Sermon for MHBC (30 January 2022). You can watch or listen on Facebook, YouTube, Vimeo, or our website. Live at 11:00am on Sundays. Also available as a podcast here or by searching “Monument Heights Baptist Church” in your favorite podcast app.
When I was a student, I heard a teacher say that if we wrote down the names of 10 friends who were training for ministry, most of them would be crossed off, no longer in ministry, after 10 years.
This wasn’t just an outlandish statement either. It is a reality that many in ministry do not “go the distance” as it were. Some higher estimates state that close to 30% don’t persist beyond the first five years.[1] Within evangelical churches, about 1% leave ministry prematurely every year.[2]
The pandemic has only amplified some of these trends (as it has done with most everything). The Barna research group published a study in November (2021) that found 38% of ministers have considered quitting full-time ministry in the last year.[3]
All of that to say, a substantial number of pastors grow weary in the work of ministry.
That is precisely why today is a cause for celebration. Today, we are witnessing the retirement of Rupert Rose—a man who has labored in some form of ministry for almost five decades, full-time ministry for more than four decades, and at Monument Heights for fourteen years.
On this significant day, we can acknowledge a model of endurance and steadfastness and persistence. And we can be encouraged not to grow weary, not to give up.
Join me in Galatians 6. While you’re turning there, Galatians is one of Paul’s strongest letters. Throughout the letter, he explains the reality of the new covenant in Christ—that is, God has acted in Christ to bring about new realities and a new relationship with humanity. Those who are united to Christ by faith, not works, are empowered to live by the Holy Spirit.
As we get into chapter six, Paul has just finished the famous section on the fruit of the Spirit (or, the results produced by the Spirit). Now, in chapter 6, he describes a life of service empowered by the Holy Spirit.
Let’s begin reading in v. 1. Galatians 6:1:
Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ. For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor. For each will have to bear his own load.
Notice there is a strong emphasis on serving others here. This is fulfilling the law of Christ because Christ is the premier servant. “The Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).
There’s also a call to faithfulness. “Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.” “Let each one test his own work.” “Each will have to bear his own load.” And that gets further explanation in vv. 6–10. Look at v. 6 with me: Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches.
See Paul is building on this idea of service and now he’s talking about what that looks like in the congregation. He says to support those who teach. Pastoral longevity is greatly influenced by congregations. Today, we are saying goodbye to a pastor of 14 years. But that tenure also says something about the people at Monument Heights. I know that you have faithfully loved Rupert and Cheryl these years, and I know they love you. Your generosity, your support, and your care have led to a long relationship with Rupert.
Chelsey and I have been the recipients of this generosity, support, and care since we arrived here. I have received much encouragement from so many of you. And so many of you are concerned with the well-being of my family. That is commendable. Even just this week, as we’ve experienced some concerns with Chelsey’s pregnancy, we have received so much care. There was a huge meal at our house in less than 24 hours. I must commend you. You have shared “all good things” with your pastors.
Paul goes on. Look at v. 7–8: Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.
Now Paul is developing a principle: What you plant you will gather. But it’s a metaphor for the Christian life. Acting under the guidance of the Spirit, walking in step with the Spirit as he says at the end of chapter five, results in eternal life. Eternal life doesn’t just mean living forever. It means coming to share in the life of the living God. It means there’s an alternative to living a life enslaved by our desires and inclinations and moods. Instead, there is a way of being increasingly conformed to Christ, growing in the fruit of the Spirt: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Those are the qualities and characteristics of God’s people. Those are the values of the Kingdom of God. Those are the products of a life submitted to the Spirit of God.
But life is hard and there is a battle raging around us—even if we are unware of it. As Shakespeare put it, “There are more things in heaven and earth // Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.”[4] There are powers and forces at play in the unseen realms. There is a real enemy who seeks our destruction. The Christian life is warfare. To paraphrase C. S. Lewis, each decision, each day, is strategic for the overall battle. This is true of Paul’s metaphor. What you plant you will gather. What you give yourself to you will become. But in this battle and in this life, it is sometimes tempting to give up, to take a rest, to relax.
