Brothers, We Are Not Professionals: A Plea to Pastors for Radical Ministry, Updated and Expanded Edition

By John Piper

In this revised and expanded edition of Brothers, We Are Not Professionals that includes a new introduction and select all-new chapters, best-selling author John Piper pleads through a series of thoughtful essays with fellow pastors to abandon the professionalization of the pastorate and pursue the prophetic call of the Bible for radical ministry.
“We pastors are being killed by the professionalizing of the pastoral ministry,” he writes. “The mentality of the professional is not the mentality of the prophet. It is not the mentality of the slave of Christ. Professionalism has nothing to do with the essence and heart of the Christian ministry. The more professional we long to be, the more spiritual death we will leave in our wake. For there is no professional childlikeness, there is no professional tenderheartedness, there is no professional panting after God.
 “Brothers, we are not professionals. We are outcasts. We are aliens and exiles in the world. Our citizenship is in Heaven, and we wait with eager expectation for the Lord (Phil. 3:20). You cannot professionalize the love for His appearing without killing it. And it is being killed.
 “The world sets the agenda of the professional man; God sets the agenda of the spiritual man. The strong wine of Jesus Christ explodes the wine- skins of professionalism.”

• Language: English
• Publisher: BH Publishing Group
• Release date: Feb 1, 2013
• ISBN: 9781433678738

John Piper

 John Piper is founder and lead teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. He served for thirty-three years as a pastor at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and is the author of more than fifty books, including Desiring God; Don’t Waste Your Life; and Providence. 

Book preview

Seminaries

Preface to the New Edition

Nothing has happened in the last ten years to make me think this book is less needed. In fact, instead of going away, the pressure to professionalize the pastorate has morphed and strengthened. Among younger pastors the talk is less about therapeutic and managerial professionalization and more about communication or contextualization. The language of professionalization is seldom used in these regards, but the quiet pressure felt by many pastors is: Be as good as the professional media folks, especially the cool anti-heroes and the most subtle comedians.

This is not the overstated professionalism of the three-piece suit and the stuffy upper floors but the understated professionalism of torn blue jeans and the savvy inner ring. This professionalism is not learned in pursuing an MBA but in being in the know about the ever-changing entertainment and media world. This is the professionalization of ambience, and tone, and idiom, and timing, and banter. It is more intuitive and less taught. More style and less technique. More feel and less force.

If this can be called professionalism, what does it have in common with the older version? Everything that matters. The way I tried to get at the problem in the first edition was to ask some questions. Let me expand that list. Only this time think old and new professionalism.

Is there professional praying? Professional trusting in God’s promises? Professional weeping over souls? Professional musing on the depths of revelation? Professional rejoicing in the truth? Professional praising God’s name? Professional treasuring the riches of Christ? Professional walking by the Spirit? Professional exercise of spiritual gifts? Professional dealing with demons? Professional pleading with backsliders? Professional perseverance in a hard marriage? Professional playing with children? Professional courage in the face of persecution? Professional patience with everyone?

That’s for starters.

These are not marginal activities in the pastoral life. They are central. They are the essence. Why do we choke on the word professional in those connections? Because professionalization carries the connotation of an education, a set of skills, and a set of guild-defined standards which are possible without faith in Jesus. Professionalism is not supernatural. The heart of ministry is.

Ministry is professional in those areas of competency where the life of faith and the life of unbelief overlap. Which means two things. First, that overlapping area can never be central. Therefore, professionalism should always be marginal, not central; optional, not crucial. And second, the pursuit of professionalism will push the supernatural center more and more into the corner while ministry becomes a set of secular competencies with a religious veneer.

As I write this, I have ten months left as pastor for preaching and vision of Bethlehem Baptist Church. If I live to see this transition complete, I will have served the church for almost thirty-three years. I feel the conviction of this book as strongly today as when I wrote it ten years ago and as when my ministry began on this basis three decades ago. When I look back, my regret is not that I wasn’t more professional but that I wasn’t more prayerful, more passionate for souls, more consistent in personal witness, more emotionally engaged with my children, more tender with my wife, more spontaneously affirming of the good in others. These are my regrets.

In the first year of my ministry at the church thirty-two years ago, I read E. M. Bounds’ Power through Prayer. His book struck the match that ignited the fire of this book. I quote it in chapter 1: God deliver us from the professionalizers! ‘Deliver us from the low, managing, contriving, maneuvering temper of mind among us.’ Now, at the end of my pastoral ministry, I return to this same place and say, Thank You, Lord. Thank You, for showing me this. Thank You for burning this on my soul. Thank You for protecting me for all these years from the deadening effects of professionalization.

And I conclude this new preface with the same prayer I began with: Banish professionalism from our midst, O God, and in its place put passionate prayer, poverty of spirit, hunger for God, rigorous study of holy things, white-hot devotion to Jesus Christ, utter indifference to all material gain, and unremitting labor to rescue the perishing, perfect the saints, and glorify our sovereign Lord. In Jesus’ great and powerful name. Amen.

Besides this preface there are six new chapters in the book: chapters 4, 6, 13, 18, 22, and 27. I added these because in the last ten years they pressed themselves on me. One for personal reasons like health (chap. 27). One for family reasons relating to my own sanctification (chap. 22). Two for theological reasons where I felt I needed greater clarity or correction (chaps. 4 and 6). And two in pursuit of being a better preacher (chaps. 13 and 18).

