Tim Suffield has written this provocative piece about pastors not really having jobs. There’s much I would agree with here but I think there are a couple of things to push back against. So, first of all here’s why I agree with Tim. Yes, it is true that the pastor doesn’t have a job.
Our aim is to set people aside, to free them up for word ministry and prayer, this principle goes back to the book of Acts. Essentially, pastoral life is about being first and foremost part of the life of the church family. This has practical implications. First I agree with Tim that we might do better to think about stipends rather than salary progression. What does the worker need in order to be able to live in that community with his family and not have to worry about taking on other jobs to provde for them?
Another practical implication might include how we think about work, rest, holidays, social life Sabbath etc. It might help protect us from drawing unhelpful dichotomies between what is work and what is pleasure, what is paid and what is voluntary.
However, no it is nor true that the pastor doesn’t have a job. I think Tim probably went a little off course when he admitted that he didn’t have experience of sitting that side of the desk. He’s been an elder in a church but hasn’t had the responsibilities of the full time paid pastor. I hope he doesn’t mind me saying this but that would have been a good point to pause, reflect and maybe talk in person to a couple of pastors before writing because the result is that I don’t think he gets a good feel for what is involved. I’ve personally been a church member whilst working in the week and getting involved in different kinds of ministry. I’ve also been a pastor in a paid role but now find myself in a different context, an unpaid elder with a self-supported role encouraging church planting, training and equipping. I am able to say from that experience that the situation a paid, staff pastor finds themselves in is very different to the volunteer elder. I’m probably more at a stage where I really can say that I haven’t got others managing my time. Finding accountability matters more than ever.
So, no, it is not right to say that a pastor doesn’t have a job. Firstly, they have work to do and yes they are paid and accountable for it. They don’t just work for themselves and nor are they paid to gaze out the window and dream. There are things that the church have asked them to do, which need doing. They have to give account for their time.
It’s hard work, they are not being paid to do their hobby and that’s a good thing. Work is a good thing. Now, perhaps one of the issues here is our 21st century confusion about work and jobs. Being a pastor is not a career path and its not a job in the way that we often view work/employment as something detached from the rest of our life. However, that’s a very modern concept. Work is something God gave us to do, it’s partly to do with our creation mandate responsibilities to fill and subdue our creation, partly about ensuring our own families are provided for and protected and it is also about our contribution to our communities. A pastor is doing all of those things as they serve. It’s important that those of us not employed by churches recognise this and respect it.
This means that no a pastor does not have lots of free time. To be sure, they should not expect everyone else to revolve their time around them and fit meetings into the pastor’s schedule. There again, none of us should behave/think like that. Yet, if we expect our pastor to always be ready to fit around our schedules then we may have missed out on the point that they are accountable for their time, that they have got responsibilities (and that includes to their families as well) and that it isn’t okay to turn up late, cancel at the last minute or expect them to be available at a moment’s notice.
Yes your pastor has a job, just as much as you have a job. No, he doesn’t have a job, just as much as you don’t have a job!
Faithroots 
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