A Pastor’s Heart for His People
September 10, 2023
Preached by Benjamin Vrbicek
Scripture Reading
2 Corinthians 6:1-13
1 Working together with him, then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. 2 For he says,
“In a favorable time I listened to you,
and in a day of salvation I have helped you.”
Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation. 3 We put no obstacle in anyone's way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, 4 but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: by great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, 5 beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; 6 by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love; 7 by truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; 8 through honor and dishonor, through slander and praise. We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; 9 as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; 10 as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.
11 We have spoken freely to you, Corinthians; our heart is wide open. 12 You are not restricted by us, but you are restricted in your own affections. 13 In return (I speak as to children) widen your hearts also.
Pastor Ben and I have now worked together for eight years, and these are our last two sermons in the same church—mine this week, his next week. For those new or visiting, I’ll mention that he’ll be leaving to plant Midtown Community Church, and I’ll be staying. We chose to both preach sermons from Paul’s letter to the church in Corinth that we call 2 Corinthians. It’s Paul’s last letter to that church, and among all the letters he wrote, it’s his most personal. Let’s pray as we begin.
“Dear Heavenly Father . . .”
When Ben and I talked about this we said that we’d like “to pull back the curtain,” but when we said that, we both chuckled because even though the phrase gets used often, it doesn’t have an entirely positive connotation. In The Wizard of Oz the little dog Toto pulls back the curtain, and everyone beholds The Great Oz. But they see he’s not so great. He’s an imposter. That scene is the source of the comedic line, “Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain” said as ‘the man behind the curtain’ panics.
When Ben and I said we want to pull back the curtain to pastoral ministry, that’s not exactly what we mean. But it might be sort of what we mean. There is one great shepherd of the sheep, and it’s not any local church pastor or church planter. Jesus is the great shepherd of the sheep, the one who builds his church (Heb. 13:20; Matt. 16:18). The rest of us are, as Paul says in our passage in v. 4, just God’s servants. But it’s a really special privilege to be God’s servant. Paul knew that. I’m coming to know that more and more. And so is Ben.
In these two weeks before the church plant, we could have gone on with business as usual. We could have started again with the gospel of John. And we will do that. In May we left off in the last verse of chapter 8, and we’ll start in the first verse of chapter 9 on October 1. But we wanted to embrace this brief moment we have before the launch of a new church. Yet we didn’t want to be all cheerleader-ish about it. We didn’t want to preach “rah rah rah” sermons about church planting. We feel like we’ve done that.
We wanted to do something more gritty, something more transparent. We wanted to do something more like what Paul did as he and the other leaders with him wrote 2 Corthinains.
It’s fair to say that they had been through some hard stuff, both separately and together. In the opening chapter Paul writes, “For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death” (2 Cor. 1:8–9a). He tells the church that ministry became so hard that he was more wanting to die than live. That’s gritty. That’s transparent.
Ministry didn’t get so hard during Covid that I wanted to die. I didn’t feel that. But I’m not sure I wanted to be your pastor—or anyone’s pastor. It got that hard.
Not only had Paul been through trials generally in his travels, but he’d also been through trials specifically with this church. In fact, when you piece together the details of their correspondence, there are two other letters we don’t have. And one of the letters we don’t have, Paul wrote right before this letter, and that was a hard letter to write and a hard letter to receive.
The church had been in deep sin and needed a loving rebuke. And Paul gave it to them. And that rebuke letter was so hard to send that, at least for a short time, Paul regretted even writing it because he worried their grief would cause them to spiral away from Christ rather than toward Christ (cf. 2 Cor. 7:8). He was so nervous to see them again after that painful letter that he sent his friend Titus to check on them first (see Acts 20:1f; 2 Cor. 2:12–13; 7:5–16). Paul and his people, we might say, got history together.
And all of this history for Paul could have caused him to close his heart to them. That would have been normal, even natural. You don’t love me, I won’t love you. That’s normal, that’s natural. The lack of love reciprocated by a pastor’s people, the nature of the need for occasional rebuke from a pastor to his people, the disgrace and danger that came socially from being a Christian leader, and not to mention the pastor’s own sinful bent and insecurities, could all have—could have—conspired to restrict a minister’s heart to his people (and their heart to him).
