Introduction

Church leaders in America face a plethora of challenges and too often do not receive the materials, appreciation, and encouragement they need. Pastors must consistently find ways to balance their church’s spiritual maturity along with their own individual walk with God, all while wrestling with an increasingly secular culture. According to data cited by Ryan P. Burge, “The percentage of religiously unaffiliated people had steadily risen since the early 1990s… A total of 31.3 percent of Americans have no religious affiliation.”¹ These are the so called “nones” – those who are religiously unaffiliated – which includes atheists, agnostics, and those who believe in nothing in particular. These numbers show little sign of slowing down.

And this is just one area to which pastors must respond. This does not include political divisiveness in the church, the ever-present problem of evil and suffering, unhealthy reactions to complex social issues, the rampant struggle of anxiety and depression, and pastoral burnout.

All followers of Jesus have a calling to help build up the Body of Christ and to be a light to those who are considering leaving or questioning the faith, but pastors are in a unique position of leadership. And part of leading well is being prepared and thoughtful in responding wisely to such a time as this. This resource is one small step to hopefully help and inform church leaders as they serve.

In what follows, we have a resource where each chapter is written by pastors, individuals with unique church leadership experience. Each author offers advice and insight in a particular area of need they have seen in the contemporary Church. The diverse topics and writers serve to speak to a wide audience in a variety of contexts. The hope and prayer is that this content will help equip and encourage various church leaders as they proclaim the gospel of the Kingdom of God and the enthroned King, Jesus Christ, to rising generations.

Let Us Pray: A Kingdom Posture in American Politics

by Drew Anderson

Can we follow Jesus and worship politics? No. It’s really the same idea Jesus teaches in Matthew 6 about loving God and loving money. You can only serve one or the other, not both. The issue in Scripture is not whether people are involved in the government of their day but how.

There is a fundamental question the Church must answer in our current cultural moment: Do we believe human governments are the solution to humanity’s problems? Or has God’s main way to bring his Kingdom to earth been obscured by something we don’t fully appreciate? If so, we find ourselves at odds with how Scripture encourages us to understand our role in the world.

Today, too many Christians in America have simply not been disciplined in the way of Scripture, a way that encourages us to live as citizens of the Kingdom of God within the nation’s government of our day. And this is why we see so much political idolatry and divisiveness within the Church in America.

What happens when Christians are discipled more by American political parties than by the American Church?

Their attitudes are not humble, and their actions are not holy. Their perspectives are not selfless, and their purposes are not sacrificial. Their vision is not eternal, and their goals are merely temporal.

This has created a major problem in our nation today. The conflict over politics is very real, and too many pastors and Christians fall into two camps in response to this reality:

1. Surrendering themselves to these wrong ways of engaging as a “means to an end” strategy in order to get the desired outcome
2. Seeking a “haven” from politics altogether and thus giving up on the purpose God has for his people in the political sphere

My hope is that we might look back to the Scriptures once again to see how we might be discipled into being followers of Jesus who meaningfully engage with the governmental structures of our day.

Lord, Have Mercy

When searching the Scriptures, someone might initially feel confused by what seems to be divergent examples and perspectives on the role of the believer in government. I would propose that we must allow prayer to undergird how we come to understand our role in government. Prayer is how we will also understand how to engage our government’s political process in the way Jesus did.

So, I will use the acronym PRAY as a means to explain how I have discipled others in a scriptural way of engaging in politics and encourage you to steal it and use it as well.

Prioritize God’s Desires for Humanity

We see the desires God has for how members of the human family should treat one another when someone messes up—especially when his people are the perpetrators of treating others wrongly. Proverbs 31:8-9² tells us, “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves; ensure justice for those being crushed. Yes, speak up for the poor and helpless, and see that they get justice.” He wants his people to “learn to do good. Seek justice. Help the oppressed. Defend the cause of orphans. Fight for the rights of widows” (Isa. 1:17).

This is why God is so direct with the nation of Israel about their treatment of others and the punishment they receive in response. “‘I hate all your show and pretense–the hypocrisy of your religious festivals and solemn assemblies. I will not accept your burnt offerings and grain offerings. I won’t even notice all your choice peace offerings. Away with your noisy hymns of praise! I will not listen to the music of your harps. Instead, I want to see a mighty flood of justice, an endless river of righteous living’” (Amos 5:21-24).

Remember His Purposes in Governing

God gives guidance both to those who govern and those who submit to governments. In fact, Jesus gave a visual lesson of this principle to his disciples.

“They sent some of their disciples, along with the supporters of Herod, to meet with him. ‘Teacher,’ they said, ‘we know how honest you are. You teach the way of God truthfully. You are impartial and don’t play favorites. Now tell us what you think about this: Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?’ But Jesus knew their evil motives. ‘You hypocrites,’ he said. ‘Why are you trying to trap me? Here, show me the coin used for the tax.’ When they handed him a Roman coin, he asked, ‘Whose picture and title are stamped on it?’ ‘Caesar’s,’ they replied. ‘Well, then,’ he said, ‘give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.'”
Matthew 22:16-21

This dual-truth does not cause us to resign ourselves to governments who perpetuate evil and govern in unjust ways. But it does inform our understanding of how God sees those who govern and those who are governed. It displays his desire for what the experience should be like–if lived out faithfully.

“Everyone must submit to governing authorities. For all authority comes from God, and those in positions of authority have been placed there by God. So anyone who rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and they will be punished. For the authorities do not strike fear in people who are doing right, but in those who are doing wrong. Would you like to live without fear of the authorities? Do what is right, and they will honor you. The authorities are God’s servants, sent for your good. But if you are doing wrong, of course you should be afraid, for they have the power to punish you. They are God’s servants, sent for the very purpose of punishing those who do what is wrong. So you must submit to them, not only to avoid punishment, but also to keep a clear conscience. Pay your taxes, too, for these same reasons. For government workers need to be paid. They are serving God in what they do. Give to everyone what you owe them: Pay your taxes and government fees to those who collect them, and give respect and honor to those who are in authority.”
Romans 13:1-7

Act Like Jesus for the Sake of Others

Whether intentionally and willingly or not, Jesus found himself right in the middle of the politics of his own day—dealing with both the religious-political leaders of Israel and the government-political leaders of Rome. He found himself at the intersection of both those political realities, and at no time did he retreat from that reality. It was, in fact, ultimately his unwillingness to back down from placing himself at the center of it all that caused them to seek and follow through on his execution.

“But Jesus was here to teach his followers a different way unlike anything they had heard of before. The King-turned-Servant wanted them to follow his example and to lead in a way unlike the governing authorities of their day. When the ten other disciples heard what James and John had asked, they were indignant. But Jesus called them together and said, ‘You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them. But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.'”
Matthew 20:24-28

Jesus managed to balance a mostly peaceful relationship with Roman leaders and a mostly prophetic relationship with Jewish leaders. Neither of them were his enemies, yet neither of them would follow his lead. He tells them in Matthew 23:23, “What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law– justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things.”

He was willing to recognize that Rome would not perfectly rule but unwilling to stop calling his own people to rise to the standard of God’s rule within the world.

Yield to the Spirit’s Transforming Work

Ultimately, our participation in government must always be tempered by the reality that no government can transform people nor set the world right. Paul warns us in Romans 12:2, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”

In this age of the church, it is specifically the work of the Spirit through believers in the lives of those around them that transforms, and we must remember that we are not of this world but still must participate in it.

“Look, I am sending you out as sheep among wolves. So be as shrewd as snakes and harmless as doves. But beware! For you will be handed over to the courts and will be flogged with whips in the synagogues. You will stand trial before governors and kings because you are my followers. But this will be your opportunity to tell the rulers and other unbelievers about me. When you are arrested, don’t worry about how to respond or what to say. God will give you the right words at the right time. For it is not you who will be speaking—it will be the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.”
Matthew 10:16-20

Christ, Have Mercy

Framing our engagement in politics through the acronym PRAY not only places the focus on our relationship with God but also gives us a practical place to start in all of our efforts to participate in God’s work in the world. Prayer is itself the beginning of such work. And the lack of prayer may be the main way we as Christians have abdicated our role in the world.

You may have heard this quote before: “Many professing Christians, for all practical purposes, live as functional atheists with little regard for God’s sovereign rule over their daily lives.”³

When we as Christians do not continue in conversation with and submission to God throughout our day, and especially throughout our work in the world, then we are professing a form of atheism with our lives.

