How Many Pastors Does One Church Need?
Over 14,000 people step onto the properties of First Baptist Church of Hammond on any given Sunday. 52 weeks a year, this church runs at least 100 buses in the Chicago-land area, bringing over 4,000 people to church each week. Recently, about a hundred teenagers from the Youth Group went on a soul-winning marathon and won over 1,400 people to the Lord in a single day. From 2001 to 2008, the church doubled in size; and they plan on doing it again by 2011.
What makes this church to great? Why does God choose to bless this church so supernaturally? Who is responsible for its’ spectacular success?
These are questions that I have asked myself on numerous occasions during the two years that I have been here, and the answer to these questions are many. But it did not take more than a week from when I first arrived to realize what the main reason for the greatness of this church was—it’s pastors.
The First Baptist Church of Hammond employs over 300 people in its various ministries. Of those 300, about 30 of them hold the title of Pastor or Assistant Pastor. There is a head pastor, a Spanish pastor, an administrative pastor, an executive assistant pastor, an evangelism pastor, a special-care pastor, a high school youth pastor, a Spanish high school youth pastor, a middle school youth pastor, a Spanish middle school youth pastor, a Children’s pastor, a singles’ pastor, a bus ministry pastor, a bus teen pastor, a deaf ministry pastor and the list goes on. Each of these men receive a paycheck from the church every other week; several of them receive a vehicle from the church and are given a gas allowance. But these are not the pastors that I am talking about.
The greatness of First Baptist Church of Hammond lies not in the hands of those that get money from the church, but in the hands of those that give money to it. The greatness of First Baptist Church of Hammond lies not in the men that stand behind pulpits, but in the men and women that sit in the pews.
At this point, you may be scratching your head and asking, “James, didn’t you say that the pastors made the First Baptist Church of Hammond great? Why are you talking about the congregation?” Let me clarify.
As I study to be a pastor and enter into the ministry, one thing becomes increasing clear to me—I cannot do this alone.
At Hyles-Anderson, we have something called the Bus Ministry. The Bus Ministry divides the areas around First Baptist Church into sections. A captain is appointed over each section; and it is the job of each captain to bring as many people to church from his area as possible, as well as recruit workers to help him accomplish that task.
My route is designated 97-4, and is located in the north part of Chicago. I currently have three workers: Sung Jee, a Korean student whose father pastors a church in Inchon running over 2,000 members; Tonya, an outgoing Southern girl who likes Mexican food more than she does pizza; and Rebecca, who is a quintessential lady who reminds us all of Audrey Hepburn. Every Saturday, we go up to Chicago and invite people to come to church with us; then on Sunday, we pick them up and bring them to church.
Because takes about an hour to get from Chicago to the church, during which we sing songs, play games, and preach so that the riders enjoy going to church. Needless to say, this is a very important time to form relationships with the riders so that, in turn, we can push them towards God. However, for the past year, I have been stuck driving the bus that brings our people to and from Chicago. Because I drive all day, I have am afforded very little time on Sunday to spend time with the kids, lead songs, or preach to them. As the captain of the route, it is my job to push these riders toward Christ, but I have so little time to do it. I can’t sit with any of them and listen to their problems, or preach to any of them the awesome truth that God gave to me that week. I can’t sing songs with them and laugh as they try to play my impossibly complicated games. All I can do is sit behind that steering wheel and make sure that they get to church on time. So I have to rely on my workers to sit where I cannot sit, to preach what I cannot preach, to sing what I cannot sing and laugh when I cannot laugh. As Bus Captain, I give my workers a vision, and then together we strive toward that vision. I cannot do it by myself.
I Corinthians 12:12 tells us that, “For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body[...];”and I Corinthians 12:27 finishes that thought by telling us that, “ye are the body of Christ, and member in particular.” In this passage, Paul writes to the Corinthian church and tells them that they need each other. Yes, each of them are different, but they are all needed. Yes, they may not always agree, but they are all needed. Yes, some may seem more or less important than others, but they are all needed. Every single one of them had something to offer, and each and every one of them were needed. Paul wanted to teach them one thing—you cannot do it by yourself.
