p. 8 | A Purpose for the Ministry by Bertha Bellows Streeter

Pacific Press Publishing Association · Mountain View, California · Mar 22, 1910

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 37, No. 12.

A Purpose for the Ministry

By Bertha Bellows Streeter

WHAT if every preacher could realize the truth of the assertion made by the young minister's aunt in regard to the audience he would address the first Sabbath after assuming his pastorate? "Ye maun mind, laddie, that they're no clever and learned like what ye are, but just plain country fouk, ilka ane wi' his ain temptation, an' a' sair trachled wi' mony cares o' this world. They 'ill need a clear word tae comfort their herts and show them the way everlasting." What makes this passage so striking is the fact that it is descriptive of the needs, not alone of that little kirk in Drumtochty, but of every church in the world.

Would that every pastor might be impressed as was John when his devoted aunt concluded: "But, O, laddie, be sure ye say a gude word for Jesus Christ." Under the influence of this counsel, John burned the learned discourse he had prepared; and on that memorable Sunday, his congregation quietly left the house of worship feeling a nearness to God and love to their fellow men, instead of awe and admiration for the young preacher's learning and studied eloquence. You remember that Donald remarked, as he went thoughtfully homeward:

"There was a man sent from God, and his name was John."

It is a fact greatly to be deplored, that many pastors forget that the Gospel alone can satisfy the hearts of men. Thousands of their flocks are starved on lectures fed to them. If discourses upon such topics as "When Silence Is a Virtue," "Long Beds and Short Bedclothes," "Where Shall We Live?" were occasional ones; if they were interspersed with sermons that warm one's heart to the Saviour, that inspire greater faithfulness to Him and His cause, the reason for regret would not be so great. But these topics are illustrative of the constant diet provided by many ministers for their Sunday morning congregation; and in some such lectures to which I have listened, not once even was the name of Christ mentioned.

Now, we are not intolerant of all except the oldest of thought and method, but rather, are inclined to be as liberal as the rest of the college-bred young people of to-day. In our opinion, a certain amount of such discussion is all right, provided it does not exclude the preaching that centers around Christ. It is the exclusion of the Gospel sermon that is growing so prevalent in some localities, to which I wish to call our pastors' attention. It seems as if a large part of the Sabbath desecration of to-day were due to this fault. It has been shown from investigation during the last fifteen years that on account of this lack of something worth going for, thousands of young men do not attend church; and that the preachers who prepare sermons with the single purpose of winning souls to Christ, have the largest congregations and the best results in their general church work. The man who lifts up Christ, will never fail to draw hearers; the man who has a real message, will never lack an audience.

The efficiency of the Gospel sermon is attested by the foreign mission reports. The true missionary realizes that there is at least one in his congregation who has never heard of Christ and may never again do so. To him he preaches. That one may go from that service to his home in some hamlet never reached by a Christian; but the missionary for Christ has tried to tell him enough in that sermon so that he will want to learn more and can lead others to Christ.

In point of conversions, the method of preaching employed by the missionaries pays about fourteen per cent. Here in the home land, pastors almost without exception (and these exceptions are so noticeable that we call them "evangelists," a name we ought to be able to apply to all ministers) take it for granted that all in the audience have been brought up in Christian homes, know the Gospel story by heart, pray and read the Bible every day, and have such a knowledge of and love for Christ that on Sunday they need a change of thought, something "liberal," something "broad." And many prayers seem to be offered for oratorical effect, many "sermons" preached to pander to the supposed tastes of the whole congregation, because, perhaps, one or two of the least spiritual have expressed a desire for lectures. And these methods, in point of conversions, pay us one and three tenths per cent.

Do not these facts, added to other observations we can make for ourselves, give us a hint as to how we are to accomplish the purpose of the church—the evangelization of the whole world? In every other business there is an aim, to the accomplishment of which every part of the organization is contributory; but, strange to say, some very important parts of our organization seem to have forgotten the purpose for which they have been called to our pulpits—to lift up Christ, and Him alone.

Now, we do not have to think that this is something that we, as laymen, can not help. If you feel a deep need of the Gospel, tell your pastor so. There is not a man in our pulpits to-day who does not desire to please his people. And if these same people ask for the talks that will bring them closer to Christ, just that kind of sermons will they get. But it is Gospel sermons that the pastor ought to preach anyway, "not as pleasing men, but God, which trieth our hearts."