Is your ministry an idol?

One of the books I'm currently reading is Designed to Lead: The Church and Leadership Development by Eric Geiger and Kevin Peck. In a section that discusses why many pastors do not develop leaders within their churches one of the reasons the authors give is that ministry has become an idol to many pastors.

As they note, it is easy to become addicted to the approval and applause that often comes to those in ministry. What pastor doesn't enjoy being complemented and praised when he or she serves people well? We all want to be appreciated for a job well done. The problem comes when we pursue that appreciation and it becomes more important to us than even our relationship with God. The authors caution, "If we only rejoice in God because of what He is doing through us and not because of what He has already done for us, we cherish our ministry more than Him."

They remind us of the time the disciples returned from ministry filled with joy because even the demons had submitted to them. Jesus responded, "Don't rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven." If we do not love God more than our ministries, those ministries have become idols in our lives.

The book lists five questions to ask to help ministers determine if their ministry has become an idol. They are good questions we should probably ask ourselves regularly.

1. How much of my contentment is connected to the tide of my ministry influence?
2. Do my prayers reflect that I am more thankful for the salvation He has provided for me or for the ministry He has given me?
3. If I had to choose, which would I prefer: a closer walk with Jesus or a more "effective ministry?"
4. If my ministry were suddenly taken from me, would I still rejoice that my sins are forgiven?
5. Do I seek God only for His blessing and direction or do I also seek God simply for Him?

These could be painful questions to honestly answer for some of us, but it's important to answer them honestly. Nothing, not even our ministries, should come between us and God. We must always remember that what we are is more important than what we do. What we are is forever; what we do is only temporary.

I strongly encourage you to get and read this book. I'm only 50 pages into it, and it has already blessed me more than anything else I've read this year.

Don't allow your ministry become an idol

An idol is simply anything that people worship.  It could be some inanimate object such as a statue or picture.  It could be something like wealth, or power, or fame, or personal appearance.  One's job or position could become an idol.  The fact is that virtually anything can become an idol if it gets between you and your relationship with God.  That even includes ministry.

How can ministry become an idol?  In the first place, if you are trusting in your theological education and ministry expertise more than you are trusting in God, your ministry has become an idol.  This past weekend I heard a seminary president tell an audience that he always tells the graduating class that they have learned a lot as they earned their degrees, but they must not trust in any of it.  A church that is doing what it is supposed to do is one that is empowered by the Holy Spirit.  As ministry leaders we need to gain all the knowledge we can and use it as we lead our churches, but we must also never forget that if God is not in what we are doing, our efforts will be in vain.  Christ is the head of the church.  The Holy Spirit is its source of power.  As ministers, we are merely agents he has assigned to lead our churches for a season.  We must do all we can, but we must also continually seek God's leadership and power to achieve what he has called us to do.

Another way ministry can become an idol is when we replace what God has said in the Scriptures with our own philosophies and beliefs.  Especially those of us who are called to preach, we must be very careful how we handle the Word of God.  If we try to substitute the teachings of man over the teachings of God, we have allowed our ministries to become idols.  We have an obligation, a duty, to handle the Scriptures accurately and not to add to or subtract from anything they may teach.

One of the most common ways ministry can become an idol is when it causes us to be so busy we simply don't have time for God.  We are so busy doing things for God that we have no time to be with God.  We may read the Bible but it is to prepare a message or lesson.  Seldom is it for our own spiritual nourishment.  When we pray it is because we have been asked to pray due to our ministry role.  Otherwise, we may seldom pray.  We forget that God called us to be something before he called us to do something.  He called us to be Christians, disciples, before he called us to do ministry.  We need to remember that our best doing will flow out of our being.  As we grow deeper in God our ministries will also go deeper.

Ministry demands much from each of us, and it is so easy to become so busy doing the Lord's work that we neglect our own relationship with God.  When that happens it is an easy step to one of these three problems.  We need to be alert and careful that we don't fall into any of these traps or our ministries can very quickly become an idol.