The Elder
The first point to establish is that there is a multiplicity of elders in the local church. In James 5:14 we saw that the elders (plural) in the church (singular) are to be called to minister to the sick. Recall in Acts 14:23 that Paul and Barnabas had also "ordained elders in every church." Titus was also told to "ordain elders in every city." An interesting point arises here. As far as I can see in God's Word, pastors were not ordained. I am not saying they shouldn't be. It simply appears that they were ordained when they were in the office of elder. When they had proven themselves in that ministry, then God promoted them into a higher office.
Perhaps the most well-known scriptures that show the relationship of elders to the ministry offices are found in Acts 15.
Notice verses one and two: And certain men which came down from Judaea taught the brethren, and said, Except ye be circumcised after the manner of Moses, ye cannot be saved. When therefore Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and disputation with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas, and certain other of them, should go up to Jerusalem unto the apostles and elders about this question.
Here we see again that there were elders (plural) at Jerusalem. They were a group distinct from the apostles. Again the ministers and elders are seen working together in verses 22 and 23:
Then pleased it the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Bamabas, namely Judas surnamed Barsabas, and Silas, chief men among the brethren: And they wrote letters by them after this manner; The apostles and elders and brethren send greeting unto the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia.
These apostles were in Jerusalem and worked together with the elders. During the dispute about whether to keep the law or not, Peter became the spokesman for the apostles (verse 7). Then in verse 13, James arose as the spokesman for the elders. Apparently, James was the chief elder, the pastor. The pastor of any congregation is the chief elder. From other historical facts surrounding the book of Acts, it was reported that James was the pastor at Jerusalem. Acts 21:18 also seems to prove this.
And the day following Paul went in with us unto James; and all the elders were present.
It's very interesting that for this important meeting James had all his elders present. All the rest of the men are called elders, but James is distinguished from among them all by reason of his office. James is the chief elder or pastor. He ruled over many other elders in the church. The elders are to assist the pastor with the spiritual oversight of the church.
Let's look more closely at the function or responsibility of elders in the church. Hebrews 13:7:
Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation.
In this verse, the key words are rule, spoken and Word of God. These words indicate the function of the elder's office in the local church. Anyone who is mature in the Lord is an elder. But the office of an elder is different. The main function of the elder's office is that he rules and teaches. He shares the pastor's responsibility. He rules and teaches in the local church. These are his functions.
Compare I Thessalonians 5:12 for these same responsibilities:
And we beseech you, brethren, to know them which labor among you, and are over you in the Lord, and admonish you;....
In this verse, the words over you represent the ruling, and the words admonish you signify the teaching responsibility.
Another scripture that shows these responsibilities is I Timothy 3:1-5. Don't let the word bishop in verse one confuse you. A bishop is first of all an elder who gains responsibility. He must stand in the office of an elder to become a bishop. Notice his responsibilities:
This is a true saying. If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work. A bishop then must be ". . . apt to teach. . ." (verse two) One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection with all gravity; (verse four) (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?) (verse five) .
So, the word bishop here refers to an elder who rules and teaches in the local church. I Timothy 5:17 is another scripture that clarifies these two functions:
Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially they who labor in the word and doctrine.
Here we are again talking about ruling and teaching, and this verse is specifically talking about the pastor as the chief elder. But the qualifications for a pastor also fit the qualifications for an elder. Do you remember when we spoke of a pastor being well paid? That is what double honor refers to. Some people would have you think that it means double reward in heaven some day, or double respect. But it means double salary for those who labor in the Word and doctrine. Study is work.
How do I derive that? Well, look at verse 18:
For the scripture sait,, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The laborer is worthy of his reward.
The word labor in verse 17 speaks not only of diligent effort, but also of an occupation. The pastor is the only one in the church whose full occupation is the labor of the Word. Being worthy of one's reward, verse 18, refers to salary, The analogy of the ox relates to the pastor's work. He treads out the grain for the benefit of the people. The corn represents what they bring into the storehouse: their tithes and offerings. As he labors in the storehouse ruling and teaching, he has a right to draw his salary from the giving of the people. So, to be worthy of double honor means that a pastor who feeds his people and tends them well should be paid well. He should receive double honor over other elders, associates, etc.
A pastor who works just for the money isn't going to fulfill what God has called him to do. The double honor shouldn't influence his decision to pastor or not (I Peter 5:2).
Another scripture I want to consider in light of the elder's function is Titus 2:1-3:
But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine: That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in faith, in charity, in patience. The aged women likewise, that they be in behavior as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things;
As we have already seen, "speaking the things of sound doctrine" has reference to teaching. But something else comes up in these verses that we haven't seen before. The word for aged men, in the Greek, is presbuteros, or elder. But suprisingly, in verse three, aged women is the same word only it is in the feminine gender. So it is apparent that a church is not out of scriptural order to have elderesses who rule and teach in the church. A church would be scriptural with all men elders, but it would be just as scriptural to have men and women serving as elders. In fact, if you come to visit the church that I pastor, on a communion Sunday, don't be surprised to be served by a woman. Women serve communion, teach children's classes, women's classes, and minister from the pulpit.
Immediately I can hear some of you saying, "But Paul says a woman isn't allowed to teach in the church." Let's took at that in I Timothy 2:12:
But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence.
