- Personal. Share Testimony. …
- Doctrinal. Statement of Faith. …
- Ecclesiastical. Compatibility. …
- Practical. What would the scenario of “serving this church” look like? …
- Logistical. Capacity. …
- Prayerful. Describe the life and ministry that you are asking God to cultivate in you.
A. Theological Questions 1. What is the church’s statement of faith? 2. What has been the most vexed theological question the church has faced? Has there ever been a church split over theology or practice? Why? 3. What theological trends and strands of false teaching are the elders of the church particularly concerned about? 4. Who do you understand to be the biblically designated leaders of the church? 5. What do you understand the roles and responsibilities of elders to be? 6. What do you understand the roles and responsibilities of deacons to be? 7. What is the church’s position on the role of women with respect to leadership positions in the church? 8. What kind of church government does the church have? How does it work out practically?
B. Philosophy of Ministry Questions 1. What do you understand a pastor’s primary responsibility to be? 2. What role do you think preaching should play in a pastor’s work and in the life of the church? 3. How would you assess whether or not a man is succeeding as pastor? 4. What is the process of being baptized and becoming a church member? 5. What are the expectations for church members? 6. How does the church practice church discipline? 7. Does the church have any plans for church planting? 8. Does the church have any plans to expand the church building? 9. Are there any ways the elders are presently leading the church to change? 10. Do the church members generally and happily follow the elders’ leadership? 11. How many Sundays out of the year do you expect the pastor to preach? 12. What items in the current services are non-negotiable? What other items are deemed acceptable and have been featured in the past? Who is currently responsible for putting together the orders of service? 13. What is the church’s expectation regarding pastoral visitation? 14. How often are business meetings conducted? Does the pastor moderate them? Are they productive and generally positive? What is typically discussed? 15. Does the church have a yearly budget? If so, how is it put together? 16. What is the church’s strategy for missions? 17. Who is responsible for the website and library? Are they willing to have the pastor give significant input into these areas? 18. Has the church ever had small groups? If so, what is the leadership’s feeling about their significance? 19. What are the leadership’s views concerning counseling? 20. How would you sum up the spiritual health of the congregation in qualitative terms (in terms of categories like prayer, evangelism, love for one another)? 21. Are there any “sacred cows” in the church? 22. Would the congregation consider adding an additional paid staff member at any point?
C. Personal Questions 1. Will the pastor receive an expense account for ministry related items? 2. What is the rationale regarding days off, holidays, and sabbaticals? 3. Do you think it would be relatively easy for a young family to settle into the church and the town? 4. What challenges do you think my wife and children would face if we move here? 7. What role would the pastor’s wife be expected to have in the church? 8. What are the schools like in the area? 9. How easy is it to buy an affordable house in the area?
(Much of this material has been adapted from Colin Adams’s blog post, “41 Questions to ask a potential church,” available here.)
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10 Questions to Ask a Church You’re Interviewing With
Below is the full list of questions we ask Elder candidates. The questions touch on many of the culturally demanding, doctrine-shaping topics of our day. Answers should be well articulated, theologically sound, biblically supported, and 1-2 pages in length each. These questions help determine how an Elder will pastorally and theologically shepherd the flock.
If you want something to do in your time with the Lord and/or your time with community, grab this list and get busy wrestling with what God and Scripture says about each of these issues. Spoiler alert: God’s thoughts are going to run contrary to the world’s and our flesh’s leanings (Proverbs 14:12). We pray your study and alignment with the Spirit’s leadership in each of these areas will lead to a closer relationship with Him.
As part of our process to select Elders at Watermark, we ask every candidate to answer 35 questions. We know that our Elders’ positions on these topics will have ripple effects in our body, city, and world for generations to come, so we carefully listen to every man as he articulates from God’s Word his understanding of the Spirit’s opinion on each of these issues.