A very special thank you for David Mathis, for six years my executive pastoral assistant, now executive editor at Desiring God. I could not have done this under the constraints of pastoral ministry without his help.

And here at the end of my pastoral ministry, thank you to the church where I did my best to live according to the things written in this book. You have been kind to me. It has been a taste of heaven to worship and serve among you.

The preacher . . . is not a professional man;

his ministry is not a profession;

it is a divine institution,

a divine devotion.

E. M. Bounds

✦ ✦ ✦

We are fools for Christ’s sake.

But professionals are wise.

We are weak.

But professionals are strong.

Professionals are held in honor.

We are in disrepute.

We do not try to secure a professional lifestyle,

but we are ready to hunger and thirst and be ill-clad and homeless.

1

Brothers, We Are Not Professionals

We pastors are being killed by the professionalizing of the pastoral ministry. The mentality of the professional is not the mentality of the prophet. It is not the mentality of the slave of Christ. Professionalism has nothing to do with the essence and heart of the Christian ministry. The more professional we long to be, the more spiritual death we will leave in our wake. For there is no professional childlikeness (Matt. 18:3); there is no professional tenderheartedness (Eph. 4:32); there is no professional panting after God (Ps. 42:1).

But our first business is to pant after God in prayer. Our business is to weep over our sins (James 4:9). Is there professional weeping? Our business is to strain forward to the holiness of Christ and the prize of the upward call of God (Phil. 3:14); to pummel our bodies and subdue them lest we be cast away (1 Cor. 9:27); to deny ourselves and take up the blood-spattered cross daily (Luke 9:23). How do you carry a cross professionally? We have been crucified with Christ, yet now we live by faith in the one who loved us and gave Himself for us (Gal. 2:20). What is professional faith?

We are to be filled not with wine but with the Spirit (Eph. 5:18). We are God-besotted lovers of Christ. How can you be drunk with Jesus professionally? Then, wonder of wonders, we were given the gospel treasure to carry in clay pots to show that the transcendent power belongs to God (2 Cor. 4:7). Is there a way to be a professional clay pot?

We are afflicted in every way but not crushed, perplexed but not driven to despair, persecuted but not destroyed, always carrying in the body the death of Jesus (professionally?) so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested (professionally?) in our bodies (2 Cor. 4:9–11).

I think God has exhibited us preachers as last of all in the world. We are fools for Christ’s sake, but professionals are wise. We are weak, but professionals are strong. Professionals are held in honor, we are in disrepute. We do not try to secure a professional lifestyle, but we are ready to hunger and thirst and be ill-clad and homeless. When reviled, we bless; when persecuted, we endure; when slandered, we try to conciliate; we have become the refuse of the world, the offscouring of all things (1 Cor. 4:9–13). Or have we?

Brothers, we are not professionals! We are outcasts. We are aliens and exiles in the world (1 Pet. 2:11). Our citizenship is in heaven, and we wait with eager expectation for the Lord (Phil. 3:20). You cannot professionalize the love for His appearing without killing it. And it is being killed.

The aims of our ministry are eternal and spiritual. They are not shared by any of the professions. It is precisely by the failure to see this that we are dying.

The life-giving preacher is a man of God, whose heart is ever athirst for God, whose soul is ever following hard after God, whose eye is single to God, and in whom by the power of God’s Spirit the flesh and the world have been crucified and his ministry is like the generous flood of a life-giving river.¹

We are most emphatically not part of a social team sharing goals with other professionals. Our goals are an offense; they are foolishness (1 Cor. 1:23). The professionalization of the ministry is a constant threat to the offense of the gospel. It is a threat to the profoundly spiritual nature of our work. I have seen it often: the love of professionalism (parity among the world’s professionals) kills a man’s belief that he is sent by God to save people from hell and to make them Christ-exalting, spiritual aliens in the world.

The world sets the agenda of the professional man; God sets the agenda of the spiritual man. The strong wine of Jesus Christ explodes the wineskins of professionalism. There is an infinite difference between the pastor whose heart is set on being a professional and the pastor whose heart is set on being the aroma of Christ, the fragrance of death to some and eternal life to others (2 Cor. 2:15–16).

God, deliver us from the professionalizers! Deliver us from the low, managing, contriving, maneuvering temper of mind among us.² God, give us tears for our sins. Forgive us for being so shallow in prayer, so thin in our grasp of holy verities, so content amid perishing neighbors, so empty of passion and earnestness in all our conversation. Restore to us the childlike joy of our salvation. Frighten us with the awesome holiness and power of Him who can cast both soul and body into hell (Matt. 10:28). Cause us to hold to the cross with fear and trembling as our hope-filled and offensive tree of life. Grant us nothing, absolutely nothing, the way the world views it. May Christ be all in all (Col. 3:11).

Banish professionalism from our midst, Oh God, and in its place put passionate prayer, poverty of spirit, hunger for God, rigorous study of holy things, white-hot devotion to Jesus Christ, utter indifference to all material gain, and unremitting labor to rescue the perishing, perfect the saints, and glorify our sovereign Lord.

Humble us, O God, under Your mighty hand, and let us rise, not as professionals, but as witnesses and partakers of the sufferings of Christ. In His awesome name. Amen.

