Did You 'Go' Or Were You 'Sent'?

How do you pick a pastor? Is it by his work experience? Is it by his education? Is it by his preaching ability? Is it by his good looks, charm, and overall personality? Is it by his fit with the feel of the congregation? Or do we pick him at all? It is unfortunate that we have turned pastoring into a career and thus have affected how we deal with the calling in most ministries. Too often now we consider the most suitable and qualified person for the position, like any other job in the world. The funny thing is, Yahweh has this knack of choosing the most unqualified person and equipping them for the task. Could it be that we are leaving Yahweh's will to one side?

There is a difference between being "sent" and just going. There is a difference between being chosen and choosing. There is a difference between being called and desiring a position. A hired shepherd will not lay down his life for the benefit of the sheep. At the first sign of danger to himself he will run. A family shepherd will do whatever it takes to protect and raise those sheep, he will sacrifice day and night. He knows he must stand his ground because there is nowhere to run to, this is his responsibility.

Samuel was a great prophet, priest and judge. He led the people of Israel well but he was also a father. And as a father he thought well of his children; he thought well of his sons. He wanted the very best for them, so he set them up as judges in Israel:

Now it came to pass when Samuel was old that he made his sons judges over Israel. (1 Samuel 8:1)

It seemed a logical thing to do. Samuel was getting old and needed help. Who better to help him than his sons. But judges were not selected by man, they were chosen by Yahweh, set aside for his purpose and given the ability to do what was necessary by Yahweh. Samuel made a mistake here and Israel was changed forever:

But his sons did not walk in his ways; they turned aside after dishonest gain, took bribes, and perverted justice. (1 Samuel 8:3)

As a result the elders were provoked to demand for a king because they wanted to be like all the other nations. Because of Samuel's decision to do what only Yahweh does, the nation rejected Yahweh as their king. The strange thing is, this same attitude resulted in their first king being removed from the throne.

King Saul stepped into a responsibility that wasn't his. Before battle, Samuel, the priest, would come and offer a sacrifice. On the eve of a great battle Samuel was late and Saul was panicked. He looked around and decided the need trumped the call so he stepped in and offered the sacrifice himself. He went from king to priest. Because of this arrogance Yahweh took the kingdom from him.

There are many examples of people taking on responsibilities that were not appointed to them or of man choosing according to his logic, leaving Yahweh out of it. We have to stop and realize that such things are beyond our comprehension and it is Yahweh who chooses who he wants when he wants. Sometimes he picks people with the qualities we expect and sometimes he chooses an insignificant shepherd boy to become the greatest leader of his people. Sometimes he chooses a well educated man and sometimes he chooses a drunk. Sometimes he chooses a man of great leadership ability and sometimes he chooses a carpenter, plumber, baker. The fact is, it is his choice and not ours.

Allow me to highlight key phrases from 1 Corinthians 12, the great chapter on the Body of Christ:

But one and the same Spirit works all these things, distributing to each one individually as He wills. (v. 11)

But now God has set the members, each one of them, in the body just as He pleased. (v.18)

And God has appointed these in the church: first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, varieties of tongues. (v.28)

And if we were to take a quick look at another passage concerning the Body of Christ:

And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers. (Ephesians 4:11)

It is very dangerous ground to walk on to appoint yourself or someone else to a position that Yahweh reserves for himself. It is not a thing of elitism because everyone is called to something but we are called by Yahweh's appointment, for his purpose. We are not to walk in someone else's calling and responsibilities. We have our own calling to deal with.

Unfortunately there is a lot of confusion in the Body these days because we have adopted the attitude of the world in assigning responsibilities and have left the Spirit out of it. We are paying a great price for that decision.

We Act As If We Have No King

Christian behavior is very interesting to consider these days. It is as if we do not have a ruler and everyone does whatever they feel is best. It is like Jesus was just a prophet who gave us some general guidelines and suggestions and now we have to work them out on our own. Seldom do we act as if we are under authority and that we are accountable for our heart, thoughts, words and actions. It is like we think we are on our own, so we look for someone to be king because we don't want to be alone.

We are suppose to be different, unique, set aside by Yahweh to bring him glory, just like the Israelites were. They were a peculiar people; no other nation had a law like theirs. No other nation was ruled over directly by their god. No other nation was without a king. But Israel was because Yahweh was suppose to be their King. He purposed to rule over them, develop and protect them, to bless their land and the work of their hands. He wanted to prosper them directly and they were to be holy to bring himself glory as he set this nation in front of the world, on display. But we read this throughout Judges:

In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes. (Judges 21:25)

They acted like this even though Yahweh had given them his statutes, the Law.

The problem was that people lost their intimacy with Yahweh. They did not look to him for leadership and guidance. They did not make themselves accountable to him and so felt they were on their own. Instead of being uniquely cared for by their God, they became little pockets of people defined by clans, easily cut off from each other and attacked, not unlike today.

Today, most churches and spiritual trainers/leaders do not see themselves directly responsible to Jesus and so do what is right in their own eyes. In other words, they teach from their opinion instead of by the Spirit and the Holy Scriptures. They make it say what they want it to say according to their personal view. Have we lost our intimacy with Jesus?

There is a sad passage found in 1 Samuel where the people threw off Yahweh's will for them and demanded to be like all the other nations; they wanted a king. Samuel was upset, feeling rejected as the last judge in a long line of judges, but Yahweh spoke to him the truth of the matter:

Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them. (1 Samuel 8:7)

We are a unique people, a nation that was not a nation, a people not defined by geographical borders but spiritual and moral ones. We have been called out, transformed and transforming into a new creation, adopted into Yahweh's family, called his children, sealed for eternity by the Holy Spirit. We don't get to do what we want as we are now slaves to his righteousness and live according to his Word. We are possessed by Jesus Christ via the Spirit as we also possess Jesus. We sit at the right hand of the Father with Jesus and are here in this place to teach and lead the lost into a saving relationship with Jesus. We are not here to live by our opinion, to do what is right in our own eyes.

Simply put:

You are not your own; you were bought at a price. (1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

Act accordingly, child of Yahweh, because you have a King who is with you every day to teach, guide, and bless you, to prosper you and to make you shine as he sets you in front of the world, on display, for his glory.