WHAT WE ARE LEARNING

WHAT WE ARE LEARNING

1 Corinthians 14:23-26 (KJV)

If therefore the whole church be come together into one place, and all speak with tongues, and there come in those that are unlearned, or unbelievers, will they not say that ye are mad?

But if all prophesy, and there come in one that believeth not, or one unlearned, he is convinced of all, he is judged of all:

And thus are the secrets of his heart made manifest; and so falling down on his face he will worship God, and report that God is in you of a truth.

How is it then, brethren? when ye come together, every one of you hath a psalm, hath a doctrine, hath a tongue, hath a revelation, hath an interpretation. Let all things be done unto edifying.

Focus for a moment on the last phrase,

Let all things be done unto edifying.

Let all things: 

·   Build you up, 

·   Make you more like Christ, 

·   Improve your fellowship and relationship to God and one another.

Let all things strengthen the unity of the church.

Let all things teach us something.

And

Let all of this glorify the Lord.

With that in mind, I want to share with you some lessons I think I am learning these last couple of weeks.

I. WE LEARN THROUGH TRIALS

And when we learn, God is glorified.

A trial like this is never pleasant, but there are lessons to be learned. If we are able to grow as believers because of it, God is glorified.

What are we learning? The list might be as varied as the members of our church, but here are some lessons we may hope to receive.

A. We are learning to trust the Lord

Will He pull us through this?[1] We know the promises of the Word of God. We get to see if they are true.

B. We are learning to forgive

I think I learned many years ago to forgive the multiple attacks upon my person. These attacks have been directed toward my wife and my son. It’s a new bent on forgiving.

C. We are learning patience

Patience is perfected in persecution, trial and tribulation.[2]

D. We are learning to love

We are taught to love those who hate us and do us evil. We get the chance to practice it.

E. We are learning unity

Those who rally to support and defend us when we are attacked become truly precious to us.

II. I CAN TAKE THE WIND OUT OF THE SAILS OF FALSE ACCUSATIONS BY BEING TRANSPARENT  

BUT I can’t take the wind out of the sails of gossip. That must be the work of you as an individual member. 

If I share too much information two negative things happen

A. I risk burning the bridge for their repentance

B. I imply to the congregation that I will do the same to them if ever they disagree with me

What that means is that I cannot always tell you why I do certain things.

I, therefore, must risk my own reputation for the sake of preserving the character of those who are opposed to me.

What will not help is for everyone else to talk about the thing to each other. That’s just gossip and serves no purpose. 

Instead, pray.

My heart’s longing is to see people come to love God, love each other and repent when in sin. Pray to this end.

III. WHO PAYS THE PASTOR?

There was no complaint about finances at all. Our brother’s complaints were all about our ministry. 

He did not like Pastor .... preaching Wednesday. He felt like that wasted his time preparing to work with the teens, saying, “That’s what we pay the pastor to do.”

I do not believe the church pays me to do anything. I am called by God and supported by God. People in the church give as an act of obedience and worship to God. 

The money, once given, belongs to God and not to the people who gave it.

To “provide for things honest”[3] we have in place several protocols.

· 

III. THE PHILOSOPHY OF THE MINISTRY BELONGS TO THE PASTOR

This is, in fact, the very thing Apostle Paul addressed in 1 and 2 Corinthians and Galatians.

It’s doctrinal, but it’s also practical.

Hebrews 13:17-18 (KJV)

Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account, that they may do it with joy, and not with grief: for that is unprofitable for you.

Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly.

Every one of us will stand before God.

But I am the only person in this room tonight who will give an account for how I watched for your souls.

It is a person’s right to choose the sort of church they wish they wish to be part of. 

It is not their right to attempt to change the philosophy of one that exists.

IV. IF IT BE POSSIBLE, LIVE PEACEABLY  

Romans 12:18 (KJV)

If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.

But sometimes, to avoid "doubtful disputations" a separation is necessary.

V. THE AUTHORITY OF THE DEACONS 

This is a common misconception in a Protestant church. 

One person I know (not in our church) likened deacons to the job stewards on union sights. It is the deacon’s job, in some people’s eyes, to represent the membership in opposition to the pastoral staff.

Biblical deacons are servants of the pastors, relieving them of necessary tasks so they can give themselves to prayer and the ministry of the Word. 

A pastor might ask them to do more, but this is all they are in the Bible.

Finally,

VII. I LEARNED A VERY VALUABLE LESSON FROM BROTHER ..........

Since this revolved around the will of God and who knows it for the ministry of the church. Brother ....... said, when discovering the will of God about a thing, we have three resources:

A. We have the Word of God

If the Bible clearly teaches it – that is the will of God.

B. We have Bible principle

Sometimes the Bible doesn’t give “chapter and verse” on a subject, but there is clearly a principle established in the Bible.

Lacking those

C. We have good old common sense

This is by far the least reliable of the three and any two good men might disagree on what is common sense. 

It is not a good policy to get in a conflict over a disagreement of this nature.[5]

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[1] For the most part I think He already has.

[2] James 1:3 (KJV)

Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.

[3] Romans 12:17 (KJV)

Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.

[4] I’ve been thinking on that. How much should I have tried to protect my wife and son? If I had put them in a room where no one could ever hurt them, would they have been healthier for it? We grow stronger through trials, but there has to be some time for recovery AND it’s nice to have some support through it. 

[5] Dr. David Gibbs says, “How many of you understand that good men can disagree and still be good men?” I would add that what makes a bad man is how he responds to the disagreement.