Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.
A sense of community is at the heart of Christianity, and every Christian yearns to share the joy, inspiration, wonder, and power of the Lord with the greater community in which they live, baptized or not.
The importance of sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with the community is as pressing today as it ever has been.
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Polling shows that today 10 percent of Americans don’t believe in God, more than a third of millennials are religiously unaffiliated, and the number of Americans who consider themselves Christian has fallen by about eight percent over the past decade.
And these numbers come as suicides, drug addiction, homelessness, and violent crimes are at levels not seen in decades – if ever.
If you’re called to a career in community ministry then the silver lining to all this is that you’re in the right place at the right time. And God knows that our communities across the nation need you now more than ever.
What Is Community Ministry?
Ministry is spreading word of God. Community ministry is spreading the word of God throughout your community. It’s as simple as that.
Community can mean different things for different people. There are all kinds of communities:
- Your local church community
- The community where you live, including: your apartment complex, your neighborhood, your city, your state, your country, and even your global community of fellow humans and living creatures
- A community of people who share the same racial, ethnic, gender, or sexual orientation identity
- An online community of people with common interests like gaming, chat, cute animals, or political issues
- A community of people based on shared beliefs or values
The diversity of potential communities is as rich as the diversity of people. A community can be formed based on virtually anything that’s shared.
And anyone can spread Christ’s word within this diversity of communities. Doing this effectively means speaking your community’s common language and appealing to your community’s common values.
The Two Sides of Community Ministry
Generally speaking, community ministry can be divided into two categories: ministry of actions and ministry of preaching. These are often combined.
- Ministry of action means demonstrating God’s love and grace with your deeds.
- Preaching ministry is when you engage in community service that’s focused on spreading the word of God.
Serving the Lord through community ministry is a flexible path that allows you to find your own niche where you best fit in.
What Exactly Do Pastors Involved in Community Ministry Do?
There’s no one job description for how to minister the Lord’s good news to the community. This is a flexible path that welcomes all who are willing to serve.
Community ministry can include:
- Picking up litter in your community
- Building homes
- Mowing lawns
- Preparing food and serving meals
- Helping to run a homeless shelter or rehabilitation clinic
- Teaching classes a job skills class in prison
- Helping someone who needs it
Preaching community ministry to spread the word of God could look like leading prayer groups at your local church or in your community, and teaching Bible classes at locations in your community or at your church.
Community ministry could mean serving dinner at a homeless shelter followed by a worship service, or you leading a class about math or writing at a prison that’s followed by a scripture reading.
One of the reasons community ministry is such a great field to be involved in is because it lets you use your natural skills and interests while you’re simultaneously doing the Lord’s work. You can plant a garden, fix a leaky faucet, change out a starter motor, babysit a child, or give someone their medication, and afterwards bring up a Bible passage you think is particularly relevant.
In fact, this highlights why it’s so important for you to be knowledgeable about Christianity if you want to work in community ministry. Virtually every bit of help and assistance you provide is an inroad to talk about Christ. The more knowledge you have about Christian ministry, the more common ground you’re going to find with people who are living their everyday lives.
Community Ministers Speak the Language and Know the Culture of the Communities They Serve
Community pastors are most effective when they speak to members of a community in a language that is most relevant, which often means a language that is the most emotionally stirring; a language that is most emotive. This holds as true today as it did in the time of Jesus Christ.
In Jesus’ day the law of Moses clearly stated that adulterous women should be executed; that they should face capital punishment. When Jesus was alive he wasn’t considered a special authority and therefore had to make community appeals for justice just as any other pastor.
The Pharisees of Jesus’ time knew this, and they schemed to entrap Jesus into endorsing a cruel policy of the stoning to death of adulterous women.
But as a preacher who was in touch with his local community, Jesus knew better. When asked to comment on the imminent execution of a local woman accused of adultery, He uttered his now-famous words, as recorded in John 8:7, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”
As an effective community pastor, Jesus recognized the challenges faced by the local community and calibrated his ministry accordingly. This is a demonstration of why it’s important to have a solid grounding in Christianity as a prerequisite for going into the field of community ministry.
Christianity is about community. Christians throughout the world celebrate their community of faith weekly. The biggest church within Christianity, Catholicism, literally derives its name from the Greek word that means “universally accepted,” which has also been translated as “all are welcome”.
Every Sunday Christ is celebrated communally. Communion shares a common root with community. The symbolic body and blood of Jesus are accepted by a community every week to be in communion with the Lord.
Getting Involved in Community Ministry - How Aspiring Pastors and Other Christian Leaders Can Embrace Community Ministry
Virtually every Christian church offers a pathway to becoming a community pastor. This includes positions at the local church level, at the local community level, at the national level, and even at the global-human level.
This is good news, because it means it won't be difficult for you to find an opportunity to reach out to your local community.
When you really break it down, the ultimate goal of community pastors is either to strengthen the resolve of the Holy Spirit among believers, or to win the hearts, minds, and souls of those who have not accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and personal savior.
Accomplishing this goal means having a solid grounding in Christianity. This starts with a relevant bachelor's degree.
Fortunately, today you can earn a bachelor's degree in fields like:
- Leadership and missions
- Pastoral ministries
- Religious studies
- Christian ministries
- Youth and family ministries
- Biblical and education studies
- Christian leadership and church ministries
Once you have a relevant bachelor’s degree you can really get your foot in the door with this field.
Anyone can cook a meal, dress a bandage, or teach grammar. When you want to work in community ministry, the real skill happens when you make connections with the Lord’s word and peoples’ everyday situations.
A bachelor’s degree will help you develop the entry-level Christianity skills you need to function as a community pastor.
As you move up the ranks into positions with greater levels of responsibility, you’ll need a formal education that’s equally up to the task. That means a Master of Divinity or other Christian ministry-focused master's degree.
An MDiv or similar graduate degree gives you an advanced pedagogic understanding of key Christian themes that you can use every day as a community pastor. You can find graduate programs offering concentrations in areas like:
- Religious studies
- Bible studies
- Ministry and missions
- Pastoral care and chaplaincy
- Transformative ministry
A Master of Divinity will equip you to take on the responsibility of senior-level jobs in community ministry with your local church or non-profit organization.
Galatians 6:2 calls on you to bear the burdens of your community. Answering this call from God responsibly starts with earning a relevant education.
