PRÉCIS ON BECOMING (AND REMAINING) A PASTOR: THE MOST IMPORTANT THING

SCRIPTURE. “The saying is true and irrefutable: If any man [eagerly] seeks the office of bishop (superintendent, overseer), he desires an excellent task (work).” – 1 TIMOTHY 3:1, AMPC

KEY TERM: “[A MOST] EXCELLENT WORK.” ‘Kalos’ [καλοῦ]. “Beautiful, but chiefly, ‘the highest moral good;’ i.e., valuable, virtuous; honest.” NOTE: “Strong’s (2570) gathers ideas of intrinsic excellence, moral beauty, suitability, and beneficence. Unlike ἀγαθός, which often stresses benevolence, this word accents worth that is recognized and admired. The term therefore moves easily between aesthetic, ethical, and practical spheres, allowing Scripture to describe: ‘Actions, objects, persons, and outcomes as “Good” in God’s sight.’”

QUOTATION. A ‘True Man of God’ embodies integrity, humility, strength, and love, leading with discernment and aligning with God’s Purpose. This involves Commitment to following a Greater Authority, sacrifice, determined obedience, spiritual discipline, and growth. ‘He [passionately] seeks God’s Wisdom to make the right choices and live a life that reflects God’s Values.’” – AI Overview, ret. Aug. 19, 2025; edited

COMMENTARY. “To be a CHURCH LEADER is a heavy responsibility because the Church belongs to the Living God. The term used in this verse and sometimes translated as ‘Elder’ can refer to a ‘Pastor, Elder, Bishop, or Presiding Overseer.’ Interestingly, Elder and Pastor are synonymous, not names for separate offices. Today, Elder often has a different meaning, describing someone more like a member of a Board of Advisors. God has high standards for Pastors and other Leaders in the Church.

Paul enumerates some of the Qualifications here.

Church Leaders should not be elected because they are popular, not should they be allowed to push their way to the top. Instead – ‘They should be chosen by the Church because of their RESPECT FOR THE TRUTH, both in what they believe and in how they live.’ If you hold a position of Spiritual Leadership or have heard God’s Call to be a leader someday, check yourself against Paul’s Standard of Excellence. ‘Those with great responsibility must meet [God’s highest possible] expectations.’” – RONALD A. BEERS, General Editor, Life Application Bible, 2022, p. 2766; edited

DK’S TAKE. So by these Lofty Standards, how is the American Pastorate doing these days, beloved? Dartmouth Professor and prize-winning historian and commentator on Religion in America, DR. RANDALL BALMER delivered a blistering yet honest appraisal of our current, nationwide ‘Crisis of Church Leadership’ in his address to the University on September 10, 2024.

His Title: “Donald Trump and the Death of Evangelical Christianity.” Listen carefully to his incisive analysis. His major points are summarized in a University statement on that date.

“‘The Religious Right’s embrace of Donald Trump has fatally transformed American Evangelicalism’ … In contrast to much of contemporary Evangelicalism which has become a legitimating ideology for the damage President Trump is doing to the American social fabric, Balmer argued that for most of American history Evangelicalism was a Moral Force for democratization and concern for the less fortunate. Where nineteenth century Evangelicals supported common schools, worked to end wars, stood up for the equal rights of women, and were critical of Capitalism, Balmer held that most contemporary Evangelicals, seek to build up sectarian education, support the invasions of [foreign nations], oppose the Equal Rights Amendment, and are proud of their support of Free [unbridled] Enterprise.”

THE BOTTOM LINE. “For most of American history, Evangelicals called Americans to their better selves. By contrast the triumph of False Prophets – Franklin Graham, Robert Jeffress, Tony Perkins, Jerry Falwell Jr. – and their unblinking embrace of a mendacious politician leaves behind a movement utterly devoid of moral conscience or credibility.”

‘Therefore, beloved, if you are in a Trump Church, get out! Or if you are in a Church whose Pastor refuses to take a stand, get out!’ If, however, you are blessed with a true Man of God who honors Truth, Integrity and Character as crucial mitigating forces in all your decision making – including political ones – and is unafraid to make that clear, stay in that Church!

THE ALTERNATIVE. Otherwise, start your own House Church with just a few genuine followers of Christ, and nurture that little community both face to face and online. This is the beginning of what shall inevitably become an Underground Confessing Church in a rapidly declining Trump America.