When I think about the pastors that have had the biggest impact on my life, a whole host of names run through my mind. How helped have I been from Paul Washer’s teachings on prayer and his emphasis on the gospel? What about John Piper’s writing and preaching on delighting in God, or R. C. Sproul’s sermons on the Holiness of God? And yet, as helpful as these men have been in developing my theology, these are not my favorite pastors. So who are the men who have had the greatest influence on my development and Christian growth? My favorite pastors are my pastors.
My pastors are the men who have preached the gospel to me countless times. In their sermons, in personal conversations, over meals, and in the regular rhythms of life. My pastors opened God’s word to me when I was in college and taught me how to read the Bible for myself. They taught me how to pray, how to share the gospel, and how to love Jesus. My pastors helped me memorize Scripture and fanned into flame a passion to see the lost saved. I slept on their couches. They answered countless texts and phone calls. We’ve taught together. We’ve cried together. We’ve disagreed, and we’ve misunderstood one another. They’ve listened to me complain and compliment. And they’re my favorite pastors.
Great pastors and preachers abound, but God knows that these men are the pastors I need. These are the men who have oversight in my life and the ones who will one day give an account for my soul (Heb 13:17). I can listen to a thousand good sermons, but a sermon can’t keep watch over my soul. A podcast can’t shepherd. Not really. I can be helped, but nothing beats the actual commitment of local pastors in the local church.
We should celebrate the many good teachers that we can hear online, but they should never be a substitute for our own pastors. Local pastors, though not perfect men, are the men that God gives to each local church for her edification. These men should be our favorite pastors. They will be the ones who give us the steady diet of God’s word week in and week out, and they will be the ones who walk with us through the highs and lows in life. May we love and honor such men.
Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.
Heb 13:17
Jacob Crouch 2023
Aliens and Pilgrims 