Advice for a Pulpit-Search Committee

A permanent committee and full-time job in numerous churches in the Southern Baptist Convention has become the Pulpit-Search Committee. It is unprecedented the number of churches in the SBC without pastors. Some have been without pastors for two and three years. Sadly, others have lost their pastor because of scandal or immorality and find it more comfortable to be without a pastor than to be hurt again. Still others become complacent and for years and have pulpit-supply but never a pastor.

The job of the Pulpit-Search Committee is no easy task. This group of individuals must screen applicants, give recommendations to the church body and try to please everyone. A common question among these committees is simply stated: “In finding a pastor, what questions do we ask?” I have personally sat before committees that ask me about my thoughts on Christmas trees, cloning, and other menial things. A common question today, before even asking if the applicant is a Christian, is his views of Calvinism and Reformed Theology. No wonder these churches can’t find a true man of God to pastor and love them and stay any length of time – there worried about Calvinism when the man may not even believe in the virgin birth of Christ.

In thinking through these timely issues I thought I would write a list of questions I would ask if I were on a Pulpit-Search Committee. If you find yourself as a member of this committee, I pray you find these questions and insights timely, helpful and Biblical.

Personal
- How did you come to faith in Christ?

- Share with us your calling to preach.

- Why do you feel the Lord has called you to be a pastor?

Bible
- Do you believe the Bible is inherent, infallible and only rule of faith and practice?

- Explain your view of the inherency of Scripture.

- Do you believe in a literal, grammatical historical interpretation of Scripture?

God
- Share with us your view of the Trinity.

- Define God the Father and His role among the Trinity.

- Do you believe God is omnipotent, omnipresent and omniscient?

- What do you believe about God’s sovereignty over the created universe?

Jesus
- Share with us your views of the incarnation.

- Do you believe Jesus was born of a virgin?

- What do you believe was the purpose of Christ upon earth?

- Do you believe in the literal miracles of Christ as recorded in Scripture?

- Do you believe in the complete sinlessness of Christ?

- Explain your view of the cross, the burial, the resurrection and the ascension of Christ.

The Holy Spirit
- Does the Holy Spirit possess all the attributes as the God the Father and God the Son?

- Is the Holy Spirit equal with the other members of the Trinity?

- Explain the role of the Holy Spirit upon earth in Old Testament and New Testament times.

- Explain the role of the Holy Spirit upon earth today.

- Explain the work of the Holy Spirit in salvation.

Man
- Do you believe man was created in the image of God? Explain the implications.

- Do you believe in the literal fall of man in the Garden of Eden and the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden?

- What were the consequences of the fall?

- To what extent does the sin of Adam and Eve play upon people today?

- Do you believe in original sin?

- Do you believe man is responsible before God? In what ways?

Salvation
- Share with us the gospel message.

- Do you believe in regeneration?

- Can an individual be saved without the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit?

- Explain your view of sovereign election and the responsibility of man in salvation.

- What is justification?

- What is sanctification?

- Do you believe in eternal security?

- Explain your view of eternal security or the perseverance of the saints.

The Church
- Who founded the church?

- Who is the head of the church?

- Explain your view of the visible and the invisible church.

- Who makes up a church?

- What is the purpose of the church?

- As you see that it teaches in the New Testament, what is the leadership and structure of a church?

- What is the role of an elder, as defined in the New Testament?

- What is the role of a deacon, as defined in the New Testament?

- What is the role of a member of the church?

- Name and explain the implications of the two ordinances of the church as outlined in the New Testament.

Last Things
- Do you believe in a literal return of Christ to earth?

- Do you believe in a literal Heaven for the saved and redeemed and a literal Hell for the unrepentant and lost?

- What is your view of the final state?

- Do you believe in a final judgment?

Evangelism and Missions
- What do you believe the Bible teaches about evangelism and missions?

- Do you share your faith on a personal level with others? How often?

- What is your view of home and international missions?

Other issues
- Do you tithe?

- Explain your view of the family. The role of the father and the mother in the household.

- Do you believe in traditional family?

- Do you believe in homosexuality as an alternative lifestyle?

- What is your view on abortion?

- What is your view on the separation of church and state?

