What a Pastor Looks for in a Prospective Charge
Pastoral searches begin when a church has a pastoral vacancy. Typically, a search team is formed from a representative group of church members or elders (Independent churches). They formulate a church profile in the same way a person prepares a resume. They advertise their vacancy, and the suitors form a queue.
In the process, it is the church which initially holds the upper hand, much like a pretty girl must sift through potential beaux. A headhunter is like a matchmaker in an arranged marriage. He first gets to know the church, and then he labors to find a few suitable candidates from a large pool of servants of the Lord. The process is like the television program, Survivor, or The Bachelor, by way of analogy. It is a process of selection, which requires the process of elimination.
A local church is a gathering a God’s called out ones (ekklesia). Those whom He chose before the foundation of the world (Rom 8:29–30; Eph 1:4–5; 2 Thess 2:13; Rev 13:8; Rev 17:8), and for whom Christ died (Jn 10:11, 15; Eph 5:25), are brought into fellowship with other believers by the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 12:13; Jude 3). God gathers His people for worship, fellowship, and biblical instruction. It is the Holy Spirit who appoints elders to lead a local church (Acts 20:28).
An elder is a man of the Word (Ezra 7:10; Acts 6:4). He has studied to show himself approved (2 Tim 2:15). As he gives himself to the study of the Scriptures, he then shepherds the flock of God (1 Pet 5:1–5). In essence, this means he feeds, tends, and protects the flock with his rod and staff, which are symbolic of the Word. Therefore, he must be apt to teach (1 Tim 3:2; 2 Tim 2:24).
The church is filled with the Holy Spirit because it is filled with Spirit-filled believers. Of course, when unbelievers are granted membership to the church, it is troublesome. One might ask how the church comes to admit unbelievers. The answer is disobedience to the Holy Spirit. Every other error of the church is the result of not submitting to the Word and the Spirit. A church must be careful to do all Christ has commanded, knowing He is with us by His Spirit. The Spirit can be resisted, grieved, and even offended. Pastoral searches demand full submission by the church and prospective pastor.
The shepherd knows his sheep, so the matchmaking of a pastor and a church requires nothing less than God’s orchestration. A pastor, living in Iowa, cannot be matched with a congregation in Hawaii without divine arrangement. Matching a pastor and a local church congregation should be a deeply spiritual exercise, but unfortunately, it oftentimes resembles a corporation looking for a C.E.O.
Churches come in all shapes, sizes, and temperaments. Over the years, a local church takes on a personality of its own. One church flies the LGBTQ flag prominently near its front door, while another protests at the funerals of LGBTQ deceased. I use this example to show the gamut of orthopraxy. The personality traits of the man of God with the local, gathered church must have compatibility. The process of a congregation getting to know its next pastor is elongated. Sometimes it is six months and at other times it is years before the chosen pastor stands on the podium as the shepherd preacher.
Pastors come in all shapes, sizes, and temperaments, too. His personality, ministry strengths and weaknesses, ministry preferences must be considered. When the pastor is honest with the prospective congregation, and the prospective congregation is honest with pastoral candidate, there will eventually be a match. So, what does a pastor look for in a prospective charge?
First, he looks for a congregation who is looking for him. A set of desires, written or unwritten, is formulated and expressed. “This is what we want,” says the church. “This is what I want,” says the pastoral candidate. Do they want the same things together? The first connection point is spiritual vision. Some churches are immature, while others carry great wisdom from years of staying together. Mature churches want to be fed by a Bible expositor to whose spiritual authority they gladly subject themselves. Immature churches want an entertainer, or even someone they can control, as a means to their own ends.
Second, he looks for a congregation that shares the same philosophy of ministry. Few churches are known for the power of their pulpit. When a congregation experiences great preaching from a great preacher, they want a great preacher the next time they are looking for a pastor. In a church, where preaching is just another one of the activities, a great preacher is not necessarily what is sought. Some preachers resemble counselors, others are administrators, while others only wish to preach and teach.
Third, he looks at the history of the church. Just as a congregation has a personality, formed by the configuration of those who comprise its membership, so it has a past. Churches are filled with sinful saints. Some are works in progress, while some are simply in regression.
As a young pastor, I was ready to take whatever was out there. “Let’s get to work,” was my sentiment. As I accumulated experiences in a few churches, I am much more reserved now in who I will work with and in what type of environment. I marvel that some churches will put an age restriction on their next pastor.
One church profile read, “The pastor will be aged 25–40.” Really? The problem here is youth culture in America. Churches want a young, hip 25-year-old lead pastor with the wisdom of a 75-year-old man. These do not exist, but this is why some churches hire a headhunter who will bring some helpful correction to the unreasonable expectations of the church from an outside perspective.
Sheep can be very stubborn animals, but there are usually more problems with leaders in the church than with the people in general. Immaturity, lack of experience, lack of biblical knowledge, and lack of spirituality can be disastrous for a pastor and for a congregation. The history of each local church will reveal much about the philosophy of shepherding.
The prospective pastor is looking for elders who are spiritual men, not just successful businessmen for a three-year stint. Unqualified elders are simply trouble waiting to happen.
Fourth, he looks for elders who share the same vision for ministry. I believe preaching and teaching is the best way to take care of business in the church. The Word of God is the best instrument to bring people into the sheepfold and into alignment with God. If the elders of a church are relying on programs, marketing schemes, technology, or anything else to allure people, at the expense of the ministry of the Word, then the church will be shallow. It also may be comprised of goats, not sheep. Christ must be the vision of the local church. This must be evident to the prospective pastor. Clearly, if Christ is not central to the congregation, the pastoral candidate may be wise to look elsewhere.
Fifth, he looks for the evidence of the working of the Holy Spirit. Pastors are usually given the gift of spiritual discernment. They can detect where a person is positioned in their spiritual development with only an hour of conversation with that person.
Years ago, I was walking my dog, George. A couple, walking their dog, approached me from the opposite direction. We stopped and talked. It started with the pleasantries of getting to know one another’s names and occupations. “I’m a pastor,” was my reply to the query about my work. The woman, Ann, immediately asked, “What denomination?” Then, she asked, “Are you a Calvinist or Arminian?” I marveled out loud, “Yesssss!” Here was a Christian couple who cared about theology and doctrine. What bliss for me as a pastor to meet this husband and wife. There was nothing spiritually shallow about them. They were farmers by occupation, but they were farmer theologians, too. Glory!
Finally, the calling of God for a pastor supersedes everything else listed here. There is a practical regimen to find a good match, but if God’s Spirit is not directing a man’s steps to a church, he should not go there. Sometimes the calling to a difficult place is made evident, and then it becomes a matter of obedience to the call, over and above the rational process of match making. Both parties must do their due diligence, but ultimately both must trust God to bring them together.
In conclusion, the Spirit-filled church begins the process of looking, and the Spirit-filled man of God is directed to accept or reject a calling. It behooves both pastors and churches to labor to make the process as spiritual as possible, not leaning on the ways of the corporate world to gain understanding and direction. May God’s will be done, for the joy of His people and for His glory.
David E. Norczyk
Spokane Valley, Washington
May 10, 2021
