What Pastors Owe Their Churches
This article was first published in the Baptist Bulletin (March/April 2008) and appears here unedited. Used by permission. All rights reserved. See also What Churches Owe Their Pastors by the same author.
Two thousand years ago the apostle Paul, church planter and pastor par excellence, declared that he was a debtor to those to whom he ministered. He sensed an obligation to discharge, a duty to perform, and a debt to pay—both to the unsaved and to the saints in Rome (Romans 1:11–15). Ministers today are expected to labor with that same sense of indebtedness to their congregations. Why are they so obligated? The answer lies in an understanding of the dual calling of pastors.
A dual calling
First, there is the calling by God to this specialized ministry of shepherding a local congregation (Ephesians 4:11). Being a pastor is the most notable vocation known to man. Paul expressed this initial calling by testifying, “I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry” (1 Timothy 1:12). One of the primary reasons for the recruitment of an ordination council is to determine whether the candidate is actually called and equipped by the Lord for this lifework. The certainty of such a special calling also provides the motivation for an effective and enduring ministry.
Second, there is the calling by a local congregation. According to Baptist polity, each church is congregationally governed and autonomous. So each church must, by the vote of its members, call the man of their choice, believing that the Lord is actually involved in the placement of the man of God. Pastors consequently experience a dual calling, and for these two reasons, they are under obligation to a given congregation. How then is this obligation discharged? In addition to the normal ministerial responsibilities of including his wife in ministry (and she needs to keep herself involved as well), keeping confidences, maintaining regular office hours, and providing the membership with clear goals and plans, there are four Scriptural ways to fulfill this calling.
Feeding the flock
Just prior to His ascension, Jesus commanded Peter to “feed My sheep” (John 21:17). The writer of the book of Hebrews wrote of the need to teach both “milk” and “solid food” (Hebrews 5:11–14). Paul admonished Pastor Timothy to “preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season” (2 Timothy 4:2). This involves a recognition that “man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). Pastors, therefore, should major in expository preaching in order to “declare … the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). Believers need a balanced diet of spiritual food that does not emphasize certain truths to the neglect of others, because “all Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16, 17, NIV).
Shepherding the flock
Paul admonished the pastors from Ephesus to “keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God” (Acts 20:28, NIV). One of the primary ways of fulfilling this commission is for the pastor to visit his people, not only in times of illness and bereavement, but on a regular basis as well. This used to be generally understood and expected by both pastors and parishioners. However, in more recent times, this practice has been neglected, and rare is the pastor who personally visits the homes of the members of his church.
Recently I served as the full-time interim pastor to three churches in Iowa and Nebraska. Each church was divided over its previous pastor, who had been pressured to resign. The most common complaint was not the pastor’s preaching or leadership, but his lack of a compassionate concern for the members of their church. As one man stated, “We have been members of this church for twelve years, and the pastor has never called in our home. He doesn’t even know where we live.” It is easy to shift the blame onto the complaining church member for not taking the initiative to invite the preacher, but this does not excuse the pastor for not visiting in his parishioners’ homes. I am convinced that if these pastors had carried out this important aspect of their ministry, they would still be the pastors of their churches.
A friend of mine who pastors a thousand-member church reserves each Monday afternoon and evening for what he calls “fence-mending visitation,” since some of his many members are, as he says, “wandering sheep.” Like the Good Shepherd of Luke 15, this diligent pastor seeks and restores the wandering sheep. For this he is deeply appreciated, and his church is flourishing.
Based on my experience of 50 years of pastoral ministry, I am convinced that this particular kind of visitation should not be delegated to others. Something special occurs when the senior pastor and his wife ring a parishioner’s doorbell, as opposed to a lay member of a visitation team. In addition, such congregational visits provide insight to the needs, interests, and concerns of the flock, and will aid the pastor in his counseling and sermon preparation.
Evangelizing the lost
Paul commanded a local church pastor to “do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry” (2 Timothy 4:5). Not every pastor has the unique gift of being a vocational evangelist (Ephesians 4:11). However, every pastor must do the work of an evangelist. No minister is excused for not being an aggressive witness for Christ.
In every church, there are unsaved people in the audience. Pastors must not miss this golden opportunity to preach the gospel and extend a clear, public invitation to unbelievers to believe on Jesus Christ as their personal Savior. Nothing compares to the joy of seeing that happen. Jesus revealed that there is also “joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents” (Luke 15:10).
This aspect of a pastor’s ministry also includes evangelistic visitation, which Paul said he did for three years by going “from house to house” in Ephesus (Acts 20:20).
