Pastors

Have you ever felt that people expected you to produce signs and wonders on demand?

Last year I had to confront a member of our church. This man had come to Christ out of a homosexual lifestyle. Although he had contracted AIDS, we had accepted him fully into the life of the church.

But then he resumed his deathstyle of cruising and trysts. When I confronted him, he cried profusely and said he would repent. I told him repentance included informing those he had exposed to the AIDS virus. At that, his sorrow turned to anger. He venomously accused me: "You're no man of God! If you were Spirit-filled, you would have discerned this sin before it got out of hand. I've been doing this for months now. Why didn't you get a word of knowledge when you prayed for me?"

I reminded him that several months previously I had inquired point blank how he was handling temptation.

"That was just a hunch," he replied. "That was just pastoral concern, not a spiritual gift."

True, my gumshoeing didn't sound supernatural. ...

You have reached the end of this Article Preview

To continue reading, subscribe to Christianity Today magazine. Subscribers have full digital access to CT Pastors articles.

Log InSubscribe

Already a CT subscriber? Log in for full digital access.