Questionnaire for Pastoral Candidates

Posted by on

When working with churches that are looking for a pastor I encourage them to prepare a list of key questions for any candidate. Few churches, in my experience, are prepared with good, thoughtful questions that will get to the heart of key issues.

Recently, a friend shared with me the following questionnaire which comes from a church I know almost nothing about. I am sharing it here because it is a good example of questions to pose to a pastoral candidate. Anyone looking to serve as a pastor should be prepared to answer these questions well. The first 13 questions cover key theological, moral and practical issues. Question 14 is well-worded, getting to the heart of how one understands ministry. Any pastor would do well to contemplate carefully how this question should be answered.

Then, the last question is a very important one that should always be addressed (and the candidate should ask why the previous pastor left this church).

Question # 1: What are the qualifications for a pastor/elder and how well do you meet them?
Question # 2: What is your view of church government? How do you view the roles of elders/deacons/pastors?
Question # 3: How do you explain the first chapter of Genesis?
Question # 4: How should the church minister to their children and youth, and what role do children/youth play in the church?
Question # 5: Explain the difference between Arminianism and Calvinism. Briefly defend and Biblically support the position you hold.
Question # 6: How would you describe an effective worship service? What do you see as the role of music in worship and what range of styles do you think are appropriate? What style of music do you prefer?
Question # 7: How would you describe your preaching style? (topical, expository, narrative, etc?). In a typical week how much time do you spend in sermon preparation?
Question # 8: What is your favorite Bible translation? Why?
Question # 9: What is your view on divorce in the body and in leadership?
Question # 10: On what social and moral issues do you feel the church should take a stand? How should this be done?
Question # 11: What guidelines do you use when deciding to perform a marriage ceremony?
Question # 12: What do you believe and practice in regard to spiritual gifts such as tongues, interpretation of tongues, prophecy and healing?
Question # 13: What is your view of end-times or eschatological issues?
Question # 14: What criteria do you use to evaluate an effective ministry?
Question # 15: Why are you leaving your current church?

R. E. Lee as a Parent

Posted by on

I am currently reading to my boys a not so exciting book about Robert E. Lee. Lee is a great subject, but the style of this book is ponderous. One benefit though is the frequent extracts from Lee’s letters, particularly letters to his children.

This excerpt from a letter to his son in the army (before the war) is a great example of a parent’s proper longings for and expressions to a child. After giving some advice he writes:

“When I think of your youth, impulsiveness, and many temptations, your distance from me, and the ease (and even innocence) with which you might commence an erroneous course, my heart quails within me, and my whole frame and being trembles at the possible result. May Almighty God have you in His holy keeping. To His Merciful Providence I commit you, and will rely upon Him, and the Efficacy of the prayers that will be daily and hourly offered up by those who love you.”

Favorite Exodus Commentary

Posted by on

As I focused on Exodus all last week I realized even more how much I like James Bruckner’s new Exodus commentary in the NIBC series. I commented positively on this commentary earlier in Preaching Magazine’s Annual Bible and Bible Reference Survey article. As I spent more time in Exodus this week my appreciation of this little commentary just grew. It is now my favorite commentary on Exodus, one that not only helps me in preaching but causes me to long to preach- not a common trait in commentaries.

At just under 350 pages it is short for a commentary on Exodus. It does not deal with all the critical and technical issues. He admirably focuses on the text as we have it. Then in a manner reminiscent of Derek Kidner (see commentaries on Genesis and Psalms especially) Bruckner gets to the theological heart of passages bringing out in striking prose the key concerns.
You will need other commentaries to chase down more detailed items, but for thinking about the message of the book, Bruckner is my choice.

It is hard to get the feel for a commentary just from quotes, but I finally decided to include one to try to give you the flavor. On the difficult passage 4:24-26 Bruckner writes:

“The rhetorical effect of the text is to unsettle the reader. Just when Moses was finally on his way to Egypt (because God told him it was safe), we encounter God’s complete freedom to act in what seems to us a crazy way. If we could edit this account today we would not doubt leave this story out (perhaps also we might like to omit Acts 5:1-11). The text does not apologize, however, nor does it give rationalizations for the Creator’s willingness to take back the life God gives. Even Moses cannot presume upon God.” (54-55)

If you peruse the book I would recommend also reading through the treatment of chapters 32-33. This is soul stirring stuff.

Romans 3, Student Responses

Posted by on

One of the joys of my job is just walking through the Bible with students in OT and NT Survey. Students often realize they don’t know as much Bible as they thought. And we get to encounter the gospel again and again in its fullness, power and beauty.
Here are some student responses to studying Romans 3 this January. My aim is that these will encourage us in just continuing to preach the Word.

“This makes me think how great God is to save sinners like me who do not deserve anything. I do think love and justice go together, but they get mixed up sometimes. It is interesting to think about how God is not required to forgive anyone, but He does out of great love. I think a lot of times Christians don’t say enough about sin because we try to sugarcoat everything and compare ourselves to others.”

“The words of Paul are such a comfort! If I had listened to this sermon two years ago it would have turned my world upside down. For so long (and still in many churches today) sin was not the thing being taught but hell. It was the fear of hell that I was continually taught instead of the reason I deserved it. This is one of the reasons I struggled so much with my faith. When only hell is taught you lose so much of God’s glory and replace it will feelings of anger towards God and confusion. I understand all too well Luther’s feeling of anger at a God who would punish me for sins I was bound by.”

