What is a Professional Layman
When I was 17 years old, I was wrestling with what I perceived to be a calling from God on my life. Not completely sure what that meant, I approached a mentor of mine in ministry to get wise counsel. His response surprised me a little, but I'll never forget it.
"Delton, there is so much more you can do as a layman. You have more freedom, more resources, more time. I'd give anything to still be a layman. Go out and be the best layman you can be. If God wants you in full time vocational ministry, he'll know where to find you."
So that's what I did. I went to college, got two degrees in business (finance and accounting), and pursued a career. At the same time, I was deliberate and intentional about being an effective layman. I stayed involved in church, and my family and I routinely gave our lives away.
As a professional layman, I deliberately and actively use my vocation and my vocational experiences and abilities to assist churches in their mission.
A couple of decades later, I sat at another crossroads. More clearly than ever, I felt a calling to serve God in vocational ministry. I didn't (and still don't) ever expect to be a pastor, or even on staff at a church, but I want to spend the rest of my career, the rest of my life, effectively serving God and his Church with my vocational efforts. In short, I want to be a professional layman.
Paul says that we're each called according to his purpose. He says that we should each use our gifts to serve the Church. teachers should teach,
Romans 11:29-God's gifts and his call can never be withdrawn
Romans 12:6-In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well.
Ephesians 4:11-Now these are the gifts Christ gave to the church; the apostles, the prophets...
The dictionary says that a layman is "a person without professional or specialized knowledge in a particular subject." In the context of ministry, it's more apt to refer to a non-ordained member of a church. The Bible, interestingly, is silent on the topic. We are all called to be ministers of the Gospel, regardless of our vocational calling.
To a great extent, churches can (and should) use volunteers from within their congregation to accomplish their mission. By matching the available tasks or positions with the gifts, talents, skills and passions of the congregational members, it allows a church to have the right people doing the right things for the right reasons. That goes back to having the teachers teach, the givers give, and the servants serve.
Sometimes, though, it makes sense to utilize a "professional' layman. In the financial arena, for example, preserving the independence of your auditor or avoiding a conflict of interest might be a reason to utilize someone from outside the church. Insurance is another area, in that you may not have an agent within your congregation with specific church experience.
There are other areas that might also need attention. Perhaps you need to involve an expert when performing background checks for children's ministry volunteers, or an architect that specializes in church buildings, or a security expert with a church background, etc.
The term "vocational ministry" has always had a certain connotation to me. It's like clergy were up here, and the rest of us down here. But the mandate of responsibility for creation (subduing the earth) was never qualified as clergy-specific. Interestingly, neither was the great commission in Matt 28. In fact, Acts 6 is the arguably the first place in the New Testament where there is any sort of distinction of clergy and layman. And there, it would appear that the layman are being more empowered, not less, being given administrative responsibility for the daily distribution of food. That left more time for prayer and teaching the word.
Acts 6:1-4 "1But as the believers rapidly multiplied, there were rumblings of discontent. The Greek-speaking believers complained about the Hebrew-speaking believers, saying that their widows were being discriminated against in the daily distribution of food. So the Twelve called a meeting of all the believers. They said, 'We apostles should spend our time teaching the word of God, not running a food program. And so, brothers, select seven men who are well respected and are full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will give them this responsibility. Then we apostles can spend our time in prayer and teaching the word.'"