Dude, It’s Not Your Church
Jesus Christ promised to build His church, and the news gets better, in that, the gates of hell will not prevail against it (Mt 16:18). Jesus Christ is the head of the church (Col 1:18), for the obvious reason that the members of His spiritual body belong to Him (1 Cor 3:23). Jesus bought His bride for a price (1 Cor 6:20; 7:23), with the currency of His precious blood (1 Pet 1:19).
The redeemed of the Lord have received a token of Christ’s love for His bride, His church (2 Cor 5:5; Eph 5:25). This token or pledge is the Holy Spirit sent from the Father and the Son (Jn 14:26; 15:26). It is the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Christ, who baptizes each new member into Christ’s church (1 Cor 12:13). These receive the same faith handed down to all the saints (Jude 3), which comes as a gift of God’s grace (Eph 2:8–9). Grace is the Spirit’s work of applying Christ’s redemption to the elect of the Father.
Each chosen member of the body of Christ receives the regeneration of the Spirit. This is how a soul is born again (Jn 3:1–8; 1 Pet 1:3), that is, made alive in Christ (Eph 2:5; Col 2:13). There is a mutual indwelling between Christ and each of His chosen people, reflective of Christ’s union with the Father (Jn 17). These souls are the ones given to Him by God the Father before the foundation of the world, whose names were written in the Lamb’s book of life before Creation (Rev 13:8; 17:8).
The members of Christ’s church are each endowed with certain spiritual gifts (Rom 12; 1 Cor 12; Eph 4). These are often natural gifts that find their manifestation in service to the corporate body, the Israel of God (Gal 6:16), Christ’s holy nation of royal priests (1 Pet 2:9). In fact, Jesus assured those who serve Him that the greatest among them would be the servant of all (Mt 23:11).
Slaves of Christ are in service to the King of kings (Eph 6:6; 1 Tim 6:15). This includes service to those who make up His body of believers. As we serve one another, we are serving His kingdom purposes. We labor as unto the Lord for the building up of His body (Eph 4:12, 16).
Our sinful human flesh wars against the indwelling Spirit (Jn 14:17; Rom 8:9, 11), who leads us and guides us on the path of righteousness (Ps 23:3). This is the straight and narrow way, who is Christ Himself. (Jn 14:6). We labor because we love Him. We love Him because He first loved us (1 Jn 4:19). This was clearly demonstrated by His dying on the cross in the stead of His elect (Rom 5:8), for whom He bore their sins in His body (1 Pet 2:24).
We who are forgiven of our sins, through the blood of the new and everlasting covenant (Mt 26:28; Eph 1:7), are compelled by His exemplary love (2 Cor 5:14). We follow in His steps of suffering for the sake of the elect (2 Tim 2:10; 1 Pet 2:21).
It is the Spirit of Christ who began the good work of salvation in us, and He assures us that He will complete it (Phil 1:6). The good works prepared beforehand for us to accomplish are His willing and doing His good pleasure in and through us (Eph 2:10; Phil 2:13).
There is a man in the ministry of the church who thinks he is Moses of the Old Testament. With a charismatic personality and iron rod, he works his way into church leadership with eager aspirations. He is convinced that God called him to be a leader…like Moses. He will not even kowtow to the confusing title, “servant leader.” In his mind, “supreme leader” is a better title.
This man is a mercenary. The Bible calls him a “hired hand.” He loves the business of the church. He has visions of grandeur. This pastor wants to be the big man on multi-site campuses. There is no ceiling on his ambition in the ministry. He is not a team player. He is a despot. He follows the mantra of the famed baseball coach, Sparky Anderson, who used to say, “It’s my way or the highway.”
It is survival of the fittest with this crude shepherd. If you appear to be a weak sheep, this man will gladly show you the door. His church (that is what he calls it) is a place for high performance Christianity. Either you sign onto his vision and his program or you get left behind. The irony is that this man will soon discover that none of Christ’s sheep is built for performance. Low performance is the nature of the sheep (think about it). It was the goats and other wolves that convinced this man to be the dictator he has become.
This man is an imposter. He is a child of the devil, posing as an angel of light. He will eventually grow weary of his failed enterprise. In one way or another, he will leave with money, real estate, a gold parachute, or something else. He will leave, and it will be sooner rather than later. Having never read 1 Corinthians 6, he may fleece the sheep of even more of their money through some kind of lawsuit.
One might ask, “How did such a wretched devil get into the church, let alone become its leader?” The simple answer is the judgment of God. We know it begins with the house of God (1 Pet 4:17), but when a lampstand is being removed (Rev 2–3), it is utterly painful to watch. The fact is that God gives ample time for local churches and denominations to repent of their sins. If they do not, they eventually reap what they sow. Israel wanted a king other than Yahweh, and they got Saul of Benjamin.
The wolf leading the church has no love for God’s Word. He has no love for Christ nor is there any love for the people of God. If Christians are known for their love for one another (Jn 13:35), then the false shepherd should be obvious (Ezek 34). He loves himself, and he is willing to sacrifice others to reach his ministry goals. He knows the plans he has for himself, and they are great so he can be great.
With the booty from this debacle, he is sure to move on to the next one. He will be hired again to the amazement of many. After all, he is on a mission from God — a mission of destruction.
David Norczyk
Spokane Valley, Washington
April 28, 2021
