The pastor is a gift from God (Ephesians 4: 7-11) and, like all the gifts from God, should be received as a treasure and with thanksgiving. You can't show your pastor enough appreciation for the gift he is from God to your church.
But we can sometimes put the pastor on such a pedestal that everything and everyone relates only to the pastor. Such was the case in Corinth when Paul received reports that the church was divided on who "they liked best as pastor." In First Corinthians 1: 10-17 there are four camps mentioned, and I can only imagine how the arguments went in regard to why they liked this particular pastor or didn't like him.
Paul - the first camp was "I am of Paul." Can't you just hear those who loved Paul saying, "Oh, he was such a deep preacher. When he preached, he really challenged us with his knowledge of God and the Bible. You got 'meat' when he preached."
Those who didn't like him most likely responded, "Paul was difficult to follow. He preached over my head. I just think when you preach, if you will put the goods on the bottom shelf so the young ones can get it, then even the giraffe can bend his head to reach it. Plus, I just couldn't get over how Paul looked when I heard him preach. That eye was constantly ousing out and it was so distracting. I'm glad he's not here anymore."
Apollos - the second camp was "I am of Apollos." Acts 18:25 tells us Apollos was "fervent in spirit," meaning he was passionate and "on fire." I can just hear them saying, "Man, when Apollos preaches, he gets all fired up. He even runs up and down the aisle. I love to see his passion for God instead of this milk-toast type of preacher."
Those who didn't like him most likely responded, "Apollos was just too wild. You never knew what he was going to do. He even scared me. Plus, you don't have to get all that excited. We are just not that type of church. Plus, he never really said anything that was that moving or worthy of remembering. I just like my pastor to be more of a teacher....calm, never raising his voice."
Cephas (Peter) - the third camp was "I am of Cephas." This is Peter. Now we know Peter was the leader of the apostles. I can hear those who liked him saying, "Now Peter, man, he was a leader. He was a take-charge kind of guy. We always had something going on when Peter was here. And I loved it...you never knew what he was going to say or who he was going to offend. He would sure step on your toes every once in a while, but you know, if the preacher never steps on your toes, then he's not really preaching. Now, Peter had to come back and apologize sometime, but I liked Peter's preaching."
Those who were not in his camp likely responded, "Peter always had to be in control. No one else ever had an opinion that he would consider. It was his way or the highway. That's just not like who Christ is. I want my preacher to hear everyone and consider their opinions. I mean, Peter taught us we are all priests, but we never had much input in the way the church was run. Plus, oh my goodness, he even cussed once or twice. Holy smoke...can you believe a pastor doing that? Now, I will give it to him...he could get things done, but it was just not in the right spirit."
Christ - the fourth camp was "I am of Christ." All I will say here is that these were the ultimate spiritual people. They just followed Christ and were proud of it.
Oh my goodness...I do believe those camps are still in EVERY church.
So what did Paul have to say about this situation? First Corinthians 3: 1-7
1. All the camps were believers who were carnal and not mature. (verses 1-4)
2. All the pastors (Paul, Apollos) are just ministers, servants, and are really not anything. They just have some special grace to give, but no one has everything. (verses 5, 7)
3. The only thing that matters is "God giving the increase." (verse 6)
Churches built around the personality of the pastor will not be built on a solid, lasting foundation. But when God is the one adding, then the results will last.
And don't ever forget, Christ is the head of the church, not the pastor (including me).
Blessings;
David
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