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Establishing Trust in the Local Church

trust

In ministry all you have is trust. There are no promises of wealth, power, or property. Most move away from home and place themselves at the complete mercy of the local church. The mortgage, the food you feed your children, braces, the car payment, etc, they have to trust the church to do what they said they would do regarding salary, benefits, etc. But the church also expects to be able to trust the staff person.

So, when it is all-said-and-done it all boils down to trust. If the church does not trust their pastor or the pastoral staff or they do not trust each other then growth, planning, stability, or even team cohesion is greatly limited or eroded.

There are ways that one gains trust (just do the opposite of these to break down trust):

A.  Consistently doing or exceeding their job expectations over a period of time.

Even little things like being prepared for meetings, being on time, doing what you say you will do.

B.  Maintaining one’s character and moral moorings over time.

This may include not being alone with someone of the opposite gender that is not in your family, telling the truth even when it makes you look bad, etc. Yes, you will sin, but there should a regular practice of praying, Bible study, repenting, and making things right with other people. No one expects you to be perfect (if they do then it is unreasonable) but you should be growing in your walk with the Lord like all other Christians.

C.  Being able to balance family, marriage, and ministry over time.

They may not like that you said “no” to something they asked you to do on your day off, but they will respect that you are guarding your family time. Again, you are not always going to get it right at home with the family – but there should be learning how to make it work. Your family is more important than your ministry. Please go back a reread that last sentence. Once you leave a church, in five years they won’t even remember your name, but your kids will remember you as dad forever. It’s up to you to determine if it is a good memory or a bad one.

D.  Communicating what you are doing to others; i.e. staff, boards, elders, deacons, parents, etc.

If you are not communicating in the gaps, then people will fill in the gaps with their own assumptions. And people naturally tend to be negative in their assumptions no matter how long or how faithful you have been.

Does the church, pastor, staff members, etc. know what is going on? What is the mechanism that you use to keep people informed and is it consistently updated (i.e. Facebook, e-mails, staff meetings, etc.)?

faithfulness + time = trust

Once you have an opportunity and privilege to minister to others, then do it to the best of your ability and continue to do so for a long time. This is a good way, if not the best way to gain trust. One should not expect trust to be there the moment you put your books on the shelves in your office. It will take time, especially if your predecessor was not trusted or had to leave for nefarious reasons.

When one takes a position where this may have happened then you should expect to inherit the distrust that is there for the man before you and to climb the mountain of trust to even be able to do your current position. I have several friends who are in this situation and are incredibly frustrated because of even after years of faithfully doing their job, the church still does not trust them.

Any staff position candidate could ask, “What actions have the church taken to intentionally deal with the broken trust that has taken place?” And “how will the church help the incoming pastor/staff to rebuild this broken trust?” If no action has taken place, or they don’t see it as their responsibility to help in this situation then the church does not understand how this will affect the incoming staff person.

_____________________________

Let’s be honest. Everyone in ministry makes mistakes and blunders. The only way to avoid this is to never do anything new, stay with what’s safe, take forever to make decisions, and not take any risks. But these actions (or lack of them) will eventually catch up with the leader in a negative way and they will be criticized anyway. Songs grow stale, programs loose enthusiasm, and people get bored. But let’s assume that you are an awesome leader and want to lead toward new horizons and reaching new people for the gospel. So what do you do if you have done all of these things (faithfulness + time = trust) consistently over a long period of time and you are still not trusted?

Why is it that I don’t feel that I am trusted?

  • Are you in a position to where you should be included in certain information loops, budget discussions, or whatever the topic may be? Figure out if what you are feeling is genuine or have you jumped to a false expectation? Sometimes our feelings can guide us to false expectations.
  • What actions have been taken to make you feel that you are not trusted or excluded? Can you give specific example? If so, write them down and begin to look for opportunity s to talk with the leadership about these instances.
  • One of the main keys to building trust is time on the field. Has a reasonable amount of time passed to where people should trust you? If you have only been there a few months then you should not expect to be trusted yet (but you should be taking advantage of the honey moon period: see below).

