This Barna Study was done in 2017 (6 years ago). Notice that as of today, (by adding six years to the pastoral age) at least half of all pastors are 62 years or older. In 1992 less than a fourth (24%) were over 56. What does this mean for the future? Obviously we need to be developing MORE harvest workers.

I think the way forward will require more intentional effort from local churches. Below is a brief historical study of how the American church has developed harvest workers in the past.

An Historical Look at Luke 10:2

In the early years of this country, the model for developing Luke 10:2 harvest workers were the seminaries. First, we had Harvard. The purpose of Harvard was to train clergy. Here’s a great quote from the church leaders way back at the founding of Harvard.

“After God had carried us safely to New England, and we had built our houses… one of the next things we longed for, and looked after was to advance learning, and perpetuate it to posterity; dreading to leave an illiterate ministry to the churches, when our present ministers shall lie in the dust.”1  

Notice the forward thinking these early leaders had for training up a new generation after the “present ministers shall lie in the dust”. We too, need to be forward thinking in preparing for when we also lie in the dust. Fast forward to just after the indepence of America.

In 1805 the first American seminary was birthed. Historian Bruce Shelley said, “As pioneers in seminary education, Andover’s founders fashioned the essentials of the seminary experience for the next two centuries, right up to our own time. They stressed adequate funds, scholarly study of Christian theology, a professional, specialized faculty, and a sizable library. The three-year curriculum focused on three areas of study: Bible, church history, and theology. Four years later [1809], Presbyterians in New Jersey established Princeton Seminary.”2 

Arguably, not much has changed over the past two hundred years. Most denominations still follow this pattern, and God has used this model in mighty ways. But perhaps there has been a subtle drift. Perhaps the church over the past two centuries slowly abdicated its own role in discovering, developing, and deploying the harvest workers. Perhaps the church slowly relinquished a real and significant responsibility to the schools and seminaries alone.

At its best, the schools were an extension of the church. However, over many decades, the American church and the seminaries seem to have drifted into two different roles. This may be highly overstated but, the church did the practical things (weddings, funerals, preaching, care giving) while the schools were responsible for the training (discovering, developing and deploying) of harvest workers. In other words, we sent them off to be trained rather than to be part of the training.

I agree with Pastor Mark Dever who said, “I’m not opposed to seminaries... I’m simply saying that in the Bible, the local church—a community where people are known, their conversion is testified to, and their gifts are witnessed—is the appropriate place [for training] … Raising up leaders is part of the church’s commission.”

I believe if we are going to produce future church planters, pastors and missionaries, we need to revisit how the church views Luke 10:2. What role does the church play in discovering, developing and deploying men and women into the harvest field? Again, I am NOT suggesting we do away with education and schools. Quite the contrary. But I believe we need to consider how we can do this better together?

Imagine a fresh work of God where our churches and MB agencies (schools, ministries & leadership) capture the Luke 10:2 vision of praying for and training up a new generation of harvest workers. I believe this can be an exciting season in the US Mennonite Brethren’s story. How about you?

1 https://christianheritagefellowship.com/the-christian-founding-of-harvard/#One.BK

2 Bruce Shelley, “The Seminaries’ Identity Crisis,” Christianity Today, May 17, 1993, p. 43.