preacher could have claimed the right to be elevated, Paul could have. But instead, he called himself a minister. This problem of elevating preachers is so bad today, we have moved to the level of identifying the Christians by the name of the preacher. Instead of Christians, some would rather be called by their pastors name. Perhaps the reader is thinking of some “ites” right now? Because of the fear of being labeled a certain kind of Christian follower, I would not mention to you who baptized me after I got saved. He is a famous preacher with a loyal, almost cultist following. He too is now in heaven. I think it is time to give the Lord Jesus Christ back His Church. We have pushed him outside the doors and replaced the head of the Church with men of God that are worshiped more than respected, adored more than honored, and idolized more than followed. I am sure there are many Christians that would fight to defend their pastor quicker than they would their Savior. They will not let anybody speak evil of their preacher, but they will let the name of Christ be taken in vain around them all day at work without saying a word. These things ought not so to be, brethren. God has ordained preachers to feed the flock, take the oversight of it, and protect it until the great Shepherd of the sheep returns (1 Peter 5:2; Hebrews 13:20). But there is a bunch of lording over God’s heritage today that needs to be dealt with (1 Peter 5:3).
What is the ultimate end of all this man-worship? When the “Great One” dies, his ministry usually does one of two things. It will either fizzle to nothing because it was built around him and not Christ, or else somebody will create an association, or name a periodical after him, or establish an organization around the personality, and then milk it for all his name and memory are worth. I think it is a sad commentary on our Christianity that these things are true. The blame is clearly on the leadership of the church, not the membership. Shame on any preacher that lets his ministry get bigger than his Savior. Shame on any church that is known more for the man behind the pulpit than the man Christ Jesus. Shame on any Christian that refuses to fellowship with others of like precious faith, just because someone did not go to the same school and sit under the same preacher they did. Shame on the preachers for letting all this happen in the first place. Shame, shame, shame!
I have always been taught, and I truly believe, that men of God should be honored and respected (Romans 13:7; 1 Thessalonians 5:13). But I never read where they should be worshiped. Any preacher that allows himself to be an “ism” or an “ite” in the eyes of his “followers” cannot be right with God. Yet, there are many big preachers in our circles that allow this stuff to flourish in their name. Without objections, they allow others to speak more highly of them than they ought to.
I mentioned earlier that these things need to be dealt with. The Lord Jesus Christ will certainly deal with all this man-worship in our ranks at the Judgment Seat of Christ. But I think He is judging already. I ask you to consider this phenomenon of late: How many great preachers do you know that have fallen into gross sin and wickedness in the past 30 years? I know personally several great men that had tremendous ministries preaching all over this country. Now they have no ministry, no fame, and no honor. Because of their sin, many babes in Christ will never grace the door of a church again. I do not have any way of knowing if pride was their downfall, nor do I think myself beyond the reach of that temptation, or any other. I simply ask the question to see if the law of sowing and reaping comes to the mind of the reader. It certainly comes to my mind. How many times do we read in God’s Word about His jealousy? Consider this one verse:
Isaiah 42:8 I am the LORD: that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images.
In my opinion, that little button everybody wore that night (I pulled mine off after walking inside) was nothing more than a graven image of a man worshiped as God. I am not exaggerating, and I do not think God was impressed. It was a sad show of man-worship that was no less sincere than the Catholic worship of the Pope. I think the warning the Lord gave through Malachi is quite fitting for us today:
Malachi 2:2 If ye will not hear, and if ye will not lay it to heart, to give glory unto my name, saith the LORD of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings: yea, I have cursed them already, because ye do not lay it to heart.
Preachers need to lay this thing to heart. There is a difference in doing the work of God and claiming credit for it. There is a difference in letting another man praise us (Proverbs 27:2) than letting another man fall prostrate at our feet(Acts 10:25). There is nothing wrong with honoring a pastor or preacher. There is nothing wrong with having heroes of the faith, dead or living. But when our heroes become more honored than our Savior, we become no different than any other religion in the world. We become a religion of MEN. Preachers should point men to God, not themselves. It is my earnest desire and prayer that no matter how I might be used in the ministry, or how far-reaching my service might become, I pray that I will never forget the church is His bride, not mine. The ministry is for Him, not for me. The glory belongs to God, not Pastor Cheek, and I have no right to steal it from Him, or let others do so at my indulgence or expense. I pray I never become so big that I become bigger than God in the eyes of those I preach to. The Bible says we are ambassadors for Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20). An ambassador represents another. I think it is time for some independent Baptists to get back to worshiping the Creator rather than the creature, and remember whose church we are really members of! Amen and amen!!
Jeremiah 12:10 Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard, they have trodden my portion under foot, they have made my pleasant portion a desolate wilderness.
Jeremiah 12:11 They have made it desolate, and being desolate it mourneth unto me; the whole land is made desolate, because no man layeth it to heart.
Let us never ever forget, the church belongs to the Great Shepherd not the little shepherds. Our responsibility is to point men to Christ! The church is His church, created by Him for His glory. May we never be guilty of stealing God’s glory!