What Comes First:
The Preacher or the Church?


THE PROBLEM

      There is a definite emphasis among good missionaries on the need to train national preachers. The need for these laborers is critical, including in the Yucatán Peninsula. However, if the missionary is initiating a work in a new area without borrowing from nearby churches, from where will he draw saved and proven men as candidates for the ministry?

How will these men gain needed experience and demonstrate their gifts before being sent out on their own? As I see it, the foundation of an indigenous church is indispensable. The initial responsibility for this task rests with the missionary himself.

OUR PREDICAMENT
      We have fellowship with other missionaries, although it is not as much as we should have. Our location has played a big part in this. Cancun is not on the way to anywhere, except maybe Cuba or Miami. At any rate, our work has been strictly our own. It was started from scratch. We knew nary a soul when we moved here. We had no invitations, no prospects. There were no other independent churches from which to draw moral support, laborers or fellowship (the closest being Chetumal or Mérida, each being 200 miles from Cancun). It has been a conscious preference of mine to not build on another man's foundation. Some have come uninvited from other churches. A few have stayed, most have moved on.

THE POSSIBILITIES
      It is inconceivable in this situation to wait for God to raise up men to be trained and sent out before having done anything else. Again, where will the trainees come from? The opportunity exists for obtaining graduates from other missionaries' schools. I am not saying that will not work or that I would never consider it. However, much time and effort would be involved in building a trustworthy, workable relationship, regardless of where they studied. Care must be taken to insure that congregations are being left with true pastors, not with mere hirelings. My goal has been to see men raised up from among those in our own work; not for vainglory, but for the good of the work itself. This would tend toward a stability and one-mindedness that is so necessary, especially in the formative years. Though not stated explicitly in Acts 14:21-23, the passage indicates that the ordained elders were men chosen from their respective congregations. In the meantime, until there are tried and true pastors in the work, it is essential that the missionary be directly involved in the development of the new congregations. The entire flock needs as much vigilance, correction and nurturing as does a new preacher.

      Sending out a score of new men to preach to the regions beyond makes for a good report. But, unless they and their new missions are closely tended, the lasting results are often questionable. Our hoping so hard for the best while turning a blind eye to detail and scrutinizing follow-up, often turns us into a laughingstock. Naivety undermines our credibility among the folks we are trying to reach.

THE PITFALLS
      You who have started a work as we have done can appreciate what is involved in seeing a group of people transformed into a mature body of Christ. It takes time and patience. It takes grace, as you gain one and lose two; as you try to discern who can be trusted and who cannot. It takes trusting 1Cor.15:58, especially if you have ever been as low as I have and wondered if you are accomplishing anything at all!

      I sense that our people are not as anxious about having me out of the picture as I am. I am glad that they care about me and my family, but I sometimes fear that they care too much. Consequently, they must be reminded frequently of the impermanence of our ministry among them.

      At least in the early stages, most of the leadership, preaching, training and doing in general falls on the missionary. That means that his weaknesses and mistakes may be transmitted to the ones he is discipling. Indeed, the responsibility is great.

THE PROJECTIONS
      According to 1Tim.3:15, the church is the "pillar and ground of the truth." An erring preacher over a weak church will likely scatter the flock. An erring preacher over a strong church will likely find himself on the outside looking in, soon to be replaced by God's man. In this manner, the work of the Lord is not impeded or scoffed at. Sound, spiritual churches will be blessed by the Lord as he continues to save and call men to preach from among them. Though seemingly slow and toilsome at first, what a joy it will be to know that a proper foundation has been laid, that one has strived lawfully, and best of all, that his "fruit should remain."

Greg Smith
Cancun, QR, MEXICO
May, 1986