The Qualifications of a Pastor...according to many Pastors

From what I often hear other popular Christian Pastors say, here is how 1 Timothy 3:1-7 should have been written:

1 Timothy 3:1-7
The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer (pastor), he desires a noble task. Therefore an overseer must be relevant. In order to get a sizable audience, the pastor must prostitute the gospel. He must also have an exceptional portion of humor. Furthermore, if he can base his Sunday Preaching on a modern stand-up Comedic routine he deserves a double wage. He must be the attractional type. Why else would anyone come to hear him preach the word of God? The overseer must be self-controlled except when it comes to his tongue. The more flamboyant, the better. Oh, did I mention he must be relevant? The most polished Pastors are the ones who have learned how to preach as little Bible as possible while mixing in as many stories and jokes as possible. The pastor should not worry about how outsiders or other Christians for that matter think about him because he is God's Annointed and they are only jealous of his church size. The pastor must be cool and hip. So depending on your place of service that might mean wearing Brooks Brother suits or designer jeans and shirts. And did I mention, the pastor must be relevant?

Thank God for the real 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and passages like 1 Corinthians 1:18-2:5; 1 Corinthians 4, 1 Timothy 5:17, 2 Timothy 4, and Titus 1. They are truly why so many pastors endure when hardship comes from every side.

Is This a Good Thing?

I only recently became aware that churches these days are giving incentive pay to pastors based on meeting certain objectives. For example, if the church administers the baptism of 50 individuals, then the Pastor gets a bonus. Or if Sunday morning attendance increases from 350 to 500, then the staff are rewarded financially. This article does not go into any specific objectives set for Deep Creek Baptist Church, but does acknowledge some of their incentives to be based both on objective and subjective tests.

I see the dangers as many, and the benefits as few. What does it say to the world, when our Pastors are not motivated by the Glory of God alone, but God and financial incentive?

A Reflection on Philippians 2:14-18

It seems that when I see many Pastors' past experience, there tends to be a large list of churches at which they previously served. While I do not have before me any hard statistics, I believe I have read that Southern Baptist Pastors tend to average around 3-5 years in each pastorate.

Surely there are legitimate reasons why some pastorates end so quickly:
1. Some Pastors are deceived by congregants into thinking the church is one way, but after the Pastor arrives, the church is different. For example, the Pastor might have been told that he will have charge of the spiritual leadership of the church (which he should, hopefully alongside with other elders), but when he arrives, he quickly finds out that he has this authority only on the approval of some families or deacons. In effect, he cannot lead the church, so he ends up leaving.
2. Some Pastors end up having to die on hill for Jesus. For example, the Pastor begins to reach out to the local Hispanic population, and after some time, some of them convert and they begin to come to church. At the next leadership meeting, the Pastor is told that the church is not pleased with the influx of Hispanics. The Pastor says that he is going to continue to minister to this people group. The church eventually tells the Pastor to start looking for new employment.
3. Many Pastors labor genuinely and optimistically in a church for 3-5 years, yet the church will not respond to his leadership and in the end the Pastor decides to leave because of this issue.

Yet we all know that many Pastors leave because a bigger, better, higher paying, better located, perk offering church calls and while his current church is slowly moving forward, the enticement of the invitation from the other church is too powerful to turn down.

In Philippians 2, the Apostle Paul exhorts the church toward sanctification (vv12-13), and in v14 he gives practical instruction on how to pursue sanctification. In vv15-18, he gives three reasons why the Philippians should do all things without grumbling and disputing. The first reason is for the Philippians own sanctification (v15a). The second reason is for the sake of the believer's witness to a lost world (v15b).

Interestingly, the third reason for Paul exhortation to do all things without grumbling and disputing is for Paul's sake. In verses 16-17, he says "so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. Even if I am to be poured out as a drink offering upon the sacrificial offering of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with you all."

Paul's investment in the Philippians sanctification weighs heavily upon his conscience. He believes that their sanctification is his responsibility. The Philippians must run and finish the race of faith, and Paul sees himself playing a pivotal part in their completion of that race. If they finish, Paul is vindicated and his work has not been in vain, but if they fail to finish the race, Paul seems to see their failure as his own.

Perhaps if Pastors souls were daily pricked with the understanding of this weighty responsibility, we would not be so quick to depart the church where are currently serving. Too often, I believe we do not stay because we have not sufficiently invested ourselves into the lives of our congregations. And as a result, it is easier for us to leave.

Paul says to the Elder Timothy, "Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and for those who hear you." Let all preachers feel the weight of this commandment. Our congregation's sanctification is our responsibility as we minister on behalf of God in the Holy Spirit teaching the Word of God.

Giving an Account

Hebrews 13:17 says, "Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you."

This highlighted portion of verse 17 should always be on the mind of the faithful pastor. Here is one question I find myself asking lately that is related to this truth: In order to give an account of those I shepherd to God, do I not have to know them?

This question is easy for me to answer. I believe I do have to know the flock which I shepherd. I believe I have to know their names. I believe I must have interaction with them.

Logically, I have come to the conclusion that churches can become to large. Churches can grow so much numerically that it really becomes an impossibility for a pastor/pastors to faithfully shepherd.

With many churches growing by adding satellite churches where the preaching pastor is electronically present, are they moving away from fidelity to Hebrews 13:17? Can a pastoral staff faithfully intercede personally for a congregation of 20,000 members?

As a pastor of a small rural church, I have not had to deal with this issue, but we all should be thinking and preparing for church plants.