Dharius Daniels - You're Probably a Pastor, And You Don't Even Know It

Listen to me. What if I told you that you are probably a pastor? What? I’m not a pastor! PD, you might be. Maybe your pastoring is not in a pulpit, but perhaps your pastoral ministry is in the marketplace. I want to show you what it looks like to do ministry in a pastoral sense in the marketplace. I’m not talking about Bible studies, and I’m not talking about sermons, but I am talking about shepherding. I’m going to teach you in this video. Listen, I’m going to give it to you straight: one of the most misused and misunderstood words in a Christian context is the word «pastor.» When I say that word, I’m sure there are thoughts, images, and examples that come to your mind. Maybe you’re thinking of me, or perhaps the leader of an institutional church, or someone who has a pastoral role at a local church, or someone who is part of a pastoral team. If you’re thinking that way, I’m not saying that’s incorrect, but I am saying that if, when you hear the word «pastor,» the only thing you think about is what I just mentioned, that is incomplete. Just because those are the ways that word has been used doesn’t mean those are the only ways that word can be or should be used. As a matter of fact, I don’t know if you have thought about it like this, and I don’t even know if you’re ready for this. More often than not, when the Bible uses the word «pastoring,» many people that that word refers to were not in an institutional church as we know it. Even the institutional church as we know it didn’t really exist until after the Edict of Milan, which was over 300 years after Jesus’s death when Constantine declared Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire. That’s when Christianity became more institutionalized, shifting from a viral movement that met in whatever spaces it could—like houses or open spaces—to the cathedrals and structures we now associate with Christianity. But for over 300 years after Jesus’s death, when you said «pastor,» people weren’t thinking about brick-and-mortar buildings. You know what they were thinking about? They were thinking about what the word actually means, and one of the Greek words used in the New Testament for «pastor» is «poimain,» which literally means «shepherd.» This is why even Alan Hirsch, in his five-fold ministry assessment, uses the acronym «APEST» to describe the five-fold ministry: Apostle, Prophet, Evangelist, and instead of «Pastor,» he uses «Shepherd,» and then «Teacher.» He uses the word «Shepherd» because he’s trying to address all of the misunderstandings and messiness surrounding the word «pastor.» When people go through our assimilation process at our church, they participate in something called «Change Track,» which consists of four bases or areas of specialized learning that we want them to complete. One is called «Foundations,» and at the end of Foundations, they are introduced to something called «Spiritual Gifts.» They then take spiritual gifts assessments, which are discernment tools to help them see what spiritual gifts God has given them. It never fails; when someone looks at the pastoral gift, they get all worked up. They’re like, «Oh wait a minute! I got this gift. I am not a pastor!» because they assume that the word «pastor» means that you do what I do. When the truth of the matter is it means that you have—catch this—you have the conviction, the confidence, and the ability to care uniquely for people. That is literally what it means; it means you are a shepherd. There are people exercising their pastoral gift who are not reverends, nor bishops. There are people exercising a pastoral gift who don’t preach; they haven’t been called to preach, they don’t write sermons, and they don’t write books. You know what they can do? They can galvanize people! Come on! They’ve got a conviction when it comes to people. They value individuals in a unique way; they possess competence and what Alan Hirsch calls «apostolic genius.» They just have this know-how and intuition; they simply understand people differently. And when I say understand people, I’m not talking about skills you can develop or some interpersonal skill where you’ve learned how to win friends and influence people. No, no, no, it’s an uncommon IQ; they connect with others in a way that cannot be taught. Now, let me ask you something: could the marketplace use more people operating in that gift? Listen, when you get better spiritually, everything gets better. Spiritual life is not the only important part of your life; it is the most important part of your life. It affects every other part that is important, but you don’t get stronger spiritually accidentally. It takes intentionality. You need to be fed, and you need to learn how to explain the Bible. The Bible is the blueprint to your best life, and I’m going to tell you, Sunday is not enough to give you the tools to get better with the Bible. I want you to join me in my community called Bible.