Another one bites the dust: The devil’s list and pastors who stumble.

“Pastoral ministry is unrelenting spiritual warfare.” - Nicholas T. Batzig

A little over a week ago the news broke that yet another pastor had been removed from his leadership position due to a major personal failure. But Steven Lawson of Trinity Bible Church of Dallas is certainly not alone.

There is an ever-growing list of pastors who are succumbing to temptation and committing major sins.

Websites are now starting to keep a running tab of these names. Tony Evans, Robert Morris, Josiah Anthony, and Scott Crenshaw are just some of the most recent examples.

What’s happening? We expect pastors to be giants in the faith - strong shepherds who can withstand temptation. If we can’t trust our pastors to endure in the faith, what does that mean for the rest of us? What does that say about the faith we and they supposedly hold to?

In Acts 19, we read a story about the sons of a Chief Priest who were going around trying to drive out demons “in the name of Jesus whom Paul preaches.” I want to focus on something very interesting in verse 15:

One day the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and Paul I know, but who are you?”

– Acts 19:15

I would submit to you that there seems to be a list of names that the devil keeps, and the demons know. We are all familiar with the list of names in the Book of Life spoken about in Revelation, but this is a very different list. Every Christian’s name is written on that list, but not every Christian’s name is on the devil’s list. This isn’t a birthday list. It’s not a thank you list. It’s a hit list.

Spiritual warfare is real. As Paul says in Ephesians:

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Who is on the frontlines of this fight? Who is facing the brunt of this opposition to Jesus in this world? Who is taking the biggest hits? It is our pastors.

Like Peter says, “Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” What’s more advantageous for the lion - to kill a sheep or kill the shepherd? He wants to get rid of the shepherd, of course. If you take down the shepherd, you get all the sheep.

We have a few problems here:

One problem is that many of us put our pastors on pedestals. We don’t think of them the right way. Pastors aren’t kings, they’re soldiers. They aren’t less human than the rest of us. They don’t make fewer mistakes. Some of you right now are reading this and thinking “Hmm are you sure about that?” Yes, I am. Stop over-spiritualizing pastors. Stop putting expectations on them that are only suitable for Jesus. Even Paul referred to himself as the chief of sinners. Jesus is the only perfect shepherd. Your pastor needs Jesus just as much as you do.

Another problem is this:

When pastors fall, we tend to ask the wrong questions. We scrutinize their life. We look for deficiencies. We wonder how they could be weaker than we thought they were. We try to figure out if we missed something. Spoiler alert – if you’re asking those questions, you definitely missed something. Here’s what you missed:

Pastors routinely endure a level of spiritual warfare that would destroy the casual Sunday service attendee in no time. We sit back and ask, “how could this happen?” I will tell you how it happens – there is a ravenous lion prowling around and the only thing standing between you and his claws is the shepherd at the gate. You think that because you can see the lion through the fence that you understand what he’s capable of? Not even close. Many of us don’t even have the lion’s attention.

The sad truth is that many Christians are going through their lives oblivious to the level of spiritual attack that comes with being on mission for Jesus. Many of us are spiritual reservists who have never seen combat. And when our generals fall in the line of duty, we sit back and do a post-mortem on how fit they were to serve. Its outrageous.

So what do the soldiers on the front line need from the rest of us? Prayer. Support. Encouragement. If you aren’t standing on the frontlines, you need to be kneeling in the trenches. When pastors stumble, stop sitting around wondering what’s wrong with them and pray for them. The devil may not know your name, but Jesus does - and the Bible says your prayers make a difference.

There is a story in the Bible of a pastor who was struggling and the people closest to him left him alone in his crisis.

It wasn’t Paul. It wasn’t Peter. It wasn’t Timothy. It was Jesus.

Then He said to them, “My soul is deeply grieved, to the point of death; remain here and keep watch with Me.” 39 And He went a little beyond them, and fell on His face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will.” 40 And He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and He said to Peter, “So, you men could not keep watch with Me for one hour? – Matthew 26:38-40

Jesus was about the endure the most intense spiritual warfare that any human has experienced. All He needed to prepare was for his friends, his disciples, his people, to stay close to him and pray. And they fell asleep.

It’s interesting that everyone was wide awake when tragedy struck. The soldiers show up and sleepy Peter lunges at one with a sword. I would suggest that the best time to come to your pastor’s aid is not when he’s already in the hands of the enemy.

What if we proactively supported our pastors instead of waiting for disaster to think about their spiritual and emotional state? Why do we neglect them in the calm before the storm?

And make no mistake, for these men on the front lines, in the gap between light and darkness, there is always a storm coming. The prince of this world makes sure of it. They are on a hit list.

Like Jesus in the garden, your pastor is likely a little beyond you in this mission. They are exposed. They are vulnerable. And they are in the crosshairs of the prince of this world.

In Matthew 12, Jesus asks “how can someone enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house.”

The devil wants to plunder God’s house. He wants to eat the sheep. So, he fights the shepherd. And your shepherd is likely strong. He is likely tough. He is committed to Jesus.

But he is tired. He gets weak. He isn’t a superhero. He is a soldier on the front lines and the enemy has his name on a hit list.

How should that realization change how you treat your pastor?