Notes

1. John Piper and Wayne Grudem, Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood: A Response to Evangelical Feminism (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1991), 16.

2. Richard Cecil quoted in E. M. Bounds, Power through Prayer (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1972), 59.

For my name’s sake I defer my anger,

for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you,

that I may not cut you off. . . .

For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it,

for how should my name be profaned?

My glory I will not give to another.

Isaiah 48:9, 11

✦ ✦ ✦

God’s chief end

is to glorify God

and enjoy His glory forever.

✦ ✦ ✦

God loves His glory more than He loves us,

and this is the foundation of His love for us.

2

Brothers, God Loves His Glory

I grew up in a home where 1 Corinthians 10:31 was almost as basic to our family as John 3:16. Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God (NASB). But not till I was twenty-two years old did I hear anyone say that God’s first commitment is to His own glory and that this is the basis for ours. I had never heard anyone say that God does everything for His glory, too, and that is why we should. I had never heard anyone explain that the role of the Holy Spirit is to burn in me what He has been burning with for all eternity: God’s love for God. Or more precisely, God the Father’s delight in the panorama of His own perfections reflected as a perfect image in His Son.

No one had ever asked me, Who is the most God-centered Person in the universe? And then answered, God is. Or, Is God an idolater? And then answered, No, He has no other gods before Him. Or, What is the chief end of God? And then answered, God’s chief end is to glorify God and enjoy His glory forever. So I was never confronted forcefully with the God-centeredness of God until I sat under the teaching of Daniel Fuller and was directed by him to the writings of Jonathan Edwards.

Since those explosive days of discovery in the late sixties, I have labored to understand the implications of God’s passion for His glory. That is now the title of a book I wrote as a tribute to Jonathan Edwards, half of which is a reproduction of his book, The End for Which God Created the World. Edwards’ thesis in that book is this:

[God] had respect to himself, as his last and highest end, in this work; because he is worthy in himself to be so, being infinitely the greatest and best of beings. All things else, with regard to worthiness, importance, and excellence, are perfectly as nothing in comparison of him. . . . All that is ever spoken of in the Scripture as an ultimate end of God’s works is included in that one phrase, the glory of God.¹

Why is it important to be stunned by the God-centeredness of God? Because many people are willing to be God-centered as long as they feel that God is man-centered. It is a subtle danger. We may think we are centering our lives on God when we are really making Him a means to self-esteem. Over against this danger I urge you to ponder the implications, brothers, that God loves His glory more than He loves us and that this is the foundation of His love for us.

Stop regarding man in whose nostrils is breath, for of what account is he? (Isa. 2:22). Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation (Ps. 146:3). Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength (Jer. 17:5). Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket, and are accounted as the dust on the scales. . . . All the nations are as nothing before him, they are accounted by him as less than nothing and emptiness (Isa. 40:15, 17).

God’s ultimate commitment is to Himself and not to us. And therein lies our security. God loves His glory above all. For my name’s sake I defer my anger, for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you, that I may not cut you off. . . . For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another (Isa. 48: 9, 11).

God performs salvation for His own sake. He justifies the people called by His name in order that He may be glorified.

Therefore say to the house of Israel [and to all the churches], Thus says the Lord God: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came. And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the Lord. . . . It is not for your sake that I will act, declares the Lord God; let that be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your ways, O house of Israel’ (Ezek. 36:22–23, 32).

This is no isolated note in the symphony of redemptive history. It is the ever-recurring motif of the all-sufficient Composer. Why did God predestine us in love to be His sons? That the glory of His grace might be praised (Eph. 1:6, 12, 14). Why did God create a people for Himself? I created [them] for my glory (Isa. 43:7). Why did He make from one lump vessels of honor and vessels of dishonor? That He might show His wrath and make known His power and reveal the riches of His glory for the vessels of mercy (Rom. 9:22–23). Why did God raise up Pharaoh and harden his heart and deliver Israel with a mighty arm? That His wonders might be multiplied over Pharaoh (Exod. 14:4) and that His name might be declared in all the earth (Exod. 9:16).

Why did God spare rebellious Israel in the wilderness and finally bring them to the promised land? I acted for the sake of my name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations (Ezek. 20:14). Why did He not destroy Israel when they rejected Him from being king over them and demanded to be like all the nations (1 Sam. 8:4–6)? The Lord will not forsake his people, for his great name’s sake (1 Sam. 12:22). God’s love for the glory of His own name is the spring of free grace and the rock of our security.

Why did God bring back the Israelites from Babylonian captivity? Because Daniel prayed, For your own sake, O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary, which is desolate (Dan. 9:17). Why did the Father send the incarnate Son to Israel? To confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy (Rom. 15:8–9). Why did the Son come to His final hour? For this purpose I have come to this hour. Father, glorify your name (John 12:27–28). Christ died to glorify the Father and to repair all the defamation we had brought upon His honor. Our only hope is that the death of Christ satisfied God’s righteous claims to receive proper glory from His creatures (Rom. 3:24–26).

Brothers, God loves His glory! He is committed with all His infinite and eternal might to display that glory and to preserve the honor of His name.

When Paul says in 2 Timothy 2:13, If we are faithless, he remains faithful, it does not mean that we are saved in spite of faithlessness. For the verse before says, If we deny him, he also will deny us. Rather, as the verse explains, He remains faithful means "He cannot deny Himself." God’s most fundamental allegiance is to His own glory. He is committed to being God before He is committed to being anything else.

