A church that breaks God's heart

Some time ago I read that the average seminary graduate remains in the ministry only 5 years after completing seminary. There are many reasons for this, but one of those reasons is the pastor grows tired of the constant fighting that goes on in many churches. As a judicatory leader I have had to referee too many of these fights, and it doesn't seem to be getting any better.

Usually there are only a handful of people who are creating the problems. In fact, I remember reading that the typical pastor leaves his or her church because of seven people. A hundred people may have thought the pastor was doing a great job, but seven people made his or her life so miserable that the pastor left. The reason these seven people could do that is because the other hundred didn't publicly support the pastor. They often excuse themselves by saying, "We don't go to church to fight." Well, that's good, but that doesn't mean they can't support their pastor and stand up to the controllers that exist in their church.

I often tell people that one problem we have in our churches is that we are made up of nice people, and nice people don't enjoy confrontation. However, in many churches there are some folks who are not so nice, who see the church as their own little fiefdom, and who believe the church exists for their benefit. And nobody will stand up to them, so they get their way. The result always is that the church remains stuck, it cannot grow, pastoral leadership will not stay, and people for whom Jesus Christ gave His life die and go to hell. It has to break God's heart.

I'm not asking nice people to become like the controllers. I am saying that it is time that we become firm with these people and tell them their childish behavior will not be accepted any longer. I am saying that they need to be confronted when they exhibit poor behavior that is threatening to the health and well-being of the church. I can hear some readers now, "Well, if we confront them they will leave the church." And the problem is....? The fact is, you are already losing people. Too many churches have lost their teenagers because of these controlling tyrants because young people will not tolerate such behavior. You are losing new members who leave your church within a few months after joining because of comments these controllers make to them. Visitors are not returning because they can sense the tension in the church as soon as they walk in. Here's my question..."Who are you most interested in keeping, and who are you willing to lose?"

Until these people are confronted with their improper behavior your church will remain stuck and will have little or no effectiveness in your community. It will break God's heart because He has so much more for your church, but His heart won't stay broken for long. He will simply raise up another church in your community to do the work you won't do, and He will allow your church to die a natural death brought on by the disease within it.