Dr. Barry J. Minsky

ntil age 19, Barry Minsky had never been in a church or heard the gospel and, if asked what Jesus did, would have said, “I don’t know.” When he came to know Christ as his Savior, his life changed dramatically, and serving in various ministries for the Lord is his deep joy. Currently the pastor at Quacco Baptist Church in Savannah, Ga., he earlier served in home missions to Jewish people, as pastor at many churches, as a U.S. Army chaplain for 27 years, and also as a hospice chaplain. By God’s mercies and through answered prayers, he is a survivor of adrenal cancer years ago and today continues preaching even while he faithfully waits for the Lord to provide him with a kidney transplant.

ATTL: Where did you grow up and what did you think you wanted to be when you grew up?
BJM: I grew up in a suburban setting on the outskirts of Philadelphia, Pa. I was very interested in things that were mechanical or electrical. At the age of 12, I became an amateur radio operator and built my own equipment. I was also interested in the human body, and I gave some thought to possibly becoming a physician.

ATTL: Who led you to the Lord?
BJM: One day as a freshman at Temple University, I was walking down a street in Philadelphia and saw an odd-looking guy standing on the street corner with a big sign in his hand that said “Free! New Testament to any non-Christian who promises to read it.” I was intrigued by that. I really didn’t have any interest in spiritual things, but it was a free book and something that I could ponder and look at. So I took one. I really dove into it and finished reading through the New Testament in one weekend. I just kept on reading it and learning more and more. My newfound friend worked at a Jewish mission in Philadelphia.  We would meet together on campus and study the Bible. It didn’t take all that long for the Lord to grab hold of me; six weeks later, I came to know Christ as my Savior. And the exciting thing was that the Lord had a plan for me in terms of some sort of ministry right away. 

ATTL: How did you realize that?
BJM: At first I didn’t realize it. But I was so excited that I had come to know Christ, and he just opened up neat opportunities for me to tell other people about him. Then I started seminary training in Philadelphia. As time went on, I could see God directing in different ways.

I started helping out at a Jewish mission whose goal was to go door to door and reach out to Jewish people and share the gospel. Christians often don’t understand the importance of Jewish evangelism. They say, “Well, you can hear the gospel anywhere you want – turn on the radio or TV.” But if it’s something that doesn’t interest you, you can shut it off. I never once heard the gospel until I was 19.

ATTL: Are there any experiences in those early times of witnessing that stand out to you?
BJM:  There was a missionary in Philadelphia named Alex Dunlap. His brother Crayton was doing street corner preaching in New York City. Alex arranged for me to go to New York with a young lady and her mother who were to visit Crayton. That young lady, Nancy, has been my sweetheart for over 46 years. So I went to New York and had a chance to preach on street corners.

ATTL: Where was your first ministry after you graduated from seminary?
BJM:  My first ministry was not as a pastor. My wife Nancy and I were home missionaries seeking to reach Jewish people with the gospel. It was wonderful how God put us together so that her musical talent and my preaching talent meshes; it really made a difference in how effective we could be in our ministry.

After five years, we were in a near-fatal accident involving a drunk driver. Our 9-month-old son had a fractured skull, and my wife went through the windshield and had glass in her eyes. Doctors said, if they survived, our son would have brain damage and my wife would be blind. But the Lord answered prayer, and neither of those outcomes occurred. He also worked through that incident to move us from evangelistic ministry into church ministry. It was a very, very, small church. The first time I preached there, there were 12 people, and five of them were in my family. But we were blessed to see that ministry grow and develop into a self-sufficient ministry. And then after seven years in that church, God called us to a church with about 300 people.

ATTL:  How did your early pastorates compare to the expectations you had of pastoring when you were still in seminary?
BJM: I really didn’t know what to expect. I was very new to church.  My family was nominally Jewish, which basically meant that I was involved in a synagogue for special occasions such as a wedding or a Bar Mitzvah. So I didn’t have a full understanding of what goes on in a church setting.

ATTL: How did being an Army chaplain differ from being a pastor?
BJM:  In the chaplaincy, I worked for two entities: the Army employed me, but I was also under the endorsement of my denomination. But the main difference was that it was often not in a church setting.  When the troops were out in the field, I was out with them. And if that meant 20 degrees below zero, I was there. This was a ministry to a bunch of lonely people sitting out in the field waiting for something to happen. What an opportunity to minister! At that point, they will go to the chaplain with all the problems and difficulties that they face in their lives. It’s a wonderful opportunity to combine service for God with service to your country.