Dr. D. James Kennedy, the originator of Evangelism Explosion (a program that many of our churches use), pastored a 10,000-member church. Yet for years he reserved each Thursday afternoon and evening for personal door-to-door evangelism. In addition, he continually exhorted his people to witness for Christ and to encourage their unsaved neighbors and friends to attend the church to hear the gospel. If parishioners are doing this, they can rightly expect their pastor to preach the gospel and attempt to win the lost to Christ. Paul declared, “Necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not preach the gospel” (1 Corinthians 9:16). We need the reminder that “the fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, and he who wins souls is wise” (Proverbs 11:30).
Examples to the flock
A God-called pastor ought to be able to say with Paul, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ” (1 Corinthians 11:1, NIV). He commanded Timothy to be an example to the believers in word, conduct, love, spirit, faith, and purity (1 Timothy 4:12). Peter cautioned his fellow pastors not to be “lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock” (1 Peter 5:3). Paul himself was concerned about his life and reputation. He said, “I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified” (1 Corinthians 9:27). Never has this example been more needed than now, with the alarming fallout of evangelical ministers today.
The spiritual qualification lists for pastors in 1 Timothy and Titus require that a pastor be an example in all areas of his public and personal life, which includes his marriage, home, and children. “For if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?” (1 Timothy 3:5).
It has been well said that everything rises and falls with leadership. Because of Paul’s aggressive soul winning in that Roman prison, others were inspired to “speak the word without fear” (Philippians 1:14). When pastors share their experiences of witnessing and soul winning, members of the congregation will become bolder in their witness as well. After all, isn’t that the primary reason we are left here after we become believers? Church members can therefore expect their pastor to live righteously, witness aggressively, visit regularly, and preach fervently the “unsearchable riches of Christ” (Ephesians 3:8). This is what pastors owe their parishioners.
Roy E. Knuteson (PhD, California Graduate School of Theology) is a retired pastor who attends Calvary Baptist Church, Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin.
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The spiritual qualification lists for pastors in 1 Timothy and Titus require that a pastor be an example in all areas of his public and personal life, which includes his marriage, home, and children. “For if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?” (1 Timothy 3:5).What does this look like practically? We don’t expect our leaders and their families to be faultless, but what does it mean for a pastor’s personal life and household to be ‘in order’?
Does this principle limit the size of a congregation by default? If the congregation is too large for the senior pastor to visit his flock personally on occasion, what should be done to address this? And what does this mean for a church that has a multiplicity of elders?
Based on my experience of 50 years of pastoral ministry, I am convinced that this particular kind of visitation should not be delegated to others. Something special occurs when the senior pastor and his wife ring a parishioner’s doorbell, as opposed to a lay member of a visitation team. In addition, such congregational visits provide insight to the needs, interests, and concerns of the flock, and will aid the pastor in his counseling and sermon preparation.
And a pretty good case can be made for it being healthier for the congregation in the long run if as many people as possible participate in this activity. Sometimes, the battle is adjusting folks’ expectations so that they do not continue to see a visit from the sr. pastor as ‘more special’ than one from a mature and committed deacon or elder just regular Joe.
As for
example in all areas of his public and personal life, it’s really hard to pin down what that that looks like in terms of a minimum standard. “All areas”? I’m not sure I’ve ever known a pastor like that, and I’ve had some very, very good ones. But a factor to consider is “example” of what? An example of a believer who does everything right or an example of a believer who is growing, learning from mistakes, dealing with sin biblically, etc.? But it can’t be just the latter either, because he should be down the road far enough that many sin issues are long outgrown. “Not a novice.”
Views expressed are always my own and not my employer's, my church's, my family's, my neighbors', or my pets'. The house plants have authorized me to speak for them, however, and they always agree with me.
[Susan R] What does this look like practically?I am going out on a limb and going to say that I think this is one of those things that you know it when you see it. One of the things I LOVE about my pastor is that I see him growing and becoming more Christlike yet I do not see him struggling with life-controlling sin. A great negative example is the years of difficulty that Mark Driscoll has had with admitting that he needs to clean up his language and yet continuing to speak the way he does. I know that this means that people are going to have different tolerance levels with some saying that a man is not qualified enough while others are comfortable with where a man is. This is where a multitude of counselors and mutual submission comes in.
As for the visitation issue: I grew up in a very large church. I don’t ever remember my pastor coming over to the house and yet he knew us well enough that when my wife and I went and visited a small church plant to see if God was directing us to get involved there that he noticed we were gone from the congregation!
Jon Bell Bucksport, ME "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and
As far as example, I have considered that the example should extend to things we don’t think about. For instance, if the pastor works 80 hours a week and always appears busy (a struggle I have), what does that communicate to the Husband as example? If the pastor is so busy with people on Sunday that he doesn’t have time to get down and speak to his Son who has come to ask him something, what example does that give. I was convicted about this a while back and since then, by God’s grace, I attempt to serve in the nursery when I am not preaching. I attempt to teach our teen time once a quarter. I think that a part of the example is moving away from formalism in the pastoral role and viewing ourselves as the lead sheep, following the Great Shepherd.