In those moments, we believe that we are, in fact, the reason things happen and the “brains” behind such actions. We enact our wills, not his. We interact with the world on its terms, not on the Spirit’s.

When genuine prayer is not the foundation of our engagement with politics, then politics, not God, is our priority. Once we agree that prayer is vital to political engagement, defining prayer is also important. Many still misunderstand what prayer is and how we are to pray. It is not some theoretical concept. It is an incarnational and relational practice.

Prayer, especially in the context of political engagement, at its most basic level includes two interconnected realities:

1. Listening to God to better understand his character.
2. Trusting God with doing the tasks only he can do.

The first reality has immediate implications in how we treat those around us. Whether someone is praying or not as a part of their political engagement is quickly revealed in how they are treating those with whom they are engaging.

If you are listening to God in prayer, then you are truly listening to others to understand them as well. You are not talking over them to prove your point. You are not waiting for them to take a breath in order to interject your opinion. You are not tuning them out. If you are listening to God in prayer, then you truly treat others as God would treat them. You are not calling them names. You are not diminishing their hard-earned experiences. You are not treating them like the enemy (even if they treat you like one).

The second reality has longer term implications for how we engage in the political arena. Though we believe God certainly has a role for us to play in bringing his Kingdom to earth, there are simply some things that only God can do.

If we are trusting God in prayer, then we are hopeful about the impact of the Kingdom on our nation. We are not doomsday predictors. We are not ideological revolutionists. We are not militaristic “end times preppers.” If we are trusting God in prayer, then we are looking for the supernatural ways he is acting in the situations in which we are involved with the people with whom we engage. We are not looking for all the details of our plans to be the plan that’s adopted. We are not focusing on the purely societal issues but the very personal ones. We are not limiting the scope of God’s work to the words in a bill, a person elected, or the opinions of the court, but to the softening of hearts, the opening of eyes, and the transformation of minds across the political spectrum.

Spirit, Have Mercy

Can we follow Jesus and engage in politics? Not without prayer. So, let me stop talking about it and encourage you to use this time right now to stop. Let’s build a foundation of prayer in our engagement of politics even within these pages. Let me encourage you to start writing a prayer right now, as if you were one of the psalmists. Pull up the notes app on your phone or grab a pen and paper.

First, begin with writing about God’s desires for humanity. If you could express what God would want for all people as if it was written from God himself, what would that be? If you don’t know what to write, then search the Scriptures and ask God to reveal his heart for humanity to you. Pause to write that out now.

Second, name the ways humanity has messed up God’s desires and all the negative impacts that it has had on how we relate to one another. What is wrong with the world? Where are the places of pain in your life and the lives of others? How have we harmed one another instead of helped? Pause to write that out right now.

Third, express how you imagine Jesus would show up in our society today. Where would he find himself? Who would be surrounding him? How would he bring healing? How would he respond to those who hate him the most? Pause to write that out.

Fourth, ask the Holy Spirit to empower you to be like Jesus in the ways you just named. What are the aspects of your attitudes, thoughts, and actions that are least Christlike? How is the Spirit moving you to show the sacrificial love of Jesus on a deeply personal level to those you most disagree with politically? Pause.

Lastly, now that you’ve written out your own prayer in a pattern that matches the PRAY acronym, close your time with the very prayer Jesus taught his own disciples to pray:

“Our Father in Heaven, let your holy name be known, let your kingdom come, and your will be done, on earth as in Heaven. Give us today the bread that we need, and forgive us our wrongs, as we forgive those who have done wrong to us. Do not lead us into trial, but save us from evil.”
The Alba House New Testament (1970, tr. Condon)

At this point, you may want to stop and go back to take some time to reflect on what you just did and how you can repeat this pattern again in the future. My hope is that this exercise has begun a posture of prayer in how you engage in politics (or affirmed it if you were already engaging that way). Remember, our involvement in politics does not start with prayer and end with action, as if we stop praying once the “real action” begins. Prayer is the first action, an on-going action, and a final action amidst all of the other actions we will take to engage with the governing of those around us. Whether you are simply someone who will cast a vote in an upcoming election or share a political opinion on social media, or you are someone who will march in a protest or run for a political office one day, if you want to follow Christ while engaging in politics, the thing that must shape all of it must be prayer. And as you learn to live as a person of prayer, just as Jesus did, then the other actions you take along the way will begin to align with how God desires most to work through you.

God is not limited by our political system. He is not taken back by its short-comings. He has not been blindsided by the issues that exist. And he certainly is not enthralled with it as if it is the means by which he must accomplish his purposes. He is concerned with the people who make up our country and who make up the political system. And he is concerned with you.

His love being on full display to you and through you to all people would be his greatest political desire of all time. A relationship with that very God–the Father, Son, and Spirit–and conversations with him will be the way we remember that very love God has for each and every person. May we recommit ourselves today to be as passionate about prayer as Jesus was when he turned over the tables in the temple.

How to Respond to the Problem of Evil and Suffering

by Michael Williams

One of the more persistent apologetic issues that pastors must address is referred to as “the problem of evil.” This problem is stated by saying, “If a good and powerful God exists, why does he allow bad things to happen?” In other words, if God is all-good, he would want to destroy evil; if God is all-powerful, he could destroy evil. Yet evil still exists; therefore, an all-powerful, all-good God does not exist. Since there is allegedly no good answer to this question, this then counts as compelling evidence against the existence of God and of Christianity in general. While all worldviews must grapple with the reality of evil, I believe Christianity has the most satisfactory explanation for why evil exists.

There are several sufficient ways to address this problem, and for centuries, Christian apologists have given logically sound responses. In academia, it has been addressed so thoroughly that many believe it “is now widely admitted that the logical problem of evil has been solved.”⁴ In practical day-to-day ministry, though, many people still struggle with the reality of what seems to be gratuitous evil and suffering.

So how do we respond to this felt need? Below, I will unpack what it looks like, depending on the situation, to respond to those asking about the problem of evil. Regardless if we are giving an intellectual answer, a personal answer, or no answer at all, we must have the wisdom to use our time and resources properly as fits the situation.

When to Give an Intellectual Answer

Several years ago, someone – I’ll call him Charlie – came to me with a list of questions. He was interested in becoming a Christian, but first, he wanted to have some of his apologetic inquiries answered. Charlie was convinced that a person needed to commit intellectual suicide before he could become a believer. I could tell he was intelligent and prided himself on having answers. He didn’t like that he was feeling called to follow Christ, and he was looking for excuses to avoid this mindless religion.

Since I, too, love asking questions and searching the Scriptures for answers, I invited Charlie to ask me some of these quandaries. When a person like this asks for an answer to a question, he wants to hear a logically sound response. When asked about the so-called problem of evil, I offered the “free will defense.” The logical syllogism popularized by philosopher Alvin Plantinga⁵ goes something like this:

1. A world with moral good is better than a world with no moral good.
2. Only free agents can do moral good.
3. Even God cannot create free moral agents who never go wrong.
4. Therefore, it is not within God’s power to create a world with moral good but no moral evil.⁶

In other words, the only way to take away evil is to take away free will. If people were no longer free to choose their actions, it would take away the possibility of a world with love, courage, heroism, and other freely chosen virtues. A world without free creatures is a world in which no moral good is possible and would thus be a much worse world. God gives people the freedom to make their own choices. In his plan, that freedom is worth the potential for wrong choices, which lead to undesirable consequences.

In addition, God may allow a certain amount of evil and suffering, knowing that ultimately it leads to some greater good. We simply are not in a position to determine if there is a justifiable reason for God allowing some act of suffering. When Jesus died on the cross, I doubt any of his followers thought God was working to accomplish the greatest act of salvation in history, even though he was fulfilling the teachings they had been hearing directly from him. Those days between the crucifixion and his resurrection must have been some of the darkest days for those who had believed in him.

This reminds me of the movie, Bruce Almighty, where Jim Carey believes he can do a better job at being God than God can. He quickly realizes that he is too finite to understand all of the complexities of being God. Those who think they can come up with a better world than the one God created have the same Bruce Almighty complex.

I also told Charlie the story of Job in the Bible. God does not necessarily give Job a satisfactory answer to why he had to experience pain and suffering. Ultimately, Christians must trust that God has sufficient reasons for what he allows. Job did not have access to the insights we have into his life. Those who read the book are told of Satan’s conversation with God and God’s reason for allowing the suffering to occur. The takeaway from Job is that we all have a limited perspective.

