Janette H. Ok on Shared Pulpits

Janette H. Ok is a pastor, author, and New Testament scholar. She serves as associate professor of New Testament courses at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. She is an ordained minister who serves as a pastor at Ekko Church, an Asian American congregation in Anaheim, California. Ok is a coeditor of and contributor to The New Testament in Color: A Multiethnic Bible Commentary (IVP Academic, 2024). In this edited conversation, she explains why sharing the pulpit is good for preachers and congregations. 

What made you interested in sharing the pulpit? 

I grew up seeing pastors preach weekly or more—or even daily at early-morning prayer meetings. Some people may ask, “Well, what else does a pastor have to do besides preach?” But pastors also meet with people for pastoral care, prayer, and leadership development. They do administrative tasks, outreach, and much more.  

Right out of college, I was teaching full time at a high school and serving part time as the pastor for elementary students at a local church. I understood how overwhelming it can be for preachers. Then I met a pastor in a second-generation Korean American church who said, “I don’t preach every week because I can’t do it well along with all my other responsibilities.” But I think there are even more reasons why pastors should share the pulpit. The congregation receives a more diverse diet from the pulpit while also helping develop preachers. 

How does a shared pulpit benefit clergy? 

It’s hard to care for the church well and preach weekly. Sharing the pulpit helps with that sense of overwhelm. It helps pastors and congregations acknowledge their human limitations. Preaching teams study the Bible together, learn from each other, and practice giving and receiving feedback. The feedback experience helps pastors grow in humility and in recognizing God’s voice through others. Sharing the pulpit helps even senior pastors learn how to switch it up and be more dynamic and professionally effective. 

How does a shared pulpit benefit congregations? 

There are so many benefits—not just pragmatic, but also theological. In The New Testament in Color: A Multiethnic Bible Commentary, we tried to show how God is with each one of us. By ourselves, we see only in part. The same is true when we hear God’s word mainly through the mind, body, and mouth of one preacher. Most preachers have favorite categories for sermon examples, like sports or their kids. The church is richer and more faithful when we hear the word of God from people of different ages, abilities, ethnicities, genders, lifestyles, and experiences. 

We worship a God who welcomes us in our particularities. When we as congregations embrace homiletic diversity, then we will mature into becoming a culture of hospitality. This hospitality dynamically nurtures a practice of inviting more people into leadership.  

What are the steps to developing a shared pulpit? 

Seasoned preachers—and often the board of elders—have to commit to sharing the pulpit and sharing feedback. I saw a church Facebook announcement that was a good example of preparing a congregation for cultural shift. It said something like “For the rest of the year, Pastor Adam will preach on the first three Sundays a month, and someone else will preach on the fourth and fifth Sundays. We call this ‘a shared pulpit.’” 

This shift can take two or three years in some churches. Perhaps you are the main preacher and worship leader. If so, then create ways to get worshipers used to seeing others in the pulpit area. Invite members to lead scripture readings, prayers, announcements, and other worship elements. The preacher can start introducing homiletic diversity by citing different voices in sermons, including from different eras. Preachers can also invite guest preachers, preferably someone of a different age or gender or culture.  

Does having a shared pulpit mostly mean inviting preachers from outside the congregation? 

You can certainly do that as a start. But the goal is to develop a preaching team from within the congregation. Retired preachers can be very helpful in achieving a shared pulpit. Gather a team of five or so people. Look for lay leaders and others who already have relationships in the congregation, are mature and strong in faith, and are eager and teachable. 

What does this preaching team process look like? 

Start three months ahead of when the sermons will be preached. Meet weekly to study the passages for a sermon series, pray, brainstorm, and choose who will cover which text. I led the Ekko Church preaching team for several years. We found that Advent and Lent provide great opportunities to bring in new voices.  

If your sermon group includes lay preachers or new seminarians, they need to be taught how to interpret the Bible and structure a sermon. You may need to coach them on how to use their body to be effective speakers. They need to learn about how to conduct themselves in the in-between spaces. How do you greet people? Do your body language and eye contact convey welcome and openness to feedback? Do you greet people before the service and stay afterwards to talk with them? 

Can you say more about feedback?

People are often naturally deferential to preachers, so it’s important to intentionally invite honest feedback on your manuscript before delivering a sermon and also after you preach your sermon. Seek input from a diverse cross section of your congregation or preaching team—perhaps two or three people per sermon. Be clear and specific about what you would like them to evaluate in addition to asking for their overall impressions. This helps them offer concrete, constructive feedback on particular strengths and weaknesses.

For example, if you struggle to “land the plane,” ask for targeted feedback on how effectively you conclude your sermons. You might also ask whether your explanation of the text is sufficiently substantive, whether your main claim is well supported by your exegesis, or whether your analogies and stories genuinely strengthen and clarify your central message. After the sermon, follow up with two or three preselected individuals and ask specific questions such as: What did you hear me proclaim about God and about our life together? Did the story, anecdote, or image help illuminate the point, or did it distract from it? In what ways did I use my voice and body effectively, and where could I improve?

When you ask specific people specific questions about your sermon ahead of time, they tend to offer more constructive and helpful feedback. And be sure to thank those who have taken the time and care to offer you feedback, regardless of whether you agree with or appreciate what they say.

But what if the lay or newer preachers aren’t very good at giving sermons? 

A shared pulpit can be hit or miss because it includes people not yet fully formed as preachers. Preparing the congregation to be receptive to different voices is key to developing a culture of hospitality. We need to dare to be open to being discipled by different preachers. 

Aim to cultivate this posture among your congregation: Whoever is preaching, I am here to receive the word of the Lord for and from a community of flawed yet faithful people.

Those you invite to share your pulpit will already have relationships within the church and a genuine desire to encourage this particular community in this particular season. Congregants are often especially attentive when a trusted member of their own community is being formed and trained to proclaim the Word.

Preparing the congregation to be receptive to different voices is key to developing a culture of hospitality.

Anything else you want to say about why shared pulpits are good for congregations? 

We are all shaped by echo chambers. None of us is above that. It’s OK if people feel a little upset or alienated when they hear other voices. When we dynamically embrace and engage diversity, God uses that openness in so many ways. Preachers, even seasoned ones, learn by listening to other preachers. Preachers and congregations make more room for more voices and “preachers in process.” A shared pulpit is good for our congregations because it matures and edifies us while God knits us together in faith and love.