11 No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. 12 And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.
-1 Corinthians 2:11-12, NLT
A good pastor understands he (or she) is at best someone who is allowed a role in pointing people to the real healer of souls–Jesus via Holy Spirit.
It troubles me when I hear stories of elders and pastors demanding obedience from people. This strikes me as a power-overreach.
Such behavior is abusive, in my opinion.
Watch out for churches who demand such subservience and avoid them like the plague!
If our Savior allows us to choose whether or not to serve Him, I think we ought to watch out for those who fail to relate to us in similarly open-handed ways. They are not behaving in ways like the Good Shepherd.
A good pastor understands this.
He or she “gets” that the choices are ultimately upon each individual to make. They understand they do not control others.
Being a pastor does not suddenly bestow this “super power” to run (ruin?) people’s lives.
We serve as guides and fellow sojourners on this spiritual journey together. The role of “Lord and God” is already taken.
Now, we sometimes need to share warnings to our fellow sojourners of dangers. However, that does not mean we get to make choices for them.
Pastors, we are advisers, not dictators!
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