How do you become a pastor?

[Smalcald]

Also the fact is there are tiny congregations out there in rural communities that could never afford to support a full time pastor and they are places that most seminary trained ministers would not be willing to serve. These certainly are legitimate Christian congregations and are often led by overseers who also hold secular jobs during the week. Is this ideal? Well probably not, BUT it also has some great advantages.

If we always demand a seminary trained pastor, many Christian congregations are not going to be served. One of the better pastors I know is also a contractor; he serves a small congregation of about 40 Baptists. He did study the Word and had a mentor from a larger Baptist group. Before he took up his role a group of Baptists came and questioned him and then approved him for the ministry. If done right it can work.

[Iryssa]

Hi.

I did I Bible college thing, passed with flying colours but it meant nothing. It was full of errors. Depending on which college one is accepted into. Which religion they teach/preach. Thats what one is taught. The hardest thing to do I have found is to get rid of wrong teaching so that we can take in correct teaching.

Christ comands us to "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are which testify of me" (John 5:39).

Jesus also told us in John 6:44, "No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day."

If one drawn to Christ and would like to teach/preach, then the first thing one must do is to "Search the Scriptures," like a bloodhound on a scent trail. Be well versed, (not talking about the ability of quoting verse), on every doctrin taking in the big picture, the entire plan of God for man from beginning to end believing with a humble heart what one learns. After more than three years of the most simple teaching by the greatest of all teachers, the disciples had to be rebuked by their teacher for their unbelief and hardness of heart. This was not because they could, or did not understand, but because they did not believe what Christ taught them. He said to them, "O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken" (Luke 24:25-27). Even after Christ had appeared and manifested Himself to them in various ways, they still refused to believe until He "upbraided them for their unbelief and hardness of heart" (Mark 16:13-14).

Many teachers today think they know all there is to know, and because of their high education set themselves up as "experts" in Bible doctrin, and simply refuse to be corrected even if Scripture proves beyond any doubt that they are wrong on a particular doctrin. They just refuse to believe the Scripture and they torture it untill it says what they want it to say. We have all met preachers like this at one time in our lives. Jesus once said, "I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and Earth, Because thou hast hidden these things from the wise and prudent and hast revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father: for it seemed good in they sight" (Matt. 11:25-27).

I am not saying all well educated ministers are in this catagory, no way, but there are far too many to be ignored. Jesus said of people like these, "This peoples heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their HEART, and should be converted, and I should heal them" (Matt. 13:10-17). It is all important therefore that ministers be simple and humble in their attitude. They should take the place of a disciple and accept at its face value anything and everything God says on any subject, wether it harmonized with our own personal theories, or those of our former teachers. All study must be done with an open heart, and open mind, and a humble acceptance to all that God says, and be honest to lay old theories aside for the plain, literal, and simple Word of God on all points.

I'm sorry you had such a bad experience like that...if you're looking for a better one, I suggest Prairie Bible Institute

*grin*

[TheoMike]

Hi.

I did I Bible college thing, passed with flying colours but it meant nothing. It was full of errors. Depending on which college one is accepted into. Which religion they teach/preach. Thats what one is taught. The hardest thing to do I have found is to get rid of wrong teaching so that we can take in correct teaching.

Christ comands us to "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are which testify of me" (John 5:39).

Jesus also told us in John 6:44, "No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day."

If one drawn to Christ and would like to teach/preach, then the first thing one must do is to "Search the Scriptures," like a bloodhound on a scent trail. Be well versed, (not talking about the ability of quoting verse), on every doctrin taking in the big picture, the entire plan of God for man from beginning to end believing with a humble heart what one learns. After more than three years of the most simple teaching by the greatest of all teachers, the disciples had to be rebuked by their teacher for their unbelief and hardness of heart. This was not because they could, or did not understand, but because they did not believe what Christ taught them. He said to them, "O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken" (Luke 24:25-27). Even after Christ had appeared and manifested Himself to them in various ways, they still refused to believe until He "upbraided them for their unbelief and hardness of heart" (Mark 16:13-14).

Many teachers today think they know all there is to know, and because of their high education set themselves up as "experts" in Bible doctrin, and simply refuse to be corrected even if Scripture proves beyond any doubt that they are wrong on a particular doctrin. They just refuse to believe the Scripture and they torture it untill it says what they want it to say. We have all met preachers like this at one time in our lives. Jesus once said, "I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and Earth, Because thou hast hidden these things from the wise and prudent and hast revealed them unto babes. Even so, Father: for it seemed good in they sight" (Matt. 11:25-27).

I am not saying all well educated ministers are in this catagory, no way, but there are far too many to be ignored. Jesus said of people like these, "This peoples heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and should understand with their HEART, and should be converted, and I should heal them" (Matt. 13:10-17). It is all important therefore that ministers be simple and humble in their attitude. They should take the place of a disciple and accept at its face value anything and everything God says on any subject, wether it harmonized with our own personal theories, or those of our former teachers. All study must be done with an open heart, and open mind, and a humble acceptance to all that God says, and be honest to lay old theories aside for the plain, literal, and simple Word of God on all points.

