Book Response

Prime, Derek J. and Begg, Alistair. On Being a Pastor: Understanding Our Calling and Work.

Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 2013.

Josías Ortiz González

PRS6520.HYBR: The Pastor and the Preaching Ministry

November 14, 2021

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Summary

On Being a Pastor: Understanding Our Calling and Work is a book written by Derek J.

Prime and Alistair Begg; both well-experienced pastors, writers, and speakers. They take on

the mission of presenting the realities and insides of pastoral ministry. The book intends to

review the ministry of pastors and teachers in the church, by sharing the experience and

practice of the authors as a reference point for the pastors that are reading the book.

The book goes over the major topics of pastoral ministry. The book can be divided into

many sections. The first section regards the calling of a pastor and his character (chapters 1-

3). In this section, Prime and Begg dive into motives and the life of those who are being called

to ministry. In the second section (chapters 4-6), they cover the life of the pastor and his

relationship with God, going into his time of prayer, his devotional life, and his study. In the

third section of the book, Prime and Begg center their attention on the life of the pastor as a

caretaker, more specifically on his preaching and pastoral care (chapters 7-9), chapter ten can

be viewed as a stand-alone chapter because it deals with how to conduct Sunday morning

worship.

The last section relates to the life of the pastor as a leader, decision-maker. In this section

the book presents how the pastor should lead the flock more administratively, presenting his

responsibilities, the way he should delegate, and making a clear distinction between his role as

a pastor and family man, concluding with the correct administration of the perils and benefits

he receives as a pastor of a congregation.

It is a very enlightening book, and very practical. It is honest about how the authors address

the different realities of the ministry, not always agreeing with each other in their approach to
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certain topics, for instance, in the way they both approach the topic of intercessory prayer in

chapter four. Prime is more disciplined and organized, having a list of the church membership,

and praying for them daily (p.69) while Begg does it “In a more random fashion.” (p.70)

Nonetheless, the constant for them is to always ponder what Scriptures say about the matter

and applying the truths of the Bible to their ministries.

Key Principles of the Book

There are two key principles in the book. The first principle relates to the identity of the

pastor. The calling of a pastor is more than just preaching or teaching the Bible every Sunday

morning, it is a call to serve, because “He is above all one who ministers – in other words, he is a

servant.” (p.30) an image that is usually misunderstood by some who enter the office of elder, to

gain authority or power, but not as a minister, not as a servant. Prime and Begg explain that “One

of the paradoxes of Christian leadership is that the leader is not a boss but a servant – someone

who follows in the footsteps of Him (Jesus) who washed His disciple’s feet.” (p.30) considering

this, he who serves as a pastor must have a clear understanding that he is called to serve.

The second principle is the relationship between the pastor and God. The theme that is

most often repeated in the book is prayer. Prime and Begg make great emphasis on the importance

of prayer. They dedicate a whole chapter to go over the relevance of prayer in the life of a pastor,

and this topic is seen throughout the different sections of the book.

They affirm that “More important than being a shepherd or teacher is being a son of God.

Prayer is the principal expression of our relationship to God through our Lord Jesus Christ. No

privilege is greater than being able to call God ‘Father,’ and knowing that it is true.” (p.62). With

this statement, they set the foundation to put the relationship with God at the highest level of
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priority possible for the pastor, in other words, making his bond with God significant for him.

Knowing that prayer “Has a unique place in our devotional life. We worship God by means of

prayer; and it is by prayer that we share our life and our innermost desires with Him.” (p.89)

Critique

On being a Pastor is a very interesting book to understand the life of a pastor, diving into

the practicalities of a servant of the Lord. The main strength of the book lies in the way that Prime

and Begg address each of the topics described in the book from the perspective of Scripture. They

support their arguments based on what the Bible teaches, adding their personal experience in the

field. When a gray area comes up, they are humble enough to provide their opinion and leave the

end decision to the pastor reading the book, of course, the decision of the latter should be based

on his interpretation of the Bible and the practical way he sees fit to his reality. Therefore, it is a

great source of knowledge for those who are starting in pastoral ministry as well as for those who

already have the experience of the office of elders.

Additionally, I disagree with the emphasis they make on the role of Pastor-Teacher, as the

one “Leading” the congregation. They do agree that “Leadership in the church should always be

shared – that is one reason that the apostolic pattern was to appoint a plurality of elders rather than

a solitary elder in all the churches (Acts 14:23).” (p.206) but they do suggest that “Someone will

inevitably come to the fore or will be regarded by the church fellowship as the leader among the

leaders.” (p.206) and this person would most likely be the one with the responsibility of preaching

in the gatherings.

The reason why I disagree with this position is that it takes for granted that the most visible

elder in the church (that who preaches and teaches) is by default the “Team leader.” (p.206), while
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it will depend on how we describe the word team leader. I argue that “Team leader” can be any

of the elders depending on what area of the church they are in charge of, for example, the elder in

charge of evangelism and missions, is the “Team leader” of that area as well as the one responsible

for counseling or family, etc, therefore, if they all have a responsibility, they are all team leaders

in their respective field within the church. Making them all equal in the decisions making process

of the church.

Application

The main application I find in this book is the concept of seeing the pastor as an

undershepherd of the flock that belongs to God. The Pastor must become one that serves, not the

one being served, because “Son of Man came not to be served but to serve.” (Matthew 20: 28a

ESV) ergo, my life as a pastor, as a minister and servant of the Lord, should emulate the model of

Jesus as the Shepherd. He gave His life to service His flock, and I as His servant must have the

same understanding and goal in life: To serve the flock of the Lord, with the gifts and abilities, He

has provided for me.

Conclusion

The book On Being a Pastor is a great source to understand pastoral ministry. It is clear,

direct, and provides with the necessary tools to embark into the life of a pastor. They make sure

that the reader can have a picture of the daily tasks of a pastor, the realities involved in ministry,

and how to overcome them. The way they approach the different topics of the book is biblical and

they provide the proper ground to build a ministry according to what the Bible expects us to do.