Critical Analysis of
The Power of the Call¹

In their book, The Power of the Call, Henry T. Blackaby and Henry Brandt provide pastors an opportunity to prayerfully examine the call of God on their life through a discussion of various ministry issues. This discussion comes from one who is a pastor and one who is a committed church member and professional counselor. This dual look at the pastor's job is intended to create synergy in examining the pulpit from both sides. They caution carefully that it is not intended to be a put down of anyone; rather, the pastor is given an opportunity to see his calling and ministry from two perspectives that will hopefully provide spiritual insight for his own development and renewal in the ministry.

As an overall comment on this approach, I must say that it is a worthy goal to provide multiple views of the function of ministry. The material itself was very good. A very helpful conclusion to each chapter is a series of questions entitled “Process the Message”. These questions help the reader internalize and apply what was just set forth. I must admit I was not particularly thrilled with the presentation of the topics because it was repetitious at times and confusing at others. In more than one chapter, the authors either cover the same ground or diverge onto two separate tracks. A combination of the two perspectives in a single chapter might have been more effective. Nevertheless, many important contributions were made by the authors in the subject of a pastor's ministry in the church. I will examine each of the major sections, commenting on the strengths and weaknesses, and focus on those parts of particular significance to my own ministry.

Part 1 - God's standard for your calling

Blackaby addresses the calling of a pastor by discussing the role of a pastor. Rather than starting with an exposition of a pastor’s qualifications, he presents a number of very practical observations on the pastor’s role. This chapter discusses what a pastor’s role is rather than how it should be done.

Blackaby affirms basic principles for the spiritual leader of God’s church. The pastor is chosen by God according to the integrity of his heart. David was chosen by God for his pure devotion to God (1 Sam. 13:14). He was a man who had a heart for God. To me this is crucial for a pastor of God’s church. He is the steward of God’s flock (John 21:15-19) and so, by necessity, must have a heart for God. Blackaby’s fourteen requirements for a spiritual leader are relevant issues along this line -- God is God and so He must be in charge of His flock. The pastor’s mission is to seek God’s will, align with God’s focus for this congregation, and follow Christ in feeding and caring for the people.

He sums up well the role of the pastor with this statement: “Your ministry is fulfilled when the people of God become what God intended each one of them to be” (p. 14). Blackaby rightly focuses the pastor on what God wants to do with His people in the local church. Too many pastors enter a church with a preplanned agenda to grow the congregation. Blackaby advises he wait at least a year just so he can ascertain the current spiritual level of the congregation, the history of the congregation’s spiritual journey, and listen to the LORD’s direction for the future of that church.

Moving on the nature of the call to pastor, Brandt compares the pastor’s job to a physician who must observe, diagnose, and treat patients with an illness. The pastor uses the Bible to treat sin in the lives of his people. This is a helpful analogy. Though people do not enjoy hearing about sin, it is through the process of diagnosing and treating sin with biblical truth that people can begin to experience the joy that God intended them to have. As Brandt emphasizes, the Bible is completely sufficient for this task (p.26).

Blackaby’s response to the nature of the call delineates how God’s call works itself out in the pastor. That God calls anyone is truly amazing. Even more so, God chooses and calls weak human beings to be instruments of His divine message and grace. This is exciting and very meaningful to me as a “layman” seeking to understand God’s call on my life.

At this point, it is appropriate to note the weakness in this approach by Blackaby and Brandt. While the content is good, the presentation is just not well integrated. This makes it hard for me to remain focused on the subject. The result is a tendency to lose interest in the material because it is not obvious how it fits together. The last chapter in part one was very disjointed though it should have addressed clearly the purpose of God’s call -- to proclaim the good news that brings forgiveness of sins and changed lives for time and eternity.

Part 2 - God's standard for your message

In part two, the authors discuss the pastor’s message and its redemptive power -- power in preaching and in speaking with people on an individual level. The main thrust of this section is (1) the reality of sin that causes so much heartache and guilt in our lives and (2) the need for God’s word to reveal sin and initiate repentance toward God.

