When those who are called into vocational Christian ministry enter theological training, they generally expect it to take at least three to four years. Even with that, though, no one goes into their education thinking they will come out knowing everything there is to know about theology or church leadership. They recognize it for what it is – an educational foundation to build upon for their rest of their ministry. So they study basic doctrine, missions and evangelism, Christian ethics, apologetics, world religions, and other subjects that will establish that foundation.
Of course, it is natural that those called into church leadership ministry would feel a need for that kind of education. They will typically be formally serving in a place where they will be responsible for leading and guiding those under their influence.
The truth is, though, that kind of training is not exclusive to Christian ministry. Virtually every vocation has some kind of specialized training to prepare people to effectively work in its field. Some of the training is done in colleges and universities, some in vocational schools, some in special certification classes, and other is actually done by “on the job training” (OJT).
But Christians Are a Special Case
While not every Christian is called into vocational Christian ministry, we are all called into full-time Christian ministry. God has called and commissioned every believer to: “Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to follow all that I commanded ….” (Matthew 20:19-20 NASB)
Now, if that is really true (that all believers are called into Christian ministry), why don’t they all go to seminary? Shouldn’t they also get the kind of training that professional ministers get? Well, there are some problems associated with doing that.
For one thing, many of the courses taught in theological schools are primarily geared toward people who plan to go into professional Christian leadership ministry. A lot of the things taught there are really not that relevant for the average Christian. They were specifically designed for those who are going to be in professional leadership in the church.
Another problem is that most people simply don’t have three or four years to devote to that kind of training. After all, God has led them into other areas of life where He wants them to serve. God has called people into a huge variety of vocations because He wants to have a witness in every part of the world.
Still, the Bible teaches that every believer is a minister of the gospel and needs to be equipped to carry the message into their world. So how do everyday Christians get their theological education?
The Equipping Blueprint
Ephesians 4:11-13 provides a blueprint for how everyday believers are to get their theological training. It teaches that the primary work of church leaders is to “equip the saints for the work of ministry.” The corollary to that is that everyday church members must put themselves into a position to be equipped. So, the local church, by default, usually becomes their seminary.
In the process of structuring their programs, most churches provide at least some training opportunities for their members. They do it through sermons, Bible study classes, various other church programs, and perhaps the occasional discipleship training class.
But this approach is, by nature, mostly random. In fact, it is extremely difficult to provide a systematic training opportunity that covers all the important bases in a church program schedule. Sermons, over time, will cover a lot of ground, but from week to week, or month to month, they really do jump around a lot. The same is true with most Bible study classes. And while there may be periodic discipleship training opportunities, those, too, tend to be done in a somewhat random fashion. It is actually rather rare to find a church that has figured out a systematic way to provide a comprehensive educational foundation to help regular church members effectively prepare for and carry out their ministry mandate.
Needed Training Content
So exactly what should a Christian’s training consist of? It actually consists of a rather wide selection of topics that would generally take a long time to study. To get a solid foundation, Christians need to be equipped in such areas as:
- Worldview Basics
- Essential Christian Doctrine
- Missions and Evangelism
- Ethics and Morality
- Apologetics
- A Christian’s Devotional Life
- A Study of Other Religions
Just looking at this wide range of topics probably seems rather daunting. How in the world can everyday Christians dig into all these areas in a reasonably logical way? While it may seem rather daunting, it actually is very possible. The key to doing it is to first establish a foundation in all of the areas at once, then build on that foundation over time. It is not at all unlike the way everyone already gets their vocational training.
Who, after all, is totally proficient in their field right out of school? Even people who do formal study for years (a medical doctor, for instance) is still a novice when they first get out of school. After that, they go to work and gain tons of practical and specialty knowledge that they didn’t get in their academic setting. They gain hands-on experience, they continue reading and studying in their field, they attend seminars, they get insights from more experienced colleagues, and the growth opportunities go on and on. So, over time, they continually get more knowledgeable and proficient in their work. This is true for pastors, accountants, scientists, construction workers, plumbers, truck drivers, nurses, and virtually every other field of endeavor. Formal training is the foundation, then ongoing experience in the field takes people to greater heights in their profession. You have, no doubt, experienced this very thing in your own life.
And that is also the way it must work for everyday Christians to become the ministers for Christ God has called them to be out in the world. They get a basic foundation in the needed areas of knowledge, then build on that as they live out their Christian life in the world.
So How Does That Work?
In some ways, acquiring this kind of knowledge seems like it might not be possible. But it is if you start in the right place. There is a body of knowledge that all of the training needs are built around. It is the core around which everything else revolves.
When it comes to beliefs, worldview beliefs are the most foundational ones in existence. Everyone (Christian and non-Christian alike) has a worldview, and everything they think and do is based upon it. It is what allows people to make sense of the world they live in. Whether their worldview beliefs are true or false, it provides them a framework for understanding their world – and they will live by those beliefs – really without ever even questioning whether or not they are true. Because of that, understanding worldview concepts is the place we need to begin. This is particularly true in the pluralistic societal environment that currently exists.
Too often, Christians think they only need to understand biblical worldview beliefs. That is an essential core part of needed training, of course, and that was probably sufficient in previous times when American society was very homogeneous. But it is not enough in our current pluralistic society. We need to know not only what we believe, but why our Christian beliefs are true and other beliefs are not. On top of that, we need to know how to share our beliefs across worldview barriers – and for sure, a worldview barrier is a huge chasm. Without that missionary skill, our message is likely, by many people, not to even be understood.
So the beginning point is to get a solid grounding in worldview concepts. It not only allows us to more fully understand our own beliefs, but is the organizing principle for laying the foundation for all of the other essential Christian discipleship topics. Get this foundation, and everything else falls into place.
With this kind of approach, it actually is possible to get a foundational seminary education in a very short time. It is not a deep foundation like a person would get in 3-4 years of seminary training, but it does cover all the bases. It is the kind of foundation that allows everyday believers to feel confident about diving into the Christian ministry God has called them to.
With that foundation, every time a person hears a sermon, it is building on a comprehensive base that they have already established. The same is true when participating in a Bible study class, reading a Christian book, participating in a special Christian discipleship study, or any other spiritual growth activity. It also give a person the ability to more effectively recognize and address the false beliefs they see in their world, and point people to the truth of the gospel.
© 2024 Freddy Davis
The One-Day Seminary
The article above shares a concept that lays out the discipleship training needs all Christians have. Now let me share with you something MarketFaith Ministries has developed to help meet that need.
The One-Day Seminary for Everyday Believers is a one-day class that shares a systematic and comprehensive training opportunity to provide that essential core foundation for everyday believers. Obviously, no one is going to learn in one day what seminarians get in three or four years of study. However, this training does provide a solid grounding in the core essentials needed by everyday Christians.
MarketFaith Ministries is a worldview discipleship ministry. Our specialty is to equip believers to profoundly impact the world for Christ. It would be our pleasure to share with you this equipping opportunity. Contact us today at info@marketfaith.org and lets begin that conversation.