A Pilgrimage Of Faith, J.B. Toews, 1993

any inner call a candidate might have. Lohrenz noted that "where a person makes claims to a special call in spite of the church there is reason to doubt the genuineness of the call Even though there may exist exceptions, the normal course is through the church,"7 QUAIJFICATIONS FOR THE MINISTRY The call to the ministry was subject to certain essential 54 LEADERSHIP AND THE TEACHING MINISTRY qualifications. One, of course, was the experiential reality of personal salvation. Only those who had been "called out of darkness into his marvelous light" (1 Pet. 2:9), who knew they had passed from death unto life (1 John 3:14), and who knew "the power of God unto salvation" (Rom. 1:16) would be in a position to minister to seeking souls.8 A second essential criterion was a model lifestyle. Lohrenz underlined Paul's statement to Timothy, "Be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity" (1 Tim. 4:12). He also pointed to Peter's exhortation to be "examples to the flock" (1 Pet. 5:3). "Everything about the preacher must preach-heart, mouth, and walk; what the mouth speaks must come out of the heart and must be confirmed by the walk. In his teaching he must thunder and in his walk he must shine."9 The centrality of the Word was fundamental. There could be no question as to the messenger's commitment to sound doctrine in the proclamation of God's truth. The church needed to practice vigilance in the examination of the doc- trines preached.10 Lohrenz's high regard for the role of the ministry under- lined the attitude of the first century of the Mennonite Brethren Church. The story of the second century represents both continuity and change. SELECTION OF LEADERSHIP Ministers and deacons had the responsibility, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, to discern the gifts of brothers and sisters within the body. Church leadership held meetings where they prayed for guidance. Brothers and sisters recog- nized as having gifts were to be encouraged to develop these gifts through the opportunities available to them. Those who met the spiritual qualifications of 1 Timothy 3:1-7, 2 Timothy 4:2-5 and 1 Timothy 1:5-9 and 2:7 were encouraged to share their inner call with the church for broader affirmation and 55 A PILGRIMAGE OF FAJTH encouragement, A positive response to the testimony af- firmed the brother or sister as a gift to the church, after which they became co-workers with the existing leadership {Mitar- beiter). After the workers had proved themselves the church prayerfully