Look what Paul says in v. 9: And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.
Here the key point this morning: Do not grow weary. Endurance is called for. Rupert has modeled endurance and steadfastness for us. I’m not saying anything you don’t already know. His ministry has been marked by steadiness. He consistently took care of things. I still remember how impressed with his ability to organize I was when I did the Q and A weekend for my candidacy here. You relied on him during a time of transition. You continued to rely on him when the pandemic changed everything about our world. And he was steady, constant.
Do not grow weary. It is easy to do so. We all get tired. Many of you have been laboring faithfully within this church for decades. A few weeks ago I was contacted by another pastor in the area. They are resettling some immigrant families and asking for some support. As we were talking, I remember thinking, “Well Monument Heights has been doing this sort of thing before I was even born.” Then when we got into a meeting with a few people from MH, I was even more impressed by the stories I heard.
I know sometimes we discount ourselves and we may think that we are an older congregation. I want to say two things. First, regardless of age, you are a congregation gathered together under the mighty name of Jesus. You are His people. Don’t discount that which the Lord of all the earth has set aside for Himself.
Second, don’t grow weary of doing good. Keep going. It is worth it. Don’t sit on the sidelines. Keep doing what you’ve faithfully done for so many years. Don’t grow weary of doing good.
And there’s a promise here—it’s the grounds for our endurance. “For in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”
There’s an old story about a Dutch boy named Peter. In Holland there are man-made banks that keep the water from flooding the villages. Peter went to visit a friend and promised his mother he would be back before dark. On his way home, when he was crossing the road beside the bank, he heard trickling water. When he looked, he saw a small hole in the bank, and there was a tiny stream of water flowing out of it. This was alarming because a small hole would quickly increase with water pressure. The whole village could be flooded.
So Peter climbed down the side of the bank and stuck his finger into the small hole. The water stopped. But then it was dark and cold. Peter called for his mother, but after searching for him, she concluded that he must be staying at his friend’s house for the evening. Peter refused to move his finger. He spent the entire night shivering and keeping his hand awake by rubbing it. He stayed all night.
The next morning a man walking beside the bank heard Peter groan. He looked over the edge and saw the boy hanging on the side of the wall. The man said, “What’s wrong? Are you hurt?” Peter said, “No, I’m keeping the water back. Call for help.” The alarm was sounded. People came with tools and mended the hole. Soon news spread about how Peter had saved the whole town because he didn’t give up.[5]
What kept Peter at the wall all night? He knew the consequences of leaving. He was thinking about the future more than his present discomfort. That’s exactly what Paul is saying here. “In due season you will reap.”
A Christian’s endurance is linked to a future hope. We believe the resurrection is certain because Jesus is alive. We believe that suffering is temporary because Jesus is alive. We believe that overlooked deeds now will be dealt with because Jesus is alive. We believe that present suffering will be dealt with in the scope of eternity.
The Puritan Thomas Manton once wrote, “A man’s greatest care should be for the place where he lives longest; therefore eternity should be his scope.”[6] That is the idea. “In due season we will reap, if we do not give up.” Don’t give up.
Paul concludes this thought in v. 10: So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith. Take the opportunities that are before you. And notice that special consideration is given to other believers. It is a good thing when a church is known for doing good deeds. But a church’s health can be seen in how well it cares for its members. A congregation that takes care of each other is a witness to a watching world. It is a witness to the reality of living by the Spirit. It is a witness to the fact that there is an alternative to the biting and devouring and selfishness that we are all too familiar with.
But if we have been given opportunity, let us take that opportunity. Do not grow weary. It will be worth it. Keep the big picture in view.
[1] http://into-action.net/research/many-quit-estimating-clergy-attrition-rate/
[2] http://hartfordinstitute.org/Pastoral_Attrition_Protection_Scott_McConnell.pdf
[3] https://www.barna.com/research/pastors-well-being/
[4] Hamlet, Act 1 Scene 5.
[5] “The Little Hero of Holland” in William J. Bennett, The Book of Virtues, pp. 533–35
[6] Quoted in A Puritan Golden Treasury, p. 92.