The Kind Of Pastor Cornerstone Needs

THE KIND OF PASTOR CORNERSTONE NEEDS Sunday May 30, 2021 Scripture Reference: 1 Samuel 16:5-7 (NLT2) Yes," Samuel replied. "I have come to sacrifice to the LORD. Purify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice." Then Samuel performed the purification rite for Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice, too. 6 When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, "Surely this is the LORD's anointed!" 7 But the LORD said to Samuel, "Don't judge by his appearance or height, for I have rejected him. The LORD doesn't see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." 1 Samuel 16:5-7 (NLT2) Intro. A. I am willing to bet that you did not expect to have your pastor come back from a two-week prayer retreat and share with you a message on the kind of pastor your church needs. Well, I didn't really expect this either, but I have learned in my 50+ years of following Jesus that a lot of things happen that I didn't expect. I have shared many times with you the fact that I have been standing in this position for the past 25 years is not something I expected would happen. Now you might have already guessed it, but the intent behind this message is not to get you thinking about whether or not I need to be replaced. I might be dumb, but I am not stupid. I have been your pastor for over 25 years now and if He allows, I will continue on as your pastor until He tells me it is time to hand off leadership to another. Yes, I want to talk to you today about the kind of pastor Cornerstone needs, but I hope in many ways I am already this person and in other ways I hope to become this person so that I can better serve Christ and you. B. In Leadership circles whether that is secular or religious there is an axiom that says, "Everything rises and falls on leadership." I wholeheartedly believe that, but I will add this. Sometimes I find that painful because it reveals that I have not always been the leader I could have or should have been. About a month ago I shared with you a message on why we believe in church growth. I stressed very strongly in the introduction of that message that it is not you or I that grow the church, God grows the church, but I also stated that God uses us in that growth process. 1. I looked this up and found out that according to statistics in 2020 there were approximately 380,000 churches in America. Now I do not know if those are all Christian or evangelical, but just for illustration purposes let's say that 300,000 are Christian or evangelical churches. Then I looked up statistics on churches declining. Numbers varied but in one study from 1999 to 2019 membership had declined 70%. That is startling and frankly a bit depressing. Why are we seeing this decline? I do not think it is too hard for any of us to predict the future of church in America if these numbers continue. 2. Would you allow me to tell you what I think is needed to halt and reverse this decline whether we are talking Cornerstone Community Church or any other evangelical church? You know that was a rhetorical question, right? I am going to give you my answer even if you say no, LOL. Here is what the evangelical church needs and what Cornerstone Community Church needs to reverse this course. We need leadership that is No Afraid To Believe God. This frankly answers the question I poised in the title of this message. This is the Kind of Pastor Cornerstone needs and let me say again, I hope I am this pastor and that I will become more like this pastor every day, week, month and year that I serve you. Trans. Let me give you what I consider to be the Four Faith Factors for Leadership. I. THE FOUR FAITH FACTORS FOR LEADERSHIP These are four things you need to see in the leadership of your church whether I am your pastor or not. Here is factor number one. A. God Uses The Person Who Has A Dream Or Vision. 1. Now I think it is important for me to note that I believe there is a difference between a dream and a vision and since I am going to be using both of these terms, I think I need to state what I think they are. For me a dream is something we imagine, we might even do this in our sleep. Now I also believe that a dream can lead to a vision, but they are not the same. A vision in this context we are considering is something God gives us, and it is more specific and strategic than a dream. While I was away on my retreat, I told God over and over again that I did not want my vison for the church, I wanted HIS vision for the church. I can dream up things I want to see happen at Cornerstone, but that doesn't necessarily mean they are what God wants for Cornerstone. 2. Here is what I know. Nothing happens until the leader gets a vision. I have read several books in the past month or so on vision and one thing I learned in my reading is that whether we are talking the church or a shoe store, nothing will happen of any substance until the leader has a vision for what can be. Thousands of churches are surviving today, but they are not thriving, and they are not all they can be because there is no vision. The Bible makes this abundantly clear. "Where there is no vision, the people perish." Proverbs 29:18 (KJV) The NIV says, "Where there is no revelation, the people cast off restraint;" Proverbs 28:18 (NIV) Basically what this verse is telling us is that without a vision we give up and just go with the flow. Most of the flows I am aware of lead to the sewer and that is not where I am willing to lead this church. 