How Not to Handle a Pastoral Succession

How To not Deal with a Pastoral Succession

On September 17, 1944, a comparatively unknown pastor named Kenneth Owen White arrived at Metropolitan Baptist Church in Washington, D. C. (later generally known as Capitol Hill Baptist Church), desperate to show himself. In time, he would rise to nationwide prominence—most famously, grilling John F. Kennedy throughout the 1960 presidential marketing campaign after which later serving as president of the Southern Baptist Conference. However on the time, White was merely a freshly minted PhD keen to check his mettle as pastor.

What greeted him was chaos. Like many mid-twentieth-century Southern Baptist church buildings, the church’s membership rolls boasted practically 3,000 names, however Sundays advised a special story. Barely a fraction of these members confirmed up. White suspected as a lot, and when he determined to check his hunch with attendance playing cards one winter Sunday in 1948, he confirmed it: 763 individuals, in complete. The numbers weren’t simply inflated—they have been a mirage.

However worse than the numbers was the shadow solid by his predecessor. Dr. John Compton Ball had pastored Metropolitan for an astonishing forty-one years. He was beloved, a patriarch of types, tied to the congregation throughout generations. He had baptized their kids and buried their grandparents. And now, although formally retired, he lived instantly throughout the road and had no intention of letting go.

The Drawback of Letting Go

Ball’s presence wasn’t simply felt—it was palpable. He retained his function as pastor emeritus, a beneficiant wage, and a seat on the deacons’s conferences. Extra troubling, he appeared to relish reminding the congregation—and White—of his continued affect. Throughout providers, Ball anticipated recognition, typically demanding to take a seat on the platform the place the pastor historically sat. He even justified it by explaining, “Folks say except I’m seated on the platform, it simply doesn’t seem to be Metropolitan.”

White tried to handle the state of affairs tactfully. He selected 1 Corinthians 2:2—Ball’s inaugural sermon textual content—as his personal first sermon to display continuity with the previous. He praised the church’s historical past beneath Ball, declaring that Metropolitan had been constructed on “Jesus Christ and him crucified” and promising to hold that legacy ahead.

But, Ball’s interference escalated. Throughout considered one of White’s early Wednesday night time displays, whereas outlining just a few priorities for the church, Ball requested to handle the congregation. “Effectively,” he stated, “you’ve gotten heard our pastor’s solutions. He’s a younger man and unknown to most of you. You’ll not be happy to go to him along with your most private issues, however I would like you to keep in mind that I nonetheless reside throughout the road. You possibly can all the time come to me.”

One Sunday after service, Dr. White walked to the vestibule to greet members and guests, solely to search out Dr. Ball on the heart of a jovial group of congregants, holding courtroom. As White approached, the laughter died, changed by an ungainly hush. Each well mannered inquiry White made was met with stiff, monosyllabic replies, and as he walked away, he may really feel the dialog reigniting behind him. “This does one thing to a person,” White later mirrored, the ache of these moments nonetheless palpable. “I believe it’s certain to.”

For Okay. Owen White—who would later shepherd First Baptist Church of Houston by means of the turbulent waters of racial integration and ignite the “conservative resurgence” within the Southern Baptist Conference together with his 1962 article “Loss of life within the Pot”—nothing in comparison with the grueling ordeal of his pastoral transition at Metropolitan Baptist Church. Reflecting on the expertise, White admitted, “Most likely essentially the most troublesome expertise I’ve ever had. Mrs. White stated my hair turned grey inside the first six months.”

When Endurance Runs Skinny

White’s preliminary technique was endurance. He tried to mollify Ball, often calling on him to shut in prayer or publicly recognizing his contributions. However Ball wished extra. He continued attending deacons’s conferences. He performed weddings with out informing White. He fumed when his identify was left off a church commercial. And all of the whereas, his presence undermined White’s authority.

After greater than a 12 months of navigating these tensions, White reached his breaking level. At a personal assembly with the deacons, White laid out the state of affairs: Ball’s conduct was stifling the church’s progress and making it unattainable for White to steer. To White’s aid, all however one of many deacons sided with him. They assured White of their help and confronted Ball, insisting that it was time to step apart.

To his credit score, Ball relented—largely. Whereas there have been minor tensions within the years that adopted, the worst of the facility battle had handed. With Ball now not meddling, White was lastly free to steer. Throughout his five-year tenure, the church thrived, baptizing practically 1,000 new members.

We All Want Reminders!

Within the busyness of life it’s all too straightforward to neglect who God is, what he has executed for us, and who we’re due to him. Crossway needs to assist! Join in the present day to obtain concise Scripture-filled, gospel-saturated reminders that can encourage you and strengthen your stroll with Jesus.

What We Can Be taught

Pastoral transitions are fraught with issue, compounded by the size and public prominence of the outgoing pastor. The expertise of Okay. Owen White at Metropolitan Baptist Church, although humorous looking back, is a cautionary story for church buildings navigating pastoral transitions.

Classes for Retiring Pastors

A retiring pastor’s affect can both strengthen or undermine the transition course of. The function of a retired pastor is to not stay within the highlight however to encourage and help their successor. Retiring pastors ought to be intentional about fostering unity by directing the congregation’s focus to trusting God beneath the brand new pastor’s management.

Classes for Incoming Pastors

When Mark Dever arrived at Capitol Hill Baptist Church half a century later, Martyn Lloyd-Jones’s son-in-law properly advised him that for the primary 5 years, “it was the opposite man’s church.” For incoming pastors, getting into the function of a shepherd could be daunting, significantly when following a long-tenured and beloved chief. Success requires a mix of respect for the previous, readability in management, and endurance.

Honoring the outgoing pastor’s legacy is crucial for constructing belief with the congregation. White, for example, emphasised continuity by preaching 1 Corinthians 2:2 (Dr. Ball’s inaugural sermon textual content) and expressing his appreciation for the church’s historical past and values. But respect for the previous should not come on the expense of management within the current. When the previous pastor’s actions undermined the church’s unity, White properly confronted the problem.

Classes for Elder Boards

One issue in Metropolitan’s case was that the church lacked a biblical plurality of elders. In what was pretty typical for the time, John Compton Ball was the only real pastor and anticipated the deacons to observe his management. A plural eldership.

A church’s board of elders (or management crew) has essentially the most essential function to play in making certain a wholesome pastoral succession. Their actions—or inactions—can both alleviate or exacerbate tensions throughout transitions. Most significantly, the elders have a duty to guard the brand new pastor’s capacity to steer successfully, as White’s deacons did when confronting Dr. Ball. Elder boards ought to before everything set clear expectations. Church buildings ought to set up a written succession plan outlining the retiring pastor’s tasks (if any) and setting boundaries to forestall overlap with the incoming pastor’s function. By offering construction, the elders can set each pastors up for fulfillment and keep away from the relational and organizational pitfalls that plagued White’s early years at Metropolitan.

Conclusion

Pastoral transitions are among the many most delicate moments in a church’s life. Retiring pastors, incoming leaders, and church management groups every have an important function to play in making certain a easy and God-honoring transition. When approached with humility, knowledge, and belief in God’s sovereignty, these transitions can strengthen the church for generations to come back.

Caleb Morrell is the writer of A Light on the Hill: The Surprising Story of How a Local Church in the Nation’s Capital Influenced Evangelicalism.

Associated Articles