Some of my thoughts are not contrary to the article. It was helpful but some of the applications remind me of “This is the way to do it… and if you are not doing it this way, you’re not doing it” I give the benefit though that the article is just presenting suggestions.
Not around here, anyway!
Views expressed are always my own and not my employer's, my church's, my family's, my neighbors', or my pets'. The house plants have authorized me to speak for them, however, and they always agree with me.
Paul admonished the pastors from Ephesus to “keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God” (Acts 20:28, NIV). One of the primary ways of fulfilling this commission is for the pastor to visit his people, not only in times of illness and bereavement, but on a regular basis as well. This used to be generally understood and expected by both pastors and parishioners. However, in more recent times, this practice has been neglected, and rare is the pastor who personally visits the homes of the members of his church.My response to this statement is:
Acts 6If these men, who were responsible for the spiritual shepherding and welfare of their people, had an elevated view of visiting people in their homes as one of the “primary ways of fulfilling this commission”, it certainly is not reflected in the values of the twelve. Their view was that the primary way of fulfilling their commission to watch over the souls of their people was through prayer and the ministry of the word and in fact, the daily ministration (that is the visiting of the needy in the congregation and meeting such needs and here in this context widows are brought up) was assigned to others. I do not see, even implied, the necessity of visitation per se.
1And in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplied, there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration.
2Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables.
3Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.
4But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.
Some clever soul might bring up Paul’s statement in Acts 20:20 (interestingly not far from the citation above used by Roy Knuteson):
And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publicly, and from house to house,And then argue…”see, Paul visited homes”. Well yes, but these visits to these houses were where gatherings were taking place for the purpose of being taught doctrine.
The term “house to house” is synonymous with “gathering to gathering” or “church to church”. He wasn’t on a visitation call as is suggested above to make friendly, eat cake and talk about things though that may also have happened. His primary objective was not just to visit but to meet with people who gathered in homes to be taught. So anyone tempted to call up this passage and use it out of context to argue for home visits as a primary means of shepherding is undone here.
Roger Carlson, Pastor Berean Baptist Church
Based on my experience of 50 years of pastoral ministry, I am convinced that this particular kind of visitation should not be delegated to others. Something special occurs when the senior pastor and his wife ring a parishioner’s doorbell, as opposed to a lay member of a visitation team. In addition, such congregational visits provide insight to the needs, interests, and concerns of the flock, and will aid the pastor in his counseling and sermon preparation.I had to smile at this. First, because I grew up in a pastor’s home, and I don’t remember my parents ever going out together for visitation. Maybe partly because it there were 5 kids in the family and someone had to stay home with the kids. Also, my mom often taught piano in the evenings to help pay for groceries. I love how people tell us “the pastor’s wife is supposed to be the pastor’s wife, not the assistant pastor” and then say things like this…as if she is the assistant pastor. Interesting idea.
Anyway, I wanted to say that I’ve never been part of a church where the pastor and his wife knocked our door and said “Hi”…etc. Not unless they were personal friends or family and came anyway. At least none that I can remember. That is not to say that we felt unwelcomed or unloved by churches—just that this didn’t happen. Usually the pastor’s wife was quite busy with her family. I was content with that, since I was also busy with my family. :) I had no such expectations of any pastor to drop by. We would make an effort and try to have them in our home if it was possible, however (for a meal). This was not always possible.
Is this kind of thing even accepted in this day and age? Do people want to know ahead of time if you are coming for a visit? Do they like “drop by” visits?
I personally think “how much better if actually you have members visiting and caring for each other”….this would be “every member ministry”…where the pastor doesn’t bear this burden alone (with his wife, that is), but other responsible/spiritual people in the congregation bear the burden of pastoral type visits.
Roger Carlson, Pastor Berean Baptist Church
Is this kind of thing even accepted in this day and age? Do people want to know ahead of time if you are coming for a visit? Do they like “drop by” visits?My experience is no, but that may be because I minister in a metro area. I always feel uncomfortable visiting members of the church. The discomfort is primarily for a few reasons.
1. I am not good at small-talk and yet it seems like that is what these visits are for.
2. People (even those who are friendly) usually look at me like I am a stranger even though I have known them for years.
3. People are many times embarrassed and spend the whole time apologizing for this animal, that messy room, being dressed too casually, etc.
4. Men are gone during the day (many times both are gone today) and families are usually busy in the evening. If you go before dinner, the kids are getting home from school, doing homework, dinner is being fixed, crises are being averted. Makes for tough time to disciple. If you go after dinner, young children are trying to get to bed, much later than that—my kids need me to tuck them in and say prayers with them.
I have found that older individuals can greatly be benefited spiritually by visiting from the pastor. But I prefer to use those times to read some Scripture and pray with them as they usually cannot make it to evening activities.
