Tolbert Fanning on Evangelists and the Lord’s Day

April 5, 2013

Brother “J. R. W.” of Kentucky tossed Tolbert Fanning a softball in the June 1858 issue of  the Gospel Advocate (pp. 170-171).  It was a subject he had constantly addressed as an editor and evangelist. It was one of the great themes of his life beginning with his time as an evangelist supported by the Nashville (TN) church from 1832 to 1836.

Question:  Are the disciples authorized to perform the service without an Evangelist?

The question contains several. What is the “service” to perform on the Lord’s Day? What is the function of an evangelist? Does the evangelist have a clerical function such that without an ordained evangelist the congregation could not “perform the service”?

Concerning the function of an evangelist, Fanning writes:

it is the duty of the Evangelist to preach the Gospel to the world, plant the taught with Christ in Baptism, congregate the converts, teach them all things in which they are to walk, to see that they keep the ordinances, ordain the Elders in the congregation, and set in order everything wanting for the perfection of the body.

In other words, the evangelist evangelizes the lost, plants the congregation, equipts members, and appoints leaders. Then an evangelist moves on to a new field and repeats the process. The evangelist should not linger and serve as a priestly mediator for the congregation. “It is not the work of the Evangelist to perform the service of the congregation.” Rather, the evangelist equips the congregation so that they might “perform the service” themselves.

When the disciples give the worship into the hand of a hired preacher, as one who works merely for the profit or place, to lord it over God’s heritage, they abandon, in fact, the religion of the Bible. The healthful soul invigorating life giving and life sustaining ordinances, have been given into the hands not entitled to them. The hired, or voluntary services of the church in the hands of preachers, enrich not them spiritually, and make the disciples poor indeed.

To hand the service over to “a hired preacher” is a form of “Popish” clericalism, according to Fanning. It destroys the faith of the congregation as they become passive receivers rather than active participants. The legitimate field for evangelists (preachers) is within the “world” rather than in the established congregation. Let the congregation do its own work, including the work of sending out evangelists to plant new congregations.

What the evangelist should do, however, is plant the congregation, equip the members, and appoint elders to lead the church. Fanning is quite insistent that evangelists appoint bishops or elders. On what authority, another querist asks? “In the Apostolic times Evangelists were consecrated by the hands of the seniors” (Acts 13:3; 1 Timothy 5:14; 2 Timothy 1:16), “and Elders were set apart to the Bishop’s office by Evangelist” (1 Timothy 3; 5:22). Remember, however, that the evangelist does not settle into the congregation but is sent to other places. Consequently, it is the elders who lead the church rather than the evangelist.

But what is the “service” that members are to perform on the Lord’s Day? Fanning lists seven particulars:

1. The assemblage and Christian greetings on the Lord’s day.
2. Prayers of the Saints.
3. The teaching, reading of the Divine oracles.
4. The exhortations and confessions of the disciples.
5. The Lord’s supper.
6. The songs of praise.
7. Communicating, or putting money into the treasury, a sacrifice with which God is well pleased.

“We cannot see how it is possible,” Fanning adds, “for disciples to neglect any of these parts, and still maintain a position in the church of Christ.”

No Evangelist necessary; no clerics needed. It Is the priesthood of (male?) believers; there are no clerics, only the gathering of disciples. It is simply the gathering of Christians to greet, pray, teach, read, exhort, eat & drink, sing, and give. This is the fellowship of the saints on the Lord’s day. No preacher required; just committed, active disciples who gather to listen to each other and the word, sing their praises, share their resources, pray, and sit at the table together. Ad all that to the glory of God and the building up of the body.

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Posted by John Mark Hicks

Profiles in Character: A Look at Shepherding and Spiritual Leadership V

July 27, 2009

[This is a brief small group/Bible class series that parallels the sermons of Dean Barham at Woodmont Hills Family of God in Nashville, TN, for the month of July 2009. The is the final installment. Unfortunately, I offer the homily on this one to which you may listen here when it becomes available.]

