Feature
Seeking Pastoral
Identity
by John E. Johnson
(Continued from page 5)
Third, where there is pain, the pastor is called to share. Where there is suffering, the priestly nature of the ministry calls for him to immerse himself here as well. While many shy away out of fear or unwillingness to face discomfort, the pastor seizes the occasion to be alongside, to hurt with those who hurt. Peterson describes pastoral work as one of “engaging” in human suffering. “The pastor who substitutes cheery bromides for this companionship 'through the valley of deep shadows' can fairly be accused of cowardice.”(48) It takes a degree of courage to step into a situation where a mother has lost her baby, a parent anguishes over a rebellious child, or a wife has only moments earlier received word concerning the death of her husband. By the pastor's work, however, the church is better able to be what God has called it to be—a healing community.
To guard the worship. Like Old Testament priests, pastors ultimately bear responsibility for the service of worship. While others fulfill certain roles, from arranging flowers to organizing the choir, the pastor carries the responsibility of preserving the dignity of God's house. He is responsible for presiding over worship services, helping others prepare to meet God.(49)
To be holy. Because pastors lead their people in worship, they must be men of integrity. Old Testament priests were to be experts on ritual purity, but they were also to maintain absolute personal holiness (Lev. 11-15). Similarly pastors are to maintain not only the purity of worship but also purity in their personal lives. The office of pastor “is nothing less than a vocation to holiness.”(50) Athanasius said it well: “You cannot put straight in others what is warped in yourself.”
To bless the people. Like Old Testament priests, pastors are called to a ministry of blessing. Priests were to pronounce a benediction on the people (Num. 6:22-27); this was a crucial priestly duty (cf. Le. 9:22; Dt. 21:5). So, too, pastors are to engage in the ministry of blessing. Benedictions may be given at the close of worship services, as well as in homes. Parishioners expect pastors to carry out such an act.
To bring an offering. As a final argument for the pastor's link with the Old Testament priest, it is worth noting that Paul used priestly language in describing himself and others. He referred to those he had come to shepherd as his “offering” to God (Ro. 15:16). He alluded to himself as a “priest,” ministering the gospel of God. Paul viewed Epaphroditus as a “priest,” because of the offering he brought to Paul (Ph. 2:25; 4:18). Paul viewed himself as a “libation” poured out on the sacrificial offering of the Philippians' faith (Ph. 2:17).
Pastors must be willing to view themselves at times as sacrificial victims, paying a certain price for people's sins. When does a pastor do this? Whenever he bears up with their pain and experiences the hurt of their sin. On another occasion Paul likened himself to a poured-out drink offering (2 Ti. 4:6). Using again the metaphor of a libation, Paul thought of his life as a sacrificial offering, a challenge he issued to all believers (Ro. 12:1). Just as sacrifice and forgiveness were the domains in which Old Testament priests lived, so these will be the experience of pastors. The ministry of reconciliation and sympathy will enlist their highest powers.(51)
To Be a Sage
Like sages of the Old Testament, pastors are to fulfill the following roles.
To search for wisdom. A pastor is identified by his affection and passion for truth. Von Rad has noted that the essential task of the sage was to perceive truth.(52) Similarly pastors are to hunger to perceive understanding, to discern prudence. Searching for understanding, as for gold, is more than a passion. It is painstaking labor (Pr. 2:1-5), but it is spurred by the conviction that wisdom is a gift imparted from above (Ja. 1:5-6; 3:13-18). Being faithful in this search, ministers become the sages others are encouraged to seek out.
To observe life. Because the pastor is a sage, his study will never be an ivory tower, a haven to escape the demands of ministry or to run from the needs of his people. The sage was more than a person on a sapiential quest. He was committed to integrating truth with life—to deliver truth in memorable statements. This demanded he spend much time with people, studying those lives God placed before him.(53)
Pastors face the same demands. They need to be at their people's workplace, in their homes, and on their campuses, observing and feeling life's realities. This means knowing about a deacon's workplace, where an insecure manager makes the office a difficult place. It calls for being with the shut-in who must rely on his tape-recorded sermons to sustain her during the week. It means sensing the fears of a professional who knows, with corporate downsizing, that his employment may be terminated tomorrow. Such firsthand experiences enable pastors to speak with greater wisdom from the pulpit.
To give wise counsel. Whether from the pulpit or in personal counseling, pastors are called to minister the practicalities of spiritual truth. The issues may range from marital conflict to discerning God's will. “The pastor who maintains a consistent counseling ministry will move in the direction of life-situation preaching. Preaching will start where people live.”(54) The office of sage assures pastors that this role is essential to their pastoral identity. Like Solomon, pastors sometimes are asked to referee between people in conflict. “The pastor will be called upon to deal with persons facing quite different states of life crises. He must remain responsive to all the different levels and developmental stages of the life cycle. Counsel must be attentive to those developmental differences.”(55)
To live an ordered life. Fulfilling the office of sage also means that a pastor is impressed with order, and his life results in some sort of measured pattern. At the heart of the sage's worldview was a conviction that what is wise is that which is ordered. Chaos, hurry, and disorder are the antitheses of wisdom. In the sage's view of reality, God has established an orderly universe. Man's principal responsibility is to live in harmony with this order.(56) This comes as a result of conforming to the discipline of instruction.(57)
Such an order, described and mandated in the Old Testament wisdom books, is underscored in a concise way in Ja. 3:17, in which James described the orderly way heavenly wisdom manifests itself. An ordered life is, first and foremost, a pure life, with passions under control (Pr. 5-7). An ordered life is arranged in such a way as to promote peace. When a pastor takes on the characteristics of a sage, he brings with him a spirit of conciliation (cf. Pr. 3:17) and gentleness (cf. Pr. 15:1). He is known as a mediator and a peacemaker. James also described the wise man as one who is righteous (Ja. 3:17). Truth and kindness are the inseparable qualities of a wise person whose life is orderly.
An ordered ministry, then, is critical to a pastor's priorities. This is crucial, for few professions have the potential to be so chaotic. Working with volunteers, who come and go, working with a schedule that is largely self-determined and interruptive, and working against a spiritual tide that will do all it can to unsettle, pastors need the model and counsel of the sage to stand their ground and pursue order.(58) Therefore the pastor's home, his life, and his marriage must be in order.
