“He's Outta Here!”

Tuesday, September 12, 2017

Who fires a preacher?  The men's meeting or the congregation?

Sincerely,
Finger On The Button

Dear Finger On The Button,

Preachers serve at the pleasure of the congregation.  A preacher is supported when a congregation believes he is doing work worthy of his hire (1 Tim 5:18).  If a congregation no longer believes that he is worthy of his hire – they cease supporting him and no longer give him the privilege of using their pulpit.  This may be because he is no longer a good fit for the group, or it might be because he no longer is teaching the truth.  In either case, the congregation makes that decision.

Now the problem is a congregation is made up of a group of people, and that group of people has to make decisions through some leadership structure.  In a perfect scenario, the church leadership is a group of qualified elders (men who meet the standards of 1 Tim 3:1-7 and Tit 1:5-9).  If a congregation has elders, those men would make the decision to support (or cease supporting) a preacher.  If a congregation doesn’t have elders, they must make decisions as a unit – this often involves a men’s business meeting.  If the men’s meeting is making decisions for the congregation, the choice to no longer support a preacher would fit under their purview.

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