The Bible is the best indicator of what God expects for those that he
has called to shepherd his flock. 2 Timothy establishes the expectation
for believers to be theologians and have an ardent knowledge of the
word of God for righteous living and teaching. h The Bible tells the
reader “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who
does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2
Timothy 2:15, NKJV), in 2 Timothy, Paul expresses the importance of
studying the word of God which will be outwardly demonstrated in the
teaching and living of Timothy, to the believers that were looking to
him as a physical representation of Christian life.
This concept is the same today with Christian leaders in society. h Both
believers and non-believers looked upon as Christians leaders to be
worldly representations of Jesus Christ. h One of the biggest challenges
faced by many in ministry, especially women, is hearing the call to
serve and assuming the call from God was the only thing required. h
However, what has been sorely lost in many churches is for the
pastors to adhere to the words of 2 Timothy 2:15 or 2 Timothy 3:14-
17, where it tells the reader that scripture is God breathed and
profitable for teaching and reproof. h One must study the word and
develop an understanding of the history behind the word. h As written
by Wilson and Hiestand, it is important for the pastor to also be a
theologian.
The pastor theologian must not only read scripture, but they must
properly exegete the text. The pastor must not only establish a sound
hermeneutical understanding of the text, but they must perform ecclesial
exegesis of the text (Wilson and Heistand, 2016,145). h This practice will
entail a level of academia and intimate engagement of the text. h As
referenced earlier, many pastors hear the call and respond but fail to
seek higher level educational study to broaden their knowledge and
understanding of the history of the text in order to properly exegete the
text, which often leads to eisegesis. h Women in ministry are more
readily inclined to be satisfied with the roles assigned and never seek
to gain additional knowledge for themselves. Personal experience
resulted in a change of perspective. h With over thirty women ministers
in the pulpit, there are a limited number that have pursued a higher
level of education and understanding in biblical studies or theology. h
There was an inward desire to break the mold resulting in a personal
pursuit to gain the knowledge in preparation for the assignment as
opposed to accepting the assignment and lacking the knowledge. h As
stated in the text it is necessary for women to play a greater role in
their pursuit of becoming pastor theologians (Wilson and Heistand, 2016,
169).
Reference list
Todd Wilson and Gerald Hiestand, Becoming a Pastor Theologian: New
Possibilities for Church Leadership, Downers Grove, IL, InterVarsity Press,
2016.
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