Jump Start # 1654

Acts 10:29 “That is why I came without even raising any objection when I was sent for. So I ask for what reason you have sent for me.”

  Our verse today is part of the opening conversation Peter had with Cornelius. God called Peter to go to Cornelius’s house and preach to him. Cornelius was a good man. He was a Roman soldier. He was generous. He was god-fearing. He was a man of prayer. Yet, he was not a Christian. At the end of this chapter, Cornelius is baptized into Christ. He becomes the first Gentile Christian. Powerful and important story in our Bibles.

It is that last expression of Peter’s that I want to consider, “for what reason you have sent for me.” It seems that things go in seasons or cycles. Now seems to be one of those cycles when both preachers and congregations are making changes in the pulpit. I know several congregations that are looking for a preacher. I know several preachers that are looking for a new place to preach. All of this makes us consider “for what reason you have sent for me.”

Why do preachers move? That’s a good question. Sometimes it’s something on the preacher’s end of things. Other times, it’s on the congregations end of things. It’s stressful when a church changes preachers. Finding the right fit is hard and generally not everyone is pleased with the choice. Some folks get so upset over these things that they leave.

Sometimes it’s time to change preachers just to get a fresh voice and some new ideas in the place. Preachers can grow tired and stale and a change motivates both them and the congregation. There was a time a generation ago, when about every four or five years, congregations changed preachers. That was hard on everyone, especially the preacher’s family. This may be one of the reasons so many congregations also owned “the preacher’s house.” They moved preachers in and out so often that it just made since to own his residence. Times have changed. Preachers are staying decades and decades with the same congregation. Preachers now buy their own homes. But even with that, there comes that time now and then to make a change. This is hard because some have fallen in love with the preacher and his family and they don’t want to see that change.

The process of letting people know and how it’s handled can be good or it can be a disaster. More harm can be done because of the way some have dealt with the changing of the preacher. Short notices, leaving with a chip on the shoulder, feeling cheated can ruin feelings and hurt reputations for both the preacher and a congregation.

Back to Peter’s words, “for what reason have you sent for me?” Fair question.

• Is it to solve all the problems a congregation has?
• Is it to make more money or save more money?
• Is it to do what the members ought to be doing themselves?
• Is it about image?
• Is it to run the place?
• Is it to teach and preach the Gospel of Christ?
• Is it an opportunity to do more?

It is important that both the preacher and the congregation do some investigating and homework into each other. It’s like a date. One doesn’t pop the question on the first date. That would be a disaster. The process of dating is to know each other and to see if there is a future together. Too often, a decision is made too hastily and an ugly parting comes later on.

The typical way a preacher is “hired” is somewhat a flawed pattern. Generally, a preacher is called in to “try out.” He and his family show up on a Saturday afternoon and stay with one of the members. On Sunday, he teaches the class, and preaches one of his best sermons in the morning. A pot-luck is held for lunch so people can get to know him. Most don’t. He preaches that evening, his second best sermon, and meets with either the elders or the men in a business meeting. Certain questions are asked to verify that he has the right answers to the common doctrinal controversies of the day. He is asked “How much money do you need.” That is kicked around for a while and the meeting ends with handshakes, smiles and “we’ll be getting back to you.” By the end of the week, he is either given a formal offer from the church or told that things weren’t a good fit. If he is given the offer and the preacher likes it, then he accepts and is hired. I have journey through this process several times.

If neither side asks the right questions, both could walk right into a mess. The preacher may be blind as to what the church wants and why the last preacher left. The church may be blind to the preacher’s work ethics. One Sunday…a few questions…his best sermons and a preacher is hired.

Maybe it would be more helpful if the preacher and the elders met a few times before he ever came and preached. Maybe it would eliminate some future problems if they talked and understood what each were looking for and how each worked through some situations. This takes more time. This requires more effort. But relationships are built and both the preacher and the leadership can determine if they are eye to eye on things. In this meetings it could be understood “why have you sent for me.” Goals, plans and expectations can be sketched out and it is then that both parties can see if this will work or not. It’s like that dating process. The “marriage” came about after a period of getting to know each other.

Some churches don’t want to put that time into it. They will not wait that long. They will bring a preacher in on a Sunday, if he has a good sermon, he is hired. That’s it. That’s all. Months down the road, both realize what a mistake it was. The marriage becomes a nightmare and the talk of ending the marriage becomes a reality.

As hard as it is to hire a preacher, having to let one go is even messier. This too often is done with little thought and is too cold and calculated like the business world.

The preacher needs to ask questions. He needs to look around the place and see how the people take care of it. That is often an indication of how they take care of other things. Ask about discipline. Ask about finances, of the church. Ask about what life would be like on a day to day basis. I know a place that required the preacher to fill out a time card for his hours in the office. They required him to list all his studies and all of his visits. That reflected a major trust issue. I wouldn’t do well there. I’d be asking for the member’s time cards. It is a two-way street. Can you imagine a young lady listening to her date envision their marriage. He talks about her cleaning the place. He talks about the food she’ll cook. He talks about her doing the laundry, taking care of the kids. Before long, she’ll run believing that he is looking for hired staff and not a wife. Some preachers ought to run and some churches ought to run for the same reasons.

Some churches want an office boy, not a preacher. They want someone to answer the phone, make copies for others and do secretarial work. That is their vision of a preacher. Paul told Timothy to “preach the word.” That requires spending time in the word and then getting the word out of Timothy and into others. It means pulpit work. It means private studies. It means writing and making videos. It means meeting with people. It means answering questions. A man who doesn’t like to read won’t make a good preacher. A man who doesn’t like people or doesn’t connect well with people won’t make a good preacher. A church that won’t let a preacher do his work is not a healthy place.

Someone called me recently and said that their preacher was moving. He said, “We’re looking for a preacher.” I ask him why? He didn’t know how to answer that.

For what reason have you called for me…a good question to ask. A question that ought to be able to be answered.

Roger