Again you may be asking yourself, “James, what does this have to with what makes First Baptist Church of Hammond great? Or pastors? Or even the congregation!?”
I’ll say it again, but the reason the First Baptist Church of Hammond is great is because of its pastors. I Peter 4:10 tells us that, “as every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, a good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” You see, each of us has a gift that God gave to us so that we might minister to each other. We are all supposed to be ministers—we are all supposed to be pastors.
So often, we fall prey to the mentality of the world that says that we should be served; when in fact, as Christians, we are supposed to be serving. Too often I find myself wondering why the “pastor” has not visited that family that is having a hard time. Too often I find myself wondering why the “pastor” has not fixed a problem that seems so obvious to me. And too seldom do I consider that maybe I can be a comfort to that troubled family. Too seldom do I seek to solve that problem that seems so obvious.
Philippians 2:5,6 tell us that even Jesus, “who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: […] made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant.” The truth is that a pastor is a servant of the congregation; and the truth is that every member of a congregation is supposed to be a pastor.
A church is a not a single man leading a group of believers; and it is never a single man that makes a church great, because a single man cannot do it by himself. A church is a group of believers, and it is that group of believers that makes any church great.
Although he has much impact, Pastor Byun is not that one that determines whether Sarang Baptist Church is a great church or not. You do. The deacon who invites college students over his house to eat, instead of resting after a hectic day at work, makes Sarang Baptist Church great. A Sunday school director who is at church every week despite living in a different state makes Sarang Baptist Church great. The Sunday school teacher who teaches a class year after year despite their busy schedule makes Sarang Baptist Church is great. The parent who drives for more than an hour every week so that their child can go to Youth Group service makes Sarang Baptist Church great. The teenager who becomes a Sunday school teacher after graduating from Youth Group makes Sarang Baptist Church great. The high schooler who chooses to make sure the middle schoolers have fun rather than treating them as an annoyance makes Sarang Baptist Church great. The middle schoolers who sets up the tables and chairs and then breaks it all down after church makes Sarang Baptist Church great. The little girl that gets a cup of water for her grandma makes Sarang Baptist Church great.
Yes, a church needs a single “bishop” or overseer to lead the church, as I Timothy teaches; but it can never have too many pastors.
What makes this church to great? Why does God choose to bless this church so supernaturally? Who is responsible for its’ spectacular success?
These are questions that I have asked myself on numerous occasions during the two years that I have been here, and the answer to these questions are many. But it did not take more than a week from when I first arrived to realize what the main reason for the greatness of this church was—it’s pastors.
The First Baptist Church of Hammond employs over 300 people in its various ministries. Of those 300, about 30 of them hold the title of Pastor or Assistant Pastor. There is a head pastor, a Spanish pastor, an administrative pastor, an executive assistant pastor, an evangelism pastor, a special-care pastor, a high school youth pastor, a Spanish high school youth pastor, a middle school youth pastor, a Spanish middle school youth pastor, a Children’s pastor, a singles’ pastor, a bus ministry pastor, a bus teen pastor, a deaf ministry pastor and the list goes on. Each of these men receive a paycheck from the church every other week; several of them receive a vehicle from the church and are given a gas allowance. But these are not the pastors that I am talking about.
The greatness of First Baptist Church of Hammond lies not in the hands of those that get money from the church, but in the hands of those that give money to it. The greatness of First Baptist Church of Hammond lies not in the men that stand behind pulpits, but in the men and women that sit in the pews.
At this point, you may be scratching your head and asking, “James, didn’t you say that the pastors made the First Baptist Church of Hammond great? Why are you talking about the congregation?” Let me clarify.
As I study to be a pastor and enter into the ministry, one thing becomes increasing clear to me—I cannot do this alone.
At Hyles-Anderson, we have something called the Bus Ministry. The Bus Ministry divides the areas around First Baptist Church into sections. A captain is appointed over each section; and it is the job of each captain to bring as many people to church from his area as possible, as well as recruit workers to help him accomplish that task.
