The pastor is a shepherd, and as such, his first work is to feed and care for the flock of God, "taking the oversight thereof, not by constraint, but willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock." He must constantly study how he Akan care for his flock so that the largest reults may be obtained. In doing this, his charge is to "preach the Word." If he substitutes dry husks of philosophy for live, kernels of truth; if he leads the flock of God to the broken cisterns of human reasoning rather than to the fountain of living waters, they will suffer spiritual malnutrition and weakness, spiritual declension and death.
As a pastor, or shepherd, he is to feed the people and give them such watchful care as shall keep them fit for their appointed service of "the work of ministering, unto the building up of the body of Christ." Eph. 4:12, A.R.V. The high calling and sacred work of the pastor-evangelist is clearly set forth by Paul in verses 8 and 11 of this same chapter, as he names the gifts which the ascended Christ gave His church and the purpose for which He gave them. "He gave some . .. to be pastors .. . for the perfecting of the saints." The position of those who have thus been called requires nothing short of a holy life, a sanctified ambition, and a desire to "please Him who bath chosen him."
The main business of the pastor is not the reparation and delivery of sermons, so much k as it is the development of every member into a soul winner. Dr. J. E. Conant in his work, "Every Member Evangelism," states it thus: "The pastorate is not a religious lectureship; it is a spiritual generalship."
And the Spirit of prophecy expresses the thought as follows:
"The best help that ministers can give the members of our churches is not sermonizing, but planning work for them. Give each one something to do for others. . . . Especially should those who are newly come to the faith be educated to become laborers together with God."—"Testimonies.- Vol. IX, p. 82.
"If pastors would give more attention to getting and keeping their flock actively engaged at work, they would acomplish more good, have more time for study and religious visiting, and also avoid many causes of friction."—"Gospel Workers," p. 198.
Were this counsel scrupulously followed by the pastors in our churches, there would be fewer religio-cannibalistic feasts where the members "bite and devour one another" and are "consumed one of another."
Organizing and Districting
A pastor has many and various duties. He has evangelistic efforts to conduct, financial goals to reach, campaigns to promote and foster, sermons to prepare and deliver, Bible studies to give. There are interested persons to contact and sick people to be visited, couples to be married, funerals to conduct, lay forces to train and organize. If he tries to do all this work alone, much will be left undone. His work is divinely designated as "overseeing." "Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers." Speaking of the pastor as an overseer, M. T. Lamb, in his book, "Won by One" says:
"What is the business of an overseer in a shop where a hundred men are employed? Manifestly not to do the work of that shop. The men are employed for that purpose. Manifestly, too, his business is not to call his men together once a week and deliver to them a carefully prepared address on their duties to their employers, and then dismiss them to their homes until he can prepare another address. . . . No, no, each one of these hundred men is employed to do an honest day's work. He is to find a place for each one, and look after his work, to help the new beginners, and so have general charge of the work of that shop. . . . God gave some pastors (overseers), all for one grand purpose, 'for the perfecting of the saints, unto the work of ministering. unto the building up of the body of Christ.' "
This type of work requires organization. Such organization—districting of the field, and training for service—is purely pastoral work. Jesus systematically divided the world field into four districts and commanded the disciples to bear the message simultaneously to Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost part of the earth. Thus, He gave us a divine program by which every lesser field, even down to the smallest church, is to be systematized for the work of witnessing. To accomplish this in city churches, I have found the following plan helpful:
Secure a good city map and mount it on wallboard. On this map, place colored map tack* indicating the home of each church member and the location of interested persons. This map serves as a convenient reference in pastoral visiting and in organizing and districting the church in the respective campizigns. With the map before you and the homes thus indicated, divide the city into districts and number each district. The members are automatically enrolled in the district in which they live.
Next, select a leader and a woman visitor for each district. Great care should be exercised in the selection of these assistants to the Pastor. Choose only true Christians,— persons who will visit and pray in the homes of the people. Select "gospelers," and not "gossipers," for this work. Regarding the type of work to be conducted by our sisters, the Spirit of prophecy has thus spoken:
"The Saviour will reflect upon these self-sacrificing women the light of His countenance, and this will give them a power which will exceed that of men. They can do in families a, work that men cannot do, a work that reaches the inner life. They can come close to the hearts of those whom men cannot reach. Their labor is needed."—"Testimonies," Vol. VI, pp. 117, 118.
God has endorsed this cooperative method of labor in which pastor and people work hand in hand. The training of members to do this work is purely pastoral work. However, all the preaching, lecturing, and talking one can do will never accomplish it alone. The best way for the pastor to develop and train these district leaders and woman visitors is to go right out into the homes of our people with them. Start them out as a successful field secretary trains and starts his colporteurs. The hours you spend working with and training these humble men and women will be repaid a hundredfold. They will share your responsibility. "And it shall be, that every great matter they shall bring unto thee, but every small matter they shall judge: so shall it be easier for thyself, and they shall bear the burden with thee." Ex. 18:22.
Problems of Finance
Among their many duties, the pastors in most churches must see that the funds are forthcoming to reach the financial goals and maintain the local church expense. In raising these funds, the pastor may choose one of two ways. He may enter the sacred desk from Sabbath to Sabbath as the denomination's official dollar mark, clothed in sacerdotal garments, fully prepared to plead, or he may adopt a more dignified and equitable plan which will automatically dispense with these unpleasant Sabbath appeals. I prefer the latter method. I like the budget apportionment plan for the raising of all local funds. The full year's expenses are anticipated and budgeted. All members, old and young, share the responsibility, not equally, but in keeping with their respective circumstances and ability. The amount to be contributed monthly is set over against each name, ,and each contribution is credited to the individual's account. This is in keeping with the instruction the Lord has given to "let all share the expense." Personally, I like the idea of placing a letter in the hands of each member monthly. In this letter is an acknowledgment of the exact amount the individual has contributed to date, and also the balance due, if any, at that time. Thus the recipient is kept familiar with all phases of the church work and program whether he is present or absent from the services.
I have followed this plan in several churches and for the past six years have not found it necessary to make a single special appeal upon the Sabbath for church expense or church-school funds. This plan was adopted in certain church two years ago. At that tim the church was in debt and was fast running behind. The church school teacher had to borrow money to pay for her room and board, because she had not received her salary. The church had no fuel ahead for the winter, and the janitor had not been paid. But the year 1936 closed with all bills paid and a balance of local funds in the treasury exceeding $200. Every item of local expense showed a balance: church expense, church school, Sabbath school, home missionary, Dorcas, and needy poor. And during the entire year, no special appeals were made upon the Sabbath.
Herculean Demands
It is clear that the pastor's work not only demands consecration and devotion, but also industry and endurance. Speaking of industry, Herrick Johnson says: "A loitering, lazy minister is one of the saddest of anomalies; and his wasted hours and opportunities will make a terrible arraignment when accounts come to be settled."
Dr. Edward DeWitt Jones, addressing the Metropolitan Church Federation in St. Loui outlined the demands on the ideal modern pa for thus: "The preacher of today needs the courage of a lion, the skin of a hippopotamus, the endurance of a camel, the sagacity of an elephant, the patience of a donkey, and as many lives as a cat."
Very naturally the embryonic pastor in the seminar exclaims with the apostle Paul: "Who is sufficient for these things?" None need despair or become discouraged, for in response to this question, the word of God has declared: "Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think anything as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God." 2 Cor. 3:5.
