The Ongoing Necessity Of Financial Assistance For Church Leaders
In any church planting situation, the objective must be self-sufficiency. Pastors of churches should be supported by those churches, not dependent upon contributions from outside those churches in the long-term. Paul asked the Corinthians, to whom he preached the gospel, “If we have sown spiritual things for you, is it a great thing if we reap your material things?… Even so the Lord has commanded that those who preach the gospel should live from the gospel.” (1 Cor. 9:11, 14). He clearly anticipated that they should provide for the financial needs of those who preached the gospel to them.
However, there is another New Testament principle, which is also extremely important. Those who have more than they need ought to share with those who do not have enough. In his second letter to the Corinthians, he encourages them to be cheerful givers, but not so that they should be impoverished themselves. He clarifies, “I do not mean that others should be eased, and you burdened; but by an equality, that now at this time your abundance may supply their lack… as it is written, ‘He who gathered much had nothing left over, and he who gathered little had no lack’.” (2 Cor. 8:13-15). Paul wanted those who had more than they needed to share with those who suffered lack, so that none should be in need.
Do we not have more than we need, with all our Western comforts? Is it not true that the vast majority in the UK and the USA have far more than is necessary? We believe it is surely so. And at the same time, at TRAIN(Kenya), we are keenly aware that many in that country lack even the basic necessities. This is especially true in the case of ministers seeking to plant churches in new places where the gospel has not yet become established. They often struggle to meet the needs of their families, and this can be a great discouragement and distraction in their service.
At TRAIN(Kenya) we seek to keep these two principles in balance. We are always encouraging churches to give more and provide more for their pastors, so that they might be more self-supporting. However, we are also aware of the significant ongoing needs of many pastors, and we seek to ensure that their basic needs are met, so that they can be encouraged and enabled to fulfil their calling and be faithful stewards of the mysteries of God.
