Doing Battle with the Spirit of Religion---Part 5

What an interesting calling it is to be a pastor. For almost 20 years of my 27 years of ministry, I have been one. There are incredible moments, when you know you have spoken for God into someones life. You see them "get it" as the Holy Spirit confirms what you are saying to their soul. There is the time when God speaks to you and gives you a message to give to the people, and as it has been accurately identified, you feel like you are "between heaven and earth." There are times when you see the repentant come before the Lord in honest and open confession, and witness the "amazing grace" of Christ permeate their lives! Hospitals have long been a ministry ground for the pastor, as they visit the sick and needy or sit with the dying and grieving. To them, you represent the peace, healing, and comfort of the Lord. When they see their pastor walk through the door, they just feel like everything is going to be better. These are just some of the rewards given in this life to the pastor who sacrifices and gives of himself/herself to minister to the Lord's "flock." However, there is often another side to this story that often goes unseen by the laity in the church. This is the aspect, where the pastor fights hell and its forces on behalf of themselves and God's people. This is an area where the battle with the "spirit of religion" has taken on new and sinister elements aligned against the pastor and his/her ministry. Let's consider some of those elements for a minute.

The New Testament paints an amazing description of the "role" of the pastor as they fulfill their calling. Specifically, the Apostle Paul has much to say as to the role of an elder or a pastor and how they are to live and function within the Body of Christ, the Church. Paul admonishes his young "Son in the Faith" Timothy as to the qualifications of one in the Pastorate, lets take a look at them in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 (in the New Living Translation):

1 This is a trustworthy saying: “If someone aspires to be an elder, he desires an honorable position.” 2 So an elder must be a man whose life is above reproach. He must be faithful to his wife. He must exercise self-control, live wisely, and have a good reputation. He must enjoy having guests in his home, and he must be able to teach. 3 He must not be a heavy drinker or be violent. He must be gentle, not quarrelsome, and not love money. 4 He must manage his own family well, having children who respect and obey him. 5 For if a man cannot manage his own household, how can he take care of God’s church? 6 An elder must not be a new believer, because he might become proud, and the devil would cause him to fall. 7 Also, people outside the church must speak well of him so that he will not be disgraced and fall into the devil’s trap.

Paul also shares with Titus specific qualifications for "elders" or "pastors" in Titus 1:6-9 (New Living Translation):

6 An elder must live a blameless life. He must be faithful to his wife, and his children must be believers who don’t have a reputation for being wild or rebellious. 7 For an elder must live a blameless life. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered; he must not be a heavy drinker, violent, or dishonest with money. 8 Rather, he must enjoy having guests in his home, and he must love what is good. He must live wisely and be just. He must live a devout and disciplined life. 9 He must have a strong belief in the trustworthy message he was taught; then he will be able to encourage others with wholesome teaching and show those who oppose it where they are wrong.

These qualifications the Lord issued through the Apostle Paul are in relation to the pastors spiritual, moral, and relational qualifications. And for centuries, sincere pastors, called of God, have tried to live up to them. However, the Apostle Paul gives another quality for those in the ministry that has to do more with the pastors money and his income. THIS is where this "spirit of religion" loves to attack the pastorate and limit the effectiveness of the pastor in his/her ministry! Listen to what Paul describes in 1 Timothy 5:17-19 and then in 1 Corinthians 9:7-11 (both from the NLT)

17 Elders who do their work well should be respected and paid well,[a] especially those who work hard at both preaching and teaching. 18 For the Scripture says, “You must not muzzle an ox to keep it from eating as it treads out the grain.” And in another place, “Those who work deserve their pay!”

7Who serves as a soldier at his own expense? Who plants a vineyard and does not eat of its grapes? Who tends a flock and does not drink of the milk? 8Do I say this merely from a human point of view? Doesn't the Law say the same thing? 9For it is written in the Law of Moses: "Do not muzzle an ox while it is treading out the grain."[b] Is it about oxen that God is concerned? 10Surely he says this for us, doesn't he? Yes, this was written for us, because when the plowman plows and the thresher threshes, they ought to do so in the hope of sharing in the harvest. 11If we have sown spiritual seed among you, is it too much if we reap a material harvest from you?

What Paul is saying here is that the one who labors in the church (i.e. the pastor) deserves to be supported by the church as his source of income. But I want you to notice another crucial "spiritual warfare" point that Paul makes in the same chapter of 1 Corinthians 9:3-6 & 12-18...

