by Berry Kercheville
Preachers are in short supply. I don't just mean men who can give a lesson from the pulpit, but men who really understand and fulfill the work of an evangelist. Most who preach work hard and make many sacrifices. However, there are some, though good men, who never learned that the work of a preacher is more than getting up a couple of lessons every week and making a few calls on sick folk. Others may be preaching because they think it is an easy way to make a living. They do only enough to get by.
The other side of the coin is that churches, especially small churches, often become desperate to find a preacher, and will therefore hire the first man who is willing to come and work with them. It reminds me of a woman who is desperate for a husband and therefore marries the first man who will have her. She soon finds out that she would have been better off single. Desperate churches also soon find out they would have been better off without a preacher.
I am in my twenty-seventh year of preaching and the longer I do this work the more I am impressed by the amount of effort and time it takes to do it well. Brethren certainly need to exercise patience toward young men who are working hard to develop their skills. However, we should have little patience with the man who has to be prodded to put in the appropriate amount of hours in the Lord's work. When I train a young preacher, I like to see a man that I have to encourage to take some time off. I know there are going to be problems when I have to encourage a man to spend more time in the work.
What should a church look for in a preacher? What qualities should a preacher have to be the kind of man the Lord would desire in doing this work?
1. The Ability and Desire To Study. I have had some preachers tell me that they have to force themselves to study the Bible. It is not hard to figure out if a preacher has this problem. It will be evident by the depth (or lack thereof) in his sermons. Such a man needs to quit preaching and learn what it means to be a Christian, much less a preacher. Jesus said that His disciples must have a "hunger and thirst" for righteousness that refuses to be quenched. Peter said, "As a newborn babe, desire the sincere milk of the word" (1 Peter 2:2).
Admittedly, some preachers have the desire to learn but do not know how to properly study. Many good books are available to aid a man in his quest to be a good Bible student. Irving Jensen's book, "How To Profit From Bible Reading" is excellent.
2. The Ability and Desire To Teach. Obviously, most preachers are willing to preach a sermon or teach a Bible class during one of our assemblies. But there is a difference between just delivering a sermon and really teaching and equipping the church. Ephesians 4:11-12 tells us that evangelists are among those placed in the church to equip saints to be able to do the work of ministry and the work of building up (causing the growth of) the body of Christ. To accomplish this I must not simply think up some cute lesson to give every week, I must have as my purpose to train the members to do the work of ministry and edifying the body. This demands well-rounded preaching and teaching in which all scripture, including the poetic books, the prophets, Old Testament history, the Gospels, the epistles, and the book of Revelation are used to equip the man of God thoroughly for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
Some preachers seem to only know how to preach on an issue dividing brethren, blast the denominations, or nail the members for some shortcoming. While sound preaching certainly includes instructing on issues, warning against false teaching, or rebuking wayward members, there is so much more teaching to be done that in comparison the aforementioned things should be considered only a small part of the subject matter to be covered.
What about teaching members how to teach the lost as well as how to teach Bible classes with Christians? Paul gives that specific requirement of evangelists in 2 Timothy 2:2. However, many preachers will spend little or no time in this work.
3. Relates Well With and Loves the Brethren. Paul told Timothy, "Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity" (1 Timothy 4:12). There are some young preachers who constantly demand that no one despise their youth. This is not what Paul was telling Timothy. The way that young men keep brethren from despising them is by being an example to the believers in their godly character. There are men who seem to regularly make brethren mad at them by either their sermons or the things they say privately. They will later defend themselves by saying, "Have I not spoken the truth?" Well yes, brother, you may have spoken the truth, but it is the abusive, unloving way you spoke it that is the problem. Our purpose as preachers is to win souls, not clobber people. Paul said that the mature Christian "speaks the truth in love" (Ephesians 4:15). Paul again said that the servant of God "must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humiility correcting..." (2 Timothy 2:24-25).
A preacher needs to be a genuine servant, not a master. He needs to have the welfare of the church as his number one priority. By the way some preachers speak it is hard to believe that they really love those they are speaking to. A preacher must not put himself first, but in humility of mind esteem others better than himself.
4. Seeks and Loves Lost Souls. What else is an evangelist but a bringer of good tidings? Churches should not be looking for a man to "pastor" them, nor should preachers view themselves as the minister for the church. When Paul told Timothy to "do the work of an evangelist" (2 Timothy 4:5), it ought to be obvious that preachers are to bring the good news to more than just those who are already saved. If Jesus' life is a pattern for ours, then we must fulfill His purpose on the earth: to seek and save those who are lost. Instead, there are preachers who are publicly proclaiming that neither they nor the members have any obligation toward the lost. Still others feel no urgency to reach out to a dying world but are content to "minister to the saints". What was Jesus' purpose in the parable of lost things (Luke 15)? Jesus appealed to the natural desire to save a lost sheep, a lost coin, and a lost son, and by this challenges us to love a lost soul.
One of the most important roles of an evangelist is to preach and teach in such a Biblical and interesting way that members feel comfortable and eager to bring their friends and neighbors to hear the gospel. If members are always afraid that the preacher is going to embarrass himself and the audience or present the gospel in an abrasive way, personal work on the part of the members will cease. Love for those who are lost ought to dominate our attitude.
5. Personal Integrity and Moral Purity. Paul said in Romans 2:21, "You, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself?" No man is perfect. Preachers sin and fall short of the glory of God just like other Christians. The question is, does the preacher respond to his failings with confession and repentance as all growing Christians should? Is he growing and making changes in his life where needed? Unfortunately, many preachers forget that they are to be Christians first, then preachers. A preacher must fulfill the basic requirements of being a Christian before he can ever fulfill his ministry. If I am going to help the church grow, I had better grow myself. When a preacher has a history of serious moral lapses, any church who considers him would do well to beware. Nothing will kill a church faster than a preacher whose character is not above reproach.
When preachers are in short supply, and churches become desperate, men who have not qualified themselves to do the work of an evangelist will continue to be invited to work with local churches. This will result in problems in the local church as well as a discrediting of the cause of the kingdom.