Jim Palmer’s 14 Points-Part II, Helping People
In Part I I discussed some of the ways I agreed with Palmer on his objections to some aspects of what he termed “doctrinal” issues, as well as a concern about what I understand to be the prime doctrine of the Messiah, that being loving God with all your heart and loving your neighbor as yourself.
In this section I want to carefully explore a potential serious area in which I as a follower of The Way disagree–perhaps. I realize that the need for brevity in a social media post such as his may lead to some ideas not being fully explained, as well as the possibility that I am reading Palmer’s message wrong.
Here are the intro portions of his post just for clarity, and then I will share my concerns about a particular statement:
As you know, I once was an evangelical megachurch pastor and my pastoral career stretched over many years. Eventually, I could no longer teach Christian doctrine with a good conscience and realized this teaching was not truly changing people’s lives…and so I walked away from the whole enchilada.
Below are 14 things that the misguided religious establishment doesn’t want you to know. Speaking for myself and my personal experience, I was not able to see or admit these things to myself. I truly got into ministry initially because I wanted to make a difference and help people, and I relied upon the belief-system I learned as the proper framework to achieve this. It took a lot of post-religion reflection to see the ways of this belief-system was hurting people.
I offer the below list in hopes that you might disentangle yourself from harmful beliefs and attitudes impacting your life. (Copied from Facebook post)
The portion in bold, the “I truly got into ministry initially because I wanted to make a difference and help people” is the portion I am really struggling with.
I had to reread this statement as well as the whole article a few times to see if I was missing something; a clarification or further explanation of his initial motives of making “a difference and help[ing] people.”
It caused me to think of why I do what I do in Christ. Although helping people and making a difference might sound noble and even worthy to someone outside of Christianity and ignorant of the teachings and heart of Christ, Palmer’s statement on this just threw me for a loop.
I am not a full-time megachurch Pastor. My primary income comes from flying large airplanes full of cargo. I enjoy the job immensely.
But my passion, my heart, and even the way I work at my job flying large airplanes is driven, grounded, and based on my knowing Christ. I write books and blogs because of a compelling sense of love and gratitude for Him, knowing where he took me from and the amazing extent of the abundant life (see John 10:10) he has caused in His love for me.
Do I preach, teach, hold seminars, write books, work one-on-one with people, and offer free counseling because I want to “help people” and “make a difference?”
Strangely, maybe not? Is that surprising?
I cannot help but be and do all of these things that I am and continue to do, as the Spirit leads me. I am driven along, by the power of the Spirit, to be faithful to the situations and people our Lord puts in front of me. I am compelled to write of His great love and power–whether or not I ever sell enough book to ever break even, is not my problem.
My doing ministry (whatever that really means besides just being in Christ) has nothing to do with being a difference maker, but rather is driven by the difference God makes in me and through me. I don’t know that I can help anyone, or make a difference in anyone’s life, but I do know and can fully testify, that Jesus has made all the difference in me. Anything in my life that is good is what he has done.
That is what challenges me about Jim’s statement about helping people and making a difference. It seems to reek of therapeutic moral deism? This is the embracing of Christianity more as a helpful philosophy of life rather than as The Word of the Sovereign Creator and Lord of all. It has benefits and is true only to the extent that it helps people and improves their life–yet contains no absolute revelation of a Supreme God and His power.
If that was Palmer’s motivation for being a Pastor, then I agree it was an unworthy and harmful path to pursue. Using the inspired Word as if it were simply pragmatically valuable because it “helps” people is the epitome of what the Apostle Paul noted as the “darkness” and “futility” of the minds of the Gentiles. As C.S. Lewis noted, if Jesus was not who he claimed to be, then he was either crazy or a moral monster.
I do want to emphasize however, that Palmer’s post is relatively short and I may not be getting the full story. I pray that he has not given up on God, but if he has, I found in my own life in my brief foray into atheism and self-worship, that God did not give up on me. I had agreed to his covenant of love when I was 12-years-old, and God keeps his covenant. He chased me down and eventually flattened me in His great love–he saved me from destroying myself by pursuing the empty philosophies of the world.
Megachurch Issues?
As I mentioned in my book Superhero: Being Who God Says You Are, much of our “worship” and programs in the big-church environment are problematic. First, it is hard to fulfill all of the “one another” passages when there are thousands of people in a building. Second, the trend in the megachurch is toward the audience and superstar speaker/rock band type of “worship-tainment.”
There have been several high-profile pastors who have attained a larger public audience who suddenly object to certain elements of Biblical doctrine–and I perceive very strongly it is because the doctrine in question goes against what the approving public wants to be true. While I certainly want to reach the lost, I cannot, being that I know the One True God and Savior compromise what the revealed Word says just to maintain my platform and public image.
As John the Baptist said in John 1, “I am not the Christ.”
I am not the Christ, I just belong to him. Because of his great love for me and as a recipient of the great joy of the abundant life in Him, I cannot compromise the truth of Jesus for popularity as a helper of people or a difference maker.
The Messiah, he is the promised One, the Son of God–and he dwells in me. I can say no more.
Blessings to you Jim.