Leadership in Community

1 Thessalonians 5:12-24

Paul had to make a quick exit from Thessalonica (cf. Acts 17:1-9) and shortly thereafter passionately pens this letter. His absence created a vacuum but his letter encourages them to live worthy of the kingdom of God that he himself modeled among them (1 Thessalonians 2:12). Addressing the newly planted but the seemingly tentative condition of the Thessalonian church, the letter’s final segment naturally, I think, divides into three sections.

  • He begs the community to respect and esteem its leaders (1 Thessalonians 5:12-13).
  • He encourages them to live as a hopeful, grateful, caring community (1 Thessalonians 5:14-22).
  • He concludes with a prayer and an assurance (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24).

Paul’s brief stay in Thessalonica (perhaps less than a month) did not give him much opportunity to develop leadership for the new church, but apparently he did charge some to give it direction. These leaders are described as people who “work hard” among them (that is, labor to the point of exhaustion), “rule” over them (etymologically, they “stand before them”), and “admonish” them (that is, warn and instruct, and the same word is used in verse 14). The verb “rule” or “over you” is the most complex word here. It may indicate either the exercise of direction or management (as in 1 Timothy 3:4, 5, 12; 5:17) or of care and assistance (as in Romans 12:8; 16:2)—or both. It has the ideas of directing, managing, caring for, and protecting. “In the Lord” reflects a kind of spiritual authority invested in these leaders.

Whether we should title these leaders as “elders,” “evangelists,” “deacons,” or some other category is uncertain but it is clear that they are the spiritual caregivers for the Thessalonians. They are, in some sense, responsible for the community. I understand it is broader than the category of “elders” and at least includes Paul’s broad notions of “co-workers” in the kingdom (like Silas and Timothy who co-author the letter with him).

Paul quite literally begs the congregation to “respect” (literally, know or recognize) and esteem (“hold in high regard”) their leaders in love because of their work (identified in verse 12). Their function is important for the body—it is not their power but their work that grounds this respect and esteem. Where there is such respect and esteem in love, there is also peace.

Turning his attention to how the members of the body treat one another, Paul rattles off in rapid fire a series of imperatives that direct the community toward a particular way of being community. The virtues, ministry and attitudes expected here would shape a community into a peaceful, loving and serving body of people who are attentive to the Spirit in their lives.

A Christian community is…..and one can fill in the blanks with this series of imperatives—warning the disorderly, comforting the hurting, serving the weak, treating everyone with patience, resisting revenge, practicing kindness, praying unceasingly, rejoicing always, loving, giving thanks in everything, listening to the Spirit, testing everything, holding to what is noble (good) and avoiding every evil.

That kind of community is utopian but it is the “God of peace” who makes it possible. Paul prays that God would fully sanctify the Thessalonian community so that they might be “blameless” when Jesus appears again. God “will do it”—he is faithful.

The goal here is not utopian as if it is generated by human means, but it is the kingdom of God breaking into a broken, fallen world. God will do it, and God has called us to live worthy of that kingdom.

Questions for Discussion:

  1. Why do you think Paul thought it important to urge the congregation to “peace” in the context of living with leaders in community? How might his instructions here lead to “peace” in the community?
  2. Reading through the imperatives again, which do you think need the most emphasis within the current context of the Woodmont Hills Family of God? How do we need to “admonish” or encourage each other with these words? How can we encourage these attitudes within the family?
  3. Reflecting on what it means to be attentive to the Spirit, how does this apply to our current elder selection process and its results? How do we listen to the Spirit in this process?
  4. Reflecting on this text, what might you add to Paul’s own prayer for the Thessalonians in 5:23-24 as you think particularly about the situation at Woodmont Hills. Pray that prayer together with the confidence that “God will do it.”

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Posted by John Mark Hicks

Profiles in Character: A Look at Shepherding and Spiritual Leadership IV

July 25, 2009

[This is a brief small group/Bible class series that parallels the sermons of Dean Barham at Woodmont Hills Family of God in Nashville, TN, for the month of July 2009. You may listen to Dean's lessons here.]

A Shepherd’s Presence

1 Thessalonians 2:1-12

This text is one of the most “pastoral” passages in all of Paul’s writings. It reflects not only his heart for those among whom he ministered, but it also testifies to the nature of his presence among them as well as his purpose, motive, and method. This is a text that displays the relational nature of Paul’s ministry.

