St. Paul wrote: “Let a man so account of us, as of the ministers of Christ, and stewards of the mysteries of God. Meover it is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful” I Corinthians 4:1-2. Thanks be to God for faithful shepherds who bring the gifts of God to Christ’s people through Word and Sacrament.
Conflict can occur in a congregation when either the Pastor or people are not faithful to the vows which were taken at the Pastor’s installation. In 1870, C. George Stoeckhardt was installed as Pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in St. Louis. The preacher at that service was Dr. C.F.W. Walther. Walther said: “Yet my beloved, when our text says by way of warning that one should seek “no more” in a pastor “than that he be found faithful,” the apostle desires at the same time that a congregation should seek no less than this in its pastor. As important as it is, that a pastor remain faithful in doctrine and life, so important it is that the congregation demand this of him. Woe to the congregation when its pastor wants to be faithful to the doctrine of God’s Word but it, the congregation, demands that publicly and privately that he teach something else than God’s pure Word! Woe to a congregation when its Pastor wants to remain faithful in refuting all error hurtful to the soul but it, the congregation demands of him that he remain silent for the sake of temporal peace! Woe to a congregation when its pastor wants to remain faithful in rebuking all ungodly living but it, the congregation demands of him as the Jew’s of Isaiah’s time demanded of their prophets: “speak to us smooth things, prophesy illusions.” Woe to the congregation when its pastor wants to be faithful in the handling of church discipline described by Christ but it, the congregation wants to use only the loosing key and not the binding key.”
God calls us to repentance for an unwillingness to use the binding key to show the erring brother or sister their sin. To leave people wallowing in their sin and unrepentance is the most unloving thing a congregation can do. John says: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. And the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin” I John 1:9, 7c. By God’s grace in Christ Jesus, may congregation and Pastor remain faithful to the vows which each have taken.