3 This is my answer to those who question my authority.[a] 4 Don’t we have the right to live in your homes and share your meals? 5 Don’t we have the right to bring a Christian wife with us as the other apostles and the Lord’s brothers do, and as Peter[b] does? 6 Or is it only Barnabas and I who have to work to support ourselves?

12 If you support others who preach to you, shouldn't we have an even greater right to be supported? But we have never used this right. We would rather put up with anything than be an obstacle to the Good News about Christ.
13 Don’t you realize that those who work in the temple get their meals from the offerings brought to the temple? And those who serve at the altar get a share of the sacrificial offerings. 14 In the same way, the Lord ordered that those who preach the Good News should be supported by those who benefit from it. 15 Yet I have never used any of these rights. And I am not writing this to suggest that I want to start now. In fact, I would rather die than lose my right to boast about preaching without charge. 16 Yet preaching the Good News is not something I can boast about. I am compelled by God to do it. How terrible for me if I didn’t preach the Good News! 17 If I were doing this on my own initiative, I would deserve payment. But I have no choice, for God has given me this sacred trust. 18 What then is my pay? It is the opportunity to preach the Good News without charging anyone. That’s why I never demand my rights when I preach the Good News.

Alright then... Now that we have laid a Biblical foundation for what we are talking about, here is how the "spirit of religion" gets involved in the pastors income and effectiveness in ministry. While it is a solid Biblical principle that the pastor should be supported financially by the church where he pastors, and this established very strongly by Paul's writings, the Apostle Paul implies another "principle" here that had freed him to preach as boldly by the Holy Spirit as needed to be preached. That principle is, that Paul took nothing from the church, in order that the various churches he ministered to, couldn't get mad at him for the truth he preached, and withhold their money from supporting him! So, the two principles together look something like this: 1) A pastor deserves to be compensated for the sacrificial ministry he gives to the church. 2) However, the pastor(s) should also have a "secular" means of supporting himself and his family, in the chance that the church refuses to accept the message God gives him, repent of their sin, and withhold their money as a means of "starving him out!" The "spirit of religion" plays a vital role in this type of attack against the pastor. Following the information I have written about the spirit of religion in previous posts and how it operates among our churches, consider the following...

The spirit of religion, which is at the heart of many people going from church to church, moves people into a pastors church. The pastor begins to notice the increase in offerings to the church. The pastor may begin to get compensated in a way in which he had never been able to be compensated before. He buys a new house, new car, and begins to give his family a life-style they have never had! He rejoices! The pastor and the church as they experience this new found growth and wealth (albeit, transplant growth), may decide to add on to their building or build a brand new church. The loans are signed, the dedication is done, and NOW the spirit of religion strikes! Those church people, who are being influenced by the spirit of religion, now feel that it is time for them to leave. They may even put a very spiritual "face" on their leaving by saying something like: "God is done with us here!' or, "God is calling us to another place and ministry!" And the poor pastor and the faithful of the congregation are left holding the bag! Or, in this case the mortgage note! The pastor, who came to rely on the new income of these "roamers" is now faced with paying the note or feeding his family! The pastoral family at this point may face many emotions. Some weather it and come out blessed by the Lord because of their faithfulness. Tragically however, some pastoral families face severe resentment (sometimes even against God), depression, bitterness, financial hardships and difficulties, and even the resigning and quitting from ministry! How could these things happen right under our noses and us not recognize it? Well....... This IS a war you know? And the "spirit of religion" is a pro at defeating ministerial families! This is one of the reasons for such a high attrition rate in the ministry! This is why a vast majority of pastors have anonymously said that if they had another means of adequately providing for their families, they would leave the ministry and follow that path!

Still yet another diabolical attack of the "spirit of religion" within the same above scenario goes something like this: When the building and debt has been accumulated, those controlled by the spirit of religion will often fight the "true" move of the Holy Ghost, or the "true" preaching of the Lord's Word. They simply imply to the pastor, that if he still wants to "eat" and feed his family, the service BETTER go the way they want it to go, or they will withhold their giving! The pastor, his preaching, the word of God, and the genuine move of the Holy Ghost are NOW held hostage! Why? Because of a well laid out and implemented plan of the enemy through the "spirit of religion!"

How do we "battle" this assault against the pastor and his/her ministry? How do we take away the spirit of religions ability to enslave our pastors, their families, the Word of God, and the genuine move of God? This will be discussed in our very next posting. Please READ IT as it has the ability to free your pastor and eliminate a vary strong element of the "spirit of religion" and its battle against the Church!