Thomas F. Fischer, M.Div., M.S.A.
Number 105

Of the numerous factors that interplay on ministerial health,
perhaps the most important and fundamental is a solid, biblically-based
foundation of ministry. As one considers the office of the ministry from
a scriptural perspective, one notes a certain uniqueness about it. Such
unique aspects of the Ministry are…

1) The Office Of The Ministry Is Not Something That Is Man-Made.

It is not something that shifts with the sands of time, culture and
multitudinous subjective expectations of pastors and parishioners.
Instead, as a specific office established within the Priesthood of All
Believers, it is the specific office which God has, by grace, created
and to which God entrusts the fundamental offices of grace: teaching,
feeding and Christian oversight.

Not created by man or the church, it is man’s and the church’s
highest honor and responsibility not to add, subtract or alter the
Office in a way contrary to God’s specific Word and revealed will.

2) Though The Pastor Is A Member Of The Priesthood of All Believers,
The Office Of The Ministry Is Different From The Priesthood Of All
Believers.

St. Paul acknowledged the distinctive of this office. "Are all
apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers?" he asked in I
Corinthians 12:29.

Obviously they are not. There really is something unique about the
Office. There is something unique about the divine call. Though the
Christian pastor is–and always remains–a member of the Priesthood of
All Believers, the divine call imparts greater responsibilities to
faithfully heed the command of God to preach and teach publicly and to
lead the flock over which he has been given charge.

3) The Office Of The Ministry Is A Unique Blessing.

The calling of the ministry is always a specific calling of service
to do what he has been ordained to do. Not simply a
"functionary," the one called to the Office of the Ministry is
to carry out the Lord’s distinctive calling and do only as the Lord has
said.

Furthermore, the individual called to the Office of the Ministry is
not simply a priest as others in the universal priesthood. He is a
specially called "priest among priests," one called by God to
publicly act with Word and Sacrament to the universal priesthood. He is
not holier, nor is he given any power other than the power to exercise
the Office of the Keys publicly. Given such privilege to share and
proclaim the Word is, to say the least, a unique blessing of grace to
whomever it is given..

4) The Office Of The Ministry Is A Unique Burden.

This uniqueness, rooted in the distinctive public calling to teach
and preach in the church, makes what pastors do so joyful and yet so
painful. The calling is sweet; but the ministry of grace can, as St.
John experienced in his apocalyptic vision, be sour, bitter, and
disheartening. Perhaps no one, other than the Lord of the Church, feels
the burden of the local church as the pastor does. Perhaps no one senses
the pain, the ongoing struggle, and the essential and necessary daily
repudiation of Satan’s working in the church.

5) The Office Does Not Add To Christ’s Ministry; It Simply Bears And
Proclaims It.

The Office of the Ministry adds nothing to the work of Christ for
salvation. As the writer of Hebrews proclaimed, that price has been
completed once and for all. Jesus’ call to pastors was not to die on the
cross for others. Nor was it to add to the sacrifice of sin for which
Christ had already died.

The Office is simply one of proclaiming that the Kingdom of God is
here. It is the Office through which God’s Holy Spirit works today in
His Word to bring people to the rebirth of faith. Those who by human
effort try to add to it, do nothing but detract from it and from its
author, Jesus Christ. St. Paul in I Corinthians 4:1 taught, "So
then, men out to regard us a servants of Christ and as those entrusted
with the secret things of God" (NIV).

6) Those In The Office Have The Explicit Requirement To Uphold Their
Calling Faithfully.

As called servants "entrusted with the secret things of
God," those who are called to the Office of the Ministry have a
calling not only to serve faithfully, but to faithfully guard, preserve
and share what has been entrusted to them, namely the "secret
things of God," i.e. the preaching of the mystery of salvation that
a Holy God forgives, dies for, and saves sinners.

Indeed, as Paul wrote in I Corinthians 4:2, "Now it is required
that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful" (NIV).
That which is entrusted is not simply given to the entire priesthood.
Though the entire priesthood of believers is also to be faithful to what
has been entrusted to it, it is the Office of the Ministry which has
been specifically called by God to be the public Guardian of this trust,
the "trustee" of the "secret things" of the mystery
of faith on behalf of God for the benefit of the people.

7) As The Office Proclaims The Foolishness of God, The Office And
Its Message Will Be Ridiculed By The Wisdom Of Men.

It is precisely because of this message of Christ crucified that the
Gospel is a stumbling block for others (cf. I Corinthians 1, et al). A
source of pain and guilt for unbelievers, the preaching of the Word of
God is nothing less than a putridly offensive message to them. To
relieve the pain, they would rather attack the messenger than receive
the Word of grace. Thus, the Office will be attacked unjustly,
viciously, and repeatedly. Jesus indicated to the disciples that this
was to be expected. But He also indicated that when it occurred, they
were really attacking Jesus, not the preacher.