Paul had to leave Thessalonica before he wanted. It is a young church (perhaps only six months old!). He wants badly to return and has tried (1 Thessalonians 2:18). But, unfortunately, Paul has had to leave them in the hands of the leaders he left behind.

Paul reminds them of his ministry among them for at least two reasons. First, he does not want them to think he has forsaken them but rather that he deeply loves them. Second, by this example he encourages the present leaders (cf. 1 Thessalonians 5:12) to follow his lead.

How should leaders lead? How should they minister among people? Paul describes his own ministry.

Several broad ideas indicate some of Paul’s own understanding of ministry and leadership.

  • Motive—please God or please others?
  • Greed—for money or self-sacrifice?
  • Nurture—sharing ourselves or seeking flattery?
  • Honesty—transparency or hiddenness?
  • Calling—live for the kingdom or for ourselves?
  • Presence—parental-like love or self-interested power?
  • Proclamation—the good news of the kingdom or self-aggrandizing rhetoric?

Shepherding means relationships as well as providing direction and declaring the good news of the kingdom. Paul expected leaders in Thessalonica to follow his own example.

Questions for Discussion:

  1. Given Paul’s descriptive testimony of his own ministry, which metaphors are particularly striking to you?
  2. Identify some characteristics in this text that you believe are particularly important for contemporary leaders to display. Why are these important to you? How do you manifest them in your own life?
  3. Reading this text, what do you think was the major charge against Paul’s ministry? Of what did they accuse him? What sounds familiar in this text in relation to contemporary leadership?
  4. How might contemporary shepherds insulate themselves from such charges? How does this text guide us?

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Posted by John Mark Hicks

Profiles in Character: A Look at Shepherding and Spiritual Leadership III

July 15, 2009

[This is a brief small group/Bible class series that parallels the sermons of Dean Barham at Woodmont Hills Family of God in Nashville, TN, for the month of July 2009. You may listen to Dean's lessons here.]

A Shepherd Model

Acts 20:17-38

Paul had spent several years in Ephesus ministering among God’s people in that city. As he travels toward Jerusalem he calls the elders of the church at Ephesus to Miletus to remind them, encourage them and charge them.

He encouraged them by his presence. He wanted to say “goodbye” as he believed that he would not see them again. His presence was a final encouraging stroke which brought forward all their memories. Those memories would serve to guide them in how they served the church at Ephesus.

He reminded them how he conducted himself while among them. The leaders of the church in Ephesus had leadership modeled for them by Paul’s own ministry in the city. His litany of tasks, the variety of his presence and his attitude and motives are rehearsed for the sake of shaping how these elders would themselves lead the church. Paul served with…

  • humility though chosen by God
  • courage through many trials
  • publicly and privately (“house to house”)
  • powerful witness to the grace of God
  • proclamation of the kingdom of God
  • protecting believers from deceivers
  • caring for the poor
  • working with his own hands

Paul’s ministry among them was bold and confident, but tender and embracing. He taught the whole counsel of God while at the same time developing a relationship with these leaders soaked in loving tears.

He charged the elders at the church to pay careful attention to the flock, the church of God. In particular, they are to oversee (to have care over) the church as bishops and to pastor the flock as shepherds. They have a task to perform and the language of Paul’s charge carries the seed ideas of their function.

  1. Elders—mature leadership that have wisdom for discernment and to mentor others (as “elders” in Israel did).
  2. Pastors—to lead the flock as God’s shepherd among his people for protection, provision and maturation.
  3. Bishops—to be the presence (visitation) of God among the people as leaders who bear responsibility for the spiritual condition of the church.

Paul left Ephesus in the hands of these leaders. He rehearsed his own ministry among them as a model for them to follow.

But Paul does not believe he leaves these elders totally alone. Rather, they were appointed by the Holy Spirit whose presence still lives within the community and in their lives. The Holy Spirit led the church to select these leaders. God, like in Israel, raises up leaders among his people.