I'm sorry you had such a bad experience like that...if you're looking for a better one, I suggest Prairie Bible Institute

*grin*

Or Master's College and Seminary, Toronto, ON

[TheoMike]

Also the fact is there are tiny congregations out there in rural communities that could never afford to support a full time pastor and they are places that most seminary trained ministers would not be willing to serve. These certainly are legitimate Christian congregations and are often led by overseers who also hold secular jobs during the week. Is this ideal? Well probably not, BUT it also has some great advantages.

If we always demand a seminary trained pastor, many Christian congregations are not going to be served. One of the better pastors I know is also a contractor; he serves a small congregation of about 40 Baptists. He did study the Word and had a mentor from a larger Baptist group. Before he took up his role a group of Baptists came and questioned him and then approved him for the ministry. If done right it can work.

Part of the reason there are so many tiny congregations, especially in the south east is that these churches were often started by disgruntled members of other churches. In the town in which I lived in VA, you couldn't walk 10 feet without bumping into a church! And that's in town of 5,000! Most of these churches are basically empty, Baptist or "fundamental," ands pastored by used car salesmen, baseball coaches and the like on a part time basis.

[Arash_the_archer]

Part of the reason there are so many tiny congregations, especially in the south east is that these churches were often started by disgruntled members of other churches. In the town in which I lived in VA, you couldn't walk 10 feet without bumping into a church! And that's in town of 5,000! Most of these churches are basically empty, Baptist or "fundamental," ands pastored by used car salesmen, baseball coaches and the like on a part time basis.

HAHA wath a redneck town, its good that you escaped...

[TheoMike]

Part of the reason there are so many tiny congregations, especially in the south east is that these churches were often started by disgruntled members of other churches. In the town in which I lived in VA, you couldn't walk 10 feet without bumping into a church! And that's in town of 5,000! Most of these churches are basically empty, Baptist or "fundamental," ands pastored by used car salesmen, baseball coaches and the like on a part time basis.

HAHA wath a redneck town, its good that you escaped...

Yes, it's a curious phenomenon indeed. It's like, "I don't like my pastor, let's go start our own church!" As if they have a corner on the truth and they will get it right when nobody else in town has. Sad.

[Smalcald]

Well I can certainly see that as a problem Mike.

But, I have had direct experience with this. Our congregation was affiliated with a national Synod. Indeed only called and ordained ministers may administer Holy Communion so it was a big deal for us to get a good one or any one for that matter. We had a small congregation in a small town, about 50 of us, we could not get a minister from the seminary, nobody wanted the calling at what we could offer, and it was not about salary really either, I think they just wanted bigger congregations in less isolated communities. So we had to run the show ourselves borrowing a wonderful pastor who drove 60 miles every other Sunday for communion.

I just feel that sometimes God has obviously seen the need to place people as overseers who do not necessarily have a seminary degree. Today we live in a community with no congregation affiliated with our Synod, so we have to drive around 70 miles to attend services. I called the Synod and wanted to talk about home churches and how to get started, their response was essentially that we should move. So it is a little frustrating for me and I guess I get a little envious of being able to simply get things going like the independents can do.

But I do see what you mean about the disgruntled splintering.

[Marnie]

Well I can certainly see that as a problem Mike.

But, I have had direct experience with this.

But I do see what you mean about the disgruntled splintering.

Our church here broke with the national church (PCUSA) last year and we are now in the process joining another denomination (EPC) for that very reason: to ensure the survival of the church from a doctrinal perspective. If you are a member of a denomination at least you have a pool from which to draw a new minister, not to mention accountability. Independent churches tend to be more personality driven; ie., they hire the yahoo with the biggest personality.

[AnotherTraveler]

So somewhere between Dr So-and-So and the isolated smaller conmmunity church there is a need for someone to serve, and in that the good Dr is appearantly all to frequently called to larger, more well funded service, there is a little place called reality where someone that cares steps in to serve even though they are not a Dr of Theology.

As for a place where there are lots of churches, I would rather see lots of churches than lots of bars, and having served as the pastor of a few very poor and small churches, I can tell you that having a lesser degreed minister verses no one at all, there is really no choice.

I served twice as assistant pastor (the mentoring program as the educational model), but the first time I served as pastor I was driving down the freeway when I suddenly was overwhelmed with the presence of the Holy Spirit, and I began weeping so strongly that I had to pull over on the side of the road. I had no idea what was going on. I would soon meet a grandmother in that little town (I had never been to that town before in my life, and was not going there as I was driving that day either), a 65 year old widow that had been praying for God to send a pastor to her and her grandchildren, as the former pastor had left with no one to replace him. There was no church building, and no money, but we had wonderful services in her living room (some of the best I have ever been in in my life). There was never a church sign, nor was there a wage to serve (I worked to support my young family, many pastors do, you know), but it was what God decided He wanted.

I will always treasure that dear grandmother, the few that came and were impacted in Christ Jesus, that tiny town, and the loving opportunity to even know such a dear, faithfilled lady. I received much more than wages there.

[Kansasdad]

The Bible tells us exactly how our preachers are to "come about"

Paul told Timothy, "[W]hat you have heard from me before many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also" (2 Tim. 2:2). In this passage he refers to the first four generations of pastors