The Pastor as Public Theologian

Reclaiming a Lost Vision

Kevin J. Vanhoozer (Author), Owen Strachan (Author) Release Date: 1/21/20

Overview

Top Ministry Book of 2015, The Gospel Coalition (TGC Editors' Picks)

Many pastors today see themselves primarily as counselors, leaders, and motivators. Yet this often comes at the expense of the fundamental reality of the pastorate as a theological office. The most important role is to be a theologian mediating God to the people. The church needs pastors who can contextualize biblical wisdom in Christian living to help their congregations think theologically about all aspects of their lives, such as work, end-of-life decisions, political involvement, and entertainment choices.

Drawing on the Bible, key figures from church history, and Christian theology, this book offers a clarion call for pastors to serve as public theologians in their congregations and communities. It is designed to be engaging reading for busy pastors and includes pastoral reflections on the theological task from twelve working pastors, including Kevin DeYoung and Cornelius Plantinga.

Contents

Preface
Owen Strachan and Kevin J. Vanhoozer
Introduction: Pastors, Theologians, and Other Public Figures
Kevin J. Vanhoozer
• Problem: A Lost Vision
• Proposal: The Pastor-Theologian as Peculiar Public Figure
• Prospect: The Ministry of What Is "in Christ"
Pastoral Perspectives
Gerald Hiestand--Six Practical Steps toward Being a
Pastor-Theologian
Josh Moody--Seven Ways to Theologize as a Pastor
Part 1: Biblical Theology and Historical Theology
1. Of Prophets, Priests, and Kings: A Brief Biblical Theology of the Pastorate
Owen Strachan
• The Ministry of the Old Covenant in the Old Testament
• Participating in Jesus's Ministry of the New Covenant: The New Testament
• Conclusion: The Pastorate as Theological Office
Pastoral Perspectives
Melvin Tinker--The Pastor as Public Theologian
Todd Wilson--Human Origins: A Test Case for
Pastor-Theologians
Jim Samra--A Practical Theology of Technology
2. Of Scholars and Saints: A Brief History of the Pastorate
Owen Strachan
• The Early Church
• The Medieval Period: Scholasticism and Monasticism
• The Reformational Awakening: Protestant Pastors
• Theological Shepherds: The Puritans and the Practicality of Truth
• Agents of "Divine Business": The Edwardseans and Pastoral Dominion
• The Modern Turn: Populism, Professionalism, and the Taming
of the Pastorate
• Glimmers of Hope: Harold Ockenga and Neoevangelical Boldness
• Conclusion: Toward What Pastorate?
Pastoral Perspectives
Wesley G. Pastor--How the Theology of Saving Faith Has Affected My Congregation
Kevin DeYoung--A Place for Truth
Part 2: Systematic Theology and Practical Theology
3. In the Evangelical Mood: The Purpose of the Pastor-Theologian
Kevin J. Vanhoozer
• The Many Moods of Theology: Between Death and Resurrection
• A Ministry of Reality: Theology in the Indicative Mood
• A Ministry of Understanding: The Diakonia of God's Word
• A Ministry of (New) Life: Theology in the Imperative Mood
• The Goods of Theology: What Are Seminaries For?
Pastoral Perspectives
David Gibson--On Death
Bill Kynes--Preaching the Doctrine of the Gospel as Truth,
Goodness, and Beauty
Cornelius Plantinga Jr.--Reading for Preaching
4. Artisans in the House of God: The Practices of the Pastor-Theologian
Kevin J. Vanhoozer
• The Great Pastoral Commission: "Make Disciples"; "Build God's House"
• Evangelist: Presenting What Is in Christ
• Catechist: Teaching What Is in Christ
• Liturgist: Celebrating What Is in Christ
• Apologist: Demonstrating What Is in Christ
Pastoral Perspectives
Guy A. Davies--The Drama of Preaching
Jason B. Hood--The Pastor-Theologian as Pulpit Apologist
Conclusion: Fifty-Five Summary Theses on the Pastor as Public Theologian
Kevin J. Vanhoozer
Indexes

Endorsements

"This is a timely, more than timely--urgent--book. Kevin Vanhoozer, one of our leading theologians, protests the 'putting asunder' of theology by American pastors. A 'great chasm' has opened up as pastors, more often than not, abandon their vocations as theologians in their congregations for careers in which the secular culture calls all the shots. It was not always this way. Vanhoozer and Strachan skillfully fashion insight and discernment to bring us back to what the church ordained us to do."

†Eugene H. Peterson, professor emeritus of spiritual theology, Regent College, Vancouver; pastor emeritus, Christ Our King Presbyterian, Bel Air, Maryland

"Preachers today must present biblical truth to people who are more and more resistant to it. The skillful preacher must understand something of the history of ideas and the baseline cultural narratives of our day in order even to be comprehensible to them. Not only that, but preachers in our cities must often speak to people from several diverse world cultures all at once. I've come to the conclusion that ministers need more robust theological education and training than they did when I came into the ministry forty years ago. This book is an important, ringing call for working pastors and preachers to exercise a higher level of theologically informed leadership in our churches."

Tim Keller, Redeemer Presbyterian Church, New York City

"There's not much wrong with the practice of pastoral ministry that can't be cured by a good dose of theological refurbishment. This book gives strong impetus for construing the work of the pastor as authorized, energized, and sanctified by the pastor's theological commitments. A spirited, Spirit-filled book."

William Willimon, professor of the practice of Christian ministry, Duke Divinity School; retired bishop, United Methodist Church

"For years I have told students that they were too smart for the academy, that they should stretch themselves with the harder intellectual work of the parish. And here I thought I was being original. Vanhoozer and Strachan show the original and eschatological unity of two things that modernity has tried to pull apart--the vital parish and the learned pastor. Suddenly the job seems harder and more blessed than ever."

Jason Byassee, Butler Chair in Homiletics and Biblical Hermeneutics, Vancouver School of Theology

Authors

Kevin J. Vanhoozer

Kevin J. Vanhoozer (PhD, University of Cambridge), one of the world's top theologians, is research professor of systematic theology at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. He previously taught at Wheaton College and the University of Edinburgh. He is the author or editor of numerous books, including The Pastor as Public Theologian, Everyday Theology, The Drama of Doctrine, Is There a Meaning in This Text?, and the award-winning Dictionary for Theological Interpretation of the Bible.

Owen Strachan