What we are consistently told is that someone – God – will destroy all evil and make things right. Evil exists, yes, but God is working to reconcile all things through Jesus and his followers. In the end, God will be victorious over all opposition, including death itself.⁷

Later, I asked Charlie a question: If I give you a satisfactory answer to this question, will you then choose to follow Jesus? I hoped to call his bluff as I wrongly assumed he was just trying to stump the pastor. To my surprise, he said, “Well, yes, that is exactly what I want to do.” I explained to him that we will always have questions for God while on this side of Heaven but that we know enough about God to put our faith in him.

I had the pleasure of leading Charlie to the Lord that day. It was not merely the apologetic answers that drew Charlie to the Lord, but also God’s drawing Charlie to him. As Jesus says in John 6:44, “‘No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws them, and I will raise them up at the last day.’”⁸ By God’s grace, he allowed me and some apologetic insights to be a part of the process of drawing Charlie to himself.

Be Prepared Before the Trial Comes

I believe that if people have some compelling intellectual answers before they go through trials, they will be able to handle the situation in ways that do not cast as much doubt on their faith. At purity conferences, young men and women are encouraged to choose sexual purity before they are presented with temptation. Choosing to do right in advance will make it easier to say no to the temptation when it arises. The same idea is true in Christian apologetics. If the believer is trained to understand prior to tragedy how intellectually absurd it is to question the existence and character of God, then when evil and suffering come, they will be less likely to abandon belief in God. The more you know about God, the easier it is to apply this concept.

Of course, preparation only goes so far. We must not trade what is known for what is not known. You know that God exists and that he loves you and is working all things for the good of believers (Jn. 3:16; Rom. 1:20, 8:28). We may not know exactly why God would allow certain times of suffering because our finite minds cannot fully grasp God’s infinite Being. The thoughts of God are above our thoughts (Isa. 55:8-9).

Focus on what you do know about God rather than being so focused on what you don’t understand about him.

When one of my children asks me for something, I sometimes refuse their request. The younger they are, the more difficult it is for them to understand why their dad would tell them no. They assume that what they want is what is best. As their dad, I often have a different perspective on life, and I am aware that what is actually best for them is for them to have their request denied. My one-year-old son likes to crawl to the edge of the bed, but he hasn’t learned that gravity takes over when he gets to the end. When I pull him back from the edge, he gets angry with me. He thinks I’m just being mean. He does not have the capacity to understand why I’m refusing to let him fall.

Finally, we must recognize that times of suffering can be times of great growth in character. Jesus, James, Paul, and Peter all make arguments that ultimately, our suffering and trials are for our benefit.⁹ Anyone who has played on a sports team can make a similar argument. Running is painful, but it conditions you to play better on game day. Those who endure excruciating trials are honored and blessed by God. James says, “We count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy” (Jas. 5:11).

When to Give a Personal Answer

A close family member came to me the other day with an overwhelming desire to understand why God allows evil. His son’s five-year-old kindergarten classmate had just lost his life in a random act of violence. The burning question in his heart was how could God allow this to happen? This family member is a mature believer and a pillar of faith in the community at our church. What type of answers suffice for such suffering? We know that Christians do not grieve like those who have no hope, but we still grieve (1 Thess. 4:13). I quickly learned this person didn’t need an intellectual answer to the problem of evil–at least, not yet. He was processing an overwhelmingly tragic situation. The best thing I could do for him was to listen, weep, and pray.

We listen because that is what Job’s friends did well in their first few days. In Job 2:13, we read, “Then they sat on the ground with him for seven days and seven nights. No one said a word to him, because they saw how great his suffering was.” We weep because Romans 12:15 (NET) tells believers “to weep with those who weep.” We pray because James 5:13 (NET) says, “Is anyone among you suffering? He should pray.” Yes, we’re also told to be prepared to give an answer for the hope that we have, but it doesn’t say we must always give those answers immediately (1 Pet. 3:15).

In all my years of knowing this family member, I had never seen them so interested in apologetic answers. C.S. Lewis said, “We can ignore even pleasure. But pain insists upon being attended to. God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.”¹⁰ A tragedy like the loss of this little boy created a desire in my family to understand the nature of God more accurately. It made me wish they had asked these questions before the trial began. Yet trials are often what God uses to get us exactly where we need to be.

Trials test us, purify us, and create endurance in us to glorify Jesus.¹¹ The importance of testing is mentioned all throughout Scripture. Peter refers to some of the benefits of trials in 1 Peter 1:7 (NLT): “These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.” But when you’re standing in front of a man with a broken spirit, it’s probably not the best time to teach them about the benefits of suffering. That’s more like what Job’s friends did and were rightly reprimanded (Job 42:7).

Personal Pain Is Not a Sign of Spiritual Immaturity

Even the most theologically brilliant men of God struggle with the problem of pain on a personal level. We see this in Job, and we see it in C.S. Lewis. Lewis wrote an entire book on this subject called The Problem of Pain. It’s a brilliant work that proves Lewis had an incredible understanding of the apologetic answers to the problem of evil. Yet when Lewis lost his wife to cancer years after the book was written, it drove him to the point of absolute despair.

In response to his wife’s passing, he wrote A Grief Observed. This was so unlike Lewis’s other works, he wrote it under a pseudonym. It chronicles his journey of despair. Lewis, a man of such esteem, did not need more answers; he needed listeners, weeping, and prayer. In the end, Lewis kept his faith and continued his belief in God. The book allowed him to tell his story, and I imagine there were many people weeping with him and praying for him.

Rather than giving one cookie-cutter answer to those struggling with personal pain, I recommend coming up with a personal answer when the time arises.

It is more important that you point a person back to the one with the answers – Jesus – than to give the perfect answer. God is not impersonal and disconnected but lovingly takes on evil and our pain.

We see this in Isaiah 53:4-5 when he “took up our pain and bore our suffering . . . and was crushed for our iniquities.” The writer of Hebrews reminds us, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin” (Heb. 4:15). Show the love of Jesus and point people back to Jesus.

It is possible that God will allow you to be the one he uses to show comfort. Paul writes, “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God” (2 Cor. 1:3-4). As theologian Colin Kruse explains, “One human being cannot effect divine deliverance from troubles for another, but it is possible to share with another sufferer the encouragement received in the midst of one’s own troubles. The testimony of God’s grace in one’s life is a forceful reminder to others of God’s ability and willingness to provide the grace and strength they need.”¹²

What God did to get you through your own trials may be the testimony your suffering friend needs to hear. They, too, may have a chance to use their trial as a testimony in someone else’s life. We all have testimonies of times when suffering turned out to be a blessing.

When to Stay Silent

We know that Jesus did not always give answers to those who asked.¹³ We also know that Job’s friends talked when they should have stayed silent. Proverbs gives countless warnings about fools talking when they should be silent.¹⁴

James gives similar advice in learning to hold the tongue.¹⁵ Therefore, we know at times, the proper response to someone is silence.

It can be difficult to discern when it is best to stay silent on an issue, especially when we know we have good answers. But if you’re in a discussion with someone argumentative, it may be best to keep your answers to yourself. I’m aware that I’m in an argumentative conversation when the person I’m speaking with continually interrupts me and does not allow me to finish a sentence. Mark 6:11a says, “‘And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, leave that place and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.’” The answers to apologetic questions are best used on those who genuinely want to find answers, not for those who merely want to argue.

Another time that it is probably wise to keep your answers to yourself is when you meet an instigator. Jesus tells us, “‘Do not give dogs what is sacred; do not throw your pearls to pigs. If you do, they may trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces’” (Matt. 7:6). If ever there were a good application for this verse, it is with certain people on the internet. The internet is like having a conversation in a giant room full of people. It’s rarely productive and nearly impossible to genuinely care for the person with whom you’re speaking. A desire to be right, motivated by pride, can blind both sides, making a productive conversation nearly impossible.

Whether we are silent because the person we are talking to is not ready for an answer or we are silent because the Bible itself is silent, we must learn to inculcate this virtue. We can speculate as to why God would allow suffering, but we cannot know for certain. It is sufficient to know that God is good, and he knows better than we do. If he allows something to happen, he must have sufficient reasoning.

We also know that God will work out all things for good in a believer’s life (Rom. 8:28).

That doesn’t mean evil and suffering are necessarily good; it just means that God is powerful enough to take what the enemy intended for evil and use it for good.

