Study – Grow – Know

Pastors and Their Pay

May 20, 2010 at 9:56 PM Leave a comment

Mammom?

I have a problem.  It has to do with how much money pastors make on average.  Not only do I have a problem with how much pastors make, but I have a problem on some level that pastors make anything at all!

I know, I know, you might be asking yourself if I’m crazy, or just pulling your chain.  Neither.  I believe there a very large problem exists in many churches these days and it has to do with the fact that for many pastors, it seems as though being a pastor is merely a career choice.

Years ago, one of the ways a man could be guaranteed to be able to provide for his family and his aged parents was by going into the pastorate.  As sad as it sounds, this was a legitimate way of earning money and a man did not even have to be an authentic Christian.  It was a career path, like becoming a banker.  It was very respectable and the men who chose that profession were normally respected, as well as set for life.

In today’s world, with high-paid CEOs and corporations that hand out huge bonuses to management (whether they truly earned it or not), it seems that many churches treat their pastors as if they are CEOs.  The pastors receive huge salaries, insurance, 401ks, housing allowance, mileage reimbursement and more.  On top of that, they pay no taxes at all, so when they receive a remuneration of say, $55,000 per year, they actually take home $55,000 per year.  The rest of us take home 25% or more less because we pay taxes.

When I consider Scripture – and let’s just look at the New Testament for a moment – I see John the Baptist, Jesus Christ and Paul who essentially took no pay.  Paul certainly could have and even pointed that fact out to the Corinthians, but chose not to be a stumbling block by not taking anything from that church.

So what did Paul do if he was not receiving money from churches?  He was earning his own money by doing what he learned to do as a youth – tentmaking.  Tentmaking allowed him to earn money so that he could pay his own way and not have to depend on those in the congregation for his support.

Now I do realize that people who support their pastor financially benefit from that spiritually.  The Lord blesses those who open their wallets to allow a person to be in the pastorate full time.

I’m wondering though if the days of being in the pastorate full time are behind us to a large degree.  I say that because for several reasons .  First, with the onset of the Emergent Church and the seeming neverending stream of apostasy occuring within the visible Church nowadays, this situation places great pressure on pastors.  Second, it might be too easy for pastors to become career men in the ministry.  Because they are career men, then they cannot leave their pastorate for another because of the lifestyle they have become accustomed to living.

In today’s world, I have come to the conclusion that with pastors who make a full package of compensation too often wind up giving into the pressure to placate members of their congregation one way or another.  By this I mean that they may be unable to mete out discipline to unruly, cowardly, or mean-spirited members of the congregation who sow discord like breathing.  By discipline, I am not talking about physically disciplining anyone (for those who are confused about it).  I am referring to Paul’s guidelines (as well as Jesus’ of course) about dealing with people in the visible church who live for themselves, create problems for others and in general, leave broken people in their wake.

Consider this:  every church has members that act up from time to time and some of these churches have people who deliberately and repeatedly churn up the waters.  They do so because they believe they are entitled because they may have been at that particular church for eons, or at least a few years.  They believe they can say what they want and do what they want and who is to stop them?  If someone comes down hard on them, they may actually wind up leaving that church.  At least, they might threaten to leave and if they leave, they will certainly take their wallets with them.

If people start leaving that church, there is that much less money in the coffers, for salaries, for missionary work, and for other things that every church needs.  This would not be good in many respects.  Please understand, I’m not implying or saying that this is a main concern of pastors.  Unfortunately, human nature being what it is, it can wind up inadvertently being unconsciously part of the decision making process.

Think about the amount of pressure that many pastors face because their livelihood depends upon bringing in a paycheck.  They have mortgages, car payments, college tuition, groceries, and a ton of things, just like you and I do.   Who among us wants to deal with the constant prospect of seeing people leave your place of employment?  If that was the case, wouldn’t you do everything you could to not only keep your “customers,” but gain new ones?

All of this may sound cynical, but in reality, what we are talking about is what most people normally deal with from time to time in their life.  We all deal with the stress of possible unemployment from, or a concern about whether we will make enough to cover our bills.  Pastors are no different because they, like you and me, are human.

So imagine the pastor who believes he is called to pastor a church, is offered a decent compensation package and accepts the position.  After the honeymoon period and things begin to fall into a routine, the pastor begins to see problems in the church.  They’re not big problems necessarily, but problems still.  This person talks against that person, someone else starts a rumor or spreads gossip.

Before the pastor knows it, he is spending some of this time putting out one fire after another.  What he is trying to do is keep the peace, or unity within the body.  Is he doing it because he is concerned about the people, or because he doesn’t want people to leave?  Certainly he believes that he is doing his best to keep the peace in the body.  The pastor takes the time to speak to this person and that one, hoping that the situation will not escalate into something beyond his ability to handle. 

What about doctrine and theology?  You’re a pastor of a small to medium-sized church and you see your parishioners start to leave.  It turns out they’re heading to the large mega-church a few miles away.  They have popcorn, donuts, and coffee and soda before each service.  The music in the services is really upbeat.  Young people especially enjoy attending because of the lively atmosphere.  The sermons are also lively and funny, and the pastor of that church really knows how to keep the people attentive and even, dare we say, entertained.

Up against this, does the pastor of the first church feel an obligation to change his service style to not only keep his congregants, but possibly to gain some as well?  Weird to think that churches are actually competing against one another, but from a worldy perspective, that is what it appears to be.

The pastor who receives a good compensation may easily fall into the temptation to do what he can to make his church more like one down the street, instead of following the leading of the Lord.  The pastor who receives no salary from the church feels no obligation to do anything except preach the Word in season and out, regardless of the trends that seem to come through the visible church.

For years, I did not feel as if I could go into the pastorate.  I have finally realized why.  The thought of having to preach every week to the very people who directly pay your salary was daunting.  It was scary and knowing myself like I do, I know that the temptation would be great to want to run around keeping the peace, placating people, and in general doing what I can to make sure they did not leave and take their money with them.

Since realizing this, I have also realized that I could now be in the pastorate as long as I did not even take a dime as pay.  If I receive no compensation from the people who sit in the pews, I owe them nothing.  My loyalty is to God and His Word and I am free to not only preach it without feeling as though I need to couch my words carefully so as not to offend, but when situations arise that require tough decisions, I can make those decisions without fear of reprisal.  Oh sure, if people want to ask me to leave because they no longer want me as pastor, then I would be able to do so without concern for my livelihood.

The Lord has blessed me with a teaching career.  If I ever become a pastor, I would not stop teaching.  I would continue to teach as a pastor.

I firmly believe that it is coming to the time when more pastors are going to have to make their living in another area while they pastor.  This gives them the freedom to preach what they need to preach, deal with problems that arise Scripturally, and if people leave the church because they are attracted to the carnival show down the street, then the pastor can do what he is supposed to do, pray for them, counsel them, and then let them go if they insist on going, just like the prodigal son’s father let him go, continuing to pray for him and look toward the horizon for him on a daily basis.

Pastors who receive salaries place themselves in danger of compromising God’s Word under the guise of keeping the peace.  They might also wind up compromising His Word to keep people from leaving to go to a church that’s more fun, more entertaining, and more exciting.

The time is upon us when pastors are going to have to look at their calling seriously.  They are going to have to look seriously within themselves and decide what is more important, serving God, or serving mammon (money).  It cannot be both and souls hang in the balance.

Entry filed under: Atheism and religion, emergent church, Life in America, new age movement, Religious - Christian - End Times, Religious - Christian - Prophecy, Religious - Christian - Theology, salvation. Tags: overpaid pastors, pastor salaries, pastors overpaid, pastors who make large salaries.