Do your people know these things? Do they stake the answer to their prayers on God’s love for His own glory? Do they make their case before His throne on the grounds that God does everything for His own name’s sake? Act, O Lord, for your name’s sake! (Jer. 14:7). Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of your name; deliver us, and atone for our sins, for your name’s sake! (Ps. 79:9). For Your name’s sake, O Lord, Pardon my iniquity, for it is great (Ps. 25:11 NASB). Do our people really know that hallowed be thy name! is a petition for God to glorify Himself as God? Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory (Ps. 115:1).

We have told our people a hundred times, Do all to the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31). But have we given them the foundation of this command? God loves His glory. He loves it with infinite energy and passion and commitment. And the Spirit of God is ablaze with this love. That is why children of God love the glory of God; they are led by this blazing Spirit (Rom. 8:14).

Let us declare boldly and powerfully what God loves most—the glory of God. Let us guard ourselves from the ocean of man-centeredness around us. Stop regarding man in whose nostrils is breath, for of what account is he? (Isa. 2:22). The foundation, the means, and the goal of God’s agape for sinners is His prior, deeper, and ultimate love for His own glory. Therefore, brothers, tell your people the great ground of the gospel: God loves His glory!

Notes

1. Jonathan Edwards, The End for Which God Create the World, in John Piper, God’s Passion for His Glory: Living the Vision of Jonathan Edwards (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 1998), 140, 242.

God is love.

1 John 4:8

✦ ✦ ✦

Then the

Lord

passed by in front of him and proclaimed, "The L

ord

, the L

ord

God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth."

Exodus 34:6 nasb

✦ ✦ ✦

His holiness is the absolute uniqueness and infinite value of His glory. His righteousness is His unswerving commitment always to honor and display that glory. And His all-sufficient glory is honored and displayed most by His working for us rather than our working for Him.

And this is love.

3

Brothers, God Is Love

Some readers of the previous chapter will echo the concerns of some of the men at our church. At a men’s retreat, I defined spiritual leadership as "knowing where God wants people to be and taking the initiative to get them there by God’s means in reliance on God’s power." I suggested that the way we find out where God wants people to be is to ask where God Himself is going. The answer, I think, is that God loves His glory (see chap. 2) and that He aims to magnify His glory in all He does.

So the goal of spiritual leadership is to muster people to join God in living for God’s glory.

The objection arose at the retreat that this teaching makes God out to be a self-centered egomaniac who seems never to act out of love. But God does act out of love. He is love. We need to see how God can be for His own glory and be for us too. The best way I know to show this is to explain how God is holy, God is righteous, and God is love, and how these three interrelate.

When we describe God as holy, we mean that He is one of a kind. There is none like Him. He is in a class by Himself.

Moses taught Israel to sing, Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders? (Exod. 15:11). Centuries later Hannah, Samuel’s mother, taught Israel to sing, There is none holy like the Lord; there is none besides you (1 Sam. 2:2). And Isaiah (40:25) quotes God: ‘To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him?’ says the Holy One.

God is holy in His absolute uniqueness. Everything else belongs to a class. We are human; Rover is a dog; the oak is a tree; Earth is a planet; the Milky Way is one of a billion galaxies; Gabriel is an angel; Satan is a demon. But only God is God. And therefore He is holy, utterly different, distinct, unique.

All else is creation. He alone creates. All else begins. He alone always was. All else depends. He alone is self-sufficient.

And therefore the holiness of God is synonymous with His infinite value. Diamonds are valuable because they are rare and hard to make. God is infinitely valuable because He is the rarest of all beings and cannot be made at all, nor was He ever made. If I were a collector of rare treasures and could somehow have God, the Holy One, in my treasury, I would be wealthier than all the collectors of all the rarest treasures that exist outside God.

Revelation 4:8–11 recounts the songs that are being sung to God in heaven. The first one says, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come! The second says, Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power. These two songs mean the same thing. God is holy means that He is worthy. His holiness is His immeasurable worth and value. Nothing can be compared with Him, for He made everything. Whatever worth makes a created thing valuable is found a millionfold in the Creator.

One way to highlight the meaning of God’s holiness is to compare it with His glory. Are they the same? Not exactly. I would say that His glory is the shining forth of His holiness. His holiness is His intrinsic worth—an utterly unique excellence. His glory is the manifest display of this worth in beauty. His glory is His holiness on display. "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory, say the seraphim above His throne (Isa. 6:3). Habakkuk cries, God came from Teman, and the Holy One from Mount Paran. His splendor covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise (Hab. 3:3). And the Lord Himself says in Leviticus 10:3: Among those who are near me I will be sanctified, and before all the people I will be glorified." To show Himself holy is the way He is glorified.

The holiness of God is the absolutely unique and infinite value of His being and His majesty. To say that our God is holy means that His value is infinitely greater than the sum of the value of all created beings.

Turn now to consider His righteousness. At root, the righteousness of God means that He has a right assessment of His own ultimate value. He has a just regard for His own infinite worth, and He brings all His actions into conformity to this right judgment of Himself.

God would be unrighteous and unreliable if He denied His ultimate value, disregarded His infinite worth, and acted as though the preservation and display of His glory were worth anything less than His wholehearted commitment. God acts in righteousness when He acts for His own name’s sake. For it would not be right for God to esteem anything above the infinite glory of His own name.