It was evil to crucify Jesus, but God used it to bring about the forgiveness of sins for the whole world. That is quite a powerful God!

Closing: God Prefers Partnership

I love that God chose to partner with humanity in bringing about his greater purposes. God could have created the entire world and populated it fully on the first day, but he invites us into the plan. Throughout the entire Bible–from Adam being fruitful to Moses parting the Red Sea and the disciples making disciples–God uses partnerships. The same is true of the problem of evil. Experiencing trials gives opportunities for Christians to bring glory to God.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “‘Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven’” (Matt. 5:16). The good works that we do in response to the suffering of the world is our testimony to others that we serve a loving God. Evil and suffering came about because Christians chose to use their free will to sin against God. Now all of creation is subjected to the curse of death (Rom. 8:20). That same free will can be used to bring about so much good if we choose to partner with God.

This is not meant to be an exhaustive study of the problem of evil. There are many great resources for digging deeper into this subject. The hope is that some of what I have learned in dealing with this problem is useful for you and your ministry. Many aspects of the problem of evil are like trying to unscrew the inscrutable. Other aspects of it are quite clear. I recommend putting your energy into understanding what can be understood and trusting God’s character and his promises.

The Way of the Weak: Toward an Evangelical Pastoral Theology of Unity

by Nicholas Quient

Among many things not taught in seminary, the “you couldn’t have seen this coming” class is by far the most necessary.

In a world of instability, darkness, and radical conflict across nations and families, there is a deep need for reflection.

Living in a post-Covid world has shocked our senses and shaken our identities to the core to the point where we lack basic resources for thinking theologically about anything. The problem is exacerbated when one includes what feels like the daily deluge of cultural and political landlines that arrives on our social media feeds and our church doorsteps. Such a tsunami of often-unwelcome information is sure to leave one overloaded and deeply underwhelmed.

In a recent poll, Barna explored a rather basic question: “What’s on the Mind of America’s Pastors.” In that helpful and rather devastating survey, we see the rising cultural conversation about abortion and gay rights, and this is continued with a rather somber point as pastors listed “addressing complex social issues with biblical integrity” (58%) as another top concern facing the U.S. Christian Church today.”¹⁶ This is true even within Christian churches and theological debates over the ordination of women, eschatology, baptism, ecclesiology, and especially patterns of voting.

Having served in pastoral ministry for roughly four years, this question about having a theological framework for “addressing complex social issues with biblical integrity” is essential. Part of my experience in this matter comes from serving in ministry and being ordained in perhaps the most racially, theologically, and politically diverse denominations in the United States (American Baptist Churches USA).¹⁷

While such a chapter can only be seen as provisional in light of the vast and shifting sands of culture and church, I hope to lay out several key principles that might guide pastors in their pursuit of faithful witness to a world that is in desperate need for God’s glory (Rom. 3:23). In writing this chapter and offering some suggestions in addressing complex social issues with biblical integrity, I am assuming that Scripture is the primary guide and is the first and final voice to speak about our place in the conversation. As Paul writes in 2 Timothy 3:16-17, “All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that the person of God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.”¹⁸

Not every passage is directly relevant to every event or experience, but Scripture is eternally useful and necessary in every instance that requires Christian discernment and the application of wisdom. In this chapter, I will briefly focus on exploring how Moses, Jesus, and Paul all addressed conflict and complex social issues with biblical integrity, and then I will bring all of this data together in a tentative summary with some application. I hope my application can help guide the Church through the drunken, enraging, and mine-filled panorama of American politics.

On [Some] First Scriptural Principles¹⁹

Moses and Israel’s God

Social division is at the heart of the story of Israel. Born under bondage and enslaved by a hostile power, the subjugated Jewish community left their home in search of the God of their forefathers and foremothers. In the giving of the Law, Moses was attempting to navigate multiple threads and dozens of needles: How could they be holy in a land that was filled with cults, so-called gods, prostitution, and various demonic powers? As such, the giving of the Law was an attempt to offer a pattern of life, a worldview full of ethical responsibilities and duties (Lev. 18-20).²⁰ Moses gave little room for idolatry, forcing the Israelites to literally drink their burning, idolatrous words through their desecrated golden calf (Exod. 32:19-20).²¹ The worship of the one God was Israel’s gospel ²²

As it relates to God’s impartiality,²³ we see various pairings where the oppressed are included in God’s commands (cf. Deut. 12:12, 18; 16:11) and prejudice is shunned. Israel convened around a core identity, centered on Israel’s God as the sole object of faith in a wildly polytheistic world. “‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might’” (Deut. 6:4-5). If all else failed, Israel’s God and their love for this God trumped all other competing ideologies, and the hope was, in time, that the love for this God would yield the fruit of the love of one’s neighbor. Without this theocentric unity, Israel’s harmony resulted in interpersonal fracture, tribalistic schism, and eventual exile.

Jesus as Israel’s God

Moving from Moses to Jesus is always a Herculean hermeneutical task, but the New Testament does not seem to have such a problem (cf. Matt. 1:1-17; Jn. 1:14). Jesus is the “culmination of the law” (Rom. 10:4), signifying its telos and perfection.²⁴ And yet, Jesus said, “‘Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill’” (Matt. 5:17).²⁵

The Gospel of Matthew brings the Law of Moses and the Incarnation²⁶ of Jesus together, pitting him against some Pharisees. They ask him, “‘Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any cause?’” (Matt. 19:3). Leaving aside the complex discussion of divorce in biblical and modern times in the church (cf. 1 Cor. 7:1-16),²⁷ note Jesus’ response: “‘Have you not read?’” (Matt. 19:4). Rather than play their game, Jesus points them back to the foundation of all things: what God did for us (cf. Gen. 1:26-28). Instead of fighting about the actual words, Jesus took them a few steps back to where the conversation ought to have begun – with what God had done.

Jesus then clarifies his question with an incisive Christological assertion. “He said to them, ‘It was because you were so hard-hearted that Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for sexual immorality, and marries another commits adultery, and he who marries a divorced woman commits adultery’” (Matt. 19:8-9).

As the one who inspired the original text on Sinai, Jesus alone has the sovereignty to interpret the text for us.

As Christians, this confirms that Jesus is at the center of all things textual and experiential in the Church.²⁸

As the Head of the Church, which is his body (Col. 1:18), Christ is preeminent over all of our questions, interpretations, and conclusions. Jesus, in essence, challenges his interlocutors to ask better questions that arise out of the principles woven into the text of Holy Scripture. Such a principle is vital for pastoral wisdom in our present age and the future of spiritual formation, as I will suggest.

Paul as Jesus’s Apostle

Paul is perhaps the foremost driving force of all social conflict in the early church. One could point to Paul’s statements on Jew and Gentile (Rom. 9-11; Eph. 2:11-22) or his affirmations of women in leadership (Rom. 16:1-16) as support of this point. With the liberation found in Jesus Christ (Rom. 3:21-26), Paul has a new Christological paradigm that governs all of his mindset. He has, in essence, been so shattered by the Christ-event that he cannot help but see Jesus at the center of everything — including disputes in his early churches.

This apocalyptic liberation is seen in a multitude of ways. For example, the epistle to Philemon is rife with social tension concerning the status of a born-again slave named Onesimus, who was now stuck between the gospel and enslavement.²⁹ Instead of capitulating to Philemon, the householder, and returning his slave with no challenge to the slave-reality, Paul shifts the emphasis into the wider community.

Instead of writing a personal letter to Philemon (and thus detached from the church), he includes the church in the dispute: “to our sister
Apphia, to our fellow soldier Archippus, and to the church in your house” (Philemon 1).³⁰ Everyone in the community is gathered together to see how these profound differences between Christological liberation and the “old realm” (cf. Gal. 1:4) can be settled.

Paul does not settle for the old manner of doing this, merely repeating the sins and tragedies of the past. Instead, he calls the Church together to focus on how we now act under the realm of King Jesus (Philemon 6). And this liberation is fixed on the disintegration of the sinful practice of slavery and the inclusion of Onesimus as among the family of God: “no longer as a slave but more than a slave, a beloved brother” (Philemon 16).

