Pastoral Ministry & Preaching

Preaching has played a key part in the life and growth of the church since its birth at Pentecost.  Scotland, and the United Kingdom as a whole, has a rich heritage of preachers from people such as Thomas Chalmers, Robert Murray McCheyne, George Whitfield and John Wesley to, more recently, people such as John Stott, William Still and Martin Lloyd Jones.  As the best preachers of the past have done, today’s preachers seek to bring God’s word in all its power alive in God’s world with all its need, to transform individuals, congregations and communities.

Along with the call to preach comes the call to care for the flock of God. In many churches, preaching and pastoral ministry are often closely linked, and so when they call a minster or pastor they look for competence in both aspects of ministry. In Western contexts pastors need to be able to help Christians face the hard challenges of following Christ in a climate which is strongly secular and sometimes hostile towards Christianity, as well as helping those who come to faith deal with the emotional and spiritual questions they may bring with them. In other parts of the world where the church is growing rapidly, pastors need to be able to help Christians grow into maturity and develop leaders who will themselves be able to pastor others.