LIBERTY UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF DIVINITY
Assignment Title: The causes of the paradigm shift in contemporary pastoral ministry
Course: CHMN 699 - Internship
Student: Kristine Sage
Date: January 29, 2022
Professor: Dr. Joel Breidenbaugh
The causes of the paradigm shift in contemporary pastoral ministry
Wrong perception of the ministry
The envy of Aaron and Miriam led them to become sarcastic and disrespectful to their brother Moses
(Num 12:1-5). Miriam, who had once led in singing and dancing, became grumbling and accusatory (Ex
15:20-21). Simon Magus was envious of the power of God in the ministry of Philip and Peter and offered
money in exchange for their power (Acts 8:9-24). The sons of Sceva became envious of the ministry of
Paul and tried to arrogate to themselves the power they saw at work in his ministry (Acts 19:13-16).
These Scriptural examples remind us that those who do not know the depth and weight of pastoral
ministry become envious and jealous of pastors, and try to force their way into the pastorate.
There are many reasons for this jealousy. One is the perception that a pastor's work is only preaching.
Those who enjoy speaking in public and expressing their own opinions are eager to become preachers.
Others assume that pastors enjoy numerous benefits from church members, and enter the pastoral
ministry so that they too can share in these benefits. Once in office, such people discover to their dismay
that the weight of the pastoral office and its responsibilities are quite different from what they had
initially thought. This discovery will force some among them to distort the pastoral ministry into what
they want it to be. Unfortunately, some of those who have done this are church leaders.
Wrong motivation for the ministry
Onwuka sums us the wrong motivation among some Nigerian clergy: "It is no exaggeration to say that
there are some preachers who joined the Christian ministry on the advice of their friends, for the
purpose of what they will gain in terms of material wealth, or from their mere desire for clerical dignity.
Others ... decided to join the ministry in order to be famous and popular, and to gain worldly honour
and riches."26
Some people are attracted to the pastorate largely for the benefits - the fame, glamour, and assumed
respect, financial and material prosperity -rather than for any desire for actual ministry.
Pastors who are in the ministry for a wrong reason are there not to give to the flock but rather to gain
from them. Mark D. Futato observes that the shepherd's motivation should be to benefit the flock
rather than to benefit themselves.27 Jesus sacrificed all so that we might live (see Phil 2:5-11). Pastors
should follow this model of sacrifice and sheep-centeredness.
Unbelievers in the ministry
In Matthew 7:21-23, Jesus says that at the last judgement he will tell some who claim to have
prophesied and done miracles in his name "I never knew you". These words remind us that there may
well be unbelievers in the pastoral ministry. Such people may know and speak the language of the
church; they may technically and professionally follow the sequence of church liturgy; and they may
impress the congregation with their much religious rhetoric and semantics, yet, they still remain what
they are -unbelievers. Yet few respondents to the survey (1.7%) admitted that the current paradigm
shift suggests that unbelievers may well be parading themselves as pastors.
The implications of the paradigm shift in ministry
The Nigerian topography of pastoral ministry has been described as "an era of confession without
commitment".28 Many claim to be Christians but show no evidence of commitment to Christ.
Consequently, important qualifications for the pastorate such as spiritual maturity, a clear conscience,
personal integrity and moral character (see Acts 24:16; 20:26, 33-35; 2 Tim 1:3) are being jettisoned in
favour of self-glorification and the acquisition of material wealth. This situation has serious
consequences for the flock, for pastors, and for the power of the gospel.
Effects on the flock
Psalm 23 depicts Yahweh as Israel's shepherd-king whose rod and staff offer protection and guidance to
the flock. But pastors, whose very title means "shepherd", show little concern for their flocks. Rather
than ensuring that their people receive spiritual nourishment and have their material needs met, and
administering corrective discipline where needed, contemporary shepherds may hide behind heavy
security barricades and flaunt their wealth rather than using their rod and staff. Such shepherds
prioritize their own needs and comfort over the needs of the sheep. Not surprisingly, needy and hurting
church members are neglected and may well stray from the fold.
John Goldingay has described Psalm 23 as a psalm of trust.29 As shepherds, pastors too must
demonstrate professionalism and integrity so that church members can look up to their pastors in trust
and confidence, just as sheep look to a human shepherd for care, provision, protection, and guidance.
But some insensitive and unprofessional pastors betray their people's trust and the essence of
congregational ministry. Church members may find that some deeply personal issue they have shared
with the pastor becomes public knowledge as the theme of a sermon. Such public betrayal shakes
people's confidence in their pastors, and means that members will not share their struggles and hurts
with their pastors. Instead they struggle on alone, and are at risk of being attracted to false shepherds.
