Disqualified

 1Ti 3:2  A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach; 

1Ti 3:3  Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre; but patient, not a brawler, not covetous; 

1Ti 3:4  One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity; 

Have you Ever been drunk? Disqualified.

Have you had a child go astray (apparently some count this after they move out too)? Disqualified.

Lost your temper? Disqualified.

Worried about the money the church can pay you? Disqualified.

Had a church split in your ministry? Disqualified.

Divorced (even before your ministry began)? Disqualified.

Blameless? not a one of us can achieve that. Disqualified.

Pastor of more than one church in your career? That does not present the picture of Christ, one man one church. Disqualified.

Jack Hyles would have been disqualified, for his son's actions, and multiple pastorates.

Charles Spurgeon would have been disqualified for his cigar smoking.

Billy Sunday would have been disqualified for his temper and impatience.

D.L. Moody, John the Baptist and Curtis Hutson would have been disqualified, no Seminary education. They didn't have the proper training or teaching or connections, not even a high school education for D.L Moody.

Abraham would have been disqualified, Adultery, and deception.

Peter would have been disqualified. Impetuous, temper, and denying Christ spectacularly, not to mention dismemberment..

Paul would have been disqualified. Murder and a lot of it.

Jonah's Revival would have been disqualified, for he was incorrectly dressed, and ran from God.

John Mark left the service. He would have been disqualified.

Elijah. Pity party, doubt, and running from Jezebel would have disqualified him who would trust him to lead after running away?

David? Disqualified. Adultery, murder, disobedience to God in several instances, unruly children, multiple wives.

Moses? murder, pride. Disqualified.

These are all by the viewpoint of people today. We have the standard set so high that one mistake, one foul up and your out. One missed hospital visit, one missed call, your done.

Who exactly then is able to carry the burden of this office? Who can God call since just about every one of us is disqualified?

Who then is able to carry the cross of Christ, run a church and maintain the perfect testimony to do this?

Not one single man can do this. period. If you maintain that you are good enough then you have the sin of pride. Disqualified.

Quite the conundrum. Who then can go?

I am sick and tired of men telling men who can and can not serve in this position. I even heard a "pastor" throw a fit when someone tried to tell him what he could not do in his own house, yet he was telling others what they could not do in theirs. 

What's even worse is that the people, so quick to call out the man of God, refuse to publicly apologize  for or even recognize their own sins. The double standard is so very real.

We do not hold judges, politicians to these levels of accountability, doctors, or therapists, lawyers or College professors. in fact we stay out of their personal lives as long as they fulfill their offices in the right way.

We hold the man of God to such a high standard ( and he should be held to a higher standard but not an impossible one) for we are all human.

Let him without sin cast the first stone, well I won't be throwing any, how about you?

Act 10:9  On the morrow, as they went on their journey, and drew nigh unto the city, Peter went up upon the housetop to pray about the sixth hour: 

Act 10:10  And he became very hungry, and would have eaten: but while they made ready, he fell into a trance, 

Act 10:11  And saw heaven opened, and a certain vessel descending unto him, as it had been a great sheet knit at the four corners, and let down to the earth: 

Act 10:12  Wherein were all manner of fourfooted beasts of the earth, and wild beasts, and creeping things, and fowls of the air. 

Act 10:13  And there came a voice to him, Rise, Peter; kill, and eat. 

Act 10:14  But Peter said, Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten any thing that is common or unclean. 

Act 10:15  And the voice spake unto him again the second time, What God hath cleansed, that call not thou common. 

How can you or I call unclean what God has cleansed? How can we disqualify a man that God has called? 

How can we question? If the doctrine is True, The Word is preached, lives are changed, souls saved for Christ than how can we doubt or disqualify?

God calls a man to an office, God removes that man from office. Satan does what ever he can to mess up a work, a life, a ministry, man sometimes falls.

Peter after all his failures, still preached and healed so he had the Spirit on Him. David despite all of his faults still had the honor of Christ in His lineage. Paul reached so very many, wrote most of the New Testament despite his actions. 

We are so quick to forgive the sinner, the one in the pews, the one in the street, yet we ruin a man's life, disqualify him from his call from God. 

We did not place that call on him, God did.

In this day and age we spend so much time criticizing the brethren, looking for fault in our pastors, disqualifying those who would go, that none will go anymore.

We wonder about the empty churches, the empty pulpits and then disqualify anyone who would fill it.

you lived a bad life! you made a mistake 20 years ago, disqualified. Your children moved out and became atheists, disqualified. You were a drunk, disqualified.

When are we going to look at where they are going instead of where they came from as Christ did?

If you are waiting for the perfect man to fill your pulpit you will be waiting for a long long time.

Christ took the imperfect to Himself. He gave the power to cast out devils, to heal and forgive sins to a lot of his disciples (also to the 12 Apostles but these seventy were not the Apostles). There were sinners in that group, how could he use them? They didn't have seminary training, they had sin in their lives both past and future. Surely He didn't allow one who would make a mistake to be in His service, right?

Luk 10:1  After these things the Lord appointed other seventy also, and sent them two and two before his face into every city and place, whither he himself would come. 

Remember in His group he had a tax collector,  an office that robbed the people, an open insurrectionist, fishermen uneducated, Christ called them, gave them of His power, and sent them into the world.

Yet at the very cross where were all these men? John was there, where were the rest? Disqualified.

We are disqualifying ourselves right out of pastors, and preachers. We are doing more harm to the ministry through our quick judgment than the world ever could.

Is it any wonder we can not win the world when we can not even have harmony in our ranks?

I am not defending sin here, I am defending the Grace of God to forgive sin, to restore a man to His fellowship.

I am defending the Gospel, which is what we are supposed to be about. I am defending the man of God that every one has under a microscope while they themselves hide in their own self righteousness.

I am defending the call of God on a man, one who must heed that call despite their own humanness.

We are going to die out if we keep waiting for the perfect one. For He already came, and called those to serve that He deemed worthy. They killed Him for going outside of their system, not following their way to power and rule, not being a company man cost Him.

When God disqualifies you, then and only then, are you unfit to serve.

Peter did not retire after his denial of Christ, he tried, oh yes he did, but God still had plans for him and it wasn't in a minor, support role either. Peter still had a message and an audience and a God to serve. Paul had a God to serve, yes he had to overcome his reputation and previous life, but God called him and he went. John Mark left the service, but he was still used greatly later on.

What God has called, how can we say when they are disqualified?

I know I write of the past preachers a lot and how they could not serve today, but it is true. The man of God of yesteryear could not be a man of God today by the standards we have set. 

we insist our man of God be perfect in Christ, no matter how young or old, no matter that no one can attain that perfection, no matter that we ourselves are wallowing in sin happy as pigs, no matter that satan can and will attack them harder each and every day.

despite all this we say Disqualified!

Time to stop disqualifying, and start supporting, exhorting, and praying. The man of God is fighting a battle few of the lay people can understand for they (the laymen) are part of the problem most times.

Stand by your man, your God and let's win this world together and stop the tearing down of God's church from within.