Biblical Leadership - Part II
Note: Because of the way this Blog sorts entries chronologically, Part I of this teaching can be found by scrolling downward.

Who does what?

There are lots of leadership titles used in the church today: Pastor, Elder, Deacon, Overseer, Cardinal, Bishop, Archbishop, Pope, Apostle, Prophet, etc., etc.

There are as many different church leadership structures as there are denominations. In many larger denominations we see complex hierarchies of leadership and authority.

The New Testament picture of church leadership, however, seems to be quite simple. In this lesson, we’re going to focus on three particular leadership terms: elder, overseer and shepherd. Take a look at Acts 20:17-35:

“From Miletus, Paul sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church. When they arrived, he said to them: ‘You know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day I came into the province of Asia. I served the Lord with great humility and with tears, although I was severely tested by the plots of the Jews. You know that I have not hesitated to preach anything that would be helpful to you but have taught you publicly and from house to house. I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.

’And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me--the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace.

’Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again. Therefore, I declare to you today that I am innocent of the blood of all men. For I have not hesitated to proclaim to you the whole will of God. Keep watch over yourselves and all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which he bought with his own blood. I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears.

’Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. I have not coveted anyone's silver or gold or clothing. You yourselves know that these hands of mine have supplied my own needs and the needs of my companions. In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.' ‘”

The leaders of the Ephesian church are referred to in three different ways in this passage (I bolded and italicized them to make it easier to spot). First, Paul calls together the elders of the church. He tells these elders that God has made them overseers of the flocks. He then exhorts them to be shepherds.

Let’s try to get a better understanding of these three words:

elder (presbuteros in Greek)
overseer (episkopos in Greek)
shepherd (poimaino in Greek)


Elder:

Presbuteros (noun; translated “elder”) is a very common term throughout the New Testament and the Greek Old Testament (aka the “Septuagint”). The word literally means “old person” and has no special religious significance. Elder is not so much a title as it is a description. However, in biblical times and cultures (and in many cultures still today), old people were afforded a great deal of respect and honor. It’s interesting that in ancient cultures an old person was assumed to be wise and valuable until and unless they proved otherwise. It seems that in our modern Western culture, an old person is assumed to be foolish and irrelevant until and unless they prove otherwise. Quite a shift has occurred and it’s to our loss.

Most tribal cultures have elders who are looked to for wise council. The Israelites were no different in this regard. The first mention of elders in the Old Testament is in Genesis 50:7 where the elders of Pharoah’s household and of all Egypt pay homage to the deceased Jacob. Israelite elders are first mentioned in Exodus 3:16 when God tells Moses to go meet with the elders of Israel. No introduction or explanation if given about how or why these elders came to be. It seems to be just taken for granted that the reader will understand that there would have been tribal elders and probably always had been.

1,500 or so years later, we see in the Gospels that the Jews still have elders. They are mentioned throughout the Gospels, usually alongside the chief priests and scribes.

The first mention we have of elders in the New Testament church is in Acts 11:30 when the disciples take up a collection for the church in Judea and have Saul and Barnabas deliver it to the elders. As in Exodus, no explanation is given about when, how or why these elders came into being. Their existence is just casually and naturally mentioned.

Paul referred to himself as an elder (Eph. 6:20 – sometimes translated as “ambassador” -, Philemon v. 9) as did John (2 John v. 1) and Peter (1 Peter 5:1).

Let’s imagine that you’re part of a group of people that have come together and formed a community (or a tribe). People naturally look for leadership. Who do you look to? In our Western culture we might try to identify who has the best credentials or education. Oftentimes, we will yield to the most dominant personalities or the ones who appear to “have their act together”. However, in tribal cultures (including ancient Middle-Eastern people), the group would naturally look to its oldest, most seasoned members – the elders.

