Sep 17, 2015

Growing in Christ, Serving in Ministry: An Interview with Sinclair Ferguson

1 Min Read

Here's an excerpt from Growing in Christ, Serving in Ministry, an interview with Sinclair Ferguson from the September issue of Tabletalk:

Tabletalk: We often hear of the calling for pastors to be theologians. What does it mean to be a theologian, and how can pastors fulfill that calling?

Sinclair Ferguson: Being a theologian means, in essence, having a comprehensive knowledge of the gospel in all its many facets and interconnectedness. I liken it to being a physician who understands anatomy, and a pharmacist who understands body chemistry and knows his pharmaceuticals. Without a good working knowledge of theology, we will never understand how the gospel works, nor what the causes of spiritual sicknesses are, nor what gospel remedies to apply. In addition, we will be very poor at destroying the intellectual strongholds of unbelief, since we ourselves will lack the stronghold of the whole counsel of God.

I have always loved something I read about Calvin: he became a theologian in order to be a better pastor. Growing as a theologian may not make me a better pastor than someone else, but it will make me a better one than I would be without it.

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