Have you ever had a caricature of yourself drawn by an artist? They take certain features of yours and exaggerate them. That nose you inherited from great Aunt Irene become the focal point of their art. By the time they finish their work, there pointing back at you is a nose so exaggerated no face could truly support it.
Every year at this time when new pastors are given their first calls into the ministry, the caricature artists who paint in words come out on the blogs. The pick out one feature of the ministry and make it the focal point of their work. They tend to exaggerate it to the point of novelty. People buy in like teenagers at the carnival.
I just finished reading one such caricature. The picture painted there was that of faithful pastor going to war with the rest of the Church. It revealed the wounds of the one who wrote it. He obviously has been scarred by people in the Church, laypeople and other pastors included. The caricature of the ministry crafted here was that of the ministry as a joyless march to martyrdom primarily at the hands of one’s own sheep. The author took the pain of carrying crosses and made it the focal point of his work. And there is truth surely underneath his exaggeration. Certainly the prophets and apostles were called to carry crosses in their day. Their modern day counterparts must as well at time suffer. But this caricature set the pastor against everyone else is an unscriptural way. It was as if there were no Christians left to stand with him. None who loved the truth. This caricature is like all caricatures ultimately a distortion. It is not a realistic picture of the ministry on whole. If it was, we would have to have to have a obligatory draft to force men into the ministry.
I am certain that the caricature I just read is mostly a reaction to another caricature often drawn. It is a caricature often presented by those seeking to lure people into the ministry who are not fully convinced they should pursue that course. It is the kind of thing you also often hear on the day when new pastors receive their first calls. Those painting this portrait decide to make the joys of the ministry the focal point of their art. They paint with words like these. “Love your people. They will love you. All will be peachy.†(Okay, the last part is my caricature of their own) And while that sounds lovely and again is undergirded with some truth, it also is a distortion of the real ministry. New pastors who soak this in often are blindsided when the first cross comes for them to carry. They are not prepared for it. Some search their entire lives for this dream placed in their hearts early on.
So what is the truth about the ministry? What is the reality that these caricatures distort through their exaggerations? Well, the ministry is a mixture of pain and joy. Pain comes from several sources. Sometime it is empathic in nature, as the pastor mourns with his flock in their times of trouble. Other times it is the pain of the cross for standing faithful against the devil, world, and flesh. The source of joys also though are manifold. Pastors are blessed to rejoice with their people in the high point of their lives. There is also joy in delivering forgiveness and reconciliation to the people of God and seeing the good God works in his people.
Is the ministry constant crucifixion? No. Is it constant bliss? No. It is the Ministry of the Word. Some hate the Word and so there is a cross. Others love the Word having been saved through it and so there is joy. That is that Ministry.
Well said, Phil.