3. I have many shortcomings, and no that is not an opportunity for you to say "Amen". One of my biggest shortfalls at least is far as I am concerned is my inability, or maybe better stated my unwillingness to delegate. Sometimes it is my fear that my request will be rejected, sometimes it is a feeling that no one will do it like me, or it seems to me at least that its just easier to do it myself. Thankfully, I am beginning to change that flaw, but there is no thing I cannot delegate, and neither can any other pastor. I cannot delegate Faith in God. I cannot say to any of you, you need to have faith for this church, its' not my gift. It is my role to have faith to believe for God to do great things in and through me. Yes, you must possess that faith as well, but I cannot delegate it as your leader. Trans. I need to move on, or I will never finish, and I am not going to make this a two-part message. So, the first thing Cornerstone needs in a pastor is someone who has a dream or vision from God. Someone who has faith to believe for more than what they can see with their physical eyes. Someone who believes as Paul said, "Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think." Ephesian 3:20 (NLT2) Here is the Faith Factor number two that you need to see in you pastor. B. God Uses The Person Who Is Willing To Fail. 1. Let's look at a few verses. "who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." Acts 15:26 (NLT2) "Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do." Joshua 1:7 (NLT2) "A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power." Ephesians 6:10 (NLT2) 2. Now I have said this many times before, but I will say it again. I do not believe that when we attempt to do something great for God that risk is ever involved, but because we are attempting something that is beyond ourselves it feels risky. Being courageous is not the absence of fear. Courage is moving forward despite those fears. Courage as it is defined is the ability to face danger, fear or difficulties and still move forward. Someone once said that "Leadership is the ability to hide panic." If that is true, I have not always been a good leader. 3. None of us would reject the fact that God calls us to be faithful, but the truth is that sometimes we can try to hide our lack of fruitfulness behind our so-called faithfulness, but the fact is God asks for both and I think we would agree that real faithfulness leads to fruitfulness. Remember that fruit hangs from the limb of the tree which means we have to go out on a limb sometimes, which means I need to take a risk sometimes to do what God is calling me to do. Listen, "If you are not taking any risks, you don't need faith. And if you don't need any faith, you are not being faithful." To be unfaithful means: "Knowing what you ought to be doing and not being willing to take the risk to do it." 4. I think there are three approaches that a leader or pastor can take towards ministry. Here they are: a) Be A Risk Taker. Again, what I am really talking about here is being someone who steps out in faith and believes God for what most would say is impossible. I just said that fruit is out on the limb of the tree. I can't get to the fruit if I am hugging the tree trunk. The second approach is: b) Be a Caretaker. A caretaker is someone who is just maintaining the status quo. A caretaker for a building makes sure that things stay as they are. Fix the broken pipe, fix the leaky roof, unstop the drain, but DO NOT DO ANY REMODELING! Friends I have to make a confession. For too long I have allowed myself to be a Caretaker for Cornerstone, but that ends TODAY! It neither honors or glorifies my Lord to act as a caretaker for the church and it does allow you to be all God has called you to be either. The final approach is: c) Be an Undertaker. As I see it this is end role of the caretaker. If we are not acting in faith and believing God for great and mighty things in His church, then all we are doing is embalming the church and getting it ready for its burial. Just in case you need to hear this, I WILL NOT BE THE UNDERTAKER FOR CORNERSTONE CHURCH!! 5. I think that Satan's favorite tool to use against pastors is the fear of failure. I mean who likes to fail? No One! Someone once said, "The fear of man, the fear of the opinion of man, the fear of what other people think is a deadly trap for ministers." The pastor you need at Cornerstone has to redefine failure. Failure is not reaching a goal; failure is not setting a goal. Failure is not falling down; failure is not getting back up. Failure is not trying and not making it, failure is not trying. 6. I have some much more I want to say here but I cannot do this message in two parts so let me finish this point with this. I have an announcement. I have failed in the past and I will fail in the future, but I will not allow my fears to stop be from attempting great things for God. I have not really believed God until I attempt to do something that can only be done in His power. Trans. OK here is faith factor number three that you need in a pastor. C. God Uses The Person Who Expects The Church To Grow. 1. We all know this, but I will say it anyway. The person who says, "I Can't" and the person who say, "I can" are both right. My mom always said, "Can't never could" and I hated it every time she said it, LOL. I guess I hated it because she was right and who wants to admit their parents were right? Here is what Jesus said, "Because of your faith, it will happen." Matthew 9:29b (NLT2) The NIV says, "According to your faith". Either way God is saying to us, "You get to decide how your life will be blessed." And Jesus even told us that it doesn't require that much faith for great things to happen. He said we could move mountains if we have faith the size of a mustard seed. If this is true and I believe it is, then how microscopic must our faith be right now? I don't know about you but it's been a while since I moved a mountain and yet Jesus said it could be done with mustard seed sized faith. Frankly, it is more than a little embarrassing to me I don't know about you. 2. A leader should not let the impossible imitate them, but instead they should allow it to motivate them. Rick Warren says this, "Today's impossible problem is tomorrow's miracle." Let me share something with you that goes along these lines. This is not a problem, but it is something that seems utterly impossible. [] Tell story of Eric Cooper. Let me leave this point with this scripture. "Commit everything you do to the LORD. Trust him, and he will help you." Psalm 37:5 (NLT2) Trans. OK here is the fourth and final faith factor you need in a pastor. D. GOD USES THE PERSON WHO NEVER GIVES UP. 1. Jesus said, "But Jesus told him, "Anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God." Luke 9:62 (NLT2) Paul told us, "So let's not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don't give up." Galatians 6:9 (NLT2) The truth of the matter is that great people were ordinary people who don't know how to quit. You do not have to be a person of superior intellect or position in life to make a difference for the Kingdom of God, you just have to be a person who doesn't quit. You WILL get knocked down. That is not an if, it is a when. The question is will you get back up and keep moving forward. 