Though this does not mean that particular elders have the Spirit’s permanent sanction (even Jesus chose Judas!), the presence of the Spirit in the process gives the people of God confidence in their collection decision, under the Word of God and out of love, to trust its decision and trust that God will use it to his glory. Thus, when a church selects its leaders in harmony with the Word of God and out of sincere desire to glorify the Father, we may say that the Holy Spirit led the community to select these leaders.

At Woodmont, we trust that God is present among us to select the leaders he wants through a prayer-drenched and Word-soaked process. The Holy Spirit makes leaders; we don’t make them.

Questions for Discussion:

  1. What does Paul want these Ephesian elders to learn from his example in Ephesus?
  2. Given the totality of this farewell speech, how would you describe the function of elders within a church?
  3. Why do you think Paul ends his discussion on money, working and giving? What is it about the function of elder that makes this a particular concern or issue? How does Paul address this problem?
  4.  How does our recognition that the Holy Spirit appoints elders highlight the seriousness of their responsibility and our attitudes toward them?
  5. What in this text do you think Woodmont Hills need to hear this week?

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Posted by John Mark Hicks

Profiles in Character: A Look at Shepherding and Spiritual Leadership II

July 9, 2009

[This is a brief small group/Bible class series that parallels the sermons of Dean Barham at Woodmont Hills Family of God in Nashville, TN, for the month of July 2009. You may listen to Dean's lessons here.]

Character Traits

1 Timothy 3:1-7; Titus 1:5-9

What do you want to be when you grow up? Or, perhaps a better question, who do you want to be when you grow up?

Shepherds—elders or bishops—are the sorts of people who mirror the shepherd life of God and Jesus. They are the sorts of people we want to be when we “grow up.” Shepherds model a particular way of living and they apprentice others in that life. They embody the life which God wants to nurture in all of us.

The significance of their role within the faith community is highlighted by Paul’s saying “Here is a trustworthy saying.” This phrase occurs elsewhere in 1 & 2 Timothy and Titus to emphasize a point (1 Timothy1:15; 4:9-10; 2 Timothy 2:11; Titus 3:8). In other words, it is important for the church to have elders/bishops. Mature leadership is necessary for a healthy church. Elders should understand that the task they take up is an honorable and praiseworthy one which is worthy of the total sacrifice of their lives and the congregation should honor and respect those who willingly serve in such a capacity.

Surveying the character traits present in our biblical texts, we might say that whoever wants to be an elder or bishop (overseer) must have a blameless character, model family life, spiritually mature in knowing, living and telling the gospel story, and a good reputation in the community.

Every congregation hopes and needs mature leadership. The “help wanted” sign for such is perpetually posted on the doors of churches. But what kind of people are they. Perhaps these questions might help put flesh on the bare bones that Paul suggests to Timothy and Titus.

  • Who would you select as your own personal mentor in developing your personal piety and spiritual disciplines?
  • Who would you like to mentor you in your marriage and advise you in raising your children?
  • Who would you choose to deepen your understanding of the gospel?
  • Who would you ask to represent your congregation in a public hearing?
  • Who would you want to apprentice you in the life of Jesus?

With each of those questions comes a follow up question: Why? What attracts you to that person, what do you see in them that you want for your own life, and what qualities do you see that are important for how you envision Christian discipleship? How do those qualities mesh with or reflect what Paul is describing to Timothy and Titus?

I suppose that if I were to offer one question which would strike at the essence of how important it is to select godly elders and whom I might select, I would perhaps focus it in this question:

Who would I want to raise my children?

To whomever I would entrust my children, I think I would also entrust the children of God to them.

Prayer: God, we ask that you give us the wisdom to nominate and select those whom you want to care for your children at Woodmont Hills. Lead us to those people and ignite their hearts for service to your people. Amen.

Questions for Discussion:

  1. Looking at the biblical texts, identify which items fall into the broad categories given in the lesson above: character, family, maturity, gospel-telling, and community reputation. Why are these important?
  2. Of the questions suggested in the lesson, which one is most significant to you in nominating a shepherd and relating to shepherds? Why?
  3. In your past and present experience, name a person whom you believe has exhibited the kind of character that these texts describe.

3 Comments | Biblical Texts | Tagged: , , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by John Mark Hicks

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