How God speaks to us Talk 12 Preachers and Pastors
In recent talks we’ve been considering how God speaks to us through our parents and through other Christians. We now turn our attention to how God speaks to us through the preaching of his word by those he has called and gifted to do so. We have already seen that God expects all Christians to spread the good news of the gospel to those with whom they come in contact. The gift of the Holy Spirit is available to all Christians and his empowering enables us all to be witnesses for Christ.
In Ephesians 4:11-12, however, we read how Christ has given to the church apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, to equip God’s people for works of service so that the body of Christ may be built up. I have written at length on each of these roles in my book, Body Builders, so won’t be going into great detail here. It will be enough for us to remind ourselves that one of the chief ways that God has chosen to speak to us is through his servants.
Of course, God speaks to us individually as we read our Bibles, but that by no means does away with the need for the teaching of God’s word through those to whom he has entrusted our spiritual welfare. In Acts 20 the apostle Paul is on his way to Jerusalem and at Miletus he calls for the elders of the church to come and see him (v17). He knows that none of them will ever see him again (v25) and he wants to encourage them and pray with them one last time. He tells them to
Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood (v28).
Notice that in verse 17 these people are referred to as elders. In this verse they’re called overseers and shepherds. It’s clear from this and from passages like 1 Peter 5:1-5 and Titus 1:5-7 that:
- In the New Testament elders, overseers, and shepherds (pastors) are interchangeable terms referring to the same role.
- Their responsibility is to protect and care for the flock (God’s people) from ‘wolves’ (false teachers) who distort the truth (Acts 20:29, 1 Peter 5:2).
- They must encourage others by sound teaching and refute those who oppose it (Titus 1:9).
- They are ultimately accountable to Christ, who is the Chief Shepherd of the flock (1 Peter 5:5).
Since God has given such a serious responsibility to those who are the shepherds of his sheep, it follows that his people are to pay attention to the teaching and advice given by church leaders. I can’t say in all honestly that I have always done so – in fact I remember that as a teenager I sometimes argued publicly with our Baptist pastor (for which I wrote and apologized a few years later after I was baptized with the Holy Spirit). But I’m so glad that down through the years again and again God has spoken to me and guided me through the teaching and advice of pastors and other preachers.
Perhaps the best example of this is how the Lord called me to full-time ministry. Mamhead Park is a country mansion built regardless of cost in the nineteenth century. Set in hundreds of acres of beautiful countryside, with views going down to the sea at Lyme Bay on the south coast of England, in the 1950s it was used by the Baptists as a centre for retreats and conferences. It was also used in the school holidays for Summer Schools for young people. It was at one of these that God spoke to me and showed me that I was to be a minister.
It was at the end of one of the evening sessions. The preacher had just finished his message and the Reverend Cyril Rushbridge, who had been leading the meeting, was expected to close in prayer. But before he did so, he said, Before we close in prayer I just feel the Lord wants me to tell you how he called me to the ministry. He then took just a few minutes sharing with us how this had happened. It was nothing like Paul’s experience on the Damascus Road. I don’t remember the details, but by the time he had finished I felt sure that God was calling me to the ministry too. This was confirmed by Kate, one of the young people from our youth group, who said to me as soon as the meeting ended, David, do you know now what the Lord wants you to do with your life? The answer was yes, I was absolutely sure.
I wrote home to my parents telling them what had happened. When I got home, they told me how pleased they were and how, when the doctor had told them that they were unlikely to have any children, they had prayed that the Lord would give them a son who would have an international ministry.
I was 16 at the time and in the middle of preparing for A levels at school. I spoke to our pastor, the Reverend Leslie Moxham, and asked his advice as to my next steps now that the Lord had called me to the ministry. He suggested that I should start to attend the midweek Prayer and Bible Study meeting and this I was happy to do. But there was just one problem – time!