2. Going back to that issue of failure that we talked about. A person is not a failure until they quit or give up. If we are convinced that God is in what we are doing and that we are following His plan for our lives, then we must not and cannot give up or give in. If God is in this then there are eternal souls at stake in this. God does not call us to temporary things. Let me remind you of what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount. "So don't worry about these things, saying, 'What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?' 32 These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. 33 Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need." Matthew 6:31-33 (NLT2) God tells us that He will provide for our temporary needs if we will keep our eyes on what is eternal. 3. I see two Vitally important factors in a leader or pastor's life. a) One is Integrity. Integrity is defined as being honest, strong and with moral principles. A person with integrity is someone who is undivided. They are not like the double-minded person James described, unstable in all their ways. The person with integrity does not put their finger in the air to see which way the wind is blowing. In fact, the person with integrity will more often than not have to face into the wind. A person with integrity is not without compassion and grace, but they will not use these at the expense of the truth. Jesus said the truth would set us free, but sometimes it has to knock us to our knees to set us free. Let me be perfectly clear. Since I am talking about the kind of pastor you need at Cornerstone. You do not need a pastor who thinks that the Bible changes with the times. That some parts of the Bible are just outdated and need to be ignored. You do not need a pastor who is not clear on what the bible teaches about Homosexuality, Transgender and Abortion issues. You do need a pastor who will love and reach out to these people, but who will reach out to them in truth. You need a pastor who will not, in the so-called name of love, usher these people into eternal separation from God. You need a pastor who will lay down in the road and say STOP don't go this way! OK here is the second factor. b) Humility. First and foremost, you need a pastor who humbles himself before God and does so every day. Nothing makes more people sick, except the one that's got it and that's Pride. You need a pastor who is willing to admit when they are wrong. Here is what the Bible tells us. "As the Scriptures say, "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble." 7 So humble yourselves before God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.: James 4:6-7 (NLT2) I never noticed this before, but V.7 tells me that when I humble myself before God, it gives me victory over the Devil. I sort of think that is important, but maybe most importantly of all V.6 tells me that if I have pride in my life God will oppose me. That is definitely NOT the kind of opposition I need. 4. Let me offer a few reasons why humility is important for a leader. a) You will be criticized unjustly, unfairly, and sometimes ruthlessly. Friends, just read your Bibles and see what happen to God's leaders. b) You will encounter problems that can only be solved through prayer. c) You will make stupid mistakes. d) Your dream or vision will be so big; you're bound to fail unless God does a miracle. e) Others will try to take credit for your work. Conclusion A. OK I will close with this. The kind of leader Cornerstone needs is a leader whose life is based on "Faith In God's Grace". We have already seen where Jesus told us we get to determine the blessing we have on our lives and it all revolves around our faith. 1. This is true for you as well as it is for me. We are seeing God do in our lives what we expect Him to do, and this is because we are supposed to be people who live by faith. So, what is our faith telling God he can or cannot do with us? Is our God capable of the impossible, or does He have to stop at the end of the Balance sheet? What I mean is do I say to God, "Anything is possible with you" or do I say, "This doesn't calculate, it does not seem reasonable to I won't attempt it." 2. There is not a lot in life that I have control over, but one thing I for sure have control over and it is this, "How much I choose to believe God." B. Let me recap for you the things you need in a pastor. 1. You need a pastor who has a dream or vision 2. You need a pastor who is willing to fail. 3. You need a pastor who expects the church to grow. 4. You need a pastor who will never give up. 5. I said this at the beginning, and I will say it again now. I believe I have these characteristics, not in their fullness, but I am willing to grow and learn and I am willing to experience failures because I want to trust God for big things, and I am willing to learn and grow from those failures. I think this is the pastor you need, and I hope it is the pastor you want, and I hope it doesn't betray my position on humility, but I think I am the man you need. If you are willing to have me, I am willing to stay until God says its time to go. Show video then communion. 2