8) The Key Essential Of The Call To Public Ministry Is To Uphold The
Office In All Circumstances.

As ones entrusted with the secret things of God, those called to the
Office of the Ministry will inevitably be as sheep among wolves. As
shepherds, they will be tested. Will they give up their lives for their
sheep? Or will they, like the hireling, run away at the first
opportunity regardless of the cost to the flock.

A common cliche’ among churchmen is, "Jesus was already
crucified. So you don’t have to be, too." I’m not quite so sure. In
fact, I think it’s a pious lie. Though its use is usually well-intended
and is meant to encourage pastors in difficulty so that they don’t take
themselves so seriously, et al, it’s still a gross theological
misrepresentation of the calling to ministry.

If the call to the priesthood of all believers is to take up the
cross and follow me, as it is, and if the call to faith is that we give
up our lives so that we can find it in Christ, does it not follow that
the pastor is called to a greater sacrifice?

In light of this, perhaps other scriptural encouragement ought to be
offered from Matthew 10, I Corinthians 15:56, the Pastoral Epistles, the
Apocalypse and other relevant scriptures to give pastors a healthy,
biblical perspective of the suffering they bear in this Office. Having a
biblical understanding would, perhaps, then draw them to the comfort
from that same Word of God which so directly describes the prophetic
predicament of suffering, rejection, failure, and grief.

9) The Character Of The Office Is One Which Overcomes Fear With
Godly Faith And Trust.

As they uphold the office against attacks, criticism, ridicule,
slander and defamation, those called to the Office of the Ministry must
be guarded by a fearless yet fierce godly tenacity and conviction.
"Fear not those who can kill the body but not the soul," Jesus
told the disciples in Matthew 10:28. "Rather, be afraid of the One
who can destroy both soul and body in hell" (NIV).

Like the prophetic and apostolic martyrs, the faithful called
servant of God can expect extreme discomfort and suffering, sometimes
unlike what they have experienced before. But, like the martyrs of the
church of every age who bore their "cross" and refused to
disown the Author of their calling–even though "brother betray
brother to death"–the ordained servants of Christ have been
empowered by God’s to remain faithful and strong even in weakness.

In Luke 9:18ff, immediately after Peter’s confession of Christ as
"The Christ of God," Jesus’ spoke of the sacrifice He would
give. But His words specifically directed to the called band of
disciples pointed to their future sacrifice–and possible death–for the
sake of the Gospel.

Indeed the call is not just to believers to take up the cross.
Instead, addressing this chosen apostolic band and extending His calling
to them to public ministry, Jesus indicated that it was for the called
servants as well. To both groups the same exhortation is given,
"take up [your] cross daily and follow me" (Luke 9:23).

If all Christians are called to willingly suffer for their private
ministry to their Lord, then it certainly follows that those called to
the Public Office are called to a willingness to publicly suffer as a
consequence for their public ministry for the Lord.

10) Whatever Is Encountered By The Office, The Call Never Changes:
Preach Anyway.

The calling to the holy Office is not to be subject to approval
seeking, honor, and recognition. As Paul stated in defense of his call
to the holy Office, "If I were still trying to please men, I would
not be a servant of Christ" (Galatians 1:10 NIV). Nor is the
Office, as Paul, the pastor-mentor, told his "son" Timothy, to
be subject to the correct "seasons."

"In the presence of Christ Jesus…I give you this charge:
Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct,
rebuke and encourage–with great patience and careful instruction. For
the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine.
Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great
number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They
will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths. But
you, keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of
an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry" (II
Timothy 4:1-5 NIV).

Though there are times when God’s servants must shake the dust off
their feet in judgment at those who stubbornly resist the Word, as long
as it is God’s will for His called servants to remain, they must
remain–and remain faithfully–to preach "in and out of
season" and to patiently "correct, rebuke and encourage"
especially those who turn aside to "myths" and other errors.

Since suffering will come, the ordained servant of Christ is to
"keep your head" in all situations. Even in hardships, the
calling and work is unchanged: "discharge all the duties of your
ministry."

Those who have been most faithful in the discharge of their calling
may experience the greatest hardship. But, in "the presence of God
and of Jesus Christ who will judge the living and the dead" (I
Timothy 4:1), they will bear before their Master a confident witness:
"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have
kept the faith. Now there is in store for me a crown of
righteousness" (II Timothy 4:1-8 NIV).

Is there any greater finish for the unique calling of God given to
the called and ordained servants of God? Not at all! And what is the
final reward? Nothing earthly, nothing worldly, nothing that is part of
the "wisdom of the world." Whether or not these are received,
the real reward is simply–and magnificently–a crown of righteousness,
stored for us and to be given–purely by unmerited grace–by the Lord we
proclaim and serve.

"Therefore my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing
[absolutely nothing] move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work
of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in
vain." (I Corinthians 15:58 NIV)

Thomas F. Fischer

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