So then, biblically speaking, “elder” is not an office or title. Elder is simply what an old or mature person is. I have a 15 year-old son. I could confer upon him the office and title of “Teenager”, but that would be redundant; “Teenager” is what he is, regardless of what I call him. Conversely, someone could confer the title and office of “Teenager” upon me, but the fact is, I’m not a teenager, even if you call me one.

In the New Testament church then, an elder was simply an older, mature believer, who was honored and looked to for their experience and wisdom.

1 Timothy 5 sheds more light on this, but it takes a little untangling to get to. In verse 1 we read (in the NIV) “Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father.” The Greek word that is translated here as “older man” is presbuteros. A little farther in 1 Timothy 5:17 we see the word presbuteros used again, only this time (in the NIV) its translated as "elder": “The elders who direct the affairs of the church well are worthy of double honor, especially those whose work is preaching and teaching.”

Notice first off that in the Ephesian church (where Timothy was when Paul wrote this letter to him) there was a plurality of elders who directed the affairs of the church, as well as taught. This seems to have been the case in all of the New Testament churches. There is not a single example given in scripture of a church having just one leader – its always a plurality of elders.

Notice also in verse 17 where it describes elders who “direct the affairs of the church well”. Some translations read “who rule well”. The Greek word which is translated “direct the affairs” or “rule” (depending on your Bible translation) is proistemi. Its interesting that in other places the word “proistemi” or its noun form “prostatis” is given a very different spin.

Take a look at Romans 16:1-2: “I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church in Cenchrea. I ask you to receive her in the Lord in a way worthy of the saints and to give her any help she may need from you, for she has been a great help (prostatis) to many people, including me.” The King James version, which has greatly influenced most subsequent English translations, translates “proistemi” in 1 Tim. 5:17 as “ruleth” and “prostatis” in Rom. 16:2 as “succorer”. The NASV updates the wording, but continues the double standard by translating “proistemi” as “rule” in 1 Tim. 5:17 and “prostatis” as “helper” in Rom. 16:2. Heaven forbid that Phoebe, a woman, be referred to as a ruler of many people (Paul included)!

The appropriate Greek word to use for “rule” or “ruler” would be "arche" or "archon" (as in archangel), not proistemi/prostatis. Usually when you see the words "rule" or “ruler” in the New Testament, it’s a translation of “arche” or "archon". A more accurate definition of proistemi/prostatis would be: To assist, to protect, to represent, to care for, to stand before as a defender, to be guardian of, to protect, to uphold. The picture here is not one of ruling over, but of coming alongside and supporting.

Here’s a great example of the use of the word proistemi found in a letter written in 252 B.C. from a son to his father: “There will be nothing of more importance for me than to look after you (proistemi) for the remainder of life, in a manner worthy of you, and worthy of me.”

If we understand proistemi/prostatis in this light, it fits hand-in-glove with the servant-leadership style that Jesus modeled, as discussed in Part I of this teaching (see Matthew 20:20-28, John 13:1-5 and Philippians 2:1-18). Elders (presbuteros) are to sacrificially serve, protect, support, and defend the people that God has placed in their care; in other words, they are to proistemi, in the same way that Jesus served and gave of Himself.

So what Paul is saying to Timothy in 1 Timothy 5 is that older, mature believers are to be treated with honor and respect, and older, mature believers who do a good job of serving/guiding/protecting/nurturing/teaching the ekklesia should be honored even more.

In this section we’ve defined what Elders were (mature believers) and what Elders did (guide, protect, serve, support, teach, etc.).


Overseer:

Episkopos (noun; translated “overseer” or “bishop”) is a compound word. “Epi” means to add something that forms a support. It is neither under (“hypo”) or over (“hyper”) but alongside of. “Epi” implies togetherness; “attached-ness”. We read in 1 Peter 2:24 that Jesus bore our sins “upon (epi) the tree.” “Skopos” is where we get our word “scope”. It means “to look”.

