The Bible refers to “elders” in three ways—village elders, synagogue elders, and church elders. Many New Testament scholars believe the biblical office of elder evolved from the role played by the elders of synagogues.
The New Testament uses four different Greek words for church leaders. The Greek word, diakonia, is translated as “deacon” in our English Bible. The other three words are episcopos, presbuteros, and poimen. These three words are translated as bishop/overseer, elder, and pastor/shepherd. The common interpretation among Southern Baptists is that all three words refer to the office of pastor, but they reflect three different functions of that office. Dr. Herschel Hobbs in his book, What Baptists Believe, writes, “So the three words—elder, bishop, and pastor—refer to the same office, but to different functions within that office: elder (counsel, guidance); bishop (overseer or administrator); pastor (shepherd to feed, guard, and tend).” (86) Dr. Tom Schreiner, Professor of New Testament at Southern Baptist Seminary, agrees, citing Dr. Ben Merkle, Professor of New Testament at Southeastern Baptist Seminary. Dr. Schreiner in his commentary on 1 Peter in the New American Commentary, shares that Ben Merkle wrote his Southern Seminary PhD dissertation on elders and concluded that the three words refer to the same office. Schreiner affirms this interpretation. The note in the Criswell Study Bible says, “The terms are all synonymous in that they refer to the same office.”
Why do these scholars all agree? They all cite 1 Peter 5:1-4 and Acts 20:17 and 28.
See 1 Peter 5:1-4 (ESV)
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 shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you;[b] not for shameful gain, but eagerly; 3 not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock. 4 And when the chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the unfading crown of glory.
Notice the words: “elder, shepherd,” and “oversight,” are used in the same paragraph (pericope).
Acts 20:17 (ESV)
Now from Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called the elders of the church to come to him.
Acts 20:28 (ESV)
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,[a] which he obtained with his own blood.
The truth to notice here is that the Apostle Paul referred to this group of church leaders as “elders” in verse 17 and as “overseers” in verse 28. Paul clearly used the terms interchangeably.
In my opinion, the most common type of church leadership in the New Testament church was several bi-vocational elders serving a house church (Acts 20:20; Philemon 2). A key verse in this regard is Acts 14:23.
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. (ESV)
For sure, we would like to have more information about the process that Paul and Barnabas used in “appointing” elders. Still, it is clear that they entrusted the care of the new churches to plural elders.
What were the responsibilities of the elders? John Hammett lists these in his book, Biblical Foundations for Baptist Churches. First, elders should preach and teach the Bible. Ephesians 4:11 refers to “pastor/teacher,” and 1 Timothy 3:2 instructs that a church overseer should be “able to teach.” Second, elders should do pastoral ministry. Paul mentioned this in Acts 20:28 when he exhorted the Ephesian elders to “shepherd” the church. This ministry involves comforting the sick and grieving, as well as counseling believers who are struggling. Third, the elders should lead the church. This means guiding the church to more effective ministry. A fourth responsibility is administration. The elders were responsible to see to the business affairs of the church. Hammett finally mentions a responsibility that is often overlooked, and that is to be a “good example” to the congregation and community.
Now, I used “elder” in the paragraphs above, but our readers should remember that I could have used “pastor” or “overseer” and been biblically correct.
SBC Voices readers, gird up your loins! In my next post I’ll write about “elder rule” and “elder leadership” in SBC churches today. You can argue the relative merits of elder rule as opposed to congregational rule. I’m hoping to learn from you all. I’ve never been a member of an elder-led church, so you can turn the tables and inform me.
Resources:
Criswell Study Bible When I want to know the traditional Southern Baptist view, I consult this study Bible.
John S. Hammett, Biblical Foundations for Baptist Churches (Kregel). Dr. Hammett has taught theology at Southeastern Baptist Seminary for many years.
Herschel H. Hobbs, What Baptists Believe (Broadman). Dr. Hobbs was the pastor at First Baptist Church in Oklahoma City for many years. Beyond that, he preached on the Baptist Hour radio broadcast for 30 years, served as President of the SBC, and chaired the SBC committee that revised the 1925 Baptist Statement of Faith and Message to become the 1963 version. He earned a PhD in New Testament from Southern Baptist Seminary, and he was “Mister Southern Baptist” when I was a young minister. This book is a commentary on the 1963 Statement of Faith and Message.
Stanton Norman, The Baptist Way (Broadman & Holman). Dr. Norman taught theology at New Orleans Baptist Seminary. He currently serves as president of Williams Baptist University in Arkansas.
