βI will very gladly spend and be spent for you; though the more abundantly I love you, the less I be lovedβ (II Cor. 12:15).
The true man of God will faithfully serve the congregation which the Lord has entrusted to him without thought of reward. Like Paul, he will βgladly spend and be spentβ for them even if his toil and sacrifice go unappreciated. Where the congregation is too small to support him fully he will cheerfully engage in enough secular work to supply the deficiency. This is as it should be for, in ministering to his people, he is serving God.
But there is another side to this coin, for Christian assemblies should appreciate the ministries of their pastors in their behalf. This is especially so where the minister gives himself generously for his flock.
It is a sad fact that too many pastors are grossly underpaid. Most of the members of the congregation would not be willing to live on the low economic level on which they keep their pastor and his family living for years on end. He must be willing to sacrifice, but they must not be deprived of any of the luxuries to which they are accustomed. They do not realize how discouraging it can be for the pastor and his family to constantly have to do without, while the better- off members of the congregation hardly notice.
This is why the Apostle Paul reproved the Corinthians and declares: βEven so hath the LordΒ ordainedΒ that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospelβ (I Cor. 9:14). And this, too, is why he wrote to the large-hearted Philippians:
βI can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. Notwithstanding ye have well done, that ye did communicate with my affliction β¦.Not that I desire a gift, but I desire fruit that may abound to your accountβ (Phil. 4:13-17).
Where true, Bible-believing pastors are concerned, letβs not be Corinthians; letβs be Philippians. source
