One possible college major is pre-sem. The word ‘pre-sem’ confuses some people. It merely means that the person is on a pre-seminary program of study. Similar to this is the word ‘pre-med’ which is the college major that prepares a student for going to medical school. We will look at the pre-sem major from two points of view. First, we will look at what being a pre-sem student means academically. Secondly, we will examine what the call to the ministry involves in order that young men might have some direction when they think about this issue.
Pre-sem is the course of studies that prepares one for going to seminary. It is true that few if any students at the Protestant Reformed seminary have ever graduated with a pre-sem major. But at college it is quite an extensive course of studies and because of this it is almost considered a major. In the past some graduates of our seminary had their pre-seminary education through our seminary, so that would be a clear instance of a pre-sem course of studies. But the recent college graduates who have attended our seminary do have a major in a specific field. Among the majors represented are history, philosophy, Latin, theology, English, and psychology. These show that a pre-sem student can major in any field that he wants. I have a friend who majored in math, something that does not seem specifically geared towards preparing you for seminary. But since this was Sinclair Ferguson’s (a prominent Westminster professor) major that did not deter my friend.
So, a pre-sem course of study will involve the student getting a major in a specific field, in addition to which he has to finish pre-seminary core classes. These count up to a lot of classes. For example, one has to take 12 classes in foreign languages which includes four semesters each of Latin, Dutch, and Greek. In addition to this he must take three English, two western civilization, three philosophy classes, including two on the history of philosophy, and a few additional classes. These classes must somehow be worked into one’s liberal arts degree so that one can finish up in four years of college. It is very difficult to do this. At least half of the seminary students do not have their pre- sem cores completed upon arrival. When you realize that most colleges have a large number of core classes, in addition to which you need 10-12 classes for your major, and need probably 15 more classes for your pre-sem core, you realize that the college career of a pre-sem student is quite busy. For example, I took summer classes and still have not fulfilled my core yet.
These are the academic requirements which a young man who is interested in entering the ministry can expect. Now I want to talk about what the correct reasons might be for entering the pre-sem program. Louis Berkhof in his Dogmatics discusses how God calls ministers of the gospel to their office. He states that there are two parts to the calling. First there is the internal calling and secondly there is the external calling. The internal calling is what is relevant for our discussion. The external calling refers to the calling by the local church whereby they call a minister to be their pastor, and then the pastor is ordained by the church through the laying on of hands.
The internal calling is what occurs subjectively in the mind of the person who feels himself called. A young man experiences the internal calling when he believes that God is impelling him to enter the ministry. God gives him such a love for Himself and for His kingdom’s cause that he feels that he must enter into the ministry. God shows him that there is a great need in the church for pastors and he is inwardly convinced that God is calling him to this high office. The young man is and must be interested in God’s glory and in the promotion of His glorious gospel.
Unfortunately, some young men seem to think that the call to enter the ministry is something that is mystical or involves a special revelation. They seem to expect God to speak directly from heaven to them in the same way that Jesus appeared to Saul as he was on the way to Damascus. But this is not the case. God does not use an extraordinary means to call young men to the ministry. He uses the usual and wonderful means of speaking to them by His Word through the Spirit. In our own churches I have come across young men who seem to expect something almost miraculous. Some of these men seem to have the spiritual gifts necessary for the ministry, but they act as if they are waiting for an extraordinary happening or a momentous event to occur before they will commit themselves to seek the ministry. God does not use astonishing events to call a young man. Rather it is by the study of the Word of God and by prayer that the young man must seek to know whether God has called him.
Berkhof states two other aspects of the internal calling. He says that the young man must be convinced that the spiritual gifts that are necessary for the pastorate are present. It is quite useless for a young man to enter a pre-sem program if he does not have certain gifts. The academic gifts necessary to do well in school play an important role. If one was never interested in studying or reading then it is quite clear that they do not have the gifts necessary. If the young man as a student could not get good grades in school, then he has a serious roadblock before him when it comes to pursuing a pre-sem course of studies. But by saying this I do not want to give any support to a lot of young men, who have the ability to get good grades, but yet claim that they could not handle the foreign languages that are necessary for going to seminary. The fact of the matter is that anybody can learn a language. It just comes down to how long it will take, and how much struggling you will have to go through to learn it.
But spiritual gifts are also necessary for one to know that they have the call. Not only are they “also necessary,” but they are the fundamental gifts that are necessary. No man who is unspiritual can think that God is calling him to the ministry. If a young man is into partying, extra-marital sex, or any other grievous sins it is quite clear that he is not pre-sem material. In the past many unspiritual men have entered the pastorate. The church has been plagued by men who enter the church out of personal greed. This kind of men seek the honor and the praise of men. They seek positions of power. God has no use for such young men in his vineyard.
Rather God calls young men who have a heart for prayer. He seeks young men who in their prayers cry out in praise of their Saviour. God calls to the ministry young men who are continually dependent in prayer upon Him. God does not need men who think that they can do things themselves; such men are utterly useless to him in the ministry. So, a life of faith is necessary for a young man who wishes to preach the holy gospel.
The final element that Berkhof gives for what the internal calling must involve is that the young man must “experience that God is paving the way to the goal” (p. 192), If one feels the call and seems to have the gifts but God is closing the door to him, then the young man must not think that God is necessarily calling him. It might be that God is indicating that it is not His will that the young man seeks the ministry. For example, God might do this by not providing enough money for the young man to go to college.
Why is it important for young men who are close to graduating from high-school or are in college to consider the ministry? It is because the Christian church is in great need today of good pastors and missionaries. Young men must seriously consider entering the ministry. If he feels that God might be calling him, he must not take this lightly. He must seriously examine what God would have him to do with his life. If a young man does feel called, then he must analyze this call in order to ascertain whether his desire to enter the ministry is legitimate. Is it based on the correct reasons and motives?
But he must not just be self-centered and look at himself. He must also look at the state of the church today. He must look at the crying need for missionaries. Throughout the third world the church is growing in huge spurts, but preachers are needed to build up these new churches. In the churches at home in the United States it is quite clear that conservative Bible believing preachers are at a premium. The seminaries around the country are turning out graduates but the vast majority deny the authority of the Scriptures and have a weak-kneed evangelical theology.
When I was at Calvin College I realized for the first time the radical decline of orthodox Christianity in Reformed circles. I would never have suspected the way of reading the Bible that was taught in the Religion Department. The evangelical Reformed faith as it comes to expression in our creeds is under heavy fire. It is safe to say that the traditional Reformed faith is quickly disappearing in the large Reformed Churches. Therefore, in these last days when the battle is becoming greater than ever, when the truth is in a smaller minority than ever, the church is in need of young men who will step forward to defend and promote the truth. Young men who are considering the ministry must bear in mind the great importance that is assigned to the preaching of the gospel in Reformed churches.
It must be remembered that the preaching of the word is the chief means of grace. By the preaching God calls his people to repentance and faith in his Son. Paul writes concerning the primacy of preaching in Romans 10:14,15:
“How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!”
Young men who feel called must see the need for preachers of the gospel and have the desire to see men called out of darkness and into the gospel of Jesus Christ. They must delight in being used by God for the salvation of the elect. They must have a heart for lost souls. So young men must look to their own gifts and to the crying need in the church today when they consider entering the ministry. They must not self-centeredly consider the pastorate, but with true piety seek God’s will in prayer and Bible-reading in order that God might be praised and His will accomplished.
Nathan is a member of Grandville Protestant Reformed Church in Grandville, Michigan.