The Senior/Lead Pastor Myth

              The Senior/Lead Pastor Myth

Disclaimer: This is not meant to shame anyone who has been a blessing to their church or to say they are in sin because they want to be a senior/lead pastor. God can make good things happen within broken systems. Nevertheless, being a senior/lead pastor has many consequences: burnout, financial problems, relational strain,etc.


If you ever walk into a church today, one of your biggest questions would be who is the Pastor (referring to the one man who preaches every Sunday)? Today, the pastor office is a multi-functional role. You have the associate pastor, head of security pastor, missionary pastor, audio and video pastor, and parking lot pastor. This is just to name a few. My issue is not so much that there are multiple pastors. My issue is that the smaller, lower ranked pastors are reporting to the senior/lead pastor. Even if there is no title of senior/lead pastor for a church, the congregation should not be able to point to one person as the preaching pastor and say they are the leader. All the elders/deacons should be teaching in rotation to avoid this concern.


What would shock many is that the senior/ lead pastor cannot be biblically supported in the text. Scripture only teachers a plurality of elders/deacons consisting of both men and women. Not one having more power than the other. The modern day pastor model is a carry over (late 1500s to early 1600s) from the Reformation to counter the Priests of the Catholic Church. The ironic part is that the Protestants have their own version of mini popes in their very own churches. Below, I will share various lines of evidence on how scripture only teaches that churches should only have a plurality of elders/deacons.


Philippians 1:1 English Standard Version Greeting 1 Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons


 


Titus 1:5-7 5 This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you— 6 if anyone is above reproach, the husband of one wife, and his children are believers and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination. 7 For an overseer, as God's steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain


 


1 Corinthians 1:2 English Standard Version 2 To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours.


 


2 Corinthians 1:1 English Standard Version Greeting 1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, To the church of God that is at Corinth, with all the saints who are in the whole of Achaia


 


James 5:14 English Standard Version 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.


 


1 Timothy 5:17 English Standard Version 17 Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.


 


1 Timothy 4:14 English Standard Version 14 Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you. See also 1 Timothy 5:22.


 


Acts 14:23 English Standard Version 23 And when they had appointed elders for them in every church, with prayer and fasting they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed.


 


Acts 20:17 17 Now from Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called the elders of the church to come to him


 


Acts 20:28 English Standard Version 28 Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.


 Timothy and Titus are never called a pastor/elder-overseer/deacon. They are church planters or missionaries or ecclesiastical representatives. Timothy was only called an evangelist in 2 Timothy 4:5.

 


The Angels of Revelation can be messengers delivering and reading the letters aloud to the congregations. To say their pastors is an assumption.

 


The ecclesiology of the First Century Church is not clear or well defined in its various roles. There is a lot of overlap in duties and responsibilities. Elders and overseers are interchangeable, but never pastor. It is difficult to say with complete confidence, which duties were exclusive.

 


Only Peter and John are called Elders, not Paul and other Apostles. It's a massive assumption to say all the apostles were elders. See 1 Peter 5:1, 2 John 1:1, 3 John 1:1,

 


1 Peter 5:1 English Standard Version 5 So I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, as well as a partaker in the glory that is going to be revealed.


 


2 John 1 English Standard Version Greeting 1 The elder to the elect lady and her children, whom I love in truth, and not only I, but also all who know the truth.


 


3 John 1 English Standard Version Greeting 1 The elder to the beloved Gaius, whom I love in truth.


The plural form “pastors” is ONLY USED ONE TIME in Ephesians 4:11-12!! The gift is never defined in scripture. The Greek word is poimen. Translators try to make the word “pastor” appear to be interchangeable with "shepherd." However, most of its usage is about Jesus-the chief shepherd (Hebrews 13:20; 1 Peter 2:25) leading his people as figurative sheep or literal shepherds with literal sheep. Never about a single man leading a large congregation/assembly every Sunday. If anything, shepherding would be no greater than the rest of the spiritual gifts outlined in Ephesians 4:11-12. The chief shepherd is only Jesus . There is no exegetical support for a lead pastor or senior pastor.


For more information, check out Frank Viola 's book "Pagan Christianity."


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