The Role and Gift of Pastor

Pastor is Spiritual Gift and mentioned only once in Scripture.

And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, Eph 4:11

Definition: Pastor-(Greek- poime_n): a shepherd

The gift of Pastor differs from the office of the elder (overseer) in that it is a gift and not a position in the church. We often intermix or combine the two but this is in error.

As stated earlier, a Pastor can be an elder and an elder can have the gift of Pastor but it is not necessarily so.

It is important to make a distinction between the two. An elder has oversight. A pastor shepherds. An elder is a watchman while a Pastor could best be described as one who disciples.

The Pastor does not need to meet the qualifications of the elder.

Paul left Titus in Crete for the purpose of appointing elders but you never read anywhere in Scripture where Paul instructs one to appoint a Pastor. A church’s success is not dependent upon the Pastor.

By definition, the pastor is a shepherd. The early shepherds and those that are in Israel today (Bedouin), had a flock of not more than 20. Theological Dictionary of the New Testament by Gerhard Kittel, Ronald E. Pitkin

We see the roll of shepherd illustrated in the Psalms; the early shepherds knew their sheep. They cared for each, individually. In Ps 23, it says “Thou hast anointed my head with oil”. The picture is of individual personal care. The shepherd would put oil on the sheep to help heal any wounds that were inflicted while moving through brush. Oil, put on ticks, imbedded in the skin, would cause them to pull out of their host. These irritants, cuts and ticks, impeded the sheep’s ability to foraging and ruminate.

The picture is of a Believer, who tries to take in the Word and meditate on it. The shepherd, who knows his sheep, will look at the things in the sheep’s life that impedes this process and help him through the “irritants”.

Today, we don’t see the pastor taking this role, that of a shepherd, one who knows his sheep, who anoints them, individually. Having a flock of 20 provided for personal attention and the shepherd could not become inflated due to the size of his flock.

After years of watching the church, it is evident that the original plan of God has been abandoned.

Next:  Should the Pastor be a paid position?