This does not quite echo the baptismal formula in Galatians 3:26-29, but instead, Paul’s advocacy³¹ (Philemon 10) suggests equal placement between himself and Onesimus. “So if you consider me your partner, welcome him as you would welcome me” (v. 17). Paul identifies himself as the parent of Onesimus, probably referring to his conversion, and equates his own heart with that of Onesimus (v. 10-12). Thus, Paul demands that Onesimus be treated as Paul would be treated. As such, we see interpersonal identification, deep empathy, love for the other, and a distinct Christology at play.

“Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, assuming human likeness. And being found in appearance as a human, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross.”
Philippians 2:5-8

In calling all Christians to have the mind of Christ (self-sacrifice, co-identification, humility, and love), Paul is giving the church (and Philemon) a chance to participate in Jesus’ own greatest act: giving up his rights and privileges for the sake of the whole human race (1 John 2:2). Such a radical example and request threatens the entire substructure of how this cosmic order views power and control and focuses our hearts on the sacrifice of the cross and our co-crucifixion to the world (Gal. 2:20).³²

The Way of the Weak: Toward a Modest Proposal for Pastoral Perspicuity

Moses, Jesus, and Paul all had to deal with diverse cultural issues in their time. Yet their time was not so different from our time. Sexual immorality, greed, avarice, callousness, isolation, poverty— all things reflect the provision of the Law, the appalling persistence of poverty (Matt. 26:11), and the institutional reality of slavery. However, those who pastor and serve in the church at this time may notice several necessary and pregnant strands of evidence. How might this work when taken together? I suggest a few key words: witness, hope, engage, love, and listen.

First, as Christians, we are witnesses to the past. We believe that Jesus Christ was crucified and resurrected in human history. We affirm the witness of this reality. We can draw from the deep well of the Christian tradition and Scripture and see how they struggled and navigated the terror of their times. We are grateful debtors to their legacy.

Second, the Scriptures testify to the hopeful nature of the world in which we live. Paul’s language about longing and pain in Romans 8:18-23 is reflective of our own hope that God will — someday — restore our bodies and our world to its rightful place. As Christians, we are to be a body of hope, longing both for our redemption as individuals and the redemption of all things. This hope magnifies our desperate need for the empowerment of the Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:11-13). We are not isolated atoms in a world of Adamic sin and despair; we are sisters and brothers sitting at the feet of a loving God.

Third, how we engage the ideologies of the world must be reflective of the witness of Jesus: a soft heart for the impoverished, a steel spine for the sake of the oppressed. Moses did not shy away from holding his own brother and sister accountable for their sins. Paul chose reconciliation rather than coercion and force, but he did not permit Philemon to simply get away with “owning” Onesimus. Jesus drove his interlocutors back to Scripture and demanded they ask more biblical questions.

Our witness is that the Church is a place of refuge and accountability, where teachers and people in authority are not shown partiality (Rom. 2; James 3:1), and that the Church has the character and courage to call sin to account. James writes, “But if you show partiality, you commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors” (James 2:9).

Fourth, love for one another is necessary. The Church has become a house divided, with entire denominations splitting over key and contentious issues. Sometimes this is justified, but it is never easy or desirable. When one does not love the whole body of Christ, one has committed themselves to a ministry of “country club-ism,” where identicality trumps the true diversity of Christian unity (1 Cor. 12:12-28). Paul did not settle for separate churches for Jews and Gentiles — that has all been shattered by the Apocalyptic Christ, whose very body becomes our body, binding us to him and him to us (Eph. 2:15-16ff). James considered separate spheres of existence in the Church to be sinful, as if the rich and the poor have their own bedrooms in God’s household (Jas. 2:1-7). We begin with the confession that Jesus Christ is Lord over all (Rom. 10:9), the rightful, resurrected King who will set all things right (1 Cor. 15:20-28), and that the Spirit intercedes for us all together (Rom. 8:25-27). All of this flows from God’s holy love (Jn. 3:16).

Fifth, and perhaps finally for the purposes of this chapter, we are to begin our attitude and response through sincere and ponderous listening. Pastors, my sisters and brothers, we do not possess all knowledge. We aren’t perfect; God help us. Perhaps one day, we can be, but that remains part of the blessed hope (2 Cor. 7:1).

But notice Jesus’s posture toward those who challenged him. Rather than interject and “own them,” he listened entirely to what they had to say and then challenged the very arrangement of their questions. He gave them a chance to speak, and then he spoke.

Listening is powerful, especially in a world that is allergic to silence.

We have been crucified with Christ and immersed into his death with the hope that we will rise one day with him (Col. 3:1-4).

Listening to the needs and concerns of others, despite our political and theological differences, is no longer a threat when Christ is at the center of all that we do. Part of recognizing and navigating “complex social issues with biblical integrity” is reflecting on our own answers and questions with what Jesus said and did. Or, as Saint Paul wrote, “Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence but much more now in my absence, work on your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Phil. 2:12-13). So, let us model and imitate Jesus, “the pioneer and perfecter of faith” (Heb. 12:2) as we learn to address complex social issues with biblical integrity.

Understanding Anxiety & Depression from a Biblical Worldview

by David Wilson

The Church and issues of mental health are not often discussed in the same vein. The truth is, mental health isn’t discussed with frequency or even at a level of expertise in the clergy. Often, pastors find themselves in a place where they are ill-equipped, untrained, or even overwhelmed with the changing expressions of mental health issues. Additionally, the pastors of our churches are not formally trained in mental health areas or capacity. As church leaders , we are trained in biblical knowledge and literacy, providing wise counsel, teaching the Word of God, administration, and board management. So our ability to understand and discern what is affecting our congregation from a mental health perspective often comes from a lack of experience or knowledge.

Mental Health Issues Are Growing

We find ourselves in a time where issues of mental health are rising with almost everybody we come in contact with in our ecclesiastical ministry.

It can be assumed with a level of confidence that most people who sit in our churches on Sunday morning, attend a ministry function, or even help in youth ministry are struggling with mental health issues. As pastors, we now find ourselves in a new season of ministry where we need to dedicate intentional study to mental health areas.

Before becoming a full-time pastor, I had the opportunity to spend some time in the counseling and therapy fields. I was once a registered psychotherapist in Colorado, practicing cognitive behavioral therapy and experiential therapy. Additionally, my father owns a counseling practice and has served in addiction recovery, marriage therapy, and crisis therapy. It was a unique experience growing up with a dad who was also a therapist. Many times when I would find myself in trouble, my dad would have a good discussion with me instead of handing out some punitive punishment. Still, it helped me learn and understand the importance of being aware of what’s going on in our thoughts, minds, and emotions.

Mental Illness and Mental Health

It’s critically important for a pastor to understand that there are areas when it comes to mental health and psychopathy that we are just entirely unqualified to counsel. Most of these issues would be significant mental illness disorders, such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, dissociative disorders, self-destructive behaviors, and personality disorders. Essentially, we need to understand that there is a difference between mental illness and mental health.

For the most part, pastors can help in areas of mental health. This is where the majority of depression and anxiety struggles reside. However, when depression and anxiety become debilitating disorders, they progress into mental illnesses. And mental illness requires individuals with a certain level of training competency and, in my opinion, certification to be able to address it.

Unfortunately, pastors tend to find themselves in situations where they feel they can offer counsel without the expertise to provide appropriate care. More than ever, pastors need to establish healthy relationships with qualified biblical psychotherapists. These are essential partners in ministry and can help us learn when it’s reasonable to refer a congregation member to a biblical psychotherapist. However, that doesn’t mean that we can’t engage in helping provide good pastoral counsel to those in our congregations who are struggling in areas such as anxiety or depression.

Then How Can We Help Those Struggling?

When dealing with issues that require pastoral counseling, we should always turn an individual’s attention to Jesus as our Healer.³³ We use Scripture to enlighten, equip, and rebuke³⁴ as necessary within counseling settings. As a pastor, it is my job to allow the healing and reconciling work of Jesus to take place in the lives of those around me. So often, pastors fall into the mistake of thinking they are the one who finds healing and clarity for the hurting when, in fact, they are only a conduit and messenger for the healing of Christ.

Additionally, pastors regularly find themselves in over their heads when it comes to issues that require a more professional and competent approach to therapy. A pastor must know when to refer to an approved biblical therapist who helps facilitate the healing of Jesus in cognitive behavior, compulsory self-destruction, dissociative disorders, and trauma healing. I will not counsel individuals who have experienced abuse or trauma because I am unqualified to do so. However, that does not mean I will not do everything in my power and authority as a pastor to help advocate for and facilitate care for those I am unqualified to assist in counseling or therapeutic works. As a pastor, it is my job to advocate for the healing of those around me, both physically and mentally.

