Are Pastors REALLY Pastors?

What do you call the guy who does all the preaching for the church...you know, the one that is paid by the church, lives in a "parsonage" and presides over nearly every church function? Some may call him "Preacher," others may call him "Reverend" but perhaps the most common title given to this man in the denominational world is "Pastor." It is often assumed that all preachers are pastors, that if a man is the preacher, then he is THE pastor. I've had many people assume that because I preach for a living, I must be a pastor.

But is this right?

This may appear to be a small matter to you, something not worth arguing over. What's the big deal, right? It's just a title. What's the harm in it? The harm in it, I believe, is that we're misusing a Bible term. Some people take the word baptism (which means immersion) and apply it to sprinkling and pouring. They're misusing a Bible term to support an unscriptural practice. Others misapply the term priest to a limited order of male officers in the Catholic church, when in reality the term priest is applied to all Christians according to God's word (1 Pet. 2:5). The same is true with the word pastor. It is a biblical term, but religious folks today often misuse it and we ought to use Bible terms in biblical ways. Isn't that what God would want us to do?

Okay, so what does the word pastor really mean in the Bible? Does God use this term in His word to refer to any man who preaches for a local congregation? The answer is "no." The term is not used to identify those who are preachers, but rather to identify those who oversee or shepherd the local church.

Let's begin in Ephesians 4:11. Oddly enough, this is the ONLY place that the word pastor is found in the New Testament. The Greek word here is poimen which means "a herdsmen, especially a shepherd." Poimen is used in other places in the New Testament, and it is always translated as shepherd except here in Ephesians 4:11. Jesus is the Chief Shepherd (poimen) according to 1 Peter 2:25, and of course Jesus used this term in many of His parables.

So a pastor is a shepherd.

Also notice in Ephesians 4:11 that a distinction is made between evangelists, pastors and teachers. Many assume today that evangelists (preachers) are pastors, but Paul clearly indicates that they are distinct roles.

The fact that the word pastor is only used in Ephesians 4:11 gives us difficulty in applying it to any specific role in the local church. All we know, according to the text, is that a pastor is someone who pastors, or shepherds the local church. Is a preacher given this work? Is it the preacher's job, according to God's word, to oversee the church? Let's now go to Acts 20...

In Acts 20:17, Paul "sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church." When they came to him, he began to warm them of the trials that were going to come upon them. Then he reminds them of their duties as elders. Paul told them in verse 28, "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."

There are three terms here that are used interchangeably: elders, overseer and shepherd. The word elder is from the Greek word presbuteros. Thayer's says of this term, "among the Christians, those who presided over the assemblies (or churches) The NT uses the term bishop, elders, and presbyters interchangeably." The word overseer is from the Greek word episkopos which, according to Thayer's means, "the superintendent, elder, or overseer of a Christian church." The word that I'd really like for you to notice here is shepherd which is the Greek word poimaino. Poimaino is obviously related to the Greek word poimen (pastor, Eph. 4:11). So, basically Paul is telling the elders or overseers that they are to shepherd, or pastor, the church of God. So who are the real pastors of the church? Not the preachers, but the elders.

But let us take this a step further. Who are the elders? According to 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9 the elders (referred to as bishops in 1 Tim. 3:1) are men who meet certain qualifications. Elders are to be married men who have faithful children. They are to have a certain kind of character and they are to be capable of recognizing and rebuking error. So let me ask you this question: can a young, unmarried man serve as an elder? What about a man who has no children? The answer to both questions is "no!" In order for a man to serve as an elder, he MUST meet these biblical qualifications and be appointed by the church to serve in such a capacity. Then and only then can he be rightly deemed an elder, bishop or pastor.

But let's take it a step further. Does the Bible authorize the "one-man pastor system?" In other words, is it scriptural for ONE man to serve as THE PASTOR of the church. Once again, the answer is "no." In every place where elders are mentioned, there is always a plurality of men who served as the elders of the church (Ac. 14:23; 20:17; Titus 1:5).

So let's recap.

1. The words preacher and pastor are not interchangeable.
2. The elders are the true pastors of the church.
3. A man must meet certain qualifications to serve as an elder.
4. There is no scriptural authority for the one-man pastor system.

Is it possible for a preacher to be a pastor? Sure, if he meets the qualifications and is appointed along with other man to pastor the church. But it is absolutely unscriptural to assume that the preacher is THE PASTOR of the church. Folks, let's use Bible terms the way God intended for them to be used.