Face the Monday-Morning Quarterback: Overcoming Criticism

Written by Tim Smith

The committed pastor knows the sting of post-game criticism. There are certain complaints the Sunday School pastor is guaranteed to receive and some challenges that he will definitely face. Following are a number of objections to change you should anticipate and strategies that can help you meet them.

We already have a great church! Why change it?

When faced with a new concept or philosophy people will fall into one of three broad categories: Some will love it, some will want to hear more about it, and some will oppose it. The Lord Jesus met each of these three groups during his earthly ministry. The apostle Paul encountered all three groups after his sermon on Mars Hill (Acts 17:30-34). Do not be surprised when these groups manifest in your church. In fact, prepare for them.

Do not take the opposition personally. The critic may be opposed to the Sunday School organization and not to the pastor as an individual.

Seize the opportunity. As your church adopts sound principles of Sunday School ministry the wise pastor will view criticism as an opportunity to cast and recast his vision.

Why are you splitting my class?

Fact: New classes grow faster than existing classes and will account for a greater ratio of baptisms per member. There is simply no better or faster way to reach new people. Nevertheless the Sunday School pastor will face criticism about birthing of new classes. How should you response?

Use the right terminology. Never use the words "split" or "divide," or the phrases "bust up" or "break up" in reference to making new Sunday School classes. Use exciting words to describe the process. Speak about the "birthing" of a new class or the "creation" of a new unit. Some churches may even speak of "planting" or "establishing" a new class. These words speak of life and vitality and should become part of your leaders' vocabulary.

Teach, teach, and teach some more. Some opposition arises out of ignorance and fear of the unknown. Pastors can wrongly assume that people understand the rationale for creating new units. Ministers may live and breathe these matters, but the layperson does not.

Celebrate life-change. The wise pastor will look for ways to connect new units with changed lives. The baptistry is a great place to testify to the effectiveness of birthing new units. When a new believer's salvation can be directly tied to the Sunday School class, the pastor should consider standing in the baptismal waters and praising God for it. Do not overlook the impact of a personal testimony from a layman.

Stay the course. Do not concede the potential of dozens of new members and new believers in a short-sighted attempt to appease one critic. Besides, you will never build a strong Sunday School around the ministry of a self-centered teacher. A pastor who is overly concerned about critics leaving the church will be paralyzed by fear and will have great difficulty leading Sunday School.

We talk about numbers too much!

This criticism will inevitably come against the committed Sunday School pastor from visitors, prospects, and members alike. How can you minimize it?

Check your motives. Before you dismiss this criticism investigate it with a sincere heart. Sometimes ministers are more concerned with and impressed by numbers than they should be. With growth comes recognition, accolades, and the subtle temptation toward pride. Make sure this criticism is an unfounded accusation and not an accurate observation.

Watch your mouth. The very nature of ministry-focused sermons and vision casting can cause the pastor to use a lot of numbers. There is a natural tendency to overload the people with statistics. It can create the impression that leaders don't care as much about people.

Emphasize your methods. Rather than setting a high attendance goal consider a campaign that emphasizes the fundamental methods of outreach and ministry. For example, instead of setting a goal of "375 in Sunday School on April 1" think about a monthly campaign that emphasizes:

• Contacting every member and prospect every week during that month
• Attending organized outreach three out of four (or five) Mondays
• Hosting a class social on the last Saturday
• Committing to be present in Sunday School on the first Sunday

I don't want our church to lose its friendliness!

Why do we think we have to know everyone at church? No one has ever been known to refuse shopping at the local mall because they do not know all the other customers by name. The best solution to this criticism is to deal with the attitude preemptively. In an appropriate sermon ask, "What will our cut-off number for class size be? 200? And if we stop at 200, what will we tell the Lord about prospect number 201?"

Age-graded Sunday School is prime environment for intimate fellowship. By organizing your church through small groups there is ample opportunity for close and vibrant relationships. A church that is not interested in reaching additional people has already ceased to be a friendly church.

The pastor is too concerned with evangelism!

There is absolutely no way to promote an effective Sunday School without emphasizing outreach and evangelism. Satan is very interested in thwarting the evangelistic impact of Sunday School. When your leaders become interested in it, the adversary takes notice. And he may dispatch a fiery dart in the form of this unwarranted criticism.

First, it is impossible to be too concerned with evangelism - just as it is impossible to be too concerned with discipleship. When your church becomes imbalanced on the "evangelism versus discipleship" scale, the issue is not too much of one but rather not enough of the other. If the problem is "too much evangelism" then the solution is not to "stop doing evangelism." If the problem is merely an imbalanced emphasis on evangelism, then the solution is to increase discipleship.

Second, a belief that Sunday School cannot disciple members reveals a low view of Scripture. Second Timothy 3:16 clearly reveals that the study of the Scriptures will train a believer in righteousness. Admittedly, some churches may not adequately use Sunday School to disciple members. But in such cases the problem is in the use of Sunday School, not in the organization itself.

Third, note that the Master's purpose on earth was "seeking and saving that which was lost." It is inconsistent at best to claim maturity in Christ and yet be unconcerned about evangelism. Simply put, the class that is only concerned with going deeper without going out is not going as deep as they think. And the class that is only concerned with going out without going deeper is not going out for the right reason.

You don't care about other ministries in the church!

The Sunday School pastor must be either the leader or the head cheerleader for the organization. That means he will talk about Sunday School a lot. He will motivate and encourage leaders and plan workers' training and recognition events. In the process, other ministries in the church might begin to feel overlooked. There are a few ways to prepare for this criticism.

As you emphasize the importance of Sunday School, point out that this ministry is the rising tide that will lift all boats. As Sunday School goes, so goes the church. In essence, when Sunday School increases every ministry increases along with it.

Dr. Tim S. Smith serves as the Team Leader and Consultant for the Sunday School/Open Group Ministries of the Georgia Baptist Convention. He served for 15 years as a minister of education in churches in Georgia and North Carolina. Tim earned his Doctorate of Ministry degree from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, and his Master of Divinity with Christian Education from Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. He and his family live in White, Georgia.

 

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