That, however, is not what happened. I’d describe 2 Corinthians like a beautiful sunflower growing in the crack of a parking lot. It’s not supposed to be there. Only weeds grow in small cracks without soil. There was so much working against a pastor’s heart being affectionately inclined toward his people and his people’s heart toward him. And there always is—whether in Corinth and Ephesus or Harrisburg and Midtown. There are so many things that could restrict a pastor’s heart toward his people and their heart toward him. [FCF] It didn’t happen for Paul, and we must strive that it not happen here.
So, here we go. With all this in mind, we take up the themes of chapter 6, where we find not a cold heart but a warm heart. As we go through these verses, I’ll tell you that twenty years ago, as a preacher preached these verses in Columbia, Missouri, it became part of what God used to call me into pastoral ministry. Maybe he’ll do the same today.
In this passage we see four aspects of a pastor’s heart for his people. Know that I could spend fifty minutes on each of these. But I’ll probably just spend five minutes on each.
1. Not in Vain: that God’s grace and his ministry would be effectual
First, we see the phrase “not in vain.” To say it positively, we’d say that Paul’s heart is that God’s grace and his own ministry would be effectual. In other words, the grace of God would do stuff—good stuff—among them and through them and in them now and forever. This “not in vain” line comes from v. 1, which I’ll read again. “Working together with him [meaning with God]” Paul says, “then, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain.”
I will tell you that this concern, this heart, is not theoretical. Paul saw, as every pastor sees, people who seem to have a casual relationship with God and remain little changed. That worries Paul. That worries pastors. Some of you worry me.
On vacation this summer I started reading a book called Diary of a Pastor’s Soul. It’s a fictionalized account of a pastor’s last year in his church before he retires. And the pastor writes a little reflection about what he’s learning each week during his last year. The pastor who wrote it had recently retired after thirty-seven years in ministry. Again, he made up the stories in this book, but they were, he admits based on real stories.
Anyway, in the preface to the book the author had this line that I read while I was on vacation, and I can’t stop thinking about it since. It relates to this idea of a pastor’s heart that his people not receive God’s grace and pastoral ministry in vain. He writes,
What most pastors are thinking about as they drive home from their retirement party is not how excited they are to be free from working for the church. They’re thinking that it all went pretty fast, cost so much more than they could have anticipated, and profoundly changed them along the way. And they’re reassuring themselves that they made a difference with this use of their lives.” (M. Craig Barnes, Diary of a Pastor’s Soul, 12)
What was Paul’s heart for his people, what Ben and I and the other pastors of this church have a heart for, what Craig Barnes who wrote that, and all pastors have a heart for, is that God’s grace would be effectual, that grace would make a difference and not be received in vain. Paul labored so that the gospel would become so real that marriages that couldn’t heal could heal, that people who couldn’t preserve through loneliness could supernaturally preserve in a church community, that people who couldn’t imagine making any life choices that weren’t based on money, could make choices based on more than money, that people who formally couldn’t get along and forgive and be reconciled, could repent and forgive and reconcile. That’s Paul’s heart. It’s ours too.
2. Not an Obstacle: that his life would increase their esteem for Christ
Second, Paul’s heart was that he would not be an obstacle to their joy in Christ. Rather, Paul’s heart was that the esteem for Christ among his people would increase through his ministry. He wanted people to be able to say, “I love Jesus more because of that man’s ministry,” rather than, “I’m deconstruction and shipwrecking my faith because of that man’s ministry.” We see this in vv. 3–8a. I’ll read them again.
3 We put no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, 4 but as servants of God we commend ourselves in every way: by great endurance, in afflictions, hardships, calamities, 5 beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; 6 by purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love; 7 by truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; 8 through honor and dishonor, through slander and praise.
Lot’s of ways we could explore just these verses. We might point out the suffering he endures, like the beatings and imprisonment. Paul points this out to his people in a context where there was essentially a pyramid scheme of preachers and traveling speakers. In Corinth at the time, the proof of your competence as a speaker was the size of the following you built and the material blessings you acquired. In other words, if you can get a huge speaking fee and fill a stadium, you must be legit. Into that context Paul says, “You want to know how my love and ministry are legit, well, I do this when it hurts.” Paul’s heart is that the proof of his sincere love would be seen in his suffering.
And there are also the more positive things he chose to cultivate. And I’ll just point out that in a world hostile to the gospel—a world hostile to the message of a God who loves people but also calls them to repent and change—that Paul’s heart is still to cultivate “patience, kindness, the Holy Spirit, genuine love, by truthful speech.” Paul’s heart in a hostile world was that the world was not so hostile that he should give up on kindness and love. Paul believed, by the Holy Spirit, that kindness should coexist with the truth, just as they do in God. Your pastors feel the same.