Pastors with a distorted understanding of ministry can also lead their flock into gross biblical and
theological error. People may come to see prosperity, miracles and materialism as the essence of
Christian spirituality. In Nigeria, where the influence of African traditional religion is still pervasive, it is
all too easy for people to substitute cult for conduct, and think that religious rituals and sacrifices
guarantee salvation or impress God and earn his favour. 30 Such error leads people to cloak dishonesty
with noisy Christianity without spiritual productivity. Sadly, the Nigerian religious climate is one in which
"religion has become a camouflage for different atrocities in our society."31
Effects on the shepherd
The presence of neglectful and wicked shepherds is nothing new, as any study of Jeremiah 23 and
Ezekiel 34 reveals. Jeremiah and Ezekiel spoke out strongly against the leadership failures of the
monarchs, nobles and religious leaders of Israel, and declared God's judgement on them. Jesus told the
parable of the Talents (Mt 25:14-30) to remind his hearers that faithful service would be rewarded,
while negligence would be punished.
Today some obvious negative consequences of the shift in ministerial paradigm are visible in the
accusations levelled at those in clerical office and in the loss of integrity that has eroded respect for the
clergy in the eyes of some Christians and of the general the public. Sour and suspicious relationships and
discord and division among some pastors also contribute to a decline in respect for the clerical office.
Some of those surveyed (18.6%) said that poor ministerial relationships were also responsible for the
phenomenon of pastors' refusing to work with their colleagues or enlist their co-operation and support.
Such pastors do not respect, recognize, and appreciate the ministerial gifting and contributions of
colleagues.
Additionally, a significant number of respondents (32.2%) said that a pastor who is not in close
fellowship with God is vulnerable to temptations to indulge in sexual immorality or embezzlement of
funds or other forms of or misconduct. When they succumb to these temptations, there is still further
loss of respect for pastors and pastoral ministry.
Effects on the power of the gospel
The gospel of Jesus Christ and his kingdom has inherent transforming power. It is expected that pastors
will lead their congregations to transform society by their speech and lifestyle. The pastors' failure in this
regard greatly hampers the effective spread of the gospel.
Corruption is rampant in Nigerian society, and the corruption virus has spread to the church. Je'adayibe
D Gwamna asserts that "when the church refuses to expose evil or keeps mute in the face of corruption,
it has become corrupt itself."32 The church's failure to function as the prophetic voice and the conscience
of society makes the power of the gospel ineffectual in society. According to Yusufu Turaki, the purpose
of the church in society is that of living under Christ's commission in both its mission and message. He
says, "The challenge of addressing the issues of ethnicity, racism and tribalism lies in the hands of the
Church. . If the Church in Africa is blinded and has also become oblivious to the plight of Africans in
these areas, then something serious has happened to the Church."33
Wilbur O'Donovan agrees when he asserts, "the church urgently needs to take a biblical position on such
issues as tribalism, poverty, injustice, sexual immorality, abortion, corruption in the church and in the
government"34
Christians should learn some things from the secular world of business. There corporations are in
competition with one another to win customers and make profit. They invest heavily in their leaders and
their brands and work hard to convince potential customers about the quality and benefits of their
products. If we look at the various religions competing for "market share" in Nigeria, we could say that
the Christian "brand" is not doing well. The church does not have a high quality of leadership and there
is little about its lifestyle that is distinct from what others offer. So the presentation of the gospel is
weak. Yet the Christian religion and the gospel became a dominant commodity from the time of Jesus
Christ on because of the quality of the product, the honesty of its presenters, and the method of the
presentation. All of these have become sullied in Nigeria today.
The paradigm shift in the pastoral ministry in Nigeria according to 49.2% has muddied the face of
Christianity and detracted from the expected positive effects of Christian testimony and the gospel in
the eyes of the bewildered watching public. As Christianity in contemporary Nigeria has become
anthropocentric rather than theocentric and Christocentric, 18.6% indicated that the testimony and
integrity of the church and the power of the gospel are fast losing their grip on society. An ineffectual
and powerless gospel is emptied of its transforming force. As a result, Nigerian society sinks deeper into
corruption and decay and, even worse, many souls are being lost.
The fast pace of the paradigm shift in pastoral ministry in Nigeria has negative effects on the church and
society, causing harm to the gospel and to Christian spirituality. Attention is moving away from the
biblical, theological and ethical tradition of ministry that is rooted in the Scriptures.
This casts a theological haze on Christians who are honestly seeking for truth.
The paradigm shift reveals a lack of basic knowledge about the nature, purpose, responsibility and
accountability, methodology and established traditions of the pastoral ministry. An egocentric focus on
personal benefits by non-converted pastors and untrained pastors also accounts for ministerial
distortions. There has been an intentional glossing over of the eternal consequence of distortions in our
understanding of pastoral ministry.
A repentant attitude and honest return by practitioners to the basic foundations of the pastoral ministry
is the only possible antidote to the paradigm shift. The need is urgent.
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