Yesterday I posted some of my thoughts related to the desire to enter the pastorate. Some have asked me (and others balked) about this idea of being “called” by God to the ministry. I will clarify a bit here and point you to some good resources along the way.
First let me say that all Christians are commanded by God to “proclaim his excellencies” and be his “witnesses” to the world. All Christians are called by God to serve the church. The topic here is the divine call to the ministry of the pastorate. This is not a “fuzzy feeling,” nor any punctiliar experience where one initially becomes aware of their place in ministry. That may or may not happen to people who are called by God to serve as pastor. By divine calling I do mean that God internally convicts men to give their lives to serving and leading the church as pastor. Charles Bridges pointed out that it is the combination of the internal call (God working in a man’s spirit, making him aware of what God has made him to do/be) and the external call (the church’s affirmation of God’s call) that finally sets a man apart for the ministry. You can read this in Chapter 6 “The Want of a Divine Call a Main Cause of Failure in the Christian Ministry” in his classic work, The Christian Ministry.
Charles Spurgeon also believed that only those men who have sense of divine calling should enter the ministry, and that without it we find our way into danger.
When I think upon the all but infinite mischief which may result from a mistake as to our vocation for the Christian pastorate, I feel overwhelmed with fear lest any of us should be slack in examining our credentials; and I had rather that we stood too much in doubt, and examined too frequently, than that we should become cumberers of the ground. There are not lacking many exact methods by which a man may test his call to the ministry if he earnestly desires to do so. It is imperative upon him not to enter the ministry until he has made solemn quest and trial of himself as to this point. His own personal salvation being secure, he must investigate as to the further matter of his call to office; the first is vital to himself as a Christian, the second equally vital to him as pastor. As well be a professor without conversion, as a pastor without a calling. In both cases there is a name and nothing more.
Lectures to My Students, pg. 23.
In the same chapter, “The Call to The Ministry,” Spurgeon goes on to explain how a man can determine if he is called by God to the ministry. He explains that such a man will have an “intense, all-absorbing desire for the work,” the ability to do the work, bear fruit in the work, and receive the affirmation of the local church.
Sure the internal call is subjective and experiential, but I am okay with that because 1) I am no deist; I believe God convicts and leads his people, and 2) the inward call works in tandem with the local church’s recognition.
I agree with Spurgeon who believed it wise to say, “Do not enter the ministry if you can help it.” But if you are called you cannot help but “aspire to the office.”
For a concise and very good treatment of this topic check out Al Mohler’s article Consider Your Calling.
I am the Lead Pastor of Redeemer Fellowship; husband to Jen; Dad to Katherine, Elias, Madeline, and Kilian. If you're in town you can probably find me in the local coffee house or running through the neighborhoods.
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“By divine calling I do mean that God internally convicts men to give their lives to serving and leading the church as pastor.”
Another good post. That is a great way of putting the call into some definite understanding. For me it has been hard to explain to guys who say they want to be pastors, that God must first call them. That internal prompting of the Holy Spirit that this is what they MUST do with the rest of their lives. If they don’t have that, they are looking for position.
Sorry Joe, I missed the Bridges book, glad to see you had included it – it was one of the most pivitol books in my call for pastoral ministry.
Let me add another thought to internal and external call. I had a seminary prof/mentor add to the list “actual call” – let me explain. I moved me family from Baltimore to Orlando to finish my last year of seminary at RTS, Orlando. As I was finishing up seminary, I was looking for a call as a pastor. I felt a sense a strong internal call, and I received a lot of feedback that affirmed an external call, but no church was actually calling me. The reasons at the time appeared to be that the churches I was approaching didn’t understand clearly how 17 years of Campus para-church ministry were going to translate into ministry into the local church (in hindsight I have a better understanding that God was making me wait until this current opportunity opened up which was the best thing for me, I know that God will excuse all the whining that I did at the time!). But when I was going through a hard time seeing door after door slam in my face, my seminary prof/mentor said to me (as I was complaining that I was called by God to be a pastor, but that nothing was happening) that although the internal and external call are important, the third ingredient in affirming the call is actually receiving one. God has to provide a call. That piece of advice help me process the whole issue of calling, especially as I was going through a time of questioning my calling.
Thanks for some clarification. I was wondering about it because I read a lot of guys who make fun of people who say “God called/told me to do this and such” or “I felt God leading me to do this and such,” but in the next breath talk about God calling them to the ministry. I am just trying to get a little clarification between the difference between the two.
Thanks for the follow up Joe; BTW I enjoy reading your blog, sometimes I need to interact with other pastors, this is good:)
How did you find my blog? Pardon me, I’m kinda new at blogging, so I was surprised to see your comments at normalchristianlife.blogspot.com
God Bless,
Chris
Chris
I didn’t mean to leave my name twice.
Chris
Joe,
Your link for that Mohler article is not working.
Chris, thanks for the heads up about the broken link. I fixed it.
I am notified whenever someone links to my blog through google.
Joe, wanted to mention an excellent resources that is dead on this first point. About 4 years ago Piper published a book through Broadman & Holman titled “Brothers we are not professionals.” I’m sure many here may know of this book. I am not a pastor and this book caused me to A) thank God that He did not call me to pastoral ministry and B) appreciate and support my pastor in ways I would have never considered before.
I think the book has great perspective for all who profess Christ, but certianly serves as a strong reminder to those pastors who get swept up in the prestige of rapidly growing and mega-churches. Its pretty blount about kingdom vs. Kingdom (big K) building.
On a broader personal note….Thank you to all you pastors who read this blog and serve God and your people – regardles of the church’s size – with a humble heart. I pray that you’ll be richly blessed with the fullness of the presence of the Holy Spirit revealing to you the heart and mind of Christ in discerning ways to lead your people so that they may fully glorify Him.
Oh I see you’ve answered most of my questions before I asked them…helps if you read the rest I guess.
Its amazing how many pastors I’ve talked to about this who sort of bluster and fuss their way through an explanation that sounds as if they’re making it up as they go. Thanks for the clarity.
Josh
“…the word of God is not bound.”
–2 Timothy 2:9
Good stuff – this is a topic I’m passionate about. I just published a book called “Career Crossover: Leaving the Marketplace for Ministry” that helps people discern their calling & make the leap (you can find it on Amazon, published by B&H Books) or e-mail me at tom@churchcentral.com.
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