Res. 6-13 — To Affirm that the Lord has Ordained that Those Who Preach the Gospel Should Make their Living from the Gospel

Rationale When our Lord Jesus Christ called Peter, Andrew, and the sons of Zebedee to be His apostles, “they left their nets and followed Him” (Matt. 4:20). When Matthew was called, he likewise left the tax booth and followed the Lord as His apostle (Matt. 9:9). Thus, St. Paul states that “The Lord has ordained that those who preach the Gospel should make their living from the Gospel” (1 Cor. 9:14 KJV). This passage from 1 Corinthians is quoted in the Small Catechism’s Table of Duties under the heading “What Hearers Owe Their Pastors.” During the Rite for the Installation of a Pastor the people of God affirm that they will “support him by [our] gifts and pray for him always that in his labors he may retain a cheerful spirit and that his ministry among [us] may be abundantly blessed.” (LSB Agenda, 180) This can only happen by generous, first-fruits, sacrificial giving. The past half -century has seen a rapid secularization of our society. Church attendance has fallen with each passing generation. This creates real challenges and raises a question for the Synod today: do we still believe that 1 Cor. 9:14 is true and that we should do what it says? In the face of these very real financial stresses and strains, some point to the example of St. Paul who famously worked as a tent-maker to support his apostleship rather than taking a wage from his service in the Church: “I have made no use of any of [this]” (1 Cor. 9:15). Given the situation of the church today (declining membership, financial stress, rising costs of insurance, etc.) why not imitate St. Paul and intentionally seek to create more bi -vocational (or co-vocational) “tent-20 maker pastors?” St. Paul was exceptional in many ways. He willingly refused to receive payment for his service as a preacher of the Word (1 Corinthians 9); he was an itinerant apostle, moving from place to place (Acts 10); he was called directly by Jesus on the road to Damascus (Acts 9); he received dreams from God telling him where to travel (Acts 16); and he remained celibate, forgoing his right to marry so as to better dedicate his life to the Church (1 Corinthians 7). None of these exceptions in the life of St. Paul establish a pattern meant for widespread emulation: they are part and parcel of Paul’s unique call as an apostle. When St. Paul himself speaks to the Corinthians about how they should treat their parish pastor, he makes it clear that they should provide him a living wage. The Church of the first century was smaller, more isolated, and poorer than the Church in America today—by orders of magnitude. It is this poor, small, isolated first-century Church that received the Lord’s mandate: “those who preach the Gospel should make their living from the Gospel.” (1 Cor. 9:14 KJV) It is one thing for Paul to willingly decide that his unique apostolic ministry would benefit from being financially independent from his hearers; it is quite another thing for the hearers (or their Synodical leaders) to decide that today’s finances and demographics mean that the Lord’s mandate can be set aside for a significant portion of the church. That said, exceptional circumstances do exist and the financial and demographic challenges faced by congregations today are real. Congregations in communities that are losing jobs and population will also find it hard to maintain their own attendance and financial support. It’s worse in areas that have lost key employers or entire industries. These congregations are not willingly looking to dock their pastor’s pay. And the pastor who finds himself in need of income that his shrinking congregation just can’t give him is not trying to abandon the ministry by taking on additional secular employment: he is just trying to fulfill his other God-given vocations as a husband and father. Nor should we be tempted to pretend that necessity makes a virtue. This is not a St. Paul tent-maker situation: these pastors are not willingly seeking employment because they think it will make their ministries better. The pastor who must punch a clock at a nine-to-five job is not available for a funeral on Friday morning or a visit to the emergency room on a Tuesday afternoon. The pastor who puts time, energy, and focus into 20 hours (or 30 hours or 40 hours) in an office, a factory, or a retail shop cannot recoup those expenditures for ministry. The challenges we face are real. Solutions to those challenges will not be easy. They will require sacrifice, creativity, and joint efforts. Yet, the mandate of the Church always remains: faithfully apply the clear Word of God to the real world in which we live. Therefore be it

Resolved, That all pastors of the Synod be encouraged to catechize their congregations regarding biblical stewardship and first-fruits giving; and be it further

Resolved, That all pastors be encouraged to utilize the stewardship resources produced by the Office of National Mission (ONM) to further this catechization (lcms.org/stewardship); and be it further

Resolved, That all congregations of the Synod be encouraged to follow their district salary guidelines for their pastors;

and be it further

Resolved, That where a congregation is too small to provide a full-time living wage for a pastor, the district assist that congregation in finding a partner congregation or congregations to form a multi -point parish, which can provide a pastor with a full-time living wage; and be it further

Resolved, That districts make ample use of resources from the ONM (Exploring God’s Mission Here, re:Vitality) and the Lutheran Church Extension Fund (Ministry Clarity, Seasons of Ministry) to help congregations assess their current situation and find the best model for ministry (multi-point parish, cathedral model, circuit rider, etc.) in their midst that will give them good pastoral care provided by a pastor who is compensated in such a manner than he can dedicate his full working life to the ministry; and be it further

Resolved, That in areas where congregations are so small and isolated that forming a traditional dual or triple-point parish is not possible, the districts, circuits, or nearby thriving congregations consider the funding of cathedral models and circuit rider models of ministry as a mission-oriented opportunity for revitalization; and be it further

Resolved, That the Synod express its love, understanding, and support for pastors and congregations where financial and demographic realities and other local circumstances make all of these preferred solutions impossible; and be it further

Resolved, That in these situations, congregations be encouraged to demonstrate understanding for, reduce the expectations of, and allot time for their pastors to seek ways to subsidize their salaries to alleviate any financial strain and stress upon their families; and be it finally

Resolved, That districts be encouraged to support and encourage lay leadership in such situations as they experience challenges related to their pastor having additional employment.