Why Pastor Rule is Not Biblical © Brannon S. Howse, 2013 These Power-Point slides are for Situation Room members to use for teaching and instruction in a public or private setting. However these slides are not to be distributed to others in keeping with your Situation Room membership agreement.

There are Two Types of Elders: Elders that are laypeople that are not financially compensated Elders that are full time and are financially compensated so they might serve the church fulltime

The terms overseer, bishop, or elder are three different words that describe the same office

The New Testament never mentions a church with only one pastor or elder

John MacArthur: The consistent pattern throughout the New Testament is that each local body of believers is shepherded by a plurality of God-ordained elders. Simply stated, this is the only pattern for church leadership given in the New Testament.

John MacArthur: Nowhere in Scripture does one find a local assembly ruled by majority opinion or by a single pastor…Again and again, reference is made to a plurality of elders in each of the various churches.

John MacArthur: In fact, every place in the New Testament where the term presbuteros (“elder”) is used it is plural, except where the apostle John uses it of himself in 2 and 3 John and where Peter uses it of himself in 1 Peter 5:1.

John MacArthur: Nowhere in the New Testament is there a reference to a one-pastor congregation. It may be that each elder in the city had an individual group in which he had specific oversight.

John MacArthur: But the church was seen as one church, and decisions were made by a collective process and in reference to the whole, not the individual parts.

A church can have a lead teaching elder but the term Senior Pastor is not found in the Bible and in fact has more in common with the parish priest as promoted by the Catholic Church or the rector in the Anglican Church.

Biblically Based Leadership: A Survey of the Scriptural Sources for the Exercise of Authority and Leadership in the Church: “The modern title of senior pastor does not appear in the New Testament nor does its standing as the senior point of authority within

the church receive any support from the New Testament. In some ways it appears to be the evangelical protestant version of the parish priest in the Catholic Church or the rector in the Anglican Communion.

Unfortunately neither of these denominations follows the New Testament model of authority distributed among a plurality of elders in a local church, which raises questions about the biblical ground for the aforementioned offices and their evangelical protestant counterparts.”

Let me share with you some of the numerous Biblical passages that describe the plurality of elders

Titus 1:5: For this reason I left you in Crete, that you should set in order the things that are lacking, and appoint elders in every city as I commanded you—

Acts 20:17: From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church.

James 5:14: Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.

Acts 11:30: This they also did, and sent it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.

Acts 16:4: And as they went through the cities, they delivered to them the decrees to keep, which were determined by the apostles and elders at Jerusalem.

Acts 15:2: Therefore, when Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and dispute with them, they determined that Paul and Barnabas and certain others of them should go up to Jerusalem, to the apostles and elders, about this question.

Acts 15:4: And when they had come to Jerusalem, they were received by the church and the apostles and the elders; and they reported all things that God had done with them.

I Timothy 5:17: Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine.

Acts 21:18: On the following day Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present.

Acts 15:22: Then it pleased the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas…

Deacons serve under the oversight of the elders as ministers to the church and for the purpose of freeing up the elders so they might focus on teaching and administration

The qualifications for elders and deacons are the same except for the fact that elders are required to be able to teach.

1 Timothy 5:17: Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine.

1 Timothy 3:2: A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach;

2 Timothy 2:24: And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient

2 Timothy 2:2: And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

2 Timothy 2:15: Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

There is protection and accountability with a plurality of elders.

The pastor that wants to have the final may be revealing that he is:

Prideful Greedy Controlling

Hostile to Accountability Someone with wrong priorities and motives Not qualified to be an elder/pastor Someone that has something to hide

A Pastor is not a CEO and is not the head of the church

Many pastors that reject the Rick Warren model of a seeker-driven church do however embrace Warren’s CEO model if they believe in pastor rule

Elders should do the majority of the teaching in the church including Sunday school classes. Elders should have direct over-sight over any non-elders that are teaching.

Why do pastors reject the Biblical model of elders?

Ignorance Pride Fear of Man

Why do church members reject the Biblical model of elders?

1. Ignorance 2. Belief they have elders 3. Tradition

4. Politics 5. Wrong Motives: A Small group runs the church 6. Unity is more important than being Biblical

The Testimony From an Elder on Moving From Pastor Rule To Elder Rule: “Immediately following the Senior Pastor’s departure, the elders gathered for prayer – repenting of our contribution to this disaster and asking God to guide us as we sought His direction from the Scriptures as to the kind of

church that we should be. We clearly defined what we meant by elder leadership in the church and used that definition in the process of hiring our next Teaching Pastor. we took the title Senior Pastor out of any communication concerning a vacant position; and clearly defined who we are as a church so the next man who stood in our pulpit

would know that he was an elder among other elders and that WE together will stand before Christ, to present to Him a faithful and devoted congregation. Where are we now? We are a stronger, and unified elder council. God has blessed us with a gifted Bible teacher who embraces the biblical definition of elder leadership in the church…we have a committed

congregation that is enjoying a sweet season of unity and grace and ministry that is advancing the gospel. In sum, we are the beneficiaries of a kind and loving Savior who took us through a season of much needed chastisement for His glory so that we would be His church and not Senior Pastor So-and-So’s church.”

Acts 20:28-31: Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock.

Also from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. Therefore watch, and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears.