The job a preacher does, and the money he takes home seems pretty cut-and-dry to most church members, “Our preacher ‘ministers’ to this congregation – he visits the sick, he counsels, he evangelizes, he preaches, he teaches, he writes bulletin articles, and does whatever else we ask of him – and we pay him to do those things for us.” That’s the way most Christians think of their preacher and the “salary” they pay him. But is that really the way we should think about it? Personally, I don’t think so. Here are some things to consider…<\/p>\n
Most church members think their preacher does the things he does because they pay him to do it. I believe this is an upside-down way of thinking about the situation. It’s so much healthier\u00a0to think of it like this,\u00a0“The preacher has committed his life to the proclamation of the gospel\u00a0and we support him financially in that effort.”\u00a0<\/strong>He doesn’t do it because you give him money; you give him money\u00a0because he does\u00a0it.<\/p>\n The apostle Paul surrendered his right to collect financial support from most of the congregations with whom he worked, but he affirmed that congregations should support those who work spreading the gospel (I Corinthians 9). The church ought to support as many preachers, teachers, evangelists, and missionaries as we are able to support. When men want to devote their lives to the proclamation of the gospel, we ought to consider it our privilege and joy to support such men.<\/p>\n Most church members think of their preacher as “the minister” (servant) of the congregation. They consider it his job to do the counseling, visiting, evangelizing, teaching, etc. And whether we want to admit it or not, much of this stems from the fact that we don’t want to do this work, or don’t think we have the time, so\u00a0we have hired it out<\/strong>.<\/p>\n We say things like, “I don’t know how, and I don’t have time to go to the hospital and visit all those sick people or have Bible studies with lost people; that’s what we pay the minister for.” But we couldn’t be more wrong with this way of thinking.<\/p>\n There is absolutely\u00a0NO\u00a0biblical precedent for hiring someone to do the work we\u00a0should be doing.<\/strong>\u00a0In fact, one of the tasks of the evangelist is to “equip” the members to do “the work of ministry<\/em>” (Ephesians 4:11-12). You don’t support a preacher so you can relieve yourself of work; you support a preacher, in part, to help equip and motivate you to do\u00a0the work you ought to be doing.<\/p>\n Of course, he helps to equip the congregation by setting a good example of service, but if he ever starts doing your work for\u00a0<\/em>you, he is enabling you rather than equipping you. And many preachers need to stop enabling the congregation and start equipping the congregation.<\/p>\n When a congregation thinks of their preacher as their employee, they misunderstand the situation. The preacher does not work for the congregation. He does not work for the elders. He works for the Lord. Paul calls preachers, “the Lord’s servant<\/em>” (II Timothy 2:24); and that’s what a preacher is, the Lord’s servant. Not our<\/em>\u00a0servant.<\/p>\n Of course, the preacher and his work are under the oversight of the local elders. The elders shepherd the preacher, helping him to balance the work he does specifically for the local church and the work he does for the Kingdom. One preacher and his eldership may decide that his work needs to focus primarily – or even exclusively – on the local work. In contrast, another preacher and his eldership may decide to focus his skills and abilities more on spreading the Gospel throughout the world.<\/p>\n It’s a shame\u00a0when a congregation believes their preacher belongs to them and they\u00a0are resentful about the time he spends preaching and teaching other places. They ought to realize it is because of their financial support that he is able to preach\u00a0the gospel in\u00a0places that couldn’t afford to support him, or perhaps any preacher, full-time.<\/p>\n When congregations think of their preacher as an employee who belongs to them, they often fail to treat him as a fellow member of the congregation. Our preachers need to be able to fellowship, learn, confess their sins and struggles, be encouraged, be counseled and have all the benefits we enjoy as members of a church family. But we often deny them those blessings because we treat them as our employees.<\/p>\n Consider some of these questions:<\/p>\n The bottom line is this: we have to stop thinking that the money we give to our preachers makes them indebted to us. Instead, we ought to consider it our privilege to be able to support men who faithfully and diligently proclaim the gospel message in our congregation and elsewhere. We ought to encourage them in any way we can in the work they do.<\/p>\n Personally, I am so very thankful that the congregation with whom I work supports me in spreading the gospel while allowing me to be a member of the congregation. I couldn’t ask for a better congregation. I hope other congregations will treat their preachers the same way.