The glory of the small church By Walter Mueller The Layman Volume 35, Number 1 Posted February 8, 2002 The Confessing Church Movement within the Presbyterian Church (USA) includes more than 300 congregations with fewer than 100 members. Many of those congregations have no pastor or are served by part-time ministers, lay ministers – even ministers ordained in other denominations. But Walter Mueller, the retired minister of Supple Memorial Presbyterian Church in Maple Glen, Pa., says there’s no such thing as too small. He has served as interim pastor of a number of small congregations. Mueller is a Greek scholar (Grammatical Aids for Students of New Testament Greek, Eerdmans) whose articles and book reviews have appeared in Christianity Today, Eternity, The Evangelical Quarterly, Pulpit Digest and Ministry. Undeniably, there is a certain honor in being called to pastor a large church. However, there is also an honor, even a glory, in being called to serve a small church. This may not be evident at the outset of one’s ministry in a small church, but it becomes increasingly apparent as one faithfully, even ploddingly, nurtures his or her congregation in the faith of Christ. There is the glory of seeing people drawn to the greater glory of God in Jesus Christ. Some, for the first time, are confronted by the claims of Jesus and experience the call of the Savior through the mysterious working of the Holy Spirit within. They find new life. The pastor of this person cannot help but be moved by this miracle of the new birth. Sometimes faith that was born years before, but which languished in a Rip Van Winkle sort of slumber, is reawakened. There is the glory of seeing an entire congregation come to life and manifest a new enthusiasm for Bible study, evangelism, worship, fellowship, mission, stewardship and all of those other characteristics that should mark a true community of Christian faith. As C.S. Lewis noted, there is a good infection of the gospel that is contagious. As individuals experience the power of God’s Spirit others are supernaturally drawn in. There is the glory of seeing empty pews filled. Large churches are generally static in their membership. Not so in small churches when the message of Jesus Christ is faithfully proclaimed. They will grow, maybe not dramatically, or into megachurches, but they will grow. It is certainly gratifying to preach to hundreds, but there is a glory in preaching to a growing number who week by week need and desire to hear the good news and who want to live out the gospel in their lives. There is the glory of seeing seemingly ordinary people transformed into extraordinary ministers of God as they take to themselves the responsibilities connected with meeting the day-by-day needs of their congregation. How can I be so certain of this? By personal experience. I have served as the pastor of small churches and large churches. Most recently, in my retirement, I have served three small congregations in a variety of settings as an interim pastor – one in the inner city, one in the suburbs and one in a small farming community. In all of them, I have experienced the glory described above. The integrated inner city church now has a congregation of over 100 every Sunday morning and is presently served by an African American pastor. The suburban congregation (which the presbytery considered closing because of the seemingly overwhelming conflict within) is functioning well and shows genuine signs of spiritual health. The rural church is attracting people from nearby cities and towns and, though it has a membership of approximately 75, has a Sunday morning congregation of over 80. They have just called a new pastor. A word of caution. The glory I have described does not come easily. It takes work. Hard work. It takes patience. The pastor of a small church will never experience the glory of that church if he or she begins to search for a larger congregation almost immediately after arriving on the scene. It requires good (but not necessarily great) preaching based upon Scripture. It requires fortitude. There will be disappointments. Life as the pastor of a small church is not easy. But then, neither is the life of the pastor of a large church. It requires faith. The small church pastor will not receive a large salary, but, then, that isn’t why we entered the ministry, is it? God will supply! And most of all it requires reliance upon God in prayer. “Did we in our own strength confide, our striving would be losing.” The small church has a glory all its own. After all, what greater glory could anyone possibly experience than to hear Jesus say, “Well done good and faithful servant. Enter into the joy of the Lord.”

Respond to this article

Home · News · PLC Publications · The Presbyterian Layman Online Reviews · Archives · History of the Lay Committee · Feedback · Links