3. Not Superficial: that gospel-realities would be their truest truths
Third, we come to the phrase “not superficial.” Paul’s heart was that together they would not embrace superficial identities. The words “not in vain” and “not an obstacle” are in the text. But I admit the words “not superficial” are not in the text. But this is my way of describing the realities Paul describes. Paul’s heart is that they would not have a superficial view of their identities. To say it positively, Paul’s heart was that gospel-realities would be their truest truths. I’ll explain what I mean. Let me read vv. 8b–10.
We are treated as impostors, and yet are true; 9 as unknown, and yet well known; as dying, and behold, we live; as punished, and yet not killed; 10 as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.
I remember sitting in the church the Sunday a pastor preached these verses and I felt called into ministry. I wrote in the bulletin that I wanted this for my life: as sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; as poor, yet making many rich; as having nothing, yet possessing everything.
Again, my way of describing Paul’s heart here is to say that he is “not superficial,” but rather that his heart was for gospel-realities to become their truest truths.
Take the line “poor, yet making many rich.” Some people take these contrasts to mean something like, on the one handed regarded in this life poor, but on the other hand, we are actually rich in Christ. That sort of works, but I think it’s a bit more nuanced that than. Paul couldn’t just be, from one angle, regarded poor. He was actually poor. So what is he saying in these contrasts? Paul didn’t want to be regarded superficially but rather that gospel-realities would be his truest truths. Here’s what I mean.
If you have all the money in the world, but you don’t have the riches of God in the gospel, then that’s real poverty. I’ll take another. To be known in this world is to be famous. That could be fun, right? But if you are known in the world and not known by God, that’s a superficial fun. To have everything but not have God is a superficial joy. But to be known and loved by God, to have nothing in this world but have God, to be in all kinds of situations and ministry roles that at times do make you sorrowful, but to have gospel-realities, that is real joy.
In the chapter before, Paul wrote that Jesus, who knew no sin, became sin for us on the cross, so that in Jesus we might become the righteousness of God (2 Cor. 5:21). And when you draw back the curtain, we see that Paul’s heart was that his people would know these gospel-realities as their truest truths and highest joys. He wanted them to know you can be sorrowful and yet mingled in the sorrow there would be a rejoicing that’s deeper and stronger and more sturdy. This is pastoring—but if you ask me, it’s also the Christian life. The fight by faith to embrace gospel-realities as our truest truths.
4. Not Restricted: that mutual affection would flow between them
Finally, we come to the last “not.” Not in vain, not an obstacle, not superficial. Now, we see “not restricted.” To say it positively, Paul’s heart was that mutual affection would flow between them. I’ll read the verses vv. 11–13 again.
11 We have spoken freely to you, Corinthians; our heart is wide open. 12 You are not restricted by us, but you are restricted in your own affections. 13 In return (I speak as to children) widen your hearts also.
That line about children could sound demeaning, but Paul means it in an endearing way. In 1 Corinthians 4:15, Paul tells them, “For though you have countless guides in Christ, you do not have many fathers. For I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” Paul loved them as a loving father. He wanted their hearts to not be restricted. Yes, they had history together, and that history could have made, indeed should have made, their relationship full of thorns and thistles, but here Paul was, like a sunflower in a parking lot, loving people, opening his heart wide to people who had hurt him deeply, people who didn’t love him back—at least on the whole, at least not yet.
The vision of ministry Paul has is not one of exchanging goods and services for pay. Paul’s ministry among them was not like Facebook marketplace. You want something, great, I’ll give it to you for a price. You want sermons, you want leadership, you want truth? Here’s the price. That wasn’t Paul. That’s not ministry. He labors among them as a father who loves and longs for them to love him back and to follow him as he follows Christ (cf. 1 Cor. 11:1).
And yet they are closed off. The word is “restricted.” He says, “you are restricted in your own affections.” I hear that, and I think, as perhaps some of you do, of the human body and the heart and veins and arteries and cholesterol and plaque buildup. Your body needs open veins and arteries, not clogged. Restrictions can cause heart attacks and strokes. Paul is saying to them, my affection is flowing this way, but it’s not coming back. And he’s asking them to consider why that is? Just like the issue of “not receiving grace in vain,” this issue of restricted affection was not theoretical to Paul—or us.
