Let’s review, shall we? There are 4 phases of the search process: drawing up the church & pastor profile, securing candidates, evaluating candidates, and presenting a final candidate for the congregation to consider, at which point the congregation will get to hear from the candidate and eventually vote on him. Currently, we’re in phase 3: evaluating candidates. This is the longest phase in the process, as it can and is repeated often - we are presented with candidates, we dig into their resumes and online presence, listen to a sample of their sermons, have an initial interview, and decide whether to move forward with them - then we repeat.
Since March, we have listened to and evaluated hundreds of sermons. In order to keep our evaluations consistent, we use certain criteria when listening to a sermon, some of which were suggested by McGowan, and some of which we drew from Tim Keller’s book on preaching.
I think I can safely speak for the committee when I say that Keller’s book, Preaching, has been enormously helpful to our process. It’s one thing to listen to a sermon and say “I liked it” or “I didn’t care for it” or “I was touched by this point or that,” but Keller gave us some tools to look into the how’s and why’s of preaching, giving us the perspective and language we need to evaluate a sermon. It reminds me of art critiques, in a way. It’s one thing to say you like a painting or don’t, it’s another to be able to describe the painter’s use of color, line, value, and composition. Not to say we’re now a committee of professional sermon critics - have mercy! But we’re more able to put into words the apparent strengths and weaknesses of a given sermon, and that has been truly helpful in this process.
The three main points Keller makes are
First, Keller emphasizes that sermons should “serve the word” - meaning they should be Christ-centered, preaching the gospel of grace from all of scripture.
Secondly, he argues that sermons should “serve the people” - preaching both to the heart and to the culture
Finally, he emphasizes the role of the Holy Spirit working to bring fruit from preaching. This is probably the hardest piece to evaluate, but we are humbly attempting to discern the work of the Holy Spirit in the pastor’s preaching, as well as the preacher’s spiritual maturity and integrity.
But Keller’s book is applicable to more than pastors and pastoral search committees… Keller makes a point that while preaching the Word in gathered worship is the purview of the pastor, the ministry of the Word belongs to the whole body of Christ. This can take the form of teaching and admonition within church ministries, as well as the normal, daily interactions between Christians, speaking the truth to each other in love. This book is a great resource to any and all who sit under the authority of Scripture.
Ok, so that’s my book report :)
As always, we continually need and appreciate your prayers - we need wisdom and discernment, we need patience and faith, we need strength and endurance. As Paula prayed for us on Sunday, James 3:17 is a great verse to pray for the PSC:
But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.