Gospel Infrastructure – Pastoral Training

What is Pastoral Training?

Pastoral training is to missions what medical school is to healthcare. A healthcare system can build hundreds of hospitals, invest millions in a logistical plan to distribute medicine, and educate civilians on healthy habits. But if doctors aren’t properly trained in medical school and certified by legitimate local authorities, hospitals will lack essential human resources. Additionally, people will receive poor diagnoses and treatment, and they will remain ill. Anyone who has lived in an underdeveloped country has faced the challenges of a poorly equipped healthcare infrastructure that lacks a proper path for doctors to be trained and certified.

The same could be said of missions and pastoral training. Churches can be planted, millions of dollars can be invested in sending resources to unreached regions, and believers can be made aware of the importance of being part of a healthy church. But if pastors aren’t properly trained and affirmed by their congregations, then churches will lack solid Bible teaching and godly pastors. Additionally, the flock will be susceptible to false teaching and abuse by godless leaders. Anyone who has been a member of a church that doesn’t prioritize pastoral training has faced incredible difficulties and challenges.

Pastoral training is essential, but what is it? Pastoral training is the biblical process by which men who aspire to pastoral ministry are equipped in godly character and the teaching of God’s word so they are ready to serve as pastors/elders/overseers in the church. The Pastoral Epistles are the go-to biblical books for instruction on pastoral equipping. Every missionary team should become experts in the Pastoral Epistles, as they provide the definition, elements, and arguments for pastoral preparation This article will lean heavily on the Pastoral Epistles. The aim is to define and explain pastoral training so that churches will be encouraged to prioritize pastoral training as they commission their members.

What did Paul believe about Pastoral Training?

In the Pastoral Epistles, Paul gave Timothy in Ephesus and Titus in Crete a clear objective: to teach the churches how to properly train, identify, and affirm aspiring men to be pastors (1 Tim 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-16). As churches were instructed on how to identify pastors, Timothy and Titus were to be diligent in training faithful men who would be able to train other faithful men (2 Tim 2:2). This would lead to the flourishing of churches as steadfast men preach the Word and members disciple one another (Titus 2:1-10). On the contrary, Paul states that godless men would rise to power through abuse, control, and false teaching (Titus 1:10-16). When missionaries recommend national brothers for church leadership, there are two options. Either train godly pastors who will continue the work as they teach through unity and biblical teaching, or see ungodly pastors burn the work to the ground through conflict and false teaching.

This has been true throughout history and continues to be true today. Pastoral training is essential to the health and long-term sustainability of a church and its plan to multiply so more churches can be planted. If missionaries want to see healthy churches revitalized or started, they must prioritize training aspiring pastors. Those pastors will not just plant churches but will be able to teach the church and train more pastors to start more churches.

In 2 Timothy 1:1-7, Paul begins speaking of the training he gave to Timothy, along with the godly influence of his mother and grandmother. He reminds him of the importance of suffering as he trains new pastors and confronts false teachers with true biblical teaching. God’s chosen means to see churches flourish and multiply for centuries would be the multigenerational training of faithful men.

Pastoral training is essential to see healthy churches flourish and multiply all around the world. Every missionary team should have a clear aim to evaluate the character of aspiring members and to train them in theology. Those men can then be affirmed by the church as elders. Like Paul’s trainees, some of those men will shepherd the growing community of believers. A handful will be sent to other churches that lack godly pastors. Others will be sent to unreached regions to help start churches where Christ has not been named. And sadly, some will apostatize and bring much pain to the missionaries.

What does Pastoral Training look like?

Regardless of size or budget, every church can train aspiring pastors. The aim is to train men following the unchanging characteristics of 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. The pastoral training is not a one-size-fits-all approach. Therefore, the context in which the missionary team works will greatly determine what pastoral training will look like.

What if training already exists?

If a missionary team is in a place where solid churches are already training, they would be wise to listen, observe, and learn from that existing training. In other contexts, seminaries have been present for years or decades. Partnering with local, like-minded seminaries may help train aspiring pastors, especially if resources to train are limited. Also, not every missionary team has every gift at their disposal. In contexts where it’s possible, partnering with like-minded churches or seminaries will provide better and more robust training. A word of wisdom: other churches and seminaries should not be perceived as competitors but as worthy partners. Partnering will strengthen the training far more than doing this solo. The objective is solid, biblical pastoral training, not a personal trophy case of autonomous, semitrained pastors.

What if there is no training?

 A lack of pastoral training cannot be a reason not to start. It may take some trial and error to figure out the best way to begin. Charting the way in pastoral training is difficult, and it will take a maverick who values pastoral training for the sake of healthy, long-term sustainable gospel work.