I remember a guy I’ll call Steve. Steve was at my first church. I had just been hired, like maybe three weeks. I was hired as their Associate Pastor of Connections. I was going to help people get connected. And I’m handing bulletins out at the church door and Steve comes up and I hand him a bulletin. He says, “So you’re the new guy.” He said it with a sort of funny but not mean smirk on his face. He was happy to see me, I could tell. So I say that I am the new guy, and he says, “So what do you do?” I say with a smirk, “I help people get connected.” Steve just kind of raises his eyebrows and says, “Oh.” I smile back at him and look at him all serious-like and say, “Steve, do you feel connected?” He smiles, takes the bulletin from my hand, and says, “I’m as connected as I want to be right now.” And then he walked into church.
Steve and I became friends. He became our realtor when we bought and sold a house in Tucson. What you don’t know about Steve and I didn’t know when he told me he was as connected as he wanted to be, is that Steve was at church but he was busy healing. He had been a pastor at another church and failed and lost his marriage and he was pretty broken, and he was as connected as he wanted to be.
But what I loved about Steve was that he knew being restricted and guarded was not a long-term strategy. I wonder this about some of you. You’re connected as you want to be, but I want to ask but if that is your long-term strategy? Paul’s heart and the heart of the pastors here is that we would be doing something more than Facebook marketplace, more than dispassionate, aloof exchanging of religious goods and services. You want a sermon, so you pay me. I want money, so I preach. Paul longs for something more for him and for them. I think all pastors do. And I think you do too. So ask yourself if you’re restricted at our church and why? Maybe for good reasons. Maybe for a time of healing. But what I would ask, is your ten-year plan for your relationship with the local church and the people you serve with? My heart for you is something more than mere attendance. And for those of you going to Midtown, oh, Ben loves you very much. He is not restricted. That’s not who he is; that’s not the kind of ministry he’ll do. So don’t be that way with him and Greg and the other leaders.
Conclusion: Paul’s heart that his gospel-ministry would look like the gospel
So, we come to the conclusion. How might I summarize all of this heart language that Paul has for his ministry? Not in vain, but that God’s grace and his ministry would be effectual. Not an obstacle, but that his life would increase their esteem for Christ, not superficial, but that gospel-realities would be their truest truths, not restricted but that mutual affection would flow between them. How do we summarize this?
I would say that behind the not in vain, behind the not an obstacle, behind the not superficial, behind the not restricted, Paul’s heart was that his gospel-ministry would look like the gospel. Paul’s heart was that his gospel-ministry would look like the gospel. In short, all four of these “pastor’s hearts” are the heart of Christ displayed in the gospel.
The gospel Paul received from Jesus was not in vain. Jesus lived and died and rose and will come again, and that will not be for nothing. The message of the cross and resurrection, the message of the grace of Christ, produces life. It did for Paul. It still does.
And while the words of Jesus and the life and death of Jesus can be viewed as offensive, when Jesus is rightly understood, he’s not an offense, or an obstacle. Jesus suffers and endures and loves, and he does it all in purity and truth and in power of the Holy Spirit so that people would esteem him.
And Paul wants his gospel ministry to be like the gospel message in that it’s not superficial but truths that change the deepest realities—forever.
And perhaps most especially, in the gospel message, Jesus loves us before we love him. Jesus dies before we would die for him. Jesus suffers for us before we even care about him. Paul’s ministry—Paul’s heart for his people—looks like unrestricted love to people that still are restricted because the gospel message he received. And that gospel message changed him and this church in Corinth, just as it’s changing pastors and people all over the world. And the gospel is the only thing that will change pastors and churches in Harrisburg and Midtown. There may not be a Great Wizard of Oz behind the pulpit of any church, but there is a great savior named Jesus.
So, we’ve talked about a pastor’s heart for his people. Next week, Ben will preach from this letter about where a people’s power for ministry comes from. If they are not to receive grace in vain, if they are not to be an obstacle, if they are not to be superficial, if they are not to be restricted, how will that happen? How does a sunflower grow without soil? Pastor Ben will explain that next week.
I’ll invite the music team forward so we can have a time of response through singing. Let’s pray. “Dear Heavenly Father. . .”
Sermon Discussion Questions
How have you experienced the church as both a wonderful and a hard place?
Is there anything in your heart that is restricting your love for your church and its leaders? If so, what? Are you willing to work on it? Why or why not?
How did Paul’s gospel-ministry also look like the gospel?
In John 15:15, Jesus says, “No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.” In the gospel, we do not merely become servants but friends of God. In what ways do you cultivate a friendship with another person? How can you cultivate this same friendship and warmth with Jesus that he wants to have with you?