Psalm 143:11 says, For your name’s sake, O Lord, preserve my life! In your righteousness bring me out of trouble! Notice the parallel between in your righteousness and for your name’s sake. Similarly, Psalm 31:1 says, In your righteousness deliver me. And verse 3 adds, For your name’s sake you lead me and guide me. Similarly in Daniel 9:16–17, the prophet prays: According to all your righteous acts, let your anger and your wrath turn away from your city Jerusalem. . . . For your own sake, O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary, which is desolate. An appeal to God’s righteousness is at root an appeal to His unswerving allegiance to the value of His own holy name.

For God to

Reviews for Brothers, We Are Not Professionals

[bradkautz · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

What is the nature of the vocation known as “pastor”? While the pastoral calling has many facets and characteristics, one that John Piper adamantly believes should be avoided at all costs is the idea of pastor as a ministry professional. This is the focal point around which the revised edition of his book, Brothers, We Are Not Professionals (Nashville: Crossway, 2013), revolves around. While a pastor may possess a particular skill set Piper’s vision of ministry is more concerned with the primacy of serving as one called by God to minister among God’s people, reliant on God’s power rather than anything else.Piper draws from his 30+ years of pastoral ministry to offer encouragement and wisdom to all who are called to serve as pastors today. He addresses matters of character, theology and culture, providing insights into ways in which the pastor needs to tend their own person in order to tend God’s people well. The book is saturated with scripture, as Piper draws extensively from the Old and New Testaments to ground his lines of reasoning, as well as citing references from throughout the church’s history.There are two issues that may dissuade certain readers from picking up this book and drawing from its wisdom. One is that Piper is a Baptist, known for embracing a complentarian model of ministry, rather than an egalitarian one. While he uses the form “Brothers,…” as the title for each chapter I believe that the wisdom included in each chapter is of equal value for women serving in pastoral ministry. Additionally, as a Baptist, he holds to baptism as an ordinance, rather than a sacrament. As someone who fully embraces orthodox Reformed theology I found that Piper’s words on baptism could be used constructively not only in reference to baptism, but also within a covenantal understanding of the Lord’s Supper.In the past few years I have read a few of Piper’s books and listened to him speak on several occasions. His mantra, if you will, has been and remains, “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.” In Brothers, We Are Not Professionals Piper ‘s overarching goal is for pastors to more fully pursue glorifying God in their personal lives and public ministries, so that those they minister among are enabled to do the same. He accomplishes this purpose and I highly commend this book.

[hoosierdaddy-2 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

John Piper’s “Brothers, We Are Not Professionals” is a book that every pastor should read. Personally, I found this book to be a refreshing reminder of the dangers of entering the pastorate for any reason other than a calling from God. “Brothers, We Are Not Professionals” should be required reading for every Bible College and seminary student that aspires to be called pastor.

[atimco-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Brothers, We Are Not Professionals is a distillation of what pastor and author John Piper believes are the most crucial doctrines and practices for effective, Christ-exalting ministry. Piper is an excellent communicator with a gift for inspiring his hearers to pursue the joy he himself has found in cherishing Christ. As he says many times, "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him." So what does that mean for those in pastoral ministry?The core idea driving the book is that pastoral ministry is not something to be pursued with all the performance and cold impersonality that professionalism implies. In the preface, Piper asks, "Is there professional praying? Professional trusting in God's promises? Professional weeping over souls? Professional musing on the depths of revelation? Professional rejoicing in the truth? Professional praising God's name? Professional treasuring the riches of Christ?... These are not marginal activities in the pastoral life. They are central. They are the essence... Professionalism is not supernatural. The heart of ministry is" (ix–x). Pastors should resist the pressure to professionalize their work and instead chase hard after the kind of ministry modeled in the New Testament.I am not a pastor, but I requested this book through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers program because I was curious what Piper would say to his peers about what is absolutely non-negotiable in ministry. I found that although this message is written to his pastoral brothers, the truths he teaches are applicable to me and every other believer in Christ. I was deeply challenged by many of the chapters, most notably "Beware of the Debtor's Ethic" (about how we can so easily fall into the trap of trying to pay God back) and "Tell Them Copper Will Do" (about sacrificial giving and living with a joyful, wartime simplicity to escape materialism and be copper, not gold, conduits of provision and grace to others — ouch). His message is both profoundly theological and insistently practical; in addition to arguing against the joyless philosophy of Immanuel Kant, Piper challenges us to blow the trumpet for the unborn and to sever racism at the root. He strives for a definition of worship to help churches survive the "worship wars" over style and form, while also urging pastors to know and teach how God loves His glory. It is all interconnected.Piper delights in saying old things in fresh new ways, with arresting chapter titles as "Tell Them Not to Serve God," "Fight for Your Life," "Bitzer Was a Banker," "Lead Them to Repentance through Their Pleasure," and more. He writes with passion and clarity, and is not afraid to dissect hard passages to drill down to their rich depths. What else stood out to me? Piper's challenge to pastors to study Greek and Hebrew is stirring and right ("when we fail to stress the use of Greek and Hebrew as valuable in the pastoral office, we create an eldership of professional academicians" [101]). I loved his discussion of why God inspired hard texts (they create desperation: a sense of utter dependence on God's enablement; supplication: prayer to God for help; cogitation: thinking hard about biblical texts; and education: training young people and adults to pray earnestly, read well, and think hard). And of course Piper's signature emphasis on joy permeates everything, how it is the best and only motive for pursuing God ("As Christian hedonists we know that every listener longs for happiness. And we will never tell them to deny or repress that desire. Their problem is not that they want to be satisfied but that they are far too easily satisfied. We will instruct them how to glut their soul-hunger on the grace of God" [66]). The chapters are short and easy to read, but left me meditating on their truths and often rereading some of the more eye-opening passages several times to really understand the implications for my life. I heartily recommend this to all Christians (since we are all ministers, really) and especially pastors, as a quick compendium of the biblical teachings that have formed the basis of Piper's 30-year ministry. There is a lot of wisdom here and I certainly see myself rereading. How many ministries and churches have been exhorted and encouraged by this book? Thank You, Lord, for John Piper!

