On this blog in posts to come we will share personal thoughts, articles and op-ed pieces from major publications regarding timeless Scripture and time-changed processes of the way many of us "do church". One of those personal thoughts is that we should free the preacher-evangelist, while men and women make a distinction, (here's where you can correct me) the Bible does not appear to separate the two, except that a preacher is to "preach God" and evangelist are to "share the Good News". If you are a Christian preacher-evangelist you should be preaching God and His Son to a lost and dying world. So, I believe we need to "Free the Preacher-Evangelists among us" to get out of a weekly pulpit and get on with their calling to share God's Grace and Salvation through Jesus Christ to the lost. The "ministry" or service within the church is to be left to the elders and deacons. Furthermore we should help the preacher-evangelist by not supporting them with a salary but rather with our prayers for successful "tent-making" opportunities as "not to be a burden" like Paul. Certainly as led by the Holy Spirit each of us should give love offerings like many of the home churches did for Paul and other preacher-evangelist. Think of the renewed Spirit of a young (or old for that matter) preacher-evangelist putting in a full day of work and then getting to share his witness of how God supplied for his and his family's needs. His personal testimony would soar. And not having to field phone calls all day from complaining congregants would free his spirit to soar in his calling. Please consider Freeing the Preacher-Evangelists. Help them get to those who haven't heard the Good News rather than tying him to a pulpit that looks like a thousand other pulpits hoping a lost person will enter the doors with all odds against it. Jesus did not close himself off in a secured environment hoping the multitudes would come to him. The entire point of Jesus leaving His wonderfully perfect "God Will be done Heaven" was the gracious, completely unnecessary act of coming to us.
Now you may say "that's what we have missionaries for". But the Truth is that each preacher-evangelist is called to the sole mission of preaching the Good News and baptizing in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Imagine if we the lay people, elders and deacons had to teach, encourage, love, help those in need, read Scripture out loud and let the Holy Spirit interpret to each of us where we are in our walk, what church would be like. Maybe some would leave St. Anonymous if it became St. What-Have-You-Done-For-Him or Your Neighbor
