The article I believe you are referring to is one we used from another author. I personally agree with you that one DOES NOT have to go to seminary to be a good or great preacher of God's Word. As a matter of fact, I actually believe that in the realm of todays seminaries, a person would be better off to not attend as the teachings are so far off base from actual biblical teachings. It is a shame that it has to be the way it is but most, not all seminaries are comforming to the world instead of being set apart from it. Some of the articles we post on our site may have very minor things that we do not agree with, but we try to make sure it is nothing that would compromise anyone in their search for truth.
-- Edited by bobw at 14:49, 2007-03-03
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A preacher in those days, when he felt God called him to preach, didn't hunt up a college or seminary, he hunted up a good horse, took off across the country and began crying "Behold the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sins of the world"!
I LOVE THIS WEBSITE! I agree with 99% of what is written about these so-called men and women of God. The church today is infested with such teachers and they need to repent for leading God's people astray!!!!
There was one portion of the comments on Joel Olsteen that vexed my spirit though. Joel is a feel good type of guy and that is why his congregation is so large. Church folks don't want to (but need to) be confronted with their sins and repent of them!!!! However, your commmentary, or the impression you gave later in this article is that a Pastor has to be trained in a seminary and I respectfully disagree.
There are many true Born-Again Pastors, called by God to Pastor who have never been to a seminary! They are endowed with a wisdom and in dwelt by the Holy Spirit in a way that makes them set apart to Pastor. I am no advocate who will blindly follow any man who happens to sit in the pulpit. As a matter of fact, I believe that we are living in the day where MOST Pastors (although all of my experience is in the Black Church) are not preaching the real Gospel anyway. They want people to be inspired instead of deliver truth to them.
I also believe that anyone that is SENT to be a preacher needs to be really careful about entering a seminary at all! I have seen many theolgians and professors, met them, spoke with them, seen them on TV, and these guys (not all I am sure) gender strife and questions about the very Bible that they claim to believe in and teach.
Jesus took the most common of people within Israel such as fisher men, tax collectors, etc and changed the world with them! These men, some of them anyway, weren't educated. John The Baptist lived in the wilderness and ate wild locusts and honey! Mary Magdelene was a sinner and yet Christ used her. My point is, if seminary is what you want to do, great. But please do not make it a pre-qualification to lead God's people and say "The blind are leading the blind." There is a reason why Jesus chose the disciples HE did and the Bible says "Not many noble, or wise, are called."
