How Should the Church Function?

There are many fallacies when it comes to church polity; the operational and governance structure of a church or denomination-also denoting the ministerial structure of the church and the authority relationships thereof. In fact, it could be said that the almost every concept of church polity in the modern church is based on false teachings.

The Catholic Church believes that all catholic churches fall under their authority and conversely the authority of the Pope. There begat the hierarchy that ensued flowing from Christ to the Pope to the rest of the authoritative collection. Each subsequent leader is ordained as a spokesperson for the Church, but only the Pope is a spokesperson for God.

There is no Biblical evidence that shows this structure existed for the early church. The closest approximation to this design would be during the Jerusalem Council as seen in Acts 15, but it falls far short of initiating a hierarchy in the church or as a denomination. In this setting, the church in Antioch (an independent body of Christ) sent Paul and Barnabas to consult with the apostles and elders in Jerusalem. It says that when they entered Jerusalem the church welcomed them. This was not an indication of the universal church, but rather of the local church in Jerusalem. The church in Jerusalem was not trying to maintain authority over the church in Antioch, but rather to be a support in helping to determine God's will. Some protestant denominations follow a similar hierarchal church polity as the Catholic Church.

Many protestant denominations believe that each member should get a say in how the church functions and have thus created a democratic or majority rules business method. Perhaps this view came about precisely because many of the protestant denominations were formed or in the process of forming during a time when many in the world were seeking independence. These denominations are often referred to as free churches because they purposely sought to remain free from state control.

In these free denominations the churches are autonomous as seen in Acts 15. They however defer in part because they believe each member should have a vote in the function, direction, and leadership of the church. This too is not found in scripture.

Then how should a church function? God's Word teaches us that Christ is the head of the church (Colossians 1:18) and that He has placed pastors as shepherds and overseers of the church (1 Peter 5:2). These churches should work together for the purpose of building the Kingdom of God, but they should function autonomously as seen in Acts 15.

This is only part of the equation, because many churches have chosen to be a pastor-led church and still miss the mark. Notice in 1 Peter 5:1 that Peter, as an elder, is encouraging the elders of the church. This was not a single pastor-led church. In fact, the most common design for a church in the New Testament was one in which there were multiple pastors.

To better grasp this design, you must first understand that translators for the Bible have used multiple words in English that mean the same thing in Greek. The words that we have translated as pastor/elder/bishop are all synonymous with shepherd (or under shepherd if you want to show the distinction between Jesus as the chief Shepherd). When you read in Acts 15 that Paul and Barnabas met with the elders in Jerusalem they are referring to the pastors of the Jerusalem church.

Most preachers know that these words are interchangeable, but they refuse to recognize this when it comes to church polity because they do not want to share authority with other pastors in the church. That is why many churches have a senior pastor and associate pastors. This distinction is contrary to the Biblical design as seen in the New Testament. Some will argue that James was clearly the senior elder in the Jerusalem church. It is possible that James was highly regarded as the brother of Jesus and was therefore shown greater respect by the gathered leaders, but there is no Biblical evidence that he was the senior elder.

James called himself a slave to God and to the Lord Jesus Christ. James taught against the sin of favoritism. Yet James was obviously highly regarded by these men because when he stood to speak after listening to Paul and Barnabas, and when he shared the first-hand testimony of Simon and the teachings of the prophets as evidence for his thoughts, the entire group followed his counsel.

Too many churches have minimized the calling of pastors who serve in so-called associate pastor roles. Some churches refuse to even recognize that they are pastors and insist on calling them ministers while reserving the term pastor for the guy that preaches each week. In 1 Timothy 3, Paul never even mentions the ability to preach as a qualification to be a pastor (it does say he should be an able teacher). Be careful if your tradition has been built by exalting one leader above all of the other elders. This was not the design given to us by God. 

Pastors are called out by God, set apart from others who minister. Pastors are given the authority to lead the church in His stead. And with great authority comes great responsibility. God has guidelines and qualifications for someone who is to be a pastor (1 Timothy 3:1-7). Elders that have proven themselves to be good leaders should be considered worthy of an ample honorarium (1 Timothy 5:17). This division of paid and non-paid elders is where we see the basis for an elder-led church with pastoral leaders that oversee the workings of the church through the support of the elders.

Why is it so difficult for most churches to function in the manner that is depicted in the Bible? Because many Christians falsely believe that they have a choice in how the church functions. Many Christians believe that they must elect one person to be in charge, and because they do not trust people they also believe that they must limit that persons authority by dictating what they believe God wants the church to do and how they expect the pastor to move the church in that direction. Because many Christians have not studied God's Word sufficiently to understand that the church was not designed to be run by a single pastor, but in cooperation with several pastors through the assistance of elders and the body of Christ.

Visit a catholic church and you will notice that there exists two pulpits on the platform or dais. The taller platform is for the priest and the shorter platform is for the worship leader. This tradition was just the beginning of a centuries old fallacy that leadership of the worship pastor was not as important as the leadership of the senior pastor. Many protestant churches did away with using multiple pulpits, but maintained the separation of authority with their staff. Many churches did not even consider the worship leader as a pastor. He was a song leader, a choir director, a worship leader, but not a pastor.

This attitude started to shift back to a biblical standpoint when churches realized that calling out individuals to serve as leaders in their church should require certain guidelines or qualifications. That is why when I surrendered to ministry I was ordained and licensed into full-time ministry as a pastor. My license does not say I am a worship pastor or a youth pastor or a children's pastor or an education pastor or an administrative pastor, although I have done all of those positions in the past 32 years. My ordination letter does not say that the church ordained me to be an associate pastor. From the moment I accepted God's calling and the church affirmed that calling, I have been a pastor.

When I have been called to various churches I was given a job description that detailed which areas the church wanted me to lead and serve. These man-made guidelines usually included in the last sentence, "and any other duties as assigned by the senior pastor." This was so that I understood that I was not the final authority in their structure. I had to follow the leadership of another man. These churches determined that this man had a higher calling by God or, in at the very least, that they recognized him as the person in charge of the other ministers. This structure is contrary to God's Word and is one of the reasons that many churches struggle.

This design is not fair to the senior pastor as it places too many responsibilities on him and in turn makes him the target for all that is wrong with the church. It is not fair to the associate pastors because it relegates them to a lower-class citizenry among elders. It is not fair to the church because it keeps them from following God's design for the church. God's design was one of unity, freedom, and service. Man's design is one of disunity, encumbrance, and duties. God's design has Him in charge with the elders as joint overseers of the church. Man's design has the members in charge with employees to do their bidding.

If you want to see your church thrive, stop following man's designs and start following God's designs.