Pastor, how clear is your conscience?

Recently there was one more shocking revelation of a well-known spiritual leader who spent years secretly engaging in sexual sin. This led me to consider the proper expectations for pastors in their lives and ministries.

The downside of authenticity

During the time my grandfather was a pastor and at the beginning of my father’s pastorate, people placed heavy expectations on their church leaders. Pastors were expected to be the holiest and most righteous people in the church, almost as if they on a level above other Christians. Of course, the danger of this expectation was that it led to a distant hypocrisy on the part of many pastors.

Now the church culture seems to have overcorrected. Pastors are expected to be “real” and “authentic.” Certainly, these are worthy goals in the ideal, but in practice, it often means that pastors can become comfortable with spiritual struggles rather than striving for spiritual victory. After all, can’t a pastor get more mileage these days out of appearing broken? If he has his spiritual act together, won’t people have a hard time relating to him?

Paul appeared to take a both/and approach. He was open about his imperfections. He willingly admitted to being the foremost of sinners (See 1 Timothy 1:15-16 and note the present tense). In Romans 7:7-25 Paul appears to be using his own personal struggles with sin as an example for teaching.

The goal of a clear conscience

On the other hand, Paul also expressed something that is anathema to contemporary pastors: Paul lived his life and conducted his ministry with a clear conscience.

This is not something Paul expressed once in a random verse that can be easily explained away. He wrote about it clearly, repeatedly and consistently.

For example, in 2 Timothy 1:3 Paul says, “I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience…”

In Acts 23:1 he says, “…I have lived my life before God in all good conscience to this day.”

One of his stronger statements is 2 Corinthians 1:12, in which he says, “Indeed, this is our boast: The testimony of our conscience is that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you, with godly sincerity and purity, not by human wisdom but by God’s grace.” (See also Acts 20:26-27 and 24:16.)

Examine yourself regularly

It is important to realize that Paul does not claim perfection. As he says in 1 Corinthians 4:4, “For I am not conscious of anything against myself, but I am not justified by this. It is the Lord who judges me.” He leaves open the possibility that his self-evaluation is mistaken, but he has examined himself and is not aware of anything with which to condemn himself.

I wonder how many pastors can claim a clear conscience? I am not talking about the pastors who suffer from self-delusional, narcissistic egos or pastors who live by a limited and simplistic moral code. I am talking about pastors who have thoroughly examined the biblical expectations of pastors and also have thoroughly examined their own lives and ministries with honesty and sincerity. How many of such pastors upon self-examination find themselves blameless?

How about you? How clear is your conscience? Do you long to carry out your ministry without self-recrimination or self-doubt?

The example of Paul shows it is possible. Paul also expects the next generation of leaders to follow his example of good conscience. He instructed Timothy to keep a good conscience (1 Timothy 1:19). He expected elders and deacons to be blameless and above reproach (1 Timothy 3:2,7,10; Titus 1:6-8).

Paul maintained a balance of openness about his own struggles with sin and yet a humble confidence in his own clear conscience. This is the proper path for all pastors, as well has the proper expectation churches can lay upon their pastors.

Randall Curtis serves as the Rhode Island regional coordinator for the Baptist Convention of New England.