Piper, John. Brothers, We Are Not Professionals: A Plea to Pastors for Radical Ministry.
Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing Group, 2013. 307 pp. $14.99.
Biographical Sketch of the Author
John Piper was born in Chattanooga, TN, January 11, 1946. John’s father, Bill, was an itinerant preacher. After growing up in Greenville, SC, John attended Wheaton College (1964-68), majoring in literature, minoring in philosophy. He then earned a Bachelor of Divinity degree from Fuller Theological Seminary (1968-71). John then completed his doctoral work in New Testament studies at the University of Munich (1971-74), writing his dissertation on Love Your Enemies. Following the completion of his doctoral studies, John accepted an invitation to teach on biblical studies at Bethel College in St. Paul, Minnesota, where he served for six years (1974-80). Initially, John was reluctant to pastor, however, the Lord stirred his heart for a passion to pastor. John then took the call to preach at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, MN, where he faithfully preached and pastored for thirty-three years. John married Noël Henry (Piper) in 1968. John and Noël have four sons, a daughter, and fourteen grandchildren. As an extension of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Desiring God was founded in 1994. John serves with Desiring God to this day as a lead teacher.[1] Piper is author to more than fifty books, alongside hundreds of articles and chapters. For a pretty penny you may buy his complete works (1970-2015) from Crossway.[2] Some of my favorites include, but are not limited to: Don’t Waste Your Life, God is the Gospel: Meditations on God’s Love as the Gift of Himself, Finish the Mission: Bringing the Gospel to the Unreached and Unengaged, and A Holy Ambition: To Preach Where Christ Has Not Been Named.
Synopsis
John Piper’s “Bothers, We Are Not Professionals…” is an advance against the pragmatic tendencies of our age. His intended audience are the whirlwind of pastors ensnared in the Westernized demand for frenzied production line results. For Piper, the rise of professionalism in the production of the church is more of an enemy than an ally. In typical Piper vernacular, he addresses that the death of humanistic pragmatism is none other than absolute confidence and satisfaction in the glory of God above all other things. God is infinitely more valuable than all human wisdom combined (p. 12). Where the biblical commands and disciplines are fashioned into an iron wheel, with its intricate frames and pully systems, this is where the danger lies. One might say, “The gospel is a practical gospel.” Piper encourages us with loving force, summarily, where practical endeavors take precedence over God-centeredness, this is where the machine of industry deceptively robs the church of its primary calling, which is to be stunned by the infinite glory of God, which is the true foundation of worship and human joy (p. 6). The goal is not to dismiss God glorying and God exalting practical implications of the gospel. Nevertheless, when we observe the exaltation of human works within many of our churches, we must ask whether our westernized assembly-line church machinery is God exalting, or are we merely exalting the building of miniature, human-centric, towers. Simply put, the driving force of “Brothers, We Are Not Professionals,” is a front against human exaltation under the guise of successful, productive ministry. The book is comprised of thirty-six concise chapters. If a newer edition is written, it may be helpful to present the contents in sections. Here is how I would section the contents: (1) God’s Exaltation as the Pastor’s Means of Security and Satisfaction in Ministry (Chapters 1-6); (2) Getting Back to Biblical, God Exalting Practical Obedience (Chapters 7-12); (3) Meditating on God’s Word for His Glory and the Churches Enjoyment (Chapters 13-16); (4) Sermon Presentation Considerations Which Magnify God’s Glory (Chapters 17-25); (5) Pastor’s, Instruct them to Train for the Glory of God and Their Joy (Chapters 26-30); and (6) Practical Social Endeavors for the Glory of God and Our Joy (Chapters 31-36).
Strengths and Weaknesses
“Brothers, We Are Not Professionals” is a powerhouse for reorienting a pastor’s heart toward God-centered worship. Spotlighting one of the myriads of examples, Piper conveys, writing, “Nothing keeps God at the center of worship like the biblical conviction that the essence of worship is deep, heartfelt satisfaction in Him and the conviction that the pursuit of that satisfaction is why we are together” (p. 265). Why does this matter? It matters because God is real, and eternity is at stake. A church led by the Spirit in God-centeredness is a church which transcends the assembly-line of humanistic agenda, it is a church which reaches to the depths of God’s Word, by the Spirit, into Christ-exalting worship and obedience. This reorientation is crucial. The heart of pragmaticism in the church is exaltation of human ability above a continual dependance on God through humble God-centered worship. Thereby, the heart of God-honoring, God exalting worship and obedience is God-centered worship and obedience. Piper says it all, writing, “Few things frighten me more than the beginnings of barrenness that come from frenzied activity with little spiritual food” (p. 80). Therein lies the cross our generation must bear if we are to reclaim an authentic expression of God-centered worship. What makes Piper’s message so lifegiving is that the church, in its current state is not without hope. If the church will, by His grace, return to a God-centered Worship which exalts Jesus’ gospel, hope will abound. Furthermore, the fear of not producing a production which satisfies our pragmatic desires will peel away in the presence of Jesus as we make much of Him, making less of ourselves. And then, church, God will illuminate His will to us concerning the practical administration of the gospel, for the church. This is an epochal truth I pray the Lord, by His gracious mercy would pour out upon His church in this hour defined by human pragmaticism.