People do not really want to examine themselves because of the painfulness of sin. The Bible says in John 3:19 that men love darkness rather than light because of their evil deeds. Yet the pastor’s message must cut to the heart of sin or people will live in denial of their need for a Savior. Even a Christian can hide behind a veil of sin, living with anger, bitterness, envy, or hatred toward something or someone in their life. Only when the pastor’s message clearly shines the light of God’s truth on these sins can people accept the need and find the power to change through Christ.

There were many wonderful examples of people’s lives being changed through the light from God’s word. Along these lines, I found the following two thoughts (p. 53) particularly important:

No one can interfere with the power of God to change your life through faith in the LORD Jesus Christ.
No person or circumstance can interfere with your being filled with the Spirit of God.

If you are seeking the LORD’s help to change by turning away from sin, no one and no circumstance can ever keep you from the cross of Jesus Christ. He is waiting and eager to help anyone through the process of spiritual healing where you find freedom, forgiveness, and unspeakable joy.

The Bible is powerful and alive. It should be used to help people change. This is articulated well by Brandt and Blackaby.

Redemptive sermons are preached with life-change in view. The pastor cannot water down a message for fear of offending people. There is plenty in God’s word that will offend people who resist God. But the pastor cannot back away from the offense of the cross (Rom. 9:33; Gal. 5:11; 1 Pet. 2:8). For what other hope does a person have but in Jesus Christ to bring new life and freedom from the power of sin? As Brandt notes:

If there is something in a person’s life that makes listening to your message difficult, your response ought to be that you are available to help them discover and correct any flaws in their lives (p. 65).

Blackaby presents two powerful points about redemptive preaching. One is the need to preach with expectancy. God’s unlimited grace is available to every person who hears your message. The pastor must trust and rely on God’s grace at work in the lives of His people. Second, the pastor is a coworker with God who is present in every aspect of your preaching -- before, during, and after. The pastor must be sure that he honors God in his life as well as his preaching.

This is a good lead into the final chapter on “God’s Standard For Your Message.” Brandt and Blackaby discuss the subject of redemptive conversations. It made me stop and consider how I speak with people at work, at home, in the neighborhood, as well as at church. One must be discerning of a person’s spiritual needs through prayerful submission to and beseeching of the Holy Spirit. For one cannot know the thoughts of a person who is covering up sin and pain in their inner being. But the pastor can be sure that he is ready through his study of God’s word to give an answer to anyone (1 Pet. 3:15).

Redemptive conversations may require good listening skills but more is needed than just listening. One must have biblical truth to apply to the circumstances and issues in a person’s life. Biblical truth turns a good listener into a redemptive listener. This is a powerful view of the potential each person has in everyday conversations.

At this point, Brandt gave a lengthy discussion of counseling. This seems a bit out of place in a discussion of redemptive conversations. It takes the conversation off the street and back into a sterile laboratory reserved only for professionals. Of course, a counseling session is a place where should always have redemptive conversations. Upon reflection, I realize that the principles Brandt shares can be used in everyday conversations. Point people to the reality of sin, their inability to “fix it,” and the power of God available to them for cleansing, renewal, and even new birth. Blackaby’s response in this chapter actually reinforces Brandt’s view with more of the same real examples of how God’s word showed the way for people’s lives to change for the better. Blackaby correctly stresses that the pastor must “think Scripture and share Scripture” (p. 104). Hurting people must find the pure word of God applied to their hurt for lasting healing to take place. The pastor has no option in this as God’s servant.

Part 3 - God's standard for your heart

In perhaps the most important section of this book, Brandt and Blackaby discuss the pastor’s inner life -- his heart. It is critical that the pastor keep his own heart pure to be effective in redemptive preaching and conversations. Obedience is an area where we constantly need to examine and challenge ourselves as God’s servants. Yet in keeping with their overall theme, Brandt and Blackaby point the pastor back to God for the solution and power to be pure in heart. To point out the need for purity without a reminder of the One who provides all our needs would have been merciless. As presented, it offers the pastor great hope in no matter what state his heart exists.

Brandt opens with several stories of people, mostly pastors, who were not being honest with themselves about a particular sin in their lives. The results were varied according to the sin involved. But all were trying to overcome the pain and painful consequences without God’s help. Brandt’s seven statements regarding a biblical solution to any sin problem are indeed, “The most important statements in this series” (p. 119). The heart is the source of the works of the flesh; the word of God is the source of the solution by pointing to the person and work of Jesus Christ.

