Pastoral care v preaching

"I'm not going to waste my time listening to little old ladies ramble on or allow myself to get distracted by members of the congregation crying into their tissues. I'm here to preach the gospel". So said a lovely, gospel-hearted minister recently.

I wept. Though clearly not in front of him!

His comments were extreme. And certainly not in line with the view of many ministers I know who see their role as pastor to include both preaching and pastoral care. But he is not alone. Somewhere along the line the two great strands of pastoral ministry - proclaiming the word and helping individuals live out the word in the mess and complexity of their lives - seem to have become slightly parted. That is something worth weeping about.

But what exactly is the link between preaching and pastoral care? While they are clearly different in terms of method of delivery, do they really need to be at odds with one another?

1. Both preaching and pastoral care are part of the same mission

At their core, preaching and pastoral care have the same aim. They are part of the great mission of the church. They exist to help us see who God is and help us apply truths about God to the particular circumstances of our life so that we start following Jesus, change to become more like Jesus and live gospel-centred lives that glorify him. Whether it's a 40-minute exposition on Titus 3 or a conversation about redundancy the goal is to produce spiritual fruit in the lives of sinners.

2. Both preaching and pastoral care are Bible-centred

Or at least good preaching and pastoral care are both Bible-centred! I'm sure we've all experienced pastoral care which revolves around someone offering well-meaning platitudes and sermons that ride a particular hobby-horse. But if we truly believe that God's word is living and active (Hebrews 4:12) and all we need to be equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16) then the Bible needs to be at the core of any moment of teaching and encouragement. You can't do pastoral care well unless you can explain Scripture. You can't help someone see that God is sovereign over their cancer if you can't explain God's sovereignty from Scripture; you can't encourage a suicidal person to keep going unless you can explain the work of the Holy Spirit in promoting perseverance. And you can't preach a decent sermon that equips people for service unless it's firmly rooted in Gods' word.

3. Both preaching and pastoral care are people-orientated

God may be at the centre of both activities but they are aimed at real people in real situations. If sermons never have anything to say about the pain of childlessness, marriage difficulties, unemployment, terminal illness or addictions then they are probably not sermons at all but rather lectures on biblical interpretation. Both preaching and pastoral care need to speak to people where they are at.

4. Preaching leads naturally on to pastoral care

Sermons should raise pastoral problems! Because it is when the word of God speaks to our heart that we see ourselves as broken sinners in need of the cross. A sermon on Ephesians 5 should lead someone who is addicted to pornography to be broken hearted in repentance and conscious of their need to change. It should lead someone who is in massive debt because they feel the need to always have the latest piece of technology to be deeply convicted of the idols in their heart. And it should lead those who are guilty of gossip to cry tears of repentance and seek restoration with their brothers and sisters in Christ. And such people will need gentle shepherding to address those heart-issues well.

5. Pastoral care naturally fuels the application of preaching

Any wise minister is going to think about the pastoral problems in his church before applying his sermon. Not to name and shame people at the end of the exposition(!) but to make sure that the Bible teaching touches down where it's needed most.

I'm not for a moment suggesting that only pastors should do pastoral care. Corporate, community care is the Bible's mandate - we are called to spur one another on (Hebrews 10:24). And I'm not suggesting that we ought to expect omni-competent ministers - different men will have different gifts. But I wonder if there are some people - in both congregation and leadership - who need to recapture the wonder of the glorious duet that plays out when preaching and pastoral care go hand-in-hand. It will be then that more people can join with the psalmist and say "Trouble and distress have come upon me, but your commands give me delight" (Psalm 119:143).