That doesn’t mean we get to stop paying attention to mental illness issues. On the contrary, I think pastors need to educate themselves in areas of mental illness. It is an important skill to recognize mental illness to help advocate for care and healing with those in their congregation. An excellent resource for this is to reach out to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). They offer quality training courses and classes to help understand and work with those who may have significant mental illness issues in your congregation.

What are Anxiety and Depression?

It’s no secret that the issues of anxiety and depression have been growing significantly among those we minister to in our congregations. And these two issues of mental health, in particular, have risen considerably since the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent political turmoil and economic fallout. So we find ourselves in a season of ministry where many people in our churches struggle with anxiety or depression, or even a combination of both.

And it’s not just those sitting in the church pews on a Sunday morning; the pastors and ministers themselves are also struggling with increasing levels of anxiety and depression issues. Feelings of loneliness or being overwhelmed are now commonplace within the clergy. So, it is my desire that this article will help provide some wise counsel, perhaps for your own mental health or maybe to help you think clearly and adequately in helping minister to those in your congregation.

What Is Anxiety?

A pastor should have a basic understanding of what anxiety and depression are. General Anxiety Disorder is an emotion that leaves people with tension and worry. There can even be some physiological changes that take place – most commonly, increased heart rate or sweating. Usually, individuals struggling with anxiety will find themselves having recurring thoughts or concerns. Perhaps they are replaying a time in their life when they found themselves in an embarrassing position or a particular failure. Sometimes, they’ll avoid situations out of worry and will risk isolation. It’s important to know that anxiety is different from fear, but fear often presents itself with those struggling with anxiety. The difference between the two is pretty simple. Fear is usually a response to something occurring at the moment; and anxiety is particularly worrying about current, past, or future events.

What Is Depression?

When it comes to depression, we need to understand that depression isn’t the same as sadness. Depression is essentially an exaggerated form of sorrow. Feelings of despair and extreme sadness can last for days, weeks, or longer. And additionally, depression interferes with individuals’ quality of life activities. It can present itself physiologically with symptoms such as an upset stomach, struggles with sleep, lack of energy, diminished focus, weight loss, or weight gain. Most often, individuals struggling with depression can experience an inability to concentrate on work and experience feelings of excessive guilt and worthlessness and, in extreme cases, thoughts of death or suicide.

Both anxiety and depression are treatable with good therapeutic practices and, if necessary, appropriate medication. Pastors need to know their limitations and when they can appropriately counsel from a biblical perspective. It is critical to know when they need to refer someone to a qualified psychotherapist or other medical professionals.

Other mental health concerns include anger, mood disorders, apathy, behavior, and emotional disorders. Mental health issues can affect anyone, regardless of status, gender, or age. Mental health issues are pervasive; it doesn’t matter if individuals have economic security or find themselves in places of poverty. Sometimes, they are apparent; and sometimes, they are well-hidden. In youth and children, changes in levels of excitement or acting out can be a good indication that there is an issue. Adults, however, are far better at masking what’s going on in their lives and presenting a different reality they would like you to see instead of their current inner struggle. Usually, when it reaches a level where somebody opens up and asks for help, these mental health issues have reached a level of pain and struggle that they don’t feel that they can mask and hide in their own strength.

Suicide Is a Real Threat

This is a necessary time to mention that suicide is a problem and is growing alarmingly among younger generations in our churches. Unfortunately, it’s challenging to identify those struggling with suicidal ideations. For example, we had a member of our youth group who recently took his own life. On the outside, he was a star kid who studied his Bible and participated in youth ministry, but unbeknownst to everybody except him, he was struggling with significant internal issues. This is why pastors need to dedicate an appropriate level of study to mental health.

If someone in your congregation or your circle of influence struggles with suicidal ideations, please do everything you can to advocate for them. If necessary, call 911 or the national suicide hotline at 1-800-273-8255. In most cases, suicidal thinking doesn’t just go away and requires ongoing help.

Pastors Struggle, Too

Perhaps you are struggling with issues of anxiety, depression, loneliness, or fatigue. Just because you’re in a place of ministry and leadership doesn’t mean you are immune from these struggles.

Please be willing to be vulnerable with those in your community and ask for help and advocacy. You don’t need to hide your pain behind your pulpit.

If you’re part of a denomination, reach out to your district office.

Most denominations have a counseling ministry. If you’re not a part of a denomination, please reach out and find good biblical counseling and therapy within your community.

Fix Your Eyes On Jesus

It’s my opinion that whenever we consider topics in the Church that have to deal with individuals’ health, be it physical or mental, we need to be attentive and empathetic to their plight. And at the same time, it’s our job as ministers of the gospel of Jesus Christ to point people to Jesus in all their circumstances. Ultimately, it’s Jesus who made propitiation for healing for us. We know that “by his wounds we are healed.”³⁵ Therefore, we must remember what the Bible teaches about illness and healing.

In our pastoral ministry, those struggling with an illness often request us to lay hands on the sick and pray for their healing.³⁶ It’s easy for us to do this when it comes to issues of physical problems, such as illness, an injury, a debilitating accident, or a hospitalization. Still, we can also pray for healing over those with mental health issues. We can confidently act as James chapter five instructs us to and lay hands on those asking for healing as they submit themselves to the church’s elders. We can ask for the recovery and healing of Jesus to come upon them.

I think an appropriate theology of healing is essential. Whenever we talk about helping to serve in this particular area of ministry, it is vital to remember that all illness entered the world through sin.³⁷ It is also important to note that just because people sin doesn’t mean they get sick, but we do know that the source of all sickness and death came from the fall of man. This is why we approach Christ as our Healer. He is the only one who can take away the burden and punishment of sin.³⁸ This biblical teaching is why we need to help people fix their eyes on Jesus whenever they go through illness or injury. Through Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, provision for healing exists.

Our Practice of Care Should Be to Help the Individual

So what do we do when we find ourselves sitting across the desk, in a prayer meeting, or even on a Sunday morning when an individual in our congregation mentions that they are struggling with anxiety or depression? We approach them with love;³⁹ we offer to pray for them; we ask for the Lord’s healing to come upon their lives; and then we start a relationship with them.

Pastoral follow-up is necessary. Individuals struggling with mental health disorders also find themselves struggling with receiving the message of love that Scripture has for them. So we need to serve and help reassure those individuals and provide a constant reminder that God loves them despite how they feel.⁴⁰ They need to be regularly reminded of and have prayed over them the truth that God loves them in spite of their struggle.

Often, individuals struggling with mental health issues, such as anxiety or depression, ask why they are struggling with these issues if God does love them. What have I done wrong to deserve this type of struggle? Is it somehow my fault that I hurt so much? Will I ever know happiness? These are genuine questions that individuals will ask themselves. At the same time, people struggling with their mental health issues receive bad advice or lousy counsel. Unfortunately, they can also be blamed for their struggle. Friends, family, or well-meaning individuals will say something to the effect that they are depressed because they’re lazy. Or they’re living with anxiety just because they’re a “worry worm.” Perhaps they have been told that their faith isn’t good enough or that they just need to pray harder. This can be incredibly frustrating, as it doesn’t recognize the pain in which individuals are living; it only tries to find a reason for the pain.

Mental health is a very nuanced and subjective area that most often requires a deeper level of care and therapy in addition to biblical counsel. Understanding appropriate theology is important for individuals going through hard times to know that God loves them no matter what.

God wants to see them healthy and healed, and at the same time, God can use their struggle for their sanctification and perfection.⁴¹

This is why people need to be a part of a healthy Christian community receiving wise Christian counseling. Ultimately, a pastor can help individuals fix their eyes on Jesus⁴² instead of on their struggle. Those struggling with mental health issues, such as anxiety or depression, tend to make their problem an idol in their lives and become a primary focus. It’s always on their minds, and rightly so, because they are living with pain.

