Cannons from Canon

I remember a friend telling me a story of a time that he gave a message for a college campus ministry. His message was about the importance of a local church and he encouraged the students to be a part of one during his talk. After the talk, my friend told me, the campus director walked up to him angrily and said, “what are you talking about– we are a church!”

Sadly many people have no idea what a church actually is, even many Christians. It is not a building, nor a just gathering of believers even though it involves those things. And no, you can not have church in your Chevy like the country song suggests. Here is a good definition:

The church is the people of God who have been saved through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ and have been incorporated into his body through baptism with the Holy Spirit… Local churches are led by pastors (also called elders) and served by deacons, possess and pursue purity and unity, exercise church discipline, develop strong connections with other churches, and celebrate the ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Equipped by the Holy Spirit with spiritual gifts for ministry, these communities regularly gather to worship the triune God, proclaim his Word, engage non-Christians with the gospel, disciple their members, care for people through prayer and giving, and stand both for and against the world.¹

While many Christians have no idea what a church is, many theologians debate over how one should be governed and run. This is called Church Polity: 

For the church, God has appointed a leadership structure or government—the more traditional word polity will also be used—consisting of church offices, the leaders who serve in those offices through various responsibilities and the authority that is fitting for those duties, and a relationship between those officers and the other members of the church.²

Rolland McCune notes 7 marks of a church from the pages of the New Testament:

1. True Believers in the Lord Jesus Christ
2. Baptized (Immersed) in Water as a Public Testimony
3. Organized with the Biblical Officers of Pastor and Deacons
4. Sharing a Common Faith or Body of Biblical Truth
5. Observing the Ordinances of Baptism and Communion
6. Carrying Out the Great Commission
7. Meeting at Regular and Stated Times³

McCune also makes an excellent case for a local assembly:

The first local churches had: Stated meetings (Acts 20:7; Heb), Elections (Acts 6:5–6), Officers (Phil 1:1), Designation of ministers (Acts 20:17,:28), Recognized authority of the local church and is officers (Matt 18:17), Discipline (1 Cor 5:4,5,13), Contributions (Rom 15:26; 1 Cor 16:1–2), Words and letters of commendation for certain people (2 Cor 3:1, Acts 18:27), A registry of widows (1 Tim 5:9; Acts 6:1), A uniform set of customs (1 Cor 11:16), Those eligible and ineligible to observe the ordinances (1 Cor 11:23–26; Acts 2:41), Order in polity and public services (1 Cor 14:40; Col 2:5) Qualifications for membership (Matthew 28:19; Acts 2:41)⁴

There are three main ways in which churches are governed: Episcopalian, Presbyterian, and Congregational. 

Episcopalian gets its name from the Greek word for overseer (ἐπίσκοπος; episkopos). This form of government has an overseer (also called a bishop) who holds the highest authority and the elders and deacons rank lower than the bishop. This hierarchical government can span over many churches with the bishop(s) overseeing them all and local elders and deacons at each individual church.

Presbyterian government gets its name from the Greek word for elders (πρεσβύτεροι; presbuteroi). This form of government sees overseer and elder as the same position. Presbyterians have churches led by elders (teaching and ruling elders), all of the elders in a region are called a Presbytery, chosen elders from the presbytery of multiple regions form a Synod, “Finally, teaching elders and ruling elders selected by the presbyteries from their members form on the national level a general assembly.”⁵

Congregationalism is a local assembly/congregation that governs itself. These churches have Christ at the head and then elders and deacons governing the body. Congregationalism differs from the above two governments in that it has no other outside authority other than the Lord.

Biblical support for congregationalism comes from the fact that the individual congregation holds the power for discipline (Mt 18:15-20; 1 Cor 5:1-5; 2 Cor 2:6), and the congregation making decisions even when apostles were present (Acts 6:1-6; Acts 15). More support comes from individual churches sending apostles (Acts 11:19-24) and commissioning Paul (13:1-3; 14:24-28). Another powerful witness to congregationalism is Revelation 1-3 and that Jesus addresses individual churches. These letters seem to indicate that individual churches are responsible for their own actions. Therefore congregational Churches seem to fit the biblical model best.

Within each congregation, the church should have elders (emphasis on the s). This is also supported biblically, “[w]ithout exception, every time the New Testament mentions the government of a particular church, the leadership structure is a plurality of elders.”⁶

There is also debate between ‘elder-led’ and ‘elder-ruled’. Elder-ruled gives most if not all the authority to the elders and they can interact with the congregation as they please. As for ‘elder-led’, “[t]he leadership of the elders in their sphere of authority interfaces with congregational responsibilities; accordingly, this model could best be termed “elder-led congregationalism.”⁷ I think elder-led congregationalism best fits the Biblical Model.

