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Christian Leadership Training Course

By J.C. Choate

Lesson 18

Who Is a Preacher?

Who is a preacher? We will attempt to tell you who a preacher is and who he is not. You may be surprised at some of the things you will learn in this lesson. First we will consider who the preacher is, what he is called, and some of his works.

The preacher is said to be a minister. Although many think that the preacher is the exclusive minister in the church, actually all Christians are ministers. That is, the preacher and all members are to minister to the people around them. They are to help those in need and to show their concern for their fellow-man, first for Christians and then for others. Paul spoke of himself as a minister to the Gentles (Romans 15:16). On another occasion he said he was going to Jerusalem to minister unto the saints (Romans 15:25). He said that we are ministers of the New Testament (2 Corinthians 3:6). Paul said he was a minister of the gospel (Colossians 1:23).

The preacher may be an evangelist. A preacher who is described as an evangelist is one who goes from place to place as he preaches the gospel (Acts 21:8; Ephesians 4:11; 2 Timothy 4:5).

The preacher may be a missionary. Although the word missionary does not appear in God's word, his work is described there. The missionary is one who has great zeal for the Lord and goes even to far away places to live for extended periods of time, to preach the gospel, and to plant the cause of Christ. Was not Paul and many others of the New Testament just that?

The preacher is a servant. Paul, Peter, James, and other preachers of the New Testament era called themselves servants (Romans 1:1; James 1:1; 2 Peter 1:1). That is, they considered themselves the servants of the Lord and of their fellowman, in dedicating their lives and energies to their use. They were not ashamed to refer to themselves as such.

Yes, the preacher is all of this, and much more. On the other hand, a preacher is not a lot of things he is accused of being. We'll notice some of the things he is not at this time.

The preacher is not a Pope of the church. Christ is the one and only head of the church (Ephesians 1:22,23; Colossians 1:18). Neither is he the big boss of the local congregation. That is not the work of a preacher. As we have seen, he serves instead of bossing people. The elders of the church are to oversee the local congregation, including the work of the preacher.

The preacher is not an apostle. There are no apostles today. In order for one to be an apostle, he had to be with the disciples from the baptism of John up to the time that the Lord was taken up into heaven, and of course he had to be an eye witness of the Lord's resurrection (Acts 1:21-23). There are people in the world today ---- even preachers ---- who claim to be apostles, but they are fakes and impostors.

The preacher is not a pastor, bishop, elder (three terms for the same office), or deacon as those terms are commonly used. Scripturally, a preacher could be any of these, provided he is able to meet the qualifications laid down in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. But today "pastor", "bishop", and "deacon" are generally titles given to denominational preachers who are neither members of the Lord's church nor have they met the qualifications laid down in God's word.

The preacher is not a miracle healer or performer. The apostles, and those on whom they laid their hands that they might have the power of the Holy Spirit, were able to perform miracles, but preachers or members of the church in general were not given the power to do miracles. Even if miracles were being performed today, certainly preachers and others who are in man-made churches and organization, and who wear denominational names and titles, would not be the ones selected to do such things. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 13 that with the coming of the Lord's perfect will or law, miracles were no longer needed. If you still think that some of those preachers can perform miracles, check with them and see if they ever put new legs on people, or new arms, or give new eyes, or raise the dead, and such like. Christ and the apostles did these types of wonders, not "healing" a headache or "curing" an unseen ulcer.

The preacher is not a "Reverend", "The Right Reverend", "The Most Right Reverend", etc. Neither is he a spiritual father, or a religious doctor. Men love titles and seek to elevate themselves with such, but the Lord condemned them. Jesus said, "Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven. And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ. But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted" (Matthew 23:9-12). The Psalmist David, in referring to God, said "holy and reverend is His name" (Psalm 111:9).

The preacher of the Bible is just an ordinary man. He is not a big man in the sense of occupying a big office, or of lording authority over the people "in his church". As far as one can go in the Lord's church is simply to be a preacher of a local congregation under the oversight of the elders of that congregation, provided there are qualified men to serve in that capacity. If there are no men qualified, he must work under the leadership of the men of that church. He is not the head of that congregation. He is not to be given a title or to be exalted or honored as some great person. Rather, he is to preach God's word, to serve, and minister to the needs of the local congregation and the people of the area.

The scripture no where talks about one man serving as the head of the church, universally or locally. We do not read of one man being the bishop or the pastor of the church at Corinth, Ephesus, Jerusalem, etc. Neither does the Lord approve of men being in such positions today. This situation creates politics and power that are contrary to God's will.

Paul's attitude was, "For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast of, for necessity is laid upon me; yes, woe is me if I do not preach the gospel!" (1 Corinthians 9:16).

Are you a preacher? Do you desire to be a preacher? What kind of preacher will you be? We pray that you will be the kind of preacher the Lord describes in His word.