Imagine I am your pastor. I am a normal, average pastor. What do I need to know? What advice do you have for me?
Advice for your pastor.
- Thread starter joshhuntnm
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That your job is not to bottle feed your flock for the rest of there lives and become like the multitude of Christians today "absolutely useless".
Your job is to equip men to become the image of Christ, that a pretty tall order for someone that doesn't bear that image themselves.
Your job is to equip men to become the image of Christ, that a pretty tall order for someone that doesn't bear that image themselves.
Tell me, Pastor Josh, who is your pastor? Whose feet do you sit at when you are receiving instruction? Who do you go to when you have a problem or situation that you want advice?
I have sat under several men now who were my Pastor and early on I have asked each of them those questions. So far no one has had an answer that went along the lines, "Oh, my Pastor is Revered so and so..." I stress to them that just as I submit to your instruction and seek your counsel, YOU need to have someone you regularly consider Pastor to receive the same benefit that I and my family do sitting under your instruction.
Resist any temptation to make the bible say what you want it to say,preach the bible no matter who it offends,me included,and never let me,or you for that matter, leave church on Sunday morning feeling good about myself....because you know as well as i do it's a lie.
Be an example of godliness, righteousness and true holiness in life, speech, conduct and deed
Preach the gospel of Jesus Christ
Rebuke, discipline, correct, admonish, cry loud spare not
Obey and be bound to the Word of God
Have the indwelling and infilling of the Holy Spirit for effective service
Protect the flock
Train other leaders
Grow the church in discipleship and not just membership
Main goal is to nurture mature Christian disciples and not immature pew warmers
Preach the gospel of Jesus Christ
Rebuke, discipline, correct, admonish, cry loud spare not
Obey and be bound to the Word of God
Have the indwelling and infilling of the Holy Spirit for effective service
Protect the flock
Train other leaders
Grow the church in discipleship and not just membership
Main goal is to nurture mature Christian disciples and not immature pew warmers
(Eph 4:11)
and He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as proclaimers of good news, and some as shepherds and teachers,
(Eph 4:12)
unto the perfecting of the saints, for a work of ministration, for a building up of the body of the Christ,
(Eph 4:13)
till we may all come to the unity of the faith and of the recognition of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to a measure of stature of the fulness of the Christ,
(Eph 4:14)
that we may no more be babes, tossed and borne about by every wind of the teaching, in the sleight of men, in craftiness, unto the artifice of leading astray,
(Eph 4:15)
and, being true in love, we may increase to Him in all things, who is the head--the Christ;
(Eph 4:16)
from whom the whole body, being fitly joined together and united, through the supply of every joint, according to the working in the measure of each single part, the increase of the body doth make for the building up of itself in love.
and He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as proclaimers of good news, and some as shepherds and teachers,
(Eph 4:12)
unto the perfecting of the saints, for a work of ministration, for a building up of the body of the Christ,
(Eph 4:13)
till we may all come to the unity of the faith and of the recognition of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to a measure of stature of the fulness of the Christ,
(Eph 4:14)
that we may no more be babes, tossed and borne about by every wind of the teaching, in the sleight of men, in craftiness, unto the artifice of leading astray,
(Eph 4:15)
and, being true in love, we may increase to Him in all things, who is the head--the Christ;
(Eph 4:16)
from whom the whole body, being fitly joined together and united, through the supply of every joint, according to the working in the measure of each single part, the increase of the body doth make for the building up of itself in love.
Rocky Wiley
Active Member
To be a good pastor remember it is not a job, it is a calling. Don't ask those that come to you in search of God, to pay you in any way. If you have information to help them, give it to them, whether it be a book you have written or a bible, should they need one. Remember, you are not a boss, you are a leader. Don't make this calling a way to make a living, find a job and let God supply your needs. If you and your congregation use a rented building, request an offering to pay expenses, and tell everyone how much was received and how much was spend for this purpose. Don't take any for yourself. If you can't trust God, not the church, to supply your needs, do something else.
I know that all of the above goes against normal practice, but it is the way the early churches did it.
I know that all of the above goes against normal practice, but it is the way the early churches did it.
You would need to know not only your Shepherd but also know your sheep.
Keep watch, be available. If you can't, is it because you are too busy, too selfish or is your fold too big?
Spend time with your wife and family so they don't end up shipwrecked and like the early church, find a job, working with your own hands as Paul and the other Apostles exemplified. And if you truly believe God has called you then you will believe God will provide all your needs (even a good job). Live by faith like the rest of your congregation and don't require the congregation to pay you a salary. Really trust God to supply your needs and do not make them known to man. Be an example of faith and of a hard worker to your brethren. Show them, that you are just a brother, like they are and you are fighting the same fights that they are fighting. Also, encourage the congregation and let them know that God has given many of them the same gift of shepherding and loving one another as you have and that this is not a one man endeavor but the Spirit of God working through the Body of Christ (men and women) to shepherd and care for one another. Show them that a person who has the gifting of a pastor is a just a regular brother with the Shepherd's heart who tends to his wife and kids and does not leave them stranded for his administrative, religious "pastoral" job.
