Healing Wounded Churches

by Russ Parker
Fall 2014

"To the angel of the church in Pergamum write... I know where you live!" — Revelation 2:12–13

I have always been challenged by the fact that Jesus talks to churches! He addresses seven churches in the Book of Revelation and they take the form of a spiritual audit by which each church is challenged to listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying to them. The whole conversation is an exhortation for each church to find the healing it needs in order to be the church that the Lord has called it to be.

This is a wake–up call for us to realize that not only individuals need healing but churches do too. A lot of my current ministry is now responding to invitations to come alongside church leaders who are carrying the brokenness and woundedness of the faith communities that they serve. It is largely because of this that many leaders suffer breakdown through stress, and many, as a consequence, give up their ministry all together.

The Greek word for angel does not only refer to the mighty winged creation of God but it also means messenger. It is in this sense it is used here in Revelation and refers to the leaders of the church who have a God–given commission of being the story carrier of the church. A question that church leaders can easily identify with is, "When you became the minister of your church, did you find that you became a player in a play you did not write?" Leaders are responsible to God for the spiritual health of their church, but if the church is broken or battered then it often reveals itself in the broken and wounded health of their leaders and pastors.

I believe that we need to give special care to the healing of leaders, but Jesus calls us to go further than this and bring healing to the wounded stories of our churches too. It is this that Jesus addresses in His words to the churches in Revelation. Let us look briefly at Jesus's audit procedure in bringing healing and transformation to His church.

Jesus Announces His Credentials of Authority

Each time Jesus speaks to a church He begins by saying who He is for that church. One example is, "These are the words of Him who holds the seven stars in His right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands."(Rev. 2:1) This message is given to the Ephesian church, which prided itself on knowing a truth or two; they can even spot a false apostle when they see one! The purpose of this is to bring the church back to listening to the head of the church, and to His challenging words.

Jesus Summarizes the Church's Story

Five times Jesus tells the church, "I know your deeds." Once He says, "I know your afflictions and poverty," (2:9) and, "I know where you live."(Rev. 2:13) It seems that Jesus thinks it important to know the stories that affect or shape the way we are now as the church of his name. The challenge to us is, "Do we know the stories of our church?" When I was the Incumbent (clergy) of a church in the Midlands in the U.K., I was floundering in my ministry, as it seemed so hard to move the church forward. I felt they resisted everything I tried and assumed it was because they were hardening their hearts in disapproval of my ministry. I began to sink into depression. Nothing worked. Even when gifted people brought their ministries to the church and we saw some healings and changes in a few lives, those people eventually left because the rest of the church remained unmoved. In fact, I would have said that charismatic ministries were emptying my church. I was sinking in the mire of apathy and unbelief. Then came the 150th anniversary of the church and I commissioned a book to tell the story of the church from the day it was founded. It was only then that I understood what was affecting my church.

The church, if not the town, was founded upon the forcible relocation of 500 mining families from rented accommodation in the far Northeast of England, for the purpose of working new coal pits hundreds of miles away. Also, as was common in our country then, the Church was a colluding partner in this act. The mine owners were usually religious and you had to attend church in order to secure your employment. I suddenly saw the mindset of the church and town: the church was not only the pastor of your souls but also the policeman of your circumstances. I realized that such powerlessness over your circumstances sowed apathy and unbelief in their hearts. The church was reaping what had been sown into their foundation and beginnings. Being the pastor of the church and the carrier of its story, I decided to confess the sins of the church on behalf of what my ministerial ancestors had done. It became the breakthrough moment in freeing the congregation to move on with God.

The Twin Agenda of Blessing and Sins

Jesus is not just looking for the problems besetting the church—He points to the blessings already present as well as the sins that puncture and disempower those blessings. I have learned that what you do not celebrate shrinks through lack of affirmation. In speaking to the Ephesian church, Jesus points out their hard work and perseverance and how they have endured many hardships and value theological truths. So I now encourage churches to own their whole story and to celebrate what is good because it tells us that God is still here and we want the impact of those blessings to flourish more powerfully. Secondly, I teach churches to confess what they have done wrong as a church without accusing individuals, but own those wrongdoings as theirs and seek the forgiving power of Jesus to renew His life and presence in that church.

Invariably, in bringing healing to church stories I have invited the congregation to gather around their leaders, lay hands upon them and celebrate and honor them for their calling and ministry. I have in fact written a special prayer for this and you can find it in my book Wild Spirit of the Living God. I think there is a very special need to heal our church leaders of the collateral damage they carry from church wounds. For this reason I am so thrilled that CHM has the vision of a healing space where such pastors and priests can come to find honor and healing. I am convinced that the well–being of the church and its renewal in the power of the Spirit hinges to some degree on how well we love and honor our leaders.

The Exhortation to Listen to the Spirit

As Jesus finishes speaking to churches, He encourages us to listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying to the church about its shaping powers and stories. I worked with one large church in the city of Guildford, which had removed its minister because he had hurt so many people. They thought their problems were now solved but were dismayed to discover that people were still leaving in large numbers. As we reviewed their story, they discovered that the reason for founding their church was both to preach the Gospel faithfully but also because, in their opinion, the already existing Anglican Church in the city did not preach the Gospel properly because it was of an Anglo–Catholic churchmanship. When I asked them to give me a name for that motivation, they correctly said "pride." In response to listening to this discovery, they confessed this sin to God and apologized to the other church with which they had a very cool relationship. They also gave thanks for their heritage as a Gospel–preaching church which had brought many to faith. It was this twin understanding that helped them to realize that the minister who had been removed also had gifts and so they blessed him for his future too. God owned this act of confession and gave them a new minister who is now leading them into a new era of flourishing in Christ.

Pray for Your Leaders and for the Church

O Lord of our church, help us to listen to You as You reveal to us the blessings and the sins of our church and give us grace to own them all in the way that best glorifies You and renews us to be the church You called us to be. Amen.

Russ Parker is an international speaker, pastor, author, and a member of CHM's National Adivosory Board.