<\/p>\n I love you, and God loves you,<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Wes McAdams via\u00a0Radically Christian The job a preacher does, and the money he takes home seems pretty cut-and-dry to most church members, “Our preacher ‘ministers’ to this congregation – he visits the sick, he counsels, he evangelizes, he preaches, he teaches, he writes bulletin articles, and does whatever else we ask of him –…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[1511],"class_list":["post-51459","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-preachers"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":85239,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/hiring-a-preacher\/","url_meta":{"origin":51459,"position":0},"title":"Hiring a Preacher","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 2, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Floyd Chapellear via Sentry Magazine, Vol. 16 No. 1, March 31, 1990 When the Lord sent the seventy, He provided for their financial care. Those who were taught the word were to provide for the needs of those who did the teaching. Similarly, the Lord showed that there should\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":33224,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/our-preacher-has-decided-to-move-because-we-cant-pay-him-like-we-used-to-what-do-we-do\/","url_meta":{"origin":51459,"position":1},"title":"Our preacher has decided to move because we can’t pay him like we used to. What do we do?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"June 12, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hello again! First, thank you for all you do, I visit your site often and appreciate your biblical answers!\u00a0 We have a few problems that we are needing some help with and thought you might have some wisdom. Our preacher has lost sight of Matthew 6:31-34. This last year\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":8817,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-it-wrong-to-pay-a-preacher\/","url_meta":{"origin":51459,"position":2},"title":"Is it wrong to pay a preacher?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 25, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Is it a sin to pay a preacher? Personally I don't think it is, but some of our brethren in the church think it is. Can you give me some scripture for this, either not to pay or pay the preacher? Answer: \"My defense to those who examine me\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":54803,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/aged-preachers-seeking-an-answer\/","url_meta":{"origin":51459,"position":3},"title":"Aged Preachers \u2013 “Seeking an Answer”","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 6, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"by Travis Main via\u00a0Church of Christ Articles Baptisms and burials: over a lifetime, the preacher performed a great number of these.\u00a0 From Genesis to Revelation, his words carefully uttered the precepts of God.\u00a0 His hair was once full, and his face youthfully smooth.\u00a0 Now his hair sports only grey, and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/12\/elderlyMan-150x300.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7841,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/should-preachers-only-be-supported-if-they-are-in-need\/","url_meta":{"origin":51459,"position":4},"title":"Should preachers only be supported if they are in need?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 18, 2006","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: This subject came up in our budget meeting last night. The brethren proposed to increase the pay for our gospel meetings and our spiritual weekend events. I objected. I am in agreement with the scriptures used in\u00a0your address\u00a0regarding supporting the work of the Gospel. I stand on this: It\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":20266,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/should-i-let-a-congregation-know-that-the-preachers-son-is-homosexual\/","url_meta":{"origin":51459,"position":5},"title":"Should I let a congregation know that the preacher’s son is homosexual?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 23, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I know of a preacher in a Church of Christ, whose son is living a homosexual lifestyle. No one in the church knows this. (By the way, I do not belong to this church, I live in a different state.) I am aware that the preacher and his family\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51459","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51459"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51459\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51459"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51459"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51459"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Stop Thinking Your Preacher Does\u00a0It\u00a0For<\/em>\u00a0You<\/h2>\n
Stop Thinking Your Preacher\u00a0Belongs to You<\/h2>\n
Let Your Preacher Be a Member of Your Congregation<\/h2>\n
\n
Conclusion<\/h2>\n