Considering the history of Christendom, we should not be surprised many people regard pastors, bishops and presbyters as describing different individuals. And yet, a Wednesday afternoon Bible study in a retirement facility caught me off guard. A group of seniors from a variety of church traditions were amazed at what the Bible taught.
On this particular day as we worked through 1 Timothy 3, wonder, excitement and surprise broke out on everyone’s face. They saw for the first time how the New Testament uses elder, shepherd and overseer interchangeably for the same church function.
For example, in Acts 20:17 Paul requested the elders (presbyters) of Ephesus to meet with him. When speaking with them he identified them as overseers (bishops) and pastors (shepherds) of the church of God (Acts 20:28).
In similar fashion 1 Peter 5:1 provides instruction to elders, whom we learn are to shepherd God’s flock and be overseers (1 Peter 5:2). Similarly, Paul equates elders and overseers (Titus 1:5-6).
So why three different designations for the same person? It is actually quite wonderful. These terms of leadership originate from three different societal backgrounds. Everyone could relate to at least one, if not more of these leadership metaphors.
Let’s start with elders. We are quite familiar with the language of the elders sitting in the city gate (Deuteronomy 25:7), the elders of Israel (Exodus 3:16) or elders being listed among those influential leaders opposed to Jesus (Matthew 21:23). In a society shaped by male leadership, elders were those respected older men, who by their experience and wisdom had attained social influence.
When it comes to rural leadership, there are not many metaphors native to the countryside. However, the picture of a shepherd leading a flock and caring for them certainly jumps forth. Shepherds or pastors provide a rich tapestry of leadership evoking care, protection and guiding wisdom.
Long before it became a church term, the Greeks described as “onlookers” (episkopoi) those who graciously watched over and protected others. This largely urban term came to be extended to other arenas such as overseeing finances or a shipment of goods. Eventually the “onlooker” or overseer came to designate the office of those assigned with the responsibility of caring for someone or something. Within the Greco-Roman urban church context, describing someone as an overseer aptly communicated someone responsible for guarding and seeking the church’s well being.
In a religious community arising out of a variety of backgrounds, it was only natural for a variety of descriptive terms to designate those protective and caring older men who pastored and oversaw the church’s well being.
I feel we do congregants a disfavor whenever we use biblical terms in unbiblical ways. When those in the pew hear biblical words, they ought to be able to expect our usage to reflect biblical meanings, not merely societal usage.
Yet such is not always the case, as when someone distinguishes between a pastor and a group of elders. Likewise it occurs if a preacher were to rationalize, "Since I’m leading this congregation I am a pastor, even though I am not an elder."
While congregants ought to expect they are hearing biblical words used in biblical ways, one group of seniors discovered their churches had not provided them with this blessing.
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