Why should pastors personally disciple men who are potential church leaders?
- Scripture commands it. In 2 Timothy 2:2 Paul writes, “What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” Since 1 Timothy was written not merely for Timothy, but for us all (Rom. 15:4, 2 Tim. 3:16-17), every pastor of a local church should train other men to be teachers in the church.
- Pastors are best able to train other pastors. Men training for ministry will learn best from those who are engaged in the work full-time. They’ll gain practical wisdom, personal sensitivities, and an up-close understanding of the work that they won’t get any other way, not even from seminary professors.
- The church needs it. As the pastor, you need to take the lead in raising up leaders, whether those leaders will serve your own church as elders or go somewhere else. If you don’t disciple leaders, who will?
- It evangelizes future generations. A pastor can do “mission work” to the future by raising up leaders in the present.