If you have been there more than two years and are still not trusted then there is a problem and you should spend some serious time trying to figure it out why. Knowing where that balance should be is a matter of prayer and calling to a specific place of ministry. If your predecessor was dismissed then expect that time period to be even longer.

“The Honeymoon period

Every person in a new ministry position has about one year that is commonly called the “honeymoon period.” You can forget people’s names, not know where something is stored, forget appointments, etc. and everything will be ok (within reason of course). But after this period your second year will be rough. Now people expect you to know everyone, everything, and to know “how things work here.” Take advantage of the honeymoon period. If you need more money for your budget, ask for it. If you need staff, ask for it. If you need equipment, ask for it. Strike while the iron is hot. You will not be in the honeymoon period for long.”

What blunders have you made and are these things big enough to push back the timetable of trust?

_______________________________

Tokens

Every new staff person is given a few tokens to spend (they are free during the honeymoon period) Every time they do something well they get more tokens. But to take action they have to spend tokens, and the bigger the action the more tokens it costs. So to take big actions they can cash in all their chips and if it works, then things are wonderful. But if it fails they are tokenless and have to save up (over time) more tokens. It may take a long time to rebuild the savings after a big blunder. Let me caution you against using phrases like, “The Lord has told me we should do this . . .” or “I’m the pastor, staff position, etc. and I say this is what we should do!” You have a direct link to the Lord through prayer but so does the rest of the congregation.

Why Is It Important to be a Member of a Local Church?

The Early Church 

In Acts 2:42 ff. immediately following the indwelling of the Holy Spirit upon all believers, the believers begin to meet (daily). Luke rarely mentions the Greek word εκκλησία (church) in the book of Luke, but mentions it over 24 times in Acts. So, the church came into existence after Pentecost.

While we don’t know exactly what membership in the apostolic church entailed, it was certainly for the purposes of edification, prayer, service, and, as can be seen particularly in Acts 5, discipline. Christianity is a corporate matter, and the Christian life can be fully realized only in relationship to others.[1]

The early church shows us that members invest their passions, service, resources, and relationships for the kingdom through the local church. They commit to a holy life characterized by integrity and confession of sin. The commitment to membership means active participation in ministry, in worship, in fellowship, and in service for the mission of the church, along with generous giving and evangelistic living.[2]

In the handling of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5), as well as Paul’s instructions to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 5:1-5) and the Galatians (6:1) regarding the treatment of sinners, argues for a careful monitoring by the group of the spiritual condition and conduct of the members. While prefect purity of the membership is ideal which cannot be realized within this life (Matt. 13:24-30), open unbelief and sin are not tolerated.[3] Before we get too far into what the church should be doing, let’s look at what the church is not, and then give a clear definition.

Defining the word “Church”

What the church is not, as indicated by Mark Driscoll, “The church is not a holy building in which spiritual meetings take place. The church is not a Eucharistic society through which God dispenses grace by means of the sacraments and a duly authorized and empowered hierarchy of bishops and priests operating in unbroken succession from the apostles. The church is not the moral police force of a society seeking mere behavioral change through legislation. The church is not a weekly meeting where people gather to do spiritual things.”[4]

Driscoll goes on to give a definition of the church; “The local church is a community of regenerated believers who confess Jesus Christ as Lord. In obedience to Scripture they organize under qualified leadership, gather regularly for preaching and worship, observe the biblical sacraments of baptism and Communion, are unified by the Spirit, are disciplined for holiness, and scatter to fulfill the Great Commandment and the Great Commission as missionaries to the world for God’s glory and their joy.”[5]

The Bible speaks of church membership in relational terms – as members of one body and as members of the household of God – so that God’s people live as a gospel community and help one another grow in Christ and reach others for Christ.[6] There are no “Lone Ranger” Christians in the Bible, and there should be none today.

Why Join a Church? 

Why should I become a member of a local church? I’m already saved and a part of the body of Christ (universal) so does it even matter if I am a member of a local church? Well, it does matter because we do become a part of the family of God when we receive Christ, and the actual expression of that is found in the New Testament local church. There is not one Christian mentioned in the New Testament who was not connected to a local church.

