What to Expect from Your Pastor's Church (1 Timothy 4:12)

>> Hi, Renoul. Our scripture reading for today is from 1 Timothy 412. I'll give you a moment to look up the passage in your Bible, or you can follow along with me on the screen. Okay. Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. >> Thank you. >> All right. As we continue our worship through the word, we're thankful that God has brought us a guest preacher to share with us today. We're glad to have Pastor Danny Kwan, who serves as Senior Director of Youth Ministry, Content and Cross Cultural Initiatives with the Rooted Ministry, an organization passionate about equipping churches and parents to the site, both the next generation. Before that, he's been 29 years as a youth and family pastor at an Asian American church right here outside of Philadelphia. Pastor Danny holds a PhD and serves as an Asian professor at Eastern University. He has authored four books, including his most recent teenagers and mental health, a handbook for parents, pastors, and youth leaders, co-authored with his wife Monica, a Christian counselor and psychologist. So we're grateful he is here and we are eager to hear what God has placed on his heart for us today and please welcome Pastor Danny as he shares the word of God with us. [applause] Just before I begin, before I begin, before I begin, before I begin, I just want to say, "CBI in Nagoya, Japan, I've taught there twice over the years and God is doing great work in there, so praise God and thank you, real, for supporting that seminary." And secondly, this is all preliminary, it doesn't count in my time limit. The Gospel Center Parenting Book, that series from Surge, Gospel Center Ministry, Gospel Center Parenting, Gospel Center Teenagers, Gospel Center Eagles Fans, whatever that series of books is such a great series, understanding and really nurturing your own heart. And I'm just very grateful for the fact that I'm nurturing your own heart in the Gospel, so I just want to encourage you in your church in that endeavor. Well, a few years ago, my son, my oldest son was entering into his senior year, his last semester of college. And before that January of entering into his last semester, he went to a college retreat. And he called us on the last morning before leaving the retreat, telling us, "Mom and dad, God has revealed to us my new calling of life, and I have to tell you about it." And he's not one of those kids that talk a lot, like I write him long text messages, say, "I love you, Luke, Luke, God's with you, I'm praying for you, and he'll just text back, "K, not even okay, I just get a K." And he had finally chosen one of the three sacred Asian-American child majors, engineering, medicine, or law, and he finally chosen law. So we were shocked when he was writing to us, texting us, saying, "God has called me to a new profession," because he was finishing up his mechanical engineering degree. And he said, "I am excited to come home and tell you and mom about what God has called me to." And I was like, "Oh no. God has called in the ministry." I mean, I love ministry. It's a joy to do ministry, but it's also hard. And there's also been painful times. And honestly, I did not want my sons to do ministry. But since he was telling me he went to a retreat, he was blessed by the Word, he was convicted, God has given him a vision and calling for his new career. I said, "Okay, Luke, come home. We'll sit down and I love the here. We love the here." And so, in knowing that Luke had been given a new vision and calling, I opened up first Timothy, first Timothy 4, where Timothy had been assigned to lead the church at Ephesus, and Paul was giving him instruction to a young pastor on how to lead the church. That's what first Timothy is about. And so, I looked up first Timothy. I was ready to give words of wisdom and advice and counsel about being a young pastor, and in first Timothy 4, it talks about how a young pastor should be a good servant of Jesus Christ. Should be godly in character. Should be gospel centered in teaching and preaching. Should be growing in grace. And so, I had looked up first Timothy, studied it in his drive home, three hours from the retreat center, getting ready to instruct him and teach him from this book. I had also pulled out all my favorite ministry books that I use for my ministry interns to give him instructions, and he came home, and he's like, "Mom, Dad, are you ready? Are you ready?" He's like, "Where's Mom?" And my wife was counseling. So, he's like, "Get Mom, get Mom!" Like, "I can't, Luke. She's counseling." He's like, "Well, tell her I'll hurry up!" Like, "I can't, Luke. She's counseling." So, finally, my wife finished, and Luke, very unexcited child, they're super excited, and he comes to us, and he says, "Mom and Dad, God has revealed to me during this retreat. And I knew calling. God has called me to be an actor. What? What actor? Actor? I'm like, "Look, how many crazy rotation movies are they going to make?" And how much opportunity? I was like, "At least be a pastor. I'm ready to give you all this advice from 1 Timothy, chapter 4." And 1 Timothy, chapter 4, "Well, Luke really became an actor, and after college, he graduated, and he moved to Hollywood, and he's still pursuing acting." And I just tell him, "As long as you go to church and love Jesus, do whatever you want." Well, 1 Timothy, chapter 4, again, the context of this passage is Paul speaking to Timothy, who has just been assigned to the church of Ephesus to be the pastor, and he's giving Timothy instruction on how to teach the right doctrine, how to fix the