Another thing that was very meaningful to us is the fact that we moved all over the world. My average time at a duty station was 2.5 years and, in one location, we stayed for only six months.

ATTL:  What is your favorite Bible verse or passage, and why?
BJM:  There are many. The one that impresses me the most is the passage in Philippians, chapter 3, where Paul talks about giving up everything for Christ. He says, “I want to know him and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of his suffering.” At first, all three of those statements sound rather strange. Paul did know Christ and knew him well. And he had the resurrection power within him; that of course is the power that takes the dead and brings them to life again – that’s what he did for us; we became alive in Jesus Christ. And he understood that suffering was given to him because he was faithful to his calling, just as the Lord Jesus suffered as he was faithful to his calling. These three things are the things I want to know more in my life.

ATTL: Do you have a favorite song or hymn?
BJM:  There is a hymn that I love very much, called “Here is Love vast as the ocean.” It’s probably not as well known as some of the others. A Welshman, Huw Priday, sings the hymn, which came out of the 1904 Welsh Revival. To me, this hymn expresses the very essence of the gospel message.

ATTL: Who is your favorite character in the Bible, other than Jesus?
BJM:  I really like Peter because he is so human. He’s just like us. There’s an old saying that some people open their mouth to put their foot in it. With Peter, it seems that the only time he ever opened his mouth was to switch feet. He made so many mistakes, practically every time he turned around. I see him as a godly man who in the midst of all his godliness made some of the silliest, most ridiculous mistakes. And that reminds me of me. I can do the same thing.

ATTL: Other than the Bible, what is a book you’ve recently read that made an impact on you? 
BJM:  John MacArthur’s commentary on the book of Romans. He has a way of taking some of the most confusing text and making it as plain as the nose on your face.

ATTL: How did you end up at your current pastorate in Georgia after the Army chaplaincy?
BJM: After 27 years, I retired from the Army with what I considered to be a decent pension. I wanted to see how that aspect of our lives could be used for the glory of God. I realized that very few pastors can afford to go to a little church that is incapable of financially supporting a pastor and his family. And I had the ability to do that. I told our association that I wanted to go somewhere where I could contribute as someone who is able to devote the time to doing God’s work in a setting where it’s really needed. And that’s the reason I wound up in the church I’m in now.

We’re seeing some growth in our church – it’s very exciting and a real blessing. I don’t see a tremendous amount of numerical growth, though we have some. But what I do see is a lot of growth in the personal lives of the people I minister to.

ATTL: Do you have any advice for seminary students?
BJM: There are a couple of things that are extremely important for a new pastor. One is that he not rush in where angels fear to tread. It’s so important for a pastor to assess the situation in the church where he finds himself, spend time with his people and get to know them and not make the mistake of going into the church and changing everything in the first 10 minutes. Those pastors who try to change things shortly after their arrival usually find that their time in that church is very short. It’s key to get to know your people, get to the point where you love your people, where they are a vital part of your life. Then as you get to know them and love them, bring them into the process of figuring out what change is needed in the church. Don’t try to do it on your own. And then, with the help of the people, develop the ministry the way you believe it ought to be handled.

The other thing is make sure that you build into your week time for your family. My wife and I have three children and 11 grandchildren. Many pastors have family relationships that are on the edge because they’re so busy doing everything for everybody else that they don’t have time to do anything for their own family.

ATTL: What’s your advice for how to achieve that? Congregations can be quite demanding on a pastor’s time.
BJM: One of the things that I worked out was to negotiate with the church leaders certain periods of time that I would have off during the week. I always carried a pager so if I were needed due to an emergency, they could call me. But we reinforced the idea that this was only for emergencies. And the people knew that Monday was my day to spend time with my wife. We also picked one evening a week as family night, and told the congregation that we would be out and about during that time unless there were an emergency. It worked very well.

ATTL: What are two things that bring you happiness and make you smile every day?
BJM: My wife and my Lord. Nancy and I are incredibly close. And when I see her, I light up. And she tells me that she has the same reaction. We enjoy one another but also the opportunity and privilege of being able to serve the Lord, to be involved in some kind of ministry. It makes all the difference in the world. 

I hear people talk about how wonderful it is to walk outside and see the beauty of nature. And I agree with that. God has given us a beautiful world and many blessings. But they just pale in comparison to the privilege that we have of sharing God’s Word with the people who are living around us.

For free downloads of Barry Minsky’s sermons, visit www.sermonaudio.com/minsky.