kung fu tiger by inspiredimages from Pixabay

Frankly, I think that most churches, regardless of the church, are staffed with leadership that don’t truly understand the need for the application of the Cross in their own live

Even while those same leaders preach of the Cross, taking up your Cross, bearing your own Cross, and a hundred other biblical phrases dealing with the Cross, they fail to understand what that truly means.

I know this is true.

Because, right now, I am preaching (in my own head) to a 19-year-old young man who was in desperate need of this information. Who didn’t believe he needed to hear it.

That young man was me.

It is incredibly difficult to talk to church leadership today about anything that is not in line with their philosophical bent. Which is basically a New-Evangelical or Progressive-Christian bent. 

Which is everywhere today in churches. It doesn’t matter where you go. Even in the more “strict” Bible churches they are struggling against this raging spirit of compromise.

And most of them are losing the battle. 

By Bible churches, I mean churches that believe the Bible is the word of God and preach salvation by faith in Jesus Christ alone, by faith alone, by the word of God alone. Regardless of whatever other crap they also do and don’t teach. 

Leaders today have an answer for virtually anything you might say to them. They are basically immune to rebuke, reproof, or correction. They have learned to use a kind of spiritual Kung Fu to fend off criticism of whatever they may be doing or saying. 

There always seem to have a handy excuse.

Always. 

And the “reprover” ends up becoming the one that is in “error”. Because the one who questions the status quo of leadership is considered to be wrong.

Always. 

Flesh Takes Many Forms

The reason for all of this is simple. 

The problem is that flesh or “spiritual” flesh rules in our churches – in one form or another. 

Generally, it’s fueled by the pride of leadership – including the pride of those who continually preach about being a “servant leader”. Or who hold their authority because of having a formal spiritual education. 

One evidence of this is as churches give increasing authority to younger men and women. Which is a very popular trend.

These youth, while formally educated, often lack the application of the Cross in their lives; despite all their education, training and internships.  

And, of course, when one makes comments such as these, the inevitable response is this passage from I Timothy 4:12: “Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” 

Which, by the way, was spoken to Timothy specifically. To a young man who had grown up being taught by his mother and grandmother. And who had served with and was personally trained by Paul. (II Timothy 1:5)

This wasn’t given as some general reason why older, mature believers – or those nasty “elders” whom Tim Keller has referred to – should refrain from criticizing or questioning the spiritual maturity of younger men. Or of the fitness of younger people to serve and teach in the church. 

Because “youth” does not get a pass.

“Youth” does not get some automatic license to serve or teach. 

The Curse of Natural Abilities

Whether our leaders are young or old, the danger is always there that a Christian can live his or her life without really understanding his complete inability to do what the Lord has commanded him to do. And the more natural gifts or spiritual “aptitudes” that one has, the worse the situation is likely to become. 

Because God does not need our natural abilities. At least not the way most churches and Christians think. 

He only truly uses us in His spiritual work when we have reached the end of our rope. When we come to the funeral of our selves. Even to the end our dedicated Christian selves. 

The Crushing Blow

In 1977, I was attending Bob Jones University as a Bible major. I was a sophomore at the time. I had been a Christian since the summer of 1972. 

Over those previous 5 years, I had been very active in many types of ministries. I had served as a leader in both church and community-wide ministries. And had studied the Bible extensively.

So, I was not a tenderfoot in the things of the Bible or of the Lord.

But, one Saturday afternoon, a classmate from the church administration class (I think his name was Dan), came to my dorm room to talk with me. 

We went out into the long hallway – which is where many students went to talk or study – and he opened up his Bible and started reading Romans Chapter 6 to me. 

He read the passages that had to do with how we should “reckon” ourselves “dead to sin”. I listened to him politely as he read those passages. Then he finished with a few comments and said “Goodbye”. 

Now, all the while, I was wondering what in the heck he was talking about. Why was he reading these passages to me? Since I had read these passages so many times before. Many, many times before. 

I was no newbie to these things. I had studied many deep things. What was going on?

I was irritated and ticked at it all.

But after that I just kind of sluffed it off as some weird thing. 

Because I liked Dan. He was a very down to earth guy. And so, I forgot about the incident. And moved on. 

Hard Sayings that Men Cannot Receive

Fast forward to almost 50 years later. 

Now, I can see what Dan had tried to share with me back then. I can now see what I was unwilling and unable to see at that time. 

Which was the bankruptcy of my own spiritual abilities as a believer.

He wasn’t accusing me or warning me about something immoral in my life. Or of some other problem I had relating to an “unclean” way of living. 

No. He was talking about something entirely different than what I thought. 

It’s difficult to put into words what was really going on there. In truth, I was unable to see the truth at that time. I was not in a place where I could even see what he was saying.

Because unless one reaches the bottom of their own “esteem”, they will be of little use to the Lord. 

Even though they may teach or preach in the church. Or pastor a great church. Or lead a great ministry as a missionary or an evangelist. Or even as a leader whose influence reaches millions of people across the world. 

Because the Lord does not need our strengths or abilities or talents. And He will not use the “natural man” to do His spiritual work. 

Does the Lord Need Anything We Possess?

Each of us must be brought low by the hand of the Lord before we can truly understand the “risen” life of Christ. 

Yes. We may be saved. Yes. We may be “dedicated”. And yes, we may be “surrendered”. 

But, just as when we first trusted the Lord for our salvation, in the same way we much each trust Him as our life. 

In other words, we brought nothing to the table in obtaining salvation.

Nor did He accept anything from us other than our trust in HIM as our totally sufficiency for the forgiveness of our sins, for cleansing from all our iniquities, and for being born again and indwelt by His Holy Spirit. 

We earned nothing. We merited nothing. Period. 

“For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the Spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.” (Philippians 3:3)

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