[ Click here to go back to the main page ] Trusting Our Leaders
December 7, 2005 Greetings in the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ,

Perhaps it is good to remember Pearl Harbor Day as you consider this letter on TRUST. The over eleven hundred men who are entombed in the Battleship Arizona—now resting on the bottom of Pearl Harbor—trusted their fellow man. They trusted that their American military wouldn’t get caught napping. They trusted that their president and congress knew what was going on in the world. And perhaps more than a few trusted that the Japanese wouldn’t dare come all the way to Hawaii to try and attack the strength of the American Pacific fleet.

TRUSTING OUR LEADERS

Jeremiah 17:5 says, “Cursed be the man who trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm.” All throughout this process of the battle for the existence of our national bible college, I had a steady stream of comments on the web site such as, “If you don’t trust our leaders, then why don’t you just leave?” Or “I think we should trust our leadership since they are the authorities over us.” Another version of this same line of thinking is that we should be loyal to our leaders. I have even had a personal experience with one of our fellowship’s highly respected senior pastors (I respect him) who’s main concern with his employees is that they are “loyal” to him.

Before I progress any further, let me back up in Assembly of God history. I’ll begin with the very origins of the fellowship and then with my first A/G pastor. We didn’t start out as a fellowship but a scattering of Pentecostal outbreaks whose first attempts at organization were either bible institutes or large, evangelization minded churches pastored by some very strong personalities. Some of those “personalities,” the leaders of the fledgling Pentecostal movement, were either brought under reproof for erroneous teaching or were dismissed from our fellowship soon after it was formed. Our founding fathers, like E. N. Bell and J. R. Flower, thought that adherence to Scripture and the patterns in the Bible were paramount if we were to survive in those early days. They felt that “left field” theology would doom this Latter Rain and more importantly, be a black mark against the Name of Christ. In other words, our leadership didn’t trust itself to not stray from the narrow way. It was one of the very reasons that we held our first General Council! Bell and Flower, and other saints like them, felt that we needed to define our fellowship with Scripture (the 16 fundamentals of faith) so that our shepherds would have a target to shoot for. So that there would be no error or claims of ignorance.

Regarding my first pastor, I’ll never forget how often he said, “You folks in this congregation should not be taking my word up here in the pulpit. If you’re not bringing your Bibles to church every Sunday, and reading them every day of the week, to make sure that I’m preaching truth, then you’re wrong! You are setting yourself up for sin and error!” He was telling us not to trust him but to check him out! He was not the only preacher I heard say that in my early days in this fellowship. But, it’s been a long time since I’ve heard anything to that effect come from any A/G pulpit.

Our older saints and shepherds were still so close to their “other side of the tracks” sinful heritage, they knew that they weren’t worth trusting. Instead, they pushed each other to rely on the One in Whom they could Trust. God Almighty, our Rock, our Fortress, our Deliverer.

Sadly, we are now a mature, prosperous denomination with fourth and fifth generation Pentecostals. We are the very epitome of the Laodicean church who said, “I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing;” but God said of it, “Knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind and naked.” Read Revelations 3 prayerfully and see if the Holy Spirit does not council you that I speak the truth. We need to repent of our trust in ourselves and our leadership and give our loyalty and trust to the Only One to Whom it is Due: Jehovah God. This trust in our leadership has probably been both a cause and symptom of the second issue of trust.

OUR LEADERS TRUSTING IN GOD

Jeremiah 17:7 & 8 says, “Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD and whose hope the LORD is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters….”

When our fellowship began, and we were the poor Philadelphian church in Revelation 3, there was nothing to trust in except God. We had no rich deacons, no banks that would trust us with loans, no collateral, no big church buildings, no world famous preachers nor large audiences on radio or TV. We had nothing. Except the Lord God Almighty in Pentecostal power: the One who parted the Red Sea and let the Children of Israel walk across on dry land; and then drowned the mightiest army in the world in the same sea just after the last Israelite touched the other side; the One who spoke the Universe into existence and created our world in only six days; Who could have done it instantly but gave us a measurement of time we could comprehend! So powerful and yet so compassionate with His children.

Turn back to Him oh fellow Pentecostals! And shepherds in this once great fellowship, how will we understand unless someone preaches? And how will we listen unless you set the example? I am reminded of a story told at our national bible college by a young preacher who was asking God how to fix the many problems in the church he had just “inherited.” God told him to go without his salary for one year! Now this young preacher had a wife and small children and a house for which they had just signed the mortgage. Had God lost His mind? How was this going to fix the young pastor’s crumbling church? But, this preacher basically reverted to his Pentecostal ancestors’ status: he had nothing except his belief in the power of God. And when preachers cannot take the credit, God can get the glory. He said he will not share glory (Isaiah 42:8). If we are able to take it, He will not.

Please feed your sheep oh shepherds with a godly example. Do not be afraid to follow God where e’er He leads you. Has He asked you to do something impossible so that your congregation may see God move in His mighty power? Have you heeded in faith (remember Hebrews 11:6)? Are you willing to wait on God for the miracle or have you taken matters into your own hands? Have you gone to the God who owns the gold under a thousand hills or have you gone to the neighborhood bank? Have you appealed to Him who makes streams come from the desert or to your wealthy board member? Have you cast lots or have you conjured up enough votes to make it go your way? WITHOUT FAITH IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO PLEASE GOD. If your solution involves trusting in man, then it is not faith, and then we are NOT pleasing to God. Now is the hour to repent and to return to our roots of being wholly dependent on Jehovah Jireh, God our Provider.

And though I love and pray for our leaders, I do not trust them with my soul nor my Assemblies of God Fellowship. I trust God for both. And none of you should trust me with yours. If you do not check everything I say on this web site against Scripture and against documented evidence, then you are in disobedience to God’s command to “study to show ourselves approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” 2 Tim 2:15 This command had no time frame on it. It is a lifetime discipline. If you do not follow it when someone says “Follow me,” then you will be as guilty as that leadership if error is found in the camp.

For the Gospel’s Sake,

Brother Mike

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