#1 leadership warning signs

Jesus warned us to not be deceived many times.  Today there is much deception in the church from leaders. I'm sure they exist, but I'm not sure any leader would intend on deceiving, it is more the case that they get deceived to become a deceiver.   In this observation I want to draw us to Peters encouragement to 'wholesome thinking' in 2 Pet 3:1.  He wants us to pay attention to the Prophets and the Apostles, through whom the Lord worked and spoke ie. the Old and New Testament writings.

1.  Read Jeremiah 6.  It is a warning of God's Judgement on Jerusalem.  From 6:13

13 13 “From the least to the greatest,
    all are greedy for gain;
prophets and priests alike,
    all practice deceit.
14 They dress the wound of my people
    as though it were not serious.
‘Peace, peace,’ they say,
    when there is no peace.
15 Are they ashamed of their detestable conduct?
    No, they have no shame at all;
    they do not even know how to blush.
So they will fall among the fallen;
    they will be brought down when I punish them,”
says the Lord.

Much of today's leadership speak messages that do not contain the warnings and admonishments of God's word.  It is a feel good gospel that has no sword that divides (Heb 4:12).  The reason is because they know a message that 'ruffles the feathers' may risk someone not attending.  Non attendance places a risk over the money that comes in from the tithe.  To make sure people stay the message gets watered down.  

The 'dressing of the wounds' is the message that puts plasters on deep cuts in the believers.  These cuts need cleaning, stitching up and bandaging.  What has caused the wounds?  It is the word of God, the Holy Spirit has exposed the flesh and called for holiness.  But the message doesn't call the believers out on it.  The seriousness of wrong practise and unrighteousness is not addressed and therefore the believer doesn't have to address and assess self.  

The elephant in the room of course is the way this is occurring in the New Covenant.  In the Old Covenant you had priests and prophets to speak the word of God and the hearers acted accordingly.  We shouldn't even have the 'priest-figure' at all.  So the error of today is the 'priests' are acting like Old Covenant priests by the way they posture as 'God's man or woman.'  They also masquerade as prophets by saying they speak the 'word of God.'  Then they don't correct the believers who gather to treat them like priests and in fact, many revel in the way this raises their status as a believer.  

There is an art in making believers feel pacified about their lives.  It is the skill to know all the right things that make westerners feel comfortable.  Don't tell them they need to die to self, but if you do tell them, don't market God's process (which is agony).  Don't tell them they have a responsibility to walk in the light of their status as a child of God (which is a moment by moment challenge).  Make their Christian life and success about an external Key Performance Indicators wrapped up in serving... ahem... the church.  Make them enter a 'we can become...' mindset where they will never suspect that if they are born again... they already have become!

I take this as a warning to me, that I will speak out God's word fearlessly and not compromise the message for the sake of gain.  That gain doesn't have to be financial, It can be the gains of the ego when we see many following us.  The Gospel is all about us dying to self in order to make God have all the gains, or 'glory' as it is.  May we all take God at His word and allow the scripture to break our hearts open.

Gary Ward