# Will anyone do?



## nHutain (Jan 19, 2009)

If there is more than one person biblically qualified to pastor a church, does it matter which one? If so what is the basis for choosing?

____________________
Nathan
Baptist 
Jacksonville, Arkansas


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## Southern Presbyterian (Jan 19, 2009)

If both are biblically qualified then it would be the better part of wisdom to make determinations based on things such a experience, level of education, even which one best suited to minister in your particular situation (e.g. Would bringing a lifetime city dweller to minister in a small rural town be as productive as bringing a small town guy?).


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## Hamalas (Jan 19, 2009)

Prayer and meditation. Both the candidate and the church should be confidant that God is calling that man to serve. God does not call resumes, he calls men, and we have to remember that God has a specific man for a specific time. I think it really comes down to seeking God's direction.


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## TaylorOtwell (Jan 19, 2009)

Hamalas,

Do you have any suggestions for how this could be done without an extreme reliace on the subjective or extra-Biblical revelation?


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## Ivan (Jan 19, 2009)

I guess I'm wondering why two pastors are being considered at the same time.


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## Hamalas (Jan 19, 2009)

TaylorOtwell said:


> Hamalas,
> 
> Do you have any suggestions for how this could be done without an extreme reliace on the subjective or extra-Biblical revelation?



Nah, I don't like to talk in specifics. I just let the Spirit guide me. 

Just kidding. On a more serious note, it's hard to suggest specific things without knowing more about the situation. Are both men confidant that God is calling them to this church? (Or is this just a hypothetical situation, I can't tell. )

-----Added 1/19/2009 at 09:18:56 EST-----



Ivan said:


> I guess I'm wondering why two pastors are being considered at the same time.



Good point!


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## nHutain (Jan 19, 2009)

Ivan said:


> I guess I'm wondering why two pastors are being considered at the same time.



This was just a hypothetical question, what I was really asking was "does God have a specific person chosen for each church"?

_____________________
Nathan
Baptist
Jacksonville, Arkansas


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## Hamalas (Jan 19, 2009)

nHutain said:


> Ivan said:
> 
> 
> > I guess I'm wondering why two pastors are being considered at the same time.
> ...



I would say yes. There are many, many passages that talk about calling. Acts 13:2, Acts 16:10, Romans 1:1, Romans 8:28, 1 Corinthians 1:1-2, the list could go on and on. God has clearly set aside every individual for a certain task. If you consider the gift of Prophesy to be a foreshadowing of the proclamation that comes from the Ministers of the Word, then one can easily see the correlation between the calling of the prophets and the calling of the Pastor.


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## TaylorOtwell (Jan 19, 2009)

The 2nd London Confession, chapter 26, sections 8-11 and their Scripture proofs may be helpful here. I'm on my phone, otherwise I would paste it.

It seems to me that the Lord's church is to make due use of the available means to selecting elders. The main being the lists of qualifications found in the letters to Timothy and Titus, and the counsel of other godly Christians/ministers.

Of course, there are differences between the Baptists and Presbyterians in the process of 
appointing teachers of the Word. I think the Presbyterian practice of examining candidates by other ministers in the area has a lot of merit.


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## Ivan (Jan 19, 2009)

TaylorOtwell said:


> Of course, there are differences between the Baptists and Presbyterians in the process of appointing teachers of the Word. I think the Presbyterian practice of examining candidates by other ministers in the area has a lot of merit.



Interesting...so how do Baptists examine their candidates?


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## TaylorOtwell (Jan 19, 2009)

Ivan,

I'm sure this varies, and you probably know better than I, however, I usually hear of a committee that is appointed in the church to search for a pastor. I'm not aware that the candidates are ever interviewed by other elders in the area.
Of couse this is all assuming that the teachers are brought in from outside. I think it would be great to start seeing young men gifted in teaching taken under the wing of existing elders and teachers, so that some elders could be raised up from among the local flock itself.


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