[jen_smucker · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

In true Piper tradition, "Brothers, We Are Not Professionals" brings to light many intriguing and thought-provoking concepts, explained with passion and simplicity. Piper's main goal in this not-just-for-pastors writing is to point us toward God and away from the typical, even expected view of the pastorate- a professional position. As the subtitle conveys, this is a plea to pastors for a shift from focusing on ourselves and the minutia of our individual christian journeys to big-picture, all-encompassing concepts toward the heart of God and His desire for His people. Piper encourages us to break out of ourselves by doing such simple things as reading another's biography and paying attention to our physical bodies through rest, nutrition and exercise. This book has many practical insights for the believer (if you can read past the Reformation tradition of women not being allowed to be in leadership). An inspirational read.

[deusvitae · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

An updated exhortation toward those in ministry regarding various subjects.The title is somewhat misleading: "Brothers, We Are Not Professionals" is only the first of 36 different subjects relating to the author's encouragement regarding proper ministry. The author does not envision ministers as amateurs or anything of that sort; his exhortation is to make sure that ministers do excellent work for the Lord rooted in what the Lord has said and not the "profession standards" of the world. The subtitle, "A Plea to Pastors for Radical Ministry," is also a bit sensationalistic, trendy, and not entirely accurate: little of what Piper has to say can be called "radical". That doesn't necessarily make it wrong; it's just not as out of the ordinary as one might be led to believe.There's a lot of great stuff in this book. His concept of "Christian Hedonism" is intriguing. He does well at telling ministers how they need to make time to pray and to continue their personal studies beyond the day-to-day/week-to-week study work. Much of what he encourages ministers to promote--Bible-based lessons, emphasis on God's glory, recognition of the challenges of the text, proper discussion of hell, repentance, and other subjects, avoidance of legalism, maintenance of humility not uncertainty, a proper view toward wealth, love for one's wife, and exhortation against racism and abortion, among other matters.Piper is a Baptist, and one on the Reformed side at that: his emphasis on justification by faith alone is there, along with great fealty to the Puritans. He recognizes the importance of baptism but resists what the text clearly indicates about what baptism does. One should be careful in these parts for the Protestant over-reach; while studying Puritan works can have value, one ought not neglect patristics, reformed, and more recent writings as well in order to obtain a more holistic understanding of the range of all matters Christianity (if one is so inclined for such a study). Nevertheless, save on these Protestant doctrinal matters, this book has a lot of good information for ministers to consider, and they should do so.

[mandat_2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed reading Brothers, We Are Not Professionals by John Piper even though it is a book meant for Pastors. I thought that Piper did a great job laying out a foundation in the many aspects that Pastors come across in their ministries. Many times it seems that being in the ministry can become more about professionalism rather than about a pastor's relationship with God and the people he is shepherding. This would be a great resource for any pastor's library.**I received this book free through the Early Reviewer program on LIbraryThing in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

[megcamp · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I received this book through LibraryThing early reviews, and was thrilled to read it. Despite not being a pastor, I am called as a leader in our local church, and wanted to be better able to lead those who follow me, and to pray for the pastor of our church. I attempted to read this book through the eyes of our pastor, imagining the struggles and ways he would identify with Piper's teachings, and ways in which he would disagree. It certainly helped me to reflect on ways our church is glorifying God, ways we need to grow, and areas where we miss the mark as a congregation. The goal of being better equipped to pray for my pastor was absolutely worth it in reading this. Preaching alone is a huge mountain to climb, and should be drenched in prayer, not to mention pastoral care, leading through conflict, and spurring others on in their walk with the Lord.

[iqs_2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I recently picked up the book, Brothers, We Are Not Professionals, by John Piper. Having read several of Piper's books in the past, I was expecting this to be a eight to ten chapter book that focused on the pastoral aspect of his book, Desiring God. However, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the format of this book was different. While there was the normal focus on our satisfaction in God, each of the chapters was relatively short. This format allowed me to read this as a supplement to my daily Bible reading. I found that reading the book in this way helped me to internalize the teaching that Piper sought to bring forth in this book.There was one chapter, however, that had less to do with helping pastors fulfill their role as shepherds and more to do with putting forth Piper's theology. I felt that the chapter on baptism was out of place in this book. I found that it did not help to put forth the goal of the book of helping pastors to shed the role of professional and embrace their role as shepherd.All-in-all, this was an excellent book and well worth the read.