Piper’s work is centrally focused. Rather than assign a weakness, it is necessary to learn from his perspective, then, apply constructively the ways his perspective might aid pastors with God-exalting fundamentals for reforming areas of their church’s organizational practices. Therefore, here are three-ways pastors may consider applying his perspectives to pastoral ministry:
1. God-centered worship in all things. Pastor, your great duty is to exalt God to impoverished hearts. Production might keep the pews full, however, where is not preeminent, spiritual starvation abounds. Therefore, the administration of preaching, teaching, counseling, discipling, praise, and motivation for works of obedience must be saturated with the preeminence of Christ in all things.
2. Spiritual disciplines. Western Christianity seems to love the lights and fog machines, however, in the hot, dry, and dusty Middle East, where flashiness might lead to certain death, pastors are little more obsessed with the spiritual disciplines. Being privileged is no substitute for true, God-centered prayer, fasting, and dying to self daily by participating in God’s lifegiving grace. While a variety of participation may exist from church to church, pastor, do not trade the practice of God-centered spiritual disciplines for full pews. If God aims to bless your pews to full capacity, may they come because they experienced God, rather than attractive professional production.
3. Evangelism and social ministry. It may be that our evangelistic efforts have failed not merely because the outside world is tired of the gospel message, rather, maybe they see through humanistic approaches which often come across as judgementalism, etc. Maybe it is possible for the church to know the song and dance without knowing how to sing or dance. It is one thing to know material, it is another thing to demonstrate the material. And the material, if you will, is Jesus! We do not herald a noble philosophy, we herald Christ, alive and in the flesh. God-centered evangelism and social ministry does not fake anyone to the cross of Christ for salvation. Rather, it is immersed in participation with Christ, through His Word and by the Spirit.
Personal Reflection
Not everyone loves Piper’s strong propriety for God exaltation as the means of human joy and satisfaction. For me it is a helpful meditation on the goodness of God toward a wretched sinner like me. When I read a book like “Brothers, We Are Not Professionals” my heart burns. It’s like God shouting from the pages, “Hey, Britton’s heart! You might be getting older but do not forsake zeal for my glory.” Piper’s work is a fresh reminder that the glory of it all is Jesus Himself. The necessary practical elements of the gospel, the organizational gathering of the saints, the church, is not merely a social club. The church is a metaphorical temple by which the corporate body of Christ comes to experience the presence of Christ together as one body in Christ. The building itself has little to do with the spiritual implications, rather, it is the dynamic of where two or more gather in His Jesus name, there Jesus is, amidst the corporate body by the mystery of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Piper reminds us that being in Christ is the goal, and nothing the church accomplishes in and of itself holds any true eternal value outside of being in Christ. Therefore, if I truly treasure Christ above full pews on Sunday morning, I must live daily in Christ, willing to put even good and practical uses in the church through a cross-shaped sifter which perpetually reorients a God-centered and Christ exalting worship. It is far too easy to settle for the demands of practical structure at the expense of His preeminence. I have, like Piper, experienced far too often this striking word, “Few things frighten me more than the beginnings of barrenness that come from frenzied activity with little spiritual food” (p. 80). And yet, even when I am in this place, is it not the grace of God to send His Spirit to recenter my heart toward God-centeredness.
Citations
[1]“Our Founder: John Piper.” Desiring God, 2023. Web. 7 March 2023. https://www.desiringgod.org/our-founder
[2]John Piper’s complete works, from 1970-2015. https://www.crossway.org/books/the-collected-works-of-john-piper-hconly/
Quotes
“When I look back, my regret is not that I wasn’t more professional but that I wasn’t more prayerful, more passionate for souls, more consistent in personal witness, more emotionally engaged with my children, more tender with my wife, more spontaneously affirming of the good in others. These are my regrets” (p. x).
“The professionalism of the ministry is a constant threat to the offense of the gospel. It is a threat to the profoundly spiritual nature of our work. I have seen it often: the love of professionalism (parity among the world’s professionals) kills a man’s belief that he is sent by God to save people from hell and to make them Christ-exalting, spiritual aliens in the world” (p. 3).
“God’s ultimate commitment is to Himself and not to us. And therein lies our security. God loves His glory above all” (p. 7).
“To say that our God is holy means that His value is infinitely greater than the sum of the value of all created beings” (p. 12).
“Do you feel more loved by God because God makes much of you or because God, at great cost to His Son, frees you to enjoy making much of Him forever” (p. 16)?
“Oh, that pastors in our pragmatic age would “meditate day and night” and “beat importunately upon Paul” until they see the gospel of justification so clearly that they would ‘enter paradise itself through open gates’” (p. 29).
“So the secret of how gratitude motivates obedience is in the nature of joy. All joy has in it an impulse to demonstrate the beauty and value of its object” (p. 52).
“The Sermon on the Mount is our doctor’s medical advice, not our employer’s job description” (p. 57).
“Apart from prayer, all our scurrying about, all our talking, all our study amounts to ‘nothing’” (p. 70).
“Refuse to believe that the daily hours Luther and Wesley and Brainerd and Judson spent in prayer are idealistic prayers of another era” (p. 71).
“Activity may continue, but life and power and fruitfulness fade away. Therefore, whatever opposes prayer opposes the whole work of ministry” (p. 75).
“Few things frighten me more than the beginnings of barrenness that come from frenzied activity with little spiritual food” (p. 80).
“The gift of illumination does not replace meditation. It comes through meditation” (p. 97).
“God upholds his glory by leading us in the path of obedience” (p. 139).