This is the second part in this series of exposition of 2 Timothy 3:14-16. You can find the first part here.
Definition of Adversity
Adversity has been defined as “the state of hardship or suffering associated with misfortune, trauma, distress, difficulty or a tragic event” and in the sphere of leadership within the nursing profession in Australia “as the cluster of negative, stressful, traumatic or difficult situations or hardships stemming from working conditions, the work environment and the daily challenges encountered in an occupational setting.” Moreover, “it is often associated with excessive workloads, lack of autonomy, bullying and violence,” and other organizational issues.
Before we proceed to the biblical text, allow me to give just a brief overview of the article. It has 13 pages and there are a lot of details that I can’t over. However, some findings are relevant to provide us with the current context for our text this morning.
The Descriptive-Empirical Task
Let's go back to the descriptive-empirical task.
According to statistics, three pastors in North America leave the ministry daily, and many more suffer from ministry burnout as a result of too many ministry responsibilities. According to the literature, pastoral leadership attrition is a widespread occurrence. Elkington carried out a quick online poll with 51 pastors (male, lead pastor, aged 50–58) who had worked in pastoral ministry in several nations, including the USA, UK, Canada, Netherlands, France, Germany, Norway, South Africa, and Norway.
All of the countries listed are considered developed, except for South Africa. At this point, one could argue that the data has no bearing on nations like the Philippines, China, India, and many other African nations where religion still plays a significant role in society.
However, for clarity, I believe that certain of the survey's conclusions are universally important. The main findings of the survey show that over 65% of these pastors' ministry profiles include fatigue, melancholy, and resistance in addition to difficulty and adversity. These numbers show that significant resistance, adversity, and difficulty, together with isolation, tiredness, and melancholy, make up a significant portion of the pastoral career profile. Pastors are under pressure, according to the literature and statistics, and it appears that many of them are leaving the pastoral ministry to relax.
One pastor, when asked to elaborate on the sources of difficulties in pastoral service, named the world and the visible church. According to him, the post-Christian, chaotic world in which the majority of your adversaries are seated in the pews is incompatible with the prevailing paradigm, which is the Christendom model of church life and ministry.
Another pastor brought up how the culture's accepted standards for success in church ministry, as well as the pastor's cult of personality, set pastors up for failure.
The Interpretive Task
This leads us to the second aspect of Osmer’s framework, the interpretive task.
Unrealistic expectations are one of the causes of endemic stress. When pastors first begin the ministry, they assume that their parishioners will adore them, collaborate well with them, and believe that the church is a secure and tranquil place where one can fulfill their calling. They start the ministry with a strong desire to make a difference in the world and establish the church of God, having spent years, at great personal and financial expense, in a Bible College, University, or Seminary, training for ministry. However, they soon discover that things may not go as planned.
This unrealistic expectation is connected to the failure to understand the “complex” and “adaptive” nature of the church. As such, the church is continually changing as it is influenced by both internal and external factors. The direction of the change is towards either health or increasing strength, or it is moving towards disease and stagnation.
Equipped with this kind of understanding, pastors will be able to see beyond the small-scale forces causing misfortune to the larger-scale macrocosmic realities that interact, interconnect, and shape the diverse individuals and families that comprise the church.
In the developed countries mentioned earlier, the church has functioned within a Christendom framework and continues to do so, even though we live in a post-Christendom era. In the Christendom model of church life and ministry, success has been measured based on consumer values such as attendance and financial support. I did not know why he did not include the attraction of the Worship Center facility and the ministries and programs of the church that require massive promotion and marketing.
The Pragmatic Task
Turning to the solution or the pragmatic task, I appreciate the proposal further explained below:
Shift from a Christendom model to a missional mode of church life. For Elkington, the problem is a worldview issue. As long as pastors have a worldview that is shaped by a Christendom mentality, they will struggle to deal with complexity and adversity that is so much a part of the new world order in the 21st century. The proposal is to move away from the metrics of success that characterize the Christendom model to a missional model in which leaders and people see themselves as a community on a mission with God to reach their community for God. As a result of such a change, the expectation upon pastors and the role definition will change dramatically from chief executive officer (managerial) to equipper and fellow pilgrim. This shift to missional ontology is believed to be essential for the health and strength of the churches and pastors in North America.
Other suggestions include a shift from high intensity to a balanced life or harmonious lifestyle, inclusion of resiliency in ministry preparation or the curriculum of theological education, creation of a care system within the denomination, and local church education concerning the high cost of pastoral attrition. Though the proposal is admirable from a statistical perspective, I cannot avoid wondering about the role of God’s word in such a gradual exodus of pastors.
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