Ditch the title and let people call you by your first name just like all the other brothers. Titles only create division and a hierarchy of relationships. And don't have private meetings with only a few select men of the church. Every family should be represented by the head of the house and every single adult brother should be able to attend the "brother's meetings". The church is not the U.S. Congress, it's a family. Tear down anything that resembles a corporation and get back to being a family, because that is what the Body of Christ is. Don't incorporate and don't adopt a name. Be willing to be called only by His name: Christian
Let these words sink into your spirit.
Mat 20:25 But Jesus called them unto him, and said, Ye know that the princes of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they that are great exercise authority upon them.
Mat 20:26 But it shall not be so among you: but whosoever will be great among you, let him be your minister;
Mat 20:27 And whosoever will be chief among you, let him be your servant:
Mat 20:28 Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.
Thanks for asking, that took a lot of guts. I would like to know from you what you find useful from all these posts.
Blessings to you,
Axehead
A pastor per God's Word is a teacher of His Word, not just a minister who performs various functions in the Church, and not an evangelist that is specifically called to just preach The Gospel of Jesus Christ. So before we get the terms confused, I want to offer that before any recommendations for pastors.
Recommendation: teach ALL of God's Word to His people, Book by Book, chapter by chapter, line upon line.
I recall someone asked me once about their Sunday School teacher jumping around in God's Word and never covering a whole chapter line upon line like the priests of Israel used to do. How many reasons for not doing it could we assume?
1. the person hasn't studied all of God's Word line upon line to begin with
2. God did not call the person as 'teacher' of His Word
3. the person is told instead to stay on the Church organization's rules instead of God's method for proper study and teaching
4. the person hasn't studied all of God's Word line upon line to begin with
I told my Christian brother when he mentioned about his Sunday School teacher, that they had no intention of covering all of God's Word line upon line, most likely for those very reasons above. I told him to ask his Sunday School teacher why he didn't teach line upon line.
My friend came back to me with the answer he got. His Sunday School teacher mocked him, saying maybe he thought they had all the time in the world to do a teaching Book by Book, line upon line, like that.
The prophecy given Amos is confirmed by that attitude in many Churches today with how and what they teach...
Amos 8:9-13
9 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord GOD, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day:
10 And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day.
11 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD:
12 And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it.
13 In that day shall the fair virgins and young men faint for thirst.
(KJV)
Three times our Lord Jesus asked Apostle Peter if he loved Him, and Peter said yes, then our Lord Jesus told him to "Feed My sheep" (John 21:15-16). The word 'pastor' is Biblically derived from that idea of 'feeding the sheep', to tender the sheep, which means to lead them to lush green pasture for grazing.
So pastors - FEED CHRIST'S SHEEP HIS WORD, ALL OF IT
Recommendation: teach ALL of God's Word to His people, Book by Book, chapter by chapter, line upon line.
I recall someone asked me once about their Sunday School teacher jumping around in God's Word and never covering a whole chapter line upon line like the priests of Israel used to do. How many reasons for not doing it could we assume?
1. the person hasn't studied all of God's Word line upon line to begin with
2. God did not call the person as 'teacher' of His Word
3. the person is told instead to stay on the Church organization's rules instead of God's method for proper study and teaching
4. the person hasn't studied all of God's Word line upon line to begin with
I told my Christian brother when he mentioned about his Sunday School teacher, that they had no intention of covering all of God's Word line upon line, most likely for those very reasons above. I told him to ask his Sunday School teacher why he didn't teach line upon line.
My friend came back to me with the answer he got. His Sunday School teacher mocked him, saying maybe he thought they had all the time in the world to do a teaching Book by Book, line upon line, like that.
The prophecy given Amos is confirmed by that attitude in many Churches today with how and what they teach...
Amos 8:9-13
9 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord GOD, that I will cause the sun to go down at noon, and I will darken the earth in the clear day:
10 And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day.
11 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD:
12 And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find it.
13 In that day shall the fair virgins and young men faint for thirst.
(KJV)
Three times our Lord Jesus asked Apostle Peter if he loved Him, and Peter said yes, then our Lord Jesus told him to "Feed My sheep" (John 21:15-16). The word 'pastor' is Biblically derived from that idea of 'feeding the sheep', to tender the sheep, which means to lead them to lush green pasture for grazing.
So pastors - FEED CHRIST'S SHEEP HIS WORD, ALL OF IT
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