Qualifications of the Preacher

The qualifications of the preacher

The preacher’s scope of qualification is mental, moral and spiritual. The preacher should be spiritually qualified and anointed to preach. The preacher should be mentally qualified through study. The preacher should be morally qualified by keeping a Christian testimony. Let us look closely at some specific qualifications of the preacher.

He must be a true Christian

To preach Christ you must know Christ. Paul prayed: that I may know Him. As a preacher, you need to know Jesus as your Savior. You must know who Jesus is so that you can share who He is with others. It should be obvious that a preacher must be born-again, yet many today that call themselves preachers are not even saved. An individual must be a Believer before he can be a preacher (II Cor. 4:13).

Charles Wesley, the brother of John Wesley, preached and taught for several years ever before he accepted Christ as his Savior. As a sinner, he started religious studies at Christ Church, Oxford in 1726, but he wasted most of his energy there looking for good times. He received his master’s degree making marks as a scholar in 1733 and in 1735 he was even ordained a priest in the Church of England. In 1738, Charles experienced a much needed ‘spiritual awakening.’ He was convinced of the New Testament message of salvation finally some 12 years after doing much religious study and even preaching. He was fruitless and ineffective during those 12 years, but following his conversion, Charles became an integral part of the great revival in America working beside his famous brother John Wesley. “Over the years of his ministry he wrote some 6,500 hymns to spread the New Testament message as he understood it. When he died in London on March 29, 1788, he was known as a preacher of great power and wisdom.” ("Charles Wesley". 2005. http://www.bookrags.com/biography/charles-wesley)

He must be called

The ministry of preaching is a calling of God. The Bible tells us that a man must be sent in order to preach the Gospel (Mark 3:14; Rom. 10:15). It is God who does the sending. God called Jeremiah to be a prophet before he was even born. “Before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations” (Jeremiah 1:5). The calling of God is more than emotion or excitement. The God of heaven will place His call upon a man’s life to preach His Gospel.

What is meant by a call of God?

It is an inner conviction given by the Holy Ghost and confirmed by the Word of God and the body of Christ. The Holy Ghost will speak to your heart. Paul spoke of the Holy Ghost bearing witness with his conscience (Romans 9:1). God will burn His call upon your heart. The Word of God will strengthen this conviction. God will speak to you through His Word. Other Spirit filled Christians will bear witness of the call. The Holy Ghost spoke to the early church to Separate Paul and Barnabas for the work that God had called them to do (Acts 13:1–3). The call of God will be confirmed by the Body of Christ. James, Peter, and John recognized the call of God upon Paul’s life (Galatians 2:9).

Only God can make a preacher

This class will not make you a preacher. This class will help you to learn how to study the Bible, prepare a sermon, and preach what you have studied. All these tools will still not make you a preacher. Effective preaching is not just presenting many facts and truths of Scripture, but is a work of the Holy Ghost through a prepared vessel.

He must be a student of the Bible

The preacher must know what he is preaching about. You must know the Word before you can preach the Word. A workman will study and learn for the occupation he intends to do. For example a mechanic will learn about cars, a carpenter will learn about working with wood, and the preacher should like the other workman study the Word which he intends to preach.

The preacher should form a habit of daily study of the Bible. If the preacher is feeding daily on the Word of God he will have an abundant source of the Bread of Life to feed to others. The preacher must be prepared, through a study of the text to be preached, before he enters the pulpit. He should be thoroughly familiar with the portion of Scripture that is to be preached.

He must be a man of prayer

I Thessalonians 5:17—Pray without ceasing.

Ephesians 6:18—Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

Prayer is the key to the success of the preacher

The success of a preacher is measured in souls saved and lives that have been changed by the power of God, not in monetary gain or popularity. The preacher needs to live a life of prayer if he is to have favor with God to reach the souls of men. A preacher that does not learn to pray will not stay in the ministry.

You will teach by example

The people that you preach to will look to you as their example. If people see that the preacher is not given to prayer then they will not pray much either.

The power of God comes through prayer

If the preacher is to have the power of God in his life he must be a man of prayer. If there is no prayer there will be no power, if there is little prayer there will be little power, and if there is much prayer there will be much power. Every man of God that has been empowered by God has been a man of prayer. There are no shortcuts with God. If you want to preach the Gospel with power and authority then you must pray and pray and pray.

He must be clean in life

The preacher must live a separated life

It is essential that the preacher live a clean life (II Cor. 6:17). The Old Testament Priests were sanctified for the Lord’s service. The word sanctified means to be set apart or separated for God’s service. God requires that a man of God be separated from the world. Jesus was anointed by God above others because He loved righteousness, and hated iniquity (Hebrews 1:9). The preacher’s heart must be toward the things of God, and not towards the world. The power of God comes only through a clean life.

The preacher must keep a good testimony

A preacher that does not live a Godly example will have no effect preaching to others to live a Godly life. The Word tells us that we are living epistles, read and known by all men (II Corinthians 3:2). For example, if people see the preacher always losing his temper and becoming angry they will not listen when that preacher tells them not to get mad. People will not respect a man that does not live a Godly life.

He must be fit for service

God’s Word tells us to work with all of our might (Ecc. 9:10), and this includes the preaching of the Gospel. The preacher should try to live healthy so he can have strength for the service of God.

The preacher should be physically fit for service

It is important as a preacher, you take care of yourself. You should make the attempt to eat right, and get proper sleep. The Bible tells us that there is some profit in bodily exercise. It is difficult for a preacher to preach when he is huffing and puffing in the pulpit and is always out of breath while he is trying to preach. It can also be difficult for people to receive from a preacher who is always out of breath. Your mind will not be alert if you do not get enough sleep. Our bodies are the temple of the Holy Ghost. The preacher needs to make the effort to take care of his body.

The preacher should be mentally fit for service

You should not bring your burdens with you to the pulpit. The people will feel if you are discouraged and burdened down.

• You must learn to cast all your cares upon Jesus (I Peter 5:7)
• Jesus is the burden bearer (Matthew 11:28)
• Paul admonished us to let the mind of Christ be in us (Philippians 2:5)

The preacher needs to have the mind of Christ. The mind of Christ is never discouraged, fearful or burdened down. Again, proper rest and nutrition will help you to be mentally fit for service.