So “episkopos” refers to the activity of looking upon or “overseeing”. It stresses the active and responsible care for what is being looked upon; in other words, to watch over, to supervise, to take care of, to visit, to look in on. In the Greek Old Testament (the Septuagint or “LXX”), the word “episkopos” is applied to God in several places (Deut. 11:12, Ruth 1:6, Psalms 80:14, Zeph. 2:7, Job 20:29, Gen. 21:1) to express His loyalty and care in watching over people. “Episkopos” and its variants are used in the New Testament to describe both God and church leaders; always with an emphasis on loving care, demonstrated in a heart moved to action. Peter referred to Jesus as “the shepherd (poimen) and overseer (episkopos) of your souls” (1 Peter 2:25).

The translators of the King James version used the 16th century hierarchical church office of “bishop” and superimposed it onto the word “episkopos” in several places (see Phil 1:1, 1 Tim 3:2, Titus 1:7, Acts 1:20, 1 Pet 2:25 and 1 Tim 3:1 in the KJV). This is an example of what I call “anachronistic eisogesis”, which means to take something from modern times and read it back into scripture. We all have a tendency to do this (especially people who teach about the book of Revelation), but it’s especially damaging when Bible translators do it. The church office or position of “bishop” did not exist in the 1st century church.

Here are some examples of where the word “episkopos”, or its variants, are used in the New Testament (NIV) which give a better sense of its true, intended meaning:

Luke 7:16 – (When Jesus raised the widow’s only son from the dead) “They were all filled with awe and praised God. ‘A great prophet has appeared among us,’ they said. ‘God has come to help his people.”

Acts 15:13 – (Upon hearing the report from Paul and Barnabas on their work amongst the Gentiles). “When they had finished, James spoke up: ‘Brothers, listen to me. Simon has described to us how God at first showed his concern by taking from the Gentiles a people for himself.”

Acts 15:36 – Paul says to Barnabas, “Let us go back and visit the brothers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.”

Acts 6:3 – “Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom.”

Acts 7:23 – “When Moses was forty years old, he decided to visit his fellow Israelites.”

Matthew 25:35-36 – “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.”

James 1:27 – “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress…”

Have you ever been really sick (perhaps when you were a child) and someone came (perhaps your mother) and comforted and watched over you? That's the biblical picture of episkopos. Unfortunately, we tend to get hung up on the word "overseer" because it has connotations of supervision and management and dominance. In the days of slavery in the American South, the white men who controlled the black workers were called "overseers". The word has baggage. Perhaps a better translation into English of episkopos would be caretaker.

In this section, we’ve seen that an “episkopos” (overseer/bishop) is not a hierarchical office that exercises authority and control over other believers. It is someone who is moved out of love and compassion to provide care and nurture to God’s people.


Shepherd:

In Part I of this teaching on Biblical Leadership, we saw how the shepherd metaphor is used to describe Christ-like, sacrificial leaders. Shepherd is used both in the verb form (“poimaino”) and the noun form (“poiman”) in the New Testament. In Ephesians 4:11 the Greek word “poiman” is translated as “pastor”. This is actually the only place where the word “pastor” appears in the Bible. Isn’t it strange that a word which is used only once in scripture would come to be so widely applied today?

In Matthew 23, Jesus is speaking of the religiosity of the Pharisees and warns: “Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted in the market places and to have men call them ‘Rabbi’. But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi’, for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth ‘father’, for you have one Father and he is in heaven. Nor are you to be called ‘teacher’, for you have one Teacher, the Christ. The greatest among you will be your servant. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”

The warning here is about a prideful, religious heart that would do things like taking titles upon ourselves, in order to separate and elevate us above our brothers and sisters. Notice how the last sentence echoes back to Matthew 20:25-28, which we looked at in Part I. I don't believe that most clergymen are Pharisees, but I wonder, why do they ignore these texts and take upon themselves honorary titles such as “Pastor”, “Reverend” and “Father”?