As for the role of the Pastor much can be said. Three words are used in the New Testament to describe this position: 1. Overseer/Bishop (ἐπίσκοπος), 2. Elder/Presbyter (πρεσβύτερος), 3. Pastor/Shepherd (ποιμήν). “Importantly for our discussion, the New Testament uses these words interchangeably,”⁸ so then you could call anyone of the elders at your church “pastor or shepherd or overseer or bishop or presbyter” and be biblically literate!

We can get some help as to what a Pastor is from the words themselves. Overseer implies authority and administration, ‘elder’ implies someone of venerability⁹, and ‘shepherd’ implies care and protection. The Scripture also offers a list of specific requirements and attributes that must be true of someone wanting to hold this office. Famously, one can turn to 1 Tim 3 and Titus 1 and find a list of about 20 different characteristics between the two. Teaching is at the forefront of this position, but a virtuous character must not be neglected.

1 Peter also gives insight into biblical shepherding: “Elders don’t only teach. They also must set an example for the flock in their lives.”¹⁰ 1 Peter 5:1-3 exhorts elders to shepherd the flock by “being examples”. Pastors are to lead their sheep by example. The only way to do that effectively is to lead yourself: “You cannot effectively lead others if you do not conscientiously lead yourself.”¹¹ This means that the pastor should be intentional in their self-discipline and spiritual life so that they can be a good example and leader to others.

One of the crucial aspects of leadership is recognizing your limitations. Paul Tripp notes, “recognizing God-ordained limits of a gift, time, energy, maturity is essential to leading a ministry community well.”¹² The shepherd must recognize that they are only a part of the body, they are neither the head nor the rest of the body. The pastor must delegate and use the gifts of the others in his flock.

While character and leadership is a crucial aspect of biblical eldership, Acts 6:4 places the primary role and emphases on the preaching of the Word and prayer. So yes, the priority should be the preaching of the Word, but the elders of a church must never forget that prayer is placed right beside it. Prayer was so important to the first century church that they delegated other responsibilities so that they could keep time for prayer. 

Above all the shepherd should focus on the Good Shepherd who gave us the example to follow. The pastor remains faithful in hopeful expectation of His return.

Appendix A

1 Timothy 3	Titus 1
above reproach (v.2)	above reproach (v.6)
the husband of one wife (v.2)	the husband of one wife (v.6)
temperate (v. 2)	self-controlled (v.8)
prudent (v. 2)	sensible (v.8)
respectable (v. 2)
hospitable (v.2)	hospitable (v. 8)
able to teach (v.2)	able both to exhort in sound doctrine and to refute those who contradict (v.9
not addicted to wine (v.3)	not addicted to wine (v. 7)
not pugnacious (v.3)	not pugnacious (v. 7)
gentle (v.3)	not fond of sordid gain (v. 7)
peaceable (v.3)	above reproach as God’s steward (v. 7
free from the love of money (v.3	having children who believe and are not accused of dissipation or rebellion (v. 6)
managing his household well (v.4)	not self-willed (v. 7)
having children under control with dignity (v.4)	not quick-tempered (v. 7)
not a new convert (v.6)	loving what is good (v.8)
good reputation outside the church (v. 7)	just (v.8)
	devout (v.8)

1. Gregg R. Allison, Sojourners and Strangers: The Doctrine of the Church (ed. John S. Feinberg; Foundations of Evangelical Theology Series; Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2012), 29–30. ↩︎
2. Ibid., 205. ↩︎
3. Rolland McCune, A Systematic Theology of Biblical Christianity: The Doctrines of Salvation, the Church, and Last Things (vol. 3; Allen Park, MI: Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary, 2010), 219–220. ↩︎
4. Ibid., 221-222. ↩︎
5. See Allison for more. Allison, 265. ↩︎
6. Ibid., 293. ↩︎
7. Ibid., 294. ↩︎
8. Ibid., 211. ↩︎
9.  presbýteros, comparative of présbys, means a. “older,” or simply “old,” with no negative connotations but rather a sense of venerability. Gerhard Kittel, Gerhard Friedrich, and Geoffrey William Bromiley, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, Abridged in One Volume (Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans, 1985), 931. ↩︎
10. Hansen, Collin, and Jonathan Leeman. Rediscover Church: Why the Body of Christ Is Essential. 9marks. Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2021, 129. ↩︎
11.  Wilson, Jared C. Gospel-Driven Ministry: An Introduction to the Calling and Work of a Pastor. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2021, 148. ↩︎
12. Tripp, Paul David. Lead: 12 Gospel Principles for Leadership in the Church. Crossway, Wheaton, IL: 2020, 70. ↩︎
13. MacArthur, John. The Master’s Plan for the Church. [Rev. ed.]. Chicago, IL: Moody Publishers, 2008, 214. ↩︎