Month: January 2023

The subject of whether a minister is employed or supported by the church has been discussed for decades.  In most cases the federal government views the minister as a church employee, but since we are more concerned with Bible definitions and God’s plan we will leave the government and taxes out of the discussion.

Although secular words like “staff” may be associated with ministers, most churches would acknowledge their ministers are not employees, but rather are supported by the local church in order to accomplish the Lord’s work.  There is a difference, however, in how this often plays out in practice.  Consider a person who does mission work in a foreign country.  This person takes in funds from one or more churches and may be under the guidance of a supporting church or eldership.  The missionary is not under daily oversight, but has near autonomy as to how they spend their day.  They can strike the balance they believe is necessary between building up and equipping members and reaching out to those who are not Christians.

Contrast this with the paid preacher within the domestic church.  On the strictest end of the spectrum a church who holds the employee view will have all of the expectations for the minister spelled out with little room to deviate.  This could include specified study times, office hours, number of visits required, documentation of studies, clerical tasks, and possibly building and lawn care maintenance.  No doubt there are church leaders who want to be good stewards of the finances and resources of the church.  Perhaps specified duties are reactionary to a bad experience where a minister was not accomplishing the Lord’s work and the leaders feel that strict oversight is required.

While it is true Paul was an apostle and had an authority we don’t see today, he does demonstrate what the work of the Lord should be like.  We see a man whose goal was “to know nothing but Jesus Christ and Him crucified,” 1 Corinthians 2:2.  Imagine if all ministers had that view and all church leaders trusted them to put that faith into action.  Perhaps what begins as strict oversight will eventually lead to greater minister flexibility when a relationship of trust develops between the minister and the church.  It is encouraging that many churches do indeed see their ministers as trustworthy and assign minimal tasks that would hinder their work.

The benefits I’ve noticed by being the part time minister is that apart from presenting lessons, writing articles, and coordinating the occasional activity, my time outside of the building has been highly respected.  My study and lesson prep times are in the evenings, my wife and I visit members as needed, and we have had many opportunities to host Bible studies within our home.  Many of the tasks that sometimes fall on the shoulders of the full time minister have been readily picked up by members looking for ways to serve.  It’s a blessing to see so many working to accomplish what often falls to one or two people.  If the situation allows, the spreading out of responsibilities is a blessing to all.  My encouragement to church leaders is to trust and empower your ministers with the support they need.  Emphasize the biblical mandate we see throughout the New Testament and turn them loose to accomplish the Lord’s work.

Eric Dougherty

There are many ways in which a person can serve the Lord.  Some may choose to be fully supported by a local church or raise support where they can dedicate the majority of their day to ministry in an “official” capacity.  For many this is a lifelong dream and should be nurtured and encouraged by those who want to follow this path.

I considered “full time” ministry for a while and for me there were two reasons that nudged me towards the path of the “part timer.”  The first was that in my early 20s I had an unrealistic view of what a preacher should do.  My perception at the time was that during the weekdays, preachers studied alone in their office in the mornings and then visited the hospitals in the afternoon.  While this is partially true, full time ministry is far more complex and can be tailored to fit both the minister and needs of the church.

The other reason, and probably the most important, was the guidance of the church elders when I was going through my undergraduate degree.  I had switched back and forth between a Bible major to an education major a couple of times.  Since I was at a Christian college and taking Bible classes the elders encouraged me to pursue my education degree.  I was already working with them as a youth minister and gaining practical experience. Their thought was that I may need to be self-supporting some day and an education degree would offer that ability.

That struck a nerve.  Through much prayer and discussion with my wife I developed a life goal where I wanted to work with a church that couldn’t afford a full time preacher and work in a public school.  It took awhile to get there.  I finished my degree, started substitute teaching, worked part-time with another church, and worked in a couple of Christian schools before I found myself with the dual positions of minister and public school teacher.

I worked with one church for four years and my current work for 16 years.  Both of these have been in the role of part time.  This has allowed for my family to be more financially secure and to provide long term stability to the local church.  We have been able to accomplish much in the way of supporting others without the financial strain of either the church or my family.

Although any work that is considered a day job would suffice for financial reasons, I wanted to work in the local school system to be able to have the influence of Christ on children.  There are many ways that Christians can make an impact on both students and adults within a school.  We often hear of perceived limitations in the school system, but there are many ways a Christian can be effective for the Lord in the public school setting.

There are many paths one may take in serving the Lord.  In near future posts we will examine the education of the minister, the influence of the minister during the work day, the role of the minister, the minister’s relationship with the church, how Christians can impact public schools, and the options of increasing the family income without it impacting the work of the church.

There are fewer words that cause me to cringe than when I’m introduced or referred to as a part-time preacher.  In fact, I’m making myself a bit on edge now by typing it and feel a great need to put “part-time preacher” in quotes.  Maybe it’s just a bit of sensitivity on my part, but when a well-intentioned brother says, “He’s just a part-time preacher,” I have to suppress the urge to make a defense.

When someone refers to a vocational minister as “part-time” they are making a comparison with the minister who begins his work in the early morning and keeps office hours.  A “full time” preacher is already viewed by some as getting paid for a few hours of public speaking and dropping by to visit folks all day.  It’s not a hard stretch to think the part-timers are doing far less and can be a tough perception to counter.

Raised eyebrows followed by the question, “You call that part time?” are the reaction I most often get when I describe my responsibilities.  Currently, those are: two Sunday sermons, teaching the adult class on Sunday and a class on Wednesday, writing a weekly bulletin article, conducting home Bible studies, organizing the yearly VBS, maintaining the website, conducting weddings and funerals, and coordinating visitation and outreach efforts.

The biggest difference between my work and that of the traditional full time minister is that I do my studying and lesson prep in the evening and I don’t spend as much time visiting church members.  The elders were clear when they first sat down with me that they wanted my work to be more outward focused, while they would take care of most internal matters.  If the situation allows it and both the church leadership and members are on board, “part-time” preachers can be a valuable asset to the local congregation, especially when it is understood what part-time really means.