Considering a Complete and Contemporary Ministry

In the 3rd chapter of his little book, The Work of the Pastor, William Still expands on the topic of feeding the sheep from chapter 1.  He is wrestling with a somewhat different set of problems through the majority of the chapter.  The main point he tries to make, though he declares two, is “the eternal Word of God is ever contemporary.”

He starts by returning to some familiar ground of chapter 1.  We are to preach the whole Word of God, not just a few particular doctrines some call “the gospel”.  Don’t misunderstand, he’s not condemning groups like The Gospel Coalition.  He’s arguing against people who think all they can do is preach justification week in and week out.  He’s talking about avoiding the difficult things of Scripture, and avoiding the reality of sanctification.  We must preach through all of the Bible, even the seemingly difficult, ugly or boring passages precisely because they are the Word of God and He has something to say through them.

The Spirit does not just a small number of passages to evangelize people.  For instance, Augustine was converted by a passage of Scripture having to do with sanctification.  We need to forsake our pet subject, or subjects that make people happy (never-ending conferences on prophecy or healing for instance).

Where he really settles in is on preaching in  a contemporary fashion.  We sternly warns against idolizing a past time and their preachers.  Oh, read them and benefit from them.  But we must be aware that they spoke to a particular historical context that is not your historical context.  Our style and more importantly our application must be contemporary.  Speak to your people in their common tongue about their particular circumstances.  I hope I speak differently to my current congregation than my previous congregation.  This congregation is more educated.  It pushes me, when I remember, to illustrate better.  I was gently rebuked recently to remember that there are engineers in that sanctuary, and if I’m using an illustration from their world to get it right.

“While we must teach and preach the perennially contemporary Word of God from its historical settings, we are teaching and preaching it in the present day and it must be bang up to date.”

But application is the main issue he presents.  Many, enamored with the Reformers, can focus too much on politics and the need to Christianize the public arena.  I’ve known people who so loved the Puritans they started to write and talk as if they were living then.  They, in the name of holiness, isolated themselves from culture (instead of living in but not of culture), so they don’t know what is really going on in our world and therefore what God says to it.  Or rigidly using ministry models from another time and place.

“She (the church) is more likely to be smothered by wealth, ease and complacency.”  (As opposed to oppression.  We face either the beast or the prostitute, however.)

There are all sorts of ways we can do this.  The sinful human heart is very busy making an idol of preachers, books, models of ministry, causes, politics etc.  We cease to faithfully bring the Word to our people in our time.

To sum up, he argues we must be good dieticians.  Examining our congregation, we must see what is lacking in their diet and provide it, particularly in light of their circumstances.  We are to preach it so they can understand it, and apply it to the particular circumstances they face.  The eternal, unchanging Word brought to bear on a particular community.  Or, put another (triperspectival) way we exegete the Word, the people and their circumstances (including cultural setting).