My route is designated 97-4, and is located in the north part of Chicago. I currently have three workers: Sung Jee, a Korean student whose father pastors a church in Inchon running over 2,000 members; Tonya, an outgoing Southern girl who likes Mexican food more than she does pizza; and Rebecca, who is a quintessential lady who reminds us all of Audrey Hepburn. Every Saturday, we go up to Chicago and invite people to come to church with us; then on Sunday, we pick them up and bring them to church.
Because takes about an hour to get from Chicago to the church, during which we sing songs, play games, and preach so that the riders enjoy going to church. Needless to say, this is a very important time to form relationships with the riders so that, in turn, we can push them towards God. However, for the past year, I have been stuck driving the bus that brings our people to and from Chicago. Because I drive all day, I have am afforded very little time on Sunday to spend time with the kids, lead songs, or preach to them. As the captain of the route, it is my job to push these riders toward Christ, but I have so little time to do it. I can’t sit with any of them and listen to their problems, or preach to any of them the awesome truth that God gave to me that week. I can’t sing songs with them and laugh as they try to play my impossibly complicated games. All I can do is sit behind that steering wheel and make sure that they get to church on time. So I have to rely on my workers to sit where I cannot sit, to preach what I cannot preach, to sing what I cannot sing and laugh when I cannot laugh. As Bus Captain, I give my workers a vision, and then together we strive toward that vision. I cannot do it by myself.
I Corinthians 12:12 tells us that, “For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body[...];”and I Corinthians 12:27 finishes that thought by telling us that, “ye are the body of Christ, and member in particular.” In this passage, Paul writes to the Corinthian church and tells them that they need each other. Yes, each of them are different, but they are all needed. Yes, they may not always agree, but they are all needed. Yes, some may seem more or less important than others, but they are all needed. Every single one of them had something to offer, and each and every one of them were needed. Paul wanted to teach them one thing—you cannot do it by yourself.
Again you may be asking yourself, “James, what does this have to with what makes First Baptist Church of Hammond great? Or pastors? Or even the congregation!?”
I’ll say it again, but the reason the First Baptist Church of Hammond is great is because of its pastors. I Peter 4:10 tells us that, “as every man hath received the gift, even so minister the same one to another, a good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” You see, each of us has a gift that God gave to us so that we might minister to each other. We are all supposed to be ministers—we are all supposed to be pastors.
So often, we fall prey to the mentality of the world that says that we should be served; when in fact, as Christians, we are supposed to be serving. Too often I find myself wondering why the “pastor” has not visited that family that is having a hard time. Too often I find myself wondering why the “pastor” has not fixed a problem that seems so obvious to me. And too seldom do I consider that maybe I can be a comfort to that troubled family. Too seldom do I seek to solve that problem that seems so obvious.
Philippians 2:5,6 tell us that even Jesus, “who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: […] made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant.” The truth is that a pastor is a servant of the congregation; and the truth is that every member of a congregation is supposed to be a pastor.
A church is a not a single man leading a group of believers; and it is never a single man that makes a church great, because a single man cannot do it by himself. A church is a group of believers, and it is that group of believers that makes any church great.
Although he has much impact, Pastor Byun is not that one that determines whether Sarang Baptist Church is a great church or not. You do. The deacon who invites college students over his house to eat, instead of resting after a hectic day at work, makes Sarang Baptist Church great. A Sunday school director who is at church every week despite living in a different state makes Sarang Baptist Church great. The Sunday school teacher who teaches a class year after year despite their busy schedule makes Sarang Baptist Church is great. The parent who drives for more than an hour every week so that their child can go to Youth Group service makes Sarang Baptist Church great. The teenager who becomes a Sunday school teacher after graduating from Youth Group makes Sarang Baptist Church great. The high schooler who chooses to make sure the middle schoolers have fun rather than treating them as an annoyance makes Sarang Baptist Church great. The middle schoolers who sets up the tables and chairs and then breaks it all down after church makes Sarang Baptist Church great. The little girl that gets a cup of water for her grandma makes Sarang Baptist Church great.
Yes, a church needs a single “bishop” or overseer to lead the church, as I Timothy teaches; but it can never have too many pastors.
posted by jamesvonkim at 10:20 PM
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