Practical Thoughts on an Enduring Ministry (Part 1)
February 12th, 2007
(By John MacArthur)
Note: This week we will take a short break from our series on the charismatic gifts, before returning to that important topic next Monday.
According to a recent poll, the average pastor twenty years ago stayed in his ministry at least seven years before transitioning somewhere else. Today his stay has eroded to barely five years.
Of course, in times past, the average pastorate was measured in decades. But apparently those days are gone, when the longevity of men like John Calvin (who ministered in Geneva for 25 years until he died), Charles Simeon (who served in Cambridge for over 50 years), John Stott (who pastored in London for over 50 years), Jonathan Edwards (who preached in Northampton for over 20 years) and D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (who served in London for nearly 30 years) was the rule, and not the exception. Even in recent times, W. A. Criswell pastored in downtown Dallas for nearly 50 years and Adrian Rogers in Memphis for 32 years. There are others in large churches to be sure who have demonstrated long time endurance serving a single congregation, but they are rarer these days. Long-term pastorates in smaller churches are an even more rare exception to the rule.
I remember before I had even started my ministry here at Grace Community Church, my dad said to me, “I want you to remember a couple of things before you go into the ministry. One, the great preachers, the lasting preachers who left their mark on history, taught their people the Word of God. Two, they stayed in one place for a long time.” These were two good pieces of wisdom. When I first came to Grace Church, most people thought that I would only stay a year or two, because I had been an itinerant communicator to youth groups. But in my heart, I knew I wanted to do the two things my dad advised: one was to teach the Bible expositionally, especially to go through the whole New Testament, knowing, secondly, that such a goal would require staying in one place over the long haul. I knew that was the only way I could continue to nourish my own soul, effect generations with God’s truth, and manifest integrity of life through long visibility.
As I look back now on 38 years of ministry in the same church, I want to encourage you to embrace a long-term perspective in your church. While remaining in the same place may not always be God’s plan, here are ten practical suggestions that may enable you to sustain an enduring ministry.
1. Don’t arrive unless you plan to stay. Pastors of past generations, like Calvin and Edwards, considered a call to a church similar to a marriage. In a sense, they were betrothed to their congregations; and faithfulness and loyalty to that union sustained them even through hard times. Pastors today need to learn from their examples. You need to see churches as more than stepping-stones to something bigger. No matter what size the congregation or challenges it presents, you must believe that God has called you to that flock. Even the greatest trouble and disappointment is God’s means of humbling you and breaking your self-confidence. We are all truly powerful and useful only when we are weak. Accept the benefits of trials. If you’re committed to stay when you arrive, and affirm that commitment regularly, you will prepare your heart to endure.
2. Learn to be patient. Humble patience with people may be the most important virtue you’ll ever exercise. After all, your goal as a pastor should be to bring the convictions of your congregation into line with the full message of God’s Word, and their lives to spiritual maturity. And this is a process of sanctification that takes time (decades not just months or years). It only comes from trusting the Spirit’s power in using His Word as it is faithfully proclaimed week after week, year after year.
3. Don’t be afraid to change. Not only will your people change as you instruct them spiritually, but you will also be changed. As you begin to unfold the Scripture, the Truth will alter the truths you teach and the way you conduct ministry. You cannot know everything that the Bible is going to say until you have dug deeply into it. You may think you have everything wired, but inevitably you will come to passages that change the way you think and the way your church must respond. You and your people must be flexible, allowing the Word of God to shape you and your church, as you submit to Scripture.
(To be continued tomorrow)
Excellent advice. Decades ago the Methodists used to rotate their pastors every two years like clock-work, which did not contribute to healthy church life. Now they take a much more long-term approach to the tenure of their ministers.
I believe that people like C. Peter Wagner at Fuller have also determined that longer pastoral tenures are healthier for churches than short ones. It frequently takes 10-15 years for all the factors in a church to gel, making a vibrant, healthy congregation.
I like how Rev. McArthur is fleshing out some of the reasons for this.
Thank you so much for this great advise, i’m not a pastor, but i’m sure God wants to use me as an instrument in the ministry, and one of my desires is to serve him full time in the place he is going to take me. I’m studying to be a pastor, and as every pastor (i hope), i want to serve God for a long time y the same church.
I could not agree more to what Dr. MacArthur is saying. I am now in my 25th year of being the pastor of a wonderful church in Sumner Washington. There are so many wonderful and exciting benefits of staying a long time; watching several families grow mature in the Faith, doing weddings for what were once children in our church, and yes even the privilege of conducting funerals for long time members (making the prospect of heaven even more enjoyable). By far the greatest benefit is the privilege of teaching the whole counsel of God. There are tough times to be sure but its all worth it. When my wife and I were offically “installed” Dr. Sprague conducted a “wedding service” and that has meant so much over the years. My unsolicted advice to young men would be “stay” even when things are tough. The people whom you shepherd need to see that you are committed to them and won’t abandon them.
Timely! Crucial! This article has been a great blessing and challenge to me especially on this day.
God Bless,
Philip
something that we all need to hear.
when I first became the youth pastor at my church someone told me, “you know the average youth pastor lasts for 2 years, how long are you going to be hear?”
I responded by saying that I have already checked how many children we have in the first grade and who they were so knew what to expect in the coming years. the point is that I planned on, and continue to plan on, being at my church for a long time and used for whatever purpose God has.
People don’t really believe me as I can see, but I guess they have probably heard the same thing over and over, so only time will be on my side…
thanks for the reminders…
“Taught the Word, and stayed put”
Dr. MacArthur is a fine example to the Body of Christ as a pastor after God’s own heart.
Thank you for being committed to your Dad’s words.
I believe C. H. Spurgeon stayed in his local church for quite a few years as well.
I too commend those who are committed to the body they are called to serve. [2Tim.4:5, 1 Thes.3:7, 2Cor.6:3-11] This is a personal committment to individual believers that are personally known (and loved) by the pastor. I am not currently a pastor, but the Lord is shepherding my heart. Pray for me.
I would also pray for the same committment from the body of believers, many of whom transplant themselves from one local body to another. What kind of unity is transient unity? Ours should be a zealous caretaking of one another wrought by the love we have found in Christ Jesus.
Ephesians 4:15 but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, 16 from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.
Pastors, believers… serve your God fully.
Our pastor recently resigned after 6 short years. Many in our congregation say that we were spoiled that our previous pastor served almost 25 years, and accept this recent resignation as the norm as your statistic states. At this time as we seek new leadership, we have an interim pastor. In the 6 years he was with us we sold our church property and purchased land to build a new church. Now a new pastor has to come in and lead our congregation in a building program. We loved our pastor and were just beginning to feel secure after many trials and tribulations in our body. Now many feel angry, hurt, and distrustful(of men). We will survive because we put our ultimate trust in our God; however,I also believe this is a disruption of unity. Thank you Rev. McArthur for putting words to my thoughts. I will use your message to pray more specifically for the man of God’s choosing for our body.
[…] Here are some of the points made: 1. Don’t arrive unless you plan to stay 2. Learn to be patient. 3. Don’t be afraid to change. 4. Study to know God, not just to make sermons. 5. Be thankful and be humble. 6. Don’t lose sight of the priority. 7. Expect to work hard 8. Trust the Word to do its work. 9. Always depend on the Lord. 10. Don’t leave just to leave. […]
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