Students at Brentwood School, where I attended, had lessons for six days every week and were expected to do two to three hours ‘prep’ every evening. Sunday was the only day we were not at school and on Sundays I was already attending Boys’ Brigade Bible Class at 10am, the morning church service at 11am, teenage Bible Class at 3pm, youth discussion group at 4.30pm, the evening service at 6.30pm and an after church ‘sing-song’ from 8-9pm! I also attended Boys’ Brigade, Young People’s Fellowship, and the church Youth Club three evenings every week. Could I still fit in an extra meeting without it affecting my studies at school?
My history teacher clearly thought not! About two months before I was due to take my A level exams, he said to me in front of the whole class,
Quite honestly, Petts, unless you work harder, you’re going to fail you’re A levels.
To which I replied, Well, you see Sir, I believe that God has called me to the ministry and that it’s important that I attend the meetings at our church,
and I explained to him how busy I was.
Then I added, Actually, Sir, I believe that if I put God first, and if he wants me to pass my A levels, he will not let me down.
To which he replied, Petts, I respect your convictions, but I can’t say that I agree with you.
As a result of that conversation, I did try to work harder, but I also continued to attend all the meetings at church, including the midweek Bible Study recommended by my pastor. When the A level results were published, to the surprise of my teacher I had received a comfortable pass in all subjects, including History. And to my surprise, I was shortly afterwards awarded a prestigious Heseltine Exhibition to study at Brasenose College, Oxford. I give God all the glory for this. I had followed my Pastor’s advice and had tried to put God first. I had honoured the Lord in front of my teacher and fellow-students, and the Lord did not fail me.
A few years later, after graduating from Oxford, I was pastoring a small church in Colchester. The church funds were insufficient to pay me full time, so I was teaching Religious Education in a local secondary school to provide for the needs of our young family. This was clearly part of the Lord’s plan as during the years I was teaching there dozens of teenagers came to our church and made decisions for Christ. But I knew that the Lord had called me to full time ministry and that eventually the time would come for me to give up my teaching job. The question was, when?
The answer came during the Assemblies of God Annual Conference held in Clacton in May 1966. I was not able to attend during the day as it coincided with the school summer term, but I was able to go in the evenings as Clacton is not very far from Colchester. The preacher on the first night was Pastor Eddie Durham. He began by talking about how, in time past, if a man wanted to challenge another to a duel, he would throw down a gauntlet in front of him. The challenge was accepted by the other man picking up the gauntlet. Pastor Durham then produced a motorcycle gauntlet and threw it on the floor before the congregation, saying, I challenge young men in this meeting to give themselves full time to the ministry!
I remember thinking, That’s all very well. I’d love to be full time in the ministry, but it simply isn’t possible financially. My teaching job was our only means of income. But then I added, But, Lord, if that’s what you want me to do, I’ll do it, but you’ll have to make it very clear by the end of the week.
The reason I said this was that I was contractually obliged to submit my resignation to the school where I was teaching by the end of May if I was not going to return for the beginning of the new term in September. God had just a week to let me know what he wanted me to do.
And he did! Night after night I went back to those meetings, having told no one but Eileen what I had prayed. And each night, in one way or another, God spoke to me confirming that I was to give up my teaching job. A particular highlight was the preaching of Thomas F. Zimmerman, the General Superintendent of Assemblies of God in the USA, who was one of the guest preachers at the conference. What made it particularly significant was the fact that it was the night of my ordination where hands were laid on me in recognition of the ministry God had given me. Zimmerman’s message was based on 1 Kings 17-18 and the story of Elijah. I was reminded that if we follow God’s PLAN, we will know his PROVISION and his POWER.
By the end of the week Eileen and I were fully convinced that God’s plan was that I should give up my teaching job and trust him to provide for our needs. And so, first thing on Monday morning, I went to the head teacher, who, incidentally, was an atheist, and handed in my resignation. When asked for a reason, I could only reply, Well Sir, this may sound a little strange, but God has told me to.
Next time: God speaks to us through prophets