“Vigilance” has to be the war-cry of every pastor. “The true Christian is called to be a soldier,” wrote J. C. Ryle, “and must behave as such from the day of his conversion to the day of his death.” [1] Pastors face a myriad of temptations. All are common—idleness, lust, and anger. Some are made sharper by the unique nature of a pastor’s work—pride, discontentment, and impatience stand out.
This article is a charge for every pastor to soldier on. Why should a pastor care about his personal holiness? Here are three straightforward answers.
1. BECAUSE EVERY PASTOR IS A CHRISTIAN
The battle against sin is lost when the pastor thinks he is in a separate class, impervious from the spiritual warfare faced by all believers. First and foremost, he must see himself as a Christian who must endure to the end.
Scripture is clear. Each believer is a new creation and must live a new and holy life (2 Cor. 5:17). Like a tree, the true believer will bear spiritual fruit (Rom. 7:4). The real Christian is dead to his sin and cannot live in it (Rom. 6:2). After all, the unrighteous won’t inherit God’s kingdom (1 Cor. 6:9). The Christian’s
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