Rosemary Radford Ruether, a Professor of Theology, has written, “If I were asked for a yardstick to discern good from bad spirituality, I would suggest three criteria to be detached from: material gain, self-importance, and the urge to dominate others. Unfortunately, much of what is labeled spirituality in America today moves in the opposite direction. It means using the names of God and Christ to promote one’s own importance, material gain, and right to oppress others.”

Church planter and author Cheryl McGrath writes, “Kingdom authority has nothing to do with titles, positions, educational qualifications or reputation. Kingdom authority is granted by the Lord according to the measure with which He can trust us to wield it with humility. The greatest authority in the kingdom is reserved for His bondslaves.”

I remember many years ago when a man at a church I attended was “promoted” from the congregation and “ordained” to the position of Assistant Pastor. The following Sunday he showed up to church wearing a black shirt with a clerical collar (this was a non-denominational charismatic church)! At the time I thought it was cute, but what it’s come to remind me of is my own sinful desire to be considered special, separate, anointed, a holy man.

In our modern Christian culture, if a man is really passionate about serving God with his whole life, he is steered towards becoming “a pastor”, even if (as is quite often the case) he is not gifted by the Spirit with a shepherding gift. Many a pastor has confided to me that “I’m not really gifted as a pastor, my real gift is…”

In Ephesians 4:11, the one place where the word “pastor” appears, it is describing a spiritual gift for building up the body, not an office, position or title. “Pastoring” (shepherding) is what one does (when the Holy Spirit has gifted in that way), not a title or position. And it is done, in concert with all of the other spiritual gifts, for building up the entire body, not as a personal career path.

In the New Testament, no person in the church is referred to by the title of shepherd except Jesus. He is the Great Shepherd. Elders in the church are told to shepherd (verb) but not given the title of shepherds (noun). Way back in 580 B.C. or so, Ezekiel prophesied against the shepherds of Israel (Ezekiel 34). Part of that prophecy included a promise that God would remove the shepherds and replace them, not with new shepherds, but with one shepherd:

"I will place over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he will tend them; he will tend them and be their shepherd." - Ezekiel 34:23

This was written 500 years after David's death. Another 500 or so years after Ezekiel wrote this prophecy, the promised shepherd did come. Jesus was known as the "Son of David". He is that one shepherd. He is the head of the body; the cornerstone of the building; the Lord and Master. The rest of us are parts of that body; living stones in that building; brothers and sisters in the household of God.

"Shepherd" is a verb. It's an action, not a position. It implies sacrificing one’s own comfort, status and needs in order to feed, guard, care for, guide, nurture, serve and protect. Jesus gave the ultimate example of this. We should all follow His example, especially those of us who are mature believers.


In Summary:

We began this lesson by looking at Acts 20:17-35 and pointing out three words applied by Paul to the leaders of the Ephesian church: Elder (presbuteros), overseer (episkopos) and shepherd (poimaino/poiman).

Let's wrap things up by going to 1 Peter 5:1-6, where we see these same three words used in the same way by Peter:

"To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder, a witness of Christ's sufferings and one who also will share in the glory to be revealed: Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, serving as overseers--not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away."

Here’s how I suggest we understand the use of these three words:

Elder (presbuteros) is what they are.
Overseer (episkopos) is what they do.
Shepherd (poimaino) is how they do it.

In this study, we also looked at another leadership word, “proistemi/prostatis” and saw how well it’s meaning harmonizes with these three terms.

All of these terms speak of sacrificial servant-leadership. They imply loving support, guidance, care, protection, council, concern, nurture, etc. We saw how compatible such an understanding of these terms is with Jesus’ words in Matthew 20:25 and 23:8-12, and with His actions in John 13:1-5.

Ultimately, if we peel back the crust of tradition, what we find is an extremely simple leadership structure in the New Testament church. This is the same church that went from 120 true believers huddled in a room in Jerusalem (Acts 2) to tens of thousands throughout the Roman empire within 50 years! The creation of formal leadership structures did not come until quite some time later, when pagan religious forms and Greek philosophical views (such as neo-Platonic dualism and Aristotelian hierarchy) found their way into the church.

