You probably know that God created the tithe in the Old Testament. But did you know God expects a tithe not only of Israel’s crops, but of the nation’s people? God explains that the first born of every womb belongs to Him. But rather than take the first-born of every family, God took everyone born to one of the twelve tribes. The members of the tribe of Levi served as an offering in the place of the first born of every home in the nation.
“Thou shalt set the Levites before Aaron … and offer them for an offering unto the Lord … The Levites shall be mine … For they are wholly given unto me from among the children of Israel, instead of such as open every womb … For all the firstborn of the children of Israel are mine, both man and beast … And I have taken the Levites for all the firstborn of the children of Israel. And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and to his sons from among the children of Israel, to do the service of the children of Israel in the tabernacle” Numbers 8:13-19.
God owns all of us. But He put a special claim on the tribe of Levi—and I believe God puts a similar claim on the lives of those He calls into the ministry.
This obscure passage from Numbers speaks to the selfless nature of the ministry. When God calls one of His children into full-time Christian service, or what we call “vocational ministry,” He asks them to give up everything to serve Him. It is not simply a high calling. It is a life of staggering sacrifice.
Paul wrote the following about all of us:
“You are not your own. For you have been bought with a price. Therefore, glorify God in your body” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20.
YOU ARE NOT YOUR OWN.
Well, then whose am I? Paul says you have been bought with a price—the blood of Jesus. Therefore, you belong to Him. And this applies to all of us. Yet, it applies to pastors even more so. There is a selflessness to a life in the ministry. It is not a light burden.
The pastor carries the burden of his flock.
Can you imagine not only attending but speaking at every funeral? Can you imagine being summoned to the hospital day and night? Can you imagine counseling people suffering the worst tragedies of their lives?
Add to that the burden of people’s spiritual growth.
“Apart from these external trials, there is the daily pressure on me of concern for all the churches. Who is weak without my being weak? Who is led into sin without my intense concern?” 2 Corinthians 11:28-29.
These are tremendous burdens. And for people that are compassionate by nature, it must be so heavy sometimes. My own pastor mentioned it last Sunday: twenty years in the pastorate means you have seen a lot of suffering. Sometimes it is hard to bear.
That’s not all.
On top of the obvious pastoral burdens, there is the burden of living your entire life surrendered to the ministry.
The calling limits you, impacting every decision you make. It dictates where you live. You may find Colorado beautiful. You can’t just move there if God has called you elsewhere. Maybe you want to buy a fancy car, but God says no. Or you want to take a particular kind of vacation, but God leads you to spend two weeks on the mission field. Perhaps you enjoy writing in your free time. You can’t just crank out spy novels. Even if you could write such a book you would not have the freedom to travel the country on a book tour.
And what about your social media presence? Generally, pastors have to remain pastors online. They can’t use social media to promote products or cultivate a role as some kind of influencer unless they can do it while maintaining their role as a pastor.
What if a preacher wanted to build a side-hustle as a stand-up comic? It may not be impossible, but you can see how such things are problematic.
All these activities that are perfectly available to laymen are often out of reach to the Godly pastor.
The fact is, the call to preach affects every area of a minister’s life. It impacts their spouse, their children, and their hobbies, vacations, and how they spend their money. It impacts EVERYTHING.
Paul writes to Christians, “You are not your own.” That is true for pastors—but even more so: YOU ARE NOT YOUR OWN.
Pastors serve a higher calling, and it is a not easy. These are incredibly talented people, men and women who might easily achieve tremendous success (and a lot more money! [1]) in other fields—yet we take their gifts for granted. Of course, he’s nice. Of course, he’s a good talker. Of course, he’s charming and good with people. Of course, he reads his Bible and prays and memorizes scripture. It’s easy for him, he’s a preacher.
All of that is false and terribly unfair. God’s servants work hard to serve Him and keep Him first in their lives. If they do not work hard on their own spiritual health, they fail. If they do not serve God selflessly, they fail. This exceptionally selfless life presents tremendous hurdles.
Pastors: You have been bought with a price.
Dear God, give us compassion for our pastors. Show us how to support them in their tireless, selfless calling. Thank you for the men and women who serve our churches and our families relentlessly, day-in and day-out. May we honor them for a lifetime of sacrifices, most of which we will never know about. May we bless them and show them more gratitude and more appreciation and more love as the days draw near.
AΩ.
[1] I know too many gifted men who have left the ministry, become real estate agents, and become rich almost overnight!
Household Words: 