worship in the church, proper qualifications of elders, and deacons, and how a congregational life should be, again, how a pastor should act, how a pastor should be godly in character, good in teaching, and preaching, gospel centered in teaching, growing in grace. But I want to propose to you, renewal center city, that this passage in a deeper look is not only about what you should expect from a pastor, because I know you've been at without a senior pastor for a long time, but more importantly, a deeper look should convince and convict you about what should we expect not only from a pastor, but what should we expect from our pastor's church? Do you hear me? The church is not only about a pastor, and Paul was writing, certainly, important words, the Timothy, a young pastor, but in a deeper look into this passage, I want to propose to you that Paul is speaking to what we should expect from a pastor's church. And there are three things this morning that I want to propose to you. We should expect from our pastor's church. We should expect from Renoul Center City, your church. And the first thing that we should expect is critique expressed to the pastor. Now I want you to hear me carefully, because Paul is saying here to Timothy, "Let no one despise you for your youth." Paul is telling Timothy, "Because you are young, people are going to critique you." In that New Testament culture, young people were not revered for leadership positions. In that culture, people who were like Daniel and Solomon, who were young were not respected. Timothy's appointment was a rare privilege, and many people in the church will offer critique. And so what the reality is, is that in churches there will be critique of the pastor, maybe of the church, maybe of issues you have, maybe of proper worship, maybe of elders and deacons, maybe of how the church should be run. And so I want you to be part of church. In my own experience, being a youth and family pastor for 29 years. This is all documented. I wrote about this in an article for a ministry magazine about when I was young in a Korean American church. I started growing a goatee, facial hair. And I didn't know, but in the Korean church, facial hair was a sign of wisdom and wise understanding and maturity. So all the church, and me as a 28 year old youth pastor, growing facial hair, I could have been satan. They considered it heresy. They were looking down upon me and telling me that is, they were like, basically accusing me of being a heretic. Parents were coming up and telling me, "I'm setting a bad example for the students." They were new parents coming and they were telling people, "He's a bad youth pastor." You know why? Because he's growing facial hair. If you don't believe me, this was all documented in a ministry magazine. And parents were critiquing me for growing facial hair for setting. Could you imagine how ridiculous this sounds, but it's true. Parents were critiquing me for growing facial hair. And you know, what I'm saying is this, as pastors, as churches, we have leaders, we have elders, ruling elders, we want to hear your critiques. We want to hear your ideas. We want to hear your suggestions. We need them to be a better church. In my PhD, I studied innovation. And I studied organizations that innovated for the betterment of their organizations. And I also studied organizations that did not innovate, that died. One of those organizations was an organization called Kodak. Some of you might not know Kodak because we have iPhones now to take pictures. But Kodak was an organization that used to make film for cameras. And some of you are like, "What is a camera?" But they used to make film for cameras. And they were the leading producers of films and cameras. But years ago, when they were at the height of the empire of camera and film, some of the people in the company said, "We need to start thinking about digital cameras." And digital production of taking pictures. But no one in Kodak listened to those ideas. No one wanted to take the critique and innovation and ideas. And that company eventually and now no longer exists. We need your ideas. We need your critiques. We need your innovation. All of you are important members of the church. However, as Paul says in Romans 16, 17, he says, "I appeal to you to watch out for those who cause division and create obstacles to the contrary. For such persons do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ." We need your critiques. We need your ideas. We need your help. You are all important members of Renoul Center City. But these critiques must not cause division. Must not cause obstacles. Must not cause division in the church. And I ask you to be members who offer critique but not cause division. Who do you imagine Timothy and the church saying you are so young and how that might cause division in the church? Secondly, I want to point out to you that in 1 Timothy chapter 4 verse 2, it says, "Temethy, do not let anyone tell you you are too young. But set an example, set an example to the church in speech, conduct, love, and faith. Set the believers an example." Timothy's calling was to set an example for the believers. And I want you to hear this clear distinction of what the job of the leaders of your church is. It is to set an example. It is not to transform. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 3, "I planted a polished water, but God gives the growth." God gives the growth. Paul says in Ephesians 2 verse 8 and 9, "For by grace you've been saved through faith." It is the gift of God, not of yourselves. Transformation happens not through the pastor, not by the pastor. His job is to set an example. Transformation happens by God in each of you responding to the gospel, each of you responding to the gospel. I love what Tim Keller says. Tim Keller has pastor Addison and I know we call him the Pope of the PCA, because his words are so revered by so many in the PCA. But he says revival is not the extraordinary operations of the Holy Spirit. It's not miracles. It's the ordinary operations of the Holy Spirit to convict people of sins, to convert them and to assure them of their salvation and give them a sense of the reality of Jesus. What do we expect from the pastor's church? Yes, his job is to set an example, but transformation, revival, happens, not by him, but by the power of God. I plan it, Paul, Paulus water, but God gives the growth. It happens by each of you responding to the gospel, prayer, reading the word, discipleship, community groups, women's groups, serving. It is your response to the gospel, renewal center city, as you've been out without a pastor for a long time. It is your church and you are the people of God. You know, in my life, one of the ways that I respond to the gospel is that every morning, I wake up, I pee, you don't need to know that. I pee my dogs, and then I make a cup of coffee, and then I open my iPad. And you know, there's all these apps, Instagram, Facebook, ESPN, TikTok. And you know, it's real tempting, the hit that Instagram button first. It's, I'm a social media lover. I don't condemn social media like some pastors. I love scrolling through social media. I post a lot. I love, it's the story. I love scrolling through it. But every morning, I open my Bible app first. I've made it my personal conviction and practice. And I know, because I sleep with my alarm next to me. I know when that alarm goes off, it's easy to stop the alarm button and hit the Twitter button. Oh yeah, thank you. But I hit my Bible app first. The dig into the word. So I can be filled with the word and respond and live out the gospel. Transformation happens not by the pastor. Maybe through the pastor, him setting an example. But by each of you, responding to the gospel. Finally, I want to share with you that in this passage, it says, "Let no one despise you for your youth. But set the believers an example. Set the believers an example. What do expect from your pastor's church? What do I expect? You know, I came here a few weeks ago to preach. And I didn't know what to expect, but I sat in the back and I went home and I told my wife, what a great congregation. What a great-- I mean, first of all, so many of you are young parents and you bring your little kids every week to church. It's hard bringing your kids, getting them ready, coming to church. And then what a great gathering. Today I got to meet Jay, your usher. He's a little bit Nazi-ish, but he gets you guys in your seats. Get you guys-- you know, he's like, I'm impressed, Jay. You know, and for you to all gather at church, I'm a little old. I'm just a volunteer. I still do ministry, but in a ministry organization, I'm not a church pastor anymore. But I was like, man, if I was like 10 years younger, I'd love to be the pastor of this church. I'm too old. But what you should expect from your pastor's church, and what you should know is that you guys are not just a random collection of people, of humans getting together. Paul uses the word set the believers an example. You are believers of God. And in the theology of the New Testament, there are terms for believers. There's this idea of a royal priesthood. There is this picture that you are God's workmanship, that you are ambassadors, that you are God's righteousness, that you are new creations, that you are salt and light. You are not just attenders. You are not just people filling up seats. You are believers transformed by the blood of Jesus, called to do His good works. You are his masterpieces. You're not just a country club. You're not just a cruise ship. You are the church. And what I hate to see about a beautiful gathering like Renoul Center City is that you would just come and go. You know, there is this terminology and leadership studies called the Perreto Principle where it says that you guys know this. It's called the 80/20 Principle where it says 80% of the people, 80% of the work, excuse me, is done by only 20% of the people. It's called the Principle of the Vital Few, the 80/20 Rule. But what we expect from our pastor's church because you are transformed and you are responding to the gospel is that you would not be in 80/20. You would be the royal priesthood. You are God's workmanship. You are God's righteousness and new creation. And Renoul mainline is meant to be salt and light. You would be in each of you. Maybe it says husbands and wives, as fathers and mothers, in this community, in the world, at CBI in Japan. You would be more than just attenders of your church. What do we expect from your pastor's church? Be salt and light. Be the royal priesthood. Be people who respond to the gospel and bring forth and contribute to the church. Let us pray together. Lord, be with Renewal Center City. Be with this congregation. Help us to be believers that respond to the gospel and that offer critiques and ideas that contribute to the kingdom works. Let us not just come and go. Let us be salt and light in our marriages, in our parenthood, in our communities, in our workplaces. We are not just people who sit and pews. Lord, we are people who are true believers. And that's what you have called your church to be. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.