Blackaby then expounds the biblical teaching on the character of a pastor from 1 Timothy 3 and Titus. He concludes that character is developed through time spent with God and moment-by-moment cultivation of fellowship with God. I agree wholeheartedly by Blackaby. Yet this was far too little time spent in this area of extreme importance in the life of a pastor. It is better for the church, in the long-run, that the pastor spend quiet reflective time with the LORD than any single ministry opportunity. For it is here that the pastor becomes the man of God he must be to stand in the pulpit of God’s church.

Obedience follows a pure heart. Christians can fall into a trap that it is OK to disobey in one area of life in order to accomplish a ministry function. Brandt illustrated this with a story about his own speeding ticket. Obedience is a prerequisite for discipleship and spiritual growth; the pastor or ministry leader is not exempt. Brandt provides specific examples of the pastor’s need to watch his obedience. Blackaby expands this idea as it relates to ministry burnout. The pastor who is overwhelmed by the ministry burden or experiences moral failure may try to justify his disobedience. Yet it is at this time more than any other he needs to obey God’s word in the area of thanksgiving, contentment, the crucified life, and peace with God.

Brandt goes on to point out the futility of obedience out of duty versus a love commitment to the LORD. The Bible can be maddening sometimes as it reveals God’s heart to us. We know we must obey but feel we cannot. As Brandt aptly points out:

We have access to God’s resources. We can cut them off by an act of the will. The work of the Holy Spirit is available anytime...no person...can interfere with it and there is no situation that can cut you off from Him (p. 151).

Blackaby’s response in this area is that the sum and substance of all our needs, including obedience to God, is the full provision of God in Christ. When God said all His promises are “Yes” in Christ (2 Cor. 1:20), He means it -- especially for the pastor. It is easy to say, even memorize, all the wonderful promises of God but miss the personal, specific application to the current crisis or disappointment. Blackaby’s description of the promise and provision of God was superb.

Part 4 - God's standard for your ministry

The last section of this book deals with the pastor’s ministry from a performance point of view. Brandt and Blackaby cover a number of topics meant to provide the pastor a plumb line with which to measure their conduct and progress in ministering to God’s people.

Among the topics addressed, I found Blackaby’s guidelines for a “true shepherd” (pp. 196-202) to be the most profitable. He presents a number of different Scripture passages that discuss men of God who were called by God to shepherd His people. The passages address both good and bad examples. By reviewing the Scriptures along with the corresponding list of guidelines, the pastor is able to perform a spiritual inventory of his own character and conduct. These insights are timely for pastors of any age for they are drawn directly from the inspired word of God.

Brandt then discusses the trend away from biblical solutions to problems, even in the pulpits of America. People are bring encouraged to excuse sin as a disorder that needs therapy rather than repentance, understanding and acceptance rather than light and truth. This is a critically important issue for pastors to consider today. We cannot be led astray by secular solutions -- however good and pleasant they may seem. Brandt and Blackaby point to the Bible with specific counsel, promises, and warnings that can be used to give real hope and lasting solutions to anyone. I give this a hearty “Amen” for its truth and relevance to a world closing in on a new millennium.

The closing chapter of the book is written by Blackaby who has been a true spiritual leader to people in this country through his Experiencing God books and resources. His exposition of John 17 looks at the marks of spiritual leadership. The pastor’s ministry must also be gauged by the leadership he brings to his people. Blackaby’s list is discussed and then captured in a one-page table at the end of the chapter. It would be fruitful for any pastor to keep this list posted to the wall near his desk and consider his ministry in light of these marks.

The Power of the Call is a solid pastoral resource. It will help the pastor examine his life and ministry in practical, biblically based views. It will challenge him to think through the why’s and what’s of his calling, the nature of his message, the purity of his heart, and the measure of his ministry. Though the presentation suffers from the disjointed messages of Brandt and Blackaby, the content is well founded. I would happily recommend this book as a resource for any pastor, particularly those who are willing to examine themselves in the light of God’s word and the seasoned insights of two faithful servants of the LORD.

End Notes