Bryan Jerry

Pastor, if you’ve not given much thought to how you will respond to a request for religious exemption from the COVID-19 vaccine, let this be your encouragement to do so. Here is a helpful article to aid your thinking and here’s why you should read it:

It’s thoughtful

As Christians, we can nuance problems and issues to arrive at a better conclusion because God’s Word and His Spirit guide us. Everything is not as black and white as you would like it to be. Wisdom does not work that way. Just take a look at Proverbs. In one moment, riches are evil, and in another, it’s a sign of unrighteousness. It’s not black and white; one must have the fortitude to consider deeper things when making ethical decisions. We know the truth and then apply that truth to our situation.

If an MLB player thinks he is only getting fastballs, he will fail miserably when the curveball comes his way. No, he must apply what he knows about hitting and adjust. If you, Pastor, think you will only get theological fastballs that can be hit easily, well, when the ethical curveball comes your way, you might strike out.

It defines what constitutes religious exemption well

Defining terms and issues clearly are of utmost importance. We cannot arrive at a healthy decision if we don’t know what makes something right or wrong. It might be possible that one is claiming religious exemption when they are actually misguided and working from preference, philosophical presuppositions, or political identity.

If you go swinging at balls outside the strike zone, well, you will not be successful. If we go swinging at issues not in the strike zone of biblical mandates, we will not do very well at being moral people.

(By the way, if you’ve not read The Science of Hitting by Ted Williams, you should. It might help you develop critical thinking skills. He was way more thoughtful about hitting than most pastors are about pastoring.)

It gets the conversation rolling.

Pastor, there are so many issues flying in your face daily; this is overwhelming. We often don’t have the time to consider every problem that arises in our cultural setting. So, why not take advantage of others who have given it some thought as a way to jump-start your thinking. Even if you disagree, at least you started thinking.

To have a game of baseball, one must simply start by throwing the ball. To have a pastoral response to the ethics of claiming religious exemption has to begin with you, Pastor, reading, thinking, and talking with other pastors.

Follow this link to learn more.

Paul, a servant of God…(Titus 1:1a)

With most introductions, the most important things about a person, about you, get said. It’s
usually an issue of identity that drives our response to, “What’s your name?”, when we meet
someone for the first time. It turns into a moment for us to establish who we are and what we are
about.

I never experienced this more than when I left Florida as a Student Pastor and began seminary.
Every where I went I found myself saying “Hi, I am Bryan, I used to be a Student Pastor,”
especially as we visited churches. It was as natural as breathing, my initial introduction was a
moment to say what I wrongly perceived was most valuable about me. I would vomit insecurity
while tripping over my desire to be perceived as important. A full blown identity crisis! I say
crisis, because that is the result of wrongly gathering your identity from a role. The role comes
and goes, and at times you don’t fulfill the role very well. Identity then goes into crisis mode
and you begin to swirl down the joyless rabbit hole of doubt. I struggled greatly during that time
unsure of myself and wondering if I could do anything of value for the church. This is where
Paul serves us Pastors well. In all the Pastoral Epistles, Paul describes himself in light of God.
In Titus, he says that he is a servant before he gets to his role as apostle. In 1 and 2 Timothy he
does state first that he is an apostle, but that is only a quick mention. He launches into what God
the Father and Christ Jesus has done in calling him to serve in that capacity. He understands
himself and his work only in reference to God’s work. He is first and foremost a servant, ready
to receive whatever the Lord sees fit. Since his ultimate identity is not tied to a role, in joy he is
able to serve as an apostle

Pastor, what is the most significant thing about you? Is it the role you currently have, or the
work God has already done? Don’t let your role as pastor be the place you drawn value and
significance from. That is a gift from God given to you because you are first and foremost a
servant. You are not valuable to the church because you are a pastor, it’s because he has
redeemed you and called you

Pillar Network Arizona

Author: Bryan Jerry

To be or not to be, exempt that is…

Identity Crisis