Pulpits and Pedals

I have recently seen this worship set aired on Facebook Live where the song leader sang out a few ‘artistic and rhetorical phrases’ toward God and toward the audience: a common practice that worship ministers do apparently. This reminded me of the times when I had been a part of such worship sessions, where I myself have said certain pleasant, spiritual-sounding quips, which in hindsight were, at best, impulsive and, at worst, presumptuous; I guess our emotions can get the better of us sometimes (most of the time?), even in such a hallowed setting.

As I continued to watch this band play and sing, I had to fight my own judgmental and self-righteous tendencies since I — as previously mentioned — have been in that position of being on a pulpit to sing songs to God and have gotten carried away with my words, releasing statements that now feel awkward, out of place, and even embarrassing. How many times must I have said and sung words, phrases, and sentences that were not inspired by the Holy Spirit, not totally in sync with my lifestyle, and not even biblically sound but were nevertheless blurted out in a moment of perceived — or perhaps actual — divine inspiration. Praise God for His infinite mercy.

Being on a pulpit and in full display in front of an audience — for me, now — is quite a tricky and risky position to be in, especially if we are more attuned to our giftings and anointings than we are attuned to our intimacy with God. I think the same thing could be said about us, ministers, being on full display online these days due to COVID-related restrictions: if we are hubris-engrossed individuals, then our online presence might only convey ‘who we are’, instead of Who God Is.

There has always been something about being singled-out and placed on the spotlight that brings to the fore or enhances what is already inside of us; much like bestowed authority and bequeathed power has the capacity to simply amplify a person’s inherent internal state: “Good becomes great; bad becomes worse,” as Dr. Abraham Erskine aptly articulated to Steve Rogers in ‘Captain America: the First Avenger’.

The negative tendency here is for one to equate this place of prominence, authority, and power with a station of infallibility, incorrigibility, and indomitability; that one would deem the ‘high estimation’ of their peers as a validation of one’s right standing with God; and that one would assume that their position on that platform means that they have something worthwhile to say. It is indeed tempting to believe that a microphone in one’s hand is a confirmation of integrity, rectitude, and superiority. And what is more, it is so easy to say and sing out platitudes and aphorisms on full blast on your church’s speaker systems, while not having the godly character and the godly lifestyle to back it up. Once again, as a disclaimer, I am writing these from someone who has been in that particular position: I know what I am talking about… based on my own personal experience.

With that in mind, the pulpit should be a place where we tread lightly, not strut arrogantly. It should not be a place where we display ourselves as if to market and promote our skills, talents, and abilities; it should be a place where, in our brokenness and lack, we show forth the excellence of God — humble attitude included. The pulpit should be a place of service, not a stage for superstardom… unless of course the superstardom is that of Jesus Christ! We must step onto this platform bringing only JESUS, the fullness of JESUS, and nothing but JESUS.

Furthermore, the pulpit should not be seen as the only place of service nor the greatest location for it, but as merely one of the many avenues for expressing one’s loving submission to the King’s desires and will. The pulpit ministry’s exposure to public adulation and applause should not be one’s reason for getting involved in Christian service, and should neither be the driving force behind one’s spiritual life: both are unsafe and unstable foundations for a house to be built on… and our service can be and should be built on much stronger and sturdier understructures than that.

In fact, for the follower of Jesus — whether a public minister or a lay person — any form of service should be viewed as acts of worship regardless of their prospects for visibility or popularity, and regardless of any possible difficulty or discomfort; and any task rendered to God and to the body of Christ — done in true submission and humility — should be the offered for the glory of God and God alone.

We should — as Jesus did — be able to faithfully serve our fellow man whether we're speaking biblical truths from a preacher's pulpit in full view of the congregation or providing practical, 'unglamorous' service through a vehicle's pedals as we ferry our co-workers to and from the workplace in our bid to keep them safe from the lingering COVID-19 threat on the public commute.

Any labor done in true submission and humility before God is — and should be seen as — an act of worship whether the platform for rendered service is vividly blatant or infamously obscured before men. There is only One Audience anyway... and His gaze pierces cloud, shadow, earth and flesh. Nothing is hidden from Him. There is no need to impress Him with our ability and eloquence; there is no need to feign might or composure in His presence; there is no need to showcase our 'best' before Him because He has already given us His seal of approval even when we were still ensconced in our worst.

There should be no difference between serving on the pulpit and stepping on those pedals because anything done for Christ is divinely noted and eternally rewarded.