As Bible-believing followers of Jesus, we claim to get our theology (how we think about God) from the Bible. Shouldn't we then also look to the Bible for our ecclesiology (how we think about the church)? The scripture does not provide concrete instructions on how to conduct church, but it does, very clearly, show the values that should shape how we do (and are) church.

When we read the New Testament scriptures in the light of who Jesus is, and stop looking through the lenses of man-made church traditions, we see a picture of a loving, supportive family, or of an organic body. What we don’t see in scripture is the type of hierarchical organization that is so common today.

As Howard Snyder writes in his book Decoding the Church, “The church is a body, not a machine or a corporation. The church is not an army of Christian soldiers. An army functions by forcibly restricting the complexity of human interaction and programming it into a strict chain of command. An army is an unnatural community – very effective for one purpose, but not for building a healthy community.”

Organizations and hierarchies are built on function. The church is to be built on relationship. The church exists to continue the mission of Jesus by reflecting God to a lost world. God has revealed Himself as intrinsically relational - a triune being. The church, therefore, should be intrinsically relational. The church is the "body of Christ" - a living organism. There is no hierarchy within a living organism; rather it is a collection of parts and organs functioning together; each one essential for the well-being of the body. The only hierarchy in the 1st century church was Jesus as the head of the body and everyone else as part of the body.

Ekklesias provided an unusual environment of equality for people from diverse racial, social and economic backgrounds. Elder believers were looked to as a source of wisdom, council and example (what today we might call "mentoring"), but all believers were accountable to one-another and all believers were gifted and released to minister to the body.

The group of people referred to more than any other in the New Testament is "the brothers" (adelphoi - which literally means brothers and/or sisters). It was the brothers and sisters who ran the church, under the direct supervision of the Holy Spirit. Another Greek word used to describe the people of God is laos. It's where we get our word laity. In the early church, the laos comprised all believers. There was no separate clergy class. It was all the laity, and within the laity there were elders and "sent ones" (apostles) and a multitude of diverse gifts.

Take a look at the beginning of each of Paul’s epistles (Romans through 2 Thessalonians) and notice who they are not addressed to. With the exception of Philippians, they are not addressed to the leaders of the churches. They are addressed to the entire church.

Take a look at Acts 15 (the Council at Jerusalem). This was a monumentally important council that would set forth church doctrine about what Gentiles had to do to be Christians. Look at who was involved in that decision: “…the church, and the apostles and elders…” (v. 4), “The whole assembly…” (v. 12), “…the apostles, and elders, with the whole church…” (v. 22). The picture here is of the entire church gathering together and openly discussing the matter. The words of the apostles and elders are given due weight and deference because they are elders, but everyone is involved. Look at v. 23, where they send the letter to the Gentile believers. Is the letter addressed to the pastors or leaders of the various Gentile churches? No, its addressed “To the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia:”

In the book 'Animal Farm' by George Orwell, the commandment "All animals are created equal.", eventually gets changed to "All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others." In a similar fashion, as time went by a separate class known as clergy emerged within the church. This change occurred gradually and eventually blossomed into the elaborate organizational structure of the Catholic church. Although the Protestant Reformation corrected many of the excesses of Catholicism, it left the clergy/laity division intact.

If we take off our Catholic/Protestant lenses and read the scriptures in their true historical context we find that the chain of command that has been superimposed backwards onto the early church and scriptures was not there. We also begin to see a picture of the church that more closely reflects the nature and values of our God.


In Part III, we’ll examine Paul’s letters to Timothy and Titus and answer questions such as:

Why are these letters sometimes called “The Pastorals” when the word “pastor” is never used in them?
Should pastors/elders be paid?
What are deacons?
Where is ordination taught in scripture? (Big hint: It isn’t!)

- posted by Daniel P. (Danny) Coleman @ 4:40 PM