The word over is the key word here. The woman isn't allowed to overrule the man in teaching. Neither is she to usurp his authority. There are several possible meanings here, but I personally read this verse this way. I see the man as a reference to the pastor. The pastor can allow a woman to teach. She cannot usurp his authority. No where in the Word do I find a precedent for a woman to be a pastor. While many of us know women who have been pastors, and successful ones, I personally don't think they have stood in the office of the pastor. I think God used them in the office of elderess because He couldn't get a man to respond to the call. Every other ministry gift in the Word of God can be filled by women. There are scriptural examples of women apostles, prophetesses, evangelists, and teachers. God compares the pastor/congregation relationship to a marriage. The pastor is the head. He isn't setting precedent for a woman to be the head of a marriage or a church. Enough said.
Let us go on to the office of the deacon and then come back briefly to illustrate the office of bishop.
The Deacon
The office of the deacon was established in Acts 6. I'm not going to deal with the office of deacon at length here. Let's look at Acts 6:1 -4 to establish the qualifications and function of deacons:
And in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplied, there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration (diakonos). Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said. It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve (diakonos) tables. Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry (diakonos) of the word.
In verse one, we see that as soon as the church was formed problems arose because there was spiritual immaturity in the church. Here, the Holy Spirit set the priorities for problem solving in the local congregation. Notice in verse one that the word ministration comes from the Greek word diakonos or deaconing. The word deacon means to minister, or serve. We will come to a study of the deacon's qualifications. You should notice that there are spiritual qualifications for those who serve in the church. It isn't just a matter of waiting tables or serving in other capacities. To serve in the church is a spiritual service, and this is pointed out by this passage.
Look at the way the word deacon is used in the passage. The apostles said it didn't make sense for them to leave the Word of God to deacon tables. On the contrary, they would give themselves continually to prayer and to the deaconing of the Word.
I want you to see something here. Anything that is of service to the people is deaconing. The pastor is the servant of the Lord Jesus Christ, but he ministers or deacons to the people. What does he minister or deacon? The Word of God. The obligation of the pastor is to continually give himself to prayer and the deaconing of the Word. What I want you to see about the pastor is that he is a combination of all the offices under him. The pastor has been called an elder. He has been called a bishop, and is now seen as a deacon. In the pastor's office is a clear presentation of the chain of command for the local congregation.
You also should realize that Jesus Christ is at the top of the ladder of authority. Below him is the pastor. Below the pastor are the bishops and elders. Below them are the deacons. It is interesting that from the top down, each office is a combination of all the offices below. The Lord Jesus Christ is the summation of all the offices below Him. The pastor's office contains all the functions of the offices below him, and so on. This is a pattern of delegated authority. To be a good leader, you must know how to be a good follower.
Let's go on to the office of bishop now.
The Bishop
In Titus 1:5, 6 we saw that Paul instructed Titus to ordain elders in every city. In verses 7-9 though, he began to give the qualifications for a bishop or overseer. Why is that? A bishop oversees other elders. He is an elder with added responsibility. You will see in I Timothy 3:1 -7 that the bishop's qualifications are the same as the elder in Titus 1:5-9. Both are required to have the same qualities of maturity and knowledge of God's Word. They both rule and teach.
Let me give you an example from my church. My assistant pastor is a bishop. When he came to my church years ago, he was recognized for his maturity in the Word of God. The pastor then began to have him counsel. Then he was given more responsibility and ruled over others assigned to him. He also took on classes and began to teach. So, he officially stood in the office of a bishop. A bishop has more responsibility in the church than an elder. The same is true for what is traditionally called a Sunday school superintendent. Ours began teaching. He showed himself faithful in that office and was moved up. With each promotion he proved himself trustworthy and faithful until at last he stands in the office of bishop. He oversees all the other elders who teach in the church. Notice that the qualifications for the bishop include proven reliability and character. Titus 1:7 begins, "For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God," and I Timothy 3:2 starts the same way: " A bishop then must be blameless."
Whenever a congregation grows, the same needs arise for the pastor as arose for the apostles in Jerusalem. They are called to be continually before the Lord. Therefore, certain responsibilities have to be taken up by mature believers in the congregation. The pastor is to deacon, or minister the Word of God to the believers. I'm sure all pastors feel like I do; they want to present the very best to their people. To do this, they have to be free from the responsibilities that deacons and elders should carry. Church offices should give full allegiance to the pastor as long as he maintains his integrity and does not blatantly violate scriptural principles. How elders and deacons follow the vision and direction of the pastor is how they ultimately follow the Lord. Let's see what the Word of God says are the qualifications for the men chosen to serve the people and assist the pastor.
Elders and Bishops
I am going to talk about these offices together because a bishop must first be an elder. After proving himself in that office he can be given more responsibility as a bishop. We have seen that the word presbuteros (elder) indicates someone who is mature in God's Word. The qualifications for these offices are found in I Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:7-9. I am going to present a list of those qualifications as taken from the New International Version of the Bible, because it makes some things clearer. Then we'll come back and comment on certain points. All men and women chosen for the office of elder should be:
(1) above reproach
(2) the husband (wife) of but one wife (husband)
(3) temperate
(4) self-controlled
(5) respectable
(6) given to hospitality
(7) able to teach
(8) not given to much wine
(9) not violent
(10) not a lover of money
(11) patient
(12) not quarrelsome
(14) able to manage his own family well
(15) not a recent convert
(16) having a good reputation in the community
(17) a good steward
(18) not self-willed, but submissive
(19) a lover of what is good
(20) upright
(21) holy
(22) disciplined
These are the qualifications of godliness and ability required of elders in the church.
Bob Yandian
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