I have found that planned activities like dinner, coffee, game-night, play-dates, lunch, office visits, Bible studies seem to be much more beneficial for spiritual growth. I think the generation who liked to sit down on a big flowery sofa sip tea and chat are almost gone. Times when people feel like there is a plan are more conducive to discipling the flock, than just dropping in.
I try to call people and set up times to come see them, it seems more respectful of their time and family. Frankly, most people have told me they would rather come see me or visit me during “office hours.”
I love how people tell us “the pastor’s wife is supposed to be the pastor’s wife, not the assistant pastor” and then say things like this…as if she is the assistant pastor. Interesting idea.I am so thankful my wife is not the assistant pastor. She is thankful too, she enjoys being my wife and a mother and also enjoys leading a ladies group not because she is the pastor’s wife, but because she is a Godly, gifted woman.
I have always been puzzled by that concept that the pastor and his wife are the pastoral team. Funny how deacon’s wives (of course they may be deaconess’) are mentioned in Scripture but no where is the pastor’s wife mentioned. That is not to downplay my wife’s roll in my ministry. But she is so busy trying to keep me emotionally and spiritually balanced she has little time for donning that asst. pastor hat.
[Matthew J]I tend to think that unless the “candidate committee interviewed the pastor’s wife when they were grilling the future pastor, I doubt she is on the visit for any other reason except to “complete the team” idea—and so the pastor has a chaperone. IOW, the “wife” may never have been asked anything about her own theology, counseling experience/skills, etc. So, the reason they must be expected to go together would be to make sure he isn’t accidentally put in a situation where he is home alone with a woman with no husband, children, etc. I am not sure what I think about it. Obviously in this situation, they are expected to be a pastoral team. No businessman (or woman) is expected to take his wife (or husband) along on a business meeting—dinners/ social occasions—yes, but business meetings, planning meetings, no.
I have always been puzzled by that concept that the pastor and his wife are the pastoral team. .
I’m thinking that the unannounced, drop-by visit is a nice idea that has mostly outlived it’s usefulness in modern society as we know it.
I’m sure there are still rural areas where people would like such a visit—and and as you mentioned, Matthew, lonely, older people welcome visits—from pastors, friends, other people, etc.—almost any time. They don’t have to worry/think about children’s schedule. homework, or messes, either.
On the other hand I think it is important for me to be involved in the lives of the people of our church as much as possible, so I am trying to find ways to accomplish what visitation used to accomplish. I am trying to systematiclly invite people over to our home. I would like to have a couple families over for dinner and board games, maybe another couple of families over to watch a football game and so on.
My wife will from time to time go with me on a visit. She doesn’t do it because the church expects her to but because she wants to help me. For example, there was a lady in my church in a serious car accident this past thursday. She was transported to a hospital about an hour and a half away. My wife went with me to the hospital to be with the husband, but she went to minister to me more so than to the family. In total, more of my visiting is done with our assistant pastor or a deacon.
http://sharperiron.org/article/what-role-of-pastors-wife-part-1
Personally, I don’t see a problem with them being a pastoral team of sorts. The key there is making sure that the church’s expectations match up with how the pastor and his wife view their roles when the come on board. If they share the same view of how things ought to work in that area, things should work out well.
Sometimes the PW becomes a strong leader in the ministry by default… because there are too few mature and willing Christian women to share in these roles/tasks.
As for calling: I’ve experienced the awkwardness, etc. as well, but I think this has more to do w/my hangups than the people involved. What leads me to this conclusion is that I know pastors who still do the ‘just show up’ visits as well as the arranged ones and, by all accounts, these meetings are very productive and even enjoyable.
But I have noticed a generational trend. With some exceptions, it seems that on average the older church members expect more “hanging out with the pastor” time than the younger ones. Rural vs. city is another factor. So if you have younger families who have come from larger city churches (or you are in a metro area), seems less likely that they expect or welcome visits, from what I’ve seen and read.
In that scenario, the pastor inviting them over to his place for face time (as someone suggested above) is probably a better option.
Views expressed are always my own and not my employer's, my church's, my family's, my neighbors', or my pets'. The house plants have authorized me to speak for them, however, and they always agree with me.
Pastor’s wives should be to their husbands what HE needs her to be, not what the congregation wants. Her position is not an office or calling (how many times I’ve heard girls say they feel ‘called’ to be a pastor’s wife???). If she has spiritual gifts and the maturity to use them, then great- but if I had a nickel for every pastor’s wife I’ve met who was a spiritually immature and foolish woman, I could buy my family a night out at the Golden Corral. If part of the pastor’s responsibility is to minister to his own family and be a model of how to lead his wife and children, then I think if he doesn’t understand and address the fact that his wife is not fit to minister in an official capacity, he is doing his congregation a serious disservice and is IMO violating one of the criteria of the qualifications of pastoring.
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