The Snare That Entraps Many Pastors
There are numerous books, conferences, podcasts, and other options for pastors seeking to be the best shepherd, overseer, servant and leader of the local church God has placed them. I have read many, attended numerous conferences, taken copious notes, and listened to podcasts over the years and continue to do so. I have sought wisdom from the Lord and in learning from others who have more mileage in pastoral ministry than me. As has been said over the years by many, the moment you stop learning, you stop leading.
Yet, pastoral ministry is more than just a baptized leadership study. There are nuances that are not learned any other way than through personal experience. Presuming the pastor has responded to the call of God rightly, has prayerfully sought to serve in the location God desires, and continues to bring glory to God through his humble, God-honoring, Gospel-driven, and biblically qualified role, there remains very real challenges that could harm the man and the local church.
The pastor who serves well soon learns the hardships that come with the calling.
The challenges are often not visible to the congregation or the crowd in this era of platformed celebrity spiritual talkers. Therefore, for the many who surrender to the call of service in pastoral ministry, reality often crashes in upon them. For the excited and energetic church planter seeking to launch the new work soon and for the seasoned pastor who has been faithful for many years, there are two very real and seemingly unrelated issues that could cause you great harm, not to mention your church.
ARROGANCE
Just to be clear, being a jerk is not a spiritual gift. Being a jerk is simply…being a jerk. No whitewashing with titles like “man of God” or “pastoral privilege” will truly cover the sin of self-righteousness.
Much can be learned from great leaders in our world, but often those who are categorized as great leaders due to their ability to accumulate great wealth, lead conglomerates, or carry an outsized influenced over others are not those who exude Christian virtues such as humility, self-control, morality, and other items described as fruit of the Spirit of God. Of course, if the person is not a child of God, they will not have the fruit of the Spirit.
It is those who are children of God who should. Is this judgmental? Sure and it’s right to be judgmental about this.
For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? 1 Corinthians 5:12 (ESV)[1]
I won’t park too long on this idea of arrogance. Likely you know some pastors who just drip with such. When they arrive to your pastors’ gathering, it is clear they expect others to fawn over them. Sometimes, they come with an entourage (Not just their pastoral staff. There’s a difference.) with what feels like they expect others in the room to feel honored they were graced with his presence.
If that is how it is with other local pastors, imagine what it is like to attend that brother’s church? Just be sure you don’t park in his reserved spot.
BE AWARE: Sometimes biblical confidence is wrongly interpreted as arrogance.
Not every pastor who has been called arrogant is arrogant.
A confident, loving, biblically centered pastor may appear arrogant to some, but is simply standing firmly on the Word of God. He may be calling sin what it is and seeking to lovingly lead well without acquiescing to sinful actions or attitudes within the fellowship.
Not unlike the prophets of old, many pastors who address sinfulness within the flock often find themselves wrongly labeled.
In some cases, it is not sinfulness necessarily be addressed, but leading the church through needed change that can garner a pastor wrongly attributed labels. Therefore, what may be construed as arrogance is anything but.
FEAR OF MAN
If arrogance was a ditch on side of the road that could cause great damage to your vehicle if you slid into it, the ditch on the other side of the road would be “fear of man.”
I was talking with a brother about a pastor in another state whom I respect. This brother knows him personally and immediately said “Well, he has no fear of man.” That struck me. What did he mean by that? I mean, I think I know, but I rarely have ever heard that phrase used to describe a pastor.
It was clear this was a compliment. I wonder if this descriptor could be applied to me? I am not sure. At least I know it would not have been early in my ministry. Perhaps so now. I hope so.
The phrase “fear of man” is stated in the Old Testament.
The fear of man lays a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is safe. Proverbs 29:25 (ESV)[2]
As followers of God should not be driven by fear of man, but only by fear of God. God is safe. Fear of man is a trap.
The Bible pulls no punches when speaking about the fear of man. In Galatians 2:11–14, Peter changes his dining practices according to his audience. He eats with Gentiles before “certain men came from James,” but when they arrived, he stops, “fearing the circumcision party.” Paul calls this hypocrisy and rightly opposes Peter to his face, because his “conduct was not in step with the truth of the gospel.”[3]
I see far too many pastors slide into this ditch of fear of man and end up ensnared. Some survive…but do so in a weakened state that ultimately robs them of joy, keeps the church unhealthy, and dishonors God.
The fear of man manifests for pastors often as they face some within their church (or just one person perhaps) whom they feel ill-equipped to lead and thus, under intimidation or fear allow ungodly, and at times divisive practices to fester and grow.