A team can start exploring models by visiting churches in nearby regions with similar challenges and opportunities. A church in Italy will glean more from a similar church in Portugal than from one in Oklahoma. Missionaries should prioritize learning from those closest to their context.

It is also easy to forget that a missionary’s own time and possessions are his most meaningful tools to train pastors. Every missionary team has those, and they can be used generously for pastoral training. For example, one of the teammates can have a monthly meeting to discuss a theological book and provide accountability to assess character. The missionary who is preaching that Sunday could open up his study so the aspiring pastors have the chance to help him prepare his sermon. Another teammate could have a meal with the aspiring pastor and his wife so they can see a godly home modeled. Any missionary can be generous with his time and hospitable with his home to facilitate training.

The good news is that with patience and diligence, the church grows and matures. More believers will join and more resources will be available. Once that happens, the local church in which the missionaries serve could consider a more robust training program. That could be a part-time or full-time pastoral internship where aspiring pastors are able to be trained for pastoral ministry. The team could also recruit a missionary who is gifted in pastoral training so the church can take the next step in planting churches.

What if I simply cannot provide solid training at this moment?

Although not ideal, it may be worth considering sending an aspiring pastor to an experienced church in a nearby city or region that excels in training. An agreement can be written to return the aspiring pastor once the training is finished. That church may be near a seminary that can supplement in areas like original languages or church history. Missionaries can struggle to lose an aspiring pastor because he may be a pillar in the local church. Although it will hurt, doing this could be a short-term loss for long-term gain. That aspiring pastor could be the next pastoral trainer. Or a missionary could be surprised to see the gain being redirected to another church. He can rejoice in that too!

In summary, missionaries need to be intentional as they consider how to prioritize training. Copying and pasting from the missionary’s context is not always helpful. The team must be prayerful and openhanded as they think through the challenges and opportunities for pastoral training on the field.

What contribution does Pastoral Training provide to Gospel Infrastructure?

Helps identify unqualified men. In a school of medicine, not all students that begin or finish will eventually pass the certification exam. Just like in medical training, not all aspiring pastors who are trained are guaranteed to become pastors. Solid pastoral training can guarantee to make the recipient aware of his weaknesses and his gifts. This training should help the church discern if this aspiring member is truly a pastor or should be discouraged from pastoral ministry.

Enables the local church for more missions. Missionaries can think short-term and focus on evangelism so more people can be saved, baptized, and gathered into local churches. This is a great blessing, but as the church grows, so does the need for more shepherds who can oversee the flock. If missionaries don’t think long-term, the church can hit a ceiling of growth, simply gathering many people who are not growing and maturing in their faith. Eventually, the missionary moves on or dies. Inevitably, the church will transition into a phase of survival and disappearance. Pastoral training will actually allow the church to do more and better missions work for the long haul. As pastors are trained and affirmed, more members can be cared for, shepherded, and trained for the work of the ministry. Missionaries must understand that pastoral training is not an obstacle to ministry; it is an enabler to more and better ministry.

Brings clarity to a false dichotomy. Missionaries can see a dichotomy between evangelism and training. But Acts 13-14 teaches us that in every place where Paul and his team planted a church, there was a both-and approach with regard to evangelism and training. Paul’s evangelism was bold and expansive, but so was his pastoral training. Everywhere a church was planted, Paul determined to establish godly elders, as we can read in the Epistles. Just like Paul, missionaries who preach the gospel and baptize believers into local churches should also train those who aspire to ministry. There is no dichotomy! Missionaries should ask, “Who are the unbelievers in my block I can evangelize?” and also ask, “Who are the men in my church I need to train?” That aspiring brother may not show up for one month, one year, or one decade. Whenever he arrives, the missionary must be ready to begin training.

Allows generosity to needy churches or unreached regions. As pastoral training grows in the local church, more aspiring pastors will appear. Members begin to realize that pastors are not just missionaries sent from abroad but any qualified member of a church. Members begin affirming the character and gifts of godly men in the congregation who should be considered for pastoral ministry. Before long, men are trained. Then a church begins being generous with one of the most valuable gifts that can be given to a needy church or unreached area, sending them a godly pastor who has been thoroughly assessed and robustly trained for ministry.

Provides the church with a succession plan. News flash: missionaries are not immortal. One day every missionary will meet his Savior face to face. When that happens, that missionary will not be able to shepherd the church he planted. Missionaries must be ready for that day! The second letter to Timothy is a testament to Paul’s awareness of his mortality. Before his death, he reminds Timothy, his pastoral intern, that all that training was because they were part of a long line of pastoral succession for the church in Ephesus. Missionaries are responsible for doing all they can to provide successors for their departure. The faithful response is pastoral training.