Editor’s Note: You can read our previous articles in the series “Genuine: Essential Qualities of a Godly Minister” below. This series of articles examines Paul’s description of his ministry in 1 Thessalonians 2:1-12.
Genuine: Essential Qualities of a Godly Leader
Quality #1: A Godly Leader’s Ministry is Confirmed by the Church
Quality #2: A Godly Leader Perseveres through Suffering for the Gospel’s Sake
Quality #3: A Godly Leader Preaches the Truth from Right Motives
Quality #4: A Godly Leader is Approved by God
Quality #5: A Godly Leader Labors to Please God, Not Man
Quality #6: A Godly Leader Does Not Use Ministry to Get Money
Paul had already mentioned in 1 Thessalonians 2:4 that he labored in his ministry to please God, not people. The reference to man-pleasing in verse 4 had to do with Paul’s refusal to tailor the gospel message out of fear he might offend someone. Compromise the gospel out of a fear of man? This Paul would never do. His loyalty to Christ and the purity of the gospel was immovable, even if such commitment would cost him his life (Acts 20:24) or require him to confront a fellow apostle (see Gal 2:11-14). Paul would bend when it came to non-theological preferences (1 Cor 9:20-23), but he was as unshakable as granite when it came to protecting the contours of the gospel (Gal 1:10).
Paul: Not a Glory-Seeker
In verse 6, Paul speaks specifically to the issue of seeking man’s praise. The apostle declared that he was not preaching, teaching, and church-planting in order to get people to compliment him on his godliness, deft public speaking, theological acumen, or enterprising spirit. He lived off the fuel of God’s approval and sought God’s glory, not his own. This devotion to the glory of God kept Paul on a straight course, impervious to people’s praise or slander.
But Paul was also unwilling to wield his status as an apostle as a means to gaining the support, submission, and reverence of the Thessalonian Christians. He concedes that he could have “made demands” upon the people precisely because he was an apostle. He had an apostolic right to receive financial and material support from those to whom he ministered (1 Cor 9:3-12; 2 Thess 3:9), and the people were obligated to follow his teaching because Christ had commissioned Paul to lay the church’s doctrinal foundations (Eph 2:20; Gal 1:11-12). He was also due an appropriate amount of honor from these believers because of his work (see Phil 2:29).
But Paul did not seek these things out. Actually, as the following verses explain, Paul made no demands on the Thessalonians believers. He didn’t require their honor—he cared for them like a mother caring for her brand new baby (1 Thess 2:7). He didn’t keep himself aloof from the Thessalonians in order to cultivate an aura of celebrity—he shared his life with them as a fellow Christian (1 Thess 2:8). He didn’t demand their financial support—he earned his own bread through labor and toil (1 Thess 2:9).
A Dangerous Calling
Pastoral ministry has been called a “dangerous calling,” not only because it can garner the attention of a hostile world and our great enemy, making us a target for physical and spiritual attack. It is also hazardous because it is fraught with temptation, not the least of which is the tendency to become intoxicated with one’s authority and the desire for people’s praise, deference, and submission.1 The Pharisees were a negative example of this kind of glory-seeking (John 5:44). Jesus warned his disciples that these pseudo-leaders did all their righteous deeds to be seen by others (Matt 23:5). They craved deference and honor from the people they led (Luke 20:46-47), and they made impossible demands upon them without providing the necessary spiritual aid (Matt 23:4). More than anything, they wanted glory from people.
But we must not deceive ourselves in thinking that glory-seeking and abusing authority simply isn’t or won’t be a temptation for us. True, it may be more of a temptation for some men than others, but we are all susceptible to the allure of man’s praise. It is for this reason that Jesus used the example of the Pharisees to warn his disciples to not be like them. Why was such a warning necessary? Because glory-seeking is native to the human heart. Even while Jesus taught his disciples about the humiliation he was about to undergo, they, seemingly unmoved by Jesus’ teaching, followed his statements with a discussion about who was the greatest among them.
In the early church there were leaders who loved to put themselves first (2 John 3:9). Both James and Peter needed to command their readers to pursue humility and guard themselves from pride. Peter directed his call for humility at the members and leaders of the congregation (1 Pet 5:5-6). This instruction about humility followed directly from Peter’s charge to the elders to not abuse their authority and become domineering with those entrusted to their care (1 Peter 5:3-4).
Not Consumed with Getting Honor
In his ministry to the Thessalonians, Paul presented an example of what true gospel ministry should look like. While we may at times wrestle with sinful motives, a true gospel minister will not be dominated by a desire to reap the praise of the people he leads. He won’t be characterized by a pursuit of his own honor among his people. Yes, God’s people are required by Scripture to show appropriate honor to their pastors (1 Tim 5), which means that genuine pastors will faithfully teach these truths. Nevertheless, the pastor himself will not be consumed with demanding that his people honor him. This is yet another reason why God’s design of plural leadership is so wise. An elder on a leadership team make make sure that their fellow elders receive fitting honor from the congregation while not seeking that honor for themselves.
How might we summarize Paul’s approach to ministry in 1 Thessalonians 2:6? With one word: servanthood. Paul was a servant to God’s people, not a lord. While he was careful to uphold his apostolic authority when necessary, his concern was not to secure people’s honor for himself, but to ensure they wouldn’t despise the divine revelation that Christ had entrusted to him. Why? Because their unfettered belief in the truth is what was best for them. Paul was driven by a love for God and a love for God’s people. He did not, therefore, yield to the temptation to garner praise from the people he served. Rather, he aimed his ministry at doing what was best for others, namely: preaching the an undiluted gospel for the glory of Christ and the eternal salvation of sinners. May we follow this apostolic example in our own ministries and not succumb to the temptation to use our authority for our own glory.
NOTES
1 See Paul David Tripp, Dangerous Calling: Confronting the Unique Challenges of Pastoral Ministry (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2012).