A Few Points To Remember

1. The first is to know that we are in an unprecedented season of growing mental health issues and disorders in our congregations. And yes, even pastors and ministers are struggling.
2. Second, there is a difference between mental illness and mental health. Most often, it is the case that pastors are ill-equipped to handle issues of mental illness. Pastors need to educate themselves on various mental illnesses and build referral relationships when those in the church need a deeper level of care. We must advocate for the healing and care of those to whom God has allowed us to minister.
3. Third, anxiety and depression are real struggles, but most often than not, they are treatable. Again, this is where a referral to a good, biblically grounded psychotherapist or another medical professional is a wise pastoral practice.
4. Finally, we must remember that because of Jesus, we can know healing in our lives. We can trust that he will make all things work together for our good.⁴³ Sometimes, that involves us enduring things that help with our sanctification. But ultimately, as pastors, it’s our job to help individuals have their gaze fixed “on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of their faith.”⁴⁴

We should counsel anyone who begins this healing journey–be it physical or mental–to seek and know Scripture. It is our job as pastors to lift the name of Jesus⁴⁵ in every circumstance in which we find ourselves ministering and helping people fix their eyes on Jesus amid their struggle, while not ignoring it. As we advocate for healing and care, we mustn’t forget that it begins and ends with Jesus.

Pastoral Burnout

by Jason Barker

We stared at each other from opposite sides of a table in a hotel room in Palm Springs, California, in the summer of 2017. We had been married for nearly seven years, and neither of us knew how to start a conversation that very much needed to take place. We were at our church’s annual ministers’ retreat, and while the other couples were exploring the city together on dinner dates, we had stayed in our room because we simply didn’t have the energy to continue pretending life was okay. In fact, my wife only agreed to join me for the night because it was her birthday, and we worried what others would think if we didn’t spend it together. Would I lose my job at the church if people knew how bad things really were?

We made awkward small talk for a few minutes. When we had run out of distractions, we began to talk about our terrible fight the night before when we had both said unthinkable things to the other, words we both still regret. Eventually, we arrived at the topic of conversation we were each dreading but could not escape: When would I move out of the house? We weren’t calling it quits. We simply knew what we were doing wasn’t working, and we needed space and time to get help. By the end of the night, we were far from okay, but we committed not to separate and to find help.

Looking back, that conversation set us on a path toward reconciliation and restoration, and I will always be grateful for it. In the months that followed, we saw a marriage counselor and worked to overcome the wounds, stressors, and poor decisions that had characterized our years together. The deeper I dug, however, the more it became clear there was something else at the root. I harbored a dissatisfied longing that I couldn’t name.

As we healed, I began to understand my problems were larger than a nearly failed marriage, and my marital stress, among other issues, stemmed from that deeper, more troubling unhealthiness in my life. But what was it? Physically, I was unwell and had endured illness after illness, in part because I consistently neglected my health in favor of extra hours at the church. Relationally, I was a disaster, as I didn’t devote time to my friends, and I kept church members at arm’s length so they wouldn’t see who I really was when it wasn’t Sunday morning. Furthermore, I was hurt or irritated by some aspect of ministry nearly every day, and I consistently brought that frustration home with me. I knew that my wife and kids were getting whatever little I had left to give, and they were suffering because of it. Those all felt like symptoms, though, and still not the root cause.

Collectively, those problems left me disillusioned and even angry at the church for the toll I believed it had taken on my life. I saw no way to move past them without leaving ministry behind. God had called me to be a pastor, however, so taking a secular job wasn’t an option. I was overcome by hopelessness because ministry wasn’t what I thought it would be. The truth was, I was suffering from pastoral burnout, and I had been for months, if not years.

I didn’t recognize my true condition then, but with a few years of distance between that season and now, it’s become crystal clear. Had I known then what I understand today, I believe I could have made different decisions and avoided the challenges that stemmed from my ineffectiveness and despair.

In a recent Barna survey, forty percent of the pastors responded that pastoral burnout is a major concern in the U.S. today.⁴⁶ We must find solutions for this problem.

What is Pastoral Burnout?

John Henderson notes, “Pastoral burnout could be defined as the moment or season when a pastor loses the motivation, hope, energy, joy, and focus required to fulfill his work, and these losses center upon the work itself.”⁴⁷

In other words, pastoral burnout is a condition that grows not out of life’s many other griefs and frustrations, but specifically out of dissatisfaction with the unexpected realities of the work of ministry.

Pastoral burnout, then, is largely a product of unmet or unrealistic expectations. In my case, even though I knew the job would not be nine-to-five, the hours were far longer than I anticipated. When I graduated seminary, I envisioned church members being grateful for my devotion, yet often, they were publicly critical of my shortcomings. What I thought would be time spent quietly studying in preparation for sermons and lessons was instead countless hours devoted to administrative tasks and manual labor upon the building. I expected a life full of deep, meaningful friendships, and what I received instead was hundreds of acquaintances who barely knew me at all.

With these things in mind, we can define pastoral burnout as a complex collection of negative symptoms that stem from a pastor’s unmet expectations for life in ministry and lead to a deep and pervasive dissatisfaction. Perhaps you can identify. Joys become drudgeries when service becomes compulsory. For pastors, the disappointment is possibly even greater because they cannot walk away from their work as a volunteer may do when the intrinsic rewards are no longer worth the difficulty. The pastor’s income and the wellbeing of his family are dependent upon his continued service, so he continues to serve, however unwillingly and ineffectively.

The Causes of Pastoral Burnout

With our definition in hand, we now can explore the causes of pastoral burnout. The causes are centered on the pastor’s own unmet expectations, which fall into three general categories.

The Difficulty of Ministry

I once overheard two deacons joking (at least, I hope they were joking!) that they couldn’t understand why the pastor looked so tired when he only worked on Sundays and a half-day on Wednesdays. Surely, no pastor enters ministry with the expectation that the work will be that easy, but the most difficult parts of ministry are often surprising. Some aspects of ministry are physically challenging, but most are emotionally and spiritually draining. Preparing a sermon requires intense focus; but officiating the funeral of an infant, child, or teenager stretches one to the breaking point. A forty-hour work week is a light week, comparatively, but the greater challenge comes when the pastor must endure gossip and criticism from the ones he considered his friends.

The Loneliness of Ministry

Leading change is lonely work. Leading a church means leading change. After all, the Christian life is characterized by change more than anything else. The gospel changes us from God’s enemies to his children, and the Holy Spirit changes us to be more like Christ through the process of sanctification. Likewise, God intends that churches mature to reflect the God they worship. Change, even if it is understood to be necessary, is almost always unpopular. So the pastor’s job often consists of making unpopular decisions and leading people through the painful process of growth. The allies and co-laborers who promised to be by his side can abandon him when the road ahead requires too much of them.

The Cost of Ministry

Jesus assured his disciples that the Christian life would be costly when he said, “‘If anyone wants to come after Me, he must deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me’” (Luke 9:23).⁴⁸ Pastors understand this hard truth in a unique way as they are often required to make additional sacrifices. While we hope that churches endeavor to pay their pastors a fair salary, the National Association of Evangelicals reported in 2017 that “50 percent of pastors receive compensation under $50,000 per year, even though many of them have advanced degrees.”⁴⁹ Beyond the financial cost, however, pastors spend a significant amount of time away from their families, and when they are at home, they are often distracted or exhausted. These costs, and others, add up to a significant total that likely was not expected.

The Symptoms of Pastoral Burnout

The issues that result from pastoral burnout are as significant as the root causes. While no two cases are identical, several symptoms are common to the underlying problem. If we can understand how pastoral burnout often displays, we can be on guard to recognize it before it has reached its full maturity and wreaked havoc in our lives.

Emotional Fatigue

According to 1 Timothy 3:2, pastors should be sober and self-controlled, not prone to emotional instability. While ministry does require a certain emotional steadiness, we must not overlook the fact that the work of ministry is often full of the heights of joy and extremes of sadness. Sometimes, a pastor will visit a church member’s newborn in the maternity wing and then head two floors up to support a husband who is watching his wife of fifty years slip from this life to the next. To pastor is to pour your heart into a sermon only to have your theology questioned and your delivery critiqued. Caregiver fatigue, low self-confidence, and a sense of failure are regular companions of the pastor who has burnout bubbling beneath the surface.

Mental Health Disorders

According to a Johns Hopkins report, an estimated twenty-six percent of Americans over the age of eighteen will suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder, including clinical depression, each year.⁵⁰ Pastors are not immune to these conditions, yet they are often expected to remain unimpacted by them. The emotional stress associated with pastoral ministry–combined with long hours, lack of sleep, and physical inactivity–can lead to anxiety, depression, and insomnia, among other disorders. These all result from and contribute to burnout.

