Pastor = Babysitter

Since when did pastors become babysitters?

Having been a pastor myself before I became a Rabbi, I know what  it takes to have to deal with a Christian congregation in  America. Any kind of guidance or correction you try to give is met  with resistance, rebellion and the threat of them leaving your  Church altogether. So what we are left with is Pastors who only  give messages of "encouragement" without any real depth.  Encouragement should only come when people are doing the right  thing. It has to be balanced with real spiritual progress that is  coupled with instruction or else it becomes weak. And that's  exactly what we have today, a weak Church. I see many Christian  writers who have come to the same conclusion but they have failed  to identify the root cause. This root cause is due to the fear in  today's pastors to take care of business because they're worried  how their parishners will react. So they coat all their messages  in order that they can win approval of their congregants.

After I became a Rabbi, I shed the role of Babysitter and took on  the more substantial role as "Leader".Now the encouragement I give  has real meaning and isn't just a bunch of fluff. I tell it like  it is. If someone is in sin, I tell them so and I don't beat  around the bush. Those who want to be coddled say I'm "mean", but  if I wanted to be mean I would simply let them continue in their  sin as I watched them go on their merry way to hell. But because  I have compassion on the lost, I try to get them off that path as  quickly as possible.

This approach has also enhanced my messages and teachings. Now I  can get to the real truth of the Scriptures and the heart of any  topic. It's really been life changing for me and has allowed me  to be able to explore the "meat" of G-d's Word. I have to admit,  it's also spoiled me. I can't hardly bear anymore sitting and  listening to a Message that only scratches the surface of the  topic. Let's call those messages what they really are... they're  boring! No wonder the Church is losing so many people and the  only ones that are growing are the ones who can babysit more  people, the mega-churches. The members of the mega- churches and  other church members who like to be babysat will fight this tooth  and nail and tell you how deep their church "really is". They'll  fight it cause they don't really want to have to change or be  responsible for what they would learn from a real hard hitting  message. I can't tell you how many times I've sat through a fluff  message and right after the people next to me will say, "wow that  was great, what a deep teaching" and I'm thinking, "That's it?" I  could've heard this in Sunday school when I was 6! But these  surface members thought it was great because that's all they ever  get. That's all they get cause that's all the want. If they  wanted more, they would allow their Pastor to correct them and  show them the true path to righteousness which is a very difficult  path to take.

I still have Christians who visit my Messianic congregations and  they bring with them that expectation to be wood and coddled but  they quickly find that that is not the ministry of a Biblical  Rabbi. Most of them get angry and call me names then never come  back. Some still call me names but come back again and tell me  they don't know why. Some will even tell me it's so THEY can help  Me lol. But the real reason is because somewhere in their heart  they know they need to hear some things that only I or someone  who is willing to be honest will tell them. We know this rule  applies to a real friend. A real friend will tell you what's  wrong with you even if it may hurt a little. So why should we  expect anything less from our spiritual leaders?

I understand many Pastors feel the same way but they don't know  how to get out of the rut they are in. They're worried that  they'll lose half or more of their people (and they will) and  then what are they supposed to do? It's a tough choice.

I have a friend in South Africa who was a Pastor with the  Assemblies of G-d and he began teaching the truth and the Church  he was working for fired him and he lost 3/4ths of his people. I  wish there was a happy ending to this story, but he's still  struggling. All he has is a good night sleep every night and the  satisfaction of bringing G-d's word to the few he has left.

In time, things do get better but it's never easy. More and more  people are realizing that they need more from their Church then  what they are getting but they still don't want to hear anything  negative from their pastors.

One thing I've noticed is you don't find babysitting Pastors in  countries where Believers are being persecuted. If you need to be  babysat, you're quickly shown the door. That's because they know  that's the person who will give up the Brothers and Sisters when  the police come.

One thing I can promise you here is the truth. If you write in,  be ready to hear what you need to hear straight from the gut. If  you've come to hear your ears tickled, you'll be disappointed and  then become angry. If you're not used to taking the blame  yourself, then you will be forced to blame me. Rest assured, I  wont get angry because I know where it's all coming from. If you  try to twist G-d's Word, there are times I get angry about that  as I know that Satan is your backer. You can call me arrogant  till the cows come home but you'll still be left with you in the  end. those who I go to for spiritual guidance are the ones who  I've chosen with great care who I know will give me the straight  poop. I couldn't care any less how they deliver it, I'm just  grateful that they are taking the time to impart it to me. If  they were to sugar coat it, I'd look elsewhere for direction.

Yeshua always gave it to His Disciples straight and He even got  angry at them sometimes. The idea that Jesus was always only  giving encouragement is a myth and giving instruction only with a  soft soothing hypnotic quality is not "love". Spanking your  son's behind and telling him to "knock it off" can be just as  loving and doesn't make you any less Spiritual.

So, I hope you enjoy the other articles here on this site and  we'll see you in comment sections.

Rabbi Stanley