“The Next Guy”

I went to a pastor’s conference recently. It was great. Many godly pastors shared and spoke. One lesson that stood out to me was this: every senior pastor needs to prepare their church for the next senior pastor. That thought struck me and has stayed with me ever since. Here me out: I’m not planning on leaving. Whether you like it or not, you’re stuck with me right now. Haha. However, sooner or later, CBC will have another Senior Pastor. He won’t be me. You will have another Associate Pastor. He won’t be Phil. Whether we die, move away, get sick, retire, or something else, your pastors are temporary. At some point, new men will pick up the mantle of leadership, and that is God’s plan.

This means that the unity and foundation of CBC cannot be the pastors—their personalities, their gifts, or their charisma. Many churches focus their “brand” on the personality of the pastor. That’s sad. That church will be effective so long as that pastor is around—hence, only for a short amount of time. Healthy churches build their identity on that which endures—the preaching of the gospel, sound doctrine, biblical fellowship, vibrant membership, and passionate outreach. Leaders come and go; the gospel remains.

There is only one chief shepherd, and his name is not Chance, Phil, Rick, Ron, Kim, or Joel. His name is Jesus Christ (1 Pet 5:4). Therefore, our fellowship must be built around Christ’s enduring plan, not personal preferences. We must avoid all forms of focusing on the specific personality of any preacher. Instead, we should share leadership, raise up other preachers, celebrate a plurality of elders, disciple others, share the burden of shepherding, recognize others’ gifts, and love the local church. Only Christ endures, all others are sinking sand. 

Pastor Chance