These are just simple guidelines to lead you through the interview process. This list of insights and questions is by no means meant to be exhaustive. As the man before you answers these questions be aware that follow-up, discussion or more explanation might be required. I know the list could go on and on but if the individual before you cannot biblically answer these basic questions you need to move on to someone else!

The most important thing in this whole process is to PRAY! PRAY! PRAY! Asking the Holy Spirit to guide you in your decision making and lead you to a man of God who is filled with His Spirit, emboldened to preach the gospel of Christ, and teach and love the people of God.

Filed under: Church Government, Doctrine, Jesus, Ministry, Pastors, Preaching, Southern Baptist, The Church, The Holy Spirit

Duties of a Church Member

Each church member is responsible before God to assist in determining the will of Christ for his or her own individual life and the local assembly under Christ. The first and foremost duty and commandment of every believer and member of the church is stated in, Deuteronomy 6:5, “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.”

(1)  Each member must maintain a love, compassion, and determination to see nonbelievers come to saving faith in Jesus Christ (Luke 5:31-32).

(2)  Lift up the Pastor and Elders in prayer and remember them, which have the rule over you, recognizing there authority in spiritual affairs of the church (Hebrews 13:17).

(3)  Each member will is responsible, as God enables them, to do their part in the “work of service” (Ephesians 4:14; 1 Peter 4:10, 11). This calls for the regular participation in the life and the services of the church, including the offering of tithes and offerings as the Lord may prosper them (Hebrews 10:24; 1 Corinthians 16:1-2; 2 Corinthians 8:3-5).

(4)  Maintain a consistent attendance to all services of the assembled body (Hebrews 10:25).

(5)  Submit themselves to support and prayer for fellow brothers and sisters in Christ when in sorrow, sickness and distress in their daily lives (Galatians 6:2).

(6)  Members of the church are expected to conduct their lives in accordance with biblical standards of holiness as they grow to become more like Christ. (1 Peter 1:16).

(7)  To be faithful in all duties necessary to the Christian life. (Matthew 25:21).

Are you fulfilling your duties as a member of your local church?

Filed under: Church Government, The Christian Life, The Church

Elders, Southern Baptists and Church Structure, pt. 5

Most important among the Elder discussion is the truth that Christ has preeminence and position of headship in the local church. Because the apostles knew that Jesus Christ, by the Holy Spirit, was uniquely present with them as Ruler, Head, Lord, Pastor, Master, Overseer, High Priest, and King, they chose a form of government that reflected this distinctive, fundamental, Christian truth. Even among a congregation that has a plurality of elders there must be a Christ-centeredness and a Christ-dependency among not only the elders but the congregation as well. Must churches have a plurality of elders? Does that church desire to be Biblical? Does that church desire to honor the model of the early New Testament Church? If yes, then a church is to have, according to Scripture a plurality of elders. It works, it’s needed, it’s Baptist and it’s Biblical.

(Thank you for your interest in these posts.  If you would like this discussion in a paper format please contact me.  I would very much like to hear your comments on the topic of Elders in Southern Baptist life.)

Filed under: Church Government, Elder, Southern Baptist, The Church

Elders, Southern Baptists and Church Structure, pt. 4

Defense of Elder Position

The first position that must be defended is that of the relationship of the plurality of elders among one another in regards to their relationship with the “pastor” who is, after all, suppose to be of equal rank. This was the question that many Baptists were asking in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries as they considered the role and place of ruling elders with teaching elders. Baptists finally concluded that there can be no distinction between ruling and teaching in the eldership. The particular elder usually referred to as “the” pastor is generally the one set apart to fill the pulpit on Sunday. He is often the one the congregation will see the most during special services and the weekly meeting times of the church. He will often be paid either part time or fully. Most of the time, the elder that fulfills this particular role will be called, by virtue of his calling, the senior pastor. Yet among the other elders of the congregation, the senior pastor is an equal and only has one vote among the group. Therefore the men that make up the plurality of elders in the church see their individual role as benefiting the congregation as a whole and most importantly pleasing Christ.