Marshall Segal wrote of this in an article for Desiring God:
The fear of man often goes undiagnosed and unaddressed because of its subtlety. This fear knows how to wrap itself in the robes of love, pretending to count others more significant than itself, while secretly counting on others to fan the flame of its own conceit. The fear of man proudly proof-texts its weakness for people-pleasing: “I try to please everyone in everything I do” (1 Corinthians 10:33). But it quietly refuses to finish the sentence: “. . . not seeking my own advantage, but that of many, that they may be saved” (1 Corinthians 10:33). We often fail to confront, or even recognize, the fear of man, because it so often looks like love, and too many of us love to look loving.[4]
Jesus spoke of this fear.
“I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have nothing more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him! Luke 12:4-5 (ESV) [5]
The fear of man leads one to be a people-pleaser. Pastors realize that while they may have an office, a title, and a business card, some within the church will not view them as leader.
In legacy churches, a new pastor on staff may find this as a rude awakening. God places humble-hearted servants within his local churches. These men and women who love the Lord and seek to honor him are the best friends, brothers, and sisters a pastor can have.
However, sometimes there are those in the church who seeks to use their influence for self-gain (or self-aggrandizement) while holding onto to power in such ways that leave the pastor as simply the latest in a string of hired sermon-givers. Not only is this unbiblical, it is sinful and deadly…to the man and to the church.
This is why some churches gain the title among local pastors as “pastor killing churches.” While that won’t likely be painted on the sign out front, people know. And until the sinfulness is addressed, it will continue to fester, and the lampstand of God will be extinguished, even if the congregation continues to meet weekly.
Pastors must guard against fearing man, while simultaneously guard against becoming arrogant.
The fear of man can be a snare when we allow it to influence our decisions. Rather than obey the voice of the Holy Spirit, we opt for avoiding unpleasant interactions. It’s easier to heed the fear of man than to invite the possibility of consequences.[6] This may be why church discipline is avoided by many and often something talked about, but rarely biblically enacted by many churches?
The fear of man does not always reveal itself in weakness. At times it appears as overly aggressive pastoral leadership. This is far more subtle, but evidenced in far too many case studies of “manly” leadership that is simply the result of spiritual steroids disguised as leadership. Thus, in this subtlty, the pastor fears man to the degree he feigns wisdom, knowledge, and even strength in order to be respected and heard. The volume of the voice does not equal the depth of wisdom.
Ed Welch writes in his book When People Are Big and God Is Small:
“All experiences of the fear of man share at least one common feature: people are big. They have grown to idolatrous proportions in our lives. They control us. Since there is no room in our hearts to worship both God and people, whenever people are big, God is not. Therefore, the first task in escaping the snare of the fear of man is to know that God is awesome and glorious, not other people.”[7]
Since I have been serving in pastoral ministry for years, doing much wrong and learning as I go, I am convinced of these realities related to the fear of man.
Fear of man leads to excusing sin.
Fear of man leads to avoidance of sin.
Fear of man leads to ignoring sin.
Fear of man leads to a spirit of fear throughout the church.
Fear of man leads pastors to think they are modeling grace and love, while truly modeling faithlessness.
Fear of man leads to pastoral overreach.
Fear of man fuels spiritual abuse.
Fear of man results in a damaged pastor…and a damaged pastor’s family.
Fear of man results in living defensively.
Fear of man results in an unhealthy church.
Fear of man results in a corporate entity under the guise of congregationalism.
Fear of man steals joy.
Fear of man results in façades of godliness.
Fear of man does not glorify God.
Fear of man leads pastors to trade holiness for sinfulness.
Fear of man turns pastors into motivational speakers.
Fear of man strips the power of the gospel.
I wonder what our church and pastoral landscape would look like if we took to heart the command to avoid the snare of the fear of man, sought safety in God alone, and faced the temptation of seeking fame and celebrity influence as Jesus faced the temptations in the wilderness?
Perhaps this is what the next leadership development course should focus upon?
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[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (1 Co 5:12). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
[2] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Pr 29:25). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
[3] Higginbottom, Ryan. “The Fear of Man Will Crush You.” Open the Bible, 10 June 2022, www.openthebible.org/article/the-fear-of-man-will-crush-you.
[4] Segal, Marshall. “Fear Your Fear of Man.” Desiring God, 10 Aug. 2020, www.desiringgod.org/articles/fear-your-fear-of-man.
[5] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Lk 12:4–5). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
[6] GotQuestions.org. “How Is the Fear of Man a Snare (Proverbs 29:25)?” GotQuestions.Org, 15 Aug. 2019, www.gotquestions.org/fear-of-man.html.
[7] Welch, Ed. When People Are Big and God Is Small (Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R Publishing, 1997), 95.
