At 9Marks, one of our favorite books on pastoral ministry is Colin Marshall and Tony Payne’s The Trellis and the Vine. The main idea is simple: in the disciple-making work of Christian ministry, the real growth that churches should pursue is the growth of the vine (Christians). Growing the church’s trellises (administrative structures) is important only insofar as it helps the vine to grow.
If Marshall and Payne are correct, and we think they are, there are some clear implications for what kinds of staff a church should look to hire. For instance, a church may benefit from hiring a trellis-building administrative pastor.
Indeed, this is not the right course of action for all situations. However, I’d like to raise a few of the advantages of an administrative pastor for your consideration.
YOUR FIRST HIRE: A FAITHFUL PREACHER
The most important thing is to find a man gifted by God to preach the Bible. This is because God always saves and sanctifies through his Word. Like the apostle Paul, we must be willing to let everything else fail, if necessary, to continue preaching the gospel (e.g., Acts 20:18-24).