Decreased Physical Health

Mental and emotional stress manifest themselves in our bodies, leading to exhaustion, reduced immunity, and physical illness. If those weren’t enough, obesity, which often has ties to stress, is a growing problem among pastors. Lifeway Research reports that seventy-five percent of American pastors are overweight, with many classified as obese.⁵¹ These physical problems compound the effects of burnout and heighten its impact.

Spiritual Unease

Although pastors are expected to be the most spiritually mature of their congregation, pastoral burnout often leads to a faith crisis of some kind. When the church isn’t growing fast enough, when key influencers cannot be aligned in a productive direction, or when the job becomes insecure for any of a number of reasons, a pastor can begin to doubt the call to ministry or even God’s goodness and provision. During a spiritual crisis, a pastor is unable to preach, provide care, and lead to the best of his ability, which furthers the crisis itself.

Relational Difficulties

As I can attest to personally, pastoral burnout greatly diminishes your capacity for relationships. When combined, the burdens of emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual unhealthiness leave you with very little to give to others, even those who matter most. The tension of disappointment in ministry carries over into the rest of life; and spouses, children, friends, coworkers, and church members feel the effects of our frustration. The resulting loss of trust among loved ones only makes matters worse.

Loss of Joy

No one becomes a pastor hoping to spend their days visionless and miserable. Nevertheless, many pastors land in a place of despair because of the difficult circumstances they have faced in ministry.

The excitement they once felt at the prospect of preaching, serving, leading, and sharing the gospel gives way to frustration at the relentless pace and sometimes disappointing results of hard work. The path from joy to discouragement is a short one if we are not careful.

Overcoming Pastoral Burnout

Research backs up the assertion that pastors considering leaving ministry is a substantial problem in the Church today. A separate Barna survey revealed that as of March 2022, forty-two percent of pastors had considered leaving ministry within the past year.⁵² How can pastors come back from the edge, overcome burnout, and reengage in ministry with full hearts? The following solutions may prove helpful to the pastor on the verge of burning out.

Clarify Expectations With Your Congregation

Our definition notes that unmet expectations are at the heart of the problem. When a pastor expects more from a congregation than they are prepared to deliver–whether that be more graciousness, more partnership and participation, or even more respect–disappointment is inevitable. Conversely, when a congregation expects more time and availability, a specific theology, or a different style of preaching and the pastor doesn’t change to meet those expectations, their dissatisfaction will not stay hidden for long.

Being on the same page with your congregation is important, so clarifying what the people desire from you and what guidelines you would like in place is paramount. The reality is, in the absence of clearly expressed expectations, people will make up their own based on what they think is fair. When that happens, conflict is lurking around the corner.

Build a Team Around Yourself

Scripture is filled with examples of people doing ministry side by side. In Mark 6:7, we read of Jesus sending the disciples out in pairs. Later in Acts 3, Peter and John heal the lame beggar, speak to the people, and get taken into custody together. Paul journeyed with Barnabas, Mark, and others who supported him and made the work bearable. Although we read of Philip ministering to the Ethiopian eunuch in Acts 8, solo adventures are the exception and not the rule in Scripture.

Today’s pastors would benefit from following this example, seeking partners in ministry to help carry the load. Not all churches are structured to be led by a plurality of elders, and others cannot afford multiple paid staff members; but all can provide co-laborers to lock arms with their pastor in the good work before them. Pastors simply need to seek them out and help develop them into spiritual leaders.

Take Time Off

A primary benefit of having a ministry team is the ability to take time away from church responsibilities. Paid vacation time is a part of most pastoral compensation packages, and many churches today have a sabbatical program that allows pastors extended time off each year or every seven years. Churches that offer neither should examine their compensation practices and bring them up to date.

However, a pastor must actually use the vacation hours and take a break from the nonstop responsibilities of ministry leadership in order to avoid burnout or recover from it. Ideally, the time off will span the course of the weekend as well, allowing time to sit under another pastor’s teaching and be refreshed by Christian fellowship in a different congregation. During the time off, avoid working on future sermons; thinking through ministry priorities; planning out future content; or addressing emails, phone calls, and other ministry responsibilities. Working throughout your vacation betrays the church’s purpose for granting the time away in the first place.

Find a Mentor

When I was a new seminary graduate, I was hired to work as a minister-in-residence at a large church. At that point, Dr. Bill Bryan entered my life. He was a brilliant champion of Sunday school and an accomplished pastor and leader. More importantly, he was kind, generous with his time, and felt a special calling to mentor young pastors early in their ministry. I cannot describe how much I have benefited from his influence or how much I have missed his encouragement since his passing.

Although we are surrounded by influential leaders while in seminary or Bible college, once in the field, those relationships can be difficult to find. Mentors are essential because their wisdom and experience are invaluable, especially when we need to be reminded of the joys of ministry while we are experiencing the hardships. As we are reminded in God’s Word, “One who walks with wise people will be wise” (Prov. 13:20a).

Invest In Friendships Inside and Outside the Church

At some point along the way, I was advised to maintain a healthy distance from church members because getting too close would undermine my ability to lead them. One of my biggest regrets is following that advice for years. In doing so, I made ministry far more difficult and lonelier than it should be, and I robbed myself of God’s greatest gift to Christians outside of the Bible: the Church. We were created with an innate longing for community, and when we are reborn in Christ, Christian community plays an essential role in our growth as disciples. The call to pastor does not negate the need for meaningful relationships. Friends who are a part of the congregation can celebrate victories in the church with the pastor, while friends who are outside of the congregation can be a listening ear when the pastor needs to vent or receive counsel about ministry.

Look to Christ for Your Identity

In his book Dangerous Calling, Paul David Tripp discusses pastoral idolatries, the responsibilities of ministry that a pastor looks to in order to find his self-worth and personal peace. He writes, “I am convinced that what we often call ‘ministry burnout’ (a term I don’t think is particularly helpful) is often the result of a pastors’ seeking in their ministry what cannot be found there, and because it can’t be found there, they end up weary and discouraged.”

If we are looking to our ministry to find our identity, we will never be secure in what we find because ministry has highs and lows. If we are looking to ministry to find peace, we will be consistently disappointed because the pace of ministry as well as its results are often inconsistent. We seek in ministry that which we know can only be found in Christ, the one who died to make us new creations and who supplies rest to the weary.

Remember Your Calling

The circumstances of each pastor’s call to ministry are unique, but every call shares at least one thing in common: the assurance that because God has called, he will be faithful to sustain. Christ’s assurance to his disciples in the Great Commission certainly applies to the call to pastoral ministry. “‘Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to follow all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age’” (Matt. 28:19-20).

Pastor, there will come a day in ministry when you feel you can’t go on. There will come a day when you doubt if you should. You will have seasons in which you don’t see fruitfulness; and you want to run, hide, and do anything else with your life.

Never forget that Jesus is with you. Jesus has called you, commissioned you, and sent you out to serve.

Most importantly, he has promised that he will be with you always, for all the days of your life, until that last day comes when you go to be with him. There is no greater assurance in life than the presence of God promised to his children and servants. Your calling assures you that you are not alone.

The Blessing of Faithful Service

Pastoral burnout is a frequent topic of discussion today, but it is hardly a new phenomenon. The Church has had pastors in distress for as long as it has had pastors at all. Perhaps the modern-day emphasis on spiritual and emotional well-being has brought the discussion to the forefront, but pastors have battled against ministry fatigue and the temptation to quit the fight or remain in service unwillingly for nearly two thousand years.

We see clear evidence of this in Scripture. “Therefore, I urge elders among you, as your fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and one who is also a fellow partaker of the glory that is to be revealed: shepherd the flock of God among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion but voluntarily, according to the will of God; and not with greed but with eagerness” (1 Peter 5:1-2). While we don’t know the specific details or people to whom Peter refers, we safely can assume that people in the early church were serving reluctantly, likely under many of the same burdens we face today, and that was unacceptable.

The battle to serve with joy most certainly will continue until Christ returns. Ministry burnout, however, must not triumph. Pastors leading in spiritual warfare cannot afford to fight while hamstrung by exhaustion, fear, and doubt. They must seek solutions and counsel to overcome their burnout and reengage the work to which God has called them.

While Peter’s warning to pastors is evident, his encouragement to them remains. “When the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory” (1 Peter 5:4). Pastors are blessed by their ministries in the here and now, but when Jesus returns, they will receive an extra reward for their faithfulness. Then, in grateful worship, they will place the crown before God’s throne, an additional act of worship to the one they have so loyally served during all the days given to them (Rev. 4:10).