As you kick off an interview, you want your candidate relaxed and feeling comfortable. Nervous or anxious people don’t interview well and won’t give you a sense of what it would be like to have them on your team. Here are some suggested questions to help break the ice at the start of the interview:
A well-planned interview for a new leader at your church is a critical part of the hiring process. Rather than “winging it” or asking the “same old, same old” questions, take time to plan the interview. It’s important to get a clear picture of the candidate in these three areas:
Below are some example questions in three different categories to help you plan for upcoming interviews.
Past performance is the best indicator of the future performance of a prospective team member. Find out what the candidate has actually accomplished. Here are some potential questions for you to consider using:
Looking for some next-level questions that might uncover fascinating insights into your candidate? Like a spice in a good meal, don’t overdo these kinds of questions. Your goal in interviewing people isn’t to ask “gotcha questions” that throw them off balance. Here are a few questions that will encourage your candidate to think deeper:
A. Theological Questions 1. What is the church’s statement of faith? 2. What has been the most vexed theological question the church has faced? Has there ever been a church split over theology or practice? Why? 3. What theological trends and strands of false teaching are the elders of the church particularly concerned about? 4. Who do you understand to be the biblically designated leaders of the church? 5. What do you understand the roles and responsibilities of elders to be? 6. What do you understand the roles and responsibilities of deacons to be? 7. What is the church’s position on the role of women with respect to leadership positions in the church? 8. What kind of church government does the church have? How does it work out practically?
B. Philosophy of Ministry Questions 1. What do you understand a pastor’s primary responsibility to be? 2. What role do you think preaching should play in a pastor’s work and in the life of the church? 3. How would you assess whether or not a man is succeeding as pastor? 4. What is the process of being baptized and becoming a church member? 5. What are the expectations for church members? 6. How does the church practice church discipline? 7. Does the church have any plans for church planting? 8. Does the church have any plans to expand the church building? 9. Are there any ways the elders are presently leading the church to change? 10. Do the church members generally and happily follow the elders’ leadership? 11. How many Sundays out of the year do you expect the pastor to preach? 12. What items in the current services are non-negotiable? What other items are deemed acceptable and have been featured in the past? Who is currently responsible for putting together the orders of service? 13. What is the church’s expectation regarding pastoral visitation? 14. How often are business meetings conducted? Does the pastor moderate them? Are they productive and generally positive? What is typically discussed? 15. Does the church have a yearly budget? If so, how is it put together? 16. What is the church’s strategy for missions? 17. Who is responsible for the website and library? Are they willing to have the pastor give significant input into these areas? 18. Has the church ever had small groups? If so, what is the leadership’s feeling about their significance? 19. What are the leadership’s views concerning counseling? 20. How would you sum up the spiritual health of the congregation in qualitative terms (in terms of categories like prayer, evangelism, love for one another)? 21. Are there any “sacred cows” in the church? 22. Would the congregation consider adding an additional paid staff member at any point?
Cookies enable you to enjoy features such as social sharing. They also help us analyze general site traffic so we can improve the website for everyone. By continuing to use the 9M website, you consent to the use of cookies. More information is available on our Privacy Policy.
(Much of this material has been adapted from Colin Adams’s blog post, “41 Questions to ask a potential church,” available here.)
C. Personal Questions 1. Will the pastor receive an expense account for ministry related items? 2. What is the rationale regarding days off, holidays, and sabbaticals? 3. Do you think it would be relatively easy for a young family to settle into the church and the town? 4. What challenges do you think my wife and children would face if we move here? 7. What role would the pastor’s wife be expected to have in the church? 8. What are the schools like in the area? 9. How easy is it to buy an affordable house in the area?
FAQ
What questions are asked in a pastoral interview?
- Can you tell me about your theological beliefs?
- How might you describe your communication style?
- Can you describe your call to ministry?
- How much experience do you have working in a team?
- What are some of your greatest professional strengths?
What are some good theological questions?
- Q: Does God control everything that happens in my life? …
- Q: Why does God allow evil to happen? …
- Q: Does God know everything? …
- Q: What causes God to intervene in earthly affairs? …
- Q: Did God really create the world in seven days? …
- Q: How come the Age of Miracles Ended?
What are some good questions to ask a pastor?