Rick Warren has written, “Many Americans Christians are what I call “floating believers.” Anywhere else in the world, being a believer is synonymous with being connected to a local body of believers‑‑you rarely find a lone‑ranger Christian in other countries. Many American Christians, however, hop from one church to another without any identity, accountability, or commitment. This is a direct expression of America’s rampant individualism. They have not been taught that the Christian life involves more than just believing‑‑it also includes belonging. We grow in Christ by being in relationship to other Christians. Romans 12:10 says, “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love.”

This same lack of commitment to any one church can be found in the youth of today as well. There is a phenomenon of youth jumping from one youth group to another in order to “get their needs met” or to the one that’s “cool” right this minute. They don’t tithe, serve, or have any formal ties to any one youth group. Without this commitment there is no accountability, few relationships where they serve and love one another, encourage each other toward holiness, or have a sense of responsibility toward the group. They have learned this from their parents who either model it for them, or enable them to express this behavior of selfishness.

C.S. Lewis once wrote an essay on church membership, reminding us that the word membership is of Christian origin, but it has been taken over by the world and emptied of all its original meaning. Today, most people associate the term membership with paying dues, meaningless rituals, silly rules and handshakes, and having your name on some dusty roll.

Paul, however had a very different image of membership. To the Apostle Paul, being a member of the church did not refer to some cold induction into an institution, but rather it meant becoming a vital organ of a living body (Rom. 12:4‑5; 1 Cor. 6:15; 1 Cor. 12:12‑27). Any organ that is detached from the body will not only miss what it was created to be, it will also shrivel and die quickly. The same is true for Christians that are uncommitted to any specific congregation.”

Nowhere in Scripture does it imply that salvation comes through membership in any church. Luke says of the early church, “And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved” (Acts 2:47). When questioned about salvation, the apostle never suggested that it depends upon connection with a group of believers. When Peter and others were asked, “Brethren, what shall we do?” (Acts 2:37), the reply was, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of the Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins” (v. 38). Peter’s message was the same in Acts 3:12-26 and 4:7-12. Paul’s reply to the Philippian jailor’s question, “What must I do to be saved?” (Acts 16:30) was straightforward: “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household” (v. 31).[7]    So while there is no link between salvation and membership, there is a direct link between sanctification and membership in the local church.

Benefits of Membership  

It is important to realize that there are several benefits that can come to you through church membership. The benefits include:

1) It provides a spiritual family to support and encourage you in your walk with Christ (Gal. 6:1‑2; Heb. 10:24‑25).

2) It gives you a place to discover and use your gifts in ministry (I Cor. 12:4‑27).

3) It places you under the spiritual protection of godly leaders (Heb. 13:17; Acts 20:28‑29).

4) It gives you the accountability you need to grow (Eph. 5:21).

5) It gives you a place where there are people who will share the burdens of life through prayer, love, sharing, support, and encouragement (Gal. 6:2).[8]

As long as you are not committed to a local church body through membership, you are not able to live the Christian life God intends for you live. Even if you “attend” a church for a long time, it is the formal commitment on your part to the church and the church toward you, that creates a bond of accountability, encouragement, and ministry in Christ’s name. [9]


[1] Acts 20:28-31; Ephesians 4;11; 1 Timothy 3:2; 1 Corinthians 11:18 ff.; 1 Timothy 5:16; 1 Corinthians 16:1.

[2] Mark Driscoll. Doctrine (Wheaton, Illinois; Crossway) 322.

[3] Millard Erickson. Christian Theology (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Baker) 1048.

[4] Driscoll, 307.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Romans 12:4-5; 1 Corinthians 12:12-27; Ephesians 2:18-19; 3:6; 4:25; 5:29-30.

[7] Erickson,1047.

[8] Rick Warren, 101 New Members Class Manual.

[9] Other suggested books to read on this topic that were not mentioned in the footnotes;

Bible Doctrine, Wayne Grudem (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan) 1999, and Biblical Foundations for Baptist Churches, John S. Hammett (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Kregel) 2005.

"Your greatest life messages and your most effective ministry will come out of your deepest hurts." Rick Warren

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