To the view of the congregation not wanting a team of preachers and maybe it is the case that the main pastor himself does not want a team of preachers in his church. Among a plurality of elders there must be a shared leadership. This concept should not be a new idea to a Bible-reading Christian. The New Testament reveals that the pastoral oversight of many of the first churches was committed to a plurality of elders. This held true not only of the Jewish Christian churches in Jerusalem, Judea, and neighboring countries, but also among many of the Gentile churches. For example James instructed the sick believer to “call for the elders [plural] of the church [singular]” (James 5:14). In Acts 15 the elders in the elders united in the Jerusalem church with the twelve apostles to deliberate over doctrinal controversy. So like the apostolate, the elders comprised a collective leadership body. When Paul wrote to the Christians at Philippi, he greeted “the overseers [plural] and deacons” (Philippians 1:1). Peter when writing to the churches of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia exhorted the elders to pastor the flock (1 Peter 5:1). This indicates that Peter knew that the elder structure of government was standard practice in these churches. The benefits of having a plurality of elders will be seen by the congregation when they not only have one man to minister to them but a team of individuals to meet their needs even to a greater extent. The council of elders tends to balance each other’s weaknesses, the work load is lightened and there is a true accountability among them as fellow ministers of the gospel. The benefits to the congregation as well as the other elders in a plurality government far out weight the benefits of simply having one individual leading a congregation.

Filed under: Church Government, Elder, Southern Baptist, The Church

Elders, Southern Baptists and Church Structure, pt. 3

It is clear that the New Testament sets forth church government being made up of a plurality of elders in each congregation. Baptists of the past knew this well. In chapter 26, paragraph 8 of the Second London Confession of 1689 we read, “the officers appointed by Christ…are Bishops or Elders and Deacons.” In Article 13 of the new Hampshire Confession of 1833-1853 we read that the church’s “only proper officers are Bishops or Pastors, and Deacons.” In Article 14 of Basil Manly, Jr.’s Abstract of Principles (1859) we read “the regular officers of a church are Bishops or Elders, and Deacons.” In Article 12 of the 1925 Baptist Faith and Message we find the same language, “Its Scriptural officers are bishops or elders and deacons.” It is not until, according to Mark Dever, 1963 that this Biblical and historic word finally seems to drop out of official usage by the Southern Baptist Convention, when, in Article 6 of The Baptist Faith and Message (1963 and 2000) “Its Scriptural officers are pastors and deacons.” Even then, there was no change in understanding. Herschel Hobbs, who chaired the 1963 revision committee, wrote in 1964, “Pastor – this is one of the three titles referring to the same office. The other two are ‘bishop’ and ‘elder.’

The idea of a plurality of elders in the local church is also maintained by many eminent Baptists. W.B. Johnson of South Carolina, and the first president of the Southern Baptist Convention wrote of the New Testament churches that “each church had a plurality of elders.” “A plurality in the bishopric is of great importance for mutual counsel and aid, that the government and edification of the flock may be promoted in the best manner.” For several pages of his book, The Gospel Developed, Johnson goes on delineating the duties and benefits of a plurality of elders in a local congregation. C.H. Spurgeon had a plurality of elders at the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London. A.H. Strong, president of Rochester Theological Seminary, and author of his influential 1907 Systematic Theology perhaps summarizes the positions most Baptists in America seemed to hold at the beginning of the twentieth century: 

In certain of the New Testament churches there appears to have been a plurality of elders…There is, however, no evidence that the number of elders was uniform, or that the plurality which frequently existed was due to any other cause than the size of the churches for which these elders cared. The New Testament example, while it permits the multiplication of assistant pastors according to need, does not require a plural eldership in every case…There are indications, moreover, that, at least in certain churches, the pastor was one, while the deacons were more than one, in number.

Wayne Grudem gives strong biblical and theological evidence for a plurality of elders. He says, “there is quite a consistent pattern of plural elders as the main governing group in the New Testament churches.” His conclusions are that “first, no passage suggests that any church, no matter how small, had only one elder. The consistent New Testament pattern is a plurality of elders ‘in every church’ (Acts 14:23)…Second, we do not see a diversity of forms of government in the New Testament church, but a unified and consistent pattern in which every church had elders governing it and keeping watch over it (Acts 20:28; Hebrews 13:17; 1 Peter 5:2-3).” So, inside the local congregation, are there to be elders? Yes. The Bible says so. The New Testament evidence is clear.

(Pictured Above: William Bullein Johnson (b. June 13, 1782; d. Oct. 2, 1862) South Carolina Baptist leader and first president of the Southern Baptist Convention.)

Filed under: Church Government, Elder, Southern Baptist, The Church