The monthly or bi-monthly gathering of pastors—a meeting of pastors—can be called a ministerium. This concept is rooted in Ephesians 4:11–12 and is an important idea in lay ministry.
In the 1970s, the Lutheran theologian Oscar Feucht wrote a book titled Everybody a Minister. His central message was that everyone who has Christ in his or her heart is a minister. He also emphasized that those who have the Gospel in their hearts have a ministry of their own.
At that time, however, only pastors were generally considered to be true ministers. Feucht’s teaching was therefore quite shocking, especially to pastors. I remember talking with pastors about this idea. They told me that they liked almost everything about lay ministry, but they still felt uncomfortable accepting laypeople as genuine partners in ministry. The prevailing mindset was that laypeople were somehow one step below pastors and therefore inferior in ministry.
Feucht introduced and emphasized the term ministeriumin connection with this understanding. In this sense, the church is a ministerium—a community in which pastors and the entire congregation serve together. In other words, the laypeople who gather on Sunday should be able to look around the congregation and say:
“We are all on the ministry team with our pastor. We are the ministerium.”
This concept eventually played an important role in developing the idea of “partners in ministry.”
For example, Dr. James Galloway, who served as a pastor at Skyline Methodist Church in San Diego, became well known for his book Partners in Ministry. The book grew out of his Ph.D. dissertation at Drew University in New Jersey. His research focused on John Wesley and the relationship between pastors and laypeople in ministry. He emphasized that pastors and laypeople should serve as co-workers and partners in ministry. His work helped introduce a fresh understanding of ministry partnership to many churches in the United States.
Another example is Frazer Memorial United Methodist Church in Montgomery, Alabama. The church has been known for its strong Sunday school ministry and large congregation. I heard that the church had approximately 6,000 members and several thousand children involved in Sunday school. Its pastor, John Mathison, was recognized as an outstanding pastor. I had the opportunity to attend several conferences at the church, and I remember that one of their recurring themes was:
“Everyone in the Ministry.”
That statement captures the heart of partnership in ministry.
I believe the concept of partners in ministryis a very important one. There is a church in Gangnam, Seoul, that is well known in Korea and throughout Asia for its emphasis on discipleship. I heard that, after emphasizing discipleship for many years, the church began using another slogan:
“Partners in Ministry.”
The idea seemed to be that becoming a disciple is not the final destination. A disciple should eventually become a partner in ministry.
More than twenty years ago, a lay ministry conference was held at Hallelujah Church in Bundang. The main speakers were Pastor Ok Han-heum and Pastor Kim Sang-bok. Pastor Ok Han-heum wrote Called to Awaken the Laity, and Pastor Kim Sang-bok was leading the Lay Ministry Academy.
The central direction of their messages was clear: the church must recognize laypeople as partners in ministry.
For many years, laypeople had often been viewed primarily as consumers in the church. They came to worship, listened to sermons, participated in programs, and received ministry. But these leaders helped the Korean church see something different: laypeople are not merely consumers of ministry. They can become ministers and partners with their pastors in serving the Lord.
Since then, the Korean church has experienced many changes in the understanding of the position and role of laypeople. I am grateful for these changes, because they remind us of an important biblical truth.
The pastor is not called to do ministry alone.
The laypeople are not merely recipients of ministry.
Pastors and laypeople are called to become partners in ministry.
That is the heart of ministerium: the pastor and the congregation serving together as one ministry team for the sake of Christ and His church.
When pastors equip the saints and laypeople willingly accept their calling to serve, the church becomes stronger, healthier, and more fruitful.We are not simply people who attend the same church. We are partners in the same ministry. We are the ministerium.