[kpjackson · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is an excellent book for pastors or any church leaders to read. The focus of this book is to remind us why we are serving the church and what our true goals should be.

[bookworm147_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

[I received a complementary copy of this book as part of the LibraryThing Early Reviewer program.]I began reading this book with certain expectations of what was going to be discussed, but found it wasn't quite what I expected. If you're familiar with any of John Piper's other books, you have a pretty good idea of what you will find in Brothers, We Are Not Professionals: God's greatest concern is the display of his own glory; God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him. The book is a collection of essays that can be read independently, so it's fairly easy to jump into any one of the chapters depending on your interests at the moment. Unfortunately, I had some difficulty connecting some of the chapters to the title of the book.The book I had in mind would probably have been entitled Brothers, We Are Not Celebrities, so it took me a while to clearly grasp what Piper had in mind. Here's my best stab at it. We attribute a certain prestige to the "professionals" among us. They've pursued an education to train for their chosen career. They're pursuing a certain status by achieving a certain level of competency in their profession. We might think of the doctors and lawyers among us - well-respected, credentialed individuals.Piper argues that pastors are not "professionals" because none of these things really apply for them. No amount of university or seminary training equips a pastor for a work that relies on the supernatural work of God. A pastor never becomes competent in himself because everything he does requires the working of God's Spirit to make it effective. No credentialing agency can help him accomplish greater things in God's kingdom. The pastor relies on God to bring people to faith and salvation; the pastor relies on the Spirit to answer prayer; the pastor relies on the Lord to make his preaching effective. Contrary to being well-respected, they are likely scoffed at by the world around them when they commit to living a radical Christian life.Being reminded of these truths draws the reader's attention upward to see God as more magnificent in the pastor's life and calling. There is quite a bit of content here that will encourage the pastor who may be struggling with the effectiveness of his ministry. It will help reorient him to look to God alone to make his labor fruitful. I most enjoyed the chapters that encouraged this kind of thinking among pastors.Other chapters were more theologically oriented, focusing on certain doctrines that Piper considers foundational to Christian belief. These are the chapters I was already familiar with from other Piper books and didn't find them quite as engaging.

[cjsdg · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Very helpful thoughts on pastoral ministry. The updated edition contains several new chapters, one of which humbly corrects an imbalance in the first edition by arguing that God does in fact make much of us in Christ. Another new chapter addresses the homiletic issue of matching the tone of the message to the tone of the text, which for me has been an instructive way of examining a message beyond simple textual faithfulness. Chapter 27, on the value of bodily exercise, humanizes the book in an important way. Overall, a very good book that has only gotten better.

[bulldog_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Having read the first edition back in 2002, I was eager to see what had been added. Chapters like "Bitzer was a Banker" and "Beware of the Debtors Ethic" were etched into my heart upon the first reading of them. This is one of my all-time favorite books by John Piper.The second edition improves on the first, by adding six new chapters on God's love for His people (4), the glory of God is the highest good of the Gospel (6), the task of preaching the Bible with authority (13), the duty to preach in accord with the tone of the text (18), the necessity of fighting habitual sins (22), and the need to watch your body, as well as your heart, in order to maximize your ministry (27). These chapters are strong additions to what was already a wonderful and heart-searching read.My only critique would be that the additional chapters being interspersed through the book results in page numbering and chapter numbers being quite different. For the individual reader, this is not a challenge, but when read as a group, its important to ensure that either (a) everyone has the same edition, or (b) the chapter titles of what's being read are communicated so that each person reads the correct pages.

[enoch_elijah_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

From the title alone you can probably figure out that the intended audience of this book is pastors. I am no pastor. I do not have the desire nor have I ever felt the calling to be one. I am, however, a layman with a passion to be used by God and I have learned over the years that books addressed to pastors are very often quite good for this purpose. This book, in particular, I found to be extremely helpful because John Piper writes to pastors but he writes in a style that any layman can easily understand. Piper is more interested in communicating an important message effectively than he is in writing a tome full of big theological terms. For this I am extremely grateful!This book is laid out in very short but profound chapters, and in each one Piper calls upon his fellow pastors to engage differently with his flock. Every chapter stays true to the overall theme of the book, which is Piper's call for pastors to stop thinking of themselves as members of the pastoral profession and instead to look at themselves as outcasts. He states in the very beginning that "[w]e are aliens and exiles in the world (1 Pet 2:11). Our citizenship is in heaven, and we wait with eager expectation for the Lord (Phil 3:20). You cannot professionalize the love for His appearing without killing it. And it is being killed." Piper urges pastors to do away with the mentality of the professional and instead hold on to the mentality of a prophet.I love this. I have met way too many professional pastors and so pitifully few prophetic ones. I have met too many men that stand behind the pulpit who care more for professional organizations than they do for the hurting sheep and for the lost of the world. I think this book should be read by every pastor. Furthermore, I think this book should be read by all Believers, because the challenge in its pages is for all Christians and not just those called to preach His Word from the pulpits of the churches.Chapters with titles like:"Brothers, Be Bible-Oriented- Not Entertainment-Oriented- Preachers""Brothers, Query the Text""Brothers, Show Your People Why God Inspired Hard Texts""Brothers, Feel the Truth of Hell"Chapters like this and many others are guaranteed to at least challenge us into critically regarding the complacency into which so many of us have fallen.So, please. If you are a pastor, read this book. Please, if you are a Christian, seriously consider reading this book. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