“The statement ‘God is not required to forgive anyone’ rings in my ear all the louder every time I hear it. It is hard but so very lovely to think about when you understand how he forgave us when he was never required to. How much this should make us fall to our knees in humility and thankfulness! I never understood the true gravity of what my sin deserved. You are very right, we down play sin so much in our churches today and have dangerously entered into a worldly view of ourselves. It is one thing to tell someone that they should accept a savior that gave his life for them, yet you receive a much different reaction to ‘you are wretched and deserve hell because there is no hope to become good, however God sent Christ to take your punishment, not because he had to but because he chose to.’ This is the truth missing today and how much more would we appreciate the gospel if it was taught fully! This has been so encouraging and I continue to fall in love with my savior all the more as I learn more and more about the gift I have received.”

The Emptiness of Sin

Posted by on

“All the ‘great secrets’ under the mountains had turned out to be just empty night: there was nothing more to find out, nothing worth doing, only nasty furtive eating and resentful remembering. He was altogether wretched. He hated the dark, and he hated light more: he hated everything, and the Ring most of all.”
(The Fellowship of the Ring, chapter 2)

This description of Gollum’s condition is a compelling description of the emptiness of sin. Doesn’t this resonate, in a terrible way, in your own soul? This is a helpful picture for me to keep in my mind to fight temptation.

Preaching and the Public Square

Posted by on

Many of you have probably already seen this video of John Piper responding to President Obama on abortion. I saw it on several blogs.

My point here is to point out that this is a powerful example of how preachers can engage the public square. It is clear in this video that Piper is not arguing for a certain political party. He is engaging a moral issue and makes that very clear. He boldly confronts sin, calling it by name. He adresses the president directly. At the same time, he stresses his willingness to support the president, his prayers for him, and even where he has rejoiced in him.
I felt echoes of Chrysostom, Knox and the Covenanters as I listened.

Friendship (Tolkien)

Posted by on

“You can trust us to stick to you through thick and thin- to the bitter end. And you can trust us to keep any secret of yours- closer than you keep it yourself. But you cannot trust us to let you face trouble alone, and go off without a word. We are your friends, Frodo. Anyway, there it is. We know most of what Gandalf has told you. We know a good deal about the Ring. We are horribly afraid- but we are coming with you; or following you like hounds.”
(The Fellowship of the Ring, chapter 5)

What a wonderful portrait of true friendship. This should be the sort of thing heard often in the church.

Exodus Study This Weekend

Posted by on

I am preparing this week to do the January Bible Study on Exodus this weekend at Poplar Heights Baptist Church here in Jackson. I will have about three hours Friday night, three Saturday morning, and then the two Sunday services. There is much to cover to summarize this important book well. I have been struck by the richness of Exodus as I have listened to it over the last few weeks.
Desmond Alexander’s summary of the book states well what I hope to communicate:

“Exodus is essentially a book about knowing God through personal experience. The plot centers on the relationship which develops between the LORD God and the Israelites, from the dramatic meeting with Moses at the burning bush (3:1-4:17) to the glory of the Lord filling the tabernacle (40:34-38). Throughout the Exodus God always takes the initiative, revealing himself not only through words, but also through sings and wonders. In differing ways he reveals his most significant attributes: his sovereign majesty; his holiness; his power to perform signs and wonders; his awesome glory; his righteousness; his compassion.”
(From Paradise to the Promised Land: An Introduction to the Pentateuch, 2d ed, p. 157)

Among the Camps

Posted by on

Among the Camps : Young People’s Story of the War, by Thomas Nelson Page
(Reprinted by Sprinkle Publications, 1995)
Ages 6+

This is a sequel to Two Little Confederates and is very similar. It does not continue with the same family, but is actually a collection of four different stories all of young people during the War Between the States. In each story the children show spunk. Like the previous book, this one gives a view of life during this time.

Probably my favorite of these four stories is the first one where a father who is in the Confederate army manages to visit his family on Christmas and promises specific gifts for his children the following year. During the year, the family’s plantation ends up behind enemy lines. The story of the father’s persistence to uphold his promise and the faith and perseverance of his children is powerful.

This is another fun story with good lessons and historical awareness.

Two Little Confederates

Posted by on

Two Little Confederates, by Thomas Nelson Page
(originally published by Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1888; republished by Sprinkle Publications, 1994), hb., 156 pp.
Ages 6+

Thomas Nelson Page was descended from two of the most prominent families in Virginia. His grandfather was a signer of the Declaration of Independence and his family features prominently elsewhere in Virginia from colonial days on. He was a boy during the War between the States and eventually served as U. S. Ambassador to Italy under Woodrow Wilson.

This book is historical fiction drawing largely from the author’s own experience of the Civil War as a boy. The story follows the exploits of two young brothers as their father and older brothers go off to fight in the war and the rest of the family deals with the increasingly difficult war-time conditions- from thieves, to deserters, Yankee raiders, food shortages and other circumstances.

This is an enjoyable book and we often found ourselves laughing loudly at the exploits of the boys. Even with the lightheartedness the author deals with many serious situations which faced Virginian families during the war. This book gave us a feel for what life was like for the families left behind by soldiers in the South. It also breathes the air of nobility, courage, respect and honor which is so often missing today. It was often challenging to be reminded of the level of responsibility often borne by young boys at this time.

We commend this book to you as an enjoyable way to learn and be challenged.