[robsumrall · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I have a confession to make. I don't really get all the fuss over John Piper's books. I've read quite a few of them. Every time I finish one, I think, "What was all the fuss about?" I think the issue, at least for me, is mostly stylistic. His writing style just doesn't appeal to me. There is something about the cadence and the droning lists that just irk me. Having said that, I'm deeply appreciative of his biblical insights and his passion (that often overwhelms me and irks me even more).In Brothers, We are Not Professionals, Piper breaks the mold. As far as I'm concerned, this is his magnum opus. Forget Desiring God and . Those things are rags compared to Brothers!! Following in the path of Spurgeon's Lectures to My Students, Piper offers up simple essays that challenge ministers in just about every conceivable way! He addresses everything from the minister's marriage to the need to preach justification by faith. Each chapter tackles a unique topic and could be read on its own. Piper has penned an offering that is sure to mentor young ministers well beyond his own lifetime. I found myself evaluating my own life with each chapter. More than a few blindspots were revealed! I can honestly say that this book has inspired me to (among other things) be more faithful in my study of original biblical languages, to read more Christian biographies, to tell my people "that copper will do" (read chapter 29- you'll agree with me!), and to be more prayerful. I am immensely thankful to John Piper for this offering! I guess I should admit that, at least in this instance, I DO get all of the fuss!

[firefighter288 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Piper’s purpose for this book is to break our concept of insulated Western Christianity which gives the façade of being Christian as normal and safe. The fact of the matter is that we are not normal, and we certainly are not safe from attacks. We became more vulnerable the day we accepted Christ as our personal Lord and Savior than any other day that preceded it. This book was primarily written for pastors and those possessing leadership positions within the church.Throughout the entire text, there was only one chapter that I had problems with and that was chapter 15. In this chapter Piper proposes that the Sunday sermon or teaching is what saves people. He states, “Our salvation and the salvation of those who hear us week after week depend in large measure on our faithful attention to personal holiness and sound teaching.” I am not in disagreement with being a positive example, but I am in disagreement with the statement that ours and our listener’s salvation depends on our resentation. Salvation does not depend on our actions. This puts us in control which in turn puts God as a spectator. This can not be so, ever. We are responsible for our actions, but it is ultimately God’s decision as to who is elect and who is not. “The salvation of our believing hearers is on the line.” I most definitely disagree.John Piper is an “easy reading” author. His insights are thoughtful and well spoken. Although I do not agree with all of his opinions, his works are certainly worth reading.

[erickimberly · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Definitely pastor-oriented. But, I gained much insight out of this book. One of my fave chapters is that of reading and reading Christian biographies. Short chapters so one isn't bogged down in reading lengthy works.

[billmeister16 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Few rival Piper's ability to challenge all pastors to greatness which may only be measured to their faithfulness to the Word and the Church. Here, he once again exhorts pastors and laymen to return to a biblical basis for ministry.

[stevejmclean · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Brothers we are not Professionals, John Piper, Broadman & Holman, 2002, 286 pgs.Piper has a wonderful collection of articles from magazines that were written for church leaders. They are easy to read, and generally press in on the reader to evaluate and refine the character found within. This is a wonderful book of encouragement and challenge, wrapped up often times in the same paragraph!“Beware of the Debtors Ethic” was a chapter that particularly struck with me. The idea that often enters into the conversation of Christian life is that “the Christian life is pictured as an effort to pay back the debt we owe to God.”(pg34) What a fallacy, what a trap. People strive to find ways to pay back the free gift of salvation. The question that haunts me is ... how much of that what I hear is due in part to my teaching, and my example of a life? The encouragement that we do not owe anything for the free gift of salvation (yet we owe everything!), and the challenge is to fight this thought process to the bitter end!Another chapter that worked me over was; “Don’t confuse uncertainty with humility”. In this section Piper really cut into me and my attitudes. He presented five points on humility;-begins with a sense of subordination to God in Christ-does not feel a right to better treatment than Jesus got.-asserts truth not to bolster the ego with control or with triumphs in debate, but as service to Christ and love to the adversary.-knows it is dependent on grace for all knowing, believing, living and acting.-knows it is fallible and so considers criticism and learns from it, but it also knows that God has made provision for unshakable human conviction and that He calls us to persuade others.Five simple points, and not one of them was a simple read for me ... each one convicted, and at the same time spurs me on to walk out the privilege of pastoral leadership with greater humility!“Tell them that copper will do” is the next chapter, and again it is a reading that causes discomfort. Here the root of my selfishness and greed was laid on the table. “God is not glorified when we keep for ourselves (not matter how thankfully) what we ought to be using to alleviate the misery of unevangelized and uneducated and unhoused and unfed millions” (pg 169). How often am I unwilling to give, to share the great gifts that God so graciously gives to me? Even worst yet how often do I grumble about the things that I do have?But not every chapter was a hard reading on the areas I am lacking. “Read Christina biography” is a chapter that encourages the practise for reading the stories of those have gone before us. This I do as a practise, but again it is something that I can grow in, doing a better job of gleaning and implementing positivity habits into my life and ministry for the glory of